another ballad called the libertines lampoone, or, the curvets of conscience to the tune of thomas varner, or 60 / written by the authour of the geneva ballad. butler, samuel, 1612-1680. 1674 approx. 5 kb of xml-encoded text transcribed from 1 1-bit group-iv tiff page image. text creation partnership, ann arbor, mi ; oxford (uk) : 2003-01 (eebo-tcp phase 1). a30529 wing b601 estc r30700 11403485 ocm 11403485 47726 this keyboarded and encoded edition of the work described above is co-owned by the institutions providing financial support to the early english books online text creation partnership. this phase i text is available for reuse, according to the terms of creative commons 0 1.0 universal . the text can be copied, modified, distributed and performed, even for commercial purposes, all without asking permission. early english books online. (eebo-tcp ; phase 1, no. a30529) transcribed from: (early english books online ; image set 47726) images scanned from microfilm: (early english books, 1641-1700 ; 1453:58 or 21241:115) another ballad called the libertines lampoone, or, the curvets of conscience to the tune of thomas varner, or 60 / written by the authour of the geneva ballad. butler, samuel, 1612-1680. 1 broadside. printed for f.k. and edward thomas, and are to be sold at his shop ..., london : 1674. geneva ballad "attributed to samuel butler"--nuc pre-1956 imprints. reproductions of originals in chetham's library and british library. identified as b601 in reel guide; in wing (cd-rom, 1996) as a3249. created by converting tcp files to tei p5 using tcp2tei.xsl, tei @ oxford. re-processed by university of nebraska-lincoln and northwestern, with changes to facilitate morpho-syntactic tagging. gap elements of known extent have been transformed into placeholder characters or elements to simplify the filling in of gaps by user contributors. eebo-tcp is a partnership between the universities of michigan and oxford and the publisher proquest to create accurately transcribed and encoded texts based on the image sets published by proquest via their early english books online (eebo) database (http://eebo.chadwyck.com). the general aim of eebo-tcp is to encode one copy (usually the first edition) of every monographic english-language title published between 1473 and 1700 available in eebo. eebo-tcp aimed to produce large quantities of textual data within the usual project restraints of time and funding, and therefore chose to create diplomatic transcriptions (as opposed to critical editions) with light-touch, mainly structural encoding based on the text encoding initiative (http://www.tei-c.org). the eebo-tcp project was divided into two phases. the 25,363 texts created during phase 1 of the project have been released into the public domain as of 1 january 2015. anyone can now take and use these texts for their own purposes, but we respectfully request that due credit and attribution is given to their original source. users should be aware of the process of creating the tcp texts, and therefore of any assumptions that can be made about the data. text selection was based on the new cambridge bibliography of english literature (ncbel). if an author (or for an anonymous work, the title) appears in ncbel, then their works are eligible for inclusion. selection was intended to range over a wide variety of subject areas, to reflect the true nature of the print record of the period. in general, first editions of a works in english were prioritized, although there are a number of works in other languages, notably latin and welsh, included and sometimes a second or later edition of a work was chosen if there was a compelling reason to do so. image sets were sent to external keying companies for transcription and basic encoding. quality assurance was then carried out by editorial teams in oxford and michigan. 5% (or 5 pages, whichever is the greater) of each text was proofread for accuracy and those which did not meet qa standards were returned to the keyers to be redone. after proofreading, the encoding was enhanced and/or corrected and characters marked as illegible were corrected where possible up to a limit of 100 instances per text. any remaining illegibles were encoded as <gap>s. understanding these processes should make clear that, while the overall quality of tcp data is very good, some errors will remain and some readable characters will be marked as illegible. users should bear in mind that in all likelihood such instances will never have been looked at by a tcp editor. the texts were encoded and linked to page images in accordance with level 4 of the tei in libraries guidelines. copies of the texts have been issued variously as sgml (tcp schema; ascii text with mnemonic sdata character entities); displayable xml (tcp schema; characters represented either as utf-8 unicode or text strings within braces); or lossless xml (tei p5, characters represented either as utf-8 unicode or tei g elements). keying and markup guidelines are available at the text creation partnership web site . eng political ballads and songs -england. conscience. 2002-05 tcp assigned for keying and markup 2002-06 apex covantage keyed and coded from proquest page images 2002-07 mona logarbo sampled and proofread 2002-07 mona logarbo text and markup reviewed and edited 2002-08 pfs batch review (qc) and xml conversion another ballad : called the libertines lampoone : or , the curvets of conscience . to the tune of , thomas venner , or 60. written by the authour of the geneva ballad as i examin'd my conscience , all by my self ; my head was full of nonsence : after seven times turning , worse then a burning , i found she was a wayward elf. ceremonious oaths , and humane laws offend her , she 's constant as a weather-cock , and as a milstone tender ; e'ne such another protestant , as the old witch of ender . halloo my conscience whither wilt thou go . treason she says is religion , sacriledge zeal ; a crow she calls a pidgeon : she tells you surther , plundering and murther , do service to the common-weal . justice she esteemeth to be a very slow thing , power ecclesiastick , she reckons as a low thing , and for an act of parliament she counts it next to nothing ; halloo my conscience , &c. a nonconformist to please her , lately declar'd : she 's more a prince then caesar ; say what she will say , these fellows still say , she must and ought to be heard . though mallice can corrupt her , and avarice can taint her , pride can blow her up , and hypocrisie can paint her , and when truth cryes her down sedition can saint her . halloo my conscience , &c. changes she can ring a hundred more then are good , else it might be wondred , in the mutations , of these three nations how upon her legs she hath stood . for under the old rumpers she was enforc'd to truckle , cromwel and his janisaries made her glad to buckle , and when the king came in , she got the trick to s●●ckle . halloo my conscience , &c. when smec and the independent began to clash : she could foresee the end on 't ; and as soon as the day first brake at breda , she kept her self out of the lash . although of the surplice she never had a rag on , of all her nimble tricks , this she hath cause to brag on , she pitcht upon her feet when bell fought with the dragon halloo my , &c. quite from bending and bowing , she is declin'd : to theeing , and to thouing , sects and perswasions all modes and fashions , of every sort and kind . she was a brownist lately , an anabaptist newly , and then she fell to plainly , verily and truly : but errors have no end , and factions want a thule . halloo my , &c. such is her intricate winding no man can trace , she loaths to hear of binding : she 's free and willing , although it be by killing to run the fanatick race . he that can restrain her , may fix the stars that wander , cure the fits of jealousie , or gag the mouth of slander : sail without a rudder , and rectifie meander . halloo my , &c. drunk with the doctrine of tub men see how she reels , from men of law to club-men , this way and that way , no man knows what way , unsteadfast as phaetons wheels : in faith none more fervent , in charity none colder , as fiery as bucephalus , and then blind byard bolder : she 's too untame for earth , and none but hell can hold her . i , i , 't is thither , thither , she may go . london , printed for f. k. and edward thomas , and are to be sold at his shop at the adam and eve in little brittain , 1674. another ballad: called the libertines lampoone: or, the curvets of conscience. to the tune of, thomas venner, or 60. / written by the authour of the geneva ballad. butler, samuel, 1612-1680. 1674 approx. 5 kb of xml-encoded text transcribed from 1 1-bit group-iv tiff page image. text creation partnership, ann arbor, mi ; oxford (uk) : 2009-10 (eebo-tcp phase 1). b01384 11403485 wing a3249 interim tract supplement guide c.20.f.4[115] estc r30700 99889678 ocm99889678 182784 this keyboarded and encoded edition of the work described above is co-owned by the institutions providing financial support to the early english books online text creation partnership. this phase i text is available for reuse, according to the terms of creative commons 0 1.0 universal . the text can be copied, modified, distributed and performed, even for commercial purposes, all without asking permission. early english books online. (eebo-tcp ; phase 1, no. b01384) transcribed from: (early english books online ; image set 182784) images scanned from microfilm: (early english books; tract supplement ; a4:2[116]) another ballad: called the libertines lampoone: or, the curvets of conscience. to the tune of, thomas venner, or 60. / written by the authour of the geneva ballad. butler, samuel, 1612-1680. 1 sheet ([1] p.). printed for f.k. and edward thomas, and are to be sold at his shop at the adam [and eve in little-brittain], london : 1674. geneva ballad attributed to samuel butler by wing. verse: "as i examin'd my conscience ..." imperfect: cropped at foot with partial loss of imprint. reproduction of original in the british library. created by converting tcp files to tei p5 using tcp2tei.xsl, tei @ oxford. re-processed by university of nebraska-lincoln and northwestern, with changes to facilitate morpho-syntactic tagging. gap elements of known extent have been transformed into placeholder characters or elements to simplify the filling in of gaps by user contributors. eebo-tcp is a partnership between the universities of michigan and oxford and the publisher proquest to create accurately transcribed and encoded texts based on the image sets published by proquest via their early english books online (eebo) database (http://eebo.chadwyck.com). the general aim of eebo-tcp is to encode one copy (usually the first edition) of every monographic english-language title published between 1473 and 1700 available in eebo. eebo-tcp aimed to produce large quantities of textual data within the usual project restraints of time and funding, and therefore chose to create diplomatic transcriptions (as opposed to critical editions) with light-touch, mainly structural encoding based on the text encoding initiative (http://www.tei-c.org). the eebo-tcp project was divided into two phases. the 25,363 texts created during phase 1 of the project have been released into the public domain as of 1 january 2015. anyone can now take and use these texts for their own purposes, but we respectfully request that due credit and attribution is given to their original source. users should be aware of the process of creating the tcp texts, and therefore of any assumptions that can be made about the data. text selection was based on the new cambridge bibliography of english literature (ncbel). if an author (or for an anonymous work, the title) appears in ncbel, then their works are eligible for inclusion. selection was intended to range over a wide variety of subject areas, to reflect the true nature of the print record of the period. in general, first editions of a works in english were prioritized, although there are a number of works in other languages, notably latin and welsh, included and sometimes a second or later edition of a work was chosen if there was a compelling reason to do so. image sets were sent to external keying companies for transcription and basic encoding. quality assurance was then carried out by editorial teams in oxford and michigan. 5% (or 5 pages, whichever is the greater) of each text was proofread for accuracy and those which did not meet qa standards were returned to the keyers to be redone. after proofreading, the encoding was enhanced and/or corrected and characters marked as illegible were corrected where possible up to a limit of 100 instances per text. any remaining illegibles were encoded as <gap>s. understanding these processes should make clear that, while the overall quality of tcp data is very good, some errors will remain and some readable characters will be marked as illegible. users should bear in mind that in all likelihood such instances will never have been looked at by a tcp editor. the texts were encoded and linked to page images in accordance with level 4 of the tei in libraries guidelines. copies of the texts have been issued variously as sgml (tcp schema; ascii text with mnemonic sdata character entities); displayable xml (tcp schema; characters represented either as utf-8 unicode or text strings within braces); or lossless xml (tei p5, characters represented either as utf-8 unicode or tei g elements). keying and markup guidelines are available at the text creation partnership web site . eng political ballads and songs -england -early works to 1800. conscience -early works to 1800. ballads, english -17th century. 2008-06 tcp assigned for keying and markup 2008-09 spi global keyed and coded from proquest page images 2008-11 john pas sampled and proofread 2008-11 john pas text and markup reviewed and edited 2009-02 pfs batch review (qc) and xml conversion another ballad : called the libertines lampoone : or , the curvets of conscience . to the tune of , thomas venner , or 60. written by the authour of the geneva ballad as i examin'd my conscience , all by my self ; my head was full of nonsence : after seven times turning , worse then a burning , i found she was a way ward elf. ceremonious oaths , and humane laws offend her , she 's constant as a weather-cock , and as a milstone tender ; e'ne such another protestant , as the old witch of ender . halloo my conscience whither wilt thou go . treason she says is religion , sacriledge zeal ; a crow she calls a pidgeon : she tells you further , plundering and murther , do service to the common-weal . justice she esteemeth to be a very slow thing , power ecclesiastick , she reckons as a low thing , and for an act of parliament she counts it next to nothing ; halloo my conscience , &c. a nonconformist to please her , lately declar'd : she 's more a prince then caesar ; say what she will say , these fellows still say , she must and ought to be heard . though mallice can corrupt her , and avaric● can taint her , pride can blow her up , and hypocrisi can paint her , and when truth cryes her down sedition can saint her . halloo my conscience , &c. changes she can ring a hundred more then are good , else it might be wondred , in the mutations , of these three nations how upon her legs she hath stood . for under the old rumpers she was enfore'd to truckle , cromwel and his janisaries made her glad to buckle , and when the king came in , she got the trick to smuckle , halloo my conscience , &c. when smec and the independant began to clash : she could foresee the end on 't ; and as soon as the day first brake at breda , she kept her self out of the lash . although of the surplice she never had a rag on , of all her nimble tricks , this she hath cause to brag on , she pitcht upon her feet when bell fought with the dragon halloo my , &c. quite from bending and bowing , she is declin'd : to theeing , and to thouing , sects and perswasions all modes and fashions , of every sort and kind . she was a brownist lately , an anabaptist newly , and then she fell to plainly , verily and truly : but errors have no end , and factions want a thule . halloo my , &c. such is her intricate winding no man can trace , she loaths to hear of binding : she 's free and willing , although it be by killing to run the fanatick race . he that can restrain her , may fix the stars that wander , cure the sits of jealousie , or gag the mouth of slander : sail without a rudder , and rectifie meander . halloo my , &c. drunk with the doctrine of tub●men see how she reels , from men of law to club-men , this way and that way , no man knows what way , unsteadfast as phaetons wheels : in faith none more fervent , in charity none colder , as fiery as bucephalus , and then blind byard bolder : she 's too untame for earth , and none but hell can hold her . i , i , 't is thither , thither , she may go . london , printed for e. k. and edward thomas , and are to be sold at his shop at the adam the heavenly guide to true peace of conscience wherein is observed in a most plaine and comfortable manner, 1. what conscience is. 2. what a miserable thing an evill conscience is. 3. what an happinesse a good conscience is. 4. how the estate of conscience is truly discerned. 5. the meanes to procure a good conscience. by h.v.v.i. walker, henry, ironmonger. this text is an enriched version of the tcp digital transcription a67215 of text r219913 in the english short title catalog (wing w376b). textual changes and metadata enrichments aim at making the text more computationally tractable, easier to read, and suitable for network-based collaborative curation by amateur and professional end users from many walks of life. the text has been tokenized and linguistically annotated with morphadorner. the annotation includes standard spellings that support the display of a text in a standardized format that preserves archaic forms ('loveth', 'seekest'). textual changes aim at restoring the text the author or stationer meant to publish. this text has not been fully proofread approx. 13 kb of xml-encoded text transcribed from 5 1-bit group-iv tiff page images. earlyprint project evanston,il, notre dame, in, st. louis, mo 2017 a67215 wing w376b estc r219913 99831360 99831360 35823 this keyboarded and encoded edition of the work described above is co-owned by the institutions providing financial support to the early english books online text creation partnership. this phase i text is available for reuse, according to the terms of creative commons 0 1.0 universal . the text can be copied, modified, distributed and performed, even for commercial purposes, all without asking permission. early english books online. (eebo-tcp ; phase 1, no. a67215) transcribed from: (early english books online ; image set 35823) images scanned from microfilm: (early english books, 1641-1700 ; 2119:02) the heavenly guide to true peace of conscience wherein is observed in a most plaine and comfortable manner, 1. what conscience is. 2. what a miserable thing an evill conscience is. 3. what an happinesse a good conscience is. 4. how the estate of conscience is truly discerned. 5. the meanes to procure a good conscience. by h.v.v.i. walker, henry, ironmonger. [2], 6, [2] p. by tho. harper, printed at london : 1641. h.v.v.i. = henry walker, ironmonger. the words "1. what .. conscience." are gathered by a left brace on the title page. caption title on p. [1] (2nd sequence): the report of the bishop of canterburies dreame, for an advertisment to all proud lordly, persecuting, unpreaching, oppressing, tyrannizing prelates, who suppresse the preaching and progresse of the gospell. reproduction of the original in the british library. eng laud, william, 1573-1645 -controversial literature -early works to 1800. conscience -religious aspects -early works to 1800. a67215 r219913 (wing w376b). civilwar no the heavenly guide to true peace of conscience. wherein is observed in a most plaine and comfortable manner, 1. what conscience is. 2. what walker, henry, ironmonger 1641 2388 1 0 0 0 0 0 4 b the rate of 4 defects per 10,000 words puts this text in the b category of texts with fewer than 10 defects per 10,000 words. 2003-07 tcp assigned for keying and markup 2003-09 apex covantage keyed and coded from proquest page images 2004-09 olivia bottum sampled and proofread 2004-09 olivia bottum text and markup reviewed and edited 2004-10 pfs batch review (qc) and xml conversion the heavenly gvide to trve peace of conscience . wherein is observed in a most plaine and comfortable manner , 1. what conscience is . 2. what a miserable thing an evill conscience is . 3. what an happinesse a good conscience is . 4. how the estate of conscience is truly discerned . 5. the meanes to procure a good conscience . by h. v. v. i. 1 pet. 3. 21. the like figure whereunto , even baptisme , doth also now save us , ( not the putting away of the filth of the flesh ) but the answer of a good conscience towards god , by the resurrection of iesus christ . printed at london by tho. harper . 1641. the heavenly guide to the true peace of conscience . i. what conscience is . conscience is the act of a reasonable creature , apprehending the revealed will of god , takes notice of his owne actions , and compasses it with the rule of gods word , and so passeth sentence upon himselfe . 1. i say , conscience is the act of a reasonable creature ; not of a beast , or any creature save onely such who are endued with reason ; because creatures without reason are not capable to serve god in any other way then they doe . in which service , notwithstanding the evils they are incident unto , doe yet serve god in their kinde : but man , who is a reasonable creature , hath a conscience , which by sin is defiled , and being purged by the blood of christ , is brought by the eternall spirit , from dead workes to serve the living god . conscience doth exceedingly raise up the joyes both of saints and angels in heaven , and increaseth the horror of the divels and damned in hell . 2 conscience is an act of apprehending the revealed will of god : it is not of the apprehension of mans will : it is not having an eye to profit , or pleasure , or favour ; no , conscience is an act proceeding from the revealed will of god , which being fully comforted with the assurance of the pardon of sin from god , is fully satisfied . we cannot begin to looke into the conscience , till we look up to god . 3. conscience takes notice of a mans owne actions . it is not the applause which others give a man ; it is not the commendations of companions , it is not any thing taken upon trust from men : but the taking notice of a mans owne actions , bearing witnesse in the holy ghost . this ariseth from conscience . 4. conscience compares a mans actions with the rule of gods word ; to looke how others live , to have an eye to mans esteeme , to looke no further then outward carnall respects : this ariseth not from conscience . but the renouncing even the secrets of dishonesty , by bringing of the conscience to the manifestation of the truth : this doth truly arise from the conscience . 5. conscience passeth censure upon it selfe : it is not the stilling of the thoughts that arise by musicke , dancing , and such like vanities : it is not the slender looking on a mans life , and presently looking off againe , and passing by it with an undaunted courage , as if a man would outface heaven , this conclusion is not of conscience : no , it is then of conscience when it shewes the worke of the law written in the heart , the conscience also bearing witnesse , and the thoughts the meane while passing censure ; that is , either accusing or excusing . ii. what a miserable thing an evill conscience is . there is no misery can exceed the misery of an evill conscience , both in respect of wants that attend thereon , as also the woes belonging thereto : first , in respect of the wants that attend on an evill conscience , it is miserable , as may appeare both by the present wants thereof , as also by its unprovidednesse for the time to come . the present wants that attend an evill conscience , makes a miserable conscience ; and that is alwayes effected either by being seared up with hardnesse , and fensing it selfe against the breathings and workings of gods spirit : so that it will not bow nor bend , nor yeeld to come to triall in truth ; but peremptorily persisteth in its owne way , and will not be controlled : or else it becomes so fearfull , that it casteth a man into utter desparation , so that it is as impossible for such a man or woman to looke up to god with comfort , as for a blinde man to behold the sunne . hence it hath come to passe , that some have been so farre perplexed in this sad condition , that they have been so confident that they should bee damned in hell , that though the lords ministers have come after a most sweet and heavenly manner , with an olive branch of peace in their mouthes , yet still they have cast off all , nothing could yeeld them any comfort , nothing but hell , nothing but damnation could appeare before their eyes . so likewise also an evill conscience is miserable in the future : for it is unprovided for the time to come . for such is the misery of an evill conscience , that when it stands at the barre of gods judgement , before whose tribunall we must all appeare , then will torments of an evill conscience bee the greatest plague of all : this is the hottest cole in hell fire , even a defiled conscience full of unbeliefe and horror , and not able to behold any thing with comfort , but the divels , the damned , nay the very saints , nay more , god himselfe is terrible for their conscience to behold . secondly , the woes of an evill conscience makes a man exceeding miserable , and these woes are both temporall and eternall . temporall woes incident hereunto , are , feares that arise from a polluted conscience , feares of sicknesse , feares of the plague , feares of death , feares where no feare is , still meets with them often in the way . oh! thou that fearest the judgement so , why doest thou not feare to sinne ? why doest thou not trust in god ? these feares , and troubles , and doubts , arise from thy want of faith : thou hast a polluted conscience , and therefore thou art loth to come to triall ; to have thy defiled conscience come to a triall before god , this is a terrible misery , therefore labour to come out of it . those eternall woes that lye upon a polluted and evill conscience , in case it bee not purified , and brought to beleeving , are even such as the divels themselves are plagued with , eternall torments in hell , where is nothing but weeping , and gnashing of teeth , plagues upon plagues , torments and woes , and miseries for ever , never to have end . thus may you see briefly the misery of an evill conscience . iii. what an happinesse a good conscience is . the comforts of a good conscience are exceeding great : and that may appeare , first by the communion it hath with gods spirit : secondly , by the union it hath with christ : thirdly , by the unity it hath with god through christ . fourthly , by the promises of eternall life . first , the happinesse and comfort of a good conscience is great , by the communion it hath with gods spirit ; insomuch , that is there any weaknesse in us ? the spirit strengthens us . doe infirmities hang upon us ? the spirit helps us ? doe wee not know how to pray to god for something to doe us good ? the spirit will pray for us . are wee weary with prayer ? the spirit will groan for us . here is an happinesse , here is a comfort beyond and above all the glories in the world . secondly , the happinesse and comforts are great also , that the conscience findes in its union with christ ; by which union the soule is knit to christ , and christ is united to the soule , and both made one , as christ is one with god the father , and man who is naturally ( by sin ) the heire of hell , is made by christ , a joynt heire of heaven , a sonne of god , a member of christ by a glorious union with him . thirdly , great is the comfort of a good conscience , by reason of the unity it hath with god through christ ; insomuch , that were all the divels in hell pleading against him before gods tribunall , they could not keep him from laying claime to the promises of god , the greatest crosse in the world is not able to over-whelme him with unbeliefe : but still hee is enabled , through the power of the holy ghost , to hold the mystery of faith in a pure conscience . fourthly , the comfort is also great , yea unspeakeable is the comfort that ariseth to a good conscience , through the beholding of the promises of eternall life , by which a man layes claime to heaven , as an heire to his owne inheritance , and therefore is not drawne away with the vanities of the world , which perish , nor through feare is overcome , nor led to delight in folly , or to deny his god : but going on from grace to grace , through faith and patience , passeth his dayes till he inherit the promise of eternall life . iv. how the estate of the conscience is truly discerned . the conscience may discover to man his estate and condition , either , first , under the crosse : or , secondly , in the middest of pleasure , or earthly glory : or thirdly , under the promises . fourthly , under satans temptations . lastly , by the effect of the working of gods spirit upon the conscience . first , the estate of conscience may bee discerned under the crosse : when affliction comes upon a man , a good conscience may bee discerned from an evill conscience , as followeth . an evill conscience in trouble , and under the crosse , doth not set a man forward to seeke to god in the chiefest place , but to some temporall meanes which naturall reason teacheth ; whereby the heart is fixed upon the creature , as if there were no helpe but even by what ariseth from carnall reason ; whereupon the minde comes to bee troubled , and the heart discouraged untill such time that fleshly reason doth perceive a redresse begin . but on the contrary , a good conscience is fortified with patience and faith under the greatest crosse , patience to endure with meeknes , as concerning every present meanes , sutable ( through gods blessing ) to the present condition ; & faith to beleeve undoubtedly the report of the bishop of canterburies dreame , for an advertisement to all proud lordly , persecuting , unpreaching , oppressing , tyrannizing prelates , who suppresse the preaching and progresse of the gospell . it is reported of his arch-grace of canterbury , that when he was a poore scholler in oxford , hee dreamed , that he should be a bishop , then arch-bishop of canterbury , and a great persecuter of gods ministers and people , ( which we see all verified ) and that at last he sunke downe into hell , whereupon he awaked , and then and since , oft related this dreame ; enough to have terrified and awaked his lordship , if true . oh that a man had but a view of hell ( saith father latimer in his sermons ) he should see on one side of it , a row of unpreaching prelates in their square caps , i warrant you as farre , as betweene this and dover . and no marvell since they have so hated , dispised , and blasphemed both the word of god , the true preachers and lovers thereof , driving away , and silencing gods faithfull ministers , and setting up in their roomes and places , doct. ignorance , domine drunkard , sir william wild-oates that hunteth after whores , and such also as can play dissembling hypocrites , whereby the devils empire of darknesse exceedingly flourisheth : lest faithfull preaching should roote it out . but the churches hope is , that god in his good time , will now in this happie parliament-time , heare the prayers of the people of this land every where put up : that the seas of those lordly prelates , pope-successors , tyrants , persecuters of christ , &c. shall bee , nidos eorum ubique destruendos ; or else put to some better uses . finis . notes, typically marginal, from the original text notes for div a67215e-270 heb. 9. 14. heb. 10. 2. rom. 9. 1. 2 cor. 5. 11. rom. 2. 15 1. 1 tim. 4. ● 2. tit. 1. 15. 1. eccl. 12. 5. 2. matth. 25. 41. rom. 8. 26. joh. 17. 22. 1 tim. 3. 9. heb. 6. 12. 1 sam. 16. 15. 2 thess. 1. 4. & vers. 7 the ladder of hell, or, the protestants libertine doctrine being the broad way which leadeth the followers of it to their eternall ruine and destruction in hell / set foorth in prose and verse. covbridge, cranmer. 1618 approx. 20 kb of xml-encoded text transcribed from 9 1-bit group-iv tiff page images. text creation partnership, ann arbor, mi ; oxford (uk) : 2007-10 (eebo-tcp phase 1). a19456 stc 5879.5 estc s1685 21469809 ocm 21469809 24025 this keyboarded and encoded edition of the work described above is co-owned by the institutions providing financial support to the early english books online text creation partnership. this phase i text is available for reuse, according to the terms of creative commons 0 1.0 universal . the text can be copied, modified, distributed and performed, even for commercial purposes, all without asking permission. early english books online. (eebo-tcp ; phase 1, no. a19456) transcribed from: (early english books online ; image set 24025) images scanned from microfilm: (early english books, 1475-1640 ; 1708:7) the ladder of hell, or, the protestants libertine doctrine being the broad way which leadeth the followers of it to their eternall ruine and destruction in hell / set foorth in prose and verse. covbridge, cranmer. [16] p. birchley hall press?, [lancashire? : ca. 1618] dedication signed: cranmer covbridge. imprint suggested by stc (2nd ed.). marginal notes. signatures: a⁸. reproduction of original in the upshaw college (durham, eng.). library. created by converting tcp files to tei p5 using tcp2tei.xsl, tei @ oxford. re-processed by university of nebraska-lincoln and northwestern, with changes to facilitate morpho-syntactic tagging. gap elements of known extent have been transformed into placeholder characters or elements to simplify the filling in of gaps by user contributors. eebo-tcp is a partnership between the universities of michigan and oxford and the publisher proquest to create accurately transcribed and encoded texts based on the image sets published by proquest via their early english books online (eebo) database (http://eebo.chadwyck.com). the general aim of eebo-tcp is to encode one copy (usually the first edition) of every monographic english-language title published between 1473 and 1700 available in eebo. eebo-tcp aimed to produce large quantities of textual data within the usual project restraints of time and funding, and therefore chose to create diplomatic transcriptions (as opposed to critical editions) with light-touch, mainly structural encoding based on the text encoding initiative (http://www.tei-c.org). the eebo-tcp project was divided into two phases. the 25,363 texts created during phase 1 of the project have been released into the public domain as of 1 january 2015. anyone can now take and use these texts for their own purposes, but we respectfully request that due credit and attribution is given to their original source. users should be aware of the process of creating the tcp texts, and therefore of any assumptions that can be made about the data. text selection was based on the new cambridge bibliography of english literature (ncbel). if an author (or for an anonymous work, the title) appears in ncbel, then their works are eligible for inclusion. selection was intended to range over a wide variety of subject areas, to reflect the true nature of the print record of the period. in general, first editions of a works in english were prioritized, although there are a number of works in other languages, notably latin and welsh, included and sometimes a second or later edition of a work was chosen if there was a compelling reason to do so. image sets were sent to external keying companies for transcription and basic encoding. quality assurance was then carried out by editorial teams in oxford and michigan. 5% (or 5 pages, whichever is the greater) of each text was proofread for accuracy and those which did not meet qa standards were returned to the keyers to be redone. after proofreading, the encoding was enhanced and/or corrected and characters marked as illegible were corrected where possible up to a limit of 100 instances per text. any remaining illegibles were encoded as <gap>s. understanding these processes should make clear that, while the overall quality of tcp data is very good, some errors will remain and some readable characters will be marked as illegible. users should bear in mind that in all likelihood such instances will never have been looked at by a tcp editor. the texts were encoded and linked to page images in accordance with level 4 of the tei in libraries guidelines. copies of the texts have been issued variously as sgml (tcp schema; ascii text with mnemonic sdata character entities); displayable xml (tcp schema; characters represented either as utf-8 unicode or text strings within braces); or lossless xml (tei p5, characters represented either as utf-8 unicode or tei g elements). keying and markup guidelines are available at the text creation partnership web site . eng protestantism -controversial literature. conscience -early works to 1800. 2006-08 tcp assigned for keying and markup 2006-09 aptara keyed and coded from proquest page images 2006-10 jason colman sampled and proofread 2006-10 jason colman text and markup reviewed and edited 2007-02 pfs batch review (qc) and xml conversion the ladder of hell . or the protestants libertine doctrine , being the broad way which leadeth the followers of it to their eternall ruine and destruction in hell. set foorth in prose and verse . isai . 5. 20. woe vnto you who call euill good , and good euill ; putting darknesse light , and light darknesse . permissu superiorum . cranmer covbridge , minister of the word in cvmberland , to the zealous protestants his brethren , concerning the printing , title , and vse of this admirable ladder , worthily called the ladder of hell. considering that this ladder was first framed and entituled the ladder of hell , by a papist , to the great disgrace ( as hee conceined ) of our protestant religion ; i imagine that some of you ( dearely beloued brethren ) will wish that it had been quite suppressed , and neuer seene light : yet , ( in regard it containeth nothing but a collection of certaine sentences set downe in the publike bookes of twelue principall pillars of our church ) i thought it not amisse to set it forth , just as i found it , vnder your protection ; knowing well , that euery zealous protestant can with the dexteritie of his reformed spirit turne all , though neuer so plainly seeming ill , to at least a seeming good sense : as for example , wheras the papist called this collection of sentences , the ladder of hell because in his judgement the beleefe and , practise of it leadeth a soule directly to hell . yet one of our new learning ( considering that ladders are made rather to helpe men vpward then downeward ) wil say it may be called the ladder of hell , because the beleefe and practise of it will lift soules out of hell . and with reason may this be said , supposing one ground of our new doctrine be true , to wit , that hell is ( no such locall place in which are fire and other torments , as is said by the ancient fathers , and the scriptures themselues , to be prepared for the diuels and other damned creatures , but ) only a certaine terror and horror of an afflicted conscience , the which may in some measure be felt euen in this world , and is ordinarily felt after sin commited euen by protestants , vntill by beleeuing firmely , and practising freely the points of doctrine contained in this ladder , they come by degrees to contemne all things , to wit , all lawes of god and man : and all scruple of minde and remorse of conscience , and all feare of death , iudgement , and hell , which estate of mind , it is like diuers zealous protestants haue alreadie attained vnto , esteeming themselues hereby to be not onely freed from hell , but to haue attained a kind of heauen in earth : marry the doubt is , whether this their heauē wil last alwayes , as true heauen ought to doe , or whether this hastie freeing thēselues frō the hell of care , feare , remorse & sorrow in this life , will not plung them into a most bitter feeling of remorse in the houre of death , and into intollerable torments of the eternall hell in the next life . the which doubt being in the judgement of some , only a papisticall scruple , i will leaue to bee discussed at better leasure : it shall suffice my present purpose onely to declare the manifold vses , which for the present time may be made of this excellent ladder , both by papists and protestants . first , i finde that the papists meane to make this short ladder serue for an answer of many long discourses made by protestant ministers in bookes or sermons , in which they obiect the ill liues of some papists ; the which obiections the papists doe retort more strongly against vs protestants , who cannot deny , but that since the light of the new gospell was by luther brought into the world , men are ( as luther himselfe coufessed ) more reuengeful , more conetous , more vnmercifull , more vnmodest and vnruly , and much worse then they were in papistry ; the reason whereof ( say the papists ) is for that the very doctrine it selfe of the new gospellers , doth not onely not afford such effectuall restraints and remedies against sinne , as is in the ancient catholike religion , but also hath ( as appeareth by the steps of this ladder ) diuers expresse principles , which doe plainly open the gappe to all licentious libertie of lewde life , far more then can bee imagined to bee done by any principles of the papists doctrine . whereupon the papists conclude that the protestant religion , whose doctrine is so vnholy , cannot be a holy religion inspired by the holy ghost , but suggested ( as a luther the first author confesseth some part of it ( to wit , the deniall of the sacrifice of the masse ) to haue beene suggested to him ) by satan himselfe , the enemy of all true religion and holinesse . the zealous protestant not much regarding this , or whatsoeuer other arguments made by papists , find out other vses of this ladder : as for example . first , it teacheth euery one of them to exercise heroicall acts of their b new-found iustifying faith , by which they beleeue that they are just , holy , and of the number of the predestinate , not onely by hauing a good hope , ( as the poore papists haue ) when they see or feele some of those things in themselues , which by the holy scriptures they learne to be signes of true iustice ( to wit , repentance of sins past , carefulnesse to auoid sinne in time to come , diligence in doing good workes ; &c. ) but also by infallible and absolute beleefe , as of a chiefe article of their christian faith , euen at such times as they neither see , nor feele any such signes , yea euē whē they euidently see in themselues contrary signes , & namely , euen when they actually do those works of the flesh , of which saint . paul pronounceth , that they who doe such things , shall not obtaine the kingdome of god. zealous protestants , i say , maugre this threat of s. paul , are taught by this ladder to beleeue boldly that they are saints , and cannot misse saluation , notwithstanding they commit neuer so many most horrible sins . secondly , this ladder teacheth them to cast away all feare of god , not onely in respect of his iustice , in inflicting present or future paines for sinne ( which is called seruile feare ) but also of separation from god , which feare cannot stand with our new iustifying faith , in regard we must hold it absolutely impossible that we can bee separated from god , and consequently wee must cast away this fear , although neuer so much commended in scripture . thirdly , by this admirable ladder , zealous protestants may be deliuered from all inward remorse of conscience , & may come to that highest perfection of our new gospell , which consisteth in a neglect of al conscience , the which cannot be attained on a sudden , but must be gained ( as luther himselfe gained it ) by entering into a terrible conflict , and fighting against ones owne conscience ; the difficulty of which combate ariseth out of three heads . the first is the letter of the written word , which seemeth euery where to crosse thi● liberty of conscience , and to forbid the doing of any thing against conscience . but our new spirituall man , who judgeth all things , will oppose against this killing letter of scripture , which restraineth our freedome , the quickening spirit of this ladder , which alloweth liberty of neglecting conscience . the second is an old tradition of the papists in fauour of conscience , which hath by long custome taken a deepe roote in vs. but the zealous protestant , who accounteth papistry a great blindnesse , will easily defie this among other papisticall traditions . the third is an inueterate opinion and feeling of conscience engrauen in the very nature and flesh of mans heart . but we new spirited men do know old nature to be corrupted , and that the flesh profiteth nothing . thus my deare brethrē , you may see what vses may be made of this admirable ladder . it remaineth that in a word i also declare , why i make choice to dedicate it vnto you , and to put it in print vnder your protection . the reason is , because the authors out of whom these sentences were collected , were all zealous protestants . secondly , because none now adaies will ( as i suppose ) stedfastl● beleeue & endeuor to practise according 〈◊〉 these points , but only zealous prote●●a●s . thirdly , beause none but such zealous protestāts , who frame their liues according to this ladder , can well vnderstand how it is possible that this ladder can be good , or how it should deliuer one out of hell , and cōsequently , why it should be stiled in that sense , in which i stile it , the ladder of hell. it may be the papist , which first framed this ladder , wil play vpon vs with his text , woe vnto you that call euil good , and good euill , isa . 5. 20. but wee care not for his text , for we can cry as lowd , and say as fast , wo vnto him , and although the world will , witnesse that he hath better reason to vse this text against vs , then we against him : yet it sufficeth that our * new spirit doth beare witnes to our nullity of cōscience that we say true . if the papist take aduātage at my intitling my self minist . of the word in comberland , saying that we ministers comber the land with these libertine doctrines . i can reply & tell him , that it is he & his seminaries , who comber our consciences with their contrary doctrines , & with putting scruples into our heads , by adding to this ladder certain sentences , threatning hell and damnation to sinners : for although we professe by our justifying faith , that we are sure to be saued , and that we neede not feare to be damned : yet i confesse , when i seriously examine my guilty conscience , and by searching , find the holy scriptures themselues to pronounce plainly eternall damnation to all ill liuers . i cannot choose but be bodily afraid lest the papist say true , when he telleth vs that the libertine doctrine taught by our new gospellers , & set downe in this ladder , wil most certainly lead the followers of it to their eternall ruine and destruction in hell ; from which i beseech the lord to deliuer vs all . amen your deuoted seruant in the lord , cranmer covbridge . the protestants ladder of libertie in prose . easie it is hell not to misse . 1 god is the author and enforcing cause of all finne . 2 the ten commandements are impossible to be kept . 3 the ten commandements belong not to christains . 4 christ hath fulfilled the law for vs. 5 we need take no paines for eternall life : 6 dauid committing murder and adulterie , did not lose the holy ghost . 7 whosoeuer beleeues , god workes for him . 8 sinnes are not hurtfull to him that beleeues . 9 we haue no freewill at all , for it is titulus finere . 10 good works are not necessary to saluation . 11 good workes are hurtfull to saluation . 12 to teach good workes , is the doctrine of diuels . 1● let vs take heed of sinnes , yea let vs take heed of good workes . 14 all our best workes are mortall sins , and meere iniquitie . 15 we need not greeue or doe any satisfaction for our sinnes . 16 a thousand fornications and murders a day , cannot withdraw vs from christ . 17 if thy wife will not come , let thy maid come . 18 a woman is as necessary as meat and drinke . 19 we may haue as many wiues as we list together . 20 to fast and chastise our bodies , is sanctitie for hogges and dogges . 21 purgatory is a delusion of the diuell . 22 the diuels are but in hell . 23 there is no sinne but infidelitie , no iustice but faith. 24 no sins are imputed to the faithfull . 25 sinnes of the faithfull past and future , are pardoned as soone as committed . 26 the more wicked thou art , the more neere to receiue grace . 27 wee haue as much right to heauen , as christ himselfe . 28 and wee are all saints , and as holy as the apostles were . 29 wee are certaine of our saluation . 30 we cannot fall from ours , vnlesse christ fall from his . a larger passage no man treads then that which to perdition leads . the protestants ladder of libertie , in verse . the gates are ●ide and open bide . god is of all our sinnes the enforcing cause , it is impossible to keepe his lawes , the tables two no rules for christians bee , christ hath fulfill'd the law , and left vs free . we need no paines take for eternall life , dauid vrias kill'd , defilde his wife , yet did not thereby lose the holy ghost . god for beleeuers worke , they ( truely ) boast ▪ to the beleeuer , no sinnes hurtfull are : we haue no freewill , t is a title bare : there 's no necessitie of our good workes , in them much hinderance to saluation lurkes . the teaching of good workes is diuels lore ; shunne sin , but for good works eschew them more ▪ all our best workes are sinnes and errors soule ; for sinne neer satisfie , nor grieue thy soule , a thousand fornications on a day ; as oft to kill , pulls not from christ away . if thy wife will not , let thy mayde supply , as meate and drinke , a woman's necessary ▪ wiues thou mayest take at once al that thou please ▪ to tame the flesh by fasts , or want of ease , is sanctitie for hogges and dogges to vse , with purgatorie the fiend doth fooles abuse . nor are those damn'd rebellious sprites in hell , no sinne , but want of faith , no doing well , but to beleeue . no sinnes the faithfull blot committed , straight they are pardon'd and forgot . the most defil'd , the readiest is for grace ; as christ , so wee , haue right to see gods face . the apostles equalls we are all , and saints , our certaintie of saluation neuer faints , what euer soyleth ours , christs glory taints ▪ they spend their dayes in faring well , and in a tri●e descend to hell . the bookes of protestants from whence the steppes of the ▪ ladder are gathered . 1 caluin . lib. 1. iustitut . cap. 18. sect . 3. 4. castalio is witnes , l. de praed . con . caluin . ecker . in fascic . contr . quaest . 2. cap. 7. paraeus apud beca in 1. par . c. 16. p. 182. litt. bern. dat . anno. 1555. 2 caluin . lib. 2. instit . cap. 7. sect . 5. 3 luther . serm. de mois . & in coloq ●●ns . germ. fol. 152. 153. melane . in loc. com. edit . 2. pag. 76. eberus salmath fecicles cruciger colloq . altemb . anno 1568. 4 willet in sinop . papis . pag. 564. 5 hoffman . de poenit. 6 fulke in the tower disput . 7 hoffman . de poenit. 8 whitaker de ecclesia . pag. 301. 9 luther art. 36. 10 illiricus in pref. ad rom. 11 amsdorfius quod bona opera sint perniciosa ad salut . 12 luther de votis monast . 13 luther in piscatura petri. 14 caluin lib. 3. cap. 12. sect . 4. 15 caluin lib. 3. cap. 4. sect . 38. 16 luther tom. 1. epist . fol. 334. 17 luther ser. de matrimon . 18 luther ibidem . 19 luther ibidem . 20 luther tom. 5. ger. fol. 324. 21 luther epist . ad wald. de eucha . 22 luther ad cap. 9. ionae . 23 luther in 5. par . post . german . fol. 140. and tindall alledged by fox , actes pag. 1137. 24 caluin lib. 3. instit . cap. 4. sect . 28. 25 wotton in his answ . to the popish art. pag. 41. 26 luther ser. de pisc . petri. 27 zwinglius tom. 1. fol. 288. 28 luther ser. de cruce . 29 disput . ratisb . pag. 463. 30 swinglius tom. 1 fol. 268. finis . notes, typically marginal, from the original text notes for div a19456-e130 caluin . in c. 30. isa . hermonia ad cap. 3. mat. v. 12. i. instit . c. 25. n. 12. luther in postilla supra euangel . dom . 1. aduentus . a luth. de abroganda missa priuata , editione prima . b i call it new foūd , because i finde not in scripture or in the ancient fathers that a man is made iust by confidently beleeuing that hee is iust , but rather by humbly acknowledging ones selfe to be a sinner , as appeareth in the parable of the pharisee and the publican . luke 18. gal ▪ 5. * which whether it bee white or blacke , zuinglius himselfe could not tell . notes for div a19456-e550 caluin . caluin . luther . willet . hofman . fulke . hofman . whittaker . luther . illiricus . a●●●ders . luther . luther . caluin . luther . luther . luther . luther . luther . luther . luther . luther . tindall . caluin . wotton . luther . zuinglius . luther . caluin . zuinglius . a few plain words concerning conformity in matter of religion and worship and also concerning evidence and judgment in cases of conscience : published to all magistrates, juror's and people, within the nation of england. smith, william, d. 1673. 1664 approx. 22 kb of xml-encoded text transcribed from 5 1-bit group-iv tiff page images. text creation partnership, ann arbor, mi ; oxford (uk) : 2005-12 (eebo-tcp phase 1). a60631 wing s4301 estc r16572 13153433 ocm 13153433 98126 this keyboarded and encoded edition of the work described above is co-owned by the institutions providing financial support to the early english books online text creation partnership. this phase i text is available for reuse, according to the terms of creative commons 0 1.0 universal . the text can be copied, modified, distributed and performed, even for commercial purposes, all without asking permission. early english books online. (eebo-tcp ; phase 1, no. a60631) transcribed from: (early english books online ; image set 98126) images scanned from microfilm: (early english books, 1641-1700 ; 751:32) a few plain words concerning conformity in matter of religion and worship and also concerning evidence and judgment in cases of conscience : published to all magistrates, juror's and people, within the nation of england. smith, william, d. 1673. 8 p. s.n., [london : 1664] caption title. attributed to william smith. cf. nuc pre-1956. pamphlet is signed "w.s." and dated "the 27 of the 4 moneth, 1664", p. 8. reproduction of original in duke university library. created by converting tcp files to tei p5 using tcp2tei.xsl, tei @ oxford. re-processed by university of nebraska-lincoln and northwestern, with changes to facilitate morpho-syntactic tagging. gap elements of known extent have been transformed into placeholder characters or elements to simplify the filling in of gaps by user contributors. eebo-tcp is a partnership between the universities of michigan and oxford and the publisher proquest to create accurately transcribed and encoded texts based on the image sets published by proquest via their early english books online (eebo) database (http://eebo.chadwyck.com). the general aim of eebo-tcp is to encode one copy (usually the first edition) of every monographic english-language title published between 1473 and 1700 available in eebo. eebo-tcp aimed to produce large quantities of textual data within the usual project restraints of time and funding, and therefore chose to create diplomatic transcriptions (as opposed to critical editions) with light-touch, mainly structural encoding based on the text encoding initiative (http://www.tei-c.org). the eebo-tcp project was divided into two phases. the 25,363 texts created during phase 1 of the project have been released into the public domain as of 1 january 2015. anyone can now take and use these texts for their own purposes, but we respectfully request that due credit and attribution is given to their original source. users should be aware of the process of creating the tcp texts, and therefore of any assumptions that can be made about the data. text selection was based on the new cambridge bibliography of english literature (ncbel). if an author (or for an anonymous work, the title) appears in ncbel, then their works are eligible for inclusion. selection was intended to range over a wide variety of subject areas, to reflect the true nature of the print record of the period. in general, first editions of a works in english were prioritized, although there are a number of works in other languages, notably latin and welsh, included and sometimes a second or later edition of a work was chosen if there was a compelling reason to do so. image sets were sent to external keying companies for transcription and basic encoding. quality assurance was then carried out by editorial teams in oxford and michigan. 5% (or 5 pages, whichever is the greater) of each text was proofread for accuracy and those which did not meet qa standards were returned to the keyers to be redone. after proofreading, the encoding was enhanced and/or corrected and characters marked as illegible were corrected where possible up to a limit of 100 instances per text. any remaining illegibles were encoded as <gap>s. understanding these processes should make clear that, while the overall quality of tcp data is very good, some errors will remain and some readable characters will be marked as illegible. users should bear in mind that in all likelihood such instances will never have been looked at by a tcp editor. the texts were encoded and linked to page images in accordance with level 4 of the tei in libraries guidelines. copies of the texts have been issued variously as sgml (tcp schema; ascii text with mnemonic sdata character entities); displayable xml (tcp schema; characters represented either as utf-8 unicode or text strings within braces); or lossless xml (tei p5, characters represented either as utf-8 unicode or tei g elements). keying and markup guidelines are available at the text creation partnership web site . eng society of friends -doctrines. dissenters, religious -england. conscience. 2005-04 tcp assigned for keying and markup 2005-05 aptara keyed and coded from proquest page images 2005-08 judith siefring sampled and proofread 2005-08 judith siefring text and markup reviewed and edited 2005-10 pfs batch review (qc) and xml conversion a few plain words concerning conformity in matter of religion and worship : and also concerning evidence and judgment in cases of conscience . published to all magistrates , jurors , and people , within the nation of england . seing that the main thing now intended by the late act of parliament is to bring people into conformity unto the lyturgie of the church of england , as appears by the said act , in providing remedies against all other assemblies and meetings as seditious conventicles : now the main question will be this ; whether the lyturgie of the church of england be the true reformed religion and worship , according to the purity in primitive times ? and whether such as discent from it do yet remain in the apostasie ? this is the main question now to be considered ; for the lyturgie-worship , as now practised in the church of england , is generally taken to be the best reformed , and nearest to the apostolick order , and so is pressed and urged as the most refined religion and worship to be observed . now how far it is reformed , and how near it is brought unto the apostolick order , i shall not at this time compare or distinguish ; but if it were truly and rightly reformed into the primitive purity , and that the same spirit of truth had the ordering of it as the apostles were ordered by , then no persecution would rise out of it , for in the apostolick order there were never any ; therefore the reformation is yet a far off from that religion and worship which was in the primitive times , and so the dissenting from it , or not conforming to it , doth not conclude the dissenters to be in error , because something may lie nearer the truth of the apostolick worship then what the lyturgie of the church of england is reformed into . for if such as have received the spirit of god , and therein worship him , have found something nearer to the apostolick practice , than what is observed by the lyturgie of the church of england , then they are to be allowed the liberty in their worship without restraint or prohibition , for the true worship 〈◊〉 in the spirit , and they that worship god in the spirit , they are truly reformed into the apostolick order , and they cannot persecute any , but walk in love and meekness towards all , which is the clearest evidence of the best reformed religion , and that which lies nearest unto the apostolick order : for the word lyturgie signifies , the publick service of the church . now if the lyturgie of the church of england , do not agree with the lyturgie of the true church in primitive times , then it is not transgression to dissent from it , and there is nothing doth more infallibly demonstrate the disagreement , than persecution by it , and suffering under it ; for the publick service in the true church , is by the spirit of god , and none can order the church in things pertaining to god but by the spirit of god , and the spirit of god never persecuted any , nor such as worship god in the spirit cannot be of that mind , for that is not a good service in the church , neither do such as are guided by the spirit of god dissent from the lyturgie , but may be truly in the publick service of the church , though not in the publick service of the church of england . so then it remains to be enquired by such as yet know not what religion and worship is best reformed and most agreeable to the lyturgie , or publick worship of the church in primitive times ? and something may herein be said to answer any enquirer . 1. that is the best reformed religion and worship , which is reformed by the spirit of god , because that hath power to reform and change the heart , and so to order the heart in the fear of god , and in the publick service of the church . 2. that is the best reformed religion and worship which stands in the freedom of the spirit , in which there is no binding or limitation , but a free service in the church . 3. that is the best reformed religion and worship , which stands in love , peace , and good-will , in which there is no restriction nor persecution , but a serving one another in love , which is the publick service of the church . 4. that is the best reformed religion and worship , when every man doth to another as he would be done unto himself , in which there is no envy , hatred , or malice , but a peaceable and a holy life in all godliness and honesty , which is the publick service of the church . these few things being well considered , it will appear , that the people who are called quakers , do not dissent from the lyturgie , but are due observers of it ; for as they are guided by the spirit of god , so their service is a publick service of the church ; but the service of the church of england is a private service compared with the many religions and worships that are in the world : for nothing can be a publick service of the church , but that which is performed in the publick spirit of god ; because the spirit is an universal principle , and in every nation it guideth such as receives it and believes in it , into one way and service , and that is publick in every nation , and not tied or bound unto one nation only , for that which may be observed in one nation , is but a private thing compared with other nations in the world , that differ from them in matter of religion and worship : but the spirit and power of god reforms nations , and gathers them into unity and peace in which they are true members of the church , and set in the publick service of it ; and if the word lyturgie may be allowed to the quakers according to its proper signification , then they are in practice the best observers of it , for their service is a publick service in the church . now let all magistrates who are commissioned to give judgement touching offences , seriously consider , for the matter is of such weight and concernment , as worthy to be deliberated , and not hastily to fall upon it in any rash conclusion ; for it is only seditious conventicles which the late act provideth remedies against , and gives this reason ▪ because at their meetings they contrive insurrections , as late experience hath shewed : now the quakers are not any way guilty of offending in these cases ; and that it may be the better understood , i shall explain the signification of the words unto the capacities of all sorts of sensible people . sedition is discord , strife , and debate . conventicle is a small assembly commonly for ill things , or as the law expounds it , where many do impart with others to kill a man , or to take anothers part in ill things , lam. 173. insurrection is a rising of men in arms : now concerning all these things , which is the very ground of the said act , there cannot any thing justly be laid to the quakers charge ; for if experience in these cases be taken for good evidence , then the quakers meetings are wholly cleared by the said act , for no such things hath ever been experienced to rise from their meetings ; and therefore the said act not lying against them in the ground , no penalty or punishment is to be laid upon them by vertue of the same . and this is written unto you magistrates , who are commissiioned to give judgment in cases of offences ; for it is a plea generally used by magistrates , that they are bound to put the law in execution : well , if it be so , and that you are so careful to discharge your trust , yet you must find an offender before you can legally execute the law , and the offence must arise by good and sound evidence to be a transgressing of that law , and that according to the purpose of the law : so that you may be in a capacity to judge and determine causes equally , according to good evidence , in things pertaining to men ; but as to things pertaining to conscience , they are too high for you , for you can have no evidence to inform you concerning the offence , and so cannot judg or determine the matter equally in that case : and if in this case of meeting , there nothing doth appear of discord or strife , or any ill things , then there is not any thing for you to take knowledg of as an offence , or that can be charged as transgression upon such as so meet , though they meet in greater or lesser numbers ; for the act is not against peaceable meetings , nor against the true worship of god ; but where there is religion and worship pretended in meetings , and some ill thing intended by that meeting , and according to the intention break forth into a publick manifestation , then , upon good evidence , in that case you may proceed to penalties and punishment of the offendors , and so every apparent offence may have a witness ( without ) to give evidence to the fact , by which judgment may be given according to the offence . but if the conscience offend against god , that must be left to his witness within , and to his judgement alone , who both sees the offence , and knows how to punish it according to the nature of it ; and therefore all such cases as relate to to the conscience , is to be left to god alone , who seeth secrets , and judgeth secrets , and gives to every man according to his deeds , without respect of persons . and now a few words unto you that serve upon juries , seeing something in the said act may come within your enquiry ; for the third offence in order to transportation , is to be tryed by verdict : now where you come to be concerned in any such case , wherein the matter lies in point of conscience , be very careful what you do . and first , you that serve upon grand juries , the matter lyes of very great concernment unto you , forasmuch as you are the finders and accusers of offenders , and so prepares the way in order to conviction or judgement . now if there be not some evidence , that can make good proof that there was some appearance of discord or ill things at such a meeting , for which any party or parties may stand indicted , then you are not in a capacity to find the bill to be true , forasmuch as you cannot be informed whether such a meeting was pretended to worship , and some ill thing intended by it , or whether it was a meeting to worship god singly in spirit and in truth , which the act is not against ; and so if it lye as a case of conscience , without any appearance ; you can have no true evidence in it , and therefore you are not to find it , nor accuse any in that case as guilty of an offence worthy of punishment . object but some may say , we only enquire for the king , and therefore upon good evidence to the indictment , we are bound to find it , and let the party clear himself upon his tryal . answ . as you stand only to enquire for the king , so you are to enquire what wrong the king sustains by the fact , of which the party-stands indicted for if the evidence to the indictment prove not some wrong done to the king in matter of fact , then you cannot know the bill to be a true bill , and so is not to put the party upon his tryal : for if the indictment do not lye , as to some wrong done by the party indicted , either a● to life , estate , peace , or liberty of another , and that it be not so proved by your evidence then the king is not wronged , and you may clearly acquit the party on the kings behalf , and leave things that pertain to the conscience unto god alone , for none besides him knows what is in man. and you that are ordered upon juries for conviction , your places is of the greatest weight and concernment , forasmuch as you try the life , and may either save it , or destroy it : for though the grand jury do enquire and find the indictment , yet it is you that either casts or clears a man upon his tryal , for you are judges of the fact , and if you judge the party guilty of the fact , then you expose him to the judgement of the law , in that case . now forasmuch as there is a late act of parliament made , which doth refer the tryal of the third offence punishable by it , unto a verdict , if it so come to pass , that any such tryal be brought before you , consider well what evidence you have to prove it , for there lyes the main thing on your parts , who according to your evidence doth either find the party guilty , or clear , concerning the fact and if you find him clear as to the fact , then you free him 〈◊〉 the sentence of the law. now it may be in such cases , you may have some evidence that will prove a meeting above the number of five besides the family , but then consider whether such evidence be sufficient to prove any people offenders against the said act , except it be also proved , that there was discord and strife , or any ill things practised in such a meeting , which is the very signification of the words upon which the said act is grounded ; now if no such thing can be proved unto you , then there is not any meeting that doth amount to transgression against the said act , though there be a meeting to the number of five hundred or more ; for it is the thing done that makes the fact , but if no such thing as before-mentioned be done in the assemblies of people in the way wherein they worship , then the act is not transgressed , and if not transgressed , then such as meets together are not to be punished as offendors : therefore consider well your places , for your service stands in judging the fact according to your evidence ; but wherein any case of conscience is brought before you , there can no evidence prove the matter truly to you , and therefore you are to leave it unto god , and to his witness in the conscience , and by your verdict to acquit all people in things relating to their conscience , and let them account unto god before whom they must stand or fall . and now a few words unto all people , for seeing there is information and evidence to be given in the aforesaid cases , before there can be any proceedings as to conviction or judgement , it doth concern every one to be careful what they do , for the act doth not impose any penalty or punishment upon any for not informing , and therefore where any do set themselves to do it , they will but manifest a forward mind in the thing wherein they may keep themselves free , and if any do put themselves upon it , as to inform against any peaceable meeting of the people called quakers , they will manifest more envy and malice to their neighbours than love and good will : for the act is not against the quakers meetings , being their meetings are peacable , and no peacable meeting is a seditious conventicle , and how can any truly inform of unlawful meeting , when the law is not against it , for that makes a thing unlawful when the thing done is against the law in that case ; but the quakers meetings are not against the act in that case made , for it is made to prevent and suppress seditious conventicles , and pretenders of worship , and not peaceable meetings , and the true worship . and so to meet peaceable , as the quakers do , and all along have done on their parts , above the number of 5 besides the family , is not an unlawful assembly or meeting , for the law is not against it , but to meet to the number of five besides the family ; under pretence of religion and worship , and at such meetings to enter into discord and strife , and do ill things , as to rise in armes , and be tumultuous to the disturbance of the nations peace , then it is a seditious conventicle , and an unlawful meeting , because the law is against it , and they that meet in that manner , 〈◊〉 the hazard of the penalties and punishment that the law in that case provideth against offendors , and it is onely such as are dangerous sectaries , who at their meetings contrive insurrections , or to raise up strife , and ill things , which makes a seditious conventicle , as is before explained : therefore let all people be careful how they inform and give evidence in this case , for the act doth not prohibit any peaceable meeting , where people meets together in the fear of god , and truly worships him in tendernesse of conscience , this is not only a pretended thing but a real true thing , which the act doth not prohibit . therefore all people be in love with your neighbours , and then no hasty information or evidence will be given against any for their obedience unto god , and for worshipping him in spirit and in truth , according to his mind ; for if there be no informers , there can be no proceedings , and therefore as information is the cause that gives motion to the wheel , so there ought to be great care and tenderness in it because one neighbour may thereby expose another unto great sufferings , and where any do so they do not love their neighbors as themselves , which is a sure mark of the true religion . and now if any should have it in their mindes to inform and give evidence in the case aforesaid , i ask you , what you will inform touching the quakers meetings , will you inform that there was a meeting of five besides the family ; and will you say that you will give evidence of it , you shall not need for we confesse it ; but will you inform that there was strife and discord amongst them , or any ill thing in action , or any apperance of rising in armes , and so a seditious conventicle , according to the act ? if you say nay , we cannot give such information in the truth , nor we dare not give evidence to any such thing ; it may be that some may be thus honest , and it may be some again , that will not fear to inform , and evidence the matter by the act intended , though they neither see not know that so it is amongst such against whom they inform ; and therefore , as to the first , that honestly confesseth the truth , there needs not any thing be said , being their own confession clears us ; but unto such as wilfully and obstinately resolve to do us harm , if it be in their power ; unto such we say , that your information and evidence is not to be regarded by sober magistrates or jurors ; for our practice is so generally known , that it will be apparently manifest to be envy and malice , where any such iuformation of evidence is given against us . and further , consider this one thing more in general , which i shall offer to you by way of question : was not the christian religion and worship in primitive times a true religion and worship ? and was there not both jewes and gentiles gathered in it ? and was there not many jewes and gentiles that differed from them in religion and worship ? and did the true christians endeavour to force the dissenters by an outward law to joyn with them ? you do not read in all the scripture , that the true christians did ever practice any such thing , either to inform or punish any in matter of conscience . therefore let not this nation of england give occasion unto other nations , to upbraid them with persecution , for it will be much to the dishonour of it , if not to the ruine of it , by the hand of the lord. oh surely it cannot but touch many tender hearts who are observers of the lyturgie of the church of england , to see such persecution rise out of it , and that against an innocent people ; for we that are called quakers are a people well known in our countries , and the witness of god doth bear a sure testimony for us , however men may witness against us , or however they may accuse judge and condemn us , yet doth the witness of god clear us from the guilt of any just offence against the present power , and the peace thereof ; and whatsoever may come to pass concerning us in this matter , yet there is no law against us , and being no law , there is no transgression , and so no fact worthy of condemnation much might be said in these things , but i shall leave all with the lord , and to his just and righteous witness in every conscience which will plead with all for us , when tongues and pens are still and silent ; and let not any think it strange that i have used such plainnesse of speech in this matter , for it is in the behalf of gods precious truth , and all that live in it . and being that our liberty , estates , and lives are herein concerned , the plainnesse of my speech may well be allowed , considering also , that it is no lesse than true love to all your souls who are or may be any way concerned in this matter ; for we that are called quakers do truly love the lamb , and follow him , and the lamb and the saints must have the victory ; and in the lambs love , meekness , and patience we have rest and peace . written the 27. of the 4. moneth , 1664. w. s. the end . st. pauls exercise, or, a sermon of conscience describing the nature of it; and declaring the manner and meanes how to obtaine, and retaine, a good conscience. preached by iohn hughes, doctor in diuinitie. hughes, john, fl. 1622. 1622 approx. 46 kb of xml-encoded text transcribed from 15 1-bit group-iv tiff page images. text creation partnership, ann arbor, mi ; oxford (uk) : 2004-11 (eebo-tcp phase 1). a03796 stc 13914 estc s104276 99840015 99840015 4483 this keyboarded and encoded edition of the work described above is co-owned by the institutions providing financial support to the early english books online text creation partnership. this phase i text is available for reuse, according to the terms of creative commons 0 1.0 universal . the text can be copied, modified, distributed and performed, even for commercial purposes, all without asking permission. early english books online. (eebo-tcp ; phase 1, no. a03796) transcribed from: (early english books online ; image set 4483) images scanned from microfilm: (early english books, 1475-1640 ; 1072:11) st. pauls exercise, or, a sermon of conscience describing the nature of it; and declaring the manner and meanes how to obtaine, and retaine, a good conscience. preached by iohn hughes, doctor in diuinitie. hughes, john, fl. 1622. [4], 24 p. printed by t[homas] s[nodham] for iohn budge, and are to be sold at his shop at the signe of the greene-dragon in pauls church-yard, london : anno dom. 1622. printer's name from stc. reproduction of the original in the british library. created by converting tcp files to tei p5 using tcp2tei.xsl, tei @ oxford. re-processed by university of nebraska-lincoln and northwestern, with changes to facilitate morpho-syntactic tagging. gap elements of known extent have been transformed into placeholder characters or elements to simplify the filling in of gaps by user contributors. eebo-tcp is a partnership between the universities of michigan and oxford and the publisher proquest to create accurately transcribed and encoded texts based on the image sets published by proquest via their early english books online (eebo) database (http://eebo.chadwyck.com). the general aim of eebo-tcp is to encode one copy (usually the first edition) of every monographic english-language title published between 1473 and 1700 available in eebo. eebo-tcp aimed to produce large quantities of textual data within the usual project restraints of time and funding, and therefore chose to create diplomatic transcriptions (as opposed to critical editions) with light-touch, mainly structural encoding based on the text encoding initiative (http://www.tei-c.org). the eebo-tcp project was divided into two phases. the 25,363 texts created during phase 1 of the project have been released into the public domain as of 1 january 2015. anyone can now take and use these texts for their own purposes, but we respectfully request that due credit and attribution is given to their original source. users should be aware of the process of creating the tcp texts, and therefore of any assumptions that can be made about the data. text selection was based on the new cambridge bibliography of english literature (ncbel). if an author (or for an anonymous work, the title) appears in ncbel, then their works are eligible for inclusion. selection was intended to range over a wide variety of subject areas, to reflect the true nature of the print record of the period. in general, first editions of a works in english were prioritized, although there are a number of works in other languages, notably latin and welsh, included and sometimes a second or later edition of a work was chosen if there was a compelling reason to do so. image sets were sent to external keying companies for transcription and basic encoding. quality assurance was then carried out by editorial teams in oxford and michigan. 5% (or 5 pages, whichever is the greater) of each text was proofread for accuracy and those which did not meet qa standards were returned to the keyers to be redone. after proofreading, the encoding was enhanced and/or corrected and characters marked as illegible were corrected where possible up to a limit of 100 instances per text. any remaining illegibles were encoded as <gap>s. understanding these processes should make clear that, while the overall quality of tcp data is very good, some errors will remain and some readable characters will be marked as illegible. users should bear in mind that in all likelihood such instances will never have been looked at by a tcp editor. the texts were encoded and linked to page images in accordance with level 4 of the tei in libraries guidelines. copies of the texts have been issued variously as sgml (tcp schema; ascii text with mnemonic sdata character entities); displayable xml (tcp schema; characters represented either as utf-8 unicode or text strings within braces); or lossless xml (tei p5, characters represented either as utf-8 unicode or tei g elements). keying and markup guidelines are available at the text creation partnership web site . eng conscience -early works to 1800. 2004-06 tcp assigned for keying and markup 2004-06 aptara keyed and coded from proquest page images 2004-07 rachel losh sampled and proofread 2004-07 rachel losh text and markup reviewed and edited 2004-10 pfs batch review (qc) and xml conversion st. pavls exercise , or , a sermon of conscience . describing the nature of it ; and declaring the manner and meanes how to obtaine , and retaine , a good conscience . preached by iohn hvghes , doctor in diuinitie . 2 cor. 1. 12. our reioycing is this , the testimony of our conscience . london : printed by t. s. for iohn budge , and are to be sold at his shop at the signe of the greene-dragon in pauls church-yard . anno dom. 1622. to the right honourable , and right reuerend father in god , iohn , lord bishop of lincolne , lord keeper of the great seale , and one of his maiesties most honourable priuie councell ; grace and peace in this life , and glorie in the life to come . preaching , and printing ( right honourable ) are excellent meanes to beget faith , and to encrease knowledge . the one ( like a shower of raine ) waters for the present ; the other ( like snow ) lyes longer on the ground , and may speake when the authour cannot : hauing therefore preached diuers sermons , i haue presumed to print this one , and to present the same vnto your honour , as a testimony of my seruice and dutie . my labour in this kinde , if it may doe good to any , and be accepted of your lordship , it is the height of my desire . the matter hath beene handled by many : and , many more zealous and learned men i pray god to raise vp daily to preach , & to write more of the same argument : for , beside the methode and manner of handling ( which i also attribute to the grace of god , exciting and assisting nie ) i challenge nothing to my selfe but the faults , mala mea sunt purè mala , & mea ; bona mea nec purè bona , nec mea . your lordship may claime a speciall interest in these lines , not onely in regard of the authour , obliged vnto your honour in many respects ; but also of the matter , which is meere chancery , and hath need of your patronage . for it is a common complaint that conscience ( for the most part of these latter yeares ) hath lyne bed-rid & speechlesse : but blessed be god , that hath raised vp your honour to be a patrone to his church , a paterne of equity and iustice in the common-wealth , and a principall agent in these vnconscionable dayes , to restore and recouer conscience againe , where it was much decayed . the same god that was the authour of your preferment , continue his mercies , and multiply his blessings vpon your lordship , that as the hearts of all good men ( specially of vs church-men ) doe reioyce in your aduancement ; so i pray god wee may long enioy your honour , to the comfort both of church and common-wealth . thus , crauing pardon for my boldnesse , and fauourable acceptance of these my endeauours , in most humble manner i recommend your honour to the protection of the almighty , euer resting . your honours most bounden and dutifull chaplaine , io : hvghes . st. pavls exercise , or , a sermon of conscience . acts 24. 16. and herein doe i exercise my selfe , to haue alwaies a conscience , voyde of offence toward god and toward men . the very reading and hearing of this text may put vs in minde of our duties ; doe but apply it vnto your soules , and practise it in your liues , and you shall finde much comfort . the maine matter of it is conscience ; a doctrine much neglected in ourage , and yet neuer more needfull . i will not trouble you with any long discourse of the context , for the words are plaine , and they containe part of s. pauls apologie before faelix , when tertullus the oratour accused him for a pestilent and a turbulent fellow . this apologie consisteth of two parts negatio facti . confessio fidei . 1. a negation , or deniall of the fact , they neither found me in the temple , disputing with any man , nor in the synagogues , or citie , raising vp the people . 2. a confession of his faith , non negat sed narrat ; non dissimulat sed planè profitetur quam religionem coluit , saith an ancient vpon this text ; he doth not denie nor dissemble his religion , as many doe , but professeth plainely , that after that way which they call heresie , so worshipped he the god of his fathers . to this he addeth the ground of his faith , beleeuing all things written in the law and the prophets . and then the fruit of this ground , hauing hope towards god that there shall be a resurrection of the dead , both of the iust and vniust . and lastly , in the words of my text hee setteth downe his practise and exercise : and herein i exercise my selfe , to haue alwaies a conscience voyd of offence , &c. as if he had thus spoken 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 , herein , and for this respect , because i am a christian , beleeuing the doctrine of the law and the prophets , and hauing hope in the resurrection , 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 , i my selfe doe studie ( as the rhemists render it , or labour and endeauour , as tremelius reades it , or exercise my selfe , as the vulgar english hath it . where , by the way wee may obserue , that the ground-worke and foundation of a good conscience is christian religion , and a right beleefe concerning things diuine , specially the doctrine of the ressurection , without the which the conscience cannot be good nor cleare . for in this respect s. paul saith , i labour and endeauour to haue and to hold a conscience , 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 cleare and voyd of offence in all duties towards god and men , and that alwaies . this i take to be the sence of the words , & their coherence with the precedent scripture . the summe and substance whereof may be reduced to these three generall heads , whereof i will speake briefly . 1. of conscience , and the nature thereof , quid sit ? what it is ? because many talke of it that know it not ; and this is subiectum adaequatum , the maine subiect , and as it were the center of this text. 2. quotuplex : the kinds and qualities of conscience , which are as lines drawne from the center , to demonstrate and deliniate the seuerall climates and regions of conscience ; which are either offensiue , or without offence , as the word 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 doth import . 3. the extent and latitude of this text , call it what you will , the manner or meanes to obtaine and maintaine a good conscience ; or the matters wherein , in all dutie humane and diuine , towards god and men ; and the time how long , 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 at all times . these are the lists and limits of this text , and my intended discourse ; and of these in order ; but first of conscience , and the nature thereof . there are two things wherein man doth excell all mortall creatures , ratio , & oratio . reason , and speech . now conscience doth belong vnto reason , and is thus defined by aquinas ; actus rationis applicans scientiam ad opus : an act of reason , applying our knowledge to our workes , and iudging of the lawfulnesse and vnlawfulnesse thereof . medina saith , that it is , dictamen rationis applicatum ad opus ; which is the same in effect . some call it a hebite , others a facultie : but i decline the casuists and schoolemen of purpose , that i may speake to the people , and to their consciences : and therefore ( according to plainenesse of speech , and soundnesse of truth ) conscience may thus be defined . conscience is a noble and a notable faculty in the soule of man , working vpon it selfe , and determining of all our particular thoughts , words , and workes , either with vs , or against vs. 1. i call it a faculty , because it produceth acts , and is inseparable from its subiect ; exui sed non deponipotest , it may be left off for a time in respect of the vse of it , as reason in a drunken man , but it cannot be cast off for euer , or remoued from the soule . which made st. bernard to say , quocunque vado conscientia mea wecum ; wheresoeuer i goe my conscience is with me , it dogs and followes mee ; adest vin● , seqitur mort●um , it is present with me while i liue , and when i die it dyeth not ; for when my body is rotting in the graue , my conscience shall liue : and when i rise againe , my conscience will come with me before god and his iudgement seat , either to excuse , or accuse me . 2. i call it noble and notable , in respect of the reciprocall working thereof , which is strange and admirable , and it is on this manner : first the minde thinkes a thought either good , or bad ; and then the conscience by doubling and reflecting the same , doth thinke againe of that thought , and iudgeth whether it be good , or bad . wee haue a good resemblance thereof in the eye , for the eye that seeth all things that may be seene , seeth not it selfe but by way of reflection , and the helpe of a looking-glasse ; so it may be said of the minde , it mindes and vnderstands all things that may be vnderstood , yet it vnderstands not it selfe , nor its owne nature , but by recoiling , reflecting , & recollecting the beames & rayes of that diuine light in and vpon it selfe ; which made some to say that conscience is nothing else but anima reflexa , the soule of man recoiling , and reflecting vpon it selfe . 3. i place it in the soule of man , not as part of a part , for anima est indiuisa , the soule is impartible ; but tota in tota , whollyin the whole soule , and all the faculties thereof , where it keepeth a compleat court , the court of conscience . in the vnderstanding where it principally resideth ; bonorum malorumque facinorum est index & index ; it sitteth as a iudge determining and prescribing de iure , this may , or may not be done , and this is well or ill done . in the memory it is a register , a recorder , and a witnesse , qui nec fallit , nec fallitur , which can neither deceiue , nor be deceiued , testifying , de facto , this was done , and that was not done , whereof the poet speaketh , nocte dieque tuum gestas in pectore testem . in the will and affections it is a layler , or executioner , easing or tormenting vs : for what are the approofes and reproofes , the ioyes and checkes of the conscience , but actions of the will and affections , recoiling vpon the soule , either comforting , or tormenting vs for deeds past , or else terrifying vs for euill deeds to come ? which made one to compare it to a bridle and a whip , frenum ante peccatum , flagrum post peccatum ; a bridle to curbe vs before we sinne , and a scourge to whip vs after wee haue sinned . 4. the fourth and last thing in the definition , is the subiect or obiect whereupon conscience doth worke , or the matters wherewith it intermedleth . it medleth not with vniuersalities , as arts and sciences , nor with other mens matters , as busie-bodies doe ; but it deales wholly and solely in our owne proper and particular actions . and of these it giueth iudgement by a kinde of reasoning and disputing in & with it selfe , called by the schoolemen a practicall syllogisme , whose maior is some maxime in reason or religion , which cannot be denyed ; and whose minor is some act , fact , or dutie of ours , ill or well done , omitted or committed : and then followeth the conclusion , of it selfe either with vs , or against vs , as conscince beareth witnesse . sometime it speaketh for god against vs ; and sometime for vs vnto god , being as it were a middle 〈…〉 ng , and an indifferent arbitrator betweene god and man. and it is called , conscientia , quasi cordis scientia , saith s. bernard , or rather , scientia cum alia , a knowledge ioyned with our knowledge , whereby it knowes that of vs , which god onely knowes with vs. it is a co witnesse with god , for no man knowes what is in man but god onely , & the spirit of man , which is his conscience ; and this is instar mille testium , worth a thousand witnesses : which made the philosopher to say , o te miserum si contemnis hunc testem ! o wretched man if thou despisest the iudgement and testimony of thine owne conscience ! the fathers haue many sayings and similies to expresse the nature of conscience . s bernard compares it to a booke , conscientia est liber ad quem emendandum omnes scripti sunt libri ; conscience is a liuing booke , annexed to the soule of man , indeed a power or faculty of the soule like vnto a booke , for the informing and reforming whereof , all other bookes are written and printed ; for what are all the diuinity-bookes , and all the law-bookes , but glosses and commentaries vpon this text ? et maledicta glossa quae corrumpit textum ; cursed is that law-booke , or glosse , that goes against conscience . this booke consisteth of two parts , or volumes ; the one is a law-booke , wherein are set downe the grounds and principles of truth , and equity , called by the ancients 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 siue relicta rationis scintilla , the reliques and remaines , or the records of the law , and light of nature . the other part is a chronicle , or a registrie , wherein all our workes are written ; which made s. chrysostome vse the same comparison which s. bernard long before : conscientia est codex in quo quotidiana peccata conscribuntur ; a booke wherein all our daily sinnes are written . now conscience when it giueth iudgement , it first reades ouer the law-booke , and examineth what is written there , what is bidden or forbidden by the law of god , & nature : and then it turneth ouer the records , and seeth what is done or left vndone , and accordingly it giueth iudgement either with vs or against vs. s. origen compares conscience to a schoolemaster , pedagogus animae sociatus , & affectuum corrector , a master or monitor , to direct our wayes , and to correct our errours . s. austin to a looking-glasse , speculo similis , euen a cleare christall glasse , wherein wee may see our owne vertues and vices , and behold the image of the inner man. tertullian calls it praeiudicium extremi iudicij , a fore-runner of gods last iudgement , euen the best almanacke in our owne breasts and bosomes , to foretell vs what shall become of vs at the last day . these things i pray you to apply , for i cannot stand to amplifie : these things if ye know , happie are you if you doe them . in this learned age ( amongst the innumerable bookes that are extant ) i recommend vnto you the booke of conscience , hunc lege , relege , & perlege , o reade , reade often , and reade ouer this booke , and doe nothing against the dictates thereof . it is not the want of knowledge , but of conscience which the world complaineth of : many haue knowledge that want conscience ; and i wish from my heart that many had lesse science , vpon condition they had more conscience . and so i come to the second part , the kindes and qualities of conscience . conscience ( according to my text ) is either 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 cleare , guiltlesse , and without offence ; or else , guilty , troubled , and offensiue . the one is a cordiall , the other a corrosiue ; the one a heauen ; the other a very hell , euen in this life : of the one salomon speaketh , a good conscience is a continuall feast , iuge conuiuium , a continuall christmas , and a perpetuall iubilee ; whereof s. paul , our reioycing is the testimony of our conscience ; but the other is anima carnificina , the racke and torture of the soule , a very worme gnawing the heart at the roote , and compared to a very fiend or furie of hell , pursuing men with firebrands . s. bernard hath a witty distribution of conscience into foure kinds , 1. good , but not quiet . 2 quiet , but not good . 3 both good , and quiet . 4 neither good , nor quiet . the two good belong properly to the godly ; and the two bad to the wicked , whose conscience is either too quiet , or too vnquiet . 1. the first kinde of conscience is good , but not quiet . i call it good , not simply , but in respect of the tendernesse of it , and fearefulnes to offend ; yet vnquiet for want of true light and information . such is the conscience of those that are erronious in iudgement , or ignorantly dubious and scrupulous , making many quaeries and questions for conscience sake , where god and his word makes none . they may be compared to a wilde and a wall-eyed horse , which stirres and starts at euery shadow , without cause or occasion . such are many of my brethren , both on my right , and left hand , i meane the recusants in both kinds , catholiques and catharists , papists and puritans , who are no lesse offended , the one with an egge on a fasting day ; the other with a cap , crosse , or surplesse , then with some hainous offence . i commend their zeale , but not their iudgement ; their affection , not their discretion ; they haue indeed a kinde of tendernesse of conscience , but they want the right rule thereof , both which are required in a good conscience . their iudgement is weake and crazie , vnable to digest any hard matter , or difficult question : they mistake the grounds of conscience , building vpon vnstable foundations , and burdening themselues and others with things in their owne nature indifferent . the second kinde of conscience is quiet , but not good ; and of this kinde there are three degrees , caeca . the blinde . secura , & the secure , and obdurata . the seared . 1. the blinde and ignorant conscience is quiet , because it knowes not how to stirre ; the blind man swallowes many a flie , and the ignorant many a sinne ; he sees and * discernes sinnes as we doe stars in a darke night , onely the great ones , primae magnitudinis , of the larger size . concupiscence , the roote of all euill , s. paul thought to be no sinne , while the scales of ignorance were vpon his eyes . and so doe many ignorant men in their blinde conscience thinke many a sinne to be no sinne : they thinke that a few heartlesse prayers , and lord haue mercy vpon vs , at the last gaspe , will serue their turne : they dare not looke into the glasse of gods holy word , least the number of their sinnes , and the foulenesse of their soules , should affright them . but if god once open their eyes , as he did the prophets seruant , they shall see whole armies , and legions of euils , and diuels , in them , and against them . the second degree is the secure and carelesse , the sleepie , and drawsie conscience , that can and will not see , with whom sinne and sathan are in league for a time , sed ista tranquilit as tempestas erit , that calme in the end will proue a storme , as s. ierom noteth . the flesh , the world , and the diuell hath so lulled them a sleepe , that they neuer dreame of heauen , nor hell , death , nor iudgement , they neuer thinke of their sinnes , nor of the euill day ; the noise of carnall pleasures , and the voyce of worldly profits doth drowne the voyce of conscience in them , as the drummes in the sacrifice of moloch did the cry of the infants : their conscience is quiet , not because they be at peace , but because they are not at leasure . o thinke vpon this you that swim in worldly wealth and pleasures ! o remember this you polyphragmaticall men , that haue whole mynes and mints of businesse in your pates , making so much haste to be rich , that you are not at leasure once in a weeke , in a moneth , in a yeare , nay scarce in your whole life time to conferre with your poore conscience , which is a very dangerous thing . for if euer this sleepy and drousie conscience doe awake , as many times it doth in the time of aduersity , as in iosephs brethren , or at the houre of death , as in many others ; like a wilde beast robbed of her whelpes , and rowsed from sleepe , iugulum petit , it will flie ( as it were ) to the throat of thy soule , accusing thee to the vttermost , and laying all thy sinnes to thy charge . the third degree is , the seared and cauterized conscience , which ( by adding sinne to sinne ) is so hardned , that it hath no sence nor feeling of sinne . the habite and custome of sinning hath taken away all shame of face and remorse of conscience in many , that they are giuen ouer to a reprobate sence , to worke vncleanenesse with greedinesse . at the first euery mans conscience will speake vnto him , as peter did to our sauiour , master , saue thy selfe ; her pricke-arrowes are like the shafts of ionathan , to forewarne dauid of the great kings displeasure ; but if we neglect her cry and calling , this good cassandra will speake no more . that body is in great danger where the pulse doth not beate ; that armie is soone surprized , where the watch and alarme are not kept ; so it is with that soule , where the conscience is not waking and stirring : grauissime aegrotat qui se non sentit agrotare , that man is desperately sicke that doth not feele his sicknes ; so is that soule that doth not feele his sinnes : tunc maxime oppugnaris cum te nescis oppugnari , saith s. ierome to heliodor , then art thou most tempted , when thou doest not feele thy temptations . and s. austin asketh the question , quid miserius , misero non miserante seipsum ? what more miserable , then a wretch that seeth not his owne misery ? o hearken vnto this you that harden your hearts , and seare your consciences , by quenching the motions thereof , and sinning the rather when your conscience is against it . 3. the third kinde of conscience is that which is both good and quiet , which is very tender and sensible of sinne , and yet is neuer troubled nor perplexed , which is full of hope and loue , full of faith and knowledge , and which bringeth good tydings , and that vpon good grounds . this kinde of conscience euer excuseth , and neuer accuseth , euer comforteth , and neuer condemneth ; and if it hap to pricke and ake with sorrow for some sin past , that sorrow bringeth repentance neuer to bee repented of . some there are that haue such consciences , but very few in these our euill dayes , and they that haue them are happy and blessed both heere and hereafter . 4. the fourth kinde of conscience is that which is neither good nor quiet , and this is the worst of all , for as the godly haue the first fruit of the spirit , and certaine tasts of heauenly ioyes , euen in this life by the goodnes of their conscience : so the wicked on the contrary do feele certaine flames and flashes of hell-fire , by reason of their guilty conscience ; which made s. bernard to say , nulla poena est grauior mala conscientia quae proprijs agitatur stimulis : no plague , nor punishment more grieuous then a guilty conscience , which is tormented with a sting in it selfe , a worme ; and a worme that euer gnaweth , and neuer dyeth . such is the conscience of wilfull and wicked murtherers and malefactors , which despaire of gods mercy , and oftentimes lay violent hands vpon themselues . polydor virgil writes , that richard the third had a most terrible dreame the night before bosworth-field , in which he was slaine : he thought that all the diuels in hell haled and pulled him in most hideous and vgly shapes ; it credo non fuit somnium , sed conscientia scelerum , that was no fained dreame ( saith polydor ) but a true torture of his conscience , presaging a bloudy day to himselfe and to his followers . and we see by daily experience a great many that are driuen by the terror of a guilty conscience to hang , drowne , and murther themselues ; and of these it may be said that , iudas-like , they are both iurie and iudge , accusers and executioners of themselues . thus you see the different kindes and qualities of conscience , with the degrees and gradations thereof ; some too quiet , as the blinde , the secure , and the seared ; and some too vnquiet , as the erronious , dubious , and desperate , or guilty : the meane is the best ; not lulled asleepe with a habite of sinning , nor yet affrighted with the terrours of guilt and despaire , but well-seasoned with feare and faith , hope and loue , which is the best temperature of a christian soule . and so i come to the third and last part . the extent , latitude , or circumference of this text , ( call it what you will ) the manner and meanes to obtaine and retaine a good conscience , or the matters wherein , in all duties towards god and men ; and the time how long a good conscience is to be kept , 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 , alwayes , and at all times . it is an aphorisme in physicke , that lisdem nutrimur quibus constamus , wee are fed by the same whereof we are bred , whether we vnderstand it of bloud the immediate , or the earth the remote meanes of nutriment . and it is true in diuinity , that the meanes to haue , and to hold , a good conscience are alike , and the same . and these are principally foure , vniuersality of obedience . sincerity of heart and affection . constancy in well-doing . diligence in practise , and exercise . all which are closely included in the words of my text. 1. first , to haue a good conscience , there is required an vniuersall and catholique obedience in all duties humane and diuine , towards god and men , the workes of piety and charity , in the first and second table : for the conscionable man hath respect vnto all the commandements of god , he intends not to breake any , although hee may faile in many ; bona conscientia non stat cum proposito peccandi ; a good conscience stands not with a purpose to sin . he is no true penitent that mournes for sinne past , and at the same time meanes to commit the same sinne againe . he is no good man that makes conscience of one sinne , and not of another ; so hee that breakes one commandement , hates the rest , and is guilty of all . herod , naaman , and ananias , made conscience of many sinnes , they went a great way towards heauen , but for their pride , incest , idolatry , and sacriledge , they were cast downe to hell. many there are that hate pride and couetousnesse , but they loue whoredome and drunkennesse . and some there are that make a conscience of the duties of the first table , specially those that crosse not their will and affections , that are no way against their profit and pleasure , and that are glorious before men ; they will not misse a sermon , sweare an oath , nor doe the least worke on the sabaoth day , which are very good things in them , for part of our endeauour , though it be not mere righteousnesse , yet is it lesse sinne . but as for the duties of the second table , which are the best touchstone of the conscience , if we looke to their doings and dealings with men , you shall finde many of them full of fraud and falshood , full of malice and mischiefe , as if their holinesse were a discharge vnto them from righteousnesse . and others there are that liue orderly with their neighbours , and pay euery man his due , but they rob god of his due ; they haue no care of the duties of the first table , neither make they any conscience of religion . the first are like the pharises , who were very holy , but vniust ; the others like the saduces , good liners , but very bad belieuers , for they belieued that there was neither spirit , angell , nor resurrection : and of both these i may say , that they doe their duties by halfes , and agrippa-like , they are but semi christiani , almost , or rather halfe-christians ; whereas the conscionable man makes conscience of all the commandements of god , euen from the greatest to the least , generally , though not equally ; for most of all hee straines and striues against the great and grosse sinnes , yet swallowes not the least , hee abhorres adultery , and hates dalliance ; he is so farre from pride , couetousnesse , and other capitall sinnes , that hee abstaines from all occasions and appearance of euill , hating euen the garment spotted by the flesh . in a word , he is a perfect christian , quoad partes ( as the schoolemen speake ) though not quoad gradus ; as a childe is said to haue all the parts of a perfect man , although he want age & stature ; so the conscionable man hath all the parts and properties of a perfect christian , which may be had here in via , in the way , although he attaine not those high degrees of perfection , which they haue in patria , in their country . 2. secondly , in a good conscience there is required sincerity , integritie , and vprightnesse of heart and affections , which the greeke word 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 in my text doth well import , if you change but the case , and reade it thus , before god & men . all things are before god , and nothing is hid from him ; yet properly that is said to be before god , which is hid from men , and which is before none but god only , as the heart and the conscience . god is 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 the searcher of the heart , and tryer of the reines . and therefore he saith , my sonne giue me thy heart . and s. paul saith , whatsoeuer ye doe , doe it heartily , as vnto god , and not vnto men : for god is a spirit , and he will be serued in spirit and truth . we cannot complement before god with faces and phrases , as we doe with men . a little done in sincerity and truth from the heart , is more worth then all the workes of hypocrites ; yea , without this integrity of the heart all our labour is but lost . and therefore the hypocrite , that sounds a trumpet when hee giues almes , that prayes in the corners of the street , and doth all his workes to be seene of men , can neuer please god , nor haue a good conscience , for a good conscience cannot stand with hypocrites . 3. thirdly , to haue , and to hold , a good conscience , there is required constancie , continuance , and perseuerance in well-doing : not demas-like for a spurt , nor as the galathians for a time , ye ranne well , who hindred you ? but alwayes , and in the whole course of our life . in the life of man there are many windings and turnings ; but the conscionable man , turne him loose , hee is not bonus cum bonis , malus cum malis , godly in one company , prophane in another ; sober to day , deboyst to morrow ; but like a square cube , he is semper idem , euer the same , which way soeuer you turne him . there is not any , but at times haue fits and flashes of a good conscience : they are affected for the time present with some good sermon , or vpon some great deliuerance they grow a little holy ; but that little is little worth , for they are soone out of breath , and quickly weary . and therefore my text saith 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 alwaies , and at all times . it is true , that the best doe sometimes faile , the most faithfull haue their faults and frailties : who can say , my heart is cleane ? in many things wee sinne all of vs ; but the godly , though they fall , yet shall they rise againe , and be renued by repentance ; they fall not finally , neither doe they finne pleno consensu , with full consent , and bent of the will : their will and desire is , yea , they are stedfastly purposed with dauid , to keepe all the commandements of god ; and though they faile in many particulars , yet god accepteth their will for the deed , their good endeauour , as if it were perfect obedience : and therefore to haue a good conscience , wee must bee constant in well-doing at all times , effectu , or affectu , in deed or desire , in action or affection . and that this may bee effected , we must begin betimes , put not off from day to day to turne vnto the lord , for delay is dangerous . and continue vnto the end , be thou faithfull vnto the death , and i will giue thee the crowne of glory . he that endureth vnto the end shall be saued . incipere multorum finire paucorum ; many begin well , but few doe continue vnto the end : incassuam curritur si caeptum iter ante terminū deseratur ; it is in vaine to begin a iourney and not to goe forward : and therfore s. bernard saith , sola perseuer antia coronatur , of all other vertues , onely perseuerance weares the garland . 4. to 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 , the last word in my text , importing constancie , and continuance , if wee adde 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 the first word , which implieth diligence and exercise , then is the circle round , or circumference compleat . conscience , like a vessell , may easily be kept pure and cleane , if rinsed euery day ; but if it goe longer , it gathers soile and corruption , and requires more then ordinarie repentance to purge and cleanse it . wee sinne daily , and therefore wee must daily wash our consciences with the teares of inward sorrow and contrition , which bringeth repentance not to be repented of . this was s. pauls exercise , to keepe his conscience vnspotted , and without offence ; and this must bee the daily practise of euery good christian : now the onely bath or lauacre to wash our consciences in , is the bloud of iesus christ , which cleanseth vs from all our sinnes , i say the bloud of christ applyed by faith . in which respect faith is said to purifie the conscience from dead workes : and s. paul ioyneth them together , keepe faith and a good conscience ; as if the one could not well be without the other . out of the flesh of man , when the body is dead , are bred those wormes which consume the flesh . euen so from the corruption of the conscience there breeds a worme a thousand times more terrible , euen the worme of conscience , which euer gnaweth , and neuer dyeth . to preuent this , we must purge the conscience from such corruptions . the corruptions of the conscience are diuers , and different . as first , ignorance and superstition ; against the which wee must seeke for sound and sanctified knowledge to direct vs in our generall and particular callings . secondly , pride . and singularity ; against the which apply meekenesse and humility , for , vbi humilitas , ibi sapientia , where humility is , there is wisedome ; et inter sapientes sapiensior qui humilior , amongst the wise , he is wisest that is most humble , for god resisteth the proud , but giueth grace vnto the humble . thirdly , vncharitablenesse , and vnrighteousnesse , are great peruerters of the conscience ; for the vncharitable and vniust man can neuer be conscionable . against these apply those precepts of our sauiour , loue thy neighbour as thy selfe ; whatsoeuer ye would that men should doe vnto you , euen so doe you vnto them , for this is the law and the prophets . fourthly , we may adde to these , all the vnruly passions and affections of the minde ; for as wilde horses ouerturne the chariot with men and all : so the passions of the minde , if they be not tamed , ouerwhelme all iudgement and conscience ; for perit omne iudicum cum res transit in affectum : there is no place for iustice , iudgement , or conscience , where passion beares the sway . the best remedy against these is mortification and alteration of their course , by turning their edge , as our anger against others : the streame is turned when we begin to bee angry with our selues , and our owne sinnes . our loue to the world , the edge is turned when wee begin to loue god and godlinesse , and seeke those things that are aboue , where christ sitteth on the right hand of god. much might bee spoken of these things , but i draw towards an end , and will conclude with a word , or two by way of application . it is a witty parable which one of the fathers hath of a man that had three friends , two whereof he loued intirely , the third but indifferently . this man being called in question for his life , sought helpe of his friends : the first would beare him company some part of his way : the second would lend him money , and affoord him some meanes for his iourney ; and that was all that they would or could doe for him : but the third , whom he least respected , and from whom hee least expected ; this would goe all the way , and abide all the while with him , yea , hee would appeare with him , speake , and plead for him . my brethren , this man is euery one of vs , and our three friends are the flesh , the world , and our conscience . now when death shall summon vs to iudgement , what can our friends after the flesh doe for vs ? they will bring vs some part of the way . our wiues and children , and our dearest friends , they will bring vs to the graue , and further they cannot goe . and of all the worldly goods which we possesse , what shall we haue ? what will they affoord vs ? onely a shrowde , and a coffin , or a tombe at the most . 〈…〉 a good conscience , this will liue and 〈…〉 or rather liue when we are dead ; and 〈…〉 ●ine , it will appeare with vs 〈…〉 ●●dgement seat . and when 〈…〉 purse can doe vs good ; 〈◊〉 a good 〈◊〉 will speake and plead for vs , yea , excuse and 〈◊〉 . o then ( my 〈◊〉 ) let vs labour aboue all things to haue , and to hold , a good conscience , keepe it as the apple of thine eye , and doe nothing to offend it . aures omnium pulso , conscientias si●● gulorum con●enio . i speake to the eares of all in generall , i conuent the conscience of euery one in particular ; yea , i appeale to all that heare me this day , what little regard there is made of conscience in our age , and how few there are that follow the dictates thereof . and therefore ( o conscience ) i turne my speech vnto thee , thou art a iudge of iudges , and one day thou shalt iudge vs all , and testifie either with vs or against vs : in the meane time , it is thy office to preach ouer my sermon againe and againe , and to apply it to the hearts of all that heare me this day , or else my labour is but lost . goe to all estates of persons , tell them of their duties , and put them in minde of god and thy selfe . speake vnto those honourable persons that sit at the sterne of gouernment ( either in church , or common-wealth ) that they consult with thee in all their counsells and courses , that they preferre thee before policie , that they execute true iustice and iudgement without partialitie , or respect of parsons , and that they cause others that are subordinate vnto them to doe the like . speake to those that are towards the law , and other officers in courts of iustice and equitie , either ciuill or ecclesiasticall , specially in those courts that are of thy iurisdiction , and haue their denomination from thee , that they entertaine , nor maintaine bad causes against the innocent ; that they wrest nor the law to terrifie their poore neighbours , and to intangle the simple ; that they spinne not our honest suites to such length of time and costlinesse , that it may bee said ( and that truely ) causa torque● noce●tem , comsidicus innocentem , the medicine is more grieuous then the maladie . speake to my reuerend brethren of the clergy , that they preach vi●a voce ( that is ) vita & voce , both by life and by doctrine , that they teach after a plaine and a profitable manner , not affecting craggy , curious , scholasticall speculations , fitter for the chaire then the pulpit ; nor such roman english and sublimity of 〈◊〉 that a plaine english-man cannot vnderstand them ; for our language is now grown so learned , that a man may clerum in english. speake to the poore , that they beare their pouerty with patience ; and as for those that are rich , o charge them that they be not high minded , that they trust not in vucertaine riches , but in the liuing god , that they be rich in good workes , ready to distribute , laying vp for themselues a good foundation against the time to come . in a word , to conclude ; speake to all men and women , that they feare god and serue him in vprightnes & 〈◊〉 truth , that they serue him in holinesse & righteousnesse before him all th● da●●s 〈…〉 that denying vngodlinesse and 〈◊〉 losts , they liue soberly , righteously , and godly in 〈◊〉 present world , looking for that blessed hope , and the glorious appearing of the great god , and our sauiour iesus christ : to whom with the holy ghost , three persons , and one immortall and eternall god , bee all honour , praise and glory , foreuer and euer , amen . finis . notes, typically marginal, from the original text notes for div a03796-e170 august . notes for div a03796-e290 the preface . the coherence verse●● . goran . verse 14. verse 15. the sence of the words . the diuision . the first part . aquin. pars 1. q. 79. art. 13. conscience defined . the parts of the definition expounded . meditations . aristot. sen●ca . i●●enal . lips. pol. m. perkins . seneca lib. 1. epist. 43. the nature of conscience illustrated . de interiori domo . m. cade . a briefe application . iohn 13. 17. conscience two fold . prou. 15. 15. 2 cor. 1. 12. conscience foure-fold . good , but not quiet . three degrees of conscience , that is quiet , but not good . caeca . * m. wards balme from gilead . 2. secura . ad heliodor . 3 obdurata . good and quiet neither good nor quiet . part 3. hippocrat . obedience . lumbard . iam. 2. 10. iud. 23. sincerity . prou. 23. 26. col. 3. 23. iohn 4. 14. math. 6. 2. constancie . 2 tim. 4. 10. gal. 5. 7. reuci . 2. chrysos● . ierom. beru● 1 tim. 1. 19. the corruptions of conscience . ignorance . pride . austin . vncharitablenesse . luk. 10. 27. vnruly passions of the minde . austin . col. 3. 5. application . gregory in his morals . austin . an apostrophe to conscience . 1 tim. 6. iosuah 24. like 1. tit. 2. 12. tvvo sermons vvherein we are taught, 1. hovv to get, 2. how to keepe, 3. how to vse a good conscience. preached in alldermanbury church, london. not heretofore published. by robert harris. harris, robert, 1581-1658. 1630 approx. 67 kb of xml-encoded text transcribed from 24 1-bit group-iv tiff page images. text creation partnership, ann arbor, mi ; 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(eebo-tcp ; phase 1, no. a02722) transcribed from: (early english books online ; image set 6265) images scanned from microfilm: (early english books, 1475-1640 ; 1176:1) tvvo sermons vvherein we are taught, 1. hovv to get, 2. how to keepe, 3. how to vse a good conscience. preached in alldermanbury church, london. not heretofore published. by robert harris. harris, robert, 1581-1658. [4], 43, [2] p. printed by t. b[rudenell] for iohn bartlet, and are to be sold at his shop in cheape-side at the gilded-cup, london : 1630. printer's name from stc. reproduction of the original in the henry e. huntington library and art gallery. created by converting tcp files to tei p5 using tcp2tei.xsl, tei @ oxford. re-processed by university of nebraska-lincoln and northwestern, with changes to facilitate morpho-syntactic tagging. gap elements of known extent have been transformed into placeholder characters or elements to simplify the filling in of gaps by user contributors. eebo-tcp is a partnership between the universities of michigan and oxford and the publisher proquest to create accurately transcribed and encoded texts based on the image sets published by proquest via their early english books online (eebo) database (http://eebo.chadwyck.com). the general aim of eebo-tcp is to encode one copy (usually the first edition) of every monographic english-language title published between 1473 and 1700 available in eebo. eebo-tcp aimed to produce large quantities of textual data within the usual project restraints of time and funding, and therefore chose to create diplomatic transcriptions (as opposed to critical editions) with light-touch, mainly structural encoding based on the text encoding initiative (http://www.tei-c.org). the eebo-tcp project was divided into two phases. the 25,363 texts created during phase 1 of the project have been released into the public domain as of 1 january 2015. anyone can now take and use these texts for their own purposes, but we respectfully request that due credit and attribution is given to their original source. users should be aware of the process of creating the tcp texts, and therefore of any assumptions that can be made about the data. text selection was based on the new cambridge bibliography of english literature (ncbel). if an author (or for an anonymous work, the title) appears in ncbel, then their works are eligible for inclusion. selection was intended to range over a wide variety of subject areas, to reflect the true nature of the print record of the period. in general, first editions of a works in english were prioritized, although there are a number of works in other languages, notably latin and welsh, included and sometimes a second or later edition of a work was chosen if there was a compelling reason to do so. image sets were sent to external keying companies for transcription and basic encoding. quality assurance was then carried out by editorial teams in oxford and michigan. 5% (or 5 pages, whichever is the greater) of each text was proofread for accuracy and those which did not meet qa standards were returned to the keyers to be redone. after proofreading, the encoding was enhanced and/or corrected and characters marked as illegible were corrected where possible up to a limit of 100 instances per text. any remaining illegibles were encoded as <gap>s. understanding these processes should make clear that, while the overall quality of tcp data is very good, some errors will remain and some readable characters will be marked as illegible. users should bear in mind that in all likelihood such instances will never have been looked at by a tcp editor. the texts were encoded and linked to page images in accordance with level 4 of the tei in libraries guidelines. copies of the texts have been issued variously as sgml (tcp schema; ascii text with mnemonic sdata character entities); displayable xml (tcp schema; characters represented either as utf-8 unicode or text strings within braces); or lossless xml (tei p5, characters represented either as utf-8 unicode or tei g elements). keying and markup guidelines are available at the text creation partnership web site . eng conscience -sermons -early works to 1800. sermons, english -17th century. 2008-06 tcp assigned for keying and markup 2008-09 spi global keyed and coded from proquest page images 2008-10 john pas sampled and proofread 2008-10 john pas text and markup reviewed and edited 2009-02 pfs batch review (qc) and xml conversion tvvo sermons : vvherein vve are tavght , 1. hovv to get , 2. how to keepe , 3. how to vse a good conscience . preached in alldermanbvry church , london . not heretofore published . by robert harris . 1 cor. 4.3 . with mee it is a very small thing that i should be iudged of you , or of mans iudgement : yea , i iudge not mine owne selfe . london : printed by t.b. for iohn bartlet , and are to be sold at his shop in cheape-side at the gilded-cup . 1630. to the printer . whereas you request mee to enlarge my selfe in some passages of my former sermons touching conscience , against this new impression : i haue resolued rather to adde two new sermons of the same subiect , than to alter any thing in the old , and this i haue beene led vnto vpon these reasons . first , because i would haue you deale firmely with all men in the venting of copies . secondly , because that labour would haue beene as tedious to me as this . thirdly , because i haue now added something touching the vse of conscience , which my former text would not so fitly beare ; my request vnto you is double ; first , that you would be carefull in obseruing stops , interrogations and distinctions , which neglected , the sence becomes sometimes darke , sometimes imperfect and none vt all , as is tobee seene in some passages of the sermons on prouerbs and samuel . secondly , that you will seuer these so from the former , as that who so pleases may haue them alone . thus resting in your care for the due publishing of all , i commend you and the worke to the lords blessing . hanwell , oct. 8. yours , robert harris , two sermons , vvherein vve are taught , 1. how to get , 2. how to keepe , 3. how to vse a good conscience . heb. 13. 18. pray for vs , for we trust we haue a good conscience in all things , willing to liue honestly . of the apostles motion so much : followeth now his reason ; where , first , the assertion , i haue a good conscience in all things : ] secondly , the euidence and confirmation , i am perswaded : ] so vpon this ground , i desire to liue honestly . the points we note are two : first , the apostle secures the thing ( a good conscience . ) secondly , hee rests in the confirmation of it . from the first this : euery christian should so order the matter , that hee may truly say , i haue a good conscience : this the thing that must be made good , and assured ; to wit , a good conscience . here , lest it be objected , that the point holds in such as the apostle was , ( preachers ) who must be men of conscience , not in all ; wee , must doe two things ; first , see what warrant we haue for the raising ; next , for practizing of the point . our warrant for deducing a generall from this particular , is fetcht ; first , from the end and vse of the word in generall , namely , our instruction , as appeares , rom. 15.4 . and 2 tim. 3.16 . euery christian should so order the matter , that hee may truly say , i haue a good conscience : this the thing that must be made good , and assured ; to wit , a good conscience . here , lest it be objected , that the point holds in such as the apostle was , ( preachers ) who must be men of conscience , not in all ; wee , must doe two things ; first , see what warrant we haue for the raising ; next , for practizing of the point . our warrant for deducing a generall from this particular , is fetcht ; first , from the end and vse of the word in generall , namely , our instruction , as appeares , rom. 15.4 . and 2 tim. 3.16 . secondly , from that generall precept of this apostle , phil. 4.8 , 9. furthermore , brethren , whatsoeuer things are true , whatsoeuer things are honest , whatsoeuer things are iust , whatsoeuer things are pure , whatsoeuer things pertaine to loue , whatsoeuer things are of good report , if there be any vertue , if there be any praise , thinke on these things , which yee haue both learned , and receiued , and heard , and seene in mee : those things doe , and the god of peace shall be with you . thirdly , from the like president , heb. 13.5 , 6. let your conuersation be without couetousnesse , and be content with those things that yee haue : for hee hath said , i will not faile thee , neither forsake thee : so that we may baldly say , the lord is my helper , neither will i feare what man can doe vnto me . whence the inference is to all from one , ioshuah . fourthly , from reason , though examples ( as examples ) simply binde not , yet reason and precept ( that is to say , the law of nature and of god ) doe binde : and therefore , when the example is grounded vpon common equity , and hath nothing priuate in it ( vnlesse haply for degree onely ) and is backt by precept , then it 's binding . now thus stands the case here : first , a man , as he is rationall ( much more as he is a christian ) is to regard his conscience . secondly , the apostle , not onely in his ministery , but in all other relations and passages of life , minded this , acts 23.1 . & 24.16 . nay , further , as his life was rifled into by the aduersaries , with his doctrine ; so he apologizes for that , with this , and grounds his perswasion , as much vpon his christian liuing , as his faithfull preaching . lastly , the precept reaches all , as well as preachers : and there 's as good reason , why we as well as they , should assure conscience . for the first , the precept is no lesse large , then plain ; first , for getting : secondly , keeping : thirdly , vsing of a good conscience . for getting : we are called vpon to wash the heart , ierem. 4.14 . to wash off all filthinesse of spirit , 2 cor. 7.1 . to study vniuersall holinesse , 1 thes . 5. and the end of the commandement is , a good conscience , 1 tim. 〈◊〉 . 5. secondly , for keeping : salomo●a addresses himselfe to all and each particular , pr. 04.23 . thirdly , for vsing : heb. 10.22 . in all our approaches to god , wee must wash the conscience , as the iewes did their flesh and rayment . for the second : 1. equity , 2. necessity , 3. vtility perswade the practice : first , wee are dependant , and therefore accountable as well as pauls ; soules we haue receiued , and for a soule and spirit must euery one answer : lawes we haue also receiued , and by law we must be iudged ; we are vnder the same iudge , the same law , the same censure that others be , and must hold vp our hands at the same barre ; and therefore must haue the same thoughts , and care of conscience : books must be compared , gods and ours , originall , and counterpane ; therefore we also must haue our bookes fairely kept , and a readinesse . secondly , there lyes the same necessity vpon vs , as vpon pauls , of securing conscience : for first , if we looke inward , wee shall finde our hearts as crazy , our graces as feeble , our peace as vnsettled , as theirs : and on the other side , our secret guile , and guilt , and pride , and vnbeliefe , as great as theirs . and next , if we looke outward ; wee finde the world the world still , that 's a sea , our life a warfare , wicked men as busie with others consciences as euer ; the diuell as malicious as euer ; troubles without , terrours within , as stirring as euer : in short , as much vse and neede of a good conscience now , as 1000. yeeres agoe ; a preacher may stand somewhat higher then our selues , but wee are in the same stormes , there 's none other difference . thirdly , it will quit cost for vs also , to get good consciences : for , these are the preseruers of all graces ; the conscience is that bottome that containes all our treasure ; that casket that holds all our iewels ; if this miscarry , farewell faith , hope , patience , courage , truth , all . secondly , conscience is the root of all our comfort : the fruit of righteousnesse ( saith esay ) is peace : out of a cleere conscience , issue those sweet streames of ioy , comfort , &c. thirdly , conscience is the antidote against all poy soned crosses ; it is the sting that is in our consciences , that steeles all our crosses , and makes them stinging ; there 's little mudde raised in the soule , where the conscience is cleere and pure . fourthly , conscience is the bulwarke , and wall of brasse , that keepes off all inuasions and assaults , ephis . 6. by this a man raignes ouer all tribulations , row. 8. and is enabled to looke flames in the face , lyons in the face , raylers in the face , slanderers in the face , diuels in the face , god in the face , with an vndaunted countenance , ● iohn 3.21 . & 4 17. on the other side , take away conscience , and you plucke vp the sluces , and pull downe the bankes , you let out the soule into all licentiousnesse ; for what bounds hath the ingenuous spirit , when feare and shame ( the immediate issues of conscience ) are gone ? where will a man stay ? man without conscience , is a wilde horse without bridle ; the life and heart is filled with sinne , after sinne comes guilt ( from that light that 's left ) thence tormentfull shame , feare , anguish ; hence the least noyse affrights him , the least crosle stings him , the least danger appales him ; in short , rest there 's none , peace none , courage none , comfort none ; but conscience rages like an aking tooth : a man eates in paine , drinks in feare ; dares not goe abroad , dares not goe to bed , dares not sleepe , lest his dreames should proue terrible ; dares not wake , lest his wounds should bleed againe , and his watchfull cares and feares recoyle . by this little said , you see how it imports vs all , as well as s. paul , to conno this lesson , and to say readily , i , and i , and i , and euery i , haue a good conscience . but all that can be said , is but an empty discourse , and a contemplation farre off from the matter ; for the truth is , no man can tell what the benefit of a good , what the misery of a bad conscience is , but he who hath felt both ; that man is but a stranger to himselfe , and to conscience , that doth not apprehend a thousand times more , then hee can vtter in this kinde . it suffices to say , that no man knowes the badnesse of a bad , the goodnesse of a good conscience , but onely he that hath felt the weight of that , and worth of this ; and hee that knowes least experimentally & feelingly , knowes more then his tongue , face , eyes , hands , bones can vtter , though they speake all at once , as vsually they doe , when conscience workes strongly . but i passe to application ; where , first , three sorts come to be taxed : secondly , all to be taught . for first , if all should aime at this , to say ( and to say truely ) my conscience is good , three sorts of men are farre wide of the marke . first , they who neuer trouble their thoughts with conscience at all ; credit , wealth , friends they le secure , if they can : but for conscience , t is onely a name , a scarcrow to affright children withall ; but no wise man will stand vpon that : and lest they should seeme madde , they plead reason for their practice . obiect . 1 first , there 's no man liuing , but hee straines and dispenceth with conscience in some things : take me the best preachers ; doe not they speake , yeelde , walke contrary to conscience , in some things ? name me your best christians : doe they not know censuring , enuy , &c. to bee naught ? doe not they speake against some sometimes , whom in their consciences they know to be better men then themselues , and so of all the rest ? sol. thus they plead in the first place : but this is a wilfull delusion , for first , what if all the world ranne wilde ? noth will be noah , vpright in his generation still . secondly , is it well to straine ? if not , wilt thou be naught for company . thirdly , thou art deceiued , there is many a paul , zacharie , elizah , that walke in all the commandements of god , and would not purposely liue in the least allowance of the least sinne , for all the world . object . but yet they doe so ? sol. first , if vpright , they doe not so ; if they doe so , they be not vpright : indeed the most vpright knowes but in part , loues but in part ; he may sinne , because he knowes it not to be sinne ; hee may sinne againe , being surprized in some one particular , gal. 6. against his generall purpose . thirdly , he may be yoakt as s. paul was , with those inward buffetings that may make his heart ake , and his soule to cry out , oh wretched man that i am , &c. rom 7. but if thou thinkest that any vpright man can thus resolue , i doe , or may know , this course i line in , to be sinnefull , and yet i must not , i will not taken tice of it , make conscience of it , thou errest ; a godly man cannot thus sinne , and resolue . secondly , whoso doth , decieues himselfe , same 's 1. if any man seeme religious , and make ; not conscience of euery sinne ( euen to a word ) he deceiues himselfe ; be not thou so deceiued . object . but conscience is like the eye ; if one begin to salue it , or to meddle with it , there is no end , a man shall nener inioy himselfe , but there will be scruple vpon scruple , feare after feare , sinne vpon sinne ; t is an endlesse taske to purge the conscience , i answer , sol. first , the question is not , how painefull it is , but how needfull ? there is smart and trouble in searching wounds , yet they must be searched . secondly , the matter is feizable : s. paul by trauell may arriue at this happy hauen , first , i haue a cleere , secondly , i haue a good conscience . thirdly , dead flesh is not the best flesh , nor conscience awakened , the worst conscience . fourthly , though physicke for the time stirre humours , and playsters cause smart , yet both that and this tend to health and ease : so thinke of the present troubles and sits of conscience . object . o , but he that will stand vpon conscience in this age , shall dye a begger , or be begd for a foole , he shall haue trickes enow put vpon him , if he be so tender ? i answer , first , what if it were so ? a man had better fast then ear poyson ; begge , starue , pine , then sell his conscience : aske them in hell , aske them that are vpon this racke , they will say so : as for disgrace , i had rather haue all the world call me foole , then mine own conscience ; and conscience will befoole me , if i sell heauen for earth , kernels for shells , pearlos for pibbles . but , secondly , what necessity in this consequence ? why may not truth , and innocency , and conscience , maintaine and credit mee , as well as lying , coozenage , flattery , basenesse ? why should not i thinke gods wayes as good as satans ? thirdly , what lost abraham , ioseph , daniel , mor●ecai , dauid , &c. by keeping a good conscience ? verily , if a godly man doe not thriue , conscience is not in fault : let him rather fault ( if there be a fault ) improuidence , idlenesse , pride , distrust , admixture of ill means , not conscience . obiect . but many that made as little adoe about conscience as i doe , haue made a good end at last ; they haue dyed without feares , or if troubled a little , vpon some satisfaction made , and some charitable workes done , all was husht and well ? sol. i answer , first , thou knowest not what conscience others made in life . secondly , thou knowest not what secret pinches conscience giues them on their death-bed . thirdly , it s one thing to satisfie after sinne committed : another , to sinne purposely , in presuming vpon future pardons and satisfactions . fourthly , a bleeding wound is better then that that bleeds not . fiftly , some men goe crying to heauen , some goe laughing and sleeping to hell ; the question is not what conscience feeles most , but what is most sicke ? some consciences as well as men , lye speechlesse before departure . those are but poore shifts to put off thoughts of conscience , vpon these grounds , yet this is the first errour . a second sort ; they labour the matter of conscience much , but how ? their worke is not to perswade their owne hearts with saint paul , but other mens . a strange folly , for a man to be more carefull of others then himselfe ; to feare others , to prize others aboue himselfe : yet this is ordinary : men study rather to seeme , then to be conscionable ; labour more to approue themselues to others ; then to their owne hearts ; and this appeares thus : first , in that they stand more vpon the forme , then the power of godlinesse . secondly , in that they set the best side outward , be more in profession then in action ; better abroad then at home ; a farre off then at hand . to these i say but this : first , this is but machiauels diuinity : they haue not so learned christ . secondly , this is but the hypocrites guise ; he makes cleane the outside , he iustifies himselfe before men onely . thirdly , this is but a childes part , who makes his mother beleeue that his sores heale , when they rankle , and shewes his right hand for his left . lastly , this is a poore remedy , to couer a broken arme with a braue scarfe : alas , thou must answere conscience , when all friends bee absent : time will be , when death will snatch thee from men , and conscience will follow thee to christs barre ; then if thou canst not stand before thine owne heart , how wilt thou stand before him , who is greater then thy heart ? poore man , poore man ! thou maist easily deceiue men , possibly deceiue thy selfe : but if thou canst not approue thy heart to god , thou art lost ; for him thou canst not deceiue . as for those who make bold to father all vpon conscience , and vpon god , who wipe their impudent mouthes with the harlot , and say , what haue we done ? who appeales to god with innocent dauid and paul , iudge me , o lord : i lye not , my conscience beareth witnesse , god knowes my heart : i take on my conscience , that i am vniustly slandered , when t is neither so , nor so ; what will become of these men ? with what faces will they looke vpon that conscience , that iudge , whom they haue made partakers , witnesses , iudges , reuengers of their damned hypocrisie , and more then diuellish impudency ! but leaue them to the racke . the third sort perswade themselues of their integrity and speake it out with pauls confidence , we haue a good conscience . but would their confidence were as well bottom'd as his : but alas , men build this their assurance either in the ayre , or on the sands : some are perswaded without reason , some vpon very weake reason . for the first , they haue ( yea that they haue ) as good consciences as any of them all . but what 's their proofe ? they are perswaded so . but vpon what reasons ? why , they hope so . but vpon what ground ? why , their minde giues them so . first , poore men ! conscience is reflectiue , knowes its knowledge , vnderstands it selfe : secondly , its rationall , and can giue a reason of its hopes : thirdly , its regular , and proceedes by the rule of scripture : shew mee thy grounds in blacke and white , else t is fancie , not conscience . secondly , others alledge reason , but they cannot perswade a reasonable man who is not willing to winke ; they are chiefly these . first , a good meaning : i am ( saith the ignorant ) no scholler , many can put me downe with words , and doe make a greater noyse , but i meane as well , and haue as good an heart to god-ward , as any of them all ? sol. i answer , there is a latitude and measure of knowledge required of all , without some knowledge , the minde is not good , prou. 19.2 . if the eye be starke blinde , the whole man , and the wayes of man are so too ; and to speake of conscience without knowledge , is to speake of contradictions , and to talke of seeing without sight , hearing without eares ; such is knowledge without knowledge , that is , conscience . t is certaine , conscience reaches no further then knowledge , at least then habituall , and implicite , or generall knowledge . the confidences of an ignorant are but the fruits of his pride , and his scruples , the issues of his trembling opinion and staggering iudgement : t is true , weake knowledge ( ioyned with humility and care of growth ) must not be discouraged ; but whoso neglects knowledge , presuming vpon conscience , doth as if he should pull out his eyes , and trust to his hands for guidance . obiect . the second reason alleadged for their hope of conscience , is from the troubles that they haue in their hearts ; for when they haue done amisse , their consciences be eftsoons vpon them , and will giue them no rest . sol. i answer , this may conclude some conscience , but not necessarily pauls , ( that 's to say ) a naturall , but not a spirituall conscience . the differences of which two , are wide , and for the discerning thereof ; first , see for what sinnes thy heart smites thee , if onely for crying staring sinnes , which the light of nature from inward principles or outward instructions prompts ; it is not the conscience now in speech , paul had a good conscience in all things . secondly , see what reformation this trouble workes ; if none , take heed , pauls conscience is ioyned with ( desires and ) endeauours of obedience for the future . thirdly , see whence the trouble arises , whether from a contrariancy betweene sinne and thee , or betweene conscience , and paine , and punishment onely : pauls conscience is troubled with the filth as well as guilt of sinne , and his will is prest to goodnesse for its beauty . fourthly , see whither this trouble driues thee ; pauls carries him to christians , to praier , watchfulnesse , beware : a naturall conscience proues a naturall man , but no more ; thou canst not claime kinred of paul vpon such a conscience ; with turkes and heathens thou maist . ob. the third ground is this : my conscience doth not onely checke me for what 's past , but curbs and reins me in : before sin be committed , i dare not doe as the most doe ; nay , i dare not omit good duty : should not i reade , pray euery day , i could not sleepe in the night , &c. i answere , sol. it must be considered whence that feare arises ; for t is certaine , that very custome and education will make a child afraid to omit his deuotions when he goes to bed : if we will establish the heart with comfort , wee must make good two things : first , that we worke vpon right motiues not onely because such hath beene our custome , such our education , so is the will of our parents , &c. but because wee need such helpes , god loues such seruices , and we finde strength comming vpon such performances . secondly , that we heed the manner of performing , as well as the matters performed , not resting in the worke done , but mourning for our dulnesse , distractions , coldnesse , and other failings in the doing ; for this is once , there 's nothing more shames and humbles an vpright man , then his ouert and slight performance of his masters worke . obiect . the third ground they settle vpon , is their peace : their sinnes doe not daunt them , nor their consciences dampe them ; all is quiet within , and they haue no doubts of their saluation . sol. i answer , there is the diuels peace , and gods peace : there is a negatiue peace , or cessation onely of torment ; and a positiue peace , or fruition of comfort . therefore , examine first , the source and raising of thy peace : for some are quiet , because the conscience is either blinde , and sees not the sword against it , like balaam ; or slothfull and sleepy ; and a very sore man may feele little in his sleepe ; or else either seared or deluded : a deluded sence thinkes it feeles or sees what in truth it doth not ; and seared flesh doth not smart like other flesh , not because it hath more life , but lesse sence : so here . secondly , the meanes how thou commest by it : there is no peace but in gods wayes ; if i winne it not by praver , digge it not out of gods sauing wels and ordinances , finde not the word speaking peace to my soule , i cannot haue it ; our peace comes in at the eare , as the church speakes , and out of gods mouth ; god creates peace by his word and lippe , as esay speakes : vnlesse it beare his stampe , and haue holinesse to the lord written vpon it , t is not right , t will not passe as currant . thirdly , the effects of it : holy peace workes thankfulnesse to christ , humility in vs , mercifulnesse towards bruised spirits . obj the fourth ground is this : i cannot abide vnconscionablenesse in others ; i can with no patience see men goe against conscience . sol. i answer , the diuell is a great rifler and accuser of others consciences ; but a conscionable man is busiest at home , mildest abroad : be so , or be nothing . obiect but i straine at the least sinne . sol. so did the pharisee : conscience is not right , vnlesse it straine at all sinne , endeauour all duty , as paul speakes in both tables ; consider , compare , and so passe sentence ; and here an end of this vse : now to instruction . and here , would all that heare me this day , were as saint paul , his bonds excepted : it shall not be needfull to say much to those who haue felt heauen and hell both in their consciences , they see the difference ; as for others , what can i say , when as men cannot beleeue me without experience ? if they would receiue others testimonies , they may well conceiue , that a good conscience is beyond all created goods , and a bad worse then all positiue euils : for first , what so desireable to all liuing things , as life ? what will not men part withall for life , though it be from skin to skin ? yet conscience is such a thing as wise men prize aboue life ; they 'le dye a thousand deaths , rather then lose conscience ; and whilst they liue , they liue no longer then conscience speakes peace . looke vpon an experienced man , and when he hath lost his peace , no meate , no place , no wealth , no company , no life is pleasant ; he onely liues , because he dares not dye . secondly , for an ill conscience ; what more terrible and hatefull to nature , then death ? yet death is sweet to a wounded conscience ; did hee thinke that death would end his torments , he would not liue ; nay , though he apprehends a iudgement , a hell at the heeles of death , yet many times hee rushes vpon it , and concludes , that certainly hell can be no worse , and probably better then an ill conscience . loe ( my brethren ) what conscience both wayes is ; one so sweet , that heauen would be no heaven without it : the other so bitter , that hell is no hell to it in the iudgement of experience . i can say no more to perswade ; mee thinkes now nothing should remaine but direction . and the way to set you in pauls circumstances , is to guide you ; first , to the getting : secondly , to the keeping of a good conscience . for the first , resolue first on the thing , and thus conclude ; what-euer it cost me , what shift soeuer i make , i must haue a good conscience . it is not necessary to haue wealth ; a poore man may be honest here , happy hereafter . it is not necessary to haue health , a weake man may to heauen . nay , it is not necessary that i must liue , my happinesse is not confined to this life ; but t is necessary to get a good conscience ; without this , i can neither liue nor dye , be neither rich nor poore , sicke nor well ; in few , i cannot subsist , i cannot be ( vnlesse this be a being , to wish i neuer had beene ) without a good conscience ; and therefore what-euer it colt me , i le goe to the price thus first resolue , and this done then hearkē ; to the means , which are these : first , goe to the right meanes : there 's but one physician for soules and consciences , and that is god ; he onely made , and hee onely re-makes good consciences ; none else can come at conscience , can take out the poyson that 's there ; take off the guilt that is there ; and therefore wee must carry our wounded soules to him , alleadge his owne covenant and hand , and say ; lord , thou hast said that thou wilt take away our euill heart , and giue vs a better , now for thy truths sake make good this word , this scripture . this done , thou must attend his method , and run his course and dict he prescribes , & thou must follow this method ; first , make thy conscience bright and lightsome : hee hath written a phisicke for conscience ( no physicke booke for conscience but his ) from this booke thou must gather knowledge , for darkenesse defiles the vnderstanding , as paul faies , and darkenesse is timorous and staggering ; a man can haue no true , no positiue peace , whilst hee liues in darkenesle , either all things , or nothing shall be lawfull ; and where t is so , the heart cannot be comfortable , therefore to those principles that yet sticke in the soule , adde some other : adde light to light , the light of the word to the light of nature ; for the word is written to helpe that darkenesse , and that light is so dimme and small , that wee must needes set vp another by it , else wee shall see nothing ; and hee that sees nothing , enioyes nothing : therefore thou must get knowledge by reading , by deducing couclusions from gods actions to thy seife , by hearing and setting thy selfe , if thou be free , vnder that ministry that deales with consciences , that sets out god as he is , the word as it is , sinne as it is ; for then we truely know , when we know things in their owne notions and colours . seconly , thou must make the conscience cleane ; it must be pure and cleare , before it will be good : there stickes to the conscience of euery man naturally a great deale of guile and filth ; it is much disabled and maimed , lost much of its sight and life , it hath learned to be idle , false , dumbe , &c. it hath contracted so much guilt , foulnesse , brawninesse by trading in sinne , that there 's do roome for peace , till it hath a new constitution , and be wholly resined : now the way to haue it cleansed , is to flye to bloud : as in the law all things were purified with bloud , so here the bloud of christ is that , that cleanseth from all sinne , that washeth the conscience from dead workes ; this bloud is both healing , and will cloze all our scarefull gashes ; and purging and will take off all stains , an will make vs as white as snow . o goe to this refiner , this fuller , this physitian , this high priest , as the word entitles him ; nothing will serue , but his bloudy sacrifice , and that will doe it ; goe to him as to an all-sufficient sauiour , rest in his bloud without further mixtures ; plead his bloud shed for sinners quite lost and vndone ; beg that of god , asd rahel did children of her husband , giue me bloud or else i dye ; apply that to thy bleeding soule , and say , i bleed ; but christ bled too for me ; my sinnes are bloudy , and his woundes are bloudy too ; my bloud , if spilt , cannot make god that satisfaction that his bloud hath , and therefore i le rest in his bloud that speakes peace , not vengeance , as abels did , and in him who quiets consciences as well as seas and windes , mar. 4.39 . else , as corrupt breath staines and dimmes the glasse : so a corrupt heart the conscience . next , when it is cleare from guilt and filth , then it must be pure and sanctified , the spirit therefore of grace must rest in the conscience , and giue it a new constitution ; it is not sufficient to let out the bad bloud , but now wee must breed good bloud , and make new spirits . from a naturall conscience , and a conscience that is enlightened by the word , we must proceed to a sanctified conscience , and therefore we must labour to feele the power of christs bloud , and of christs life and resurrection in our soules , ( who is king of righteousnesse and peace both , heb 7.2 . ) quickning vs in the inner man , and stamping on vs our first impresse of wisedome , holinesse , righteousnesse , that we may be throughout sanctified , 1 thes . 5. and haue a beauty set vpon the soule and conscience in all points , as the apostle sayes , and freed from dead workes by repentance , heb. 9. and when the conscience is filled in some due measure with light , and freed from sinne , and furnished with positiue grace , then ( out of all ) results that goodnesse of conscience that now we speake of , whereby it s fitted for its ends and offices , and enabled to giue vs a good word and countenance . now for the keeping of conscience good , because i will not ouercharge your memories with rules , i le expresse my selfe in one continued similitude or allegory . the conscience is a clocke or watch in the bosome ; look what you would doe to keep that in frame , that must be done heere . first , if the watch be amisse , who so fit to amend it as hee that made it ? so heere , if any thing trouble conscience , that it goes not at all , or too fast , or out of order , goe to christ , and goe quickly , pray him to set theein ioynt againe , as dauid did , psal . 51. secondly , a watch must be charily kept , the least dust , hayre , iogge almost distempers it ; so the conscience , a little dust in this eye marres both sight and peace , a little sinne crept in betweene the wheeles , sets all at a stand : if euer thy conscience shall hold its comfort , and doe thee acceptable seruice , keepe it cleane , giue no allowance to any the least sinne : a man may liue and dye in some sinne , and yet haue peace , when conscience is not priuy to it , and not conuinced of it : but there can bee no true comfort , where sinne vnderhand is maintained and allowed , be it neuer so small a one : let thy conscience haue this to say for thee : i can beare him witnesse , that he bore his sinnes as a burden , and bid none of them welcome . thirdly , a watch must be daily lookt to ( and thorowly too ) if one pin be amisse , all is out of order : so the conscience ; hee that makes not conscience of all ( according to his light ) makes conscience of none , and wil come to naught ; and he that doth not looke vpon his conscience euery day , and winde it vp , and set it in frame , will haue no conscience in time : euery day thou must talke with thy selfe , and know what the watchsaith , i meane , what report conscience makes of thy dayes worke , what it hath to say for or against thee . 't is with conscience , as with bay liffs and stewards ; if you call them to a daily reckoning , they will be carefull and vsefull ; but if you let things runne on , and reckon once at the hundreds end , they will not watch , or they will not be able to remember : so t is with conscience ; therefore often looke vpon it , and euery day consult with it . the watch must be vsed , else it rusts , furres , and first begins to slacke its pace , and after some time will not goe at all : so conscience , t is preserued by vse , as the stomacke is , and all things else ; for euery thing is perfected and preserued by its proper operations ; as water is kept sweet by running , the conscience by motion strengthens it sense , and sooner feeles its weight : by motion it is facilitated and that 's as good as oyle to the wheele of a clocke ; therefore exercise conscience , and that in all good duties , whether personall or locall . corscience must haue its full walke , and that 's very large ; for a conscience is to bee obserued in all religious and righteous acts ; and whoso will preserue his conscience , must first keepe himselfe pure and vpright . first , in gods worships : secondly , in workes of righteousnesse towards man : thirdly , in his owne place , he must make conscience of his particulat calling and relation , and dwell vpon that : and secondly , for others , hee must remember pauls aduice , keepe thy selfe pure , be not partaker of other mens sinnes . in short , of all things hee must feare god most ; of all men , feare himselfe most and his owne conscience ; of all men out of himselfe , feare his friends most , and his other mens sinnes . many a man washes his heart at home , and defiles his conscience abroad ; when he hath gotten his owne acquittance , hee intangles himselfe in other mens debts by conniuence , silence , consent , &c. take heed of this , for t is a hard matter to discharge conscience in company and to come off well . well , let conscience haue its perfect worke towards god and man , alone , and in company , and like a good fountaine , t will worke out its owne corruption and mudde , and affoord something towards the washing of others too , as it runnes along . one thing more , and then an end : as a watch must be made , so set by rule : you must set it by the sunne and time of day : so conscience must haue its rule ( though a subordinate rule it selfe ) and this also must be set and ordered by the heauens : the great god hath onely power ouer his great office , and he in his word is the iust measure of it : we must not say that 's lawfull which he prohibits , that 's sinfull which he commands , that 's arbitrary which hee holds necessary , that 's necessary ( for its nature ) which he holds arbitrary : in short , wee must neither widen nor straiten the rule , but bring home our selues to that . it s hard to say where wee shall land , if we sayle not by the compasse , and looke not to the heauens , and whether bee worse to swallow all , or scruple all , is more then i can tell ! this is once , he that either tyes vp , or le ts out his conscience , more then god would haue him , makes worke for himselfe , and way for temptation . in practice , t is good to bee of the restraining hand , where we are left to ourselues : but for opinion , conscience , and iudgement , t is best to hold ones selfe free where the word frees him , and bound , where the word bindes him , else conscience will suffer wracke . the second sermon : wherein is taught , how to vse a good conscience . heb. 13. 18. pray for vs , for we trust we haue a good conscience in all things willing to liue honestly . the second thing followes . paul hauing gotten a good conscience , emproues it , and makes his benefit of it , partly for the remouing of aspersions , partly for the obtaining of praiers , and the engratiating of himselfe with the hebrewes . the point . they that haue good consciences , must make their vse of them . this point calls more for practice then for proofe ; therefore we will be larger there , briefer heere . first , god calls vs to this duty , esa . 5. iudge , ye inhabitants , &c. 3. — as if he had faid , i appeale to your consciences , who will be of vse in this case to you , if you will vse them : so haggai , consider , faith god , with your selues , compare time with time , thing with thing , how well you shall speed if you will be ruled by me , how ill you haue sped whilest negligent of me : and accordingly resolue , as if he had said , if you would but reflect vpon your selues , and consult your owne consciences , reformation would follow . so also psal . 4. talke with your owne hearts ; as if he should say , doe but aske your owne consciences ? is not this gods doing ? did not god preferre danid ? doth not hee maintaine his titles ? would wee our selues reape that measure that we offer him ? and then ye will be quiet . thus often in the new testament : examine your selues , iudge your selues , trie your selues , bethinke your selues : reu. 2. all comes to this , turne your thoughts vpon your selues , and make vse of your inward light , that is , conseience . thus the precept is cleare , the practice thereof much vrged ; the neglect thereof , as much condemned , ier. 8.6 . and else-where often . adde secondly , to the precept of god , the practice of gods people , in their passages with god and man. first , for god : marke abimelech , when he was hazarded ; gen. 20. leremiah , when hee was cursed ; ler. 15. hezekiah , when hee was visited ; es . 38. david , when hee was slandered , psal . 7. the apostles , acts 4. when threatned ; and see what vse they made of a good conscience . how free , quiet , bold , couragious in all those exigents they were . secondly , and for men , looke vpon ioseph , first tempted , after persecuted : vpon samuel reiected , vpon iob traduced , vpon paul atraigned ; and see what benefit they made of conscience , now to raigne in lusts and passions , now to prouoke to iust apologies , alwayes to support in greatest pressures . thirdly , from examples , passe wee to reasons . first , conscience is made for vse , and therefore vse must be made of it : the excellency of things stands in their vse , the best things being euer most vsefull ; now in this world there is nothing more diuine and ( as i may say ) more god-like then conscience . it is a kinde of secondary law and bible , yea , in a sort , a subordinate god , of subdiuine authority . it hath power to enforme , to record , to witnesse , to iudge , to condemne , to absolue , to comfort , to execute , to hang and draw within if selfe , as we speake in other cases ; and we cannot without too too great neglect of god , who makes nothing in vaine , passe by such an officer and deputy as conscience is , without vse and acknowledgement . secondly , we take gods name in vaine , in neglecting conscience , and frustrare his work , and depriue our selues of the benefits of conscience ; for t is not the hauing , but the vsing of abilities and blessings that perfects and blesses vs. a power of seeing is to little purpose , if men will winke and hide themselues in darkenesse . a power of speaking is not much , if a man will button vp his lippes ; and of as little auaile is conscience ( that is , a power of knowing and gaging ones selfe ) if this power be neuer acted . verily , a man notwithstanding this inward light , may be no better then an atheist in knowledge , or diuell in practice , vnlesse hee emproue his light ; ( for light , till the will put it to vse , makes no man good ) for dee but consider . how ( i pray ) shall that soule for matters past euer repent , which will neuer recoyle , looke backward , or once say , what haue i done ? how ( againe ) shall it see its present staines and estate , if it will not view it selfe , or behold its owne face ? how ( thirdly ) shall it be held back frō any sin ( flesh , men , diuels , pushing on ) if it neuer commune with it selfe , saying , what am i doing ? it were impossible that men should either digest such morsels as they swallow , or swallow such puddle and poyson as eftsoones they doe , would they but see and consider what they doe , or haue done . thirdly , by not vsing conscience , wee shall come in time to lose , not onely the comfortable seruice of it ( for enformation , reformation , consolation , instigation , &c. ) but indeed all manner vse , and sence of it : vse legges ( wee say ) and have legges ; so , vse conscience , and haue conscience ; for by vse , the heart is kept soft , and will soone smite vs , as danids did : by vse our inward light is exercifed and strengthened , and wee made able to discerne , heb. 5.14 . nay , vse and exercise doth both facilitate and delight ; for what 's done ordinarily and habitually , is done with no , small content , sure with no great contention and reluctancy : custome and exercise make the hardest of works at least sufferable . on the other side , difuse conscience , and though it continue in the roote , yet the fruit will downe . first , the light of it will more and more decay , like the fire that is not blowne . secondly , the life of it will also weare , ( as the dull sluggard liues not halfe so much as the diligent doth ) and this appeares , if we consider those acts and euidences of life ( sense and motion . ) for sense , a conscience vnconsulted , vnexercised , vnexamined , becomes like a sleepy legge : when a man hath sate long , hee feeles not his limbes , the bloud and spirits being sometimes frozen and arrested with cold , sometimes intercepted in their passage by too much suppression of that part : so t is with the conscience ; first load it , and then let it lye still without motion , and in fine it will not feele it selfe , but be as dead and sencelesse , as brawned , yea seared flesh : and this experience iustifies in many , whose consciences lye bed-ridden : and looke how some ( in that case of sicknesse ) voyd much filth and feele it not : so these spue forth abhorred blasphemies and outrages , and discerne them not . as for motion , euen as the limbs by long sitting grow stiffe and starke , that we cannot goe : so the conscience vnfrequented , t will rust like a clocke which sleepes a winter or two , and so loses its tongue , not once telling you where you bee either in the day or night : iust so a rusty conscience , t will neither counsell nor comfort , checke nor excuse , t will speake neither to matters past nor to come , but lie as dead within a man , as the dead childe doth within a woman : oh t is a most comfortlesse thing for a liuing woman to beare death in her bowels ! such a burden fils her with many feares for the present , at least makes her too too heauy and vnweldy , and puts her to great extremity in the cloze , there being more adce with one dead birth , then with two liuing children t is no better with a dead conscience ; the lesse that trauels , the more we must with feares and anguish ; and therefore as wee call vpon women , to stirre , that their fruit may be stirring too : so must we ftirre vp our selues , that conscience may be doing ; for a dead conseience makes but a dead estate , a dead heart , a dead man , a dull life ; and dead it will be , vnlesse we put it to vse . now before we can proceed to exhortation , we cannot but bewayle and controll two sorts of men first , such as vtterly disuse , secondly , such as searefully misuse their consciences . how many bee there of the first fort , who liue and dye strangers to themselues ? they dare not for their eares aske their own hearts : what is our case ? in what tearmes stand we with god ? children are we or enemies ? in the wayes of life or death ? where are we ? what are wee ? which way goe we ? what will be the issue of our courses ? but looke how bankrupts put off reckonings , so these allreasonings with themselues . and as they keepe their spirituall estate close from their owne consciences , so doe they in particular actions : for , first , in shings to be done , they rather consult others then themfelues , which is , but to sel ones eies , and buy spectacles , which see no more then the eye enables them . secondly , in things already done , they rather smother then consult conscience : when conscience takes the aduantage of solitarinesse , and beginnes to question them , they runne from it into company , and hide themselues in the croude ; when conscience beginnes a little to open its eyes and mouth after the reading of some booke , the hearing of some sermon , the seeling of some inward or outward pinches , they stoppe their eares , diuert their thoughts , sing , whistle , drinke , game , and doe any thing to out-talke and drowne conscience . this the practice of hundreds , but how ill this practice is , first the causes , secondly , the consequences will shew . the causes hereof , first , pride : man would be somebody with himselfe , and therefore is loth to looke vpon his owne staines , and to see his owne face in the face of his conscience . secondly , hypocrisie : man hath such a desire to coozen , that hee would ( if he could ) coozen himselfe , and would faine make himselfe beleeue that t is not so bad with him , as indeed it is . thirdly , vnbeliefe : he lookes for no mercy , in case he peach himselfe , and therefore places all his safety in secrecy ; and so secret would he be , that by his will , his left hand shall not know what his right hath done . these are the causes : and what fruit can you in reason expect from such a roote ? surely the issue cannot but bee bitter : for , first , by disusing conscience , men come to lose conscience , and consequently their armour against sinne : take away conscience , and you can hardly set downe atheisme . secondly , by this meanes sinne is exceedingly aggrauated ; ( for no man can neglect so neere a monitor as conscience is , without great presumption and wilfulnesse : ) and secondly , a mans reckoning no way furthered ; for ( doe what we can ) wee must come to an account , and conscience will know vs at last , whether we acknowledge it or not ; nay , by how much the lesse we regard it now , by so much the more it will shake vs hereafter , and rise vpon vs like a flame with so much the greater fury , by how much the more it was ( for the present ) kept downe and stifled . the second sort reproued , are such as abuse conscience , and this is done ( as sometimes otherwise ) so mostly thus : first , when conscience is set lowest , and bound apprentice to the outward man , i meane thus ; when men doe not receiue all blowes that let driue at conscience , vpon their name , estate , skinne , &c. but contrarily , rather suffer conscience to be wounded , then the outmost skinne raysed . secondly , when conscience is thrust from its seate , deposed , degraded , gag'd ; so violenced , that it must not speake , though friends , god , man , call vpon vs. thirdly , when conscience is made a cloke for all vnwarranted , both opinions and practices , that is , when men will put the name of conscience vpon the basest things : opinion shall bee conscience ; errour , conscience ; the swallowing of widowes houses , conscience ; as t was with the pharisees . fourthly , when conscience is made a knight of the poast , and must beare witnesse to any vntruth , to any villany : thus when men cannot tell what to say , they appeale to god and conscience . god knowes , their hearts , their conscience beares them witnesse , they 'le take it on their conscience , t is so , not so . o the fearefulnesse of these practices ! how terrible haue gods strokes bin vpon such in all ages ? and what can we looke for lesse , then misery in this course ? first , a man must be an old and bold offender , before he can dare thus to affront conscience . secondly , it cannot be safe thus to abuse so great an officer as conscience is . thirdly , who can expresse the terrours of some saints , now vpon record , who ( notwithstanding ) neuer were so daring ? and if they did sweare vnder smaller abuses of conscience , how shall these bleed ? i now come to perswade euery man to make good vse of a good thing , a good conscience ; for the abuse of best things is euer worst : and a good conscience is in the ranke of best things , it is a wonderfull mercy in god , to match vs with so neere a friend , so true a counsellor : let vs thankefully consider to what vses a good conscience may be put , and accordingly emproue it . we will not runne into the road of conscience in generall , but confine our selues to a good conscience , which is so tearmed in a double sence . first , it s good formally in its constitution . secondly , effectiuely in its execution : as a clocke is good when it is made well and goes well : first , the conscience is good in its selfe , when it is fitted for its proper acts and vses : the proper and immediate act and vse of conscience , is to know that it knowes , as salomon speakes to shimei , and as wee vulgarly say , i know what i know well enough . this the generall . the particulars of this knowledge are , first , conscience knowes what we be : secondly , what we doe : what we be spiritually ( not naturally ) and in what tearmes we stand with god ; whether we beare his image , be in his fauour , yea , or no ? what we doe either for substance or quality , good or bad , either in times past , present , or to come : these things conscience was made for , and these the conscience , when it is good , doth know , to wit , both tree and fruit in the inward and outward acts thereof : and hence it is , that we are so often inuited to talke with our selues ; and hereof growes that inward confidence and enioyment , that the soule hath of it selfe , wherein it resembles its maker , who takes full contentment in himselfe from his full vnderstanding of himselfe . the second act of a good conscience is speaking or manifesting good to vs , being good in it selfe , it giues vs due information touching our selues ; as a cleere glasse represents a true face : and heere are two acts also : first and more immediately it reports things as they be , which is called witnessing or giuing in euidence : thus the person being vnder mercy , it tels him so much , hauing already done well , or hauing good things in agitation , it saith so . contrarily , when things be not right , conscience speakes as it finds them , and heerein it doth well ; for we speake of a morall , not naturall good : and morally that conscience is good , that speakes the truth how-euer it be : as that 's a good glasse that reports blemishes ( if such ) as well as beauties ; a good witnesse that speakes the truth , though not what pleases . secondly , conscience strikes vpon the affections , and doth some execution vpon the offender ; for from information of estate , arises either certainty of hope or despaire : as the euidence comes in guilty or not guilty , and from information of workes , different affections and motions answerable to their different natures : from things well done , comes comfort , ioy , boldnesse , &c. ill done , shame , feare , sorrow , remorce : from things well intended , courage , resolution , confidence , &c. ill meant , ( for the future ) iealousie , repining , recoyling , as an horse that would and would not leape a ditch . in the former respect , conscience is compared to a witnesse , in this , to a iudge and executioner . now this being the vse of conscience , wee must employ it to these vses ; namely , repaire to conscience , aske its aduice , receiue its report touching our persons and actions , heare what it can say for or against vs now ; for once it must passe a verdict vpon vs ; and when we haue its testimony , wee must either appeale to an higher court ( if we can shew an errour ) or sit downe by its sentence , stop , where it sayes stop , worke , where it sayes worke , feare , where it saies feare , hope , where he giues hope , restore , where it sayes , restore . howbeit , that our speech may be more fruitfull , know we that in foure cases especially , we are to consult and vse conscience . first , when wee are in consultation about things to be done , or beleeued ; in this case it is not amisse to aduise with others , but in no case must conscience be omitted . i may easily deceiue others by ill stating of the question , adding , or altering , or suppressing , as affection leads me : againe , a man may finde so many men , so many mindes oftentimes , so different are their apprehensions and affections . but a good conscience is one and the same , and that vprightly consulted , can say more to my affections and intentions , more to the practicall part , then all the world . therefore vse others if you please , but make vse of your owne hearts , else your practice may be corrupt , when others counsell is good . here forget not these rules : first , pretend not conscience , where conscience is not the matter . secondly , be resolued of what thou doest in thy selfe , or else forbeare till taught , if thou mayest . thirdly , walke by thine owne light , not other mens ; ground thy practice vpon conscience , conscience vpon word , not vpon man. as for cases here incident , we passe them now . secondly , when we are vpon a selfe-triall , and the question is , either of our state , or our doings , or opinions , consult conscience ; for that is the best created examiner . and here let the maine worke be , to sinde out the maine point ; am i gods childe , in state of grace , yea or no ? this much imports vs ; for as satan founds all particular temptations vpon this ( if thou be the tonne of god ) so all our particular comforts and assurances hang on this pinne . therefore , here , houer not , but hold conscience to it , either i am , or am not gods. what am i ? what am i ? leaue not this vnresolued by conscience , as many doe , who hearing of a certainty attaineable , and of some generall notes of saluation from the word ; presently build considence to themselues , sometimes vpon weake principles , sometimes vpon false applications , neuer consulting conscience , and then when conscience is awakened , they are miserably plunged . beloued , it is not so easie a matter to assure saluation as most men thinke ; we are not all out of their mindes , who deny it possible , without extraordinary reuelations , and who hold it sawcinesse to auouch it ; yet wee must tell you , that the difficulties are more then a few , and it concernes vs much to deale much with conscience about this point . for faith whereby wee beleeue saluation is one thing , and euidence whereby wee feele it another ; there we must cleaue to the promise , but here we must conferre with conscience , as saint paul doth , he was strongly perswaded ( by the lesuites leaue ) of his saluation and vprightnesse : but what are his grounds ? first , his conscience was and had beene good in all : secondly , his bent and resolution for the future was right ; hence he did , hence we must assure our estates . secondly , as we must examine conscience about our estate , so also about actions past ; was this well ? did i well ? said i well ? otherwise there may be deceit : for first , many matters lye hid from men , with their circumstance : secondly , the motiues that set the wheele a going vsually doe ; here then happy is he who condemnes not himselfe in what he hath done . thirdly , when slandred , censured , or accused , whether by men or diuels . thus iob , when satan accuseth , when friends doe , foes doe , when good men doe , and bad men doe , he repaires homeward , casts vp his bookes , and finding all right , hee triumphs in his conscience , and weares their libels as a crowne . like vse must we make of our consciences , when accused ; first , see whether the charge be iust ; if so , reforme , amend : secondly , if not so , cleare thy selfe to men , if worth while , and if they will be satisfied ; if not , enioy thy selfe , and thine owne innocency . here the rules be two : first , if thine owne heart condemne thee , reioyce not against the truth , though all the world applaud thee : secondly , if ( vpon a true search ) thy heart acquit thee , neuer for sake thine owne innocency : let not men , nor diuels , nor frownes , nor censures robbe thee of thy comfort , but set this wall of brasse against all , as paul. say what you will , my conscience is good , and i make this good by these and these proofes . fourthly , when wee become suiters to god and man for assistance , being affronted by men and diuels , and seemingly deserted of god and man , then we must flye to conscience , as paul doth , and dauid , and all the saints ; now calling vpon god , as hezekiah , o lord , thou knowest i haue walked , &c. now vpon christians , as paul , pray for me , for i haue kept a , &c. now vpon our selues , with dauid , why art thou cast downe , o my soule , &c. there is truth in thee , beare vp . and this not onely for the present , but for future times , when we are threatned as the apostles were , with many stormes , with much hardship : first , make good thy conscience : secondly , rest in the comfort thereof ; for come what will come , if we bring a good conscience to a good cause , these two bladders will hold our heads aboue water . my brethren , till wee haue tryed , we cannot conceiue what the comfort , courage , strength and resolution of a good conscience is ; make vse of it , enioy it , and enioy your selues , your estate , all persons , all things , all times ; onely be sure , first , that conscience be regular , that is , that it speake law , and sentences all according to the word written . secondly , that it speake the whole truth written , and nothing but the truth : conscience hath nothing to doe with secret counsels , that must speake to the action or present estate ; but for reprobation or finall destruction ; that conscience can say nothing to , as not reuealed ; it hath nothing to doe either with absolute condemnation , or absolution . let it keepe it selfe within its spheare , and let me keepe my selfe to my time . fjnjs . notes, typically marginal, from the original text notes for div a02722-e270 doct. doct. 1. precepts 2. reason . 1. ab●oaesto . 3. a necessitate . 3 ab vtili . 〈◊〉 tim. 1.19 . esay 32. hic murus abeneus est &c. vses . 1. luk. 1.6 . 1 cor 12. 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 , &c. vers . ●6 . satis est principem externa specie pium — videri , &c. de princ . c. 18. differences betwixt conscience and conscience from the text. 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 51.8 . esa . 57 19. iob 2 4. 1. how a good conscience is gotten . videatur . aug. is ps . 30. &c. 2. how 〈◊〉 ●ept . notes for div a02722-e2630 doct. 1. cap. 1. & 2. psal . 4.4 1 cor. 11. & . 2 cor. 13. &c. reasons . 1. vse i. the causes of this disuse . the consequences . vses . 1. vse 2. conscience how tearmed good . vvhen and in what cases conscience must most be consulted . a discourse about a scrupulous conscience preached at the parish-church of st. mary aldermanbury, london / by benjamin calamy ... calamy, benjamin, 1642-1686. 1683 approx. 89 kb of xml-encoded text transcribed from 25 1-bit group-iv tiff page images. text creation partnership, ann arbor, mi ; oxford (uk) : 2008-09 (eebo-tcp phase 1). a31806 wing c212 estc r16631 12101363 ocm 12101363 54114 this keyboarded and encoded edition of the work described above is co-owned by the institutions providing financial support to the early english books online text creation partnership. this phase i text is available for reuse, according to the terms of creative commons 0 1.0 universal . the text can be copied, modified, distributed and performed, even for commercial purposes, all without asking permission. early english books online. (eebo-tcp ; phase 1, no. a31806) transcribed from: (early english books online ; image set 54114) images scanned from microfilm: (early english books, 1641-1700 ; 590:8) a discourse about a scrupulous conscience preached at the parish-church of st. mary aldermanbury, london / by benjamin calamy ... calamy, benjamin, 1642-1686. the second edition. [6], 41, [1] p. printed for rowland reynolds ..., london : 1683. reproduction of original in huntington library. created by converting tcp files to tei p5 using tcp2tei.xsl, tei @ oxford. re-processed by university of nebraska-lincoln and northwestern, with changes to facilitate morpho-syntactic tagging. gap elements of known extent have been transformed into placeholder characters or elements to simplify the filling in of gaps by user contributors. eebo-tcp is a partnership between the universities of michigan and oxford and the publisher proquest to create accurately transcribed and encoded texts based on the image sets published by proquest via their early english books online (eebo) database (http://eebo.chadwyck.com). the general aim of eebo-tcp is to encode one copy (usually the first edition) of every monographic english-language title published between 1473 and 1700 available in eebo. eebo-tcp aimed to produce large quantities of textual data within the usual project restraints of time and funding, and therefore chose to create diplomatic transcriptions (as opposed to critical editions) with light-touch, mainly structural encoding based on the text encoding initiative (http://www.tei-c.org). the eebo-tcp project was divided into two phases. the 25,363 texts created during phase 1 of the project have been released into the public domain as of 1 january 2015. anyone can now take and use these texts for their own purposes, but we respectfully request that due credit and attribution is given to their original source. users should be aware of the process of creating the tcp texts, and therefore of any assumptions that can be made about the data. text selection was based on the new cambridge bibliography of english literature (ncbel). if an author (or for an anonymous work, the title) appears in ncbel, then their works are eligible for inclusion. selection was intended to range over a wide variety of subject areas, to reflect the true nature of the print record of the period. in general, first editions of a works in english were prioritized, although there are a number of works in other languages, notably latin and welsh, included and sometimes a second or later edition of a work was chosen if there was a compelling reason to do so. image sets were sent to external keying companies for transcription and basic encoding. quality assurance was then carried out by editorial teams in oxford and michigan. 5% (or 5 pages, whichever is the greater) of each text was proofread for accuracy and those which did not meet qa standards were returned to the keyers to be redone. after proofreading, the encoding was enhanced and/or corrected and characters marked as illegible were corrected where possible up to a limit of 100 instances per text. any remaining illegibles were encoded as <gap>s. understanding these processes should make clear that, while the overall quality of tcp data is very good, some errors will remain and some readable characters will be marked as illegible. users should bear in mind that in all likelihood such instances will never have been looked at by a tcp editor. the texts were encoded and linked to page images in accordance with level 4 of the tei in libraries guidelines. copies of the texts have been issued variously as sgml (tcp schema; ascii text with mnemonic sdata character entities); displayable xml (tcp schema; characters represented either as utf-8 unicode or text strings within braces); or lossless xml (tei p5, characters represented either as utf-8 unicode or tei g elements). keying and markup guidelines are available at the text creation partnership web site . eng bible. -n.t. -luke xi, 41 -sermons. conscience -sermons. conscience -early works to 1800. 2006-06 tcp assigned for keying and markup 2006-06 aptara keyed and coded from proquest page images 2007-05 taryn hakala sampled and proofread 2007-05 taryn hakala text and markup reviewed and edited 2008-02 pfs batch review (qc) and xml conversion a discourse about a scrupulous conscience , preached at the parish-church of st. mary aldermanbury , london . by benjamin calamy , d. d. one of his majesties chaplains in ordinary . consider this , 't is the judgment of some , that thousands are gone to hell , and ten thousands upon their march thither , that in all probability had never come there , if they had not been tempted from the parish churches , for the enjoyment of communion in a purer church . mr. baxter's ep. to separate congr . the second edition . london , printed for rowland reynolds , next door to the middle exchange in the strand . mdclxxxiii . to sr. george jeffryes , knight and baronet , chief justice of chester . sir , though i could not easily perswade my self to expose this following sermon to publick view , yet after i was once resolved to venture it abroad , i was soon determined to whom i ought to present it . to your interest and favour i chiefly owe my being placed in this parish , to your countenance my greatest encouragement here , and if it may gain your acceptance and approbation , i shall but little value the uncertain judgment of others . upon how many this plain homely discourse may have good effect , i cannot ghess ; how many it will anger and displease i am not at all concerned : and tho i may be thought by some ill advis'd in publishing such a sermon , yet every one will commend and justifie my discretion in prefixing your name before it : for so great an awe have the enemies of our church and government of your loyalty and fidelity to both , of your undaunted zeal and activity for the service of both , that they will not dare loudly to condemn what you are pleased to protect . they will be justly afraid of quarrelling with me , when they know i have engaged you on my side . i am very sensible , that in this age we live some are so extraordinarily wise and wary , as to censure and discourage all men that speak roundly and act vigorously for the king and church , as being more forward and busie than is needful : but i am also as sensible , that if some men had not shewn more courage and honesty than those prudent persons , both would have been by this time in far greater danger , than at this present , thanks be to god , they are . for my own part , no one is more favourable to a truly tender conscience than my self , let it be as nice and scrupulous as it can well be , so it be about the substantial matters of piety towards god , justice between man and man , due obedience to superiours , and when it makes us more exactly careful of our undoubted duty in all instances : but , when men are scrupulous only on one side , about things commanded by lawful authority , and make no scruple of disobedience , schism , faction , and division ; when men set up their private humour , fancy , or opinion , in opposition to established laws , when they become peevish , pragmatical , and ungovernable ; nay , when mens consciences prove so generally tender and scrupulous , as to doubt of and suspect the rights of the crown , ( for that conscience that is so tender against the church is also usually as tender against the king ) such wayward skittish consciences ought to be well bridled and restrained , or else they will be not only intolerably troublesome , but extreamly mischievous both to church and state. that the blessed rewards of vertue and loyalty may plentifully descend upon your self , and all that belong to you , both in this life and that which is to come , is the earnest prayer of honoured sir , your most humble and most obliged servant , benjamin calamy . st. luke 11. 41. but rather give alms of such things as you have ; and behold , all things are clean unto you . the occasion of these words was this . whilst our blessed saviour was after his wonted manner instructing the people , a certain pharisee , either in some measure pleased with his discourse , or else that he might catch an advantage against him , besought him to dine with him . our lord , who refused no fair opportunity of doing good , would not disdain to go to the houses , either of the greatest sinners , or his most deadly enemies ; would converse familiarly with them , and eat at their tables , that by such obliging condescension he might by degrees win them to the love and embracing of divine truth . he was the great physician of souls , and went about continually visiting his patients , all those whose minds stood in need of his help or cure . he consulted their benefit more than his own safety or reputation . he would keep company with publicanes and sinners , in order to the reforming of them , tho he himself for doing so should be thought one of them ; and he frankly accepted the invitation of pharises , tho he knew they lay in wait for him , and design'd only to intrap him . he went in therefore with the pharisee into his house , and without any of those previous washings and purifications , which the jews religiously used before eating , he sat down to meat . this the strict pharisee thought a great prophaneness and wickedness in his guest . he wondred that so great a prophet and preacher of righteousness as our saviour pretended to be , should so scandalously violate the traditions of the elders , verse 38. and when the pharisee saw it , he marvelled that he had not first washed before dinner : for as st. mark tells us upon a like occasion , mark 7. 3. the pharisees , and all the jews , except they wash their hands , eat not , holding the tradition of the elders . and when they come from the market , except they wash , they eat not . and many other things there be which they have received to hold , as the washing of cups , and of pots , and of brasen vessels , and of tables . things not ordained by god , nor any part of moses's laws , but the rules and prescriptions of their rabbies or scribes ; observed , at least by the strictest part of the jews , out of an opinion that true purity of mind was to be obtain'd and preserved by such frequent washings . for of such necessity did they think these outward . purgations to be , that it was a determined case amongst them , that if any one in great distress had water sufficient for washing , but not enough to wash and drink too , he ought rather to perish by thirst than neglect to wash himself ; and it was commonly said amongst them , that to eat with unwashen hands was a greater pollution , than to defile ones body with an harlot . now this our saviour with great zeal reproves in the pharisees , in the verses before my text , now do ye pharisees make clean the out-side of the cup and platter , but your inward part is full of ravening and wickedness . ye fools , did not he that made that which is without make that which is within also ? that is to say , that which god regards is the purity of your minds , the cleansing your hearts from all evil affections and filthy lusts ; and all your outward washings , without this internal purity , are but as if a man should wash his vessels , the out-side of them only , leaving the inside of them full of all filthiness and nastiness . thus do ye pharisees wash your bodies , whilst your souls and spirits remain full of all uncleanness , of malice , and wickedness . if you would obey and please god , you must cleanse that which is within as well as that which is without : then he adds the words of my text , but rather give alms of such things as you have ; and behold , all things are clean unto you . there are several meanings given of these words by interpreters , with which i shall not now trouble you , but only propound that which i shall choose to insist upon . it is very ordinary in scripture to express the whole of our duty or religion by some one part or eminent instance of it ; as very frequently by charity , so here by one principal part of charity , giving of alms. so that the sense ought not to be restrained to this single duty of alms-giving , to the exclusion of the rest ; but all other duties , that are of the same weight and necessity , are here understood , as well as that one which is mentioned . and then the sense is this , mind chiefly the great , and moral , and substantial parts of gods laws , study those duties that are of eternal and indispensable obligation , be most zealous and sollicitous for the matters of piety , righteousness , and charity , and behold all things are clean unto you ; that is , ye need not then be so anxious or concerned about these little things , nor so strictly tye up your selves to such formalities and external rites . if you be but seriously diligent about your main and undoubted duty , you will be more indifferent about meats and drinks , nor will you lay so great a stress upon any singularities or affectations in religion . be but exactly careful to avoid every thing which god hath forbid , to do every thing which he hath expresly commanded , and then trouble not your consciences about eating with unwashen hands . thus , as grotius upon these words observeth , they signifie the same with what st. paul saith , titus 1. 15. vnto the pure all things are pure . they who keep themselves unspotted from all sinful pollutions , who strictly abstain from unlawful freedoms , may with a safe conscience use any unlawful liberty , and eat any kind of meats , with washen or unwashen hands . in short , the sense of the words seemeth to be this ; mind your plain and necessary duty , and trouble not your selves with scruples about little and indifferent things . whence i shall take occasion to discourse of what is usually called a scrupulous conscience : which i have chosen to do , not out of a design to expose or upbraid the weakness of any , but rather charitably to contribute what i can towards the healing and curing of it : and this i take for granted , that we cannot do greater service either to the church of christ or souls of men , than by all prudent means to root out those needless scruples out of their minds , which hath been the occasion of such unchristian separations and dangerous divisions amongst us , at first begun , and still maintained generally upon the account of such things , as i verily believe a well instructed conscience need not be concerned or disturbed about . i shall first shew you what i understand by a scrupulous conscience , then observe some few things concerning it , and lastly , offer some plain rules and means by which we may best get rid of it . first , what is a scrupulous conscience ? now conscience , as it is a rule of our actions , is nothing else , but a man's mind or judgment concerning the moral goodness or evil , lawfulness or unlawfulness of things ; and as this judgment is either true or false , so is our conscience either good and well grounded , or erroneous , the divine law made known to us either by the light of nature , or plain scripture , or direct consequence from it , such as any honest man may understand , is the rule of conscience , or of that judgment we make of the lawfulness or unlawfulness of things . so that our conscience is a safe rule and guide of our actions no farther than as it self is directed and warranted by the law of god. 1. a good and well grounded conscience is , when we carefully abstain from whatever god hath forbidden , don't neglect doing any thing which he hath commanded , and as for other matters left indifferent and at liberty , we do them or forbear doing of them according as the rules of obedience to superiours , prudence , and charity , do require . this is the health and sound state of the mind . 2. an erroneous conscience is , when we judge that to be evil or unnecessary which god hath expresly commanded , and is our duty ; or that to be good and necessary which he hath plainly forbid , and is really sinful . now our consciences cannot alter the nature of things : that which is our duty remaineth so , and we sin by omitting it , notwithstanding we in our consciences think it unlawful to be done ; and what is really evil continueth such , and is sin in us , however our consciences tell us it is our duty to do it : and the fault is more or less compassionable and pardonable , as the causes of the error are more or less voluntary and avoidable . this is a grievous disease and deadly sickness of the mind , when we thus grossly err in our judgments , and act according to our mistaken opinion of things . 3. a scrupulous conscience is conversant about things in their own nature indifferent , and it consists either in strictly tying up our selves to some things which god hath no where commanded ; as the pharisees made great conscience of washing before they did eat , and abundance of other unnecessary rites and usages they had of mens own inventing and devising , which they as religiously , nay more carefully observed than the indisputable commands of god himself : or in a conscientious abstaining from some things which are not forbid , nor any ways unlawful . touch not , taste not , handle not , doubting and fearing where no fear is , thinking that they should as much offend god by eating some kind of meats , wearing some garments , as they should do were they guilty of murder and adultery . which is the case of many amongst us , who by such scrupulosity about little matters seem more precise and austere than other good and honest christians are , or themselves need or ought to be . for be it from me , by any thing i shall now say , to discourage the greatest and tenderest care any christian can take to keep himself from all sin , from all occasions and temptations to it , from the least appearance of evil , of what is really such : and to do any thing that is in it self sinful , out of confidence that it is lawful , is far worse and a more grievous offence than to abstain from many things which are truly lawful , out of an opinion that they are sinful . notwithstanding this , i cannot but reckon it the chief policy of the devil , the grand enemy of all that is good , when he cannot persuade us that there is nothing at all sinful or unlawful , then to make us suspect every thing for such , or at least , that there is great danger of displeasing god by the most indifferent and innocent actions ; by these means ensnaring and entangling mens consciences , and rendring religion a most troublesome burden to them . a scrupulous conscience therefore starts and boggles , where there is no real evil or mischief ; is afraid of omitting or doing what may be omitted or done without sin. which i know not how better to illustrate than by those unaccountable antipathies or prejudices that some men have against some sort of meats , or living creatures , which have not the least harm or hurt in them , yet are so offensive and dreadful to such persons , that they fly from them as they would from a tyger or bear , and avoid them as they would do the plague or poyson . just thus do some men run out of the church at the sight of a surplice , as if they had been scared by the apparition of a ghost . i. proceed to the second thing i propounded , to observe to you some few general things concerning this scrupulous conscience ; as , 1. that this is a very sickly , crazy temper of mind , a great indisposition , a state of weakness and infirmity . it ariseth from ignorance and want of right understanding our religion , from undue timerousness or unsetledness of mind , from melancholy , or unreasonable prejudices and mistakes about the nature of things . such scrupulous persons are like fearful women , that wander in the dark , who seeing nothing to affright them , yet fancy many things , which make them tremble every step they take : or like those who see only by an uncertain glimmering twilight , their imagination once abus'd and prepossess'd , transforms every object into a monster or gyant . thus this scrupulous is the same with what in other words some call a tender conscience , so tender that every thing hurts and wounds it , like a tender eye which the least dust or smoak grievously offends , or a tender constitution of body , which the least air or wind mightily disorders and discomposes . now this is far from being any vertue or commendation in us , this is no desirable qualification , nor a matter of ambition to be thought men of such tender consciences , no more than it is for a man's reputation to be sickly and often indispos'd . a good conscience is firm and steady , well setled and resolved , and such needless scruples about things lawful are at the best a sign of an ungovern'd fancy , and a weak judgment . as the niceness and squeamishness of a mans stomach that distasts wholsom food is a simptom of an unsound and unhealthy body . this doth not argue any extraordinary holiness or purity above others , as the pharisee conceited of himself , stand off , come not ' nigh me , touch me not , for i am holier than thou , because he washed himself so often . no , we are yet in a childish state , and whilst we are frighted with such bug-bears and phantasms , we have not yet arrived to the understanding or resolution of a man. 2. this scrupulosity about little matters may be , and is often a sign of hypocrisie . i take not upon my self to judge any persons . let every man look to himself ; but thus certainly it was with the scribes and pharisees of old ; they strained at every gnat , stumbled at every straw , would starve sooner than eat their meat with defiled hands , would not for the world wrong a man of a cummin-seed , or a spear of mint , and by this wonderful exactness and strictness in some instances , they easily gained the reputation of the greatest saints ; so that it is said to have been an ordinary proverb among the jews , that if but two persons in the world , went to heaven , one of them would be a scribe the other a pharisee . yet for all this , if we will believe our saviour's account of them , they made nothing of swallowing camels , living in the greatest and most known wickedness . alas ! their consciences would not give them leave to enter into the governours hall to go amongst the heathens , for fear of being polluted by them , yet at the same time they stuck not at suborning false witnesses against the best and most innocent person that ever lived . they blamed the disciples for plucking the ears of corn on the sabbath-day , as if they , poor tender-hearted men , were offended and grieved to the soul at such prophaneness , and yet they thought it nothing to deny relief and succour to their own parents when in want or distress ; they made no bones of rapine and extortion , oppressing the poor , or devouring widows houses . by their curiosity about these external observances , they hoped to make amends for their gross transgressions in other cases of far greater weight and moment . since they denied themselves many things which god had allow'd them , they hop'd he would readily forgive them , tho in some other things they took a greater liberty than he had permitted them . had any of us been present when mary , st. john 12. 3. took the ointment of spikenard , very costly , and anointed the feet of jesus , and had heard judas's rebuke , why was not this ointment sold for three hundred pence , and given to the poor ? ( he scrupled such a profuse expence , tho about our saviour himself . he thought it might have been better employ'd , to more useful purposes . ) should we not from this have strait concluded him the most charitable and conscientious of all christ's disciples , and yet this over-great care for the poor was only a pretence and covering for his theevish intention . they therefore who are so scrupulous about little indifferent matters , ought to approve their honesty and sincerity by the most accurate diligence in the practise of all other duties of religion , which are plainly and undoubtedly such . they who pretend to such a tender conscience above other men must know , that the world will watch them as to the fairness and justice of their dealings , the calmness of their tempers , their behaviour in their several relations , their modesty , humility , charity , peaceableness , and the like . if in all these things they keep the same tenor , use the same caution and circumspection , and be uniformly conscientious , then it must be acknowledged , that it is only weakness or ignorance that raiseth their scruples , not any vicious principle ; and the condition of those who are under the power of such scruples , is much to be commiserated . but , when i see a man scrupling praying by a book or form , and yet living without any sense of god or fear of him , afraid of a ceremony in god's worship , and not afraid of a plain damnable sin , of covetousness , rash censuring his brethren , of hatred and strife , faction and schism , and disobedience to superiours ; when i see one that out of conscience refuseth to kneel at the sacrament , and yet dares totally neglect the communion ; who takes great care not to give offence to his weak brother , but can freely speak evil of dignities , and despiseth his lawful governours ; it is not then uncharitable to say , that it is not dread of displeasing god , but some other bye end or interest that acts and moves such a person , and in pleading the tenderness of his conscience he is no other than a downright hypocrite . on the other side , let a man be never so punctual and critical in his conformity to all the appointed ceremonies and usages in our church , let him constantly attend gods solemn worship , and behave himself most reverently and decently at the publick prayers , yet if this man be prophane and intemperate , a derider of true piety and godliness , if he lives loosly and at random , all his regular devotions , all his bowing and kneeling to the honour of our saviour , all his niceness about his worship to perform it in the most orderly manner , all his zeal for the church shall avail him nothing . he is no better than the pharisee , washing the out-side , whilst he is within full of all wickedness and uncleanness . to be so concerned about little things , whilst we make no conscience of the greater , is the most evident sign that can be given of a false christian . and hath it not often hapned in the world , that such a mighty scrupulosity about our duty hath proved a very successful way of growing great or raising an estate , by giving men so fair an opportunity of imposing upon the credulous and unwary ? so that i have known it advised as an useful caution to those that would live in the world , always to stand upon your guard and look to your pockets , when you deal with those who pretend to greater tenderness and exactness than other undoubtedly sober and honest christians generally do . 3. where persons are truly honest and mean well , there is nothing more troublesom and vexatious than such unreasonable scruples about things lawful . this must needs be an intolerable disturbance to a man's mind , and breed great anxiety and inquietude , when persons are continually shivering and trembling lest by every thing they do they incur the divine displeasure ; and it certainly disables a man from performing his necessary duty . he is likely to make but a slow progress in his journey , who instead of going on cheerfully in his way , is frequently at a stand , doubting which foot he should set forward , or what particular path he should choose . this robs men , in a great measure , of that peace and satisfaction which they might otherwise find in religion , whilst they are daily perplexing themselves with untying knots which themselves only have fastned . scruples about things indifferent , when once we attend to and entertain them , like the plague of flies amongst the egyptians , will be constantly buzzing in our ears , and tormenting us with their impertinency ; till at length we come to distrust every thing , and there is nothing that belongs to ordinary civility , no recreation we can use , no cloaths we can wear , no discourse we can hold with others , no conversation we can maintain , or business which we transact in the world , but we shall raise some trifling objections or scruples about it , which will make our condition continually uneasie and restless . for , 4. these scruples are infinite and endless : for , being grounded upon some very little and inconsiderable reason , there is hardly any thing to be done but some small exceptions may be started against it , which may soon puzzle and confound the more ignorant sort of christians . thus he that scruples a minister's officiating in a white garment , may easily be brought to doubt of the fitness of his doing it in black , and then he proceeds against any solemn distinct habit , and at last against the office of ministers it self , and tells you all gods people are holy , and that all christians are a royal priest-hood , and we have no need of teachers , for we are all taught of god. from scrupling the sign of the cross after baptism , men have soon come to question infant baptism it self : they have at first perchance disliked only some significant ceremonies in god's worship , of humane appointment , but thence they have gone on to deny all outward bodily reverence , and thought it not expedient to pull off their hats in church , then not to do it before magistrates , at last not at all : and thus by giving place to such little scruples , they become afraid of speaking , looking , or doing any thing like other men. this is notorious amongst us . those who have taken offence at some things in our church and have thereupon separated from us , and associated themselves with a purer congregation , have soon disliked something amongst them also , and then they would reform themselves farther , and after that refine themselves more still , till at last they have sunk down either into quakerism , popery , or atheism . this doth not only now and then happen in the world , but is the probable effect of embracing and cherishing such scruples , that men go on scrupling one thing after another , till at length they doubt of every thing . 5. lastly , this needless scrupling of lawful things hath done unspeakable mischief to the church of christ , especially to the reformed church of england ; a church reformed according to the most primitive and apostolical pattern , by the best and wisest rules , in which even by the confession of the soberest and most considerable of our dissenters nothing is required , as a condition of communion , that is sinful ; yet how is she rent and torn , mangled and divided , how hath she been assaulted , undermined , and in danger to be the second time overthrown upon the account only of habits and gestures , and particular forms , rites , and modes of discipline and worship , with which some men are not well satisfied or pleased , which they judge might be better done and ordered another way , or which they rather would have left at liberty , that every man may do therein according to his own discretion or opinion . in the great and necessary truths of religion we all profess to be agreed . we all worship the same god , believe in the same lord and saviour , have the same baptism , the same faith , the same hope , the same common interest , our sacraments , as to the main are rightly administred according to our saviours institution , our churches are acknowledged to be true churches of jesus christ : but there are some constitutions , which respect chiefly outward order and the decent performance of divine worship , against which men have received strange prejudices , on the account of them have raised a mighty noise and clamour against the church , and have openly separated from its communion , as if by renouncing of popery we had only exchanged one idolatrous service for another . about these skirts and borders , the dress and circumstances of religion hath been all our quarrelling and contention ; and these differences have proceeded to such an height , as to beget immortal feuds and animosities , to break and crumble us into little parties and fractions , whereby mutual edification his hindred , our common religion suffers reproach , the enemies of it are strengthned and encouraged , publick peace endangered , and brotherly love , the badge of christ's disciples , quite lost amongst us : and the continuance of these miserable distractions amongst us upon such frivolous accounts , ( if compared with the interests of peace and charity ) is a matter of sad consideration to all lively members of christ's body , and forebodes great evils impendent over our church and state. i doubt not to say , that the devil hath fought more successfully against religion under the mark of a zealous reformer , than under any other disguise whatever . the grand enemy of mankind hath by various ways and means all along contriv'd , and endeavoured to defeat the designs of heaven for the good and happiness of men : and as the divine wisdom hath in several ages of the world manifested it self for the encouraging and promoting of true righteousness and holiness , so hath the devil always been at work to oppose what he could find most proper for the hindring the good effect of gods kindness towards us . when the fullness of time came , by the appearance of the son of god in the world , he was in a great measure dethroned , his kingdom overthrown , and the last and most effectual means , were used for the recovery of men out of his snare and power . when therefore he perceived that by all the grievous persecutions he raised against the church , it spread only so much the faster , that at last the whole heathen idolatry fell down before the cross of christ ; when he was shamefully expelled out of his temples , and from his altars , his oracles silenced , and the religion of jesus prevailed every where ; he then betook himself to his old . serpentine arts of dissimulation . since he could no longer oppose christs kingdom by open war , he resolved to turn christian , and to set up for christs deputy , and substitute here on earth , to fight against christians under christs banner , and by adulterating and corrupting the christian doctrine , to spoil it of all its efficacy , to introduce his old heathen rites and idolatrous ceremonies , as unwritten traditions from christ himself or his apostles , and so under his name and pretended authority to exercise all that cruelty , oppression , and fraud , which is so pleasing to his own infernal nature , hoping to burn , destroy , root out all true christians from the face of the earth , under colour of propagating the catholick faith , and inlarging christs kingdom in the world. when christendom had long groaned under this miserable tyranny , it pleased god in many places of europe , but especially here in england , to set on foot a reformation of religion , which was happily and peaceably accomplished among us by the favour and countenance of publick authority and the wise counsel and advice of our reverend bishops and other ministers . to nip this in the bud the devil raised that sharp persecution in queen mary's days , in which our first reformers gloriously sealed what they had done with their blood : but this proving ineffectual , that he might the better frustrate the ends of our reformation , himself would turn reformer too ; a great cry was soon raised against our church , as not sufficiently purged from popery , our bishops , our prayers , our ceremonies were all antichristian , and it was not long before all ministers , tythes , temples , and the universities too , were condemned as such , and god knows they had well nigh reformed away all learning , true religion , and worship of god , and under the specious pretence of paring off all superfluities , had grievously shaken the foundations of christianity it self ; insomuch , that it came to pass , as some of those who now dissent from us did then camplain , that professors of religion did openly oppose and deride almost all that service of god out of conscience , which other men used to do out of prophaneness . and what infinte mischief this rash and intemperate zeal for reforming abuses and corruptions hath done to our church and nation , if the experience of this last age will not sufficiently convince men , it is not to be hoped that any discourse should . we little consider whose interest we thus serve and promote : we do his work who is most delighted with srife and confusion , and every one can tell who that is , and where he reigns . to be sure by these uncharitable separations we highly gratifie the common eenemy , whose great design and policy it hath all along been , by the follies and invincible scruples of protestant dissenters to weaken , and by degrees pull down the church of england , and then we all become an become an easie prey to rome . if any now tell me , that to prevent this great mischief and danger that ariseth from our divisions , it is not so necessary that the people should lay down their scruples , ( which they cannot well do , since no one can at any time think or believe as he will , ) as it is that the impositions themselves , the matters scrupled at , should be removed and taken away , and then peace and unity may be better secured . to this i only answer these two things . 1. i now consider things as they at present stand amongst us . we have a church setled and established by law , in which nothing that is sinful is enjoyned . what the duty of our governours and superiours is , how far they may or ought to condescend to the weakness or scruples of others , i shall not take upon me to determine ; that is another question which belongs not to us . but i consider now only what private members of such a church are to do , and then i say , scrupling the use of some things prescribed by the church , will not justifie our leaving it ; nay , as i shall shew afterwards , it is our best and safest course to submit and comply with such orders notwithstanding our scruples . but i add , 2. if this were a sufficient reason why the constitution of any church should be altered , because some things are scrupled in it , there never could be a setled church as long as the world stands : for , since there will be always a difference in mens understandings and tempers , some weak and injudicious , others peevish and proud , there will consequently be many that shall scruple and be offended at the best and most innocent constitutions . and if the ceremonies now in use amongst us had not been retained at our first reformation , those very persons , who are now so much dissatisfied with the imposition of them , would perhaps have been the first that should have then complained of the want of them . of which we have this notorious and undeniable evidence in the late times , when our church was laid in the dust , when none of those ceremonies or forms which are now objected against were imposed or commonly used , yet even then were men gathering congregations out of congregations , purifying and reforming still further ; scruples encreased , sects and divisions upon them multiplied , and never such distractions and confusions in religion as in those days , and without the gift of prophecy one may foretell that , if what is principally found fault with in our church was now abolished , yet those that are given to scruples would at least in time find cavilling objections against any constitution that can be made . they are like men given to sue and go to law. they never want some pretence to disturb themselves and their neighbours . men may talk of reconciling our differences , and making up our breaches to their lives end , and propound their several projects , and frame their models , and conceive fine designs of union and accommodation , yet none of these will have any effect or do any good , till men learn humility and modesty , and be contented to be governed by others in things indifferent , till self-conceit and pride be in some measure rooted out , and when this is effectually done , there will then be found but little need of any alteration in the present constitution . the foundation of our peace and agreement must be laid in the reforming our selves and our own tempers . the way to unite us lieth not so much in amending the present establishment , government , liturgy , endeavouring to add to it , or leave out of it , till all parties amongst us are satisfied , ( which indeed can never be effected ) as it doth consist in our becoming more truly christian in our lives and tempers . they are our vicious dispositions , more than our different apprehensions , that keep us at such a distance . let the terms of communion with the church be what they will , yet as long as men retain the same quarrelsom mind , and industriously seek for doubts and scruples , and are glad to find them , and prefer their own private opinion and judgment before the wisdom and authority of all their governours , whether civil or ecclesiastical , it is plain our divisions and animosities will not , cannot cease . but this leads me to the last thing i design'd to discourse of ; which was , to propound to you the best ways and means by which men may get rid of and ease their minds of such scruples ; where i shall especially consider those that relate to our communicating with our parish-churches . you must not expect that i should descend to , and answer the particular exceptions which hinder men from constant communion with us ; but only in general i shall crave leave to advise you some few things , which would mightily tend to the removing those doubts and scruples that yet detain so many in a state of utter separation from us , or at least discourage their total and hearty joyning with us . which charitable design and attempt , however unsuccessful i may be in it , yet cannot , i hope , be unacceptable to any , whose consciences are pester'd with such scruples , since i endeavour only to deliver them from those mistakes , which beside the disservice they do to religion and the protestant interest , do also expose them to trouble and danger from the publick laws and civil magistrate . of many rules that might be given in this case , i shall insist only on these following . 1. we should take great care to beget and cherish in our minds the most high , and worthy , and honourable thoughts of god almighty . this is the foundation of all religion ; and as our apprehensions of god are , such for the most part will be his worship and service . accordingly as we conceive of his nature , so shall we judge what things are most pleasing to him , as also what they are that are most offensive and distastful to him . now consider , i beseech you , can that man have becoming and excellent thoughts of the divine nature , who imagines that god regards any particular gestures , habits , and postures so far , as that the acceptance of our service and worship should depend upon such circumstances of our religious actions ? when with all humility and true devotion of heart a sincere christian prostrates himself at the throne of god's grace , and with earnest desire and affections begs those good things that are according to gods mind and will , can we believe that the father of our spirits shall refuse and reject his petition because it is delivered in a certain prescribed form of words ? shall his importunate renewed requests fail of success because he still useth the same expressions , and reads his prayers out of a book ? is god pleased with variety of words ? or the copiousness of our invention , or the elegancy of our phrase and stile ? is it not the heart and inward frame of spirit that god principally respects in all our prayers ? or can we think so meanly of god , that he should shut his ears against the united prayers of his people , because offended at the colour of the garment in which the minister officiates ? suppose two persons , both with equal preparation , with true repentance and faith to approach the lord's table ; one of them out of a deep sense of his unworthiness to receive so great blessings , and out of a grateful acknowledgment of the benefits therein conferr'd upon him , takes the sacrament upon his knees , in the humblest posture ; the other sitting or standing . can you think that the sacrament is effectual or beneficial , or that god blesses it only to him that sits , or that it would not have been of the same advantage to him if he also had received it kneeling ? to surmise any such thing , is surely to dishonour god , as if he were a low poor humoursome being , like a father that should disinherit his child tho in all respects most dutiful to him , and every way deserving his greatest kindness , only because he did not like his complexion , or the colour of his hair. the wiser and greater any person is to whom we address our selves , the less he will stand upon little punctilio's . under the jewish law the minutest circumstances of worship were exactly described and determined by god himself , and it was not ordinarily lawful for the people at all to vary from them . but it was necessary then that it should be thus : because the jewish worship was typical of what was to come hereafter , and those many nice observances that were appointed were not commanded for themselves , as if there were any excellency in them , but they were shadows of things to come , which are all now done away by the gospel , and the bringing in of everlasting righteousness , the only thing always pleasing to god and agreeable to his nature : it is a spiritual rational service god now expects from us , and delights in , and he must look upon god as a very fond and captious being , who can perswade himself that our prayers and thansgivings and other acts of worship , tho we be most hearty and devout in them , yet shall be rejected by him only because of some particular habits or gestures we used , which were neither dishonourable to god , nor unsutable to the nature of those religious performances . such mean thoughts of god are the true ground of all superstition , when we think to court and please him by making great conscience about little things ; and so it hath been truly observed , that there is far more superstition in conscientious abstaining from that which god hath no where forbid , than there is in doing that which god hath not commanded . a man may certainly do what god hath not commanded , and yet never think to flatter god by it , nor place any religion in it , but he may do it only out of obedience to his superiours , for outward order and decency , for which end our ceremonies are appointed , and so there is no superstition in them . but now a man cannout out of conscience refuse to do what god hath not forbid , and is by lawful authority , required of him , but he must think to please god by such abstaining : and in this conceit of pleasing or humouring god by indifferent things , consists the true spirit of superstition . have great and honourable thoughts of god , and behold , all these things will be clean to you . 2. ( which is the particular rule of my text ) lay out your great care and zeal about the necessary and substantial duties of religion , and this will make you less concerned about things of an inferiour and indifferent nature . as on the one hand our fierce disputes and debates about little things and circumstances are apt to eat out the heart and life of religion , so on the other side , minding those things most , in which the power of religion doth consist , is the best way to cure our scrupulousness about little things . this was the apostle's advice to the romans , cap. 14. amongst whom eating or not eating some meats , observing or not observing some days , had occasioned as much trouble and scruple as forms of prayer and ceremonies do now amongst us , ver . 17. the kingdom of god is not meat or drink , but righteousness , peace , and joy in the holy ghost . what needs all this stir and bustle ? this censuring , disputing , and dividing about standing or kneeling , these are not the great matters of our faith ; they are not worth so much noise and contention . the great stress and weight in our religion is laid upon the duties of a righteous and holy life , and a peaceable spirit and conversation , and then he adds , ver . 18. for he that in these things serveth christ is acceptable to god and approved of men. thus when you betake your selves to your prayers , let it be your greatest care to fix in your minds a due sense of god's infinite majesty , of your own vileness and unworthiness , of your manifold wants ▪ and necessities , and the greatness and goodness of the things you petition for , and his readiness to grant them upon your humble request ; and the more you do this , the less sollicitous you will be about the form or words of your prayers . he that minds those things most on which the efficacy of his prayers for christ's sake doth depend , will not stand in need of , nor require new phrases every time to stir his attention or to raise his affection . thus let men be very diligent and conscientious in preparing themselves for the holy communion ; let them come thereunto with lively apprehensions of christs love in dying for us , with hearty resolutions of amendment , and true charity towards all men ; the more concerned they are about these necessary things , the less afraid will they be of offending god by kneeling at the administration , or coming up to receive it in one part of the church rather than another : for , they will find that they are quite other things in which true religion consists , in a new nature , in a divine temper of mind , in the constant practise of holiness , righteousness , and charity ; which make a man really better , and more like unto god. he that places any religion in not putting off his hat , or sitting at the sacrament , or not standing up at the creed or gospel , as i before shew'd you , hath no worthy thoughts of god ; so neither hath he any right notion of christianity , which consists only in unfeigned piety towards god , and sincere love to our brother , not in any external rites or observances , which are in their own nature variable and mutable , and are different in several churches . 3. it would greatly contribute to the removing these scruples which hinder the blessed union of christians amongst us , if men were but really willing to receive satisfaction . this alone would go half way towards conquering them . but when they are grown fond of and nourish their doubts and prejudices , and converse only with those men , read only those books , and hear those discourses which are made of their side , which serve to heighten and strengthen their jealousies and suspicions , when they avoid the means of conviction as dangerous snares and temptations , and look upon this tenderness or aptness to be offended , as a sign of grace and extraordinary conscientiousness , there can be but little hopes of recovering such persons to a right apprehension of things . whereas would they come once to distrust their own judgments , to suppose that they may perhaps be all this while mistaken , would they calmly and patiently hear , faithfully and impartially consider what is said or wrote against them , as eagerly desire and seek for satisfaction as men do for cure of any disease they are subject unto ; would they , i say , thus diligently use all fit means and helps for the removal of their scruples , before they troubled the church of christ with them , it would not prove so very difficult a task to convince and settle such teachable minds . if therefore any man be possessed with doubts or scruples against any thing practised or required in our church , let him first read some of those excellent books , that are written with all the fairness and evidence imaginable , on purpose to explain and justifie those things that are most usually excepted against ; let him consult with some of our church before he leaves it . let him honestly repair to the minister of his parish , or some other whom he hath in greater estimation , and ingeniously open his mind to him , declaring what it is he most stumbles at , and hear what can be offered for the resolution of his doubts . if consulting with one person will not do it , let him advise with others , and try this often , before he condemns us , and divides from us . would men do this seriously , with earnest desire of instruction , without doubt we should have far fewer separatists , and they who after this did still dissent from us , would be far more excusable in it , than otherwise they are , and this is no other than what men ordinarily do in their temporal affairs . when they have any fear or suspition about their worldly concerns , they presently repair to those who are best skill'd , and most able to resolve them , and in their judgment and determination they commonly acquiesce and satisfie themselves . hath any man a scruple about his estate , whether it be firmly setled , or he hath a true legal title to it ? the way he takes for satisfaction is to advise with lawyers , the most eminent for knowledge and honesty in their profession . if they agree in the same opinion , this is the greatest assurance he can have that it is right and safe . thus is it with one that doubts whether such a custom or practise be for his health , the opinion of known and experienced physitians is the only proper means to determine him in such a case . the reason is the same here . when any private christian is troubled and perplexed with fears and scruples that concern his duty , or the worship of god , he ought in the first place to have recourse to the publick guides and ministers of religion , who are appointed by god , and are best fitted to direct and conduct him ; i say , to come to them , not only to dispute and argue with them , and pertly to oppose them , but with all modesty to propound their doubts , meekly to hearken to and receive instruction , humbly begging of god to open their understandings that they may see and embrase the truth , taking great care that no evil affection , love of a party or carnal interest influence or byass their judgments . who do not by this desire men to pin their faith upon the priests sleeve , or to put out their own eyes that they might be better guided and managed by them ; but only diligently to attend to their reasons and arguments , and to give some due regard and deference to their authority : for it is not so absurd , as may by some be imagined , for the common people to take upon trust from their lawful teachers , what they are not competent judges of themselves . but the difficulty here is , how shall a private christian govern himself , when the very guides and ministers of religion determine differently concerning these matters in question amongst us ? some warranting and allowing them , others as much disapproving and condemning them : by what rule shall he choose his guide ? to which i briefly reply ; 1. as for those who scruple at conformity , and are tolerably to judge for themselves , let not such relye barely upon the authority either of the one or the other . all we desire of them is , that they would equally hear both sides , that they would think that the ministers of the church of england have some sense and conscience too as well as other men , and are able to say somewhat for what they do themselves , or require of others ; that laying aside all prejudices , favour to or admiration of mens persons , they would weigh and consider the arguments that may be propounded to them , being diffident of their own apprehensions , and indifferent to either part of the question ; that they would think it no shame to change their mind when they see good reason for it . could we thus prevail with the people diligently to examine the merits of the cause , our church would every day gain more ground amongst all wise men : for we care not how much knowledge and understanding our people have , so they be but humble and modest with it , nor do we desire men to become our proselytes any further than we give them good scripture and reason for it . 2. but as for those who are not so capable of examining or judging for themselves ( as few of the common people who separate from us really are ; they not being able to give any tolerable account of their dissent from us , only in general words declaiming against popery , superstition , antichristian and unscriptural ceremonies , humane traditions , &c. ) such had better trust to and depend on those ministers , of known sufficiency for their office , who are regularly and by the laws of the land set over them , than any other guides or teachers that they can choose for themselves . this to be sure is the safer course , which in doubtful cases is always to be taken . i speak now of these present controversies about forms and ceremonies so hotly agitated amongst us , which are above the sphere of common people , out of their profession ; not of such things as concern the salvation of all men , which are plain and evident to the meanest capacities . when therefore in such cases , about which we cannot easily satisfie our selves , we follow the advice of the publickly authorized guides and preachers of religion , if they chance to mislead us , we have something to say or apologize for our selves . our error is more excusable and pardonable , as being occasion'd by those , to whose judgment , by god's command , we did owe a great respect and submission . but when we choose instructors and counsellors to our selves according to our own fancy and liking , and they teach us contrary to the doctrine of our lawful ministers , if then we prove to be in the wrong , and are betray'd into sin , we may thank our own wantonness for it , and are more severely accomptable for such mistakes . thus let a man that is troubled with any threatning disease , apply himself rather to the licensed phisicians or chirurgions , of approved skill and honesty ; and if he chance to miscarry under them , yet he hath this contentment , that he used the best and wisest means for his health and recovery . but if he leaves them all , and will hearken only to quacks and empiricks , tho they advise him quite contrary to what the others prescribed , if under their hands he grows worse and worse , he must then charge his own perverse folly or idle humour , as the cause of his ruine . 4. in order to the curing of our scruples we should thoroughly understand and consider , what is the true notion of lawful , and how it differs from what is necessary , and from what is sinful . that is necessary or our duty which god hath expresly commanded , that is sinful which god hath forbid ; that is lawful which god hath not by any law obliging us ▪ either commanded or forbid : for , where there is no law , saith the apostle , there is no transgression , rom. 4. 15. there can be no transgression , but either omitting what the law commands , or doing what the law forbids . for instance , if any man can shew where kneeling at the sacrament is forbid in scripture , where sitting is required ; where praying by a form is forbid , and extemporary prayers are enjoyned , then indeed the dispute would soon be at an end : but if neither the one , nor the other can be found , as most certainly they cannot , then kneeling at the sacrament , and reading prayers out of a book , must be reckoned amongst things lawful . and then there is no need of scrupling them , because they may be done without sin : nay , where they are required by our superiours , it is our duty to submit to them , because it is our duty to obey them in all lawful things . this way of arguing is very plain and convincing , and cannot be evaded but by giving another notion of lawful . and therefore it is commonly said , that nothing is lawful , especially in the worship of god , which god himself hath not prescribed and appointed , or that hath been abused to evil purposes . and on these two mistakes are chiefly grounded mens scruples about indifferent rites and ceremonies in god's worship . 1. that only is said to be lawful in god's worship which he himself hath prescribed and appointed ; so that this is thought exception sufficient against the forms and usages of our church , that though they are not forbid , yet they are no where commanded in scripture . who hath required these things at your hands ? now here i only ask , where our saviour or his apostles have forbid us doing any thing in god's worship , which is not by himself commanded , or where in the new testament we are told , that god will be angry with us for doing any thing which he hath no where forbid , either by general or particular laws ? for unless this can be shewn , there can be no colour for this pretence , and we are sufficiently sure , that no such place can be produced out of the bible . it is acknowledged by all , that the holy scriptures , as to all that is necessary to be believed or done in order to salvation , as to all the essential and substantial parts of divine worship , is a plain and perfect rule ; but it is as certain that the outward circumstances of time , place , habit , and gesture , are not determined in the new testament , as they were by moses's law : and yet god cannot be , at least visibly and publickly , worshipped without them . if therefore these be not determined in scripture , and it is unlawful to do any thing in gods worship but what is so determined , it follows that god cannot be worshipped at all , unless we could worship him in no time , place , habit , or gesture : nor indeed can i learn how a christian can , with a good conscience , perform any part of god's worship , if this principle be admitted for true , that whatsoever is not commanded is forbid , since the external circumstances of religious actions , without which they cannot be performed , are not prescribed or determined in scripture ; and so he must commit a sin every time he prays or receives the holy sacrament . besides , this reason would oblige us to separate from all the churches that ever were or are in the world , there being no constituted church in which there are not some orders and injunctions for the regulating the publick worship of god no where commanded in scripture . we could never , upon this principle , have held communion with the primitive churches , which undoubtedly had their instituted significant ceremonies ; nor is there any church at this day , that hath not by its own authority determined some of the circumstances of divine service for the more decent and orderly performance thereof . nay , those very persons that make this exception , do themselves practise many things in the worship of god , without the least shadow of a divine command , to which they oblige their hearers and communicants : for , conceived prayers , sitting at the eucharist , sprinkling the infant at baptism , the minister's officiating in a black cloak or coat , are full out as unscriptural , humane , uncommanded as any gesture , habit , or form used in our church . 2. that is said to be unlawful which hath been abused to sinful purposes , to idolatry or superstition ; so that nothing ought to be retained in our worship , tho it be not forbid by god , which was used in times of popery . hence the ordinary objection against our parish churches is , that they are not sufficiently purged from popery ; that our first reformers were indeed excellent and worthy persons for the times they lived in ; that what they did was very commendable and a good beginning , but they were forced to comply with the necessities of the age , which would not bear a compleat reformation . they left a great deal of popish trash in the church , hoping by degrees to reconcile the papists to it , or at least that they might not make the breach too wide , and too much prejudice or estrange them from it . but we now live under better means , have greater light and knowledge , and so a further and more perfect amendment is now necessary . thus the order of bishops is decried as popish and antichristian , our liturgy as taken out of the mass book , and our ceremonies as relicks of idolatry . but the truth of the case is this . we must consider , that those of the church of rome do hold and maintain all the essentials of christianity , but then by degrees , as they found opportunity , they have added a number of impious and pernicious doctrines to the christian faith , the belief and profession of which they equally require of all that are in their communion . besides this , they have introduced several idolatrous and superstitious rites and practises into the service of their church , never heard of for the first four hundred years , by which they have miserably defaced and corrupted the worship of god , and made it necessary for all those that love their own salvation , to separate from them . now our first reformers here in england did not go about to invent a new species of government , to devise new rites and ceremonies ▪ and a new form of worship , such as should be least excepted against , and then obtrude it upon this nation , as was done at geneva , and some other places ; but they wisely considered , that if they did but reject what the romanists had added to the faith and worship of christians , lay aside their novel inventions , usurpations , and unwritten traditions , there would remain the pure , simple , primitive christianity , such as it was before the roman church was thus degenerated : nor have we any thing of popery left amongst us , but what the papists had left amongst them of primitive religion and worship . as we must not receive the evil for the sake of the good , so neither must we reject the good for the sake of the evil . in our church we pray neither to saints nor angels , nor the virgin mary , our liturgy is in a known tongue , we deny the laity no part of the sacrament , nor the reading of the scriptures , we offer no mass sacrifice , nor worship images or the consecrated bread. we have not one doctrine or ceremony in use amongst us , that is purely popish . but we must be obliged to part with the most sacred , venerable and usefullest things in our religion , if this be a sufficient reason of our forbearing any thing , because the papists abuse it . this therefore i conclude to be the best and plainest rule for the governing of our consciences , not wilfully to omit any thing that god hath commanded , to avoid to the utmost of our power what god hath forbid ; and what ever else we have no particular divine law about , to guide our selves by the general rules of scripture , the commands of our superiours , and by the measures of prudence , peace , and charity . this one rule ( and it cannot but seem a very reasonable one ) would soon put an end to our squabbles and janglings about formes and ceremonies and other indifferent things . 5. in order to the bringing men to a complyance with the laws of our church , we must desire them to consider that there never was nor ever will be any publick constitution , that will be every way unexceptionable . the best policy , whether civil or ecclesiastical , that can be established will have some flaws and defects , which must be borne and tolerated . some inconveniences will in process of time arise , that never could be foreseen or provided against ; and to make alteration upon every emergent difficulty may be often of worse consequence , than the evil we pretend to cure by it . let the rules and modes of government , discipline , publick worship , be most exact and blameless , yet there will be faults in governours and ministers as long as they are but men . we must not expect in this world a church without spot or wrinkle , that consists only of saints , in which nothing can be found amiss ; especially by those who lye at the catch and wait for an advantage against it . if men will scruple and reform , as long as any thing remaineth which they can object against , they must e'en come at last , as a reverend person of our church hath observed , to the state of that miserable man who left all humane society that he might not be defiled with other mens sins , and at last cut out the contents of chapters and titles of books out of the bible , because they were humane inventions added to the pure word of god. men must be willing , if ever they would promote peace and unity , to put candid constructions and favourable interpretations upon things , to take them by the best handle , and not strain things on purpose that they might cavil the more plausibly , and raise more considerable objections against them . we must not make personal , accidental faults , nor any thing a pretence for our leaving the communion of our church , which ariseth only from the necessary condition and temper of all humane affairs , that nothing here is absolutely perfect . 6. and lastly , if you cannot by these , and other the like considerations , not now to be mentioned , get rid of , and conquer your scruples , then be advised to lay them aside , to throw them out of your minds as dangerous temptations , and act positively against them . but here i easily imagine some ready presently to ask me , do you perswade us to conform to the orders of the church tho we are not satisfied in our minds concerning them ? i answer , that i think this the best advice that can be given to such scrupulous persons . it would be an endless infinite thing , and communion with any church would be altogether unpracticable , if every private christian was obliged to suspend joyning himself to it , till he was perfectly satisfied about the reasonableness and expediency of all that was required , or was in use in that church : for indeed , private persons are by no means proper judges of what is fit and convenient in the administration of church-government , discipline , or publick worship , no more than they are of matters of state , or the reasonableness of all civil laws . common people generally have neither patience to consider , nor judgment to weigh all circumstances , nor wisdom to choose that which is best ; these things of a publick nature belong only to our superiours and governours , and if they appoint what is unfit , indecent , or inconvenient , they only are accountable for it . it is not the fault of those that joyn with such worship , or yield to such injunctions ( not plainly sinful ) for the sake of peace and order . i know therefore no better rule for the directing and quieting mens consciences than this , that as to all such matters as relate to publick order and decent administration of gods worship , they should without any superstitious fearfulness comply with the customs of the church they live in , never troubling themselves , nor curiously examining what is best and fittest , as long as there is nothing enjoyned or done , which ( after due enquiry ) appears to us contrary to any law of god. thus st. augustin directs us in that often quoted place , where he tells us , he knew no better course for a serious prudent christian to take , in matters of rites and customs , than to follow the churches example where he is : for whatsoever is prescribed neither against faith or manners , is a matter in its self indifferent , and to be observed according to the custom of those he lives among . this was agreeable to the counsel st. ambrose , bishop of milan , gave him when he was sent by his mother to enquire his judgment about the saturday fast , when i am at rome , saith the bishop , i fa●t on the sabbath , but at milan i do not . so thou likewise , when thou comest to any church , observe its custom , if thou wouldest neither be an offence to them , nor have them be so to thee . which st. augustin ever after looked upon as an oracle from heaven . i do not by this encourage men to venture blindfold on sin , or to neglect any reasonable care of their actions ; but if people raise all the difficulties and objections they can start , before they proceed to a resolution about things that have no manifest impiety in them , nor are plainly nor by any easie consequence , contrary to the revealed will of god , this cannot but occasion infinite perplexity and trouble to mens minds , and there are but few things they shall be able to do with a safe and quiet conscience . should all those that have some little arguments against the sign of the cross , puzzle themselves with the objections usually urged against infant baptism , and defer baptizing their children till they were fully satisfied about it , i doubt not but the baptizing of infants would soon be as much scrupled at as the crossing them now is . but there is no apparent evil in it ; it is the practise of the church we live in , it is no where forbid in scripture : this ordinarily is sufficient warrant for what we do . before we separate from a church , or refuse to comply with its orders , we ought to be fully satisfied and persuaded of the unlawfulness of what is required , that it is forbid by god ; because by leaving the communion of any church , we pass sentence upon and condemn it , which ought not to be done upon light and doubtful causes : but there is not the same necessity that we should be thus fully satisfied about our conformity to all things prescribed by the church . we may presume them to be innocent , unless they plainly appear to us otherwise . the judicious and learned bishop sanderson thus expresseth it in his fourth sermon ad clerum , the law taketh every man for a good man and true , till his truth aud honesty be legally disproved : and as our saviour sometimes said , he that is not against us is for us : so in these matters ( he speaks of those ceremonies that for orders sake , and to add the greater solemnity to sacred actions , are appointed in the church ) we are to believe all things to be lawful for us to do , which cannot be shewn by good evidence either of scripture or reason to be unlawful . if any one be afraid that this principle once imbibed would introduce popery , make people greedily swallow , and without any examination submit to every thing their superiours please to impose upon them , let him only consider ( which we all agree in ) that there are many things in the popish worship and religion manifestly evil , and forbidden by the revealed will of god , which renders our separation from them necessary , and so consequently justifiable : whereas the things objected against in our church are at worst only doubtful and suspicious , or rather not so good and expedient as might be devised : and this surely makes a wide difference in the case . but doth not st. paul say , rom. 14. 19. i know and am perswaded by the lord jesus , that there is nothing unclean of it self , but to him that esteemeth any thing unclean it is unclean ? doth not he expresly tell us , that whatsoever is not of faith is sin ? that is , whatever we do without a full persuasion of the lawfulness of it , tho it be not so in it self , yet is a sin in him that doth it against his conscience . and doth not the apostle say , he that doubteth is damned if he eat , before he is convinced that it may be done ? i desire here therefore only to be rightly understood , and then these things are soon reconciled . 1. when i speak of a scrupulous conscience i suppose the person tolerably well perswaded of the lawfulness of what is to be done , but yet he doth not like or approve of it , he hath some little reasons and exceptions against it , it is not the best and fittest , all things considered . this is properly a scruple , and is certainly the case of all those , who do sometimes ( to save themselves from the severity of the laws ) joyn in our worship , and communicate with us ; which we presume they would never do did they judge it absolutely sinful and forbidden by god. so that though it should be granted that a man cannot innocently do that of which his conscience doubts whether it be lawfull or not , yet a man may , and in some cases is bound to do that which is not unlawful , though upon some other accounts he scruples the doing of it . 2. if the question be about things wherein we are left wholly to our selves , and at liberty , having no very weighty reason for the doing of them , then it may be the safest way to forbear all such things we scruple at . of such cases the apostle speaks in the fore-mentioned places , of eating or not eating some meats ; neither of them was required by any law . eating was no instance of duty , or was it any ways forbid : where to do or not to do is perfectly at our own choice ; it is best for a man to forbear doing that of which he hath some suspicion , tho he be not sure that it is sinful . as suppose a man have scruples in his mind about playing at cards and dice , or going to see stage-plays , or puting out his money to usury , because there is no great reason or necessity for any of these things , and to be sure they may be innocently forborn without any detriment to our selves or others ; though we do not judge them absolutely sinful , yet it is safest for him who cannot satisfie himielf concerning the goodness and fitness of them , wholly to deny himself the use of them . but in these two cases it is most for the quiet of our consciences , to act against or notwithstanding our fears and scruples , when either our superiours , to whom we owe obedience , have interposed their commands , or when by it we prevent some great evil or mischief . 1. when our superiours , other civil or ecclesiastical , whom by the will of god we are bound to obey in all lawful things , have interposed their commands , our scruples will not excuse or justifie our disobedience . if indeed we judge what is commanded to be absolutely unlawful , tho it be a false erroneous judgment , yet whilst we are under such persuasion we are by no means to do it upon any inducement whatever . if i only doubt of the lawfulness of any particular action , and it be an instance wherein i am at liberty , i am still bound not to do it . for , whatsoever is not of faith is sin. i am certainly innocent when i forbear ; i may commit a sin , if i do it , wisdom would therefore , that the safer part be chosen . but now if i am by the command of my superiours obliged to it , my choice is then determined , it then becomes my duty , and it can never be safe or advisable to neglect a plain duty for an uncertain offence . thus most and best casuists do determine about a doubtful conscience , particularly the forenamed reverend bishop , in the same sermon , whatsoever is commanded us by those whom god hath set over us , either in church , commonwealth , or family ( quod tamen non sit certum displicere deo , saith st. bernard ) which is not evidently contrary to the law and will of god , ought to be of us received and obeyed no otherwise than as if god himself had commanded it , because god himself hath commanded us to obey the higher powers and to submit our selves to their ordinances . but now this is more plain concerning fears and scruples only about the conveniency and expediency of things , these ought all to be despised when they come in competition with the duty of obedience . would men but think themselves in conscience bound to pay the same duty and respect to the judgment and authority of magistrates and governours , whether in church or state , as they do expect their servants and children should to themselves , they would soon see the reasonableness of such submission . for all government and subjection would be very precarious and arbitrary , if every one that did not approve of a law or was not fully satisfied about the reasonableness of it was thereby exempted from all obligations to obey it . this is to give the supreme authority to the most humoursom or perverse sort of christians : for according to this principle , no publick laws and constitutions can be valid and binding , unless every scrupulous , tho a very ignorant conscience , consent to them . 2. we are not to mind or stand upon our scruples , when they probably occasion a great evil , a general mischief . they are not fit to be put in the balance with the peace of the church and unity of christians . suppose for once that our publick way of worship is not the best that can be divised , that many things might be amended in our liturgy , that we could invent a more agreeable establishment than this present is ( which yet no man in the world can ever tell , for we cannot know all the inconveniences of any alteration , till it comes to be tryed ) yet granting all this , it cannot be thought so intolerable an evil as contempt of gods solemn worship , dividing into sects and parties , living in debate , contention , and separation from one another . if there be some rites and customs amongst us not wisely chosen or determined , some ceremonies against which just exceptions may be made , yet to forsake the communion of such a true church of jesus christ , and set up a distinct altar in opposition to it , to combine and associate into separate congregations , is ( as it is somewhere expressed ) like knocking a man on the head because his teeth are rotten , or his nails too long . how much more agreeable is it to the christian temper , to be willing to sacrifice all such doubts and scruples to the interests of publick order and divine charity ; for better surely it is to serve god in a defective imperfect manner , to bear with many disorders and faults , than to break the bond of peace and brotherly communion . for this we have the example of our blessed lord and saviour , who lived and died in communion with a church where there were far greater corruptions both as to persons and practises , than can be pretended to be in ours at this day ; yet though he was the great reformer of mankind , he forsook not the jewish church , but assembled with them in their publick synagogues , which answer to our parish-churches , preached in the temple tho they had made it a den of thieves , observed their festivals , tho some of them of humane institution , nay commanded his disciples to continue to hear the scribes and pharisees , tho they were a most vile and wretched generation of men. great were the pollutions and misdemeanours in the churches of rome , corinth , galatia , yet no one member of them is ever commanded to come out or separate from those churches to joyn in a purer congregation or to avoid mixt communions , or for better edification . for men to be drunk at the sacrament was certainly a worse fault than to kneel at it , or for a wicked man to intrude himself ; yet the apostle doth not advise any to withdraw from that church , but only every one to examine himself . we ought to do all that we can do without sining , submit to an hundred things which are against our mind or we had rather let alone , for the sake of peace and unity , so desirable in it self , so necessary for the glory of god , the honour of religion , for our common interest and safety , for the preservation of what i may , without vanity , call the best church in the world. i cannot stand now to tell you , how earnestly this duty of maintaining unity amongst christians is pressed in the new testament ; how concerned our blessed master was , that all his disciples should agree together and live as bretren ; how severely the holy apostles chid and rebuked those that caused divisions and strife amongst christians , reckoning schism and contention amongst the most heinous and dangerous sins . it should make both the ears ( one would think ) of some amongst us to tingle , but to hear what sense the primitive christians had of the sinfulness of separating from and breaking the communion of christians , nay , what the old non-conformists here in england have said of it , yet remaining in print , charging the people to be as tender of church-division as they were of drunkenness , whoredom , or any other enormous crime . and did men know and consider the evil of schism , they would not be so ready upon every slight occasion to split upon that rock . let us therefore divert our fears and scruples upon greater sins . it is far more certain that causless separation from the communion of christians is sinful , than that kneeling at the sacrament , or praying by a book is such . why then have men such invincible scruples about one , and none at all about the other ? they run headlong into the separate assemblies , which surely are more like to schismatical conventicles than any thing in our church is to idolatry . let men be as scrupulous and fearful of offending against the christian laws of subjection , peaceableness , and charity , as they are of worshipping god after an impure manner , and this alone will contribute much to the making up those breaches which threaten sudden ruine to our church and nation . i only add here , that in all that i have now said i am not conscious to my self , that i have used any argument or affirmed any thing , but what many of those very ministers , who now dissent from us , did teach , and maintain , and print too , against the independents and other sectaries that divided from them when they preached in the parish-churches . and if this was good doctrine against those who separated upon the account of corruptions , for purer ordinances in those days , i see not why it is not as good against themselves , when upon the very same pretences and no other they divide from us now . the lord grant that we may all come at last to be of one mind , to live in peace and vnity , and then the god of love and peace shall be with us . finis . take heed of separating from the publick assemblies of the saints . i have found by experience , that all our church-calamities have sprung from this root . he that separates from the publick worship , is like a man tumbling down a hill , and never leaving till he comes to the bottom of it . i could relate many sad stories of persons professing godliness , who out of dislike to our church-meetings , began at first to separate from them , and after many changes and alterations , are turned some of them anabaptists , some quakers , some ranters , some direct atheists . but i forbear ; you must hold communion with all those churches with which christ holds communion . you must separate from the sins of christians , but not from the ordinances of christ . take heed of unchurching the churches of christ , lest you prove schismaticks instead of being true-christians . see m. edm. calamy 's godly man's ark , epist . dedic . to the parish of aldermanbury , direction 14th . the booke of conscience opened and read in a sermon preached at the spittle on easter-tuesday, being april 12, 1642 / by john jackson. jackson, john. this text is an enriched version of the tcp digital transcription a46895 of text r36019 in the english short title catalog (wing j76). textual changes and metadata enrichments aim at making the text more computationally tractable, easier to read, and suitable for network-based collaborative curation by amateur and professional end users from many walks of life. the text has been tokenized and linguistically annotated with morphadorner. the annotation includes standard spellings that support the display of a text in a standardized format that preserves archaic forms ('loveth', 'seekest'). textual changes aim at restoring the text the author or stationer meant to publish. this text has not been fully proofread approx. 100 kb of xml-encoded text transcribed from 78 1-bit group-iv tiff page images. earlyprint project evanston,il, notre dame, in, st. louis, mo 2017 a46895 wing j76 estc r36019 15586692 ocm 15586692 103990 this keyboarded and encoded edition of the work described above is co-owned by the institutions providing financial support to the early english books online text creation partnership. this phase i text is available for reuse, according to the terms of creative commons 0 1.0 universal . the text can be copied, modified, distributed and performed, even for commercial purposes, all without asking permission. early english books online. (eebo-tcp ; phase 1, no. a46895) transcribed from: (early english books online ; image set 103990) images scanned from microfilm: (early english books, 1641-1700 ; 1150:32) the booke of conscience opened and read in a sermon preached at the spittle on easter-tuesday, being april 12, 1642 / by john jackson. jackson, john. [10], 143, [1] p. printed by f.k. for r.m. and are to be sold by daniel milbourne ..., london : 1642. imperfect: tightly bound with loss of print. reproduction of original in the bodleian library. includes bibliographical references. eng bible. -o.t. -proverbs xv, 15 -sermons. conscience. sermons, english -17th century. a46895 r36019 (wing j76). civilwar no the booke of conscience opened and read in a sermon preached at the spittle on easter-tuesday, being april 12, 1642 / by john jackson. jackson, john 1642 17734 132 190 0 0 0 0 182 f the rate of 182 defects per 10,000 words puts this text in the f category of texts with 100 or more defects per 10,000 words. 2004-06 tcp assigned for keying and markup 2004-06 aptara keyed and coded from proquest page images 2004-07 rachel losh sampled and proofread 2004-07 rachel losh text and markup reviewed and edited 2004-10 pfs batch review (qc) and xml conversion the booke of conscience opened and read . in a sermon preached at the spittle on easter-tuesday , being april 12. 1642. by john jackson ▪ london , printed by f. k. for r. m. and are to be sold by daniel milbourne at the new exchange , and at the holy lambe in little britaine . 1642. to the right honourable sr richard gurny knight and baronet , lord major of the city of london , together with the right worshipfull the sheriffes and aldermen of the same city , the continuall feast of a good conscience be ever multiplyed . sirs , may it please you , the scottish king being imprisoned in mortimers hole , comforted himself and deceived the sorrowes of his bondage , by scraping the story of christ crucified upon the wals , with his nailes : even so god writeth the lawes , and dictates of conscience upon a wall , the wall of conscience , murus aheneus ; so as all the rules of divinity , of nature , of nations , and of positive lawes , as they relate to conscience , are like the hand-writing , dan. 5. herbae parietariae , wall-flowers . and they are written and sculptured with a naile too ; but a more stiffe and potent naile then that of the scottish king . judge not ex ungue , &c. but by a retrograde crisis , judge the naile by the finger , which is expresly called digitus dei , exod. 31. 18. and what can the naile of such a finger be , but unguis adamantinus , as it is adjuncted , jer. 17. 1 ? and need it hath to be no lesse , unlesse the pen be more soft then the paper : for if our hearts be hearts of adamant , zech. 7. 12. then the stile that writes characters upon them had need be a pen of iron , and the naile of an adamant . i present here your worthinesses with a booke ; a booke , as st bernard ingeniously , for the rectifying whereof , all other bookes are written ; i except not the very booke of bookes it self . for there are foure bookes written by god , for the sons of men , which are thus to be classed and ordered . they are either the bookes of grace , or of nature . the bookes of grace are either outwar● or inward . the outward booke of grace is the holy bible . the inward book of grace is the holy spirit , the great doctor of the church . the outward booke of nature is the world , or book of the creatures , which is god unfolded . the inward booke of nature is this very booke , whose seales i have , in the ensuing tra●●a●e , broke open , the book of conscience , so called apoc. 20. 12. that which one likes another will dislike ; some have been such grosse flatterers as to commend nero , and some againe such detractors as to dispraise trajan ; one mans pottage will be anothers coloquintida ; the same son was rachels ben-oni & jacob's benjamin . the same in scription on the plaister which made belshazzar quiver for feare , made darius , his successor quav●r for joy . the very same facultie of conscience which entertaines and feasts one , starves or choakes another . and the commentary must not looke for a better lot then the text , nor the sermon then the theame . i know too well the wayes of this towne , to expect other : but for the publishing hereof , i have this excuse , which must prevaile with an ingenuous nature , that i have beene mastered by entreaties thereunto , so as if there be any errour , in that regard , their burthen must be my case . now i pray god keep your honour , and worships , in grace , unto glory , and that as the best meanes ▪ conducing to that end , you here exercise your selves to keep a good conscience in all things , both towards god , and towards man . your hon. and wor. humble , and faithfull servant , in the things of god , and christ , john jackson . the readings of the text of prov. 15. ver. 15. hebr. {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} graec. {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} . sept. {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} symmac● . lat. secura mens quasi juge convivium . vulg. cujus bilaris est animus convivium est continuum . transl. chald. paraphr . cor bonum quasi juge covivium . munst. secura mens , hoc est , bona conscientia , &c. stephanus . jucundus corde , convivio jugi . vata●● . joci●dus corde , &c. pagniu . laeta mens perpetuum 〈◊〉 , c●stalio . &c. angl. a good conscience is a continuall feast . he that is of a merry hea●t hath a continuall feast . the booke of conscience opened and read . tho text , prov. 15. 15. a good conscience is a continuall feast . the reading of this text must first be set straight , ere any progresse can be made , lest we seeme to make a sermon upon a text , which will not beare the burden of the discourse . it was read long in our english bibles thus , a good conscience is a continuall feast ; till king james of blessed memory , as another ptolomy philadelphus , assembled together above 40. rare linguists and divines , to perfect us a new translation , where it is read thus , he that is of a merry heart , hath a continual feast . which reading is subordinate to the former : for there can be no sincere or lasting mirth of heart , but such as proceeds from , and is superstructed upon the foundation of a good conscience . besides , if we will drinke water out of the fount , it is in the hebrew neither a merry heart , nor a good conscience , a but a good heart is a continuall feast : nor can it otherwise be , because there is no peculiar word , in the hebrew tongue , to denote this particular facultie of soule , which we call conscience , but the generall word b heart . and even in the now testament where there are proper words for it , yet the generall word heart is used , 1 john epist. chap. 3. and 20. c if our heart condemne us , &c. there heart stands for conscience ; for we know it to be the proper effect of conscience to condemne or absolve : which of it selfe seems to determine , that conscience is not a peculiar and distinct faculty of the soul , as understanding , will , & memory , &c. are , but the soul reflecting and recoyling upon it self . which being prefaced , we may safely read it , as you have heard , a good conscience is a continuall feast . wherein every word doth fitly constitute a part : for first here is the subject , conscience . secondly , and adjunct of excellencie joyned unto it , good . thirdly the praedicate , a feast . lastly an adjunct of perpetuity joyned to that , continuall . and in the orderly pursuance of these foure parts there will fall out to be handled foure points of very high and necessary concernment , in the life and conversation of every christian : namely , first this : that every man hath a certaine genius associated to his soul , to wit , conscience ▪ secondly this : that by the grace of conversion , there is a divine quality stamped and imprinted upon the naturall conscience , which is , goodnesse . thirdly this : that conscience thus qualified with goodnesse is a feast . lastly this : that this feast of a good conscience is not onely for a time , but for eternity , not only a long , but a continuall feast . these ought to be handled plainly , but theologically , and this will we doe , if god permit , as the apostle speaks , heb. 6. 3. ¶ the first point . there is a certaine inmate placed by god , and associated to the soule , called conscience . we say indeed in vulgar speech , that such a man hath no conscience , or is a man of no conscience , but that is but a catechrestical form of language , like that of the italians , who when they speake of some notable deperdite wretch , say , he 's a man without a soul ; and like that of holy scripture , which saith of some men , that a they have no heart . but to speak properly , and as the thing is , there is no man , be he never so lost , and reprobate minded , but hath a natural● conscience . a natural body may as easily walk● in the sun without a shadow , as the soul can in the light of naturall reason , or of the word of god , without the reverberations and ecchoings of conscience . heare b tullies divinity in this point : we have each of us received from the immortall god a conscience , which can by no means be separated from us . many for the more wholsome aire , or better soyle , have changed their place of abode ; and others to converse with god and themselves , have abandoned the societie of men , and dwelt in wildernesses and solitary retiremēts , where satyres have danced , and ostriches dwelt ; yea and many have been so hacknied and tired out with the miseries of this life , which like an heavy pack , and an ill saddle have wrung their backs , that they have leaped out of the pan into the fire , and shifted their souls from their bodies ; but there was never any yet could shift conscience from the soul . nero shifted from chamber to chamber , but still his mother agrippina's ghost seemed to pursue him . bessus in plutarch was chased by himselfe too , but still the swallows seemed to charter his crime . there 's scarce any thing in nature so small , and contemptible , but can make a separation betwixt the soule and the body ; a hair in a draught of milke , did it to luc●● ; a ●●ie , to adrian ; a kick of nero's heel , to poppea ; lice to herod ; wormes to antiochus ; mice , and rats to hatto , bishop of mentz ; a meere conceit , a thought , a fancie , to thousands : but there is no gulph so deep , no precipice so steepe , no sword so sharpe , no not that sword which can divide between the marrow and the bone , which can make the conscience sever it selfe from the soul , but still c nocte dieque suum gestant in pectore testem . that is , wake men , or rest , within their brest conscience will be a guest . to proceed then ; what is this thing we call conscience , and wherein doth the power and efficacie of it consist ? answ. it hath been long said , conscience is a thousand witnesses ; and it s as truly said , conscience hath a thousand definitions and descriptions . a man would thinke there were much conscience in the world , to consider all the books , that are written of the nature and cases of conscience . it may be said of them , as s. john closeth up his gospel , the world would scarce containe the books that should be written , if all were printed , that hath been said , talked , disputed , preached , written of conscience . and yet as little may be spread and dilated into much , so may much also be contracted into little . as a great mountaine may produce only a little mouse , so a little nut-shell may hold great iliads . whosoever then understands these three greeke words , {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} , and {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} or these three latine words , lex , index and judex , or these three english words , a law , a witnesse , a judge , is in a good way of proficiencie , to understand the nature and essence of conscience : for in the execution of these three acts conscience officiateth , and dispatches its whole duty . for first , conscience is a law , or a fair tablet , whe● in is engraven , by a divin● hand , those truths an● principles which move i● & set it a working . whic● principles are either naturall , or acquired ; and hereupon comes in the distinction of conscience naturall and illuminated . and these principles being preserved and kept in the conscience , they are as land-marks to her to saile by , and as a law to her to live by ; in which regard this first act of conscience is by the greekes called {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} , that is , the records or conservation of right . 〈◊〉 ●om . ● . ver. ●5 . the apostle cals it lex scripta in cordibus , the law written in our hearts . for the second , conscience is a witnesse or evidence , declaring and proving the truth , whether the party standing at the bar●e hath done contrary or according to that law : for if the fact agree and hold measure with that law which conscience tendered , then it is excusing witnesse , or a witnesse pro ; if otherwise , then it is an accusing witness , or a witness con ; in which regard , this second act of conscience is by the greekes called {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} , that is , a science with or together ; and saint paul in the same text rom. 2. 15. expresseth both these testimonies , their conscience also bearing witnesse , and their thoughts accusing or excusing ; and thus conscience is index , a signe or token . for the third , conscience is also judex , an upright and impartiall judge , comparing together the law , and the fact in the pursuance of a right sentence , and out of that collation causing to result either a sentence of absolution ( the white stone , revel. 2. 17. ) if the fact agree with the law , or a sentence of condemnation ( a the black stone ) if the law and fact jar and disagree . this act the greeks call {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} , and to this judiciary act of conscience belongs that text of saint john , 1. epist. 3. chap. 20. ver. if our hearts condemne us , &c. and saint chrysostome glossing upon psal. 4. 4. commune with your owne hearts , &c. bids us , b . erect the tribunall of conscience . the summe thus farre is thus much : conscience is a law propounding the rule to walk by , a witnesse to give in evidence for matter of fact , & a judge to give sentence according to the evidence . another way to find out the very quidditative nature and being of conscience may take the rise and hint from that text , 1 pet. 3. 21. c the answer of a good conscience , as there the apostle phraseth it ; so as conscience is a response or returne to three severall queries . the first question is de jure , touching the law or right ; as , what is the rule or principle by which i am to be directed in this or that case , what to do and what not to doe ? unto which question , conscience is an answer by reading the letter of the law , and opening the code or booke , apoc. 20. 12. and declaring the law written in the heart . the second question is de facto , touching the fact , thus , the law indeed appeares , but how hast thou complyed in practice with this law , by doing according to it ? unto which question , conscience is an answer in the language of achan , josh. 7. 20. thus and thus have i done . the third question is de applicatione juris & facti , touching the commensuration of the fact with the law , and the application of the one to the other , thus , what reward now remaines , or what retribution is to be expected ? and unto this question , conscience is an answer , in the words of god to cain , gen. 4. 7. if thou hast done well , shalt thou not be accepted ? and if ill , sin lies at the doore . the last way to find out the nature of conscience is by defining it to a practicall reasoning or argumentation , in which are all the three parts of a formall syllogisme ; in the major proposition is the law of conscience , in the minor or assumption lies the evidence or witnesse , in the conclusion lies the sentence or judgement . examples . what rule or precept teacheth in generall , that instances and examples illustrate in speciall ; to which end let us here subnect two examples , the former of an evill , and accusing conscience , the latter of a good , and accusing one . let adam the first of men be substituted for the former . 1. in the day thou eatest of the tree of knowledge , thou shalt surely die , gen. 2. 17. there 's the law , or proposition of this practicall syllogisme , there conscience is an answer to question touching right . 2. but i did eate thereof : so runnes his confession , gen. 3 ▪ ver. 12. there conscience is a witnesse , a thousand witnesses . that 's the assumption of the syllogisme , or an answer to the question touching the fact . 3. therefore , i am become mortall , i must dye , gen. 5. 5. there his conscience was a judge giving sentence of condemnation . that 's the conclusion of the syllogisme , or an answer to the question touching the application of the law , and fact together . ¶ the application of this first point . it were very incongruous not to use application , while we are treating of conscience , whose vigor and force consists in application , and the best improvement and use of it is to provoke every man to take out the lesson of that wise greeke , d know thy selfe ; which short saying doe but christianize , and there can be no better divinity : o christian man know and consider thy selfe , learne not to undervalue even man in thee ; know thine owne dignity and excellencie ; know that within the narrow roome of thy brest there is seated a facultie which is both a law , a witness , and a judge ; which can make unanswerable syllogismes , and can out of strong premisses bring undeniable conclusions . c pythagoras his rule was truly divine , to bid a man in the first place revere himself , and be mostly ashamed of himselfe : and f another of the same ranke and classis , he that is not ashamed of himselfe , how shall he blush before him who knows nothing ? and reason enforceth thus much : for every man is most wronged by his own offence , and every man must be arraigned both by and before his own conscience , and therefore surely no tribunall next the judgement seat of god himselfe , ought to be so dreadfull to a man , as the areopagita of his owne heart , which can at once alledge and plead law , produce witnesse and give judgement . a learned gentleman in a project of his conjoyneth and subordinateth these two propositions ; the former is this , that chastity makes a man reverence himselfe ; the latter is this , that selfe awe or reverence , next true religion and the feare of god , is the chiefest bridle to hold us in from villanie and sinne . which certainly is most true : for if we did not shamefully underprize our selves , how could we by lust , covetousnesse , intemperance , and the like , so degrade man in our selves , and defile that humane nature which god vouchsafed to take into union with his owne divinity ? how could we give a birth-right for a messe of lentils , transgresse for a morsell of bread , stake gold to a counter , put down an eternall , and immortall soule to a blast of fame , an huske of pleasure , a glow-worme of knowledge ? but now though this be very true of chastity , yet change the subject of the first proposition , and enunciate it of conscience and see how it appears ; first then , conscience , that lawyer , and witnesse , and judge of conscience , that triumvir , and trismegist of conscience makes a man reverence and fear himself . secondly , this selfe-reverence , which proceeds from conscience , and the trinity of offices in it , is a threefold cord to whip us from sin , and a threefold bond to tie us to vertue ▪ that which salomon speaketh eccles. 10. ver. 20. may be hither fitly applyed , curse not the king , &c. for a bird of the aire shall carry the voice , and that which hath wings shall tell the matter ; what bird may this be , but the little brest-bird and chest-bird of conscience ? there is this story in diogenes laertius , xenocrates was one day walking in his garden , when a sparrow pursued by some hawke or bird of the prey , for shelter flew into the bosome of the philosopher , and being bid to put out his little foster-bird , he answered , no : for it is a most unworthy thing to betray a guest . moralize it thus , this falcon or hawke represents every sinner , and wicked person which hunts and pursues poor conscience ; this sparrow thus pursued , representeth conscience , which whilst the foxes have holes , and the birds nests , hath not where to roust it self , till it take shelter in the brest of xenocrates , of some pious and conscientious person , which holds it an unworthy thing to chase thence such a guest . and hitherto of this . the second point . ☜ by grace and regeneration , there is a divine quality and character imprinted upon the naturall conscience , which is goodnesse . as a noble and vertuous woman , giving lawes to her owne sexe , enacted that a woman , when she came to the age of thirty years , should then lay down the title of fair , and take up the title of good : so when any man or woman is actually called and sanctified , their conscience then ought to be devested of the title of a naturall conscience , and assume the title of a good conscience . therefore ye shall scarcely observe the name and word of conscience stand alone in scripture , but commonly there is some title and epithet of excellency joyned with it , as i either a pure conscience , 2 tim. 1. 3. or a k faire and beautifull conscience , heb. 13. 18. or a l conscience without offence , acts 24. 16. or a m good conscience , as here and else where , 1 pet. 3. 21. now a good conscience is either n honestly good , or peaceably good ; for goodnesse imprints its character upon the conscience in these two qualities , purity and peace ; or integrity and tranquillity ; or which still is the same , in uprightnesse & quietness . what s. james affirmeth of supernall wisedome , chap. 3. vers. 17. that it is first pure , then peaceable ; the very same two properties are the essentiall adjuncts of a good conscience . a conscience quietly good may be viciously evil , and a conscience troubledly evill , may be honestly good ; and therefore to constitute a conscience perfectly and fully good , both purity and peace are required ; the violation of the purity and integrity of conscience , is to be referred to the evill of sinne , and the violation of the calme and tranquillity of conscience is to be referred to the evill of punishment ; yea the greater the light of conscience , the greater is the sinne , and the greater trouble of conscience , the greater is the misery . the point you see is a clear truth , wee will therefore be briefe in the explication of it , that we may be large in the application . the application of the doctrine . follow therefore either s. pauls rule , or s. pauls example ; his rule shews what should be done , and his example what may be done . his rule we have 1 tim. 1. 19. have faith , and a good conscience . and againe , chap. 3. ver. 9. having the mystery of faith in a pure conscience . his practice we have frequently inculcated both in the acts and his epistles , hear a harmony , or little concordance , i have in all good conscience served god untill this day , acts 23. 1. again , and herein doe i exercise my self , to have a conscience without offence towards god and towards man , acts 24. 16. and again , i speake the truth in christ , i lye not , my conscience bearing me witnesse , rom. 9. 1. and again , for our rejoycing is this , the testimony of our conscience , 2 cor. 1. 12. and again , i thank god , whom i serve from mine elders , with a pure conscience , 2 tim. 1. 3. and yet again , pray for us , for we are assured we have a good conscience in all things , hebr. 13. 18. a good conscience you see is s. pauls recognizance it is his boasting : for tw● things he is observed mo●● to glory in , his suffering● and his conscience ; to ra●tle his chains , and displa● his conscience ; it is h●● flag he hangs out , o his sige in every epistle , so 〈◊〉 writes , 2 thess. 3. 17. now this exercise keeping a good conscien● stands in two things , according to the premise● distinction of a good co●science into pure and peac●able , which distinction 〈◊〉 as a key-stone to this arcra the former is how to ractifie the vicious conscience , and the latter how to pacifie the troubled conscience ; or how to clense the impure , and how to salve the wounded conscience : two points of most necessary and dayly use in practicall divinity . and in rectifying of conscience , due regard must be had to two things ; first , jus , the right or law of conscience . secondly , vis , the force or strength of conscience ( two severall words made up , and elemented of the same three letters by an easie metathesis , or transposition of letters . ) first then , let a man acquaint himselfe throughly with that which must be the rule and law of conscience ; for it is no matter how strong and active conscience be , if it be not first right informed , and then the stronger the better , otherwise the stronger the worse ; a lame man who keeps his way , shall outg● . a swift runner that wanders out of his way ; he who once hath strayed , the more he hastens the more he wanders and errs . every science and art proceeds by a rule ; the noble and liberall sciences of arithmetick , geometry , astron●my , musick , have their numbers , figures , ballances , squires , compasses , lines ; even the poor sweaty mechanicks cannot be without their rules , yards , squares , &c. much lesse can conscience , dainty , precise , exact conscience , which ought to be as levell-handed in her cases as the men of gibeah in the book of judges , who could throw stones at an haire-breadth , can she i say , want her rule and measure to proceed by , when in the circumstancing and individuation of every action , she must lay judgement to the line , and righteousnesse to the plumb-line ? isai. 28. 17. this law or line of conscience is foure-fold . 1. divine law , which is the will of god revealed in scripture , is the proper and adequate rule of conscience ; it hath of it self an adnate priviledge to bind conscience , and wheresoever it holds out to man a light to shew him his duty , it doth withall tie such a bond of obedience upon the conscience , as no creature is able to release . 2. the law of nature is also a good rule of conscience : for that naturall light and engraffed instinct written in our hearts , shews us also what is to be done , and what to be avoided . that there is a god ; that this god is to be worshiped ; that we ought to live honestly , hurt no body , give every one his owne , doe as we would be done to ; these and such like are the dictates and statutes of the law of nature , and doe bind conscience . 3. the law of nations also , which is brought in by the common consent of all people : for that was never false or wrong which all the whole world cals truth and right . humane nature was yet never so much at a losse , as that a right opinion of what is just , & equall should quite perish from the earth . the division of things , and appropriation of them to their owner , the faire usage of embassadours , &c. are draughts of the law of all nations , and doe likewise binde conscience . lastly , positive lawes , whether they be ecclesiasticall , or civill , doe lye strong bands and tyes upon conscience , as well as either the lawes of god , or of nature , or of nations . a thing is said to be of positive law , when it is thus , or so , not of any intrinsecall necessity , arising out of the particular essence of the thing , but may either be , or not be , and when it is , may either continue or cease , by humane imposition . and even such lawes as these , while they are not contrary , but subordinate unto , and commensurate with the divine law , have an obligatory power over conscience ; not that any law of man hath of and from it self any connate power to over-awe conscience , nor can the conscience subject her selfe to the jurisdiction of any creature , without idolatry , but it hath an adnate power rather , to wit , as it receives influence , and vertue from gods law , which commands us to obey every lawfull ordinance of man for conscience sake . next regard thus had to the law of conscience , the second respect must be to the force of conscience : for though conscience be never so well principled and illuminated , yet if it be dull and slegmatick , without vigor and force to put things in execution , it is but as a fire of straw which hath light without heat , or as a wel-shap'd horse without mettall . now the force of conscience consists in obligation , both in tying a man from that which conscience judgeth sinfull , and tying him to that which conscience judgeth right . in which respect , take notice what high language the scripture adapteth to expresse this thing ; as calling a man in relation to this work of conscience , a debtor , rom. 1. 14. a servant , rom. 6. 16. bound , acts 20. 22. constrained , ● cor. 5. 14. necessitated , 1 cor. 9. 17. so as a man cannot otherwise do● , acts 4. 20. such is the strength and vertue of conscience , that an action by its owne nature indifferent , it can make bad or good , and an action in it selfe good , it can corrupt and make naught . only an action which is ill and naught in it self , it cannot make good . yea such is the validity of conscience that it binds in some cases even when it erres : for conscience judging that to be unlawfull which is lawfull , bindeth to abstaine from that lawfull , rom. 14. 14. and conscience judging that to be debt and necessary , which is only allowable and arbitrary , bindeth to doe that arbitrary thing , rom. 14. 5. so as both these requisites taken in together , and a due proportionable contemperation made therof , to wit , of both j●s and vis , the light and heat , the good eyes and lustly limbs of conscience , do constitute a rectified conscience , fit to goe about that work and labour , for which god created such a faculty , and seated it in the soul of man . a law without sufficient force to execute it , is but a dead letter , and lets a man lye like the lame creeple at the pooles side , seeing the bath , but wanting strength to step into it . and force without law is but a riot , serving for no better use , then sampsons brawny wrists , without his eyes , to pull an old house over our head , to crush us . only a conscience informedly strong is shee . when then , o christian man , or woman , thou perceivest thy conscience to be in this frame , & plight , that it is legal●y valiant , silence not her voyce , muzzle not her mouth . say rather as cant. 2. 1● . let me see thy countenance , let me heare thy voyce , for sweet is thy voyce , and thy counten●nce is comely . shake off that dull and lethargick sloth , and stupidity which is upon it , either in stimulation to good , or repression from evill . cry aloud , and say , hoe , conscience , conscience , up and be doing , and the lord shall be with thee . to day is a chancery-day : to thine office : tell me first what 's the law in such and such a point . secondly , tell me what correspondence for matter of fact have i held with that law . be a true witnesse either to excuse me , if i have done well , or accuse me , if evill . lastly , give right sentence , and play the part of a just judge in either condemning or absolving me , that thus judging my self , i may not be judged of the lord . and having thus shewed the method of rectifying the erring conscience , let us now also declare the right order of pacifying the troubled conscience . upon which point before we fall directly , we must needs put a difference ( for a difference there is ) betwixt sicknesse of fancie , when the thoughts are distracted , and drawne aside from off pleasing and contenting objects , and doe wholly fasten and sit abrood on sad and dreadfull things , and true formall trouble of minde , which alwaies gathers to an head , either by reason of solicitation to sin , or remorse for sin : distemper of fancie is commonly a wild and unreasonable thing , and swerves from that we call judgement , or recta ratio ; or if it fasten upon sinne , which sometimes it doth , it s troubled either with scruples , which is no sin , or with some generall notions and idea's of transgression , without due shame and sorrow for particular lapses ; or with motes and gnats more then with beames and camels . now rationall and congruous trouble of conscience , when god wounds and will heale , is charactered by this , that it is neither so superficiall for sin in generall , as not to have an aspect upon particular miscarriages and misdemeanours , nor so superstitious of particulars , as not to regard the generall taint , and depravednesse of nature also . the best report or book-case hereof is in psal. 51. which is * the chiefe of the seven penitentials . there david rightly pressed in his spirit and panged in his conscience in deed , layes the ponitentiall axe first to the root of the tree , confessi●● that which was the spawne and brood-mother of all his actuall wickednesse , behold i was shapen in iniquite , and in sin did my mother conceive me , ver. 5. and then that very sin in particular which had been as a thiefe in the candle , or an obstruction in the liver , to gangrene , and waste all the quiet and peace of his minde : deliver me from bloud-guiltiness , o god , &c vers. 14. this being premised by way of a praecognitum , the method it selfe now followes , which consists in a certaine scale or ladder : the severall grades or steps whereof are these . 1. there can be no sound peace of conscience till we be atoned and reconciled to god : for conscience is as gods setting-dog , or as his serjeant which will not take off the arrest till its master be satisfyed . 2. neither can there be any agreement or atonement with god , without pardon of sin . god will not be reconciled to any man lite pendente , till the fault which caused the variance be forgiven . 3. nor can there be any remission without satisfaction : for if the salvation or damnation of all mankinde lay'd thereupon , god will not , cannot be unjust to himselfe , to be kind to us . 4. no satisfaction neither will serve the turne , but such as is porportionable to the sault : for t is the very motto of justice , * let the punishment be equall to the damage , the payment to the debt . 5. no satisfaction can be proportionable , which is not infinite , because our sins are committed against a majestie absolutely infinite , and they also are as neere infinite as number , or hainousnesse can make them : and if there could be another infinite besides . god , i would say it were the sinnes of the world . 6. no infinite satisfaction can be made but by a person of infinite excellencie and worth , whose personall dignitie must give such a tincture of price , and value to his sufferings , as what he suffered in a short time , was equivalent to what all the world should have suffered for ever and ever . 7. we never knew , nor heard of ; never did any historian tell , or prophet foretell of any such worthy person , but jesus christ , who was god-man ; man to suffer , god to overcome in suffering ; man to dye , god to rise againe . 8. that price , though most sufficient in it selfe , yet not effectuall to us , if not applyed and made our owne . the best cordiall comforts not , if not taken . the most magisterial plaister heales not , if not applyed to the fore . 9. as that application is made on gods part , by imputation , so on our part by faith . god must impute the righteousness of christ unto us , and we must receive it from god , by the hand of faith . 10. and that faith is but equivocall faith , and no true , justifying , salvificall faith , which doth not work by love ; love to god in holinesse , love to man in righteousnesse , and love to our selves in sobrietie . these are the severall ingredients into this balme of gilead , according to the dispensatory of divinity . these are the severall degrees of this ladder , whose foot , like jacob's , standeth upon earth , and the top reacheth heaven . let us recollect them by an analyticall methode , and so conclude this point . i. practise charity , and that 's a signe of true faith . 2. have faith , and you shall be able to apply on your part , what god imputes on his . 3. apply , and what is sufficient in it selfe , shall be effectuall to you . 4. nothing is sufficient but jesus christ . 5. the reason of his sufficiencie is from the dignitie , and excellencie of his person . 6. nor yet were his person of sufficient dignity , if it were not in him an infinite dignity . 7. and being infinite , the ransome and satisfaction is proportion to the fault . 8. and upon this satisfaction , must needs follow remission . 9. and having remission , there followes also reconciliation with god . 10. and being reconciled with god , we shall have tranquillity of mind , and peace of conscience , passing all understanding . the third point . conscience thus qualified with the goodnesse both of integritie and tranquillitie is a feast . not any phantasticall feast , as if a man should dreame of a furnished table , and be hungry when he wakens ; nor any tropologicall , metaphoricall feast , a feast by way of similitude and proportion onely , as christ is called the a bread of life , and the holy ghost the b water of life : but a true reall feast , a feast properly so called , junketting both the minde and the body , and presenting them both with cheer becoming a feast . first , it feasteth the mind with the desireable food of contentation , peace , joy , comfort , hope , and the like . secondly , it feasteth and fatneth the body also ; for as conscience of evill done causeth feare and expectation of some evill to be suffered , and that feare againe causeth many a thought-sick houre , indigestive meale , lancke cheekes , trembling joynts , marrowless bones , restless nights , &c. so conscience of good done makes a c cheerfull and a merry heart , and a cheerfull heart causeth good health , prov. 17. 22. and maketh a cheerfull countenance , pro. 15. 13. and not onely this , but when night comes , which is the one d halfe of our life , that we are to lay us downe and take our rest , then also consciousnesse of a day well spent rocks us , and drops a sleepy silence upon our eyes : and sleep , you know , is the stay & the prop of the microcosme , it is thoughts charme , it is digestions carefull nurse , &c. it is a rule in art , and we see it true in hourely experience ; contraries placed together do mutually illustrate each other : venus her mole was a foile to her beauty ; the tender eyes of leah did the more commend the beauty of rachel unto jacob ; the seven leane kine in pharaoh's dreame did eate up the seven fat kine : so the ill-favoured , raw-bon'd leanenesse , the biting and gnawing of an ill conscience , will let us better see the festivity of a good conscience . an evill conscience is a e worme , a brest-worm , gnawing upon the soule , with the teeth of bloodless fear , of wrinckled sorrow , of self-consuming care , and of sad despaire : and this worme is not like that which st paul shooke off into the fire ; it is a salamander , and will live , and gnaw in the fire of hell ; it s a worme that never dyeth , a continuall worme , and that 's the gall of bitternesse , wormewooding even hell it self . well were it with wicked men , if ( as herod , acts 12. 23. and antiochus , a macc. 9. 9● were devoured and eaten up with wormes ) this worme would dispatch them . but it is that f sanguisuga , ever sucking , and never full , ever gnawing , but never killing , ever eating , but never devouring ; and that with a deadly tooth too , every bit worse then ten thousand deaths , and yet g not unto death . compare now these two texts together , a good conscience is a feast , an ill one , is a worme : a good one a plentifull feast , an ill one , an hungry gnawing worme : a good one a continuall feast , an ill one , a continuall , a never dying worme : and do they not answer one another , as in water face answereth face● ? and these two points , 1. that an ill conscience is a worme , and 2. a good conscience a feast , being thus entorted & wreathed together ; let us stretch out the further illustration of them , by enquiring into the learning and confessions of the heathen , who had no inky divinity , no other books of theologie , but the books of conscience , no other law , but the law written in their hearts . for be it granted that the word is best when it is pure , and not dilute or mingled ; or if mingled , then with nothing but h faith ; and that humane learning being brought to illustrate divine , is for the most part but as painture in church-windowes , making the glasse lesse cleare and transparent : yet some points there are ( and this is one of those some ) wherin it perswades much to shew that divinity is the same with the law of nature 〈◊〉 will only gleane an handfull out of an whole field . and i will begin with the greek proverbe , {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} . i. conscience is the strappado and bastinado of the soule : it doth whip and lash her with secret but more smarting stroaks ; the whip of cords that christ made is not to be compared to it ; all the discipline on a good friday in the church of rome , comes short of it : before sinne , it is k fraenum , a bridle ; after sinne , it is flagrum , a whip . secondly , the significant fable of prometheus may have the next place : prometheus stole fire from heaven ; his punishment was , that he was tied to the mountaine caucasus , where a rapacious eagle did day and night feed upon his heart . the morall is : prometheus represents every sinner that is injurious against heaven ; his affixing to the mountaine caucasus , sheweth that it is as possible to carry away the mountaine , as to escape the vengeance of god , when he will punish ; the eagle feeding upon his heart , is the angor of conscience which do●h l eate and devoure the very heart of man as a gangrene in the flesh . thirdly , let us remember the three m snake-tressed sisters , alecto , megera , and tisiphone , three dismall elves , which the poets make the daughters of nox and acheron , and call them furies , which indeed are nothing else , but the n torments of a wicked mind , when the pains and throws of conscience are upon it . fourthly , we will call in the example of orestes in the tragedy , o o wretched orestes , saith an interlocutor in the tragedy , what disease afflicteth thee ? orestes makes answer upon the stage , conscience ( quoth he : ) o the grievous disease of conscience is upon me ! now contrarily for a good conscience . fifthly , bias the philosopher , and one of the wise men of greece , being asked the way to a p life without feare and trouble , gave this answer , a q right conscience . sixthly , periander ( who was one of them ) being asked , what was the r greatest freedome and liberty ? answered thus , a s good conscience . seventhly , socrates ( the wisest man of them all , all three mentioned by stobaeus ) being asked how men might most live without t disquiet and trouble ? answered , if they were conscious of no evill within themselves . now these all were grecians . let us enquire into the latines , and see what they say . even the very same . eighthly then , horace : u — hic ●urus aheneus este nil conscire sibi . — a wall of brasse it is to be conscious of n●ught amisse . ninthly , let tully speak for all the rest , * an upright conscience is the greatest consolation in adversitie ; to his friend torquatus in his familiar epistles . again , x to be innocent and without fault , is the greatest solace . and again , y conscience of a well-spent life , and of many good deeds , is the sweetest thing in the world . let us heare him speake once more , z great is the force of conscience both wayes , so as neither can they feare who have done nothing amisse , nor those that have sinned , want punishment ever before their eyes . thus have i gathered you some few instances out of many , from the mouths of the very heathen , ( who also must be heard when they speake truth ) to declare that the dictates of the law of nature and divinitie are all one , in averring that , an ill conscience and facinorous is an * heavie burthen , a ‖ lash , an a ulcer in the flesh , b a worme . and that a good conscience is a c great theater , a d wall of brasse , a continuall feast . ● application . let us e keep the feast , as the apostle exhorteth us . you know how ill it was taken in the gospel , that those that were bid to the feast did make f excuses , and did not come . and how ill alos it was taken , that vasthi refused to g come to ahasueru● his feast . it is no better then rude unmannerliness to sit sullen at a feast , and not to feed liberally . a man may have great riches , and yet not use them , but only live poorely , that he may die rich ; so may a man questionlesse have a good and upright conscience , and yet not feed and feast so on it as he might do , if the fault was not wholly his owne . why , what is this feasting ? and how is it performed ? it is when a man by thinking , and meditating , and praying , and such like , doth * stir up those heart● cheering joyes of a good conscience , which lie consopite , and buryed under the ashes either of naturall , or religious melancholy , and which do as duly belong , and of right appertain to a good conscience , as an inheritance to the owner . and therefore on the other side , if god measure out earthly contents unto us with a more thrifty and sparing hand , and deny us our desires in some ( and perhaps many ) things ; yet if he have given unto us upright and peacefull consciences , we have reason● acknowledge that go● hath dealt bountifully and gratiously with his servants : for that is a thing worthy of all acceptance , although it should come alone ; it is a feast , and what repining nature is that , which will not be satisfied with a feast ? a good conscience hath all the chiefe requisites to a feast in it : for , first , jesus christ is the i master and governour of this feast , and so deserves to be ; for by his bloud is the conscience both h purified and pacified . secondly , the ministers of the word , such as to whom god hath given the ●ongue of the learned to minister a word in due season , are those appointed by god to invite to this feast , and to attend the guests ; called the l maydens in wisdomes feast , and m servants in the mariage-feast . thirdly , the viands and dishes to feed on , are such as these , a plerophory of faith , a holy complacence with a mans estate , divine consolations , peace which passeth all understanding , sweet raptures and admirations that god should so regard us , fixed hopes and longings for further both purity , and peace of conscience , trust in god joyned with watchfulnesse in our selves , that the conscience so established be not againe either defiled or disquieted with sinne , flaming affections of love and thankfulnesse to god , who hath given us sense of a present , and hope of a future good conscience , lastly , singular delight which it takes in saint pauls n exercise , to keep a good conscience in all things , &c. fourthly , the musick o● minstrelsie of this feast , is not upon the o harp-strings , but upon the heart-strings . this is our p rejoycing , even the testimony of a good conscience . so that in all things it holds the condition of a feast . which being so , what art thou , o more then desperate man , who canst or darest account either the least sin , small ; or one sin , few ; seeing that as one leak sinks a ship , one fly spoiles a box of oyntment , one gourd a whole pot of pottage , one achan trouble all israel , one lick of hony endanger the life of jonathan , one would kill goliah , as well as three and twenty did caesar , one dalilah doe sampson as much despight as all the philistines ; so one sin , wittingly and willingly committed , may exceedingly both defile and disquiet the conscience : and of such an one ( though it be but one ) may truly be said that of the q poet : no number , but more then a number , yet potentially in all , and all in it , root of all number , and of infinite . cases of conscience . it remaines now that i satisfie two cases , that may here be put ; the one by a wicked , the other by a godly man . the former saith , my conscience i am sure is wicked , and yet for all that it is not troubled ; i use not to sticke at those sinnes which are called r sins wasting conscience ; and yet i feele not this worme . the latter saith , i labour ( with saint paul ) to have a conscience void of offence both towards god and towards men , and yet i taste not of this feast . the former boasts of the calmenesse of a vitious conscience , and the other complaines of the trouble of an honest conscience . i will satisfie both . first then to the hardy-cnute , whose heart ( leviathan-like , job 41. 22. ) is as hard as stone , and as firme as the nether milstone , esteeming iron as straw , and brasse as rotten wood , that is , either feeles not , or acknowledgeth not the worm of conscience ; to him , i say ; first , he counteth that a favour which is a punishment : let him think what he will , i am sure an hard heart is reputed a great punishment by * moses in the old testament : and a cauterized conscience by saint paul in the new testament . the sick man is then in a deplorable condition , when he feeles no pain ; and so is the conscience of a sinner when it feeles not the worm . secondly , i say , doe not a boast till the putting off thine armour : no man b knowes what the evening of his life may bring forth , i have seene the wicked flourish like a greene bay-tree , both in outward prosperity , and inward peace ; and i have seen him also ere he have gone off the stage , not able to put to silence the voice of despaire . thirdly , thou that with thy loud musick of carnall mirth canst deafe and out-voy conscience ; tell me truly , is not sometimes even in laughter thy heart sorrowfull ? doth not the flea of conscience sometime awaken thee ? yes i warrant thee : if democritus had but the anatomizing of thee , he would find melancholy in thee too , that is c conscience . now these more light and seldome gnawings , are but as a prologue before a tragedie , or the first fruits before the whole , or as some drops before a showre . fourthly , if god deal so severely with thee ( mercifully thou callest it , and laughest at me for thinking otherwise ) as to let thee have thine heaven here , that thou maiest have thine hell hereafter ; know that as women , which ( commonly ) breed the best , beare the worst ; so conscience , &c. it is then in its owne sphere of activity , of that place it is properly spoken , the worme that never dyeth , and the fire that never goeth out . fifthly and lastly , i exhort thee with that holy father , mordeat hic , ut moriatur illic , muzzle not the mouth of the oxe , silence not the voice of conscience , either by the pleasures or employments of the world ; which ( as the fall of nilus doth the adjacent inhabitants ) deafe●●● conscience : but let it admonish here , that it condemne not hereafter ; let it bite here , that it devoure not hereafter ; let it live here , that it may dye hereafter . thus have i , according to salomons counsell , answered a fool according to his folly , lest he were wise in his one conceit . the second case . secondly , now to satisfie the godly mans complaint , whose objection pincheth upon himselfe , thus . i endeavour my selfe constantly both to refuse the evill , and choose the good , i set before mine eyes ever the word of god , the law of conscience . there is no sinne so small , but i account it to defile ; and none of gods commandements so little , but i hold necessary to be done . i both desire and endeavour to sly the very appearances of evill ; and yet i find not these sugred joyes and divine consolations whereon conscience feasteth : but goe on in a kind of drinesse of spirit , and fear i shall doe so ever , not knowing well what to think of mine own estate ? to him i say , first , that ( as before ) a conscience may be troubledly evill , and yet honestly good . a certaine man some years afflicted in conscience , said , his continuall agonie were as great , as a mans ready to dye , and then he felt such small comfort in gods countenance , that he would willingly have suffered his body to have lived in burning fire till the appearance of christ , so he might then be assured of gods favour towards him , yea his greatest comfort was , that though god should condemne him , yet he hoped therein of gods favour , to have his torments mitigated with those that suffered least : in all which troubles ( notwithstanding ) no world of reward , nor terrour of tyranny could cause him willingly doe the least thing displeasing god ; so there is a conscience most troubledly evill , and yet vertuously good . secondly , absence of sensiblenesse of devotion , and wonted consolations , is often without any fault of ours , or at least may be so , as no other cause may be assigned but divine dispensation , which being an infinite vertue , worketh not alwayes after the same manner , but that his providence might the more appeare , after very many sundry wayes . i opened to my beloved , but my beloved was gone , i sought him but i could not find him , i called him , but he answered me not , cant. 5. 6. signifying ( as s. gregory on that place ) that she did both what she could and what she ought , and yet she found him not , because god so often disposeth it , and that for good and holy ends . thirdly , absence of spirituall consolations , are to be referred to the evill of smart , rather then of sin , they are our crosses and afflictions , not our sins and offences : and the having of them is rather part of gods reward then our duty . fourthly , god doth this oftentimes , to lead on his children to a further degree of perfection ; for spirituall consolations are the ●ood of infants , and milke for babes , by the sweetnesse whereof god calleth us from the pleasures and allurements of this world . for such is our weaknesse that we could never be brought to renounce one love , unlesse we found another more sweet ; for which cause we see often that the comforts of yong beginners and probationers in religion , are often greater and more sensible , then greater proficients are : but afterward god leaves us , or rather promotes us from an estate more sweet , to an esta●e more strong ; from one more fervent , to one more stedfast ; from one greater after the flesh , to another greater after the spirit . and yet ( fifthly ) know it is dangerous to dis-esteem and contemn divine consolations : for though for the sustaining of those that are religious , and of scrupulous consciences it be said truly that grace consists not in spirituall consolations , but in vertue , & that they are rather part of our reward then of our duty : yet if there be any , that through negligence & slo●h doe make small account of spirituall consolations , to them be it as truly said , that it is a miserable thing , not to taste how sweet the lord is ; and the saints have thought more bitter then death , these tedious absences of the comforter . and though sanctity and godlinesse consist not in them , yet are both of them great encouragements to a reformed life , & great helps therein . and therefore we are to walke betweene two extremes , viz. when they are absent , not to discourage our selves , nor distrust god ; nor on the other hand to be too secure and carelesse . this is to be knowne . now what is to be done or practised in the absence of spirituall consolations ● thus , first , still be exercising thy self in keeping a good conscience , though thou finde no sweetnesse therein . the sick man must eate , though he find no savour ; take heed of crying at the gates of the flesh for ayde , that is , in the want of spirituall consolations , to fly to the support of worldly and carnall : as saul to the witch , and cain to building of cities . it is easie to follow christ for the loaves , it is easie to love a good conscience for its good cheere , but when it feasts nor , then to exercise the keeping of it is truly praise-worthy . secondly , practise patience , and resolve with as little distemper as thou canst , to wait on the lord , till light break forth , and till he give thee the garments of joy , for the spirit of heavinesse . thirdly , practise fervent and frequent prayer , that god will restore to thee , the comfort of thy salvation againe , and stablish thee with his free spirit . fourthly , the sun may be risen , and yet not seen , because under a cloud : there may bee fire for blowing ; so may there be the comforter come , and yet not perceived or felt , for want of stirring up divine consolations by meditation and prayer : and therefore 2 tim. 1. 6. stirre up the grace of god that is in thee . fifthly and lastly , observe diligently , whether the absence of divine consolations have befallen thee through divine dispensation onely , to preserve thy humility , and to try thee ; and which if it be so , then thou canst doe no more , but in the use of holy meanes , and constant walking with god , waite still for the season of his grace , not appointing a time for the mercy of the lord , nor setting downe a day , when he should deliver thee , as the holy widow judith , chap. 8. if otherwise , that thou hast been a cause thereof , by provoking the lord to anger , then art thou to the former rules to adde the practise of true repentance : 1. seeking out as diligently as joshua did for achan , that sin which did occasion thy woe , and then washing that staine out of thy soule , with the fullers sope of contrition , remembring ever to follow the streame up to the fountaines head , that is , to bewaile the generall corruption of thy nature , as well as that particular sin . thus have i laboured to minister a word in due season to him that is ready to perish . if i have been long in this point of the festivals of a good conscience , let this excuse me , that men use not to eate feasts , as the israelites the passeover , with a staffe in their hand , and shoes on their feet , but to stay at them . and so much concerning the third point . viz. that a conscience thus qualified with the goodnesse both of integritie and tranquillitie is a feast . the fourth point . this feast of conscience ☜ is a continuall feast . as goodnesse was the adjunct of conscience , so continuance is the adjunct of the feast . wherein this feast excels all the sumptuous and prodigall feasts of nero , heliogabalus , caesar bargia , mark anthony , cleopatra , or whosoever else either divine , or humane pennes have storyed on , for their most prodigious and luxurious riots , when they made both sea and land contribute their utmost to furnish their tables . the longest feast that i find recorded any were , is that of ahasucrus which he made in the third yeare of his raigne , to all his princes and servants , a feast of an hundred and fourescore dayes ; but what 's that to a continuall feast ? how much short is that to him , who ( like the rich glutton in the gospell ) fareth deliciously every day ? let us state the point . the theame to be spoken on is this , that the testimony of a good conscience comforteth and refresheth a man at all times , and in all conditions of life . a good conscience is a pillow , if a man lye down ; a cushion , if a man sit ; a staffe , if a man walke ; an arbour or gourd , if a man would shade himselfe . if a man be sick , 't is a physician ; if in suit , it is a lawyer ; if wrongfully accused , it is a true witnesse ; if unjustly condemned , it is a righteous judge . if a man bee thirsty , it is a refreshing river ; if hungry , it is a plentifull feast . in a word , it is a mans sun by day ▪ and his moone by night . there is no state or condition of life can befall a man , either so prosperous or so adverse , but in it a man shall find the joyes and delights of a good conscience . consult the oracle , and you shall find instances in the severall stations and conditions of life , as first , in inward tentation , by the examples of moses , exod. 14. 15. and of hannah , 1 sam. 1. 17. secondly , in outward trouble , by the example of job , chap. 27. ver. 5. and of abimelech , gen. 20. 5. thirdly , in life , by the example of saint paul , 2 cor. 1. 12. fourthly , in death , by the example of hezekiah , 2 kings 20. 3. fifthly , at judgment , when conscience shall be triumphant upon the word of admission , come good and faithfull servant , receive the prepared kingdome ; enter into thy masters joy . lastly , after judgement , in heaven : for then and there all imperfections of the peace of conscience shall be taken away , all perfection thereof shall be added . there shall be no more interruptions , intermissions , or intercisions of tranquillity of mind ; but as in hell , to the wicked , their ill conscience shall be a most perfect , and continuall worme ; so to the godly , their good conscience shall be a most perfect , and continuall feast . it was a good conscience made the three children rejoyce in their fiery fornace , daniel in the lions den , paul and silas in the stocks , the martyrs at the stake , and those primitive worthies catalogued heb. 11. 35. which would not be delivered , that they might obtaine a better resurrection . in summe , if conscience be truly good , that is , first honestly good , and then peaceably good , accordingly as was before distinguished , it feasteth and banquetteth the heart , at all places , and at all times ; contiguously and continually . yet are there certaine speciall seasons of god's comfortable visitation , wherein hee doth more fully and largely dispense divine consolation , then he doth at other times : namely , 1. at a christians first conversion unto god , as we may see in both those famous converts , lydia and the jaylor , act. 16. and this god doth to set and knit the weake joynts of a christian , and to give him a taste , and antepast , that he shall not lose , but only exchange joyes , such as are dilute , and grosse , for such as are sincere , and pure . 2. after some good performed , especially if it , have come off well , in regard of matter , manner , and end . after a good worke so done , god useth extraordinarily to cheere the conscience , which is both part of the performers merces , and reward , and withall an earnest and pledge , that the whole shal follow , and be all paid in . 3. upon evill suffered also no lesse then upon good done : for under the crosse god hath often after a very eminent manner shed his consolations into the heart ; paul and silas sung in the jayle , philip landgrave of hess long a prisoner under charles the fift , for the cause of religion , being asked , what had supported him during his whole trouble , answered he had felt the divine consolations even of the martyrs themselves , all that while . and a cloud of witnesses have said the like , that under the crosse suffered for a good conscience , they have felt those sensible comforts , which they were never partakers of all their life besides , either before or after . 4. after the brunt of some sore tentation is over , satan out-wrestled , a spirituall conflict ended , a desertion over-blowne , then god also useth to refocillate the minde , and supple the nerves and weary joynts of the christian combatant , upon consideration , that his grace was sufficient for him , that he had taught his hands to war , & his fingers to fight , and that the soule had marched valiantly . 5. lastly , at the houre of death , after a good and well-spent life , then the conscience begins to lift up his crests , and to boast in the putting off of his armour . then will adolphus clarebachius say , i beleeve there is not a merrier heart in the world then mine , this day . then will fannius answer to one objecting christs sadnesse against his mirth , i , christ was sad , that i might be merry . then will st cyprian say amen , when the sentence of death is pronounced against him . then will st paul say , i am now ready to be offered , and the time of my departure is at hand . i have fought a good fight , i have finished my course , i have kept the faith . henceforth is laid up for me a crown of glory , &c. application of the point . labour not therefore for the meat that perisheth , but for that which endureth for ever , for a continuall feast . if a poore mendicant lazarus , who had been accustomed all his life to cleannesse of teeth , were taken from the rich mans gate , and carried to as great a feast , as ever plenty , and curiositie devised , served up in dishes of achate , studded with gold and pretious stones , what better were he to morrow , save that the remembrance of it would aggravate his present hunger , and be as sauce to his appetite , which now standeth in need of meat ? i had rather have everlasting brasse then fading gold . if i were to goe a journey of a thousand miles , i had rather have onely necessaries till my journeys end , then be carried in coaches , and have all abundance and superfluities nine hundred miles , and be put to beg my viaticum the last hundred . if i were as sure to live an hundred yeeres , as hez●kiah was of his fifteene , i would choose rather for the whole terme to have no more then a lowly cottage to sleep in , be clad with course and home-spun cloth , feed upon lentils , and green herbs , then to have for fourescore of those yeeres , manna from heaven for my food , apparell as rich as aarons ephod , a house as stately as nebuchadnezzars palace , and then , like him , for the last twenty , be driven out of all , naked , & poore , and hungry , and harbourlesse . i had rather live for ever here on earth , in this vale of teares , where even those we call happy live under an equinoctiall of sorrow , and joy , then now presently be rapt up into heaven as elias was , and after a thousand yeeres fall from thence with the lapsed angels . oh! t is these words , eternall , everlasting , perpetuall , continuall , for ever , &c. which in evils make light things heavie , and heavie things insupportable ; and in good things , make small things great , and great things incomprehensible . hell were not h●ll , if the torments of it were not as endlesse , as they are easlesse ; and heaven were not heaven , if the joyes thereof were not lasting as they are incomprehensible . i whet my stile on purpose , both to bring you out of taste with carnall and mundane pleasures which are but transitory , and to raise up the appetite to this feast of a good conscience , which is continuall . it were then likely to be well with us indeed , if we did not prize things temporall as if they were eternall , nor undervalue things eternall , as if they were temporall . i am just now in demosthenes his strait , * who was troubled with a short breath , and yet used long periods . so in the last gasp of time , allotted for this sermon , i am fallen to discourse of duration and eternity . i will close up this short speech of eternity , with a very patheticall expressiō of this thing , which i will translate hither both out of a another booke , and another language : and this it is . thinke with thy selfe a thousand , thousand , thousand , thousand , thousand , thousand , thousand thousands of millions of yeeres ; think so many yeeres were to be transacted in fire ; but withall thinke , that though this whole space of time were doubled , tribled , &c. yea centuplicated , that it is not so much as the very beginning of eternity : neither after the revolution of so many yeeres , can eternity be said to have a beginning . except these thoughts make us more holy , we are no better then beasts and stones , yea even then steele it self . nothing will move him , which is not moved by eternitie : eternitie , i say , that immensurate , interminate , everlasting , perpetuall , infinite , enduring from age to age ; as long as god shall live , so long the damned shall dye . but oh immortall death ! oh mortiferous life ! i know not whether i shall call thee by the name of death or of life . if thou beest life , why art thou more cruell then death ? if thou beest death , why dost thou not end thy cruelty ? i will not honour thee with either the name of life or death , for even they both have some goodnesse in them : there 's rest in life , ‖ and in death an end ; these two affords comfort in all evils . but , thou eternity , neither hast rest , nor end . what art thou therefore ? thou art both the evill of life , and the evill of death : from death thou hast torments without end , and from life thou hast immortality without rest . ¶ the particular application to the city of london . i have done serving up the severall courses of this feast of conscience , and would now take away , if it were not the solemne custome of these {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} easter-spittle-sermons , that the preacher should , in speciall manner , address himself to this great city-audience . 't is said , john chap. 7. ver. 37. that jesus stood up in the great , and last day of the feast , and cryed , saying , if any man thirst , let him come unto me , and drinke . this is the last day of this {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} . lo , i stand up in the roome of my lord and master , and cry , ho , if any here be an hungry , let them come to this feast of a good conscience , and feed freely . my lord major , and all you the rest of the citizens of this famous city , from the scarlet to the blue , give me leave , i pray you , to use that liberty and freedome of speech which becomes a faithfull preacher of the gospel . 't is true , we are called ministers , that is , servants , and so we are ; but it is because we are servants of god , not of men ; or if of men , it is to serve your salvation , not your humours . here is no danger in these sermons of the silver-squinancie , or bos in lingua . the preacher may here speake rashly and unadvisedly , but not corruptly : for it is well known these spittle-sermons differ from those at the crosse , and others about this city , that these are without any fee or reward , other then that of honour , and good acceptance . they are the farre better to be liked for that . they are the more hopefull for you the auditors , because all danger of our merchandizing the word is hereby taken away . and they are nor the lesse hopefull to us the preachers : for if we be faithfull in this our dispensation , we shall have a greater reward , then any you can give us . and here i doe pause a little , and not rashly , but upon due deliberation , do wish with all my heart , both for my selfe , and all my brethren of the ministerie , that the portion of the clergie were so set out , and their maintenance so provided for , that it might prove balaams wages for any one either to accept or expect any recompence , shekell or talent , homer or epha , great or small , from the hand of any person , whether high or low ; for any part of the worke of the ministery , whether publique or private . then should you see sinners otherwise reproved , the wounds of conscience , which are but now skinned over with sweet words , otherwise searched into , and healed up , great persons otherwise over-awed , the ladies spots , and the lords blots otherwise pointed at , death-beds and sick couches otherwise visited , then to give the decumbent such a peace as he may carry along to hell with him ; funerall sermons otherwise preached , then to be meere panegyricks , and commendatory orations of them , whom the whole congregation knowes were no such persons as the mercenary tongue of the preacher pourtrayes forth . then certainely , this city would not have been so much wronged as of late especially it hath , with so many of such sermons as saint paul cals * wind of doctrine , whereby christians are blown and carried about from the stedfastness of the truth . the authour of the epistle to the hebrewes , chap. 13. and 9. censures them to be new and strange doctrines , and implies that the hearts of them who preach , and abet them , are not established with grace . doctrines of devils they are ( 1 tim. 4. 1. ) in regard of him who inspires them ▪ doctrines of men they are , in respect of the instruments , by which he breaths them . that noble and learned gentleman before mentioned , one of the standing honours of the law in generall , and of grayes-inne in particular , observes that if the choyce and best of those observations , that have been made dispersedly in sermons within this kingdome by the space of fortie yeeres and more , had beene set downe in a continuance , it had been the best work in divinitie , which had been written since the apostles time . i am about to say another thing , that if men of undoubted judgement and integrity were but to bring in all those absurdities which they have heard vented in pulpits within and about this citie for these 18. months last past , they would make such miscellanies of divinitie , as your pulpits had need of all their rich velvet , and embroydered cloths , which they have , to cover their shame . and i wish that ignorance were the worst root from which these things have sprung ; but i doubt much , that when some of these mens consciences are awakened they shall be as a thousand witnesses to tell them , that out of designe , and out of wry , and by-ends , they * have led captive simple women laden with sins , and led away with divers lusts , women ever learning , and never able to come to the knowledge of the truth . and therefore i cannot but much commend the ingenuity of mr alexander hendersam , who whilst he was here a commissioner , did with great liberty of speech taxe , and reprove , what in this kind he both saw , and heard of in this city . but to divert no further , i will in speaking unto you labour to keepe an even path , betwixt detraction and flattery , and first briefly , but faithfully , reprove what i think at this time most reproveable ; and then as candidly commend what is in you commendable ; that so those faults amended , and these vertues being retained , you may partake of this feast of a good conscience . and for the first of these twaine , i will search none of your old sores at this time , but onely note unto you two faults which have of late rendered this city blame-worthy both to god and man . the first is the great schismes and dis-unions which have lately burst forth amongst you , one of you being very ishmaels to another , whereas a city should be at unitie in it selfe , and is the very prototype and copie of concord and unitie . that vnitie is omnipotent is one of scaligers subtleties ; to be undevided and indivisible is the chiefe and first excellencie of the blessed trinitie . therefore the pythagoreans call the number of two an infamous number , because it first discedeth from unitie . nothing more divine then vnitie , nothing more ●atanicall then division . the second is your city-tumults , tumults in the city , and tumults from the city , just like that ephesian-tumult , acts 19. confused , and the more part not knowing wherefore they were come together . concerning which i will only aske you this one question , what fruit have you now of those things ? have you thereby , trow ye , pleased god ? no sure , but rather highly offended him : for god is the god of order , not of confusion . have you pleased the king ? you know how high his complaints runne . have you pleased the parliament ? they doe by no meanes own your disorders . have you helped trade ? i trow not : and pity it were it should be helped by these wayes , lest prosperous folly should be accounted wisdome , and prosperous wickednesse be accounted vertue . let me but aske one question more , have you hereby got the feast of a good conscience ? i think there is a great deale more cause , why in this case , conscience should be a worme then a feast . i have done my reprehension , and comming to you with a rod . i will now come to you with the spirit of meeknesse , and praise you , where you are truly praise-worthy , for your charity towards orphans , the poore , the blind , the lame , the self-lame sluggard , &c. or rather praise the grace of god , who hath made you both valentes and volentes , able and willing hereunto . and here i wil limit your attention to these three heads , viz. 1. to shew you a good rule of almes and charitie . 2. a good embleme thereof . and lastly a good example . for the first , all the best rules of almes are united and concentred in that one text of the preacher , eccles. 11. 1. cast thy bread upon the waters : for thou shalt finde it after many dayes . let us such the text . 1. in the first word cast lye closely three distinct eleemosynarie rules , that is , 1. we ought to give almes bountifully , and liberally , to sow plentifully . 2. cheerfully also , and with a ready al● critie of minde . 3. speedily and seasonably , whilest now the necessity presseth the receiver , and summoneth the almoner : for without all these we doe but drop , or sprinkle , or lay down ; we do not sow , or cast our almes . 2. in the word thy two other rules are implyed : 1. that works of mercy must be founded on justice . 2. they must also be founded on industry and diligence in our particular callings : for our bread , and my bread , and thy bread in scripture-phrase are opposed to a two-fold bread , which are the bread of others , not our owne , to wit , 1. the bread of deceit , the cheat-loaves of fraud . 2. the bread of idlenesse . 3. in the word bread is expressed the matter of right almes ; we must give unto the indigent not a serpent , but fish ; not a stone , but bread ; that is to say , such things as will help truly to support & relieve their poore and low condition : for by the word bread both in the lords prayer , and other texts of scripture , all things necessary are to be understood . mercifull christians must both fill the bellies , and clothe the backs , and cover the heads of the hungry , and naked , & harbourless , else they give but crummes or crusts , not bread . 4. in the words upon the waters , there are two notable rules more : for if waters be referred to the giver or almoner , then this rule will thence arise , that we must afford pitie as well as pietie , sympathy and condolencie of affection as well as reliefe . we must weepe with those that weepe , as well as wipe away teares from their eyes . and if you meane the waters of the receiver , or poore man , then it sets out the proper object of almes , namely he whose head is a fountaine , and his eyes conduits of teares to bewaile his low , and miserable condition . and the rule is this , that miserie is the proper object of mercy . 5. in the last words , the promise of finding againe , this rule lyes hid , that , almes must be given in faith . that god will both accept them , and reward them , though not for the works sake , yet for his mercies sake , and for his christs sake . therefore it is notable , that our saviour in the gospel having exhorted to almes , in the very next words bids , get bags : the inference seemes but weake , first to poure out , and give away , and then get bags ; rather , let a man scrape , and corrade , and then get bags : but the sense is , that the more bountifull we are in discreet & charitable almes , the more abundant shall gods blessings be , both spirituall , and temporall . therefore whilgift arch-bishop of canterbury , after he had finished hi hospitall at croyden , said , he could not perceive , that therby he was in his estate a peny the poorer . these are the rules of almes-deeds . the embleme of almes i promised you is this : a naked boy with a cheerefull countenance , feeding with hony a bee without wings . play the pierius upon this hieroglyphick . 1. this boy is naked , because charitie seeketh not her own . 2. with a cheerefull countenance , because god loves a cheerfull giver . 3. giving hony ; hony , not gall ; bread , not stones . we must give good things to those that aske . 4. to a bee , not a droane ; to a labourer , not a loyterer . 5. without wings , that is all one , as to the trembling hand , in moses his law , to such an one as god hath disabled by sicknesse , lamenesse , great incumbencies , old age , or the like . for 't is a good distinction ( i find , in the book of martyrs , in a sermon of b. ridly , before k. edward 6. ) of poore of gods making , and poor of their own making , by idlenesse , thriftlesnesse , riot , &c. for the latter a bride-well , or house of correction is the best almes : for the former , cast thy bread upon the waters , &c. now lastly , for examples and presidents of almes-deeds , we see daily faire ones : how god enlargeth , and expanseth the hearts of his saints to shew their faith by their workes . i referre you to a treatise written by dr willet , wherein he undertaketh by instance to shew how farre the charitable deeds of protestants , since the reformation of religion , have both in number , and greatnesse , even in these places , exceeded those of the papists , in a farre longer tract of time . it is a thing worth the considering both to silence their obloquie of us in calling us solifidians , and their arrogancie of themselves as if they onely were full of good works . it is now divers yeeres since dr willet wrote that , i wish some knowing hand would perfect it , and adde unto it , what hath been done since , not to the pompe or pride of any either persons , or places , but to the honour of god , who gives grace unto men . and here is a fit place to commemorate those publike acts of charitie , which have been ordered in this city , for this last yeere , viz. children kept and maintained at this present , at the charge of christs hospitall , in the aid house , in divers places of this city and suburbs , and with sundry nurses in the country . 975 the na●●es of all which are registred in the books kept in christs hospitall there to be seen , from what parishes , and by what meanes they have been from time to time admitted . children put forth apprentices , discharged , and dead this yeare last past 112 there hath been cured this yeare last past , at the charge of saint bartholomews hospitall of souldiers and other diseased people to the number of 847 all which were relieved with money and other necessaries at their departure . buried this yeare after much charge in their sicknesse 161 remaining under cure at this present , at the charge of the said hospitall 345 there hath been cured this yeare last past , at the charge of saint thomas hospitall , of souldiers and other diseased people . 1013 all which were relieved with money and other necessaries at their departure . buried out of the said hospitall this yeare 184 remaining under cure at this present 319 there hath been brought to the hospitall of bridewell within the sp●ce of one ●ere , of wandring souldiers and other vagrants , to the number of 684 whereof some have beene clothed and sent beyond the seas . and of which number many have been chargeable for the time of their being there , which cannot be avoyded , by reason of their necessities , nor passed away without charge . there is maintained and kept in the said hospitall , in arts , occupations , and other works and labours , apprentices , taken up ●ut of divers parishes and streets of this city , to the number of 170 for all which , glory be to god on high , due praise to the founders , and benefactors , and governours , comfort to the relieved , and imitation according to our abilities from us . amen . finis . notes, typically marginal, from the original text notes for div a46895e-770 a {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} b {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} c {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} . ☜ a {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} b conscientiam à diis immortalibus accepimus 〈◊〉 divelli à nobis non ●otest . cic. p●o cluent . c juve● . sat. 13. a mos erar antiquis , niveis , atrisq● lapillis , bis damnare r●os , illis absolvere culpâ . ovid . met. b {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} c {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} . d {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} . solo● c {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} f {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} ; sr. francis bacon in his new atlantis . turpissimum est prodere hospitem . i {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} . k {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} . l {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} . m {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} . n honestè bona , & pacatè bona . o {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} . i. jus conscientia . 1. jus divinum . 2. jus 〈◊〉 . 3. jus gentium . 4. jus positivum . ii. vis con●entiae . * 〈…〉 * noxae poena par esto . ☞ a joh. 6. 48. b joh. 7. 38. c {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} d {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} . ●iut . e mar. 9. 46. f prov. 30. g 〈◊〉 lyps . polit. lib. 1. cap. 5. 〈◊〉 graviùs , quia 〈◊〉 morte . h heb. 4. 2. surdo 〈…〉 k 〈…〉 l {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} ▪ m 〈…〉 his 〈◊〉 . n 〈…〉 poet . o 〈…〉 {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} p {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} . q {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} . r {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} s {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} t {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} u epist. ad meco●a● . * conscien●a rect●e ●o●●ta●● , maxi●●● con●o●atio est 〈…〉 x vacare culpâ , maximum est solatium . epist. 7. ad maurium . y conscientia bene actae vit● & multorum benefactorum recordatio est jucuadissima . cato major . z magnae est vis co●scientiae 〈◊〉 utramque partem , 〈◊〉 neque timeant qui nihil commiserint , & poe●●m semper an●e oculos vers●ri putent , qui peccarint . * grave pondus . cic. 3. de 〈◊〉 . deor . ‖ flagru●● . ●ypsius . a {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} plut. de anim●●●anquil . b magn●●●●eatrum . cic. 2. tuscul. c mark 9. d hor. ad mec●n . 〈…〉 e 1 cor. 5. 8. {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} f 〈◊〉 g esther 1. quest . answ. * ● tim. 1. {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} i {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} joh●s ● 8. h heb. 9. 14. l prov. 9. m mat. 22. n act. ● . 4. 16. o non ●●●●dula sed cor . p 2 cor. ● . ●2 . q bartas in the columnes . r peccata vastantia conscientiam . * exod. cap. 7. 8. 9. 1 tim. 4. 2. a non glorietur accinctus aequè a● discinctus . b nescimus qui● serus ferat ●esper . c we shal feel sometime a terrour comming upon us , the physicians say it is melancholy , but i say it is the power of god . m●gree●● . 〈…〉 mr greenhams report . 〈◊〉 1. * plut. in vita demosth . a vide drexel . nicetas li . 2. c. 11. cogita mille cubos millionum annorum , hoc est , millies , millies , millies , millies , millies , millies , millina millia annorum ▪ cogita ergòtot annos in igne transigendos : simul etiam cogita , hoc omne temporis spatium , ●tsi duplicatum , tri●licatum , cen●●pl● catum , nec principium quidem esse aeternitatis : post tot anno●um rev●lutum ●empus nec dum incepisse dici poterit aeternitas . nisi 〈◊〉 cogitatio sanctiores nos reddat , pecudes , ●axa , merus chalybs sumus . nihil eum mover , quem non moverit aeternitas , † † immnsa illa , interminata , sine fine , perpetua , semper duratura , nullis nec innumeris desitura seculis : quamdiu vivet deus , ta● diu 〈◊〉 entur damnati . sed ● mortem immortalem ! ● vitam mortiseram ! nes●io quo te nomine appellem , vitae an mortis ? si vita es , cur crudelius mo●te afficis ? si mors , cur crudelitatē tuam non finis ? neutro te dignabo● nomine ; & vita & mors , boni quippiam hab●t . notes for div a46895e-8120 ‖ in vita requies , in morte terminus est ; solatio sunt haec duo in omnibus malis . tu verò nec requiem habes , nec habes , finem ; quid igitur es ? & vitae malum , & malum es mortis : à morte cruciatus habes sine fine , à vitâ immortalitatem sumis sine requie . notes for div a46895e-8350 * 〈◊〉 . 4. 14. sr fran. bacon in his advancement of learning ad sinem . * 2 tim. 3. 6. 7. good thoughts in bad times consisting of personall meditations, scripture observations, historicall applications, mixt contemplations / by thomas fuller. fuller, thomas, 1608-1661. this text is an enriched version of the tcp digital transcription a40662 of text r7287 in the english short title catalog (wing f2425). textual changes and metadata enrichments aim at making the text more computationally tractable, easier to read, and suitable for network-based collaborative curation by amateur and professional end users from many walks of life. the text has been tokenized and linguistically annotated with morphadorner. the annotation includes standard spellings that support the display of a text in a standardized format that preserves archaic forms ('loveth', 'seekest'). textual changes aim at restoring the text the author or stationer meant to publish. this text has not been fully proofread approx. 100 kb of xml-encoded text transcribed from 131 1-bit group-iv tiff page images. earlyprint project evanston,il, notre dame, in, st. louis, mo 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(eebo-tcp ; phase 1, no. a40662) transcribed from: (early english books online ; image set 57121) images scanned from microfilm: (early english books, 1641-1700 ; 144:9) good thoughts in bad times consisting of personall meditations, scripture observations, historicall applications, mixt contemplations / by thomas fuller. fuller, thomas, 1608-1661. [11], 250 p. printed for thomas hunt, exeter : 1645. reproduction of original in huntington library. eng meditations. devotional exercises. conscience. a40662 r7287 (wing f2425). civilwar no good thoughts in bad times, consisting of personall meditations. scripture observations. historicall applications. mixt contemplations. by t fuller, thomas 1645 18001 32 0 0 0 0 0 18 c the rate of 18 defects per 10,000 words puts this text in the c category of texts with between 10 and 35 defects per 10,000 words. 2002-08 tcp assigned for keying and markup 2002-09 spi global keyed and coded from proquest page images 2002-10 emma (leeson) huber sampled and proofread 2002-10 emma (leeson) huber text and markup reviewed and edited 2002-12 pfs batch review (qc) and xml conversion good thoughts in bad times , consisting of personall meditations . scripture observations . historicall applications . mixt contemplations . by thomas fuller . psal. 4.4 . commune with your hearts in your chamber , and be still . exeter , printed for thomas hunt , 1645. to the right honourable the lady dalkeith , lady governesse to her highnesse the princesse henrietta . madam , it is unsafe , in these dangerous dayes , for any to go abroad , without a convoy , or at the least a passe : my book hath both , in being dedicated to your honour . the apostle * saith , vvho planteth a vineyard & eateth not of the fruit thereof ? i am one of your honours planting , and could heartily wish , that the fruit i bring forth , were worthy to be tasted by your juditious palate . however , accept these grapes , if not for their goodnesse , for their novelty : though not sweetest rellisht , they are soonest ripe , being the first fruits of exeter presse , presented unto you . and if ever my ingratitude should forget my obligations to your honour , these black lines will turn red , and blush his unworthinesse that wrot them . in this pamphlet your ladyshippe shall praise , whatsoever you are pleased but to pardon . but i am tedious , for your honour can spare no more minutes from looking on a better book , her infant highnesse , committed to your charge . was ever more hope of worth in a lesse volume ? but o! how excellently will the same , in due time , be set forth , seeing the paper is so pure , and your ladiship the overseer to correct the presse . the continuance and encrease of whose happinesse here , and hereafter is desired in his daily devotions , who resteth your honours in all christian service . tho. fvller . personall meditations . i lord , how neer was i to danger , yet escaped ? i was upon the brink of the brink of it , yet fell not in ; they are well kept who are kept by thee . excellent archer ! thou did'st hit thy mark in missing it , as meaning to fright , not hurt me . let me not now be such a fool , as to pay my thanks to blind fortune for a favour , which the eye of providence hath bestowed upon me . rather let the narrownesse of my escape make my thankfulnesse to thy goodnesse the larger , lest my ingratitude justly cause , that whereas this arrow , but hit my hat , the next pierce my head . ii. lord . when thou shalt visit me with a sharp disease , i fear i shall be impatient . for i am cholerick by my nature , and tender by my temper , and have not been acquainted with sicknesse all my life time . i cannot expect any kind usage from that which hath been a stranger unto me . i fear i shall rave , and rage . o whither will my mind saile , when distemper shall steer it ? whither will my fancy run , when diseases shall ride it ? my tongue , which of it self is a * fire , sure will be a wilde fire , when the fournace of my mouth is made seven times hoter , with a burning feaver . but lord , though i should talk idely to my own shame , let me not talk wickedly to thy dishonour . teach me the art of patience , whilst i am well , and give me the use of it when i am sick . in that day either lighten my burthen , or strengthen my back . make me , who so often in my health , have discovered my weaknesse , presuming on my own strength , to be strong in my sicknesse when i soly rely on thy assistance . iii. lord . this morning my unseasonable visiting of a friend , disturbed him in the middest of his devotions : unhappy to hinder another mans goodnesse . if i my self build not , shall i snatch the axe , and hammer from him that doth ? yet i could willingly have wished , that rather then he should then have cut off the cable of his prayers , i had twisted my cord to it , and had joyned with him in his . devotions . how ever , to make him the best amends i may , i now request of thee , for him , whatsoever he would have requested for himself . thus he shall be no loser , if thou be pleased to hear my prayer for him , and to hearken to our saviours intercession for us both . iiii. lord . since these wofull warres began , one , formerly mine intimate acquaintance , is now turned a stranger , yea , an enemy . teach me how to behave my self towards him . must the new foe , quite justle out the old friend ? may i not with him , continue some commerce of kindnesse ? though the amity be broken on his side , may not i preserve my counter part entire ? yet how can i be kind to him , without being cruell to my self , and thy cause . o guide my shaking hand , to draw so small a line , strait , or rather because i know not how to carry my self towards him in this controversie , even be pleased to take away the subj●ct of the question , and speedily to reconcile these unnaturall differences . v. lord . my voice by nature is harsh , and untunable , and it is vaine to lavish any art to better it . can my singing of psalmes be pleasing to thy eares , which is unpleasant to my own ? yet though i cannot chaunt with the nightingale , or chirp with the black bird , i had rather chatter with the * swallow , yea , rather croke with the raven , then be altogether silent . hadst thou given me a better voice , i would have praised thee with a better voice . now what my musick wants in sweetnesse , let it have in sence , singing praises with * understanding . yea lord , create in me a new heart , ( therein to make * mellody ) and i will be contented with my old voice , untill , in thy due time , being admitted into the quire of heaven , i have another , more harmonious , bestowed upon me . vi . lord . within a little time i have heard the same precept in sundry places , and by severall preachers pressed upon me . the doctrine seemeth to haunt my soul , wither soever i turn it meets me . sure this is from thy providence , and should be for my profit . is it because i am an ill proficient in this point , that i must not turn over a new leafe , but am still kept to my old lesson ? * peter was grieved , because our saviour said unto him the third time , lovest thou me ? but i will not be offended at thy often inculcating the same precept . but rather conclude , that i am much concerned therein , and that it is thy pleasure , that the naile should be soundly fastned in me , which thou hast knockt in with so many hammers . vii . lord . before i commit a sinne , it seems to me so shallow , that i may wade thorow it dry-shod , from any guiltinesse : but when i have committed it , it often seems so deep , that i cannot escape without drowning . thus i am alwayes in the extremities : either my sinnes are so small that they need not my repentance , or so great that they cannot obtain thy pardon . lend me , o lord , a reed out of thy sanctuary , truly to measure the demension of my offences . but o! as thou revealest to me , more of my misery , reveale also more of thy mercy : lest , if my wounds , in my apprehension , gape wider then thy tents , my soul runne out at them . if my badnesse seeme bigger then thy goodnesse , but one hair's breadth , but one moment , that 's room and time enough for me to run to eternall despair . viii . lord . i do discover a fallacy , whereby i have long deceived my self . which is this : i have desired to begin my amendment , from my birth day , or from the first day of the yeer , or from some eminent festivall , that so my repentance might bear some remarkable date . but when those dayes were come , i have adjourned my amendment to some other time . thus whilst i could not agree with my self when to start , i have almost lost the running of the race . i am resolved thus to befool my self no longer . i see no day to to day , the instant time is alwayes the fittest time . in * nabuchadnezars image , the lower the members , the courser the mettall , the further off the time , the more unfit . to day is the golden opportunity , to morrow will be the silver season , next day , but the brazen one , and so long , till at last i shall come to the toes of clay , and be turned to dust . grant therefore that * to day i may hear thy voice . and if this day be obscure in the kallender , and remarkable in it self for nothing else , give me to make it memorable in my soul , thereupon , by thy assistance , begining the reformation of my life . ix . lord . i saw one , whom i knew to be notoriously bad , in great extremity . it was hard to say whether his former wickednesse or present want were the greater ; if i could have made the distinction , i could willingly have fed his person , and sterved his profanesse . this being impossible , i adventured to relieve him . for i know , that amongst many objects , all of them being in extream miseries , charity , though shooting at random , cannot misse a right mark . since , lord , the party , being recovered , is become worse then ever before . ( thus they are always impaired with affliction , who thereby are not improved . ) lord , count me not accessary to his badnesse , because i relieved him . let me not suffer harm in my self , for my desire to do good to him . yea , lord be pleased to clear my credit amongst men , that they may understand my hands according to the simplicity of my heart . i gave to him onely in hope , to keep the stock a live , that so afterwards it might be better grafted . now , finding my self deceived , my almes shall return into my own bosom . x. lord . thy servants are now praying in the church , and i am here staying at home , detayned by necessary occasions , such as are not of my seeking but of thy sending , my care could not prevent them , my power could not remove them . wherefore , though i cannot go to church , there to sit down at table with the rest of thy guests , be pleased , lord , to send me a dish of their meat , hither , and feed my soul with holy thoughts . * eldad and medad , though staying still in the camp , ( no doubt on just cause ) yet prophesied as well as the other elders . though they went not out to the spirit , the spirit came home to them . thus never any dutifull child lost his legacy for being absent at the making of his fathers will , if at the same time he were imployed about his fathers businesse . i fear too many at church , have their bodies there , and minds at home . behold in exchange my body here , and heart there . though i cannot pray with them i pray for them . yea , this comforts me , i am with thy congregation , because i would be with it . xi . lord , i trust thou hast pardoned the bad examples i have set before others , be pleased also to pardon me the sinnes which they have committed , by my bad examples . ( it is the best manners in thy court to heap requests upon requests . ) if thou hast forgiven my sinnes , the children of my corrupt nature , forgive me my grand-children also . let not the transcripts remain , since thou hast blotted out the originall . and for the time to come , blesse me with barrennesse in bad actions , and my bad actions with barrennesse in procreation , that they may never beget others , according to their likenesse . xii . lord , what faults i correct in my sonne , i commit my self : i beat him for dabling in the dirt , whil'st my own soul doth wallow in sinne : i beat him for crying to cut his own meat , yet am not my self contented with that state thy providence hath carved unto me : i beat him for crying when he is to go to sl●ep , and yet i fear i my self shall cry , when thou callest me to sleep with my fathers . alas , i am more childish then my child , and what i inflict on him , i justly deserve to receive from thee : onely here is the difference : i pray & desire that my correction on my child , may do him good , it is in thy power , lord , to effect , that thy correction on me , shall do me good . xiii . lord , i perceive my soul deeply guilty of envie . by my good will , i would have none prophesie , but mine own * moses . i had rather thy work were undon , then don better by another , then by my self . had rather thy enemies were all alive , then that i should kill but my thousand , and others their ten thousands of them . my corruption repines at other mens better parts , as if what my soul wants of them in substance she would supply in swelling . dispossesse me , lord , of this bad spirit , and turn my envie into holy emulation . let me labour to exceed them in pains , who excell me in parts , and knowing that my sword in cuting down sinne , hath a duller edge , let me strike with the greater force ; yea , make other mens gifts to be mine , by making me thankfull to thee for them ▪ it was some comfort to naomie , that wanting a sonne her self , she brought up * ruth's child in her bosom . if my soul be too old to be a mother of goodnesse , lord , make it but a dry-nurse . let me feed , and foster , and nourish , and cherish the graces in others , honouring their persons , praising their par●s , and glorifying thy name , who hast given such gifts unto them . xiiii . lord , when young , i have almost quarrelled with that petition in our liturgie , give peace in our time ▪ o lord , nee●lesse to wish for light at noon-day ; for then peace was so plentifull , no fear of famine , but suspition of a surfet thereof . and yet , how many good comments was this prayer then capable of ? give peace , that is , continue and preserve it . give peace , that is , give us hearts worthy of it , and thankfull for it . in our time , that is , all our time : for there is more besides a fair morning required to make a fair day . now i see the mother had more wisdom then her sonne . the church knew better then i , how to pray . now i am better informed of the necessity of that petition . yea , with the daughters of the * horse-leech , i have need to cry , give , give peace in our time , o lord . xv . lord , unruly souldiers command poor people to open them their doors , otherwise threatning to break in ▪ but if those in the house knew their own strength , it were easie to keep them out . seeing the doors are threatning proof , & it is not the breath of their oathes can blow the ●ocks open . yet silly souls being affrighted , they obey , and betray themselves to their violence . thus satan serves me , or rather thus i serve my self . when i cannot be forced i am fool'd out of my integrity . he cannot constrain , if i do not consent ▪ if i do but keep possession , all the posse of hell , cannot violently eject me : but i cowardly surrender to his summons . thus there needs no more to my undoing , but my self . xvi . lord , when i am to travell , i never use to provide my self , till the very tyme ; partly out of lazinesse , loath to be troubled till needs i must , partly out of pride , as presuming all necessaries for my journey will wait upon me at the instant . ( some say this is schollers fashion , and it seemes by following it , i hope to approve my self to be one ) however , it often comes to passe , that my journey is finally stopt , through the narrownesse of the time to provide for it . grant , lord , that my confess'd improvidence in temporall , may make me suspect my providence in spituall matters . * salomon saith , man goeth to his long home . short preparation will not fit so long a journey . o! let me not put it off to the last , to have my * oile to buy , when i am to burn it . but let me so dispose of my self , that when i am to dye , i may have nothing to do but to dye . xvii . lord , when in any writing , i have occasion to insert these passages , god willing , god lending me life , &c. i observe , lord , that i can scarce hold my hand from incircling these words in a parenthesis , as if they were not essentiall to the sentence , but may as well be left out , as put in . whereas indeed they are not onely of the commission at large , but so of the quorum , that without them all the rest is nothing , wherefore hereafter , i will write those words fully and fairely without any inclosure about them . let criticks censure it for bad grammer , i am sure it is good divinity . xviii . lord , many temporall matters , which i have desired , thou hast denyed me . it vext me for the present , that i wanted my will . since , considering in cold blood , i plainly perceive , had that which i desired been done , i had been undone . yea , what thou gavest me , instead of those things which i wished , though lesse toothsome to me , were more wholsome for me . forgive , i pray , my former anger , and now accept my humble thanks . lord grant me one suite , which is this ? deny me all suits which are bad for me , when i petition for what is unfitting , o let the king of heaven , make use of his negative voice . rather let me fast then have * quailes given with intent that i should be choaken in eating them . xix . lord , this day i disputed with my self , whether or no i had said my prayers this morning ; and i could not call to mind any remarkable passage , whence i could certainly conclude that i had offered my prayers unto thee . frozen affections , which left no spark of remembrance behind them . yet at last i hardly recovered one token , whence i was assured that i had said my prayers . it seems i had said them , and onely said them , rather by heart then with my heart . can i hope that thou wouldest remember my prayers , when i had almost forgotten that i had prayed ? or rather have i not cause to fear , that thou remembrest my prayers too well , to punish the coldnesse and badnesse of them ? alas , are not devotions thus done , in effect left undone . well * iacob advised his sonnes , at their second going into egypt , take double money in your hand ; peradventure it was an oversight . so , lord , i come with my second morning sacrifice : be pleased to accept it , which i desire , and endeavour to present , with a little better devotion , then i did the former . xx . lord , the motions of thy holy spirit , were formerly frequent in my heart . but , alas , of late they have been great strangers . it seems they did not like their last entertainment , they are so loath to come again . i fear they were * grieved , that either i heard them not attentively , or beleeved them not faithfully , or practised them not conscionably . if they be pleased to come again , this is all i dare promise , that they do deserve , and i do desire they should be well used . let thy holy spirit be pleased , not onely to stand before the door and * knock , but also to come in . if i do not open the door , it were too unreasonable to request such a miracle to come in , when the doors were shut , as thou did'st to the * apostles . yet let me humbly beg of thee , that thou wouldest make the iron gate of my heart open of it's own * accord . then let thy spirit be pleased to sup in my heart , i have given it an invitation , and i hope i shall give it room . but o thou that sendest the guest , send the meat also , and if i be so unmannerly , as not to make the holy spirit welcome , o! let thy effectuall grace , make me to make it welcome . xxi . lord , i confesse this morning i remembred my breakfast , but forgot my prayers . and as i have returned no praise , so thou mightest justly have afforded me no protection . yet thou hast carefully kept me to the middle of this day , and intrusted me with a new debt , before i have paid the old score . it is now noon , too late for a morning , too soon for an evening sacrifice . my corrupt heart prompts me to put off my prayers till night , but i know it too well , or rather too ill to trust it . i fear , if till night i deferre them , at night i shall forget them . be pleased therefore now to accept them ▪ lord let not a few hours the later , make a breach : especially seeing ( be it spoken , not to excuse my negligence but to implore thy pardon ) a thousand yeers in thy sight are but as yesterday . i promise hereafter by thy assistance to bring forth fruit in due season . see how i am ashamed the sun should shine on me , who now newly start in the race of my devotions , when he like a gyant hath run more then half his course in the heavens . xxii . lord , this day casually i am fallen into a bad company , & know not how i came hither or how to get hence . sure i am , not my improvidence hath run me , but thy providence hath led me into this danger . i was not wandring in any base by-path , but walking in the high way of my vocation . wherefore , lord , thou that calledst me hither , keep me here . stop their mouths that they speak no blasphemy , or stop my ears that i hear none ; or open my mouth soberly to reprove what i hear . give me to guard my self , but lord guard my guarding of my self . let not the smoak of their badnesse , put out my eyes , but the shining of my innocence lighten theirs . let me give physick to them , and not take infection from them . yea , make me the better for their badnesse . then shall their bad company , be to me like the dirt of oysters , whose mud hath sope in it , and doth rather scour , then defile . xxiii . lord , often have i thought with my self , i will sinne but this one sinne more , and then i will repent of it , and of all the rest of my sinnes together . so foolish was i , and ignorant . as if i should be more able to pay my debts , when i owe more : or as if i should say , i will wound my friend once again , and then i will lovingly shake hands with him . but what if my friend will not shake hands with me ? besides , can one commit one sin more , and but one sinne more ? unclean creatures went by couples into the * arke . grant lord , at this instant i may break off my badnesse ; otherwise thou maist justly make the last minute , wherein i do sinne on earth , to be the last minute wherein i shall sinne on earth , and the first wherein thou might'st make me suffer in another place . xxiiii . lord , the preacher this day came home to my heart . a left handed gibeonite with his * sling , hit not the mark more sure , then he my darling sinnes . i could find no fault with his sermon , save onely that it had too much truth . but this i quarrelled at , that he went farre from his text to come close to me , and so was faulty himself in telling me of my faults . thus they will creep out at small crannies , who have a mind to escape , and yet i cannot deny , but that that which he spake , ( though nothing to that portion of scripture which he had for his text ) was according to the proportion of scripture . and is not thy word in generall the text at large of every preacher ? yea , rather i should have concluded , that if he went from his text , thy goodnesse sent him to meet me . for without thy guidance it had been impossible for him so truly to have trac'd the intricate turnings of my deceitfull heart . xxv . lord , be pleased to shake my clay cottage , before thou throwest it down . may it totter a while , before it doth tumble . let me be summon'd before i am surpriz'd . deliver me from sudden death . not from sudden death , in respect of it self , for i care not how short my passage be , so it be safe . never any weary traveller complained , that he came too soon to his journeys end . but let it not be sudden in respect of me . make me alwayes ready to receive death . thus no guest comes unawares to him , who keeps a constant table . scripture-observations . i lord , in the parable of the four sorts of ground whereon the seed was sowen , the last alone proved fruitfull . there , the bad were more then the good : but amongst the servants two improved their * talents , or pounds , and * one onely buried them . there the good were more then the bad. again , amongst the ten virgins , five were wise , and five * foolish : there the good and bad were equall . i see that concerning the number of the saints , in comparison to the reprobates , no certainty can be collected from these parables . good reason , for it is not their principall purpose to meddle with that point . grant that i may never rack a scripture similie , beyond the true intent thereof . lest instead of sucking milk , i squeez blood out of it . ii. lord , thou didst intend from all eternity , to make christ the heire of all . no danger of disinheriting him , thy onely sonne , and so well deserving . yet thou sayest to him . * aske of me and i will give thee , the heathen for thine inheritance , &c. this homage he must do , for thy boon to beg it . i see thy goodnesse delights to have thy favours sued for , expecting we should crave , what thou intendest we shall have ; that so , though we cannot give a full price , we may take some paines for thy favours , and obtain them , though not for the merit , by the meanes of our petitions . iii. lord , i find that ezekiel is in his prophesies , stiled ninety times , and more , by this appellation , sonne of man , and yet surely , not once oftner then there was need for . for he had more visions then any one ( not to say then all ) of the prophets of his time . it was necessary therefore , that his mortall extraction should often be sounded in his eares , sonne of man , lest his frequent conversing with visions , might make him mistake himself , to be some angell . amongst other revelations , it was therefore needfull , to reveale him to himself ; sonne of man , lest seeing many visions might have made him blind with spirituall pride . lord , as thou increasest thy graces in me , and favours on me , so with them daily increase in my soul the monitors , and remembrancers of my mortal●ty . so shall my soul be kept in a good temper , and humble deportment towards thee . iv. lord , i read how * iacob ( then onely accompanied with his staffe ) vowed at bethell , that if thou gavest him but bread and rayment , he would make that place thy house . after his return , the condition on thy side , was overperformed , but the obligation on his part , wholy neglected : for when thou hadst made his staffe to swell , and to break into two bands , he , after his return , turn'd * purchaser , bought a field in shalem , intending there to set up his rest . but thou art pleased to be his remembrancer in a new vision , and to spur him afresh , who tired in his promise . * arise , go to bethell and make there an altar , &c. lord , if rich iacob forgot what poor iacob did promise , no wonder if i be bountifull to offer thee , in my affliction , what i am niggardly to perform in my prosperity . but o! take not advantage of the forfeitures , but be pleased to demand payment once againe . pinch me into the remembrance of my promises , that so i may reinforce my old vows with new resolutions . v. lord , i read when our saviour was examined in the high priests hall , that peter stood without , till iohn ( being his * spokes-man to the maid that kept the door ) procured his admission in . iohn meant to let him out of the cold , and not to let him in to a temptation , but his courtesie in intention , prov'd a mischief in event , and the occasion of his denying his master . o let never my kindnesse concurre in the remotest degree , to the dammage of my friend . may the chain which i sent him for an ornament , never prove his fetters . but if i should be unhappy herein , i am sure thou wilt not punish my good will , but pitty my ill successe . vi . lord , the apostle saith to the * corinthians , god will not suffer you to be tempted above what you are able . but how comes he to contradict himself , by his own confession , in his next epistle ? where , speaking of his own sicknesse , he saith , * we were pressed out of measure above strength . perchance this will be expounded by propounding another riddle of the same apostles : who praising * abraham , saith , that against hope , he beleeved in hope . that is , against carnall hope , he beleeved in spirituall hope . so the same wedge , will serve to cleave the former difficulty . paul was pressed above his human , not above his heavenly strength . grant lord , that i may not mangle , and dismember thy word , but study it intirely , comparing one place with another : for diamonds onely can cut diamonds , and no such comments on the scripture , as the scripture . vii . lord , i observe that the vulgar translation , reads the apostles precept thus , * give diligence to make your calling , and election sure by good works . but in our english testaments these words by good works are left out . it grieved me at the first to see our translation defective , but it offended me afterwards , to see the other redundant . for those words are not in the greek , which is the originall . and it is an ill work , to put good works in , to the corruption of the scripture . grant , lord , that though we leave good woorks out in the text , we may take them in , in our comment . in that exposition which our practice is to make on this precept , in our lives and conversations . viii . lord , i find the genealogie of my * saviour , strangely chequered with four remarkable changes in four immediate generations . 1 rehoboham begat abiam ▪ that is , a bad father , begat a bad son . 2 abiam begat asa ; that is , a bad father , a good sonne . 3 asa begat iehosaphat ; that is , a good father a good sonne . 4 iehosaphat begat ioram ; that is , a good father , a bad sonne . i see lord , from hence that my fathers piety cannot be entailed ; that 's bad news for me . but i see also , that actuall impiety is not always hereditary ; that 's good news for my sonne . ix . lord , when in my daily service i read davids psalmes , give me to alter the accent of my soul , according to their severall subjects : in such psalmes , wherein he confesseth his sinnes , or requesteth thy pardon or praiseth for former , or prayeth for future favours , in all these give me to raise my soul to as high a pitch as may be . but when i come to such psalms , wherein he curseth his enemies , o there let me bring my soul down to a lower note . for those words were made only to fit davids mouth ▪ i have the like breath , but not the same spirit to pronounce them . nor let me flatter my self , that it is lawfull for me , with david , to curse thine enemies , lest my deceitfull heart intitle all mine enemies to be thine , and so what was religion in david , prove malice in me , whil'st i act revenge under the pretence of piety . x. lord , i read of the two witnesses , * and when they shall have finished their testimony , the beast that ascendeth out of the bottomlesse pit , shall make warre against them , and shall overcome them , and kill them . they could not be kil'd whil'st they were doing , but when they had done their worke , during their imployment they were invincible . no better armour against the darts of death , then to be busied in thy service . why art thou so heavie , o my soul ? no malice of man can antidate my end a minute , whil'st my maker hath any work for me to do . and when all my daily task is ended , why should i grudge then to go to bed ? xi . lord , i read at the transfiguration that * peter , iames , and iohn , were admitted to behold christ ; but andrew was excluded . so again at the reviving of the daughter of the ruler of the * synagogue , these three were let in , and andrew shut out . lastly , in the * agony , the aforesaid three , were called to be witnesses thereof and still andrew left behind . yet he was peters brother , and a good man , and an apostle , why did not christ take the two pair of brothers ? was it not pitty to part them ? but me thinks i seem more offended thereat , then andrew himself was , whom i find to expresse no discontent , being pleased to be accounted a loyall subject for the generall , though he was no favourite in these particulars . give me to be pleased in my self , and thankfull to thee , for what i am , though i be not equall to others in personall perfections . for such peculiar priviledges are courtesies from thee when given , and no injuries to us when denyed . xii . lord , saint paul teacheth the art of heavenly thrift , how to make a new sermon of an old. many ( * saith he ) walk , of whom i have told you often , and now tell you weeping , that they are enemies to the crosse of christ . formerly he had told it with his tongue , but now with his tears , formerly he taught it with his words , but now with his weeping . thus new affections make an old sermon new . may i not , by the same proportion , make an old prayer new ? lord , thus long i have offered my prayer drye unto thee , now , lord , i offer it wet . then wilt thou own some new addition therein , when , though the sacrifice be the same , yet the dressing of it , is different , being steep't in his tears , who bringeth it unto thee . xiii . lord , i read of my saviour , that when he was in the wildernesse , * then the devill leaveth him , and behold angels came and ministred unto him . a great change in a little time . no twilight betwixt night and day . no purgatory-condition betwixt hell and heaven , but instantly , when out devill , in angell . such is the case of every solitary soul . it will make company for it self . a musing mind will not stand neuter a minute , but presently side with legions of good or bad thoughts . grant therefore , that my soul , which ever will have some , may never have bad company . xiv . lord , i read how cushi , and ahimaaz ran a race , who first should bring tidings of victory to david ▪ ahimaaze , though last setting forth , came first to his journeys end ; not that he had the fleeter feet , but the better brains , to chuse the way of most advantage . for the text * saith , so ahimaaz ranne by the way of the plain , and over-went cushi . prayers made to god by saints , fetch a needlesse compasse about . that is but a rough and un-even way . besides one steep passage therein , questionable whether it can be climbed up , and saints in heaven , made sensible of what we say on earth . the way of the plain , or plain way , both shortest , & surest is , call upon me , in the time of trouble . such prayers , ( though starting last ) will come first to the mark . xv . lord , this morning , i read a chapter in the bible , and therein observ'd a memorable passage , whereof i never took notice before . why now , and no sooner did i see it ? formerly , my eyes were as open , and the letters as legible . is there not a thin vaile laid over thy word , which is more rarified by reading , and at last wholly worn away ? or was it because i came with more appetite then before ? the milk was alwayes there in the brest , but the child till now was not hungry enough to find out the teat . i see the oile of thy word will never leave increasing whil'st any bring an empty barrell . the old testament , will still be a new testament to him , who comes with a fresh desire of information . xvi . lord , at the first * passeover , god kept touch with the hebrews very punctually : at the end of the four hundred and thirty yeers , in the self same day it came to passe , that all the hosts of the lord went out of the land of egypt . but at the first easter god was better then his word . having promised , that christ should lye but three dayes in the grave , his fatherly affection did runne to relieve him . by a charitable synechdoche , two pieces of dayes were counted for whole ones . god did cut the work short in * righteousnesse . thus the measure of his mercy under the law was full , but it ranne over in the gospell . xvii . lord , the * apostle diswadeth the hebrews from covetousnesse , with this argument , because god said , i will not leave thee , nor forsake thee . yet i find not , that god ever gave this promise to all the jews , but he spake it onely to * ioshua when first made commander against the canaanites . which , ( without violence to the anallogie of faith ) the apostle applyeth to all good men in generall . is it so that we are heirs apparant to all promises made to thy servants in scripture . are the charters of grace granted to them , good to me ? then will i say with iacob * i have enough . but because i cannot intitle my self to thy promises to them , except i immitate their piety to thee ; grant i may take as much care in following the one , as comfort by applying the oth●r . xviii . lord , i read that thou didst make * grasse , hearbs , & trees , the third day . as for the sunne , * moon , and stars , thou madest them on the fourth day of the creation . thus at first thou didst confute the folly of such , who maintain that all vegetables in their growth , are inslaved to a necessary , and unavoidable dependance on the influences of the starres . whereas plants were even when planets were not . it is false , that the mary-gold follows the sunne , whereas rather the sunne follows the mary-gold , as made the day before him . hereafter i will admire thee more , and fear astrologers lesse ; not affrighted with their dolefull predictions of dearth and drowth , collected from the complexions of the planets . must the earth of necessity be sad , because some ill-natured starre is sullen ? as if the grasse could not grow without asking it leave . whereas thy power , which made hearbs , before the starres , can preserve them without their propitions , yea , against their malignant aspects . xix . lord , i read how paul writing from rome , spake to * philemon , to prepare him a lodging hoping to make use thereof , yet we find not , that he ever did use it , being martyred not long after . however he was no loser , whom thou didst lodge in a higher mansion in heaven . let me alwayes be thus deceived to my advantage . i shall have no cause to complain , though i never wear the new cloaths fitted for me , if , before i put them on , death cloath me with glorious immortality . xx . lord , when our saviour sent his apostles abroad to preach , he enjoyned them in one * gospell , possesse nothing , neither shooes , nor a staffe . but it is said in another * gospell , and he commanded them , that they should take nothing , for their iourney , save a staffe onely . the reconciliation is easie . they might have a staffe , to speak them travellours , not souldiers : one to walk with , not to warre with , a staffe , which was a wand , not a weapon . but oh! in how dolefull dayes do we live , wherein ministers are not ( as formerly ) arm'd with their nakednesse , but need staves , and swords too , to defend them from violence . xxi . lord , i discover an arrant lazinesse in my soul . for when i am to read a chapter in thy bible before i begin it , i look where it endeth . and if it endeth not on the same side , i cannot keep my hands , from turning over the leaf , to measure the length thereof on the other side ; if it swels to many verses i begin to grudge . surely my heart is not rightly affected . were i truly hungry after heavenly food , i would not complain of the greatest messe of meat . scourge , lord , this lazinesse out of my soul , make the reading of thy word , not a penance , but a pleasure unto me . teach me , that as amongst many heaps of gold , all being equally pure , that is the best , which is the biggest , so i may esteem that chapter in thy word , the best that is the longest . xxii . lord , i find david making a syllogisme , in mode and figure , two propositions he perfected . * 18 if i regard wickednesse in my heart , the lord will not hear me . 19 but verily god hath heard me , he hath attended to the voice of my prayer . now i expected that david should have concluded thus : therefore i regard not wickednesse in my heart . but farre otherwise he concludes . 20 blessed be god , who hath not turned away my prayer nor his mercy from me . thus david hath deceived , but not wronged me . i look't that he should have clapt the crown on his own , and he puts it on gods head . i will learn this excellent logick , for i like davids better then aristotles syllogismes , that whatsoever the premisses be , i make gods glory the conclusion . xxiii . lord , wise * agur made it his wish , give me not poverty , lest i steal , & take the name of my god in vain . he saith not , lest i steal , and be caught in the manner , and then be stockt or whipt , or branded , or forc'd to four fold restitution , or put to any other shamefull , or painfull punishment . but he saith , lest i steal , and take the name of my god in vain , that is , lest professing to serve thee , i confute a good profession , with a bad conversation . thus thy children count sinne to be the greatest smart in sin , as being more sensible of the wound they therein give to the glory of god , then of all the stripes that man may lay upon them for punishment . xxiv . lord , i read that when my saviour dispossessed the mans * sonne of a devill , he enjoyned the evil spirit to come out of him , and enter no more into him . but i find that when my saviour himself was tempted of * satan , the devill departed from him but for a sason . retreating , as it seemes , with mind to return . how came it to passe , lord , that he who expell'd him finally out of others , did not propell him so from himself . sure it doth not follow , that because he did not , he could not do it . or that he was lesse able to help himself , because he was more charitable to relieve others . no , i see my saviour was pleased to shew himself a god in other mens matters , and but a man in such cases wherein he himself was concerned . being contented still to be tempted by satan , that his suffering for us , might cause our conquering through him . xxv . iannes and * iambres the apes of moses and aaron , immitated them in turning their rods into serpents ; onely here was the difference : aarons * rod devoured their rods . that which was solid and substantiall lasted , when that which was slight , and but seeming , vanished away . thus an active fancie in all outward expressions may immitate a lively faith . for matter of language , there is nothing what grace doth do , but wit can act. onely the difference appears in the continuance : wit is but for fits and flashes , grace holds out , and is lasting ; and , good lord of thy goodnesse , give it to every one that truly desires it . historicall applications . i the english embassadour some yeers since , prevailed so farre with the turkish emperour , as to perswade him to hear some of our english musick , from which ( as from all other liberal sciences ) both he & his nation were naturally averse . but it happned that the musitians were so long in tuning their instruments , that the great turk distasting their tediousnesse , went away in discontent , before their musick began . i am affraid , that the differences , and dissentions betwixt christian churches , ( being so long in reconciling their discords ) will breed in pagans , such a disrelish of our religion , as they will not be invited to attend thereunto . ii. a sibill came to tarquinius superbus king of rome , and * * offered to sell unto him three tomes of her oracles : but he , counting the price too high , refused to buy them . away she went , and burnt one tome of them . returning , she asketh him , whether he would buy the two remaining at the same rate ; he refuseth again , counting her little better then frantick . thereupon she burns the second tome . and peremptorily asked him , whether he would give the summe demanded for the all three , for the one tome remaining ; otherwise she would burn that also , and he would dearly repent it . tarquin , admiring at her constant resolution , and conceiving some extraordinary worth contained therein , gave her her demand . there are three volumes of m●ns time ; youth , mans estate , and old age ; and ministers advise them , * redeem this time . but men conceive the rate they must give , to be unreasonable , because it will cost them the renouncing of their carnall delights . hereupon one third part of their life ( youth ) is consumed in the fire of wantonnesse . again , ministers counsell men to redeem the remaining volumes of their life . they are but derided at for their pa●nes . and mans estate is also cast away in the smoak of vanity . but preachers ought to presse peremptorily on old people , to redeem , now , or never , the last volume of their life . here is the difference : the sibill still demanded but the same rate for the rem●ining book ; but aged folk ( because of their custom in sining ) will find it harder and dearer , to redeem this , the last volume , then if they had been chapmen for all three at the first . iii. in merianith shire in * wales , there be many mountains whose hanging top come so close together , that shepheards , sitting on severall mountains may audibly discourse one with another . and yet they must go many miles , before their bodies can meet together , by the reason of the vast hollow valleys which are betwixt them . our soveraign , and the members of his parliament , at london , seem very neer agreed , in their generall and publike professions ; both are for the protestant religion ; can they draw neerer ? both are for the priviledges of parliament ; can they come closer ? both are for the liberty of the subject ; can they meet evener ? and yet , alas , there is a great gulf , and vast distance betwixt them which our sinnes have made , and god grant that our sorrow may seasonably make it up again . iv. when iohn , king of france , had communicated the order of the knighthood of the star , to some of his guard , men of mean birth and extraction , the nobility ever after disdained to be admitted into that degree , and so that order in france , was extinguished . seeing that now adayes , drinking , and swea●ing , and wantonnesse , are grown frequent , even with base beggerly people , it is high time , for men of honour , who consult with their credit , to desist from such sinnes . not that i would have noble men , invent new vices , to be in fashion with themselves alone : but forsake old sinnes , grown common with the meanest of people . v. long was this land wasted with civill warre , betwixt the two houses of york and lancaster , till the red rose became white with the blood it had lost , and the white rose , red , with the blood it had shed . at last , they were united in a happy marriage , and their joynt-titles are ●wisted together in our gracious soveraign . thus there hath been a great difference betwixt learned men , wherein the dominion over the creature is founded . some putting it in nature , others placing it in grace . but the true servants of god have an unquestioned right thereunto . seeing both nature and grace , the first and second adam , creation , and regeneration are contained in them . hence their claime is so clear , their title is so true , ignorance cannot doubt it , impudence dare not deny it . vi . the roman senators conspired against iulius caesar to kill him : that very next morning artemido●us , * caesar's friend , delivered him a paper , ( desiring him to peruse it , ) wherein the whole plot was discovered : but caesar complemented his life away , being so taken up , to return the salutations of such people as met him in the way , that he pocketed the paper , among other petitions , as unconcerned therein , and so going to the senate house , was slain . the world , flesh , and devill have a designe for the destruction of men . we ministers , bring our people a letter , gods word , wherein all the conspiracy is revealed . but who hath believed our report ? most men are so busie about worldly delights , they are not at leisure to listen to us , or read the letter , but thus , alas , runne headlong to their own ruine and destruction . vii . it is reported of philip the second , king of spain , that besieging the town of st. quintine , and being to make a breach , he was forced with his cannon to batter down a small chappell on the wall , dedicated to saint laurence . in reparation to which saint , he afterwards built and consecrated unto him that famous chappell in the escariall in spain , for workmanship , one of the wonders in the world . how many churches and chappels of the god of saint laurence , have been laid waste in england , by this wofull warre . and which is more , ( and more to be lamented ) how many living temples of the holy ghost , christian people , have therein been causelesly and cruelly destroyed . how shall our nation be ever able to make recompence for it . god of his goodnesse forgive us that dept which we of our selves are not able to satisfie . viii . in the dayes of king * edward the sixt , the l. protector march't with a powerfull army into scotland , to demand their young queen mary in marriage to our king , according to their promises . the scotch refusing to do it , were beaten by the english in musl●borough fight . one demanded of a scotch lord , ( taken prisoner in the battell ) now sir , how do you like our kings marriage with your queen . i alwayes , ( quoth he ) did like the marriage , but i do not like the wooing , that you should fetch a bride with fire and sword . it is not enough for men to propound pious proj●cts to themselves , if they go about by indirect courses to compasse them . gods own work must be done by gods own wayes . otherwise we can take no comfort in obtaining the end , if we cannot justifie the means used thereunto . ix . a sagamore , or petty king in virginia , guessing the greatnesse of other kings by his own , sent a native hither , who understood english . commanding him to score upon a long cane ( given him of purpose to be his register ) the number of english men , that thereby his master might know the strength of this our nation . landing at plimouth , a populous place , ( and which he mistook for all england ) he had no leisure to eat , for notching up the men he met . at exeter , the difficulty of his task was increased ; coming at last to london ( that forest of people ) he brake his cane in pieces , perceiving the impossibility of his imployment . some may conceive that they can reckon up the sinnes they commit in one day . perchance they may make hard shifts to summe up their notorious ill deeds : more difficult it is , to score up their wicked words . but o how infinite are their idle thoughts ! high time then , to leave off counting , and cry out with * david , who can tell how oft he offendeth , lord cleanse me from my secret sinnes . x. martin de golin , * master of the teutonick order , was taken prisoner by the prusians , and delivered bound , to be beheaded . but he perswaded his executioner ( who had him alone ) first to take off his costly cloaths , which otherwise would be spoil'd with the sprinckling of his blood . now the prisoner , being partly unbound , to be uncloath'd , and finding his arms somewhat loos'ned , strake the executioner to the ground , kil'd him afterwards with his own sword , and so regained both his life and liberty . * christ hath overcome the world , and delivered it to us , to destroy it . but we are all achans by nature ; and the babylonish garment is a bait for our covetousnesse : whil'st therefore we seek to take the plunder of this world's wardrobe , we let go the mastery we had formerly of it . and too often , that which christ's passion made our captive , our folly makes our conquerour . xi . i read how pope * pius the fourth , had a great ship richly loaden , landded at sandwich in kent , where it suddenly sunck , and so , with the sands , choaked up the harbour , that ever since that place hath been deprived of the benefit thereof . i see that happinesse , doth not alwayes attend the adventures of his holinesse . would he had carried away his ship , and left us our harbour . may his spirituall merchandize never come more into this island , but rather sinck in tiber , then saile thus farre , bringing so small good , and so great annoyance . sure he is not so happy in opening the doors of heaven , as he is unhappy to obstruct havens on earth . xii . ieffery arch-bishop of york , and base son to king henry the second , used proudly to protest by his faith , and the royalty of the king his father . to whom one said , you may sometimes , sir , as well remember what was the honesty of your mother . good men when puffed up with pride , for their heavenly extraction , and paternall descent , how they are gods sonnes by adoption , may seasonably call to mind , the corruption which they carry about them . * i have said to the worm , thou art my mother . and this consideration , will temper their soules with humility . xiii . i could both sigh , and smile , at the simplicity of a native american , sent by a spaniard , his master , with a basket of figgs , and a letter ( wherein the figgs were mentioned ) to carry them both to one of his masters friends . by the way , this messenger eat up the figgs , but delivered the letter , whereby his deed was discovered , and he soundly punished . being sent a second time on the like message , he first took the letter ( which he conceived had eyes , as well as a tongue ) and hid it in the ground , sitting himself on the place where he put it ; and then securely fell to feed on his figgs , presuming that that paper which saw nothing , could tell nothing . then taking it again out of the ground , he delivered it to his masters friend , whereby his fault was perceiv'd , and he worse beaten then before . men conceive they can manage their sinnes with secresie . but they carry about them a letter , or book rather , written by gods finger , their * conscience , bearing witnesse to all their actions . but sinners being often detected and accused , hereby grow wary at last , and to prevent this speaking paper for telling any tales , do smother , stifle and suppresse it , when they go about the committing of any wickednesse . yet conscience , ( though buried for a time in silence , ) hath afterwards a resurrection , and discovers all to their greater shame , and heavier punishment . xiv . iohn courcy , earl of vlster in ireland , endeavoured fifteen severall times , to saile over thither , and so often was beaten back again , with bad weather . at last he expostulated his case with god in a * vision , complaining of hard measure , that having built and repaired so many monasteries to god and his saints , he should have so bad successe . it was answered him , that this was but his just punishment , because he had formerly put out the image of the * trinity , out of the cathedrall church of down , and placed the picture of saint patrick in the room thereof . surely , god will not hold them guiltlesse , who justle him out of his temple , and give to saints that adoration , due alone to his divine majesty . xv . the lybians kept all woemen in common . but when a child was born , they used to send it to that man to maintain ( as father thereof ) whom the infant most resembled in his complexion . satan and my sinfull nature enter-common in my soul , in the causing of wicked thoughts . the sonnes by their faces speak their syres . proud , wanton , covetous , envious , idle thoughts , i must own to come from my self . god forgive me , it is vain to deny it , those children are so like to their father . but as for some hideous horrible thoughts , such as i start at the motion of them , being out of the road of my corruption , ( and yet which way will not that wander ? ) so that they smell of hells brimstone about them : these fall to satans lot to father them . the swarthy blacknesse of their complexion plainly shewes who begat them , not being of mine extraction , but his injection . xvi . marcus manlius deserved exceedingly well of the roman state , having valiantly defended their capitol . but afterward , falling into disfavour with the people , he was condemned to death . however the people would not be so unthankfull as to su●fer him to be executed in any place , from whence the capitoll might be beheld . for the prospect thereof prompted them with fresh remembrance of his former merits . at last , they found a low place , in the * petiline-grove , by the river-gate , where no pinacle of the capitoll could be perceived , and there he was put to death . we may admire how men can find in their hearts to sinne against god . for we can find no one place in the whole world , which is not markt with a signall character of his mercy unto us . it was said properly of the jews , but is not untrue of all christians , that they are gods vineyard . and * god fenced it , and gathered out the stones thereof , and planted it with the choisest vine , and built a tower in the middest thereof ; and also digg'd a wine-presse therein . which way can men look , and not have their eyes met with the remembrance of gods favour unto them . look about the vineyard , it is fenced , look without it , the stones are cast out ; look within it , it is planted with the choisest vine ; look above it , a tower is built in the midst thereof ; look beneath it , a wine-presse is digg'd . it is impossible for one to look any way , and to avoid the beholding of gods bounty . ungratefull man ! and as there is no place , so there is no time for us to sin , without being at that instant beholden to him . we owe to him that we are , even when we are rebellious against him . xvii . a duell was to be fought , by consent of both * kings betwixt an english , and a french lord . the aforesaid iohn courcy earl of vlster , was chosen champion for the english : a man of great stomack and strength , but lately much weak'ned by long imprisonment . wherefore , to prepare himself before hand , the king allowed him what plenty and variety of meat , he was pleased to eat . but the monsieur ( who was to encounter him ) hearing what great quantity of victuals courcy did daily devour , and thence collecting his unusuall strength , out of fear , refused to fight with him . if by the standard of their cups , and measure of their drinking , one might truly inferre souldiers strength by rules of proportion , most vast , and valiant atchievements , may justly be expected from some gallants of of these times . xiii . i have heard that the brook neer lutterworth in lestershire into which the ashes of the burnt bones of wickliffe were cast . never since doth drown the meadow about it . papists expound this to be , because god was well pleased with the sacrifice of the ashes of such a heretick . protestants ascribe it rather to proceed from the vertue of the dust of such a reverent martyr . i see t is a case for friend . such accidents signifie nothing in themselves , but according to the pleasure of interpreters . give me such solid reasons , whereon i may rest and relye . * salomon saith , the words of the wise are like nailes , fastned by the masters of the assembly . a naile is firm , and will hold driving in , and will hold driven in . send me such arguments . as for these waxen topicall devises , i shall never think worse or better of any religion for their sake . xix . alexander the * great , when a child , was check'd by his governour leonidas , for being overprofuse in spending perfumes : because on a day , being to sacrifice to the gods , he took both his hands full of frankinsence , and cast it into the fire . but afterwards , being a man , he conquered the countrey of iudaea , ( the fountaine , whence such spices did flow ) he sent leonidas a present of five hundred talents weight of frankincense , to shew him , how his former prodigality , made him thrive the better in successe , and to advise him to be no more niggardy in divine service . thus they that sow plentifully , shall reap plentifully , i see there is no such way to have a large heart , as to have a large heart . the free giving of the branches of our present estate to god , is the readiest means to have the root increased for the future . xx . the poets fable , that this was one of the labours imposed on hercules , to make clean the augeian stable , or stall rather . for therein ( they said ) were kept three thousand kine , and it had not been cleansed for thirty yeers together . but hercules , by letting the river alpheus into it , did that with ease , which before was conceived impossible . this stall , is the pure embleme of my impure soul , which hath been defiled with millions of sinnes , for more then thirty yeers together . oh! that i might by a lively faith , and unfeigned repentance , let the stream of that fountain into my soul , which is opened for iuda and ierusalem . it is impossible by all my pains to purge out my uncleannesse . which is quickly done by the rivolet of the blood of my saviour xxi . the venetians shewed the treasure of their state , being in many great coffers , full of gold and silver to the spanish ambassadour . but the ambassadour peeping under the bottome of those coffers , demanded , whether that their treasure did daily grow , and had a root for such ( saith he ) my masters treasure hath , meaning both his indies . many men have attained to a great height of piety , to be very abundant & rich therein . but all theirs is but a cistern , not fountain-grace , onely gods goodnesse hath a spring of it self , in it self . xxii . the * sidonian servants agreed amongst themselves , to chuse him to be their king , who that morning , should first see the sunne . whil'st all others were gazing on the east , one alone lookt on the west ; some admir'd , more mock't him , as if he look't on the feet , there to find the eye of the face . but he first of all discovered the light of the sunne , shining on the tops of houses . god is seen sooner , easier , clearer in his operations , then in his essence . best beheld by reflection in his creatures . for the invisible things of him , from the creation of the * world , are cleerly seen being understood by the things that are made . xxiii . an italian prince , as much delighted with the person , as grieved with the prodigality of his eldest sonne ; commanded his steward to deliver him no more money , but what the young prince should tell his own self . the young gallant fretted at his heart , that he must buy money at so dear a rate , as to have it for telling it . but , ( because there was no remedy ) he set himself to his task , and being greatly tired with telling a small summe , he brake off into this consideration . money may speedily be spent , but how tedious , and troublesome is it to tell it . and by consequence how much more difficult to get it . men may commit sinne presently , pleasantly , with much mirth , in a moment . but o that they would but seriously consider with themselves how many their offences are , and sadly fall a counting them . and if so hard truly to summe their sinnes , sure harder sincerely to sorrow for them . if to get their number be so difficult , what is it to get their pardon ? xxiv . i know the village in cambridge-shire , * wherein there was a crosse , full of imagery ; some of the images were such , as that people , not foolishly factious , but judiciously conscientious , took just exception at them . hard by , the youths of the town erected a may-pole , and to make it of proof , against any that should endeavour to cut it down , they armed it with iron , as high as any could reach . a violent wind happened to blow it down , which falling on the crosse , dashed it to pieces . it is possible , what is counted prophanesse , may accidentally correct superstition . but i could heartily wish that all pretenders to reformation , would first labour to be good themselves , before they go about the amending of others . xxv . i read that aegaeus the father of * theseus hid a sword , & a paire of shooes , under a great stone . and left word with his wife , ( whom he left with child ) that when the sonne she should bear , was able to take up that stone , weild that sword , and wear those shooes , then she should send him to him . for by these signes , he would own him for his own sonne . christ hath left in the custody of the church , our mother , the sword of the spirit , and the shooes of a christian conversation , the same , which he once wore himself , and they must fit our feet , yea , and we must take up the weight of many heavy crosses , before we can come at them . but when we shall appear before our heavenly father , bringing these tokens with us , then , and not before , he will acknowledge us to be no bastards but his true-born children . mixt contemplations . i. when i look on a leaden bullet , therein i can read both gods mercy , and mans malice . gods mercy , whose providence foreseeing , that men , of lead , would make instruments of cruelty , didst give that mettall a medicinall vertue ; as it hurts , so it also heals ; and a bullet sent in by mans hatred into a fleshly and no vitall part , will ( with ordinary care and curing ) out of a naturall charity , work it's own way out . but oh! how devillish were those men , who , to frustrate and defeat his goodnesse , and to countermand the healing power of lead , first found the champing and impoysoning of bullets . fools , who accompt themselves honoured with the shamefull title of being the inventors of evill * things , indeavouring to out-infinite gods kindnesse , with their cruelty . ii. i have heard some men ( rather causelessely captious , then judiciously criticall ) cavil at grammarians , for calling some conjunctions , disjunctive , as if this were a flat contradiction . whereas , indeed , the same particle may conjoyn words , and yet disjoyn the sence . but alas , how sad is the present condition of christians , who have a communion , disuniting . the lords supper , ordained by our saviour to conjoyn our affections , hath disjoyned our judgements . yea , it is to be feared , lest our long quarrels about the manner of his presence , cause the matter of his absence , for our want of charity to receive him . iii. i have observed , that children , when they first put on new shooes , are very curious to keep them clean . scarce will they set their foot on the ground , for fear to dirty the soles of their shooes . yea , rather they will wipe the leather clean with their coats ; and yet perchance the next day , they will trample with the same shooes in the mire up to the anckles . alas , childrens play is our earnest . on that day wherein we receive the sacrament , we are often over-precize , scrupling to say , or do , those things which lawfully we may . but we , who are more then curious that day , are not so much as carefull the next . and too often , ( what shall i say ) go on in sinne , up to the anckles , yea , our sins go * over our heads . iv. i know some men very desirous to see the devill , because they conceive such an apparition would be a confirmation of their faith . for then , by the logick of opposites , they will conclude , there is a god , because there is a devill . thus they will not believe there is a heaven , except hell it self be deposed for a witnesse thereof . surely such mens wishes are vain , and hearts are wicked : for if they will not believe , having moses , and the prophets , and the apostles , they will not believe , no , if the devill from hell appears unto them . such apparitions , were never ordained by god , as the means of faith . besides , satan will never shew himself , but to his own advantage . if , as a devill , to fright them , if as an angell of light , to flatter them , how ever to hurt them . for my part i never desire to see him . and o! ( if it were possible ) that i might never feel him in his motions , and temptations : i say , let me never see him , till the day of judgement , where he shall stand arreigned at the barre , and gods majesty sit judge on the bench , ready to condemn him . v. i observe , that antiquaries , such as prize skill above profit , ( as being rather curious , then covetous ) do preferre the brasse coyns of the roman emperours , before those in gold and silver , because there is much falsenesse and forgery daily detected , ( and more suspected ) in gold and silver meddals , as being commonly cast and counterfeited ; whereas brasse coyns , are presumed upon , as true and antient , because it will not quit cost for any to counterfeit them . plain dealing . lord , what i want in wealth may i have in sincerity . i care not how mean mettall my estate be of , if my soul have the true stamp , really impressed with the unfeigned image of the king of heaven . vi . looking on the chappell of king henry the seventh , in westminster , ( god grant i may once again see it , with the saint , who belongs to it , our soveraign , there in a wel conditioned peace ) i say looking on the outside of the chappell , i have much admired the curious workmanship thereof . it added to the wonder , that it is so shaddowed with mean houses , well nigh on all sides , that one may almost touch it , as soon as see it . such a structure needed no bace buildings about it , as foiles to set it off . rather this chappell may passe for the embleme of a great worth , living in a private way . how is he pleased with his own obscurity , whil'st others , of lesse desert , make greater shew . and whil'st proud people stretch out their plumes in o●tentation , he useth their vanity for his shelter ; more pleased to have worth , then to h●ve others take notice of it . vii . the mariners at sea count it the sweetest perfume , when the water in the keel of their ship doth stinke . for hence they conclude , that it is but little , and long since i ak't in . but it is wofull with them , when the water is felt before it is smelt , as fresh flowing in upon them , in abundance . it is the best savour in a christian soul , when his sinnes are loathsome and offensive unto him . an happy token that there hath not been of late in him any insensible supply of hainous offences , because his stale sinnes , are still his new and daily sorrow . viii . i have sometimes considered in what a troublesome case is that chamberlain , in an inne , who being but one , is to give attendance to many guests . for suppose them all in one chamber , yet if one shall command him to come to the window , and the other to the table , and another to the bed , and another to the chimney , and another to come up stairs , and another to go down stairs , and all in the same instant , how would he be distracted to please them all . and yet such is the sad condition of my soul , by nature ; not onely a servant but a slave unto sin . pride calls me to the window , gluttony to the table , wantonnesse to the bed , lazinesse , to the chimney , ambition commands me to go up stairs , and covetousnesse to come down . vices i see , are as well contrary to themselves , as to vertue . free me , lord , from this distracted case , fetch me from being sinnes servant to be thine , whose service is perfect freedom , for thou art but one and ever the same ; and alwayes enjoynes commands agreeable to themselves , thy glory , and my good . ix . i have observed , that towns , which have been casually burnt , have been built again more beautifull then before : mud-walls , afterwards made of stone ; and roofs , formerly but thatch't , after advanced to be tiled . the * apostle tels me , that i must not think strange concerning the fiery triall which is to happen unto me . may i likewise prove improved by it . let my renewed soul , which grows out of the ashes of the old man , be a more firm fabrick , and stronger , structure : so shall affliction be my advantage . x. our saviour saith , * when thou doest almes , let not thy left hand know , what thy right hand doth . yet one may generally observe , that almes-houses are commonly built by high-way-sides , the ready road to ostentation . how ever , farre be it from me , to make bad comments on their bounty : i rather interpret it , that they place those houses so publikely , thereby not to gain applause , but immitation . yea , let those , who will plant pious works , have the liberty to choose their own ground . especially in this age , wherein we are likely , neither in by wayes or high-wayes to have any works of mercy , till the whole kingdom be speedily turned into one great hospitall , and gods charity onely able to relieve us . xi . how wrangling and litigious were we in the time of peace ? how many actions were created of nothing , suits we had commenced , about a mouthfull of grasse , or a handfull of hey . now he , who formerly would sue his neighbour , for pedibus ambulando , can behold his whole feild lying waste , and must be content . we see our goods taken from us , and dare say nothing , not so much as seeking any legall redresse , because certain not to find it . may we be restored in due time to our former properties , but not to our former peevishnesse . and when law , shall be again awaked ( or rather revived ) let us expresse our thanks to god , for so great a gift by using it not wantonly , ( as formerly in vexing our neighbours about trifles ) but soberly to right our selves in matters of moment . xii . almost twenty yeers since i heard a profane jest , and still remember it . how many pious passages , of farre later date , have i forgotten ? it seems my soul is like a filthy pond , wherein fish dye soon , and froggs live long . lord , raze this profane jest out of my memory . leave not a letter thereof behind , lest my corruption ( an apt scholler ) guesse it out again , and be pleased to write some pious meditation in the place thereof . and grant , lord , that for the time to come , ( because such bad guests are easier kept out , then cast out ) that i may be carefull , not to admit , what i find so difficult to expell . xiii . i perceive there is in the world a good nature , falsely so called , as being nothing else , but a facill and flexible disposition , wax for every impression . what others are so bold to beg , they are so bashfull as not to deny . such osiers , can never make beams to bear stresse , in church and state . if this be good nature , let me alwayes be a clown . if this be good fellowship , let me alwayes be a churle . give me to set a sturdy porter before my soul , who may not equally open to every commer . i cannot conceive , how he can be a friend to any , who is a friend to all , and the worst foe to himself . xiv . ha , is the interjection of laughter . ah , is an interjection of sorrow . the difference betwixt them very small , as consisting onely in the transposition of what is no substantiall letter , but a bare aspiration . how quickly in the age of a minute , in the very turning of a breath , is our mirth chang'd into mourning . xv . i have a great friend , whom i endeavour and desire to please , but hitherto all in vain : the more i seek , the further off i am , from finding his favour . whence comes this miscarriage ? are not my applications to man , more frequent then my addresses to my maker ? do i not love his smiles , more then i fear heavens frowns ? i confesse , to my shame , that sometimes his anger hath grieved me more then my sinnes . hereafter , by thy assistance , i will labour to approve my wayes in gods presence ; so shall i either have , or not need his friendship , and either please him with more ease , or displease him ▪ with lesse danger . xvi . this nation is scourged with a wasting warre . our sinnes were ripe ; god could no longer be just , if we were prosperous . blessed be his name , that i have suffered my share in the calamities of my countrey . had i poised my self so politickly betwixt both parties , that i had suffered from neither , yet could i have took no contentment in my safe escaping . for why should i , equally ingaged with others in sinning , be exempted above them from the punishment . and seeing the bitter cup , which my brethren have pledg'd , to passe by me , i should fear it would be fill'd again , and returned double , for me to drink it . yea , i should suspect , that i were reserved alone , for a greater shame and sorrow . it is therefore some comfort that i draw in the same yoak with my neighbours , & with them joyntly bear the burthen which our sins joyntly brought upon us . xvii . when , in my privat prayers , i have been to confesse my bosome sins unto god , i have been loath to speak them aloud . fearing ( though no men could ) yet that the devill would over-hear me , and make use of my words against me . it being probable , that when i have discovered the weakest part of my soul , he would assault me there . yet , since i have considered , that therein i shall tell satan no news , which he knew not before . surely i have not managed my secret sinnes with such privacy , but that he , from some circumstances , collected what they were . though the fire was within , he saw some smoake without . wherefore , for the future , i am resolved , to acknowledge my darling faults , though alone , yet aloud ; that the devill who rejoyced in , partly , knowing of my sins , may be grieved more by hearing the expression of my sorrow . as for any advantage he may make from my confession , this comforts me ▪ gods goodnesse in assisting me , will be above satans malice in assaulting me . xviii . in the mid'st of my morning prayers , i had a good meditation , which since i have forgotten . thus much i remember of it , that it was pious in it self , but not proper for that time . for it took much from my devotion , and added nothing to my instruction , and my soul , not able to intend two things at once , abated of it's fervency in praying . thus snatching at two . imployments , i held neither well . sure this meditation came not from him , who is the god of order . he useth to fasten all his nailes , and not to drive out one with another . if the same meditation return again , when i have leisure , and room to receive it , i will say it is of his sending , who so mustereth , and marshalleth all good actions , that like the souldiers in his army , mentioned in the * prophet . they shall not thrust one another , they shall walk every one in his own path. xix . when i go speedily in any action . lord give me to call my soul to an account . it is a shrewd suspition , that my bowle runnes down-hill , because it runnes so fast . and lord , when i go in an unlawfull way , start some rubbs to stop me , let my foot slip or stumble . and give me the grace to understand the language of the lets thou throwest in my way . thou hast promised , * i will hedge up thy way . lord be pleased to make the hedge high enough , and thick enough , that if i be so mad , as to adventure to climbe over it , i may not onely soundly rake my cloaths , but rend my flesh : yea , let me rather be caught , and stick in the hedge , then breaking in thorow it , fall on the other side into the deep ditch of eternall damnation . xx . coming hastily into a chamber , i had almost thrown down a christall hour-glasse : fear , lest i had , made me grieve , as if i had broken it : but , alas , how much pretious time have i cast away , without any regret . the hour-glasse was but christall , each hour a pearl ; that but like to be broken , this lost outright ; that but casually , this done wilfully . a better hour-glasse might be bought : but time lost once , lost ever . thus we grieve more , for toyes then for treasure . lord , give me an hour-glasse , not to be by me , but to be in me . teach me to number my * dayes . an hour-glasse , to turn me , that i may apply my heart unto wisdom . xxi . when a child , i loved to look on the pictures in the book of martyrs . i thought that there the martyres at the stake , seemed like the three children in the fiery * fournace , ever since i had known them there , not one hair more of their head was burnt , nor any smell of the fire singeing of their cloaths . this made me think martyrdom was nothing . but o , though the lion be painted fiercer then he is , the fire is farre fiercer then it is painted . thus it is easie for one to endure an affliction , as hee limnes it out in his own fancie , and represents it to himself but in a bare speculation . but when it is brought indeed , and laied home to us , there must be the man , yea , there must be more then the man , yea , there must be god to assist the man to undergo it . xxii . travelling on the plain , ( which notwithstanding hath its risings and fallings ) i discovered salisbury steeple many miles off : coming to a declivity , i lost the sight thereof : but climbing up the next hill , the steeple grew out of the ground again . yea , i often found it , and lost it , till at last , i came safely to it , and took my lodging neer it . it fareth thus with us , whilst we are way-fairing to heaven , mounted on the * pisgat top of some good meditation , we get a glimps of our celestiall canaan . but when , either on the flat of an ordinary temper , or in the fall of an extraordinary temptation , we lose the view thereof . thus , in the sight of our soul , heaven is discovered , covered & recovered , till , though late , at last , though slowly , surely , we arrive at the haven of our happinesse . xxiii . lord , i find my self in the latitude of a feaver . i am neither well , nor ill . not so well , that i have any mind to be merry with my friends , nor so ill that my friends have any cause to condole with me . i am a probationer in point of my health . as i shall behave my self , so i may be either expelled out of it , or admitted into it . lord , let my distemper stop here , & go on further . shoot not thy murthering pieces against that clay-castle , which surrendreth it self at thy first summons . o spare me a little ! that i may recover my strength . i begge not to be forgiven , but to be forborn my debt to nature . and i onely do crave time , for a while , till i be better fitted , and furnished to pay it . xxiv . it seemed strange to me when i was told , that aqua-vitae ( which restores life to others ) should it self be made of the droppings of dead beer . and that strong-waters should be extracted out of the dreggs ( almost ) of small beer . surely many other excellent ingredients , must concurre , and much art must be used in the distillation . despair not then , o my soul ! no extraction is impossible , where the chymist is infinite . he that is all in all , can produce any thing , out of any thing . and he can make my soul , which by nature is setled on his * lees , and dead in sinne , to be quickned by the infusion of his grace , and purified into a pious disposition . xxv . lord , how easie is pen and paper-piety for one to write religiously . i will not say it costeth nothing , b●t it is farre cheaper to work one's head , then ones heart to goodnesse . some , perchance , may guesse me to be good by my writings , and so i shall deceive my reader . but if i do not desire to be good , i most of all deceive my self . i can make an hundred meditations , sooner then subdue the least sinne in my soul . yea , i was once in the mind , never to write more ; for fear lest my writings at the last day prove records against me . and yet why should i not write ? that by reading my own book , the disproportion betwixt my lines and my life , may make me blush my self , ( if not into goodnesse ) into lesse badnesse then i would do otherwise . that so my writings may condemne me , and make me to condemne my self , that so god may be moved to acquit me . finis . notes, typically marginal, from the original text notes for div a40662e-200 * 1 cor. 9.7 . notes for div a40662e-340 * iames 3 6. * isaiah 38.14 . * psal. 47. * ephes. 5.19 . * ioh. 21.13 * dan. 2.33 . * psal. 95.7 . * num. 11.26 . * num. 11.28 . * ruth . 4.16 . * prov. 30.15 . * eccles. 12.5 . * mat. 25.10 . * num. 11.33 . * gen. 43.12 . * ephes. 4 3. * revel. 3.20 . * ioh. 20.19 . * acts 12.10 . * gen. 7.2 . * iudges 20.16 . notes for div a40662e-2520 matth. 13.8 . * matth. 25.18 . * luke 19.20 . * matth. 25.2 . * psal. 2.8 . * gen. 28 22. * gen. 33 19. * gen. 35 1. * iohn . 18.16 . * 1 cor. 10.13 . * 2 cor. 1 8. * rom. 4.18 . * 2 pet. 1 10. * matth. 1.7 , 8. * rev. 11 7. * matth. 17.1 . * mark . 5.37 . * mark . 14.33 . * phil. 3.18 . * matth. 4.11 . * 2 sam. 18.23 . * exod. 12.41 . * rom. 9.28 . * heb. 13 5. * iosh. 1.5 . * gen. 45 28. * gen. 1.12 . * gen. 1.16 . * philemon . verse 22. * matth. 10.10 . * mark . 6.8 . * psal. 66. * pro. 30 9. * mark . 9.25 . * luke . 4.13 . * 2 tim. 3.8 . * exod. 7.12 . notes for div a40662e-5520 * m. varro , solinus , plinius , halicar. . &c. * ephes. 5.16 . * giraldus cambrensis . & cambder , in the description of th●t shire . * plutarch . in iul. caesar . * sir iohn heywood ▪ in the life of edward the 6. * psal. 19.12 . * munsters cosmography 3. book . page 878 * iohn 16 33. * cambden brit : in kent . gualterus mappaeus de nugis curialium . * iob. 17.14 . * rom. 2.15 . * annales hybernici , in anno 1204. & cambdens britt . pag. 797. * lawfully i presume to apply a popish vision to confute a popish practice . * livie libro sexto , cap. 20. * isai. 5.2 . * annales hybernici , in anno 1204. & cambdens britt . pag. 797. * eccles. 10.11 . * plutarch . in the life of alex. the great . * iustin. lib. 18. pag. 196. * ●om . 1.20 . * cotenham . * plutarch . in theseo notes for div a40662e-7870 * rom. 1.30 . * psal. 28.4 . * 1 pet. 4.12 . * matt. 6 3. * ioel 2.8 . * hosea . 2.6 . * psal. 90.12 . * dan. 3.27 . * deut. 34.1 . * zeph. 1.12 . certain cases of conscience resolved concerning the lawfulness of joyning with forms of prayer in publick worship. part i ... scott, john, 1639-1695. 1683 approx. 103 kb of xml-encoded text transcribed from 31 1-bit group-iv tiff page images. text creation partnership, ann arbor, mi ; oxford (uk) : 2004-11 (eebo-tcp phase 1). a58783 wing s2039 estc r30551 11358595 ocm 11358595 47572 this keyboarded and encoded edition of the work described above is co-owned by the institutions providing financial support to the early english books online text creation partnership. this phase i text is available for reuse, according to the terms of creative commons 0 1.0 universal . the text can be copied, modified, distributed and performed, even for commercial purposes, all without asking permission. early english books online. (eebo-tcp ; phase 1, no. a58783) transcribed from: (early english books online ; image set 47572) images scanned from microfilm: (early english books, 1641-1700 ; 1469:6) certain cases of conscience resolved concerning the lawfulness of joyning with forms of prayer in publick worship. part i ... scott, john, 1639-1695. 56 p. printed by henry hills, jun. for fincham gardiner ..., london : 1683. reproduction of original in the university of illinois (urbana-champaign campus). library. created by converting tcp files to tei p5 using tcp2tei.xsl, tei @ oxford. re-processed by university of nebraska-lincoln and northwestern, with changes to facilitate morpho-syntactic tagging. gap elements of known extent have been transformed into placeholder characters or elements to simplify the filling in of gaps by user contributors. eebo-tcp is a partnership between the universities of michigan and oxford and the publisher proquest to create accurately transcribed and encoded texts based on the image sets published by proquest via their early english books online (eebo) database (http://eebo.chadwyck.com). the general aim of eebo-tcp is to encode one copy (usually the first edition) of every monographic english-language title published between 1473 and 1700 available in eebo. eebo-tcp aimed to produce large quantities of textual data within the usual project restraints of time and funding, and therefore chose to create diplomatic transcriptions (as opposed to critical editions) with light-touch, mainly structural encoding based on the text encoding initiative (http://www.tei-c.org). the eebo-tcp project was divided into two phases. the 25,363 texts created during phase 1 of the project have been released into the public domain as of 1 january 2015. anyone can now take and use these texts for their own purposes, but we respectfully request that due credit and attribution is given to their original source. users should be aware of the process of creating the tcp texts, and therefore of any assumptions that can be made about the data. text selection was based on the new cambridge bibliography of english literature (ncbel). if an author (or for an anonymous work, the title) appears in ncbel, then their works are eligible for inclusion. selection was intended to range over a wide variety of subject areas, to reflect the true nature of the print record of the period. in general, first editions of a works in english were prioritized, although there are a number of works in other languages, notably latin and welsh, included and sometimes a second or later edition of a work was chosen if there was a compelling reason to do so. image sets were sent to external keying companies for transcription and basic encoding. quality assurance was then carried out by editorial teams in oxford and michigan. 5% (or 5 pages, whichever is the greater) of each text was proofread for accuracy and those which did not meet qa standards were returned to the keyers to be redone. after proofreading, the encoding was enhanced and/or corrected and characters marked as illegible were corrected where possible up to a limit of 100 instances per text. any remaining illegibles were encoded as <gap>s. understanding these processes should make clear that, while the overall quality of tcp data is very good, some errors will remain and some readable characters will be marked as illegible. users should bear in mind that in all likelihood such instances will never have been looked at by a tcp editor. the texts were encoded and linked to page images in accordance with level 4 of the tei in libraries guidelines. copies of the texts have been issued variously as sgml (tcp schema; ascii text with mnemonic sdata character entities); displayable xml (tcp schema; characters represented either as utf-8 unicode or text strings within braces); or lossless xml (tei p5, characters represented either as utf-8 unicode or tei g elements). keying and markup guidelines are available at the text creation partnership web site . eng prayer -early works to 1800. public worship -early works to 1800. conscience -early works to 1800. 2004-04 tcp assigned for keying and markup 2004-04 apex covantage keyed and coded from proquest page images 2004-08 judith siefring sampled and proofread 2004-08 judith siefring text and markup reviewed and edited 2004-10 pfs batch review (qc) and xml conversion certain cases of conscience resolved , concerning the lawfulness of joyning with forms of prayer in publick worship . part i. viz. i. whether the using of forms of prayer , doth not stint and limit the spirit . ii. whether the using publick forms of prayer be not a sinful omission of the ministerial gift of prayer . iii. whether praying by a publick form doth not deaden the devotion of prayer . london : printed by henry hills , jun. for fincham gardiner at the white horse in ludgate-street , 1683. books printed by fincham gardiner . a continuation and vindication of the defence of dr. stillingfleets unreasonableness of separation , in answer to mr. baxter , and mr. lob , &c. a perswasion to communion with the church of england . a resolution of some cases of conscience , which respect church-communion . the case of indifferent things , used in the worship of god , proposed and stated by considering these questions , &c. a discourse about edification . considerations of present use , considering the danger resulting from the change of our church-government . the resolution of this case of conscience , whether the church of england ' s symbolizing so far as it doth with the church of rome , makes it unlawful to hold communion with the church of england ? a letter to anonymus , in answer to his three letters to dr. sherlock about church-communion . a resolution of the cases of conscience , which concern the use of forms of prayer . one of the main points which our dissenting brethren insist on to justifie their separation from our church , is , that our publick worship is perform'd in a form of words of man's invention ; which , they conceive , is unlawful ; for hereby , say some of them , the holy spirit , who inspires our prayer , is stinted and limited , and hereby the gift of prayer , say others , which the holy spirit communicates to ministers , to inable them to express the devotions of their congregations to god , is rendred useless ; and not only so , but even the devotions of the congregation too are mightily deaden'd , by being continually express'd in the same form of words : besides , that the wants of christians being various , casual , and emergent , cannot be so fully represented in a fixt form , as in conceiv'd prayers , which upon the account of their variation in expressions , may be the better extended to the continual variations of mens cases and circumstances : besides all which , say they , we have no warrant for the use of forms , either in scripture , or pure antiquity ; and if we had , yet an universal imposition of them , can by no means be lawfully compli'd with : this , according to the best recollection i can make , is the sum of what our brethren urge against the lawfulness of joyning with us in a stated liturgy , or form of publick worship : and therefore , in order to the satisfying their consciences in this matter , i shall reduce their whole plea to these following cases , and indeavour a plain and clear resolution of them . 1. whether praying in a form of words , doth not stint or limit the spirit of prayer ? 2. whether the use of publick forms of prayer , be not a sinful neglect of the ministerial gift of prayer ? 3. whether the constant use of the same form of prayer , doth not very much deaden the devotion of prayer ? 4. whether the common wants of christian congregations may not be better represented in conceiv'd prayer , than in a form of prayer ? 5. whether there be any warrant for forms of prayer , either in scripture , or pure antiquity ? 6. whether , supposing forms to be lawful , the imposition of them can be lawfully compli'd with ? case i. whether praying in a form of words , doth not stint and limit the spirit of prayer ? in order to the resolution of this case , it will be necessary to explain first , what it is that the scripture attributes to the spirit in prayer ; and secondly , what is meant by stinting or limiting the spirit in prayer . 1. what is it that the scripture attributes to the spirit in prayer ? i answer , there are some things attributed to him which were extraordinary , and temporary ; and others that are ordinary , fixt , and standing : the through state and distinguishing of which will very much contribute to the resolution of this present case , and therefore i shall insist more largely upon it . first , i say there are some things attributed to the holy spirit in this matter of prayer which were extraordinary and temporary ; and that was the immediate inspiration of the matter of prayer , together with an ability to express and utter it in known or unknown languages : thus as for the immediate inspiration of the matter of prayer , we read in the old testament of prayers and praises , which , upon special occasions , were immediately indited by divine inspiration : for so when hannah presented her son to the lord in shiloh , the text only saith , that she praid , and said ; but the targum paraphrases it , that she praid by the spirit of prophesie , and accordingly praying and praising by immediate inspiration , is frequently call'd prophesying : so 1 sam. 10. 5. the spirit of the lord shall come upon thee , and thou shall prophesie ; that is , as expositors generally interpret it , thou shalt utter spiritual psalms and hymns by immediate inspiration on the place ; and to the same purpose is the word used numb . 11. 25. 1 chron. 25. 1. and accordingly in the new testament it is said of zacharias , that he was filled with the holy ghost , and prophesied , saying , blessed be the lord god of israel , &c. the matter of all which prayers and praises , together with those in the book of psalms , and sundry others recorded in scripture , was immediately dictated to those inspir'd persons by the holy ghost , and deliver'd by them without any recourse to their own invention or consideration , though as to the words of them , it may be justly question'd , whether they were not left to their own composure , as it seems very probable , the words of all other inspirations were ; for considering how the inspired persons differ'd in their stile , according as they differ'd in their education , in their natural parts , and intellectual improvements , it is very likely they themselves composed and worded their own inspirations , the spirit of god taking care only so to oversee and direct them , that their words might not misrepresent their matter ; and if so , how much less reason have we to suppose , that the spirit inspires the words of our prayers : but this i shall not insist on . however , after that great descent of the holy ghost at pentecost , wherein the gift of tongues was communicated to enable the first planters of the gospel , to propagate it through the world , it 's certain that not only the matter of their prayers , but even the very language too in which they express them , was immediately inspired , insomuch that they were not only inabled to pray upon the place in apt and fluent expressions , but also to pray in languages , which they never understood before , and which even then they understood but very imperfectly , and also to interpret those prayers into the vulgar language , which themselves or others had utter'd in unknown tongues ; and this , among others , the apostle calls a spiritual gift , 1 cor. 12. 1. which , as i remember , is the only place where the gift of prayer is mention'd in scripture : and in 1 cor. 14. 14. it is also call'd a spirit , where he gives us an account at large of this miraculous way of praying . now that this miraculous gift of praying in , and interpreting prayers out of unknown tongues was extraordinary , and temporary , and peculiar to the primitive ages of christianity , is evident , because the design of it was not only to inable the first planters of the gospel to perform their ministerial office in the vulgar languages of the several nations they were sent to , but also to be a sign from god , as all other miracles were , for the confirmation of the gospel ; for so the apostle tells us , 1 cor. 14. 22. that tongues were for a sign , not to them that believe , but to them that believe not : and therefore since it 's granted of all hands , that the gift of miracles was extraordinary , and intended only for a demonstration of the gospel to the infidel world , and after that to cease , there can be no doubt but this miraculous gift of prayer was so too . but that the spirits inditing the matter , and , if you will , the words of those inspired prayers , was also extraordinary , will require a larger proof ; because it is look'd upon by many of our dissenting brethren as an ordinary and standing gift , which the spirit doth and will communicate to all successive ages of the world. against this opinion of theirs therefore i shall briefly offer these following reasons to their consideration : 1. that there is no promise of any such gift , and therefore no reason to expect the continuance of it . for whatsoever standing and ordinary benefits we receive from god , we receive them by vertue of the new covenant , in which he hath promised to us all those good things which we can reasonably expect at his hands ; and the promise of god being the only foundation of our hope , it is presumption to promise our selves what he hath not promised us : but now in all the new covenant we have not the least intimation of any such promise , viz. that the spirit will immediately indite to us the matter and expressions of our prayers ; for as for that of zachary 12. 10. which is the only promise that is pretended in the case , it 's evident , at first sight , that it 's nothing to the purpose ; i will pour out upon the inhabitants of jerusalem the spirit of grace and supplications , and they shall look upon me whom they have pierc'd , and they shall mourn . what is all this to the immediate inspiration of the matter and expressions of our prayer , when it 's plain , that the spirit of supplication here is the same with the spirit of grace , or of inward piety and devotion ? even as the following words imply , and they shall look upon me whom they have pierced , and mourn : that is , for their horrid sin of crucifying me . but that there is no such promise in the new covenant is evident , from what is acknowledged of all hands , viz. that there are many good christians who could never pretend to any such inspiration , who are some of them fain to be beholding to their own recollection and invention for the matter and words of their prayers , and others , for want of a sufficient quickness of invention , to be beholding to forms of prayer of other mens composure ; neither of which they need , were they immediately inspir'd : and i am very confident 't would be look'd upon by all sober diffenters as a very rash and unjust censure to affirm , that a man cannot be a good christian , who doth not pray by immediate inspiration , but is always fain to depend either on his own invention , or a form of prayer for the matter and expressions of his devotions : and if so , how can this consist with a standing promise of immediate inspiration of prayer in the new covenant ? unless we will suppose that there are blessings promised in the new covenant , to which good christians may have no right or title , and of which they may never actually partake , which is utterly to destroy the nature of the covenant , which extends to all who perform the conditions of it , and to cut off all our dependance upon it . 2. that as there is no promise , so there is no need of any such immediate inspiration . 't is true , christ hath promised by his spirit , to be with us to the end of the world , and assur'd us , that he will give his spirit unto every one that asks , and to what end hath he promised this , but only to supply our necessities , and inable us to perform those duties , which , through our own impotency , we cannot perform without him ? for so he argues from the readiness of parents , to supply their children with what is necessary to their bodily life and subsistence , to the readiness of god to bestow his spirit ( that is to all the purposes that are necessary to their spiritual life , as the parallel plainly implies ) upon them that ask him . so that all we can expect by vertue of these promises is only this , that the spirit of god will be ready to aid and assist us in all those necessary cases , wherein our duty and spiritual life is concern'd ; and therefore if there be no necessity of an immediate inspiration of either matter or words to inable us to pray , it is an unwarrantable presumption to expect it by vertue of these or such like promises . and that there is no necessity , i conceive , is very apparent ; for , first , as for the matter of our prayers , the holy spirit hath already sufficiently reveal'd it to us in the gospel , and as plainly instructed us what we are to pray for , as he can be suppos'd to do by any immediate inspiration : so that with a very little consideration , we may thence easily recollect what it is that we need , and what we are warranted and commanded to pray for ; and for a summary of the whole , we need go no further than our churches catechism , which in answer to that question , after the lord's prayer , what desirest thou of god in this prayer ? sums up the whole matter of our prayer in a few , plain , and easie words . and to suppose , after such a clear revelation of the matter of prayer , a necessity of immediate inspiration of it , is in effect to suppose , that we have neither reason enough to understand the sense of plain words , nor memory enough to retain and recollect it . but against this , that passage of st. paul is objected by our brethren , rom. 8. 26. we know not what we should pray for as we ought , but the spirit it self maketh intercession for us with groanings , which cannot be utter'd . from which words , we know not what to pray for as we ought , they infer , that how plainly soever the matter of prayer is reveal'd to us , we cannot in all cases know what it is without an immediate inspiration : which must either suppose , that all matter of prayer is not plainly reveal'd to us , or that though it be , we cannot understand it ; whereas the apostles words imply neither the one nor t'other , for it 's plain those words , we know not what to pray for , are not to be understood simply , but with reference to , as we ought ; 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 , for what to pray for as we ought , we know not ; which plainly refers to the manner , and not to the matter of our prayer , how to pray for any thing with that fervency of desire , that dependance upon , and resignation to god , as we ought , of our selves , we know not without the assistance of the spirit of god ; if therefore the spirit hath already sufficiently reveal'd to us , what the matter of prayer is , ( as he must be suppos'd to do , if the scriptures be sufficient ) i see no necessity why he should reveal it again by immediate inspiration ; and if there be no necessity of it , i know no warrant we have to expect it : but then , 2. as for the words of prayer , by which we are to express the matter of it , what necessity can there be that these should be immediately dictated to us , when as if we have not quickness enough of fancy and invention to express our wants and desires in our own words , we may readily supply that defect by forms of prayer of other mens composure , which with very short additions and variations of our own , we may easily adapt to all our particular cases and circumstances ? and to imagin that with such helps and assistances we cannot word our desires to god without an immediate inspiration , is to suppose , that we are meer whispering pipes , that can breath out nothing but what is breath'd into us . 3. that as there is neither promise , nor need of any such immediate inspiration of prayer , so there is no certain sign or testimony of it remaining among us : whenever god inspir'd men with divine matter and words , his way was always to attest the divinity of their inspiration with some certain sign by which themselves , and others , might be well assur'd of it ; and though at this distance from the inspired ages we cannot certainly determin by what token it was that the prophets knew the divinity of their own inspirations while they were seiz'd with them ; yet this we know , that after they were deliver'd of them , god always took care to attest them by some miraculous operation : for so miracles are styled by the apostle , the evidence and demonstration of the spirit , as being the constant signs and tokens of divine inspiration ; and indeed without such signs to distinguish it from false pretences , we were better be without inspiration , than with it , because we shall be left under an unavoidable necessity , either of admitting all inspirations which pretend to be divine , or of rejecting all that are truly so : as to instance in this case of prayer , we know 't is possible for men to have the matter and words of it dictated to them by a natural , or diabolical , as well as a divine enthusiasm , and therefore it is highly requisit if such divine enthusiasm , or inspiration , be continu'd to us , that the proper signs and testimonies of it should be continu'd too , that so we may be able to distinguish that which is divine , from that which is natural or diabolical ; otherwise we must either conclude them all to be natural , or diabolical , or believe them all to be divine , and entertain them accordingly . if you say there is no need of either , because the scripture is sufficient to distinguish them ; i answer , that though the scripture may be sufficient to distinguish the matter of the inspiration , whether it be true or false , yet it is not sufficient to distinguish the inspiration it self , whether it be divine , or natural , or diabolical : for first , as for natural enthusiasm , it is not at all impossible for a man to pray agreeably to scripture by natural inspiration , by which i mean a natural or accidental fervency of temper , arising either from a constant heat of constitution , or a casual agitation of the spirits , occasion'd either by vapours of heated melancholy , or an intermixture of sharp and feaverish humours with the blood ; which as all men know , who understand any thing of the nature and composition of humane bodies , naturally heightens and impregnates the fancy , and causes the images of things to come faster into it , and appear more distinct in it , and consequently produces a very ready invention of matter and extraordinary fluency of words : so that if under a fit of this natural fervency , a man's fancy happens to run upon god and religion , he cannot fail to pray with great readiness and fluency , and sometimes with that extraordinary passion and enlargement , as shall cause him assuredly to believe himself immediately inspired by the spirit of god : of the truth of which , instances enough might be given not only among christians , but also among the devoto's of mahomet , and the poets and orators of the heathens , whose fancies have been very often so strangely exalted by the fervour of their temper , or disease , that not only they themselves , but they that heard them , believed that they were inspired by god. supposing then , that under a fit of this natural enthusiasm a man should pray agreeably to scripture , how shall he be able to know by scripture whether the present inspiration he is under , be natural , or divine ? and how will it be possible for him to avoid , many times , attributing the natural effects of his temper , or disease , to the immediate operation of the spirit of god ? but you will say , we all agree that the spirit of god inspires good men with holy and fervent affections in their prayers , and yet it cannot be deni'd that this fervency of affection doth sometimes also proceed from the present temper of our bodies , notwithstanding which , we have no other sign or testimony besides that of scripture , whereby to distinguish when 't is divine , and when natural ; doth not therefore the want of such sign as effectually conclude against the spirits inspiring the fervour of our prayers , as against his inspiring the matter and words of them ? i answer , no ; for , as for the former , we have a sure word of promise , which we have not for the latter ; and therefore if we can claim the promise , we have just reason to conclude when we feel our affections actually excited , that how much soever other causes might contribute to it , the holy spirit was the principal cause ; but where we have no promise , we have no ground for such conclusion : besides which , we have no such need of signs to enable us to distinguish in the one case , as in the other ; for as for the inspiration of affection , we may easily distinguish whether it be natural or divine , by our own sense ; if our present fervour be accompanied with a fixt and constant devotion of soul , we may certainly conclude , that the same spirit which inspired the one , inspired the other ; and whether it be so accompanied or no , that natural sense and feeling we have of our own motions and affections , will quickly inform us , and we have no more need of an outward sign to satisfie us in this matter , than we have to know whether we are hungry or thirsty : but if the present fervour of our affections in prayer be only a sudden fit and pang of devotion , that finds and leaves us habitually indevout , we have just reason to conclude , that 't is intirely owing to our present bodily temper : whether therefore our affections in prayer are inspired by god , our own sense will inform us , if we impartially consult it ; but whether our matter and words are so , no sense we have can resolve us : we may feel the matter of our prayer pour in upon us with extraordinary readiness , and be inabled to pour it out again with extraordinary fluency , and yet all this may proceed from our own fancy and invention , quickned and enlarg'd by meerly natural enthusiasm ; and therefore , unless we had some other sign , besides that of scripture , 't will be impossible for us to distinguish between a divine and natural inspiration of matter and words , because that which is natural , may be as agreeable to scripture , as that which is suppos'd to be divine ; and god hath given us no inward sense to distinguish between one and t'other : and can it be imagin'd that had he meant to continue this gift of inspiration to us , he would have thus left us in the dark concerning it , without any certain sign whereby we might distinguish , whether it be from his spirit , or from an ill-affected spleen , or a feaver ? but then , secondly , as for diabolical inspirations of matter and words in prayer , we have sundry very probable instances , such as major weir , who is said to have received his inspirations through a staff , hacket , david george , and that monster of wickedness , john basilides duke of russia , who were all of them possess'd with such a wonderful gift of prayer , as did not only charm and ravish those that heard them , but seem'd , in the opinion of the most wise and impartial , to exceed the power of nature ; which renders it very probable that the matter of their prayers was for the most part agreeable to scripture , otherwise 't is hardly conceivable how they could have procured to themselves so many admirers , and abused so many honest minds into a belief that they were immediately inspired by god. and since by inspiring his votaries with such matter of prayer as is agreeable to scripture , the devil may sometimes serve his own ends , since he may thereby puff up giddy minds with pride , and self-conceit , and more effectually recommend seducers and false teachers to the world ; 't is very reasonable , to suppose that this subtle agent who so throughly understands his own game , will in some cases be forward enough to do it ; and if in any case we may reasonably suppose , that the devil may inspire men with such matter of prayer as is agreeable to scripture , then we can never certainly distinguish by scripture , whether it be the spirit of god , or the devil , that inspires us . and can we , without blaspheming the goodness of god , imagin , that if he had continu'd this gift of immediate inspiration to us , he would have neglected to continue such signs and testimonies of it as are necessary to distinguish it from the inspirations of the devil ? doubtless 't is much better for us that this gift should be totally withdrawn , and that as to the matter and expressions of our prayer , we should be left to the guidance of scripture and reason , than that by the continuance of it without some certain sign to know and distinguish it , we should be left under a fatal necessity , either of rejecting divine inspirations , or of admitting diabolical for divine . and therefore since we have no such sign continu'd among us , we have all the reason in the world to conclude , that this gift is discontinu'd , and ceas'd : especially considering that we have not only no certain sign of any such inspiration in the conceiv'd prayers of those which most pretend to it , but many very certain ones of the contrary ; i will instance in sour . 1. the great impertinence , and nonsense , and rudeness , to say no worse , that are sometimes mingled with these extempore prayers . i will not give instances of this , because it is so notorious , that our brethren themselves cannot but in part acknowledge it : now to attribute these faults of conceiv'd prayers , to immediate inspiration , would be to blaspheme the holy ghost , and father our own follies upon him , and yet sure had he thought meet to have continu'd to the church this gift of inspiration of prayer , it would have been in order to the securing the worship of god from those rudenesses and indecencies to which extemporary prayers of mens own conceiving are liable ; and if so , to be sure in publick prayer at least , he would have constantly taken care to inspire such matter as is fit to be offer'd up to god , and such expressions as are fit for such matter ; that so the publick worship of god , which is the most serious and solemn thing in the world , might not be render'd ridiculous by the folly and inadvertency of men . whereas on the contrary , we see those publick prayers which arrogate to themselves the honor of being inspired , are generally more liable to these indecencies , than forms of humane composure , and that those prayers which consist of premeditated matter and words , are commonly much better sense , and far more decent and pertinent , than our extemporary effusions ; which how it should come to pass i know not , supposing the continuance of inspiration of prayer , unless we will suppose , that humane composures may exceed divine inspirations , and that men may ordinarily premeditate better prayers , than the spirit of god inspires . and methinks it seems very strange , that the spirit should continue this gift of inspiration to secure the worship of god from nonsense and impertinence , and yet that after all , it should remain more liable to th●se indecencies , than if our publick prayers were offered up in premeditated forms , composed out of our own or other mens inventions . 2. another sign that our composed prayers are not immediately inspired is , that they are so generally tinctur'd with the particular opinions of those that offer them . you may observe that in all publick controversies of religion , mens opinions are generally to be known by their prayers , especially if they zealously espouse either side of the question : for then the debate runs so much in their heads , and they look upon god and religion so very highly concern'd in it , that they can hardly frame a petition , confession , or thanksgiving , without giving some intimation of their particular perswasion ; and many times one of the petitions is , that god would hinder the propagation of the contrary perswasion , and convince their adversaries of the error and falshood of it . thus for instance , when the contest ran high between the presbyterians and independents , the arminians and calvinists , how easie was it to distinguish them by their prayers , from one another ? whether this be not so , i appeal to our brethren themselves , and to all the world ? and if so , what plainer evidence can be given , that their prayers were not inspired , but of their own invention , and composure ? for either we must suppose this gift of inspiration to be confin'd to one party , which would be to stint the spirit with a witness , and everlastingly to puzzle our selves where to find it , among so many contending parties that pretend to it ; or else we must affirm a horrid blasphemy , viz. that the spirit inspires contradictions , and indites contrary prayers to men of opposite parties . 3. another plain sign that our conceiv'd prayers are not immediately inspired is , that that which gives them the reputation of being so , is not so much the matter , as the way and manner of expressing them . for as for the matter of prayer , i suppose our brethren will not deny , but our forms may equal at least , if not exceed their conceiv'd and extemporary prayers , and that 't is possible for men , upon mature thoughts and deliberations , to compose and pen a prayer , that shall be as full and comprehensive of the common cases , and necessities of christians , as if he had conceived , and indited it upon the place . and if all the matter that is in a conceiv'd prayer , may be easily contain'd and express'd in a form , then all the difference between one and t'other must lie in the way , and manner of expressing it , and consequently it must be only upon this account , that the one must pretend to inspiration more than t'other . now there are only two differences between forms , and conceived prayers , as to the way , and manner of expressing the matter in them ; neither of which are so considerable , as to give the one a fairer pretence to inspiration than the other : the first is , that whereas the matter of a form of prayer is express'd in set , and premeditated words , the same matter in conceiv'd prayer is express'd in extemporary words ; and is it not strange , that upon such a slight , and inconsiderable difference , the one should be thought to be more inspired than the other ? as if the spirit of god continu'd the gift of inspiration to no other purpose , but to inable men to ask those blessings in extemporary words , which they might as well have askt in premeditated ones . the second is , that conceiv'd prayers do generally more inlarge and amplifie on the matter of prayer , than forms , in which we being always tied to such a set of words , have not that liberty to expatiate on our several cases , and necessities ; but this is so far from adding to the value of conceiv'd prayers , that it rather lessens , and depreciates them ; for if you observe these admired enlargements , and amplifications , are generally nothing else but only the same matter express'd again in different words , which makes our conceiv'd prayers run out many times to that inordinate length , the same matter being repeated in them over and over in varied phrases and expressions : how then can we entertain such mean conceits of the wisdom of the holy spirit , as to imagin he would continue to us the gift of immediate inspiration , meerly to inable us to repeat the same matter of prayer to god ten or twenty times over , in different phrases and expressions ? especially considering that by so doing he would cross the orders of our saviour , who expresly forbids us in our prayers to use vain repetitions , ( or as munster's hebrew reads it , to multiply words above what is fit and seasonable ) thinking we shall be heard for our much speaking , to which he subjoins this reason , for your father knows what things you have need of before you ask him , matth. 6. 7 , 8. as if he should have said , you need not lengthen out your prayers with so many copious enlargements , and varied repetitions of the same matter , as if you meant thereby more fully to instruct your father in your wants and desires , for before ever you ask , he knows your needs , and therefore a few words will suffice to express your desires to him . and when our saviour hath requir'd that our prayers should be short , and pithy , and stript of all needless multiplicity of words , what reason have we to think that the holy spirit , who is his vice-gerent in the church , would continue the gift of inspiration meerly to amplifie , and enlarge them ? these enlargements of conceiv'd prayer therefore , are so far from being signs of their immediate inspiration , that supposing the spirit to be of the same mind with our saviour , they are generally signs of the contrary . 4. another plain sign that our conceiv'd prayers are not immediately inspired is , that that extraordinary manner , and way of expressing them , for which they are thought to be inspired , doth apparently proceed from natural causes : for , as i shew'd before , the reason why our conceiv'd prayers are thought by us and others to be inspired is , that we are many times inabled in them to enlarge extempore , with so much readiness , and fluency : which may be easily resolv'd into meer natural enthusiasm , or present fervour of temper . and that from hence this fluency and enlargement in prayer doth ordinarily proceed , seems very evident by two undeniable signs ; first , that according to our brethrens own confession , it comes upon them much oftener in their publick , than in their private devotions . for this is an ordinary case in their divinity ; how comes it to pass that good men often find themselves so enlarg'd in their publick , and so streighten'd in their private prayers ? and indeed , supposing the spirit did ordinarily inspire the matter and words of their prayer , i see not how it could be well resolv'd , unless we suppose the spirit to be more concern'd to inspire us with fluency of matter and words , when we are to speak before men , than when we are only to speak before god. the true resolution therefore of the case is this , that in our private prayers we want the sighs , and groans , and passionate gestures of a devout congregation , to chafe and excite our affections , and the reverence of a numerous auditory , to oblige us to teaz and wrack our inventions ; for want of which our spirits are not ordinarily so vehemently agitated and heated as when we pray in publick ; where being more than ordinarily warm'd , partly with our own efforts and struglings , to invent , and partly with the warmths and pious fervours of the congregation , we are many times transported by this natural enthusiasm , into raptures of passion and inlargement ; this i say is the only reason that can be assign'd of it , unless we will suppose that which is very unsupposeable of the spirit of god , viz. that he is more solicitous to indite our prayers when we are in the presence of men , than when we are only in the presence of god. secondly , another sign that this admired fluency and enlargement in prayer proceeds from meer natural enthusiasm is this , that generally in the beginning of the prayer they find themselves streighten'd and confin'd , both as to the matter and words of it , till they have pray'd on for a while , and then they grow more ready and fluent ; which how it should come to pass , i know not , supposing the prayer were inspired , unless perhaps the spirit comes in only in the middle , or towards the latter end of their prayer , but leaves them to their own invention in the beginning , and what reason there should be for such an imagination , i confess i am not able to guess . the true account therefore of the matter is this , that in the beginning of the prayer their spirits are usually dull , and sluggish , and do not flow and reflow so briskly to their heads and hearts as afterwards , when they have been throughly chaft and heated with the labour and exercise of invention ; by which being excited and awaken'd , they naturally raise the drooping fancy , and render the invention more copious , fluent , and easie . so that meerly by the laws of matter and motion , as plain an account may be given of this extemporary fluency and enlargement of prayer , as of any other natural effect whatsoever ; and therefore for our brethren to attribute to the immediate inspiration of the spirit of god , that which hath such apparent signs of its derivation from natural causes , is , i conceive , very unwarrantable . by all which , i think , it 's very evident , not only that we have no sign of the continuance of this gift of inspiration of prayer remaining among us , but that we have manifest signs of the contrary . 4. and lastly , that to suppose the continuance of this gift of inspiration of prayer , is to suppose more than our brethren themselves will allow of , viz. that their conceiv'd prayers are infallible , and of equal authority with the word of god. for if our prayers are dictated to us by the spirit of god , they must be as infallible as he , whose infinite knowledge cannot suffer him to be deceiv'd , and whose infinite veracity will not admit him to deceive : and if so , then whatsoever he dictates , or inspires , must be remov'd from all possibility of error , or mistake ; and consequently our prayers must be so too , supposing he inspires the matter and words of them . and as they must be infallible in themselves , so they must be of equal authority with scripture : for that which gives the scriptures the authority of the word of god , is , their being inspired by the spirit of god , and therefore whatsoever matter or words are so inspired , are as much the word of god , as any matter or words in scripture : all scripture is given , saith the apostle , by the inspiration of god. and therefore whatsoever is given by his inspiration , must necessarily be his word : for what those holy men of god spake , who deliver'd the scripture , they spake as they were moved by the holy ghost , 1 pet. 1. 21. and therefore what they deliver'd was the word of god , because their mouths were the oracles through which god spake ; if therefore when we pray , we are mov'd , as they were , by the immediate inspiration of god , what we pray , must be as much the word of god , as what they spake . so that either our brethren must affirm , that their conceiv'd prayers are of equal authority with scripture , ( which i am sure no sober dissenter will presume ) or deny that they are immediately inspired by the holy ghost . and thus i have shewn what those extraordinary operations are , which the scripture attributes to the spirit in prayer . i proceed in the next place , to enquire what the ordinary and standing operations are , which the scripture attributes to him , and which he hath promised to continue to the end of the world. of which i shall give but a very brief account , because herein we are all agreed . in short therefore , the ordinary operations of the spirit consist in exciting in us the graces and proper affections of prayer , such as shame and sorrow in the confession of our sins , a sense of our need of mercy , and a hope of obtaining it in our supplications for pardon , resignation to god's will , and dependance on his goodness in our prayers for temporal mercies , and deliverances , hunger and thirst after righteousness in our petitions for his grace and assistance , and in a word , gratitude , and love , and admiration of god in our praises and thanksgivings for mercy . for in these divine and gracious affections , the life and soul of prayer consists : as for the words and expressions of it , about which our brethren disagree with us , they are of no other account with god , than as they signifie to him the graces and affections of our prayers , without which he regards them no more , than he doth the whistling of the wind ; and therefore since these affections are the main of our prayer , and words are nothing in his account in comparison with them ; can any man be so vain as to imagin , that those affections will be ever a whit the less acceptable to him , because they are presented in a form of words , and not in extemporary effusions ? sure that father would be very capricious , that should deny bread to his hungry child , meerly because he askt it to day in the same words that he did yesterday ; and to imagin that god will dislike or reject the good affections of our prayer , meerly because they are every day express'd in the same form , is to suppose him a very captious being , and one that is more taken with our words , than with our affections : the contrary of which he hath given sufficient proof of in this very particular , in that whereas he hath withdrawn from us ( as i have prov'd at large ) the inspiration of the words of our prayer , and left them to the composure of our own or other mens invention ; he still continues to inspire us with the affections of prayer , and to excite them to a due activity . for to this , among other purposes , it is , that he hath promised to continue his holy spirit to us , to inable us to address our selves to him with devout and holy affections : thus gal. 4. 6. because ye are sons , god hath sent forth the spirit of his son into your hearts , crying abba father : that is , by kindling devout and filial affections in your souls , inabling you to cry to god with all earnestness and assurance , as to a kind and merciful father : and hence also we are said to pray in or by the holy ghost , jude 20. it being by him that those good affections are rais'd in us that we offer up to god in our prayers : and therefore we may well be said to pray by the spirit , because 't is by the spirit that we are inspired with those holy affections which are the soul of our prayer ; and accordingly the spirit is said to make intercession for us with sighs and groans , which are not to be uttered , rom. 8. 26. which words are far from asserting the inspiration of the matter and words of our prayer , though they are urg'd by our brethren for that purpose : for as for the matter of prayer , here is not the least hint of the spirit 's inspiring it , for as to that , the christians , whom he speaks of , were well instructed already by their christian institution ; but all that is affirm'd , is , that the spirit inabled them to offer up the matter of prayer to god in a most devout and affectionate manner ; with sighs and groans , that is , with earnest and flagrant affections . and as for the words of prayer , the text is so far from implying the inspiration of them , that it plainly tells us , that those sighs and groans which the spirit inspired , were such as were not to be utter'd or worded . and surely to inspire us with affections that are too big for words , cannot imply the inspiration of words . so that the spirit 's interceeding for us with sighs and groans that are not to be utter'd , can imply no more , than his exciting in us the proper affections of prayer ; and in this sense he is said in the next verse , to make intercession for the saints according to the will of god , viz. by inabling them to offer up the matter of prayer to god with such fervent and devout affections as are necessary to render it acceptable to him : which is properly to interceed for us ; for as christ , who is our advocate in heaven , doth offer up our prayers to the father , and inforce them with his own intercessions ; so his spirit , who is our advocate upon earth , begets in us those affections which render our prayers prevalent , and wings them with fervour and ardency : the one pleads with god for us in our own hearts , by kindling such desires there as render our prayers acceptable to him ; and the other pleads with him for us in heaven , by presenting those desires , and soliciting their supply and acceptance . and thus you see what that standing and ordinary operation is which the scripture attributes to the spirit in prayer . and now , before i proceed to determin the present case , i shall only farther inquire , what it means by that phrase of stinting and limiting the spirit . in short therefore , to stint or limit the spirit , is a modern phrase , of which there is not the least intimation in scripture , or antiquity ; but 't is a term of art coin'd and invented by our brethren , and appli'd onlyto the present controversie , concerning the lawfulness of forms of prayer . which , by the way , is a plain evidence , that this argument against forms , viz. that they stint the spirit , is very new , since though forms of prayer were used not only in the scripture ages , as i shall shew hereafter , but also in all successive ages of christianity ; yet , till very lately , we never heard on syllable of stinting or limiting the spirit by them . the meaning of which phrase is this ; that by using forms of prayer , we hinder the spirit from affording us some assistance in prayer , which otherwise we might reasonably expect from him : for so our brethren explain the phrase , viz. that by confining our selves to a form of words , we restrain the spirit from giving us that assistance , which he ordinarily vouchsafes in conceiv'd prayer . and now , having fully stated the case , the resolution of it will be short and easie . it hath been shewn at large , that there are two sorts of assistances in prayer which the scripture attributes to the spirit ; the first extraordinary , and temporary ; viz. the immediate inspiration of the matter , and words of prayer : the second ordinary , and abiding ; viz. exciting the devotion , and proper affections of prayer : if therefore the spirit be stinted , hinder'd , or restrain'd , by forms of prayer , it must be either from inspiring the words and matter , or from exciting the affections of prayer ; as for the latter , to which this phrase of stinting is never appli'd by our brethren , i shall discourse of it at large in the third case , wherein i shall indeavour to prove , that forms of prayer are so far from restraining the devotion of it , that they very much promote and improve it . and as for the former , viz. the inspiration of the matter and words of prayer , that i have prov'd was extraordinary , and intended only as other miraculous gifts were , for the first propagation of the gospel ; and therefore since as to this matter , the spirit hath stinted himself , it 's certain , that forms of prayer cannot stint him ; for how can that be stinted which is not ? and if now there be no such thing as immediate inspiration of prayer , how can it be limited by a form of prayer ? in a word , if the spirit of his own accord hath long since withdrawn this gift of inspiration , how can it be now said that he is restrain'd from communicating it by any cause without him ? case ii. whether the use of publick forms , be not a sinful neglect of the ministerial gift of prayer ? in order to the resolution of which case , it would be necessary to give a brief state of it , according as it is put , and urg'd by our brethren . by the gift of prayer then , they mean an ability to express our minds to god in prayer , or to offer up our desires and affections to him in words , befitting the matter of them : which ability , say they , is given by god to his ministers , as a means of publick prayer , and in order to their being the mouths of their congregations to god , to represent to him the common cases and necessities of their people ; and therefore since god , say they , hath given us this gift , as a means of publick devotion , and in order to our offering up the prayers of the people , it may be justly question'd , whether we may lawfully omit the use of it , by using publick forms of other mens composure . now , before i enter into a particular consideration of this case , i shall briefly premise these two things : 1. that this case concerns the clergy only , and not the laity : for suppose that it be unlawful for ministers to omit the use of their own abilities to express the devotions of their congregations , what is that to the people ? are they accountable for their ministers faults ? or will god reject their sincere devotions , because the person that utters them is guilty of a sinful omission ? if so , it will be of dangerous consequence to them to joyn in any publick prayers at all , whether they be forms , or extemporary ; they being every whit as accountable for the nonsense , impertinence , and irreverence of their ministers in the latter , as for their omitting the use of their own abilities in the former : if therefore this omission be a sin , it is the sin of the minister ; as for the people , they join'd with him indeed , in offering up the matter of prayer , which is contain'd in the form he pronounces ; but they join not with him in the omission of the use of his ability ; that is his own proper act , and deed ; and therefore if it be unlawful , 't is he , and he only that is accountable for it : and if the matter of prayer in which they join with him be good , and express'd in decent and suitable words , they join with him in nothing but what is acceptable to god , and 't is not to be imagin'd that god will be angry with them , because he neglected to express their desires in words of his own composure and invention . 2. i shall also premise , that this is not the case of the clergy of the church of england , who , though they stand obliged to the constant use of a stated liturgy , yet are not hereby restrain'd from the exercise of their own abilities in publick prayer : for after they have finish'd the service appointed in the liturgy , they are permitted to use their own conceiv'd prayers in the pulpit : in which they have the same liberty , that the dissenting ministers can claim or pretend to ; that is , to express in their own words all the matter of publick prayer , with all the sobriety , affection , and seriousness they are able ; and this permission being of long continuance , and hitherto uncontroll'd by our church governors , amounts to an allowance ; and indeed it seems expresly allow'd in our 55th canon , which directs , that before all sermons , lectures , and homilies , the preachers and ministers shall move the people to join with them in prayer , in this form , or to this effect , as briefly as conveniently they may . now that to this effect , as it stands opposed to this form , is meant some prayer of our own , composed to this purpose , seems evident from the general and uninterrupted practice of the church , which in doubtful cases , is the best explication of her meaning . since therefore the use of our liturgy doth not exclude the exercise of our gift of prayer , but leaves us free to exert it , so far as it is fit , that is , with convenient brevity , i see not how this case can concern our clergy ; for if the evil of forms consists in the ministers omission of his own gift , as this case supposes , then where the use of forms doth not oblige us to this omission , but leaves us as free to exercise this gift , as those are who use no forms at all , the supposed evil is remov'd from it . having premised these things , i shall proceed to a particular resolution of the case ; which i shall do in these following propositions . 1. that this ministerial gift of prayer , or ability to express in our own words , the common devotions of our congregations to god , is either natural , or acquir'd . 't is true , if we had any reason to believe , that in their admission to holy orders , god did inspire his ministers with this ability , we might thence more plausibly infer , that 't was his will that we should ordinarily exercise it , and that it was not lawful to neglect or omit it , by using forms of other mens composure ; it being unlikely that god should inspire them with an ability , which he did not intend they should make use of : but of gods inspiring us in our ordination with this gift , or ability , we have not only no promise in scripture , which is the only foundation upon which we can reasonably expect it ; but in fact , we have no experience of any such matter among us : for not only we , but the dissenting ministers must own , if they will speak ingenuously , that just before their ordination , they were as able to express the devotions of a congregation , as they were just after ; which shews that they had no new ability to pray , inspired in their ordination : and as yet , i could never find any proof , either from scripture , or experience , that this ability to pray in words of our own composure , had any thing more in it , than a promptness of invention and speech ; which some men have by nature , and which others have acquired by art and practice ; and if so , this ability is no otherwise the gift of god , than our natural strength and vigour , or our skill in languages and history . and methinks it 's very strange , that after all this talk of the gift of prayer , which is supposed ordinarily at least to be conferr'd on rightly ordained ministers , our brethren should not be able to produce one promise , wherein god hath ingag'd himself , to confer it ; no nor one text of scripture , which implies such a promise ; all that he hath promised his ministers is , to concur with their honest indeavours , so far forth as it 's necessary to inable them to discharge the duties of their office , and to suppose that they cannot do this , without praying extempore , or in their own words , is to take the matter in question , for granted . 2. that this natural or acquired gift , is no where appropriated by god to prayer , but left common to other uses , and purposes : for though in ministers especially , it is ordinarily called a gift of prayer , yet it is no where stiled so in scripture : indeed the ability of praying in unknown languages , is once called a gift , as i observed before , but as for this ordinary ability , whether natural , or acquir'd , of praying in our native language , it is no where spoken of in scripture , under the name of a gift of prayer , nor is there the least mention of any such ability given by god to men , purely to inable them to pray ; and unless our brethren can produce some text of scripture , which yet they never attempted , wherein god hath appropriated this gift to the purpose of prayer , they must give us leave to conclude , that he hath left it common to all other honest uses , and purposes that it can be apply'd to ; and that in short , it is nothing but a freedom of utterance , and elocution , which in some is natural , and in some acquired , by which they are inabled readily to express their minds to god , or men ; and therefore to how many honest purposes this common gift of god is applicable , to so many 't is designed , and intended ; and consequently , may as well be call'd the gift of conversation in good company , and the gift of pleading at the bar , and the gift of disputing in the schools , or the gift of oratory in the forum , as the gift of prayer in private , or publique worship ; it being all but one , and the same gift aplied to several uses , and purposes ; accordingly we find that those who have this gift , have it not only while they are speaking in prayer , but when they are speaking upon other occasions ; and that ordinarily they can express themselves to men with the same readiness , and fluency in conversation , as they express their minds to god in prayer , which is a plain argument that their gift is not appropriat to prayer , but common to all the other uses , and purposes of elocution . 3. that this gift of utterance not being appropriated by god to prayer , may upon just reason , be as lawfully omitted in prayer , as in any other use or purpose 't is designed for : i do confess had god any where appropriated it to the end of prayer , those who have it , were obliged to use it to that end , and to omit it ordinarily , by confining themselves to forms of other mens inditing , would be to neglect a means of prayer of gods special appointment and institution ; for had he any where intimated to us , that he gave it us purely to inable us to pray without any respect to any other end , we could not have omitted the use of it in prayer without crossing his intention , and frustrating him of the only end for which he intended it , but since he hath given us no such intimation , we may justly conclude that he intends it in common for all those honest ends to which it is applicable , and if so 't is no more unlawful to omit using it to one end than to another , so that either it must be wholly unlawful to omit using our own elocution to any purpose whatsoever whereunto it may be honestly applied , or it must be lawful to omit it in prayer , and consequently supposing i have this gift of utterance , either i may not use a form in petitioning my prince , or a court of justice , or i may use a form in addressing my self to god in prayer , since my gift is common to both th●se purposes , and no more appropriated to the one than the other , in short therefore as for those common gifts of god which are applicable to sundry purposes , and which he intends no more for one than for another , it is left to our own liberty and discretion whether we will apply them to this or that particular purpose or no , and no man is obliged to use his gift to all those just and lawful purposes it is capable of , and if he hath two gifts which serve to the same purpose , there is no doubt but he may lawfully omit the one , and use the other as he sees occasion ; and so it is with this gift of utterance , which is naturally serviceable to sundry excellent purposes , and among others to this of expressing our minds to god in prayer , but it being serviceable to this in common with others , it is left to our liberty whether we will imploy it in this , in that , or in another purpose , and we are neither obliged to imploy it in all , nor in this more than in another , but if we have another gift that is serviceable to the purpose of prayer as well as this of utterance , it is left to our own pious discretion whether we will use this or the other , so that unless our brethren can prove that this gift of utterance or elocution is by special command of god made an appropriate means of publick prayer , they will never be able to prove , either that it is more unlawful to omit the use of it in prayer , than in any other office of elocution , or that if we have any other means of prayer , we are determined to this more than to another . 4. that to read our desires to god in other mens words , is as much a means of prayer , as to speak them in our own , for to speak in our own words , is no otherwise a means of publick prayer , than as it serves to express to god the common cases and necessities of the congregation , and if these may be as well exprest by reading them in other mens words , as by speaking them in our own , the end of publick prayer is as effectually serv'd by the one , as by the other , and sure no man will deny , but that by a form of words composed by another , he may express the common devotions of a congregation , as well as by extempore or premeditated words of his own invention ; for this would be in effect to say , that none but himself can compose a publick prayer , or at least none so well as he ; for if another prayer may be as expressive of the devotions of a congregation as his own , i can see no reason why the reading of that may not be as proper a means of publick prayer , as the speaking of this ; here then are two means of prayer , viz. reading other mens forms , and speaking our own conceptions , and therefore unless our brethren can prove , that god hath expresly chosen the one , and rejected the other , they must acknowledge both to be lawful ; and if we cannot lawfully omit the one , because it is a means of prayer , neither can we lawfully omit the other , because it is so too ; and therefore either we must be obliged to use them both , which is impossible at the same time , or we must be left at liberty to use either , according to our own discretion . in sum therefore , since we are not inspired with any peculiar gift of prayer in our ordination , and since our gift of praying in our own words is not appropriated by god to this use , but left in common to other purposes , and since what is not appropriated by god , may be lawfully omitted , when there are other means of prayer , and since in fact there is another means of prayer besides this of praying in our own words , viz. praying in the words of others , which god hath lost as free to us as the former , it plainly follows from the whole , that to omit the use of our own gift , and in the stead of it to use that other gift of praying in the words of others , is not in it self any way sinful or unlawful . case iii. whether the use of publick forms of prayer doth not deaden the devotion of prayer ? for thus our brethren argue , that by the command of god we are obliged not only to pray , but to pray with the utmost devotion we are able , and accordingly to use such means of prayer as are most apt to heighten and intend our devotion , and thus far we agree with them ; if therefore forms are in themselves , and not through our fault and erronious prejudice , less apt to quicken and raise devotion than conceiv'd prayers , it will be granted of all hands , that this is a good argument against the use of them . this therefore is the case wherein we differ , our brethren say , that forms of publick worship , ( for 't is that we are now discoursing of , ) are in themselves apt to dispirit and deaden the devotions of those that use them ; we say the contrary , viz. that publick forms are in themselves more apt to improve and quicken the common devotions , than extemporary prayers of the ministers own conceiving ; in order therefore to the clearing and full resolution of this case , we will briefly enquire into these three things : 1. what these advantages to publick devotion are , which conceived , or extemporary prayers pretend to ? 2. whether these advantages are not for the most part fantastical and imaginary , and whether so far as they are real they are not much more peculiar to forms than to extempore prayer ? 3. whether besides these common advantages publick forms have not peculiar advantages , which conceiv'd prayers cannot pretend to ? 1. we will enquire what those advantages to the publick devotions are which conceiv'd or extemporary prayers pretend to ; in short , it is pretended in the behalf of conceiv'd prayers , that they do much more fix the attention , and raise the intention of the peoples minds in prayer , than publick forms ; that is , that they do more confine the rovings of mens thoughts in prayer , and keep their minds more attentive to it , and that they do much more warm and enliven their affections in it ; for , say our brethren , the devotions of the people are very much rais'd or deaden'd by the performance of the minister , according as he is more or less devout in it ; and as for the minister , he must needs be much more devout in a prayer of his own conceiving , than in the use of a publick form ; because first , say they , 't is impossible for him to keep his mind so attentive in reading a prayer , as in conceiving one in his own mind , and speaking it from his own conceptions ; the care of performing which naturally bounds the wanderings of his thoughts , and keeps them more fixt and attentive ; and secondly , because when he utters his words immediately from his affections , his thoughts have not that scope to wander , as when he reads them out of a book . and as conceived doth more fix the attention of the minister , so it doth also more raise his intention , or in other words , more warm and inflame his affections ; for first , whereas in reading a form , his affections follow his words , and are raised and excited by them , in conceived prayer , his words follow his affections , and are immediately utter'd from , and indited by them ; and secondly , how is it possible , say they , that the words of another , which he reads out of a form , should so well express his affections as his own ; besides , thirdly , that while he is reading his form , his soul is so intent in directing his eye to read , that it cannot direct its affections to god with that fervour and intention as it might do in conceiv'd prayer . these are the supposed helps which the ministers devotion , and from his the peoples receive from conceiv'd prayers , above what forms of prayer can afford : and as conceiv'd prayer hath these peculiar advantages to raise the ministers devotion , and by his the peoples , so it hath another advantage by which it more immediately influences the devotion of the people , viz. that the matter of it is still exprest in new words , which must needs much more affect the attention of the people , than when it is always exprest in the same words without any variation ; and this , so far as i can gather from the writings of our brethren , is the sum of what they plead in behalf of conceiv'd prayer , as to its peculiar advantageousness to publick devotion above stated forms . 2. therefore we will enquire whether these advantages are not in a great measure imaginary , and whether so far as they are real , they are not much more peculiar to forms , than to conceiv'd prayer . and here i will readily grant , that by expressing a serious and devout affection , the minister doth really advantage the devotion of the congregation , even as by his good example in all other things he excites the people to a pious and virtuous imitation ; in whose eyes devotion never looks so amiable , as when 't is exprest in serious and well compos'd words , accompanied with a devout , a sober , and affectionate behaviour : both which are equally necessary to excite the devotion of the people : if therefore it be really true , that the use of conceived or extempore prayer is in its own nature most apt to fix the attention , and excite the intention of the minister in prayer , it must be confest that herein it hath the advantage of forms . 1. therefore we will inquire whether these advantages it pretends to , as to the exciting the ministers attention in prayer , be real , or no : the first advantage is , that the very conceiving the matter of his prayer , and speaking it from his own conceptions , doth naturally more bind his attention , than the reading it out of a form ; but i beseech you , what doth it more bind him to attend to ? is it to attend to the words and phrases ? if so , then 't is not to attend to the acts of prayer , or is it to attend to those acts which are the proper business of prayer ? that is to be asham'd of sin , and to bewail it in confession , to be sensible of the common wants , and common dependancies upon god for supply in petition , to admire god's perfections , and gratefully commemorate his goodness in praise and thanksgiving ; for in these things the true devotion both of minister and people consists ; and 't is only by being an example of these in his prayer , that the minister excites the devotion of his people : 't is by confessing sin , as if he were asham'd of , and sorry for it , that he excites their shame and sorrow ; by petitioning for mercy , as if he were sensible of the want of it , and did heartily desire it , and depended upon god for it , that he excites their sense of need , and their desire , and hope of relief , and supply ; by praising and thanking god , as if he heartily admired his excellencies , and gratefully resented his goodness that he excites their admiration and gratitude ; that mode of prayer therefore which is most apt to fix the ministers attention to these acts of devotion , must needs be most apt to excite the devotions of the people : now as for the mode of praying from his own conceptions , i really think that it is much more apt to unfix the ministers attention to these acts , than that of praying by a form ; because it forces him to attend to other things at the same time , viz. the recollection of matter , and invention of sutable expressions , which must more or less divert him from attending to the inward acts of devotion , according as his fancy and tongue are more or less pregnant and voluble ; it being impossible for him to attend at the same time , to several things , as closely as he may to one : but when he prays by a form , his matter and words are ready before him , and so he hath nothing else to do , but to attend to his devotion ; and certainly when a man hath but one thing to do in prayer , he may attend to that more fixedly and closely , than when he hath two or three : 't is true , by being released from attending to the invention of his matter and words , his mind is more at leisure to wander , and instead of attending as he ought more closely to the acts of devotion , by imploying those thoughts which in conceiv'd prayer he imploys in invention in a closer attention to the acts of devotion , he may , if he please , permit them to rove abroad ; but if he doth , the fault is in himself , and not in the form he prays by : the design of his form is to release his mind from all other business in prayer , but only that of inward devotion , which is the life of prayer , that so it may be the more attentive to it : but if instead of applying his mind to this design , he suffers it to wander abroad , he makes an ill use of a good thing , and converts that which is in it self a help to devotion , into an occasion of indevotion : but 't is objected , that while his thoughts are imployed in inventing the matter and words of his prayer , they are attending to the duty of prayer , and while they are so , they are well imploy'd , though they should not be so attentively fixt upon the inward devotion of prayer , as they might be in the use of a form : to which in short i answer , that to invent the matter and words of prayer , is not to pray , but to study a prayer ; and till our brethren have proved , that our inventing the matter and words , is a part of our duty of prayer , which is the question in debate between us , we can by no means grant , that our attention to it is attending to the duty of prayer ; we believe that when we pray devoutly by a form , we discharge the whole duty of prayer , though we do not invent the matter and words our selves , and when we see the contrary proved , we will not only yield that to attend to inventing , is to attend to the duty of prayer ; but that it is unlawful to pray by a form : but in the mean time we can yield neither one , nor t'other . seeing then that forms are in themselves more apt to fix the ministers attention to the inward acts of devotion , and seeing that 't is by attending to these acts , or at least by seeming to do so , that he influences the attention of the people , it necessarily follows , that in this respect forms are more advantageous to publick devotion , than conceiv'd or extemporary prayer . but then , 2. it is pretended that conceiv'd prayer is in it self more apt to fix the ministers attention in prayer than forms , because in conceiv'd prayer he utters his words immediately from his affections , by reason of which his thoughts have not that scope to wander , as when he reads them out of a book : to which , in short , i answer , that if he hath devout affections , he may utter his words as immediately from his affections in a form , as in a conceiv'd prayer ; and therefore this pretence is altogether insignificant ; for his own invention is as much a medium between his affections and utterance in praying extempore , as the book in praying by a form ; as for instance , suppose that in confessing sin , he be affected with shame and sorrow , he cannot express it in words , but by using his own invention , or a form , and whether he uses one , or t'other , he uses a medium to express it ; and why those words which he reads should not be as immediate to his affections as those which he invents , provided they do as fully express them , i am not able to apprehend ; in short therefore , if he hath devout affections , they will at least as much confine his thoughts from wandering when he prays by form , as when he prays extempore , if he hath not , he cannot utter his words from his affections , either in the one or t'other . 2. we will inquire whether those advantages which our brethren ascribe to conceiv'd prayer above forms , as to the raising the ministers intention in prayer , be real , or no : first they pretend that in reading a form , his affections follow his words , and are raised and excited by them ; whereas in praying extempore , his words follow his affections . this i confess is a very curious distinction , but i am not able to apprehend either what foundation there is for it , or how it is applicable to the matter ; for first what necessity is there either that his affections should follow his words in a form , more than in a conceiv'd prayer , or that his words should follow his affections in a conceiv'd prayer , more than in a form ? why may not a man be devoutly affected with the matter he prays for , before he expresses in a form of words , as well as before he expresses it extempore ? since if he be acquainted with the form , he cannot but know before-hand what he is to pray for in it ; and therefore if he be truly devout , cannot but be affected with it , before he prays for it ; and so on the other hand , why may not a man as well be unaffected with the matter he prays for in conceiv'd prayer , till he hath exprest it , as with the matter he prays for in a form ? or what reason can be assign'd , why the affection may not follow the words , and be excited by them in the one , as well as in the other ? may not a man pray inconsiderately , and suffer his tongue , to run before his heart in both ? and may not his affections which were before asleep , be awakened by the sound of his words in either ? in short therefore , since in praying by a form , a man may know as well at least , and hath as much time to consider the matter he is to pray for before-hand , as in praying extempore ; what reason is there why it should be more difficult for him to affect his soul before-hand with it in the one , than in the other ? and if it be equally hard and easie in both , than 't is equally possible for his affections to go before , or follow his words in either . but then secondly , suppose it were true , that in conceiv'd prayer the words follow the affections , and in a form the affections the words , how doth it from hence follow , that conceiv'd prayer doth more intend and heighten the affections , than forms ? what reason can there be assign'd , why those acts of inward affections , which follow our words in prayer , should not be as intense and vigorous as those which go before them ? why may not a man exert as flagrant an act of desire , immediately after he hath exprest his petition , as immediately before , especially if that be true which our brethren affirm , and which most men find by experence ; that the words of prayer , if they are proper and expressive , do naturally quicken and excite the affections ; so that if it be the matter only that excites the affections , they may be as vehemently excited after the words are spoken as before ; if it be the words also , the affections must be less vehemently excited before the words , than after : in short therefore , when the minister prays in publick , whether it be by form , or extempore , he prays on , without making any long pauses between one petition and another , so that as soon as ever he hath conceived the matter , he expresses it , and whether it be immediately before or immediately after , or while he is expressing it , that he joyns his affection to it , there can be no reason assign'd , if it be the matter he joyns them to , why he should more affect it now , than then , there being nothing in the order of before or after , to raise and excite his affection : and if so , his affections following his words , though it were necessary to his praying by a form , can be no disadvantage to his devotion , nor the contrary an advantage to it , though it were necessary to his praying extempore : but then secondly , it is pretended that the minister cannot so well express his devout affections in other mens words , as in his own , and therefore when he prays in a form of words of other mens composure , 't is impossible his affections should be so livelily represented , as when he prays extempore : to which in short i answer , that the ministers business in publick prayer is not to express the degrees and heighths of his own affections , or to acquaint god of the particular and extraordinary fervencies of his own soul : for in publick he prays as the common mouth of the congregation , and therefore he ought not to express to god in the name of the people , any matter that is peculiar to himself , or to represent his own particular extraordinary fervours , as the common case of the congregation , but his words ought to be such as every honest and ordinary christian may truly joyn with , as the sense and meaning of his own soul ; and for him to express to god in the name of the people , such heights of devotion as few or none of them are arrived to , is as bad as to confess in their names such sins to god , as few or none of them are guilty of . so that if the minister hath such peculiar heighths of affection as can be fitly exprest only in his own words , he ought not to tell god of them in a publick prayer , in which he is to express nothing but what is the true and common sense of every honest and sincere christian ; and this certainly may be as fitly exprest in another mans words , as in his own , unless we will suppose that no man can so well express the common sense of a christian congregation , as he that prays extempore , yea , and that he himself cannot so fitly express it in premeditated words , as in extemporary ones ; neither of which i suppose any sober dissenter will affirm . but then thirdly and lastly , it is also pretended , that in the use of forms , the ministers soul is so ingaged in directing his eye to read , that it cannot be so intensly affected with what he prays for , as when he prays extempore ; in answer to which , i leave the reader to judge , whether the recollecting of the matter of prayer , the disposing of it into a due method , and inventing of proper phrases to express it , ( neither of which are acts of prayer , as i shew'd before ) must not much more busie and ingage the ministers soul when he is praying publickly , than the directing of his eye to read ; that is , whether one that hath so perfect a habit of reading as that he can readily exercise it without imploying one thought about it , cannot read a prayer more easily , than invent one ? for so much easier as it is to read than to invent a prayer , so much less his soul hath to divert it from being affected with what he prays for when he prays by a form , than when he prays extempore . and thus you see that those advantages which are ascribed to conceiv'd prayer , as to the raising the ministers devotion , are such as are either imaginary , or as ought rather to be ascribed to forms . but it is pretended , that forms of prayer do not only deaden the ministers devotion , and so by consequence the peoples , but that they do also deaden the peoples by a more direct and immediate influence , because they still express the matter of prayer in the same words , which when the people have often heard , will be apt to cloy their attention , whereas the very newness and variety of words , in which conceiv'd prayers are exprest , doth naturally awaken and entertain their minds and keep them more fixt and intent . for answer whereunto , let us consider upon what it is that this novelty and variety of expression doth keep our minds so fixt and intent on , is it upon the matter of prayer ? doubtless , no ; for that is generally the same , especially the matter of publick prayer , and therefore if it were that that fixt our minds , 't would as well do it in the same as in new and varied expressions ; and since the matter of publick prayer is old , and for the main will be always so , why should it not as well affect us in old words as in new , provided they exprest it with equal propriety and fitness ; but if it be meerly the newness of the phrase 't is express'd in , that fixes their minds : there is nothing in it but a meer surprise and amusement of their fancies , which instead of fixing doth unfix their minds from the internal acts of prayer , and divert its attention from the devotion to the oratory of it ; so that this fixation of their minds on the novelty of the phrase and method of prayer is so far from being an advantage , that 't is a distraction to their devotion . as for forms of prayer , there is no doubt but they may be composed with the same advantage of expression and pronounced with the same affection as the prayers of our own extempore composure , and if they are so , they will have the same advantage of the musick of speech to excite the devotions of the people ; but as for novelty of method and expression , that may indeed entertain their minds and divert them from roving out to other objects , but even this entertainment is a roving and excursion of their minds from the acts of prayer , which , while they are amused with the novelty of the phrase and method of the prayer , can be no more intent on the devotion of it , than while they are busied about secular objects and affairs . and indeed that seeming devotion that is raised in the minds of the people by the gingling of the ministers words about their fancies , is generally false and counterfeit , for as words do naturally impress the fancy , so the fancy doth naturally excite the sensitive affections ; so that when the affections are excited meerly by the art and musick of the words of prayer , it is not devotion but mechanism ; for there is no doubt but men may be and many times are strangely affected with the words of prayer when they have not the least spark of true devotion to the matter of it ; for when they fancy the matter of prayer and are affected with it meerly for the sake of the words , the movement of their affection will cease as soon as the impression is worn out which the words make upon their fancies , and if in the mean time they happen to hear any other matter exprest in the same affectionate words , they will in all probability be as much affected with it , as they are now with the matter of prayer , but if the mind be truly devout and doth affect the matter of prayer for it self and not for the sake of the words , i cannot imagin how new words should any way advantage its devotion , unless they were to express new matter . since therefore the matter of publick prayer neither is nor ought to be new , unless it be upon extraordinary publick emergencies , what colour of reason can there be assign'd , why the devotion of the hearers should be more affected with it in new words than in old , supposing it be express'd and pronounc'd with the same propriety and affection in both . and thus i have shewn that those advantages of publick devotion which are pretended to be peculiar to conceiv'd prayers , are for the most part imaginary , and that so far forth as they are real they are more peculiar to forms of prayer , i proceed to the third and last enquiry , viz. 3. whether there are not sundry advantages of publick devotion peculiar to forms of prayer , which conceived prayers cannot pretend to ? that there are , i do affirm , and will indeavour to prove by these following instances . 1. one great advantage that is peculiar to publick forms of prayer , is , that the people may address themselves to them with greater preparation ; for if they please , they may peruse the words before-hand , and consider the sense and matter of them , and indeavour to affect their minds with it ; as for instance , when i know before-hand what words my sins will be confest in , when i am to joyn in the publick devotions , i can consider before-hand the sense and meaning of them , and prepare such affection as are sutable to them ; as suppose the confession be that of our church's liturgy , wherein we begin with almighty and most merciful father ; i can consider the meaning of these words before i come to church ; and from the consideration of god's almighty and most merciful nature , excite my affections to an awful dread of his power , and an ingenuous sense of his mercy ; by which when i come to joyn with these words in the publick confession , i shall be duely affected with the sense of them , and my soul will beready melted into all that filial sorrow and humiliation for my sin , with the consideration that i have offended by it an almighty and most merciful father suggests ; and so if i consider , and apply before-hand all the rest of the confession , i shall thereby tune and set my affections to the sense and matter of each particular phrase and expression in it ; which 't will be impossible for me to do when i am to joyn with an extempore prayer ; because i cannot know before-hand what the phrases and expressions of it will be ; besides which , upon the words of publick forms , there may be written excellent paraphrases and meditations , such as is that of the companion to the temple ; by reading of which the devotions of the people may be very much excited and improved ; which is such an advantage as the words of extempore prayer will not admit of . 2. another advantage peculiar to publick forms , is , that in joining with them the people may pray with more understanding , than they can well be supposed to do in conceiv'd and extempore prayer , wherein generally the minister is forc'd to make use of such words and expressions as come first to hand , having not leisure enough to pick and choose his words , without making long and undecent pauses and interruptions , so that sometimes he is fain to use a hard word , which perhaps not half the people understand , because an easier doth not come to his mind , and sometimes to intangle his expressions with long parentheses , sometimes to darken his matter with far fetch'd metaphors , or to express it by halfs in broken sentences , and sometimes to run out his periods to an inordinate length , by which the sense of them is very much clouded and obscur'd : these and such like inconveniences all the world knows do very commonly attend extempore effusions : and let a mans fancy and tongue be never so fluent and voluble , he can never be so secure of expressing himself intelligibly to the people when he prays extempore , as he might be if he took time enough before-hand to choose his words , and form his expressions , so that the people may be much more secure of understanding what they pray for when they joyn with a form , than when they joyn with an extempore prayer ; for to be sure in composing publick forms more care will be taken of the phrase , that the words may fit the matter , and express it intelligibly to the people , than there can be in extempore prayer ; which admits of no long consideration , no alteration upon second thoughts , no after-scanning or revisal , as forms of prayer do , but it must pass as it happens , whether it be intelligible or no , by reason of which those who occupy the room of the unlearned , are many times forc'd to break off praying for want of understanding what the words and expressions of the prayer mean ; for whether the prayer be spoken in an unknown tongue , or in words that are unintelligible to the people , it is all one to them , for still their understanding is unfruitful , and so long their devotion must be broken and interrupted . 3. another advantage peculiar to publick forms , is , that the people may joyn with them with much more faith and ussurance , than they can with extempore prayers ; it must doubtless be of great advantage to a mans devotion in publick , to be satisfied before-hand that the matter he is to pray for is good and acceptable to god ; for by this means he will be inabled to pray on with a stronger faith and surer hope of being heard and accepted ; but this a man can never be satisfi'd of aforehand , that joyns in extempore prayer , unless he hath an implicit faith in his minister , that he will say nothing to god but what is true , nor ask any thing of him but what is lawful ; which how he can certainl depend on , i cannot imagin , especially considering that the minister who prays is many times a stranger to him , both as to his person and principles , and for all that he knows may be very erronious , rash , and unadvised , or very ignorant of what is matter of prayer , and what not ; and even those ministers whom he knows , and can best confide in , are not always so very sure of their hands , but that some times they may mistake their passion for their zeal , and reak their anger or faction in their prayers , or in the heat and hurry of speaking what comes next , let drop an error before they are aware , or express themselves so doubtfully , or unadvisedly , that an honest and discerning mind may not be able to joyn with him ; so that in joyning with an extempore prayer , it is very necessary , ( as hath been observed by an excellent divine upon this argument ) that as we go along with the minister , we should judge of what he saith before our hearts consent to it , and if it should so happen , that by reason of the novelty , or ambiguity , affectation , or indigestedness of his expressions , or any such rub in our way , we cannot readily judge , but are fain to hesitate , and deliberate upon this , or that passage ; in the mean time he who prays is gone on , and now upon a new subject , and we are left behind , and at a loss , and perhaps miserably confounded before our devotion can close in again , and no sooner it may be is it well fixt , but 't is led away again into the same inconveniency and maze : all which may be easily prevented by the use of publick forms ; of the matter and expressions of which , the people may easily satisfie themselves aforehand , and when this is done , they will have nothing else to do , but to pray and keep their holy affections a going , they will have no new judgment to make of what is said , no doubtful phrase or matter to examin , and their judgment being satisfied before they begin to pray , with the words and matter of the prayer , their devotion may go on with it , without pause or stop in an even and uninterrupted current . 4. another advantage peculiar to publick forms , is , that they have much less in them to divert the affefections of the people from the matter of prayer . for as for extempore prayer , it is very apt to disturb the devotion of the people , whether it be well or ill perform'd , if he who performs it hesitates , or blunders , or expresses himself in crude , undecent , or fantastick phrases , instead of attending to the matter , and joyning their affections with it , they will in all probability be pitying , or contemning him , carping at what comes next , and running descants on his weakness and impertinence ; if he perform well , and his method be orderly and artificial , his matter good , and his expressions fluent and apt , and easie , they will in all probability be admiring his parts , and entertaining their curiosity with the elegancy of his phrase , the solidity and promptness of his judgment , and the art and finery of his composure ; either of which must very much divert and call off their affections from the matter ; whereas while they are joyning in publick forms , to which they have been accustomed , and in which neither the strength , nor weakness of the ministers parts appears , they have none of all these snares to intangle their devotion : for being used to the words , and phrase , and method , they have no temptation to concern their minds any farther about them , than as they convey the matter of the prayer to them , and having none of the above-named diversions , to carry away their minds from the matter , they may doubtless , if they please , attend to it with much more fervour and affection . 5. another peculiar advantage to the peoples devotion in joyning with publick forms , is , that they are more secur'd as to the decency and solemnity of their publick worship ; and i suppose there is no body will question , but that the decent and solemn performance of publick worship , is highly advantageous to the devotion of the people . but now whilst they joyn in extempore prayers , the decency and solemnity of the performance , doth altogether depend upon the ability and present disposedness of the minister ; so that if the minister happen to be a man of a mean elocution , of an unready memory , or an unfruitful invention , it is impossible the office should be perform'd with that decency and solemnity , that is necessary to affect the minds , and excite the devotions of the people ; yea , instead of that perhaps , the wretched dulness , the blundering , confusion , and impertinence of the performance , may turn their devotion into scorn and laughter ; for of this i have seen too many sad experiments : but suppose the minister be a man of pregnant parts , and ready invention and elocution , yea and of great piety and devotion too , yet 't is possible he may be frequently liable to great indispositions of body , and mind , to dulness , and inadvertency , to wandering , and distraction of thoughts , to deficiencies of invention , and failures of memory , and incumbrances of mind , with outward cares and accidents ; and if he be , what remedy is there , but that he must many times pray confusedly , and omit a great deal of the matter of prayer , and utter a great deal of it in broken or undecent expressions ? and how can he avoid being sometimes at a loss , both for words and matter , and being forc'd to supply the present defects of his invention , with fulsome repetitions of what went before ? and how is it possible almost but that a great deal of slat and empty nonsense , a great many crude and undigested conceptions , and rash and unadvis'd expressions should escape from his lips before he is aware ? and this , if he hath any grain of modesty in him , must , upon the least reflection , put him into a greater confusion , and so amaze , and bewilder him , that throughout the whole prayer perhaps , he will hardly be able to recover himself to any consistency of thoughts : now is it not a hard case , that the decency and solemnity of the publick prayers of a congregation , should depend upon the uncertain and variable temper and disposition of one single person ; so as that if he happen to be indispos'd or disorder'd in his body or mind , the devotions of 500 or 1000 persons must partake of his disorders and distractions ; for how much soever he is indisposed , their prayer can be no better than what he is able to pour out extempore , and how flatly , unadvisedly or confusedly soever he prays , they must pray after him , or not pray at all ; which vast inconvenience is wholly cur'd and prevented , by a well compos'd form of prayer , for how weak soever the ministers parts be , or how much soever he may be at present indisposed , if he can but read distinctly and seriously , the devotion of the people will not be at all affected or influenc'd by it , for whatsoever his parts , or present temper be , they will be sure to find an orderly and methodical prayer to joyn with ; a prayer that is comprehensive of all their common cases and necessities ; that is sober and good , mature and well advised as to the matter ; that is full and plain and decent as to the phrase and expression of it ; and in a word , that is every way suted to all the parts and ends and offices of publick devotion ; and if they please , they may satisfie themselves before-hand , that there is nothing in the prayer they are to joyn with , but what becomes publick worship , which is the most serious and solemn thing in the world. 6. another peculiar advantage of publick forms , is , that in joyning with them the people may be better secur'd of the reality and sincerity of their own devotion . for in joyning with extempore prayers , there is no doubt but they may , and many times do mistake the tickling of their fancics , for true and sincere devotion ; for their fancies being surpriz'd , and amused , meerly by the novelty of the expressions , will naturally influence their sensitive passions , and chase them into such warmths as an undiscerning judgment may easily mistake for the holy fervours of devotions ; they find themselves strangely heated in the prayer , and upon that immediately conclude , that they are wonderfully devout , without ever enquiring , whether it be the matter , or the phrase and expression that heats them ; and so from those transports of passion , which are meerly the effects of new and surprising words , striking briskly on their fancies , they many times take occasion to flatter themselves into a great opinion of their piety and godliness , whereas many of these persons are notoriously immoral in their lives , and utterly disaffected to the matter they pray for with so much seeming earnestness and affection ; which is a plain argument , that their affection is not to the matter , but meerly to the words and expressions ; and in all probability the same surprisingness of expression would have as much affected them at a play , as it doth at a prayer : thus for instance , when they hear god or christ spoken of , and their goodness and perfections represented in a new and surprising strain of expressions , their fancy many times is strangely smitten with it , and this makes their spirits flow in a sweet and placid torrent to their heart ; and by their frisking about it , to sooth and tickle it into great complacency and pleasure , till at last it opens and dilates it orifices , and the grateful flood breaks in , and drowns it in delight and ravishment ; and yet all this many times , instead of being a real complacency of their souls in god , is only a complacency of their fancies in the phrase by which he is described and represented , and had they heard the hero of play describ'd in the same phrase , they might probably have been moved to the same affection to him , as they are now to god and their saviour ; for the same kind of influence that new and surprising expressions have upon mens fancies in prayer , they will have when applied to other matters ; and if we will believe plutarch , it was an ordinary thing with the greek sophists , by their honied words , surprising phrases , singing tones , and effeminate accents , to excite their auditors into a kind of bacchical enthusiasm ; and no doubt but those hearers , of whom he there speaks , who were wont to applaud their orators at the end of their declamations with a 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 , divinely , heavenly , unimitably spoken ; found themselves as much moved , as many a man doth at an extempore prayer , who yet verily believes , that it is not meerly a movement of his fancy , but of his sincere and true devotion . this therefore is a great disadvantage of extempore prayer in publick , that meerly by amusing the fancies of the people with the surprising novelty of its expressions , it puts them into fits of counterfeit devotion , and makes them many times imagin that they are heartily affected with the matter of the prayers , when 't is meerly the phrase of it that by striking on their fancies , moves their sensitive affection . but whether this movement of affection be fancy , or devotion , a man may much more easily distinguish when he joyns with a form , than when he joyns with an extempore prayer ; for he being acquainted aforehand with the phrases and expressions of the form , it is not to be supposed , that they should much surprise and amuse his fancy , and therefore if notwithstanding that , he finds himself heartily affected in the prayer , he may much more securely conclude , that it is the matter , and not meerly the words that moves and affects him . and thus , with all plainness and sincerity , i have indeavoured to represent those peculiar advantages which forms of prayer have above extempore ones , as to the quickening and improving the devotions of the people : i might have given other instances of it , but these i think are sufficient to determin the case in debate , and to convince any unprejudic'd man , that pious and well composed forms , are so far from deadening the publick devotions , that they contribute sundry great advantages to it . and indeed if publick forms do deaden the peoples devotion , it must be either as they always confine the devotions of the people to the same set of words , which , as i have proved at large , is a great advantage to their devotion ; or as they do pro tempore confine them to a certain set of words ; in which sense the ministers extempore prayer is a form to the people , and doth as much confine their devotions to a certain set of words , pro tempore , as any stated form whatsoever . and now , if after all this , it be objected by our brethren , that they find by experience , which is the best argument , that forms do actually deaden their devotion , i would beseech them seriously to consider , whether this experience of theirs be not founded in an unreasonable prejudice ; and if it be , whether it 's fit that their unreasonable prejudice should prescribe to the whole church ? it's certain , that there are other men as truly pious and devout as they , who find by experience , that joyning with the publick forms is a great advantage to their devotion ; so that here is experience against experience ; and certainly where there are two contrary experiences of the same thing , they cannot both proceed from the nature of the thing ; but one , or t'other must necessarily arise from the disposition and temper of those who are conversant about it : now i have shew'd that forms of prayer are in themselves real advantages to publick devotion , and that they are so , there are many thousands of good christians can attest by their own experience ; and therefore if our brethren do not experience the same , the fault must lie in their own prejudice , or temper , and there is no doubt to be made , but would they heartily indeavour to cure their own prejudice , and to dispossess their minds of those groundless piques they have entertain'd against our liturgy ; would they but peruse it with impartial eyes ; consider the contents , and labour to affect their minds with the sense and matter of it ; they would quickly find the same experience of its advantageousness to publick devotion , as those blessed martyrs did who compos'd it , us'd , and at last died for it , and valued every leaf of it as an inestimable treasure ; and as we should consent in our experience , so we should also in our communion , and with one heart and one mouth glorifie our father together . finis . conscience the best friend upon earth: or, the happy effects of keeping a good conscience very useful for this age. by henry stubbes, minister of the gospel. stubbes, henry, 1606?-1678. 1677 approx. 100 kb of xml-encoded text transcribed from 68 1-bit group-iv tiff page images. text creation partnership, ann arbor, mi ; oxford (uk) : 2005-10 (eebo-tcp phase 1). a61865 wing s6029c estc r222100 99833330 99833330 37806 this keyboarded and encoded edition of the work described above is co-owned by the institutions providing financial support to the early english books online text creation partnership. this phase i text is available for reuse, according to the terms of creative commons 0 1.0 universal . the text can be copied, modified, distributed and performed, even for commercial purposes, all without asking permission. early english books online. (eebo-tcp ; phase 1, no. a61865) transcribed from: (early english books online ; image set 37806) images scanned from microfilm: (early english books, 1641-1700 ; 2064:13) conscience the best friend upon earth: or, the happy effects of keeping a good conscience very useful for this age. by henry stubbes, minister of the gospel. stubbes, henry, 1606?-1678. [24], 80, [4] p. printed and are to be sold by john hancock at the sign of the three bibles in popes head alley in cornhill, london : 1677. advertisements bound at end. imperfect; pages stained and torn affecting legibility. reproduction of the original in the british library. created by converting tcp files to tei p5 using tcp2tei.xsl, tei @ oxford. re-processed by university of nebraska-lincoln and northwestern, with changes to facilitate morpho-syntactic tagging. gap elements of known extent have been transformed into placeholder characters or elements to simplify the filling in of gaps by user contributors. eebo-tcp is a partnership between the universities of michigan and oxford and the publisher proquest to create accurately transcribed and encoded texts based on the image sets published by proquest via their early english books online (eebo) database (http://eebo.chadwyck.com). the general aim of eebo-tcp is to encode one copy (usually the first edition) of every monographic english-language title published between 1473 and 1700 available in eebo. eebo-tcp aimed to produce large quantities of textual data within the usual project restraints of time and funding, and therefore chose to create diplomatic transcriptions (as opposed to critical editions) with light-touch, mainly structural encoding based on the text encoding initiative (http://www.tei-c.org). the eebo-tcp project was divided into two phases. the 25,363 texts created during phase 1 of the project have been released into the public domain as of 1 january 2015. anyone can now take and use these texts for their own purposes, but we respectfully request that due credit and attribution is given to their original source. users should be aware of the process of creating the tcp texts, and therefore of any assumptions that can be made about the data. text selection was based on the new cambridge bibliography of english literature (ncbel). if an author (or for an anonymous work, the title) appears in ncbel, then their works are eligible for inclusion. selection was intended to range over a wide variety of subject areas, to reflect the true nature of the print record of the period. in general, first editions of a works in english were prioritized, although there are a number of works in other languages, notably latin and welsh, included and sometimes a second or later edition of a work was chosen if there was a compelling reason to do so. image sets were sent to external keying companies for transcription and basic encoding. quality assurance was then carried out by editorial teams in oxford and michigan. 5% (or 5 pages, whichever is the greater) of each text was proofread for accuracy and those which did not meet qa standards were returned to the keyers to be redone. after proofreading, the encoding was enhanced and/or corrected and characters marked as illegible were corrected where possible up to a limit of 100 instances per text. any remaining illegibles were encoded as <gap>s. understanding these processes should make clear that, while the overall quality of tcp data is very good, some errors will remain and some readable characters will be marked as illegible. users should bear in mind that in all likelihood such instances will never have been looked at by a tcp editor. the texts were encoded and linked to page images in accordance with level 4 of the tei in libraries guidelines. copies of the texts have been issued variously as sgml (tcp schema; ascii text with mnemonic sdata character entities); displayable xml (tcp schema; characters represented either as utf-8 unicode or text strings within braces); or lossless xml (tei p5, characters represented either as utf-8 unicode or tei g elements). keying and markup guidelines are available at the text creation partnership web site . eng conscience -sermons -early works to 1800. sermons, english -17th century. 2004-11 tcp assigned for keying and markup 2004-12 aptara keyed and coded from proquest page images 2005-01 rachel losh sampled and proofread 2005-01 rachel losh text and markup reviewed and edited 2005-04 pfs batch review (qc) and xml conversion conscience the best friend upon earth or , the happy effects of keeping a good conscience . very useful for this age. by henry stvbbes , minister of the gospel . acts 23. 1. i have lived in all good conscience before god untill this day . london , printed and are to be sold by john hancock at the sign of the three bibles in popes head alley in cornhill . 1677. to the readers conscience . conscience ; how thou wilt take it i know not : however i have adventured to write a few lines unto thee , because i know thou art well acquainted with my reader , and canst do much with him if thou wilt ; and if thou be a good conscience thou wilt . naturally good i know thou art , i would hope that thou art spiritually good , purged from dead works by the bloud of christ , heb. 9. 14. and made good by the power of the resurrection of jesus christ , 1 pet. 3. 21. and art able to give a reason by thy hope to be saved , 1 pet. 3. 15 , 16. and that thou standest upon thy watch and ward against sin , satan , and the world , 1 tim. 1. 18 , 19. however thou art naturally good ; something thou hast retained since the fall , all is not lost : reason , knowledge , and the power of reflection thou hast ; and to speak according to thy knowledge , and to tell every one with whom thou hast to do the truth how 't is with them , is thy essential property . even those ( john 8. 6 , 9. ) that tempted christ , that they might have something to accuse him of , were convicted of their consciences ; their consciences dealt plainly with them , and told them the truth , that they were not without sin . conscience , thou art the candle of the lord searching the inward parts , the most secret thoughts , desires , and intents of the heart , prov. 20. 27. according to that of the apostle , 1 cor. 2. 11. what man knoweth the things of a man , save the spirit of a man within him ? thou didst tell pharaoh that he was wicked , exod. 9. 27. and josephs brethren , that they were guilty , gen. 42. 21. and judas that he had sinned in betraying innocent bloud , matth. 27 3 , 4. i pray thee do as much for my reader if thou see cause for it . it may be thou art a well read conscience in the law of god , enlightned and rightly informed : if thou be so , thou knowest my readers estate godward , whether good or bad , in the state of grace or nature . thou must needs know , for thou art always at home with him , and there is not a thought in his heart but thou art privy to it , nor a word in his tongue but thou hearest it , nor a work of his hand but thou seest it . god hath made thee his spy and overseer , that so thou mayst be a true witness for or against him . conscience , thou canst tell whether my reader be a child of wrath , as he was born , eph. 2. 3. or whether he be born again , and so be a child of god by faith in jesus christ , gal. 3. 26. thou canst tell whether he be as yet to this day in the gall of bitterness and bond of iniquity , as he acts 8. 23. thou canst tell whether he be in the flesh , and do live after the flesh , or no. whether he be the same that ever he was , or whether he be a new creature , the workmanship of god by a second creation , born of god and of the spirit , sanctified throughout , cleansed from filthiness of flesh and spirit . whether he worship god in spirit and truth . whether he have onely the form of godliness , or the power also . whether he be a christian outwardly onely , or inwardly also . whether a hearer onely , or a doer also . whether he have onely a name to live , or be alive indeed . whether he be barren and unfruitful , or fuitful in every good work . whether his knowledge be effective and operative , and so saving . whether his faith be unfeigned , the faith of gods elect , working , purifying , conquering . whether his repentance be repentance unto life , bearing the fruits of carefulness , clearing , indignation , fear , vehement desire , zeal , revenge , 2 cor. 7. 11. whether his obedience be universal . whether he esteem all gods precepts concerning all things to be right , and whether he hate every salfe way , psal. 119. 128. conscience , thou canst tell whether my reader have laid aside all malice and all guile , and hypocrisies , and envies , and evil speakings , as he is required , 1 pet. 2. 1. whether he desires the since●e milk of the word , that he may grow thereby , ver . 2. and whether he do grow or not . whether he be contented with what he hath attained , or whether he press forward , after pauls example , phil. 3. 13 , 14. whether he make religion the greatest business he has to do in the world . whether gods word be his rule in all . whether gods glory be his end in all . whether he seek his own things , or the things of christ , most . whether his heart be godward , christward , heavenward . whether his conversation be in heaven , and his affections upon things above . whether he have oyl in his vessel as well as in his lamp . whether he can prove his vnion with christ. whether he has made his calling and election sure . whether he be yet made meet for the inheritance of the saints in light . whether he love the appearing of christ. and conscience thou canst tell me whether my reader does live by the faith of the son of god , as paul did , gal 2. 20. whether he shew out of a good conversation his works with meekness of wisdom , janies 3. 13. what work and labour of love he hath shewed towards the name of christ , whether he have ministred to the saints , and do minister , heb. 6. 10. whether he fulfill all the wills of god , as david did , acts 13. 22. whether he follow god fully , as caleb did . whether he be righteous before god , walking in all the commandments and ordinances of the lord blameless , as zechary and elizabeth , luke 1. 6. whether he be holy in all manner of conversation , as he is required to be , 1 pet. 1. 15. whether his conversation in this world be in simplicity and godly sincerity , 2 cor. 1. 12. whether he be zealous of good works , tit. 2. 14. whether the zeal of gods house do even eat him up . whether he be contented to be nothing that god may be all , and to be accounted vile so god may be honoured . whether he deny himself , and take up his cross and follow christ , matth. 16. 24. whether he rejoyce in hope , and be patient in tribulation , and continue instant in prayer , rom. 12. 12. now ( conscience ) i have an earnest request to thee ; and seeing thou always lodgest in the bosom of my reader , thou canst not want an opportunity to do what i shall request of thee . my request is this , that thou wouldest deal honestly with my reader , and tell him the truth of his estate what it is . if he be a child of wrath , and in the gall of bitterness and bond of iniquity , tell him so , and say to him as peter to simon magus , acts 8. 23. i perceive thou art in the gall of bitterness and bond of iniquity , a child of wrath , and the wrath of god will come upon thee if thou continue so , eph. 5. 6. if my reader do live after the flesh , ( and sure thou canst tell whether he does so or no. ) good conscience , tell him that he does so , and that if he shall continue so to do , he shall die ; and shew him rom. 8. 13. and bid him read it . if my reader do the work of the lord negligently , deceitfully ; if he offer to god a corrupt thing when he has a male to offer , tell him of the curse which hangs over his head , and make him read jer. 48. 10. mat. 1. 14. if he have no prayer in his family , cause him to read jer. 10. 25. if he remember not the sabbath day to keep it holy , give him no rest , till thou hast gotten him to read and ponder upon what is written jer. 17. 27. if he be an idle , slothful , unprofitable servant in the lords work , shew him matth. 25. 30. if he be an unfruitful tree in the lords vineyard , prevail with him ( for thou canst do it ) to read again and again the words of christ luke 13. 7 ▪ 8 ▪ 0. shew him also matth. 7. 17. and heb. 6. 7 , 8. say to him , why dost thou not take the bible and read it ? conscience , if my reader believe not in jesus christ , if he do not obedientially rest upon him alone for salvation , tell him that if he do not believe the sooner he must be damned , mark 16. 16. if he have not repented , if he have not confessed his sin , and mourned for it , and turned from it unto god ; tell him he must do it or perish , and shew him luke 13. 3 , 5. if he be unrighteous , good conscience tell him , that if he continue such , he shall never inherit the kingdom of god. compell him to read 1 cor. 6. 9 , 10. if he be unholy , tell him , that he shall never see the lord ; and let him not be quiet till he has taken the bible and read it in heb. 12. 14. if he be unregenerate , tell him , he cannot , ( if he continue so ) see the kingdom of god. put the bible into his hand , and bid him read john 3. 3●5 . conscience , if my reader be a neglecter of that great salvation profered in the gospel , and continue so , tell him that he cannot escape damnation , and shew him heb. 2. 3. if he turn away from him that speaketh from heaven to him , tell him that he cannot escape the wrath of god ; and shew him heb. 12. 25. and acts 3. 23. and ask him whether he be not afraid of destruction ? and if he shall still refuse to hearken , and still pull away the shoulder , and stop his ears , and make his heart like an adamant stone , tell him that great wrath will come upon him , zech. 7. 11 , 12. conscience , if my reader be one of that black catalogue 1 cor. 6. 9 , 10. or a doer of the works of the flesh , gal. 5. 19 , 20 , 21. tell him , that he shall not inherit the kingdom of god. and if he ask thee what warrant thou hast to say so , refer him to the forecited scriptures . conscience , if my reader should be fearful , unbelieving , abominable ; if he should be a murderer , a whoremonger , a sorcerer , an idolater , a liar ; tell him that if he continue such , he must have his part in the lake that burneth with fire and brimstone : and make him read rev. 21. 8. conscience , if my reader be a proud person , tell him from god , that god is able to abase him , dan. 4. 37. and will be above him , exod. 18. 11. and bring him down , psal. 18. 27. and low , prov. 29. 23. even to destruction , prov. 16. 18. and 15. 25. get him also to read isa. 2. 11. to 18. and isa. 3. 16. to the end . if my reader be a covetous person , good conscience , let him know from the word of god , 1. that he is a troubler of his own house , prov. 15. 27. 2. that he is in gods account an idolater , col. 3. 5. eph. 5. 5. 3. that he is hated and abhorred of god , psal. 10. 3. 4. that he is sorely threatned isa. 5. 8. isa. 10. 1 , 2. job 20. 15 , 19 , 20. and 27. 16 , 17 , 18. 1 cor. 6. 10. and get him to read 1 tim. 6. 9 , 10. and ( conscience ) if my reader be a voluptuous person , an adulterous unclean person , i must intreat thee to send him to the bible , and to see that he read and consider these following scriptures of the old and new testament ; prov. 2. 18 , 19. prov. 5. 3 , 4 , 5 , 6 , to 14. prov. 6. 26 , 32 , ●3 . prov. 7. 21. to the end of the chap. prov. 22. 14. prov. 23. 27. prov. 29. 3. eccles. 7. 26. 1 cor. 5. 9. 1 cor. 6. 9 , 10. eph. 5. 5 , 6. heb. 13. 4. rev. 21. 8. and 22. 15. good conscience , be at him again and again , and never leave him till thou hast gotten him to go into his closet , and there to spend one quarter or half an hour in pondering on these scri●●●●● . conscience , do thy office ; thou art gods deputy , fail not to be faithful . possibly thou mayest say , that thou hast done it again and again , but they will not hear , they are deaf to me as well as to you . but conscience , if thou be a good conscience , speak louder , speak not with so low a voice , lift up thy voice like a trumpet , for thou art ordained a preacher to shew my readers their transgressions and sins . be not silent whether they will hear , or whether they will forbear , yet speak unto them . i know my readers , many of them , will endeavour to silence and stop thy mouth ; they do not love to be told of their faults , or what their estate is : but conscience be not thou rebellious , but do that which is thine office to do . i know thou hast much to charge my readers with . some of them ( thou knowest ) do neither read the s●riptures , nor pray in their families , nor cathechize them that are committed to their charge . others pray not in their closets , nor do they commune with their own hearts about their spiritual estates ; they examine not themselves , whether they be in the faith , or whether christ be in them ; they compare not themselves with the word of god , to know how it is with them . some spend their time and strength , and estates in rioting and drunkenness , in chambering and wantonness , in strife and envying some trifle away their precious time in taverns , ale-houses , play-houses coffee-houses . some embrace this present world with demas . some are lovers of pleasures more then lovers of god. some acknowledge god in their words , and in their works deny him . some have left their first love . some are lukewarm , neither hot nor ●●ld . some say , lord , lord , but will not do the things that he says unto them . some believe not with their hearts what with their mouth they say they do believe . some confess sin with their lips , but do neither mourn for it , nor hate it , nor turn from it with their hearts . some pray for that they would not have . some hear the word , but will not do it . some love in word and tongue , but not in deed and in truth . some fashion themselves according to this world , yet would not be thought to be of the world . some dedicate and devote their children to god , to the service of that one god who is father , son , and holy ghost ; and when they have so done , they alienate them from his service to the service of the world , flesh , and devil , breeding them np in idleness , pride , and wantonness . never , or never to any purpose minding them of their baptis●al covenant and engagements , to be ●holy and only the lords . some neglect relative duty , ( as thou conscience knowest very well . ) are not some husbands bitter to ●heir wives , and some wives disobedient to their husbands ? do not some parents provoke their children to wrath ? and do not some children dishonour their parents ? do not some masters deny that which is just and equal to their servants ? and are not some servants unfaithful to their masters ? dost thou not know all this to be true , conscience ? doubtless thou doest , and doubtless thou doest often nip and twinge them for it . but good conscience make them feel , make them smart , let them not go on in peace , disturb them , hannt them continually , tell them their own , and take a fit time and season for it . my reader does frequently , or some●imes at least , hear sermons . sermons of the necessity of the new-birth , faith , repentance , holiness . take this opportunity , conscience , of telling him the truth . say to him , hearest thou what the preacher sayes ? hath he not clearly proved the necessity of new birth , faith , repentance , holiness , unto life eternal . what wilt thou do , man , woman ? thou art not new-born , thou hast not believed nor repented , thou art not holy. sure thou canst not enter into the kingdom of heaven , joh. 3. 3. sure thou must be damned , mat. 16. 16. sure thou must perish , luke . 13. 3. thou canst not see the lord to thy comfort in that unholy estate thou art now in heb. 12. 14. my reader prayes constantly , or sometimes at least , and sayes , lord give me a better heart , a new heart , a clean heart , a soft heart , a single heart . lord , write thy law in my heart , plant thy fear in my heart , put thy spirit into me , cause me to walk in thy statutes . now , conscience , tell h●● the truth ; say to him , thou drawest ●igh to god with thy lips , but thy heart is far from him . thy lip doth ask these things of god , but thy heart does not desire them ; thou art well enough satisfied and contented , though thou be denied . my reader is sometimes busy in his calling : conscience , go to him and say , o how busy thou art for back and belly ! what provision makest thou for thy soul ? my reader is sometimes at a feast , or at his own table : go to him , conscience , and say , o how sweet this meat is to thy taste ! when shall the word of god , and the meat indeed , and the drink indeed , be as sweet ? my reader is sometimes in a tavern , ale-house , or coffee-house . conscience , when he has done his necessary business there , go to him and say , is not thy family , or closet , a fitter●place for thee to be in ? sometimes he is walking in the fields : conscience , go to him and ask him what ●e is meditating on , and put him in mind of isaac's practice , gen. 24. 6. my reader is sometimes sick : go ●t him , conscience , and say , this is th● just hand of god upon thee : and bi● him take his bible and read jer. 4. 18 ▪ sometimes my reader takes physick ▪ go to him , conscience , and say to him ▪ when wilt thou be at so much cost for thy soul ? when wilt thou spare so much time from thy business for thy soul ? when wilt thou keep thy chamber a day or two for thy souls health ? possibly my reader has lately been recovered out of a dangerous fit of sickness : go to him , conscience , and put him in mind of ●is sick●bed prayers and purposes , and say to him , sin no more , lest a worse thing come unto thee . conscience , have but a very little patience more , and i have done . some of my readers , thou knowest , have lain under the meanes of grace a long time vnconverted ; would i could perswade thee 〈◊〉 force them to read heb. 6. 7 , 8. jer. ● 29. ezek. 24. 13 , 14. mat. 23. 37 , 38. luke 19. 41 , 42. 2 cor. 13. 5. and not let them be quiet until they have mused a while on each . conscience , i am in care and fear about my readers , lest that dreadful message be sent to them , that once was sent to israel of old , isa. 6. 9 , 10. with rom. 11. 18. i beseech thee , conscience , suffer them not to eat , drink , or sleep in quiet , until they have fixed their thoughts a while on this message after the reading of it . conscience , i am out of hopes of my readers welfare , unless thou be the more vigilant , a●●gent , and faithful in doing thy office . wherefore i beseech you , nay i charge you , as once paul charged timothy , 2 tim. 4. 1. before god and the lord jesus christ , who shall judge the quick , and the dead at his appearing and his kingdom ; preach the word to my reader , be instant in season , out of season ; reprove , rebuke , exhort him , and continue thy speech to him ( as once paul did to his hearers acts 20. 7. ) until midnight , rather then fail of prevailing with him . there are a few other scriptures , which i desire my reader might peruse , viz. 1 sam. 2. 25. 2 chro. 25. 16. pro. 29. 1. but , conscience , if thou wilt not by earnest and continual urging compel him , he will not bestow the time , nor take the paines to do it . in hope thou wilt be faithful to my reader , i shall add no more save only the promise of my prayers that thou mayst be so . sermon i. job 26. 7. my righteousness i hold fast , and will not let it go : my heart shall not reproach me so long as i live . my righteousness i hold fast . his friends would have robb'd him of it , would have persuaded him out of it , would have argued and disputed him out of it , but you shall not do it saith job ; i stand up in the defence of it , i hold it fast , i will not let it go● say what you will , do what you can , i will maintain my integrity , i am not an hypocrite as you would have me think i am ; i am not an unrighteous man as you would speak me to be , and as you would have me take my self to be ; no , my righteousness i will hold fast , i will not let it go ; pull while you will , i will hold it fast . take we up the like resolution : there are some that pretend to be friends , pretend friendship and kindness , but act the part of job's friends here . oh how many are there that would spoil us of our righteousness ! the world , the flesh , and the devil , pull to take it away ; hold we our resolution not to let it go . should i let it go , ( saith job ) my heart would reproach me , would upbraid me ; my conscien●e would accuse me of wrong done to my self , which is worse then doing wrong to others . it is bad to wrong others much worse to wrong our selves : therefore he is resolved , my heart shall not reproach me , no not so long as i live . in which words you have job's holy resolution , my heart shall not reproach me . my heart , that is , my conscience , for so heart is to be understood ; if ou heart condemn us , go is greater then our heart : and if our heart condemn us not , &c. that is , our conscience . so that by heart you must here understand conscience . conscience ! is there any such thing in the world ? sure one would think that conscience had been dead long ago , and that there was no conscience now alive in the world. but ( sirs ) it will have a resurrection assure your selves , for it is of an immortal nature ; and though it may seem 〈◊〉 die , it will have a real resurrection . sleep is the image of death , and conscience may for awhile be asleep , but as sure as ever thou didst awake when thou wast asleep , conscience will awake ere long ; and when it shall awake it will make you look about . my conscience shall not reproach me , shall not upbraid , shall not accuse me of any wrong done to mysel● , nor of any omission of what is my duty , nor of any commission of what is . transgression , it shall not accuse me , either for omitting what god hath commanded , ( and god hath commanded me to preserve my own integrity , and to seek my own peace and quiet ; ) or accuse me for committing what god hath forbidden . god hath forbidden me the wronging of my self , and conscience shall not accuse me for doing what god hath forbidden , so long as i live . hitherto his conscience accused him not . o excellent job ! a man more righteous then his neighbour . indeed he was one that had the commendation of god himself ; no wonder he doth stand up in his own justification , being a person that had gods so great commendation : job 1. 1. there was a man in the land of vz , whose name was job , and that man was perfect and upright , one that feared god and eschewed evil . and a further commendation the lord gave him ver . 8 hast thou not considered my serva job , that there is none like him in the earth ? &c. no wonder that he stands upon his own justification . hither to i have so lived that my conscience cannot accuse me , and he was resolved so to live . i will have a care ( whatever i suffer ) to have conscience on my side ; i will have conscience to be my friend ; i will not do any thing that shall occasion conscience to be my foe ; for i were better to have all the world , yea if there were ten thousand worlds , it were better for me to have them all to be my mortal enemies , than to have conscience to be mine enemy . now it will be needful to consider what conscience is that is so great a friend or foe : it will be the best friend , or the worst enemy , according as your carriage towards god and man shall be . i shall shew , 1. what conscience is . 2. about what it is imployed . 〈…〉 is implo ▪ and then when i have so done , i shall tell you and prove it , that it should be your greatest care so to live , that conscience may not reproach you whilest you live ; and then give you reasons of it , and then apply it . 1. general . what conscience is . briefly , conscience is a mans judgment of himself : i.e. of his estate and actions ; this is conscience . or thus , if you will ; conscience is a power of the soul ; for the soul is endowed with noble powers and faculties , vnderstanding , conscience , memory , will , and affections : and conscience is not the least of them . i say , conscience is a power of the soul taking notice and bearing witness of all a mans thoughts , words , and actions ; and as it finds them , either to agree or not agree with the rule , it accuses or excuses , absolves or condemns comforts or torments . this is conscience . do you think there is any such inhabitant in you ? it may be some have taken no notice of any such inhabitant in the house of their soul , whether there be any such power of the soul , or no. i say it again , conscience is a power of the soul , taking notice , and bearing witness , ( it takes notice that it may bear witness ) of all a mans thoughts , words , and actions ; and as it finds his thoughts , words , or actions , to be either agreeing or not agreeing with the rule , so it doth excuse or accuse , absolve or condemn , comfort or torment . this is conscience . 1. it is a power of the soul ; it is called heart 1 john 3. 20. for if our heart coudemn us , &c. and eccles. 7. 22. for oftentimes also thine own heart knoweth , &c. it is called likewise the spirit of a man , prov. 18. 14. the spirit of a man will sustain his infirmities , but a wounded spirit who can bear ? 2. conscience is a power of the soul taking notice ; it is a most curious observer . conscience is very quick sighted . it is continually prying , though we do not observe and take notice of it ; yet so it is . what is said of god psalm 139. 3 , 4. is true of his deputy : who is that ? it is conscience . conscience is no mean thing , it is gods deputy , and what is said of god in that place is true of conscience : thou compassest my path and my lying down , and thou art acquainted with all my ways , for there is not a word in my mouth , but lo , o lord , thou knowest it altogether : thou hast beset me behind and before . so that a man cannot stir but god seeth and conscience seeth , and knoweth and taketh notice of it ; and one would wonder how conscience will revive what was done seven years , and three times seven years , ago . conscienc● will whisper in your ear , this was your heart , and this was in your tongue , and this was in your hands , this was thought by you , that was spoken by you , and that was done by you ; that which we had utterly forgotten . how fresh many years after doth conscience bring it to mind ? conscience took notice of it , and did well observe it . thus coscience is a power of the soul taking notice . 3. and bearing witness , it taketh notice that it may bear witness , if it should not take notice it could not bear witness . can a man bear witness that which he never knew , which he never saw , nor heard ? rom. 2. 14. the apostle speaking of the gentiles saith , having not the law , they do by nature the things contained in the law : these having not the law , are a law unto themselves , which shew the work of the law written in their hearts , their conscience also ●●eiring witness . it is an old prover●ial speech , conscience is a thousand witnesses ; nay it 's more then a thousand or ten thousand witnesses ; that one witness is enough to cast us . if conscience be a witness , there is no need of any further witness . as they said of christ , what need we any further witness , we have it from his own mouth ? so will the lord say to the sinner , what need any further witness , his own conscience is witness ? you read of the testimony of conscience , sometimes it is for , and sometimes against . 1. it is sometimes for us , as 2 cor. 1. 12. this is our rejoycing ( saith the apostle ) the testimony of our conscience , that in all simplicity and godly sincerity , not with fleshly wisdom , but by the grace of god , we have had our conversation in the world . 2. and sometimes against us , and then 't is a hell above ground , a hell on this side hell. 3. it further follows , that consc●ence is a power of the soul takin● notice of , and bearing witness of a mans thoughts , words , and actions , so that the thoughts shall not escape consciences observation , nor shall a word escape consciences hearing , nor a work consciences recording . and as conscience finds the thoughts , words , or actions , either agreeing or not agreeing with the rule , it will excuse or accuse . conscience cannot be a witness of our thoughts , words , and actions , whether they be according to the rule , or contrary to it , whether they agree with the rule , or warp from it , unless it be a strict observer . and if it find our thoughts , words , and actions to agree with the rule , it excuseth ; if not to agree with the rule , it accuseth : rom. 2. 15. their thoughts in the mean while accusing or excusing one another . 4. and then it follows , absolving or condemning . for the truth is , conscience is a judge , a deputy judge , which god hath set up and given power to , that according as it finds thoughts , words , and actions , to be according to rule , or not according to rule , it may either acquit or condemn . 5. and then , it comforteth or tormenteth also , as it findeth thoughts , words , and actions , either to agree or not to agree with the rule . 2 cor. 1. 12. this is our rejoycing the testimony of our conscience ; there is the comfort of conscience . and mark 9. 44. it is a worm that never dieth ; there is the torment of it . thus you see conscience is a power of the soul , taking notice and bearing witness , of all a mans thoughts words and actions ; and as it finds them either agreeing or not agreeing with the rule , it excuseth , or accuseth , absolveth or condemneth , comforteth or tormenteth . this is called conscience 〈◊〉 it is called conscience some think ●●cause it is a knowledge with oth●● pray observe god knows , angels know , devils know , men know , and all these witness , and conscience knows and witnesseth with them . 1. god knows if you read job 16. 19. my witness is in heaven , my record is on high . there is one in heaven that knows , and one in heaven that can witness ; though the husband doth not know , though the wife doth not know , and father and friend doth not know , yet god knows , and there is one on earth knows , and that is conscience . god is my witness , saith paul , rom. 1. 9. god doth know it , and can witness it . all things are naked and open to him with whom we have to do , heb. 4. 13. it is a notable scripture , hos. 7. 2. and they consider not in their hearts , that i remember all their wickedness . whoever forgets it , and though they themselves forget it , yet i remember it well enough . they do not consider that i remember all their wickedness , their own doings have beset them about , they are all before my face , even what is not be fore the husbands face and the wifes face . god knows what things are acted behind one anothers backs ; all is before gods face , he knows it , and takes notice of it . 2. angels know it too ; the angels are ministring spirits about some ; they are imployed here on earth , though we take no notice of it . they are in our congregations and meetings , and they observe how we carry our selves there . for this cause ought the woman to have power on her head , because of the angels , saith the apostle , 1 cor. 11. 10. i.e. the woman is to be modest in the congregation because of the angels . the lord return modesty home again , for modesty seems to be banished from among us . but do angels know ? do the good angels know ? yes , when we do well the good angels rejoyce : if a sinne● be converted , if the lost sheep be found , there is joy among the angels ; therefore they know it . 3. the bad angels know too , they go about as observers . you cannot go to the congregation , but the devil makes one there . the sower goes out to sow the good seed , then comes the enemy , the devil , and steals it away , matth. 13. 19. he also goes about as a roaring lion every where , 1 pet. 5. 8. he goes to and fro in the earth , and walks up and down in it , job . 1. 7. observing what people do ; for he is the accuser of the brethren , and he will when time serves remember people of what they have done , though done by his instigation and temptation : see zech. 3. 1. poor creatures are tempted to destroy ●hemselves ; well , god delivers them , ●nd now they are ashamed . o what ● shame is this ( saith the devil ) that thou hast attempted to destroy thy self ? how canst thou look any body in the face without shame ? go and destroy thy self . this was the case of a poor creature that i have twice spoken with : once she attempted to drown her self ; i spake with her , and gave her the best counsell could : she answered me , i am ashamed , i am ashamed , i cannot go about any thing . not many days after she went into a wood to cut her own throat , but god delivered her : but this poor creature is still under discontent , the devil doth remember her . i beseech you consider how many witnesses there are of all that you do ; you think to sin in the dark , and to do it so that no eye shall see you , you think to draw the curtains , and then none can see you ; but you deceive your selves , it is noon day with god still , and so it is with angels , and with the devil too ; there is nothing hid fra● them . 4. men know , they are 〈◊〉 observers . some have their ey● 〈◊〉 their heads , and see that which should make their eyes weep and trickle down with tears , and if they have any zeal for god , the sight of their eyes will affect their hearts . and besides this conscience also knows , and therefore called conscience ( as some think ) because it knows with others . it knoweth with god , with angels , with devils , and knows it to be all true which god lays to our charge , and what the devil lays to our charge ; so that conscience is a knowledge together with others . rom. 9. 1. my conscience bearing me witness . my conscience co-witnessing , my conscience witnessing together with god ; god knows it , and doth witness it ; and my conscience knows it , and doth witness it ; and my conscience together with me knows it . there is a double act of the understanding ; there is a direct act whereby we know a thing , and there is a reflect act whereby we know that we know it . and this is the action of conscience . isa. 59. 12. for our transgressions are multiplied before thee , and our sins they testifie against us ; for our transgressions are with us , and as for our iniquities we know them , we know that we have sinned . so that conscience is a recoiling or a reflexion of the soul upon it self ; according to that of paul , 1 cor. 4. 4. ii. general . i come in the next place to shew about what conscience is imploy'd ▪ it is imploy'd about the whole man and all his actions . it hath a commission thus to employ it self about the understanding , how that doth act , about the memory to observe how that doth act , about the will how that doth act , and the affections how they do act , it is imployed to observe whether the man be sanctified or not , and it is imployed about his actions whether they be good or bad , about our actions towards god or man , towards our selves or others . and it is imployed about every thing that is either a sin or a duty . conscience is imployed to observe how you eat and drink , it is imployed to observe how you dress and habit your selves , how you buy and sell , and deal and trade in the world , it is imployed to observe how you read the scripture , pray in your family , in your clozet , and in the congregation , how you sanctifie the sabbath , receive sacraments , how you spend your time , how long you lye a bed in a morning , how late you set up at night , and about what ; to observe how you carry your selves alone , and how you carry your selves in comyany , to observe what you do in the streets , or in the field , in this place or in the other place , in this company or in the other company ; it goeth along with you , and it will never leave you . god help me to mind this . i hope you will make the same prayer for your selves , that i make for my self . iii. general . how conscience is imployed . from the description of conscience which i have given you , you may understand that conscience hath several offices , the office of a notary or register , the office of a witness or accuser , the office of a judge or a condemner , the office of a comforter or a tormenter ; conscience is imployed in such offices as these are , and conscience will first or last be faithful in the execution of them , and it will do it's office to purpose 1. it is imployed as a notary or register to write down all we do ; to write it down as with the point of a diamond , to book it down , and seal it up , that it may come to light again . 2. it is imployed as an accuser when we do amiss , when we warp from the rule . 3. it is imployed as a judge , to pass sentence of life or death . oh , sirs , how many poor souls are condemned by their own hearts ? their own consciences tell them , thou art a damned creature , thou art an undone soul ; it may be conscience as yet doth not set in judgment , it is not sessions or assizes time with you , it may be it is adjourned and put of to a longer time . but assure your selves the time will come , the time is at hand . 4. conscience is also imployed as a comforter , as an acquitter and absolver if we do well . 2 cor. 1. 12. this is our rejoycing , the testimony of our conscience , that in simplicity and godly sincerity , &c. we have had our conversation in the world . what greater rejoycing then this ? when conscience shall acquit me in the prescence of god , when conscience shall be able to say as hezekiah , remember , o lord , how i have walked before thee in truth and with a perfect heart , and have done that which is good in thy sight . oh what a comfort will it be when conscience shall reflect upon it's believing in christ , upon it's confession of sin , repentance and tears , sighs and groans for sin . this is my rejoycing , the testimony of my conscience ; that i have been alone in a corner in my clozet , with tears in mine eyes and sorrow in my heart , that i have rolled my self on christ , and cast all my ca●e upon him . 5. then as a tormenter conscience is imployed . when conscience shall recoil and thus reflect upon a man. when thou shoulds● have been in thy clozet thou wast here or there in the street or in the field , in the coffee house or taverns ; when thou shouldst have been with god alone , thou hast been elswhere . thou couldst lye down and rise up without having god be●fore thine eyes ; thou couldst eat and drink without fear and without rule , and buy and sell , and habi● thy self without fear . there is a● much danger in habiting and dressing our selves as in eating and drinking ; o what if this dress should be a snare , what if this should occasion the committing of adultery , he that looks upon a woman to lust after her , ( saith christ ) hath committed adultery with her already in his heart . saith one , there is a fine clear skin , and so saith a second , and a third ; but do you know what temptation may lye in a naked skin : the lord help us to take heed of it . i would commend you a little book , it is but 3 pence price , it is called the hairy comet , very fit for an hairy age. this is indeed an hairy age ; god deliver us from false hearts , for we can see almost nothing but false heads every where . assure your selves , conscience will have a bout with men for this another day . conscience will not let this go unobserved ; conscience doth write down this , and will hereafter find a time to read it to you , it may be the wife will say i must please my husband , and the husband will say i must please my wise. but have a care i beseech you to please conscience , that it may not be against you another day . see that conscience be for you , and that conscience may have no cause to upbraid you , and torment you another day . let jobs care be your care ; let not conscience reproach you so long as you live . i beseech you earnestly , let it be your great care to have a conscience void of offence towards god and towards man ; towards your selves and others . and if you so do , you will have no cause to repent your being here to hear this lesson . sermon ii. job 27. 6. my righteousness i hold fast , and will not let it go : my heart shall not reproaoh me so long as i live . this was jobs resolution , why should it not be ours ? those that have felt the reproaches of conscience once , would be loth to feel them a second time . the very bruit beasts ; when once they have been either in the mire , or in the fire , will take heed how they come there again . you can hardly force them into a bog wherein they have been mired , they will turn this way , and that way , and run back again upon you , rather then run into the mire wherein they have been already . a wounded conscience who can bear ? they that have felt that wound , and have gotten it heal'd , will take heed how they make another . the proposition i gave you was this ; it should be our greatest care so to live , that our consciences may have no occasion to accuse or reproach us while we live . some do so live that their neighbours can have no occasion to reproach them ; some there are that so live , that the very worst have a good word for them , i have known some that have been so unblamable , of such a sweet disposition , so kind and courteous to all , and have lived so inoffensively , that the worst have had a good word for them . but where are they that have or do carry themselves so , that their consciences have no occasision to accuse them , or to reproach them ? commend me to that person if you can . i have already shewed you what conscience is , and about what it is imployed , and how it is imployed . i come now to the proof of the doctrine . this was jobs care you see ; he was resolved upon it , that he would so walk and so watch that conscience might have no occasion to reproach him . and hath job no fellows ? yes many ; the scripture speaketh of such as have made it their care so to walk , that conscience might have no just occasion to reproach them . david was one of them , as appears by what he saith ps. 16. 8. ps. 119. 3 , 112 , 113. although there was a time when he gave conscience too great occasion to reproach him , and his conscience did reproach him to purpose at last . ah poor david ! what broken bones had he ? this was hezekiah's care , else he could not have had the testimony of his conscience for him as he had . remember ( saith he , isa. 38. 3. ) o lord , how i have walked before thee in truth and with a perfect heart , and have done that which is good in thy sight . perfect heart , that is , an upright heart ; perfection , not of degrees , but of parts , is there to be understood . there are many such other places in scripture , as in the book of psalms , mark the perfect man , and behold the upright ; where you find one word to explaine the other . this also was pauls care , else could not he have had the testimony of his conscience as he had . this is our rejoycing , ( saith he ) the testimony of our conscience , &c. 2 cor. 1. 12. it was pauls exercise , acts 24. 16. and herein do i exercise my self , to have always a conscience , void of offence , toward god and toward man. reason i. the grounds and reasons of it follow . one reason why we should take all possible care that conscience may have no occasion to reproach us is , because if occasion be given ; these reproaches are unavoidable ; i say , these reproaches , vexations , and accusations of conscience wil be unavoidable there is no escaping from them : we may give occasion to others , and possibly there may be some avoiding that which we give occasion of ; but here is no avoiding or escaping in this case . conscience may be asleep , and conscience may say nothing a great while , but at last it will awake and do it's office , in accusing and in judging , condemning and tormenting . david's conscience was asleep for a great while , but afterwards nathan cometh to him from the lord , and rouzeth conscience , and then conscience set most violently upon him ; as appears by the ps. 51. where he complaineth of broken bones , and prayeth that the bones which were broken might rejoyce . so joseph's brethren , they heard nothing of conscience a great while , but at last conscience twinges them , at last conscience put out his envenomed sting ; ( no such sting as the sting of conscience ) at last conscience taketh them by the throat , gen. 42. 21. and they said one to another , we are verily guilty concerning [ the blood of ] our brother , &c. though men do with the harlot for a great while wipe their mouths , and say , what evil have we done ? as joseph's brethren , they sold their brother joseph ; conscience said never a word to them , let them alone a great while : they came and told their father a lie , and conscience said never a word to them , when they told their father that joseph was slain ; they saw their father mourning as if he were going down into the grave , conscience saith nothing all the while : a famine cometh upon the land , conscience yet saith nothing to them : at last they come down into egypt , there they meet with hard usage , and are in danger of imprisonment . now conscience beginneth to rouze up itself like a lyon , to tear and devour ; then they cry out , verily we are guilty concerning the blood of our brother . you see conscience had an awakening time , though it had been asleep ; the morning came for its awakening . so judas his conscience was asleep for a great while ; and one would wonder that it should ever be so fast asleep as was . mat. 26. 15. you may read there some passages of it . he goeth to the chief priests and maketh a bargain ; what will you give me , and i will deliver jesus to you ? and they covenanted with him for thirty pieces of silver : there he maketh a bargain for a little silver to sell his lord and master , and to betray the innocent blood : conscience saith never a word to him . further , he sought for opportunity to betray christ , yet conscience saith nothing to him , v. 21. when he was come into the presence of his master , he came with the disciples to the passover , yet conscience saith nothing to him all the while : when he was at the passover and eating , christ telleth his disciples that one of them should betray him , yet judas's conscience saith never a word to him , but letteth him alone all this while . nay further , when the disciples at these words were exceeding sorrowful , and began to say every one of them , lord , is it i ? yet judas's conscience saith nothing to him . and christ said , he that dippeth his hand with me in the dish , the same shall betray me : yet his conscience was asleep all this while . further , ver . 24. christ pronounceth a wo to that man by whom he should be betrayed ; yet the denunciation of that wo did not awaken judas's conscience ; wo to him ; it had been good for that man he had never been born . it is matter of admiration and amazement , that his conscience should be so fast asleep ; the devil entred into him , and rocked conscience asleep , till he might be sure to do him mischeif enough ; ver . 25. then judas , which betrayed him , put the question and said , master , is it i ? methinks his conscience should have flown in his face like a mastiff . nay further , saith christ , thou hast said ; thou art the man : and yet for all this judas's conscience was not awake . this is indeed matter of admiration , that a mans conscience should be so fast asleep . but how many instances of such sleepy consciences doth this very age afford ? but doth judas's conscience sleep always ? no. then judas , which betrayed him , when he saw that jesus was condemned , he brought again the 30 pieces of silver to the chief priests and said , i have sinned , in that i have betrayed innocent blood . but miserable comforters were those christ-buyers , they bought him to be crucified ; they did reply to him when he said , i have sinned ; what is that to us ? see thou to that . and he cast down the thirty pieces of silver in the temple , and went and hanged himself . and now his conscience was so awake that it would not suffer him to live . i assure you howsoever conscience may be asleep for a great while , yet the time will come that conscience will do it's office ; and therefore it doth greatly concern us to take great care that conscience may have no occasion to reproach us . o happy judas if thou hadst never made a bargain to sell thy master , and hadst never sought opportunity to betray him ! o happy , if thou hadst never accompanyed the band of souldiers , that came to apprehend him ! but he came along with the band of souldiers , and gave them the sign , the man whom i shall kiss is the man , hold him fast : yet conscience did not reproach him . but let men do what they can to stop the mouth of conscience , it will speak at last and they will be biting words . carnal reasonings cannot stop it , carnal pleasures cannot bribe it , nor any variety of diversions silence it . cain , you know , he was quiet awhile , gen ▪ 4. 13. but after a while cain's conscience did reproach him , would not let him alone . belshazzar , he is merry a while with his courtiers and companions in drinking wine in bowls , but after he falls a trembling , and his knees smote one against the other , and he grew pale when he saw the hand writing on the wall . conscience will fee an hand writing not on the wall , but in this book . i have spoken with some poor souls , that could say , this word is against me , and that word is against me ; there are words enough in this book against you . conscience will one day awake and reproach , and will not be bribed , will not have its mouth stopt . this is one great reason why we should be careful so to live , that conscience may not reproach us while we live , for the reproches of conscience are unavoidable . reason ii. another reason why we should take all possible care that ▪ conscience may have no occasion to reproach us , is because the reproaches of conscience are intolerable , there will be no bearing of them . a wounded spirit who can bear ? none are able to bear it . many instances might be given ; you may read job 7. 13 , 14 , 15. when i say , my bed shall comfort me , my couch shall ease my complaint ; then thou scarest me with dreams , and terri●iest me with visions , so that my soul chuseth strangling , and death rather then life . oh sirs , what a case will the terrours and accusations of conscience bring the poor creature into ? job 10. 1. my soul is weary of my life ; i will leave my complaint upon my self , &c. psalm 32. 3 , 4. when i kept silence my bones-waxed old through my roaring all the day , &c. all this was occasioned through the reproaches of conscience . i might add , prov. 12. 25. heaviness in the heart of a man maketh a man to stoop . i have known those that have been bowed together by reason of the agonies of conscience . i knew one , at whose eyes and ears bloud hath gushed forth by reason of the agonies of conscience . prov. 17. 22. a merry heart doth good like a medicine , but a broken spirit dries the bones . you know judas did chuse rather to die than endure it . bilney and baynham ( after they had abjured ) felt such pangs , such a hell in their consciences , till they had openly professed their sorrow for it , as they would not have felt again for all the world. daniel chose rather to be cast into the lions den , then to carry a lion in his bosom , viz. an enraged conscience . richard the third was a terror to himself after he had murdered his two innocent nephews . charles the ninth of fran●e , after that bloudy massacre by which his conscienc was enraged , could not endure to be awakened in the night , without musick or some other diversion . thus much for the reasons of the point : i proceed to the application . vse 1. of reproof . the first use shall be for reproof of those that take no such care to avoid the reproaches of conscience , but do that which will be cast by conscience as a reproach upon them another day . how do some for many years together heap up fuel to keep a fire burning within them ? no sooner is some fuel spent , but there is more fuel heapt on again ; fresh sins are committed , and after a while these sins come to remembrance , and set the fire a burning . it may be a man may weather it out a little , but then more sins come to light , and that sets the fire a burning again , and so there is no end . conscience hath not forgotten any thing done many years ago , but remembers it as if it had been done but yesterday . you that cannot endure to be reproached , that cannot endure to hear others reproached , that cannot bear the reproaches of men , whenas it may be they reproach wrongfully ; how will you bear ( not the false , but ) true accusations of conscience ? men may reproach falsly , but conscience will reproach truly . men may reproach thee , and yet thine own conscience may clear thee when they accuse thee ; but if conscience reproach thee , then who shall clear thee ? men may grow weary or ashamed of reproaching thee , but if conscience reproach thee , will that grow weary or ashamed ? no , never . if some men reproach us , others may clear us ; but if conscience reproach us , who then can clear us ? this should humble us , that we have given conscience occasion to reproach us . 2 sam. 24. 1. if you have not taken this care to avoid the reproaches of conscience , it will reproach you as it did david , whose heart smote him after he had numbered the people : and david said unto the lord , i have sinned greatly in that i have done ; i beseech thee ( o lord ) to take away the iniquity of thy servant , for i have done very foolishly . davids heart smote him , now his conscience , now his conscience , smites and cuts him to the very heart . though his conscience were quiet a great while , psal. 73. 21 , 22. yet afterwards he thus complains ; thus my heart was grieved , and i was pricked in my reins : so foolish was i and ignorant ; i was as a beast before thee . if you neglect conscience when it points with the finger , and gives direction ; assure your selves , conscience will have a time to smite with the fift , and to give correction , and then there will be no enduring of it : as it was with david when his heart smote him , psal. 69. 7. if shame covered davids face when men reproached him , oh what shame will cover our faces when conscience shall reproach us ! reproach hath broken my heart , ( saith he ) and i am full of heaviness . i looked for some to take pity , but there was none , and for comforters , but i found none . ver. 20. this will be your case and your complaint when conscience shall reproach you . reproach hath broken my heart . they gave me gall for meat , and vinegar to drink ; saith he , ver. 21. conscience will give gall and vinegar to us , unless some course be taken for the quieting of it ; if you make it not your care so to live , that conscience may not reproach you . to be able to say , for gods sake i have born reproach , psal. 69. 7. will be a comfort : but if for our lusts sake we bear reproach , what a torment will that be ? when conscience shall say , this is for the sake of that proud lust , this is for the sake of that drunken lust , that wanton lust of thine ; this is for that passion of thine , that froward and fretful spirit of thine : when conscience shall say , this is for the sake of such a lust which thou didst indulge , and kept as a sweet morsel under thy tongue , notwithstanding the persuasions of all gods ministers to the contrary ; how wilt thou be able to bear it ? vse 2. of exhortation . take care that conscience may not have occasion to reproach you while you live . the reasons before mentioned may serve as motives . the unavoidableness and intolerableness of these reproaches of conscience , these are motives enough to engage us to take all care that conscience may not reproach us . let it be your care to have a conscience void of offence , ( prov. 15. 15. 2 cor. 1. 12. ) and then conscience instead of accusing will excuse , instead of condemning it will acquit you . if you hearken to the voice of conscience informed and guided by the word of god , it will be a continual feast unto you , prov. 15. 15. and your daily rejoycing . this is our rejoycing , ( saith the apostle ) the testimony of our conscience that in simplicity and godly sincerity not with fleshly wisdom , but by the grace of god , we have had our conversation in the world . when a man hath conscience on his side , this will be a cordial in any condition whatsoever , in a prison , a cordial in a dungeon , a cordial in a strange country , and a cordial in the worst of sufferings that we 〈◊〉 meet with . keep conscience void of offence , and so live that conscience may not reproach you , and all will be well . how may we so live , you will say , that conscience may not reproach us while we live ? or if we have so lived , that conscience hath had cause to reproach us , how may we get those reproaches wiped off , and get conscience quiet again ? that i shall reserve for another opportunity . sermon iii. job 27. 6. my righteousness i hold fast , and will not let it go : my heart shall not reproach me so long as i live . having already shewed you what conscience is , and about what it is imployed , and how it is imployed , and given you several reasons why we should make it our great care so to live , that conscience may not reproach us while we live ; and having made some use of the doctrine , i now come to resolve two questions or cases . 1. the first is , how may we so live , walk and act , and carry our selves , that conscience may have no cause to reproach us another day ? 2. if we have so lived , so walked , so acted , and so carryed our selves , that conscience hath had just cause to reproach us , and doth reproach us ; what is to be done , that the reproaches of conscience may be wiped off , that conscience may be quiet , and cease to accuse and condemn , cease to vex and torment ? these are the two cases i am to answer . case 1. how may we so live , walk , act and carry our selves , that conscience may have no cause to reproach us ? you see that job did so live and carry himself , that though his friends did reproach him , his conscience did not reproach him ; though his friends did charge him , yet his conscience did discharge him , though his friends did condemne him , yet his conscience did acquit him . he did so live , that he was able to maintain his integrity and uprightness ; and doubtless it is not a thing impossible , but we do not set to it , we do not set about it in earnest . if we be christians indeed , and not almost christians , we might so live as conscience might have no just cause to reproach us . o sirs , relations may reproach us , wives may reproach husbands , and husbands reproach wives , children may reproach parents , and servants reproach their masters , and one neighbour reproach another ; but it is possible so to live , that conscience all this while may be at peace , and not reproach us . possibly you may be ready to think and say within your selves , would we could tell how we might so live , pray let us have some directions how we may so live that conscience may not reproach us . but before i give counsel should not i know of you whether you will follow it ? and in case you will not follow it , why should i give it ? ask your selves therefore , if the minister shall give us no other counsel then what god himself giveth us , should not i follow it ? sirs , if i give you any other counsel then what god in his holy word doth give you , i would intreat you not to follow it ; nay , if you set it at naught i shall not be offended . consider what jethro said to moses , exod. 18. 23. if thou shalt do this thing , and god command thee so ; so say i therefore consider whether god say as i say , whether god command you so ; if so , pray take heed how you do set at naught the counsel of god. now the first direction which i shall give you is this . direction i. set god always before you . and this will be a means so to live , that conscience may not reproach you . assure your selves there is no time wherein gods back is turned , no time wherein gods eye is not upon you : if you can find a time when god is absent , you may take your liberty and do what you list . you know of what force the masters presence is among the servants ; of what force the parents presence is among the children to restrain them ; of what force the presence of a minister , or a grave , serious , and holy christian , is to restrain people from what otherwise they would take liberty to do : sure gods presence should be of greater force to restrain us , if we did but live in the apprehension thereof . o if we could but set god always before us , what manner of persons should we be in all holy conv●rsation , all holy cogitation , and in all holy communication too ! david did set god always before him , and why should not we do so too ? psal. 16. 8. i have set the lord always before me . o then it was , that david was a man after gods own heart ; then it was that david was such a praying man , and such a praising man , and such an holy and heavenly man , when he did set the lord always before him . you know how persons will carry themselves in the sight of men , if they have any thing to do in the sight of others , how they will do it ; o that we could do all we do as in the sight of god. this was the charge that was given to abraham by god himself , gen. 17. 1. walk before me , and be thou perfect ; that is , upright . there is no such way to be upright . as to live in the apprehension of the presence of god , and to have this always run in our thoughts , god heareth , god sees , and god knows . o that this were written upon your desks and shop boards , god sees ; o that this were written upon your tables , god sees ; oh that this were written upon your looking glasses , god sees ; o that this were written upon all your attire and dresses , god sees ; and o that this were written upon your naked breasts and shoulders , god sees , and upon your faces and foreheads too . i do assure you ( sirs ) that god does see you ; o that you would live in the continual apprehension of it . god sees thee , god knows what all your thoughts are , what all your designs are , what all your sayings and doings are . be ever thinking , god knows , god hears , god sees . in all thy ways acknowledge him , and he shall direct thy paths , prov. 3. 6. this will make you careful to keep gods precepts , if in all your ways you look upon god as your observer and overseer . this was that which made david careful to observe gods precepts , psal. 119. 168. i have kept thy precepts and thy testimonies . o blessed david , how didst thou do this ! he tells you in the next words , for all my ways are before thee . i could heartily wish ●hat you would often and seriously read and consider these three or four scriptures ; job 34. 21 , 22. for his 〈◊〉 are upon the ways of man , and he sees all his goings . there is no darkness or shadow of death , where the workers of iniquity may hide themselves . there is no hiding from god , be sees all our goings ; we cannot set one foot before another but god sees it . alas , alas , if a man do but go out of doors god sees it , if he goes into the field god sees it , if he goes to other houses god sees it , if he goes to his own house god sees it too . prov. 15. 3. the eyes of the lord are in every place , beholding the evil and the good . prov. 5. 2. the ways of man are before the eyes of the lord , and he pondereth all his goings . i desire you once a week to read over the former part of the 139 psalm ; if i should desire you to read it once a day , it would not be lost labour . you will see there is no going out of the sight and presence of god. verily ( sirs ) to set god always before us , and to live in the sight and apprehension of the presence of god , this would have such an influence upon our thoughts , words , and works , that it would make them pleasing to god ; and if so , conscience would never reproach us for them ; for conscience will not reproach us for doing that which is pleasing to god. thus much for the first direction . direction ii. set up gods will revealed in his word as the rule of all your thoughts , words and actions ; as the rule of all you do in your general calling , and of all you do in your particular calling ; as a rule of all your natural , civil , and religious actions ; set up the will of god revealed in his word , as the rule of your all . let it be the rule of your carriage towards god , of your carriage toward men , toward your selves , and toward others . this is scripture direction , the counsel which the holy ghost giveth ; therefore i beseech you seriously consider of it and follow it . psal. 119. 6. the shall not i be ashamed , when i have respect unto all thy commandements : and in the 9th . verse a question is put wherewithall shall a young man cleans his way ? ( the answer followeth ) by taking heed thereto according to thy word ; doing all according to rule what hath a child a copy for , but to write after it ? and what hath the mason a line and a plummet for , but to build by it ? let the word of god be thy lamp and thy light. psal. 119 105. thy word is a lamp unto my feet , wild a light unto my path. order your steps according to the word of god , as david prayed , psal. 119. 133. and then you will not stumble , nor give conscience any occasion of reproaching you : you are careful , when you walk in the street , to keep out of the chanal , to keep out of the way that may pollute and defile you ; oh sirs , why do we not order our steps according to the word of god ▪ why do we not keep the path ? why go we out of the path ? poor david did so sometimes ; therefore the prays , psal. 119. 176. i have gone astray like a lost sheep ; seek thy servant , for i do not forget thy commandements . would you not be willing , that mercy and peace might be upon you ? gal. 6. 16. as many as walk according to this rule peace be upon them and mercy , and upon the israel of god. beware , my friends , of setting up false rules , to your selves , and i beseech you , let not these directions which i am giving you be out of mind when i am out of sight . i pray beware of setting up false rules ; i shall name sour , which we are very prone to walk by . 1. beware of setting up the practice of others whether great or good for your rule ; the practices of good men are not always agreeable to the rule as they should be . ministers and others may step aside , and too often do ; therefore beware of setting up the practice of others , whether great or good , to be your rule , remember you are to follow others as they follow christ. you will say , this was the practice of such a minister , this is the practice of such a professor ; but do they walk as christ walked ? if they follow christ thou mayst follow them ; but if they do not follow christ , we must not follow them , be they who they will. 2. beware of setting up the opinions of others , be they never so learned , for your rule , though they be the greatest doctors in the world , and called rabbi never so much . set not up the opinion of any for your rule , any further then they have the word of god for their opinion . when god speaks we must consider who , but when man speaks we must consider what ; i say when god speaks we must not consider what but who , but when man speaks we must not consider who but what . we know god cannot erre , but we know that man may erre ▪ 3. beware of setting up the customes of the times and places you live in for your rule . oh this is the custome of the time , and this is the custome of the place , and what shall i be like no body ? do not make this your rule . tell me where in all the bible doth god allow this for a rule , to walk according to the custome of the times and places wherein we live ? 4. beware of setting up the multitude for your example , follow not a multitude to do evil . let not this fatisfie you , nor serve your turn , to say , why , every one doth so ; it is general and common , the multitude doth it ; what shall i be singular , like no body in the world ? assure your selves that a multitude is not a law and rule for you to walk by . i appeal to you , sirs , whether this be not good counsel , whether it would not be a great help to , and furtherance of , the peace and quiet of your consciences , to set up the will of god revealed in in his word for the rule of your all . direction iii. set up gods glory as the end of all . if you would not have conscience to reproach you another day , set up gods glory as the end of all that you do . often say to thine own soul , how doth this tend to the glory of god ? will god be honoured by this ? will god be glorified by this ? when you are upon any undertaking , or when you are about any natural , civil , or religious action , think seriously with your selves , what do i aim at ? what is my design in doing this or that ? is it the glory of god ? o sirs , if it be the pleasing of your selves , conscience will be displeased ; if it be the pleasing of the flesh , conscience will be displeased to purpose ; if it be the pleasing of the world , the pleasing of one another , and not the pleasing of god , conscience will be displeased another day : for conscience is never pleased when the glory of god is not designed . 1 cor. 10. 31. that scripture should be considered by my self and you . whether you eat or drink , or whatsoever you do , do all to the glory of god ; do all that god may be honoured . sirs , you are not your own , for you are bought with a price : glorifie god with your bodies , and with your spirits , which are gods. i appeal unto your consciences , whether this would not be the way to keep conscience quiet , that it should have no cause to reproach you , if you did but set up the glory of god as the end of all . certainly all we do will be never the less profitable or pleasurable , contentful or satisfactory , to us , for making gods glory the end of all ; but a thousand to one , it would make every thing by so much the more profitable , pleasurable and satisfactory to us , by how much more we make the glory of god the end thereof . o sirs , how sweetly will that meat go down that is eaten with an eye to the glory of god ? how comfortable will those dealings and trading in the world be , that are done with an eye to the glory of god ? direction iv. if you would so live , that conscience may have no occasion to reproach you , set up an inquisition court in your own souls . you have heard talk of an inquisition in spain , and in other popish countries ; oh that you would set up an inquisition court in your own souls . we have courts of inquiry among us ; oh keep a weekly , nay a daily , court of inquiry in your own hearts . commune with your own hearts every day , according to the example of david , psal. 4. 4. examine your selves often , be not seldome in the work of self-examiniation . 2. cor. 13. 5. examine your selves , prove your own selves , whether you be in the faith : know ye not that christ is in you ? except ye be reprobates or unapproved : whether you be reprobate silver , that is , not current . examine your selves , prove your own selves . ps. 119. 59. i thought on my ways ( saith david ) and turned my feet unto thy testimonies . oh think on your ways , say often to thine own soul , what am i ? what do i ? how live i ? whether go i ? what will be my condition through all eternity ? will such questions do you any harm ? i appeal to your selves that are able to judge . o that i could get you to reckon often with your selves , and to keep a petty sessions in your own souls , and sit as judges in a court of inquiry upon all your thoughts , words and actions , saying to them , come hither my thoughts , come hither my words , come hither my works , come let me examine you , come let me compare you with the rule ; would not this prevent the accusations of conscience if you did but reckon with your selves once every day , if it were but one quarter of an hour in the day ? see jer. 8. 6. direction . v. set open your ears to the voice of conscience , when it is enlightened and directed by the word of god. when conscience hath information from the word of god , set open your ears to its voice , hearken to the voice of conscience ; as abraham once by gods command hearkened to the voice of sarah , gen. 21. 12. and god said unto abraham , let it not be grievous in thy sight because of the lad , and because of the bond-woman : in all sarah hath said unto thee hearken unto her voice . why so say i to you : in all that conscience informed by the word shall say unto you , hearken unto its voice . be subject for conscience sake , is the command , rom. 13. 5. this subjection for conscience sake to those that are in authority god hath commanded ; conscience will clamour , upbraid , and reproach , if gods commands be not obeyed . hearken to the voice of conscience , hearken to the directing voice , and the reproving voice , of conscience . ps. 16. 7 my reins instruct me , &c. that is , my inmost thoughts and secret motions do instruct me . hearken to its directing voice when it saith , this is the way , walk in it , isa. 30. 21. when thou hearest a voice behind thee , saying , this is the way , walk in it ; hearken also to its reproving voice , to its correcting voice . thus david expostulates , psal. 4. 2. & 43. why art thou cast down , o my soul ? and why art thou disquieted within me ? trust still in god. why art thou thus diffident ? why art thou thus distrustful ? thus david reproves himself , and chides himself . psal. 77. 10. and i said , this is my infirmity . but i will remember the years of the right hand of the most high . and i said , this is my infirmity , this is my frailty ; i am to blame . thus he checks himself , and hearkens to the voice of conscience . direction vi. set your selves against all sin ; both great and small . fight against all sin , oppose all sin ; allow not your selves in the practice of any known sin , nor in the omission of any known duty . paul was very careful herein , acts 8. 23. and paul earnestly beholding the council said , men and brethren , i have lived in all good conscience before god unto this day . and how came he to live in all good conscience ? it was before god. if we could well remember the first direction , we should the better live in all good conscience . and herein ( saith the apostle ) do i exercise my self , to have always a conscience void of offence toward god and toward men , acts 24. 16. pray for us ( saith the apostle ) for we trust we have a good conscience , in all things willing to live honestly . mark , in all things ; so psal. 119. 101. i have refrained my feet from every evil way , &c. verse 128. i esteem all thy precepts concerning all things to be right , and i hate every false way . pray observe here are three universals : if you would not have conscience reproach you , set your selves against all sin , against the commission of all sin , and against the omission of all duties both great and small . if you be not faithful in the least , you will not be trusted in the greatest . luke 16. 12. make conscience of evil thoughts , of idle and unsavoury words and seeming oaths ; and according to the rule abstain from all appearance of evil , from all semblance of evil , 1 thes. 5. 22. take heed of deceit , and of every thing that hath the shew and semblance of evil . take heed of wanton dresses ; take heed of ensnaring attire : i am confident that many poor creatures have been catch'd as it were in a snare and trap by the habit and dresses of the professors o● our age. alas , what inventions have we to draw eyes , both behind and before , to this part of the body , and to the other part of the body ? the lord be merciful to us , is this the way to escape the reproaches of conscience ? o friends , take heed of deceit in your dealings ; take heed of lying for advantage ; take heed of the husk and kernel of the grape ; though we drink not the wine , may we not eat the grape ? if not the grape , may we not eat the husk of the grape ? and if not the the husk , yet may we not eat the kernel of the grape ? no. num. 6. 4. this is the law of the nazarite , all the days of his separation he shall eat nothing that is made of the vine tree , from the kernels even to the husk . he must not drink wine , that was the law of the nazarite ▪ that he might not be ensnared no● under a temptation to drink wine , he must not meddle with any thing coming of the vine , not the very husk or the kernel , lest he be ensnared . our first mother eve was drawn to eating by seeing : o take heed of temptations and snares , and be not a snare or temptation unto others ; but make conscience of all sin , whether great or small . nay further , if there be any question or doubt about any thing , whether it be a sin or no , what shall we do then ? some say it is a sin , and some say it is not a sin ; and possibly some good men may say it is not a sin , and some good men may say it is a sin ; what shall we do in such a doubtful matter ? i shall quickly resolve you ; take the surest side . in such a case when the matter is doubtful , the surest way now is not to make or meddle at all with it . was there not meat enough for them to eat in the primitive times , besides that which did give offence ? some doubt whether it was lawful to eat of this or that meat ; what need we eat of it ? paul saith in such a case ▪ i will never eat flesh while the world standeth , rather than offend a weak brother . it is not lawful , saith one ; i will do it for all that , saith another . they are not of pauls spirit . and as for dresses and habits , are there not enough besides those which are questionable , and which both ancient and modern divines have all condemned as sinful ? possibly some will assume a greater liberty , and we are now generally grown to a greater latitude ; but tell me , is there not enough of other sorts , but we must use such habits and dresses as are doubtful , questionable , and offensive ? god help us to consider of it . in all matters doubtful and questionable , still take the surest side ▪ if you do that which is questionable and doubtful , you may sin , and possibly it may be found to be a sin at the day of judgment ; and if so , what will you do then ? it was the speech of mr. bolton concerning long hair ; you say the wearing of long hair is not a sin , but what if it be found at the day of judgment to be a sin ? you will then wish , o that i had left it off , or never used it . men are not infallible , ministers are not infallible , no not the best of them ; you are not to ground on them as if they could not be mistaken ; therefore in all doubtful cases chuse the surest side . there is meat enough to eat besides that which is doubtful ; and there is apparel enough to wear besides that which is offensive and questionable . if you would so live that conscience may have no cause to reproach you , my counsel to you is , take always in doubtful matters the surest side , which is not to meddle or make with it at all ; for if you do it you may sin , and at judgment it may be found to be sin . but if you do it not , you are safe and free . direction . vii . set up christ as your patern . if you would have conscience not to reproach you another day , take christ for your example . 1 pet. 2. 21 , 23. for even hereunto were ye called , because christ also suffered for us leaving us an example , that ye should follow his steps , &c. we should pace after him , we ought to walk as christ walked . if you would have conscience not to reproach you , make christ your patern ; think , speak and do , as you are persuaded christ would , were he in your case , were he in your place on earth : speak , think and do , as you think he would ; ask your selves , would christ neglect his fathers business as i do ? would he mis-spend his time , and tritle it away , that went about continually doing good ? would christ have served one lust , and another lust , as i do , and have made provision for the flesh to fulfil the lusts ●hereof ? would he give himself to ri●●ing and drunkenness , to chambering ●nd wantonness as i do ? as you would ●ot have conscience to reproach you , make christ your patern and ex●mplar . direction viii . sit under a powerful ministry . if ●ou would prevent the reproaches of conscience , love and like that mini●er best that speaks to conscience ●ost ; do not hate him that rebukes , ●s they amos 5. 10. but say as da●id , ( psal. 141. 5. ) let the righteous nite me , it shall be a kindness ; and ●t him reprove me , it shall be an excel●nt oyl , that shall not break my head . let him smite me , i will not be of●ended with him , i will not smite a●ain ; when he fmites me , it shall be ●s a precious oyntment . the mean●ng is , let him smite me with re●roofs , let him reprove me , deal ●ithfully and plainly with me . and ( sirs ) i fear that my self and many of my brethren in the ministry may have much to answer for another day ▪ for that we do not deal more faithfully , more plainly and downrightly with souls . ministers are under a temptation to please their hearers , as well as others , and are loth to offend them ; but god forbid that christs ministers should be servants of men , or men-pleasers , or women-pleasers . let them look to it , that they please their lord and master christ. direction ix . set upon nothing , on which you cannot , on which you dare not , pray for a blessing . never undertake any thing , never be imployed about any thing , upon which thou dost not dare to pray for a blessing . 1 tim. 4. 4 , 5. every thing is sanctified by the word and prayer . i must have a word to be my rule for it , and i must make a prayer for a blessing on it , else i can not except that it should be sanctified and blessed to me . now ( sirs ) how many things are there that we do , that we dare not pray to god for a blessing on ? it may be you spend two or three hours at the looking glass , can you pray for a blessing upon the time so spent ? can you pray for a blessing upon your dressing and attiring your selves , and habiting your selves in the way and manner that you do ? can you pray , o lord , let this way of habiting and dressing my self be for thy glory , and for my good , and for the example of others ? dare any of you go and make a prayer to god foe this ? adventure not upon any thing upon which you dare not pray for a blessing . direction x. if you would not have conscience to reproach you , set about all in the name and strength of christ. for that is the rule which the apostle giveth , col. 3. 17. and whatsoever ye do i● word or deed , do all in the name of the lord jesus christ. do all according to the will and the command of christ , do all by the strength and help of christ , and do all to the glory of christ. 1. do all according to the will and command of christ. in mat. 18. 20. the name of christ signifies his command . 2. do all by the strength and help of christ. in this sense also is the name of christ used , luke 10. 17. and psa. 44. 5. luke . 17. 3. do all to the glory of christ , which is sometimes to be understood by his name , as psal. 31. 3. oh that people would ask themselves , is this according to the will and command of christ that i am now a doing ? can i expect the strength and help of christ in that i am now a doing ? is this for the glory of christ which i am now ● doing ? when thou art about 〈◊〉 duty , say to christ , all our sufficien●●cy is of thee , we have none of our own , 2 cor. 3. 5. joh. 15. 5. say as paul , i can do all things through christ which strengtheneth me , phil. 4. 13. and thus i have given you ten directions how you may so live that conscience may not reproach you . case ii. i come now to speak a little to the second case . what if we have neglected these rules and directions which have been laid before us . if you have neglected to walk according to rule , and have given conscience just cause to reproach you ; and if conscience does reproach you , and if you ask me , how may we get the reproaches of conscience wiped off , and get conscience quiet again ? i answer in two words , repent and believe . 1. repent of that before the lord which conscience reproacheth you for , mourn for it , be ashamed of it , judge and condemne your selves for what is past , resolve against it for the time to come ; this is a good course ▪ if we confess our sins , he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins , and cleanse us from all unrighteousness , 1 cor. 11. 31. for if we would judge our selves , we should not be judged ; and if we acknowledg our transgressions , and accept of the punishment of our iniquity . read lev. 26. 40 , 41 , 42. there is not a better way to wipe off ●he reproaches of conscience , then by the tears of repentance . follow the example of that woman that came behind our lord and saviour , and washed his feet with her tears , and wiped them with the haires of her head . a service perhaps that you would be loath to put your hair to ; but , sirs , if you would have conscience to be quiet , then seriously set upon the work of repentance . 2. believe . by faith set christs blood on work , to wipe off the aspersions and reproaches of conscience , to purifie and pacifie conscience , get conscience sprinkled with the blood of christ , heb. 9. 14. you read of one mat. 15. 28. that set the pity and power of christ on work to make her daughter whole . jesus answered and said unto her , o woman , great is thy faith ! be it to thee even as thou wilt . christ seemed not to regard her a while , but she followed him , and set his pity and power on work . faith will set the blood of christ on work , to wipe of the reproaches of conscience . the centurions faith set christ on work to heal his servant , lord ( saith he ) my servant lyeth at home sick of the palsie grievously tormented . and jesus saith unto him , i will come and heal him . the centurion answered and said , lord i am not worthy that thou shouldst come under my roof , but speak the word onely , and my servant shall be healed . and jesus said unto the centurion , go thy way , and as thou hast believed so be it done unto thee . and his servant was healed in the self same hour mat. 8. 13. the lepers faith did set christ on work mat. 8. 2 , 3. and there came a leper and worshipped him , saying , lord , if thou wilt thou canst make me clean . and jesus put forth his hand and touched him , saying , i will , be thou clean : and immediately his leprosie was cleansed . the father of the child that had a deaf and a dumb spirit , his faith set christ on work , mark 9. 23 , 24 , 25. jesus saith unto him , if thou canst believe , all things are possible to him that believeth . and straight way the father of the child cryed out with teares , lord , i believe , help thou my unbelief . the faith of the woman diseased with an issue of blood set christ on work , mat. 9. 21. for she said within her self , if i may but touch the hem of his garment i shall be whole . and it followes , the woman was made whole from that hour . the faith of the poor leper set christ or work , luke 17. 19. and jesus said unto him , thy faith hath made thee whole . and likewise the womans faith ( luke 7. 48. ) set christ on work for the pardon of her sins ; he said unto her , thy sins are forgiven thee . and ( ver . 50. ) christ tells her , thy faith hath saved thee , go in peace . and likewise the faith of blind bartimeus ( mar. 10. 51 , 52. ) sets christs power and pity on work , and obtained healing . and the faith of the two blind men in matth. 9. 27 , 28 , 29 , 30. christ touched their eyes and said , according to your faith , so be it unto you . and their eyes were opened . o if you could but ( according to these examples ) set faith on work for the healing of your souls , conscience would be quiet . thus bespeak and expostulate with thine own conscience , and say , it is true ( conscience ) i have sinned , and deserved to be reproached and condemned , but i fly to the bloud of christ for cleansing , and i apply that by faith. nay ( saith conscience ) if thou fly to that city of refuge , i can then no longer pursue after thee ; thou art safe enough from me . if thou makest the bloud of christ thy refuge , thou art then secured from all the storms , and terrors , and reproaches of conscience . if you would not have conscience upbraid you , accuse and condemn you , set about the work of repentance and faith , and then whatsoever cause you have given conscience to reproach you , it will reproach you no more , it will be quiet and at peace with you ; always provided that you set about this work of faith and repentance seriously and in good earnest . consider what hath been said , and the lord give you understanding in all things . finis . books printed for and are to be sold by john hancock , at the sign of the three bibles in popes head alley in cornhill . twelve books lately published by mr. tho. brooks , late preacher of the gospel at margarets new fish-street . 1. precious remedies against satans devices , or salve for believers and vnbelievers sores : being a companion for those that are in christ or out of christ. 2. heaven on earth 〈◊〉 a serious discourse touching a well-grounded assurance of mans everlasting happiness . 3. the vnsearchable riches of christ held forth in 22 sermons . 4. apples of gold for young men and women . 5. a string of pearls , or the best ●hings reserved till last . 6. the mute christian under the smarting r●●● with sovereign antidotes against the most miserable exigents . 7. an ark for all gods noahs in a stormy day . 8. the crown and glory of christianity , in 48 sermons on heb. 12. 14. 9. the privy key of heaven , or a discourse of closet prayer . 10. an heavenly cordial for such as have had or escaped the plague . 11. a cabinet of choice jewels , or a box of precious oyntment , containing special ma●●● rules , and directions , in order to●● 〈◊〉 clearing up of a mans interest in christ , and his title to all the glory of another world. 12. londons lamentations . ● the godly mans ark , in several sermons . to which is added m ▪ moors evidences for heaven . by edmund calamy , b. d. at aldermanbury . christs communion with his church militant : by nich 〈◊〉 ●ckyer . sin the plague of plagues : by ralph ●enning . a true narrative of those two never be forgotten deliverances , one from ●he spanish invasion in 88 , the other from the hellish powder plot , nov. 5. ●605 . by mr. sam. clark. the accurate accountant , or london merchant : being instructions for ●ceping merchants accounts . by tho. brown , accomptant . short writing the most 〈◊〉 exact , lineal , and speedy 〈◊〉 that hath ever yet been obtained . by theophilus metcalfe . also a book called a schoolmaster to it , explaining all the rules thereof . a word of advice to saints , or a choice drop of honey from the rock christ 〈◊〉 matthews legacy to his chil●●●● 〈◊〉 full of good counsel . 〈…〉 ●●●t description of new york . ●inis . notes, typically marginal, from the original text notes for div a61865-e2460 ● john 3. 20 , 21. psal. 139. begin . luke 15. 7 , 10. a discourse concerning conscience wherein an account is given of the nature and rule and obligation of it : and the case of those who separate from the communion of the church of england as by law established, upon this pretence, that it is against their conscience to join in it, is stated and discussed. sharp, john, 1645-1714. 1684 approx. 108 kb of xml-encoded text transcribed from 31 1-bit group-iv tiff page images. text creation partnership, ann arbor, mi ; oxford (uk) : 2003-11 (eebo-tcp phase 1). a59544 wing s2970 estc r17838 12436046 ocm 12436046 62035 this keyboarded and encoded edition of the work described above is co-owned by the institutions providing financial support to the early english books online text creation partnership. this phase i text is available for reuse, according to the terms of creative commons 0 1.0 universal . the text can be copied, modified, distributed and performed, even for commercial purposes, all without asking permission. early english books online. (eebo-tcp ; phase 1, no. a59544) transcribed from: (early english books online ; image set 62035) images scanned from microfilm: (early english books, 1641-1700 ; 297:45) a discourse concerning conscience wherein an account is given of the nature and rule and obligation of it : and the case of those who separate from the communion of the church of england as by law established, upon this pretence, that it is against their conscience to join in it, is stated and discussed. sharp, john, 1645-1714. [2], 59 p. printed for walter kettilby ..., london : 1684. attributed to john sharp. cf. nuc pre-1956. reproduction of original in huntington library. created by converting tcp files to tei p5 using tcp2tei.xsl, tei @ oxford. re-processed by university of nebraska-lincoln and northwestern, with changes to facilitate morpho-syntactic tagging. gap elements of known extent have been transformed into placeholder characters or elements to simplify the filling in of gaps by user contributors. eebo-tcp is a partnership between the universities of michigan and oxford and the publisher proquest to create accurately transcribed and encoded texts based on the image sets published by proquest via their early english books online (eebo) database (http://eebo.chadwyck.com). the general aim of eebo-tcp is to encode one copy (usually the first edition) of every monographic english-language title published between 1473 and 1700 available in eebo. eebo-tcp aimed to produce large quantities of textual data within the usual project restraints of time and funding, and therefore chose to create diplomatic transcriptions (as opposed to critical editions) with light-touch, mainly structural encoding based on the text encoding initiative (http://www.tei-c.org). the eebo-tcp project was divided into two phases. the 25,363 texts created during phase 1 of the project have been released into the public domain as of 1 january 2015. anyone can now take and use these texts for their own purposes, but we respectfully request that due credit and attribution is given to their original source. users should be aware of the process of creating the tcp texts, and therefore of any assumptions that can be made about the data. text selection was based on the new cambridge bibliography of english literature (ncbel). if an author (or for an anonymous work, the title) appears in ncbel, then their works are eligible for inclusion. selection was intended to range over a wide variety of subject areas, to reflect the true nature of the print record of the period. in general, first editions of a works in english were prioritized, although there are a number of works in other languages, notably latin and welsh, included and sometimes a second or later edition of a work was chosen if there was a compelling reason to do so. image sets were sent to external keying companies for transcription and basic encoding. quality assurance was then carried out by editorial teams in oxford and michigan. 5% (or 5 pages, whichever is the greater) of each text was proofread for accuracy and those which did not meet qa standards were returned to the keyers to be redone. after proofreading, the encoding was enhanced and/or corrected and characters marked as illegible were corrected where possible up to a limit of 100 instances per text. any remaining illegibles were encoded as <gap>s. understanding these processes should make clear that, while the overall quality of tcp data is very good, some errors will remain and some readable characters will be marked as illegible. users should bear in mind that in all likelihood such instances will never have been looked at by a tcp editor. the texts were encoded and linked to page images in accordance with level 4 of the tei in libraries guidelines. copies of the texts have been issued variously as sgml (tcp schema; ascii text with mnemonic sdata character entities); displayable xml (tcp schema; characters represented either as utf-8 unicode or text strings within braces); or lossless xml (tei p5, characters represented either as utf-8 unicode or tei g elements). keying and markup guidelines are available at the text creation partnership web site . eng conscience -religious aspects -church of england -early works to 1800. dissenters, religious -england -early works to 1800. 2003-06 tcp assigned for keying and markup 2003-07 spi global keyed and coded from proquest page images 2003-08 john latta sampled and proofread 2003-08 john latta text and markup reviewed and edited 2003-10 pfs batch review (qc) and xml conversion a discourse concerning conscience ; wherein an account is given of the nature , and rule , and obligation , of it . and the case of those who separate from the communion of the church of england as by law established , upon this pretence , that it is against their conscience to jo●n in it , is stated and discussed . london , printed for walter kettilby at the bishops head in st. pauls church-yard . 1684. a discourse of conscience : with respect to those that separate from the communion of the church of england upon the pretence of it , &c. there is nothing more in our mouths than conscience ; and yet there are few things we have generally taken less pains to understand . we sit down too often with this , that it is something within us , we do not know what , which we are to obey in all that it suggests to us , and we trouble our selves no further about it . by which means , it frequently comes to pass ; that though we have espoused very dangerous errors , or happen to be ingaged in very sinful practices ; yet believing , and acting , as we say , according to our conscience ; we do not only think our selves perfectly right and safe , while we continue in this state ; but are effectually armed against all sorts of arguments , and endeavours that can be used for the bringing us to a better mind . this is too visible in many cases ; but in none more than in the case of those that at this day separate from the communion of the church as it is established among us . though the laws of the land both ecclesiastical , and civil , do oblige them to joyn in our communion ; though many arguments are offer'd to convince them , not only that they lawfully may , but that they are bound to do it : though they themselves are sensible , that many-fold , and grievous mischiefs , and dangers , do ensue from this breach of communion , and these unnatural divisions , both to the christian religion in general , and to our reformed religion in particular , yet if to all these things , a man can reply , that he is satisfied in his conscience that he doth well in refusing his obedience to the laws ; or that he is not satisfied , in his conscience that he ought to joyn with us upon such terms as are required ; this single pretence shall be often thought a sufficient answer , both to laws , and arguments . a strange thing this is ; that conscience , which among other ends , was given to mankind for a preservative , and security of the publick peace ; for the more effectually obliging men to unity , and obedience to laws ; yet should often be a means of setting them at distance , and prove a shelter for disobedience , and disorder : that god should command us to obey our governours in all lawful things for conscience sake , and yet that we should disobey them in lawful things for conscience sake too . it is the design of this discourse to examine what there is in this plea , that is so often made by our dissenters for their not complying with the laws , viz. that it is against their conscience so to do ; and to shew in what cases this plea is justly made , and in what cases not ; and where it is justly made , how far it will justify any mans separation , and how far it will not . and all this in order to the possessing those who are concerned , with a sense of the great necessity that lyes upon them , of using their most serious endeavours to inform their conscience aright in these matters , before they presume to think they can separate from us with a good conscience , which is all we desire of them ; for it is not our business to perswade any man to conform against his conscience ; but to convince every man how dangerous it may be to follow a misinformed conscience . but before i enter upon this disquisition , it will be necessary in the first place , to prepare my way by laying down the grounds , and principles , i mean to proceed upon . and here that i may take in all things , that are needful to be known before-hand , about this matter , i shall treat distinctly of these five heads . 1 of the nature of conscience . 2 of the rule of conscience . and under that , 3 of the power of humane laws to oblige the conscience . 4 and particularly in the instance of church communion . 5 of the authority of conscience ; or how far a man is obliged to be guided by his conscience in his actions . i. and first , as for the nature of conscience , the truest way to find out that will be , not so much to enquire into the signification of the word conscience or the several scholastical definitions of it ; as to consider what every man doth really mean by that word when he has occasion to make use of it ; for if it do appear that all men do agree in their notions , and sense , about this matter ; that without doubt , which they all thus agree in , is the true notion , and sense of conscience . now as to this , we may observe in the first place , that a man never speaks of his conscience , but with respect to his own actions , or to something that hath the nature of an action which is done or omitted by him , or is to be done or omitted , matters of meer knowledg , and speculation , we do not concern our conscience with ; as neither with those things in which we are purely passive ; as neither with actions , if they be not our own . we do not for instance , make it a point of conscience one way or other , whether a thing be true or false ; or whether this or the other accident that befals us , be prosperous or unfortunate ; or whether another man hath done good or bad actions , in which we are no way concerned . these kind of things may indeed prove matters of great satisfaction or disquiet ; of joy or grief to us : but we do not take our conscience to be affected with them . that word never comes in , but with respect to something willingly done or left undone by us ; or which we may do or may forbear . secondly , we may observe that in common speech , we do not neither use this word conscience about our actions , but only , so far as those actions fall under a moral consideration ; that is , as they have the nature of duties or sins , or as they are lawful or vnlawful . always when we speak of conscience in our actions , we have respect to some law or rule , by which those actions are to be directed , and govern'd , and by their agreeableness or disagreeableness with which they become morally good or evil. thirdly , this being so ; the only thing remaining to be enquired into for the finding out what conscience is , is , what can be reasonably thought to be our sense , and meaning , when we use the word conscience , with such application to our actions as we have now said . now for that i desire it may be considered ; that when we talk of our actions as we concern our conscience in them , they can but fall under these two heads of distinction , that is to say , in the first place , we either consider our actions as already done or omitted : or we consider them as yet not done , but as we are deliberating about them . and then secondly , whether we consider them as done or not done ; as past , or future ; yet we rank them under one of these three notions . we either look upon them as commanded by god , and so to be duties ; or as forbidden by god , and so to be sins ; or as neither commanded nor forbidden , and so to be indifferent actions . ( with these last actions indeed conscience is not properly or directly concerned , but only by accident , to wit , as those indifferent actions do approach to the nature of duties or sins : ) our actions , i say , do not touch our conscience , but as they fall under some of these heads . now in all these respects we have indeed different ways of bringing in conscience but yet as it will appear , we mean the same thing by it in them all . first of all when we are considering an action as yet not done ; if we look upon it as commanded by god ; we say we are bound in conscience to do it ; if we look upon it as a sinful action , we say it is against our conscience to do it ; if we look upon it as an indifferent thing , we say we may do it or not do it with a safe conscience . now i pray , what do we mean by these expressions ? i desire that every one would consult his own mind , and deny if he can , that this is the sense of his words . if he saith he is bound in conscience to do this or the other thing , whether he doth not mean this ? that he verily thinks it is his duty to do that action . if he saith that it is against his conscience to do such an action ; whether he means any more than this ? that he is perswaded in his judgment that to do such an action is an offence against god. if he saith that he can do it with a safe conscience whether he hath any other meaning than this ? that to the best of his knowledg , and judgment , the action may be done without transgressing any law of god. this is now undeniably , the sense that every man in the world hath , when he makes mention of conscience as to actions that are not yet done , but only proposed to his consideration . so that taking conscience as it respects our actions to be done or omitted , and as it is to govern , and conduct them ( in which sense we call conscience a guide or a monitor , and sometimes , though very improperly , a rule of our actions ) it can be nothing else in the sense of all men that use that word , but a mans judgment concerning the goodness or badness ; the lawfulness or unlawfulness of actions in order to the conduct of his own life . but secondly if we speak of our actions that are done and past , and consider conscience with reference to them ; here indeed we do a little vary the expression about conscience , but the notion of it is the same we have now given . as for instance , when we talk of peace of conscience , or trouble of conscience , with reference to some action we have done or omitted ; when we say my conscience bears me witness , that i have acted rightly , and honestly in this affair ; or my conscience acquits me from blame , as to this or the other action , or i am troubled in conscience for doing what i have done : if we turn these phrases into other words , we shall find that there is nothing more at the bottom of them than this ; that reflecting upon our own actions , we find that in this or the other instance , we have either acted or omitted , as we are convinced in our judgment we ought to do ; and the remembrance of this is some pleasure , and satisfaction to us : or we have done or forborn something contrary to what we take to be our duty ; and the remembrance of this affects us with grief and trouble . but still , in both these instances of expression , that which we mean by conscience is the same thing , as in the former cases , viz. it is our iudgment and perswasion concerning what we ought to do , or ought not to do , or lawfully may do ; only here we add to it this consideration , that the action which we are perswaded to be good , or bad , or indifferent , is now done or omitted by us , and we do remember it . in the former case , conscience was considered as the guide of our actions . in the latter case it is considered as the witness of our actions . but in both cases , conscience is the judge , and consequently in both cases the notion of it is the same , only with this difference , that in the former it was a mans mind , making a judgment what he ought to do or not to do ; in the latter it is a mans mind reflecting upon what he hath done or not done , and judging whether he be innocent or culpable in the matter he reflects upon . i do not know how to give a clearer account of the nature of conscience in general than this i have now given . this i believe is the natural notion that all men have of it , and there is no expression in scripture about it but what doth confirm this notion . if indeed we put epithites to conscience , and talk of a good conscience or an evil conscience ; a tender conscience or a seared conscience or the like . then it includes more , both in scripture , and in common language , than i have now mentioned . but to give an account of those things i am not now concerned , as being without the limits of our present enquiry . ii. and now we are sufficiently prepared for our second general point which is touching the rule of conscience ; if indeed after what we have already said it be not superfluous to insist upon that . it appears plainly by what i have represented , that conscience must always have a rule which it is to follow , and by which it is to be govern'd . for since conscience is nothing else but a mans iudgment concerning actions , as good , or bad , or indifferent ; it is certain that a man must have some measures to proceed by in order to the framing such a judgment about actions ; that is to say , there must be something distinct from the man himself that makes actions to be good , or bad , or indifferent ; and from which , by applying particular actions to it , or comparing them with it , a man may be able to judge whether they be of the one sort or the other . now this , whatever it be , is that which we call the rule of conscience ; and so much it is its rule , that conscience can be no farther a safe guide than as it follows that rule . if now it be asked what this rule of conscience is , or what that is which makes a difference between actions , as to the moral goodness or badness of them ; the answer to it is obvious to every body : that it can be nothing else but the law of god. for nothing can be a duty but what gods law hath made so ; and nothing can be a sin but what gods law hath forbidden ( the very notion of sin being , that it is a transgression of the law ; ) and lastly we call a thing lawful or indifferent upon this very account , that there is no law of god either commanding or forbidding it ; and where there is no law , there is no transgression . so that undeniably the great , nay i say , the only rule by which conscience is to be governed is the law of god , considered either as it commands actions , or forbids them , or as it neither commands them nor forbids them . but in order to the giving a more distinct account , of this rule of conscience , there is this needful to be enquired into , viz. in what sense we take , or what we mean by the law of god ; when we say it is the rule of conscience . now to this our answer is , that by the law of god , we here understand gods will , for the government of mens actions , in what way soever that will is declared to them . now the will of god is declared to men two ways ; either by nature , or by revelation ; so that the just , and , adequate rule of conscience is made up of two parts the law of nature , and gods revealed law. by the law of nature , we mean those principles of good and evil , just and unjust , which god hath stamp'd upon the minds of all men , in the very constitution of their natures . there are some things eternally good in themselves ; such as to worship god , to honour our parents , to stand to our covenants , to live peaceably in the government , from which we receive protection ; and the contrary to these will be eternally evil ; the heads of all which things thus good in themselves , are writ so plainly , and legibly , in the minds of mankind , that there is no man who is come to the use of his reason , but must of necessity be convinced , that to practice these things will alway be his duty , and not to practice them , will always be evil , and a sin. now all these heads , and principles put together , is that we call the law of nature , and this is all the rule of conscience , that mankind had , before god was pleased to discover his will by more particular revelation . and this is that law , which the apostle speaks of when he saith that the gentiles , who had not the law of moses yet had a law written in their hearts ; by their acting according to which , or contrary to which their conscience did bear witness to them , and did either accuse them , or excuse them . but then secondly , to us christians , god to this law of nature hath superadded a revealed law , which is contained in the books of holy scriptures . which revealed law yet , is not wholly of a different kind from the former , nor doth it at all void the obligation of it . but only thus ; god hath in his revealed law , declared the precepts of the law of nature , more certainly , and accurately than before ; he hath given greater force , and strength to them , than they had before , by the sanctions of greater rewards , and punishments : he hath likewise herein perfected the law of nature , and hath obliged us , in point of duty , to more and higher instances of vertue , than nature did strictly oblige us to : and lastly , he hath added some positive laws for us to observe which were not at all contained in the law of nature , as for instance , to believe in iesus christ , in order to salvation , to make all our applications to god , in the name of that mediatour christ iesus ; to enter into a christian society , by baptism , and to exercise communion with that society , by partaking of the lords supper . and this is that law , which we christians are obliged to , as well as to the law of our natures , and which as it is a summary of all the laws of nature , so indeed is it a summary of all our duty . so that if any man will call it the great , or only rule of christian conscience , i shall not much oppose him , provided that this be always remembred , that , in the third place , when we say that the natural and revealed law of god , is the just rule , by which we are to govern our conscience , or when we say that the law of god , as revealed , and contained in the bible , is to us christians , the just rule . we are so to understand this proposition as to take into it , not only all that is directly , and expresly commanded , or forbidden by either of those laws : but also all that by plain collection of right reason in applying generals to particulars , or comparing one thing with another doth appear to be commanded or forbidden by them . so that by the law of nature , as it is a rule of conscience , we are not only to understand the prime heads , and most general dictates of it , ( which are but a few ) but also all the necessary deductions from those heads . and by the law of scripture , as it is the rule of conscience , we are not only to understand the express commands , and prohibitions , we meet with there , in the letter of the text ; but all the things likewise , that by unavoidable consequence do follow from those commands , or prohibitions . in a word , when we are deliberating with our selves , concerning the goodness , or badness ; the lawfulness , or unlawfulness of this , or the other particular action : we are not only to look upon the letter of the law , but to attend further to what that law may be supposed by a rational man to contain in it . and if we be convinced , that the action we are deliberating about , is commanded , or forbidden , by direct inference , or by parity of reason ; we ought to look upon it as a duty , or a sin , though it be not expresly commanded , or forbidden , by the law , in the letter of it . and if neither by the letter of the law ; nor by consequence from it ; nor by parity of reason ; the action before us , appear either to be commanded , or forbidden : in that case , we are to look upon it , as an indifferent action ; which we may do , or let alone , with a safe conscience ; or , to express the thing more properly , we are to look upon it as an action in which our conscience is not so much concerned as our prudence . iii. having thus given an account of the rule of conscience , that which naturally follows next to be considered , with reference to our present design , is , what share humane laws have in this rule of conscience ? whether they be a part of this rule , and do really bind a mans conscience to the observance of them or no ? which is our third general head. now as to this , our answer is , that though the laws of god be the great , and indeed the only rule of conscience , yet the laws of men , generally speaking , do also bind the conscience , and are a part of its rule in a secondary sense , that is , by vertue of , and in subordination to the laws of god. i shall briefly explain the meaning of this , in the four following propositions . first , there is nothing more certain than that the law of god , as it is declared both by nature , and scripture doth command us , to obey the laws of men. there is no one dictate of nature , more obvious to us , than this , that we are to obey the government we live under , in all honest , and just things . for this is indeed the principal law , and foundation of all society . and it would be impossible , either for kingdoms , or states ; for citys , or families to subsist ; or at least to maintain themselves in any tolerable degree of peace , and happiness , if this be not acknowledged a duty . and then , as for the laws of god in scripture , there is nothing more plainly declared there , than , that it is gods will , and our duty to obey them that have the rule over us ; and to submit our selves to every ordinance of man , for the lords sake , and to be subject not only for wrath but for conscience sake . so that no man can doubt that he is really bound in duty to obey the laws of men that are made by just , and sufficient authority . and consequently no man can doubt that humane laws do really bind the conscience , and are one part of the rule by which it is to be directed , and governed . but then having said this , we add this farther in the second place , that humane laws do not bind the conscience , by any vertue in themselves ; but meerly by vertue of gods law , who has commanded that we should in all things be subject to our lawful governours , not only for wrath , but for conscience sake . conscience is not properly concerned with any being in the world , save god alone , it hath no superiour but him : for the very notion of it , as i have often said , is no other than our iudgment , of what things we are bound to do by gods law ; & what things we are forbidden to do by gods law. so that all the men in the world , cannot bind any mans conscience , by vertue of any power , or authority , that is in them : but now god having made it an everlasting law , both by nature , and scripture , that we should obey those who are set over us , whether they be our parents , or our masters ; and much more our princes , and the soveraign legislative power , under whom we live ; by vertue of this command of god , and this only ; we are for ever bound in conscience , to govern our actions , by the commands , that they impose upon us ; and those commands of theirs are a rule , ( though a consequential , or a secondary rule , ) by which we are to govern our conscience , because they are the instances of our obedience to the laws of god. but then in the third place , this is also to be remembered ; that humane laws do no farther bind the conscience , and are a rule of it , than as they are agreeable to the laws of god. if any law , or command of man , do clash with any law of god ; that is , if it be either evil in it self , or contradictory to the duty of christians , as laid down in the scriptures ; in that case , that law or command , by what humane authority soever it was made or given , doth not bind our conscience , nor is any rule of our actions . on the contrary we are not at any rate to yield obedience to it ; but we are here reduced to the apostles case , and must act as they did ; that is , we must obey god , rather than men , and we sin , if we do not . for since god only hath proper , and direct authority over our conscience , and humane power , only , by delegation from him : and since god hath not given any commission to the most soveraign princes upon earth , to alter his laws , or to impose any thing upon his subjects , that is inconsistent with them . it follows by necessary consequence , that no man can be obliged to obey any laws of men , farther than they are agreeable to , and consistent with the laws of god. there is yet a fourth thing , necessary to be taken in for the clearing the point we are upon , and that is this , that though humane laws , generally speaking , may be said to bind the conscience , and to be a part of its rule : yet we do not assert that every humane law , ( though it doth not interfere with any of gods laws ) doth at all times , and in all cases , oblige every mans conscience to active obedience to it ; so as that he sins against god , if he transgress it . no , it would be a very hard thing to affirm this ; and i do not know what man among us , upon these terms , would be innocent . thus much i believe we may safely lay down as a truth ; that where either the matter of the law is of such a nature ; that the publick , or some private person shall suffer damage , or inconvenience , by our not observing it . or secondly , though the law , as to the matter of it be never so trifling ; nay , though perhaps all things considered , it be an inconvenient law ; yet if the manner of our not obeying it , be such , as gives offence to our superiours , or to any others ; that is , either argues a contempt of authority , or sets an ill example before our fellow subjects : i say in either of these cases , the transgression of a humane law , renders a man guilty of a fault , as well as obnoxious to the penalty of that law. but out of these two cases , i must confess , i do not see , how a purely humane law doth oblige the conscience ; or how the transgression of it , doth make a man guilty of sin , before god. for it is certain if we secure these two points ; that is to say , the good of the publick , and of private persons ; and with all the sacredness , and respect , which is due to authority , ( which is likewise in order to the publick good : ) we answer all the ends , for which the power of making laws , or laying commands upon inferiours , was committed by god to mankind . so that though it be true , that humane laws do oblige the conscience , yet it is also true that a great many cases may , and do happen , in which a man may act contrary to a purely humane law , and yet not be a sinner before god. always supposing ( as i said , ) there be no contempt , or refractoryness expressed towards the governours : nor , no scandal , or ill . example given to others , by the action . for if there be either of these in the case ; i dare not acquit the man , from being a transgressour of gods law , in the instance , wherein he transgresseth the laws of men. for this is that which we insist upon ; that the authority of our governours ought to be held , and esteemed very sacred , both because the laws of god , and the publick good require it should be so . and herefore , wherever they do peremptorily lay their commands upon us , we are bound in conscience so far to comply , as not to contest the matter with them ; nor to seem to do it . and though their commands , as to the matter of them , be never so slight ; nay , though they should prove really inconvenient , either to our selves , or the publick . yet if they stand upon them , if they persist in requiring our obedience to them ; we must yield , we must obey ; always supposing they be not against gods laws . for we are at no hand either to affront their authority our selves ; or to encourage others , by our example , to do it . for to do either of these things is a greater evil to the publ●ck , than our obedience to an inconvenient law can easily be . iv. and now it is time for us to apply what hath been said in general , concerning the rule of conscience , and the obligation of humane laws ; to the particular matter here before us ; that is , the business of church communion ; the obligation of conscience to which , in such manner as the laws have appointed , is the fourth general head we are to consider . this point of the obligation to communion with the church , as by law established , hath been largely handled by several learned men of our church , and particularly it is the argument of one of those discourses which have lately been writ for the sake of our dissenters . thither therefore i refer the reader for full satisfaction about this matter being only just to touch upon it here , as one of the principles we take for granted , and shall proceed upon in the following discourse . and here the proposition we lay down is this , that it is every mans duty , and consequently every man is bound in conscience to joyn in communion with that church , which is established by law in the place where he lives ; so long as that church is a true , sound part of the catholick church , and there is nothing imposed or required as a condition of communicating with it , that is repugn●nt to the laws of god , or the appointments of iesus christ. this proposition is evident , not only because it necessarily follows from the foregoing principle ; which was , that every man is bound in conscience to obey the laws of men that are not contrary to the laws of god ; and therefore consequently a man is bound to obey in ecclesiastical matters , as well as civil ; ( unless it can be shew'd that christ hath forbid all humane authority , whether ecclesiastical or civil , to make any laws or orders about religion ; which i believe never was or can be shew'd : ) but it is evident upon another account , which i desire may be considered . we are all really bound by the laws of iesus christ , and the nature of his religion to preserve as much as in us lyes the vnity of the church : which vnity doth consist not only in professing the same faith , but joyning together with our brethren under common governours in the same religious communion of worship , and sacraments . and therefore whoever breaks this vnity of the church , by withdrawing his obedience from those church governours , which god hath set over him in the place where he lives ; and separating from the established religious assemblies of christians under those governours ; doth really transgress the laws of iesus christ , and is guilty of that sin of schism , which is so very much cautioned against , and so highly condemned in the scriptures of the new testament : unless in the mean time it doth appear to the man , who thus withdraws , and separates , that there is something required of him in those assemblies , and by those governours , and that as a term , and condition of holding communion with them , which he cannot submit to without sin. and this point i do heartily wish was well considered by our dissenting brethren . they do seem often to look upon this business of coming to church , and joyning with us in prayers and sacraments , no otherwise to bind their conscience than other purely humane laws . they think they owe no obedience to the laws in these matters , different from that which they yield to any common act of parliament . and therefore no wonder they often make so slight a business of them . but this is a great mistake , there is much more in these things than this comes to . the withdrawing our communion from the church carrys a far greater guilt in it , than the violating any law , that is purely humane . for though we do readily grant that all the circumstances of publick worship enjoyned in the church , as for instance , the times , the gestures , the forms of prayer , the methods of reading the scripture , and administring the sacraments ; as also the habits of the ministers that are to officiate ; be all of humane institution , and may be altered , and varyed at the discretion of our governours : yet the publick worship it self under publick lawful governours is of divine appointment , and no man can renounce it without sinning against iesus christ , as well as offending against the ecclesiastical laws . a humane law grounded upon a divine , or to speak more properly , a divine law modify'd or clothed with several circumstances of mans appointment , doth create another kind of obligation upon every subject , than a law that is purely humane ; that is to say a law , the matter of which is neither good nor evil in it self , but perfectly indifferent . in the former case , we must yield obedience to the law , as to the law of god ; however it comes clothed with circumstances of mans appointment . in the other case we only yield obedience , as to the command of man ; and for no other reason , than that god in general hath obliged us to obey our superiors . to make this a little plainer , let us for instance take the business of paying tribute , and custom in this nation , in which case there is a complication of a divine law , with a humane , as it is in the case we are now upon . that every subject should pay tribute to whom tribute is due ; custom to whom custom is due ; is a law of god ; as being a branch both of natural and christian justice : but out of what goods we should pay tribute or custom , or what proportion of those goods should be paid , this is not defined either by the law of nature or the law of the gospel , but is left to the determination of the municipal laws of every kingdom . but now , because humane authority doth interpose in this affair , and settles what every man is to pay to the king , and out of what commodities ; doth it therefore follow , that if a man can by fraud or concealment detain the kings right from him , that he incurs no other guilt for this , but only the transgressing of an act of parliament , and the being obnoxious to the penalties , in case he be detected ? no certainly ; for all that the customs in that manner , and form be settled upon the king by humane law only ; yet the matter of that law being a point of natural justice between man and man ; the man that is thus guilty , ought to look upon himself as an offender against the divine law ; as an unjust person before god. and his willingness to submit to the forfeiture of his goods , will not render him less unjust , or more excuseable . the case is much the same as to the matter we have now before us . it is not a meer humane law , or act of parliament that obligeth us to keep the unity of the church ; to bring our children to be made christians by baptisme ; to meet together at solemn times for the profession of our faith , for the worshipping god , for the commemorating the death of our saviour in the sacrament of his supper . all this is tyed upon us by the laws of christ. these things are as much required of us by god , as christians ; as it is required that we should pay the king , and every man , what is due to them , if we would not be dishonest & unjust . it is true that the particular forms , and modes , and circumstances of doing these things , are not commanded , nor prescribed , by the laws of christ , in this instance of church communion , no more than they are prescribed by the laws of god in the other instance i gave : but they are left intirely to the prudence , and discretion of the governours that god hath set over us in ecclesiastical matters ; just as they are in the other . but in the mean time these things thus clothed by humane authority , as to their circumstances : yet being for the matter of them bound upon us by christ himself , we can no more deny our obedience to the publick laws about them , than we can in the other instance i have named . and that man may as well for instance , purge himself from the imputation of knavery before god , that will contrive a way of his own , for the paying his just debts contrary to what the law of the land hath declared to be just and honest : as any man can acquit himself from the sin of schism before god , that will chuse a way of his own for the publick worship , different from , and in opposition to what the laws of the church have prescribed ; always supposing , that the worship established be commanded by just authority , and there be nothing required in it as a condition of communion that is against the laws of iesus christ. the sum of all this is , that it is every mans duty by the laws of christ , as well as the laws of man , to worship god in the way of the church ; so long as there is nothing required in that worship , that can justly offend the conscience of a wise and good christian . and therefore there is more in departing from the communion of the church , when we can lawfully hold it , than meerly the violation of a statute , or a humane law , for we cannot do it without breaking the law of god. nay so much is it against the law of god to do this , that i think no authority upon earth can warrant it . so that even if there was a law made , which should ordain that wilful , causless separation from the established church should be allowed and tolerated , and no man should be called to an account for it : yet nevertheless such a separation would still be a schism , would still be a sin against god ; for no humane law can make that lawful which gods law hath forbid . there now only remains our last general head about conscience to be spoken to , and then we have done with our preliminary points : and that is concerning the authority of conscience , or how far a man is obliged to follow or be guided by his conscience in his actions . when we speak of the obligation of conscience , or of being bound in conscience to do or not to do an action , it sufficiently appears from what hath been said , that we can mean no more by these phrases than this , that we are convinced in our judgment that it is our duty to do this or the other action , because we believe that god hath commanded it . or we are perswaded in our judgment that we ought to forbear this or the other action , because we believe that god hath forbidden it . this now being that which we mean by the obligation of conscience , here we come to inquire how far this perswasion or judgment of ours , concerning what is our duty , and what is sinful , hath authority over us , how far it doth oblige us to act or not act , according to it . now in order to the resolving of this we must take notice , that our judgment concerning what god hath commanded , or forbidden , or left indifferent , is either true or false . we either make a right judgment of our duty , or we make a wrong one . in the former case we call our judgment a right conscience ; in the latter we call it an erroneous conscience . as for those cases where we doubt and hesitate , and know not well how to make any judgment at all ( which is that we call a doubting conscience , but indeed is properly no conscience , unless by accident , ) we have nothing here to do with them , but shall reserve them to another place . here we suppose , that we do make a judgment of the thing ; that is , we are perswaded in our minds , concerning the goodness , or badness of this , or the other action : and that which we are to inquire into , is , how far that judgment binds us to act according to it . now if our conscience be a right conscience ; that is , if we have truly informed our judgment according to the rule of gods law : it is beyond all question , and acknowledged by all the world , that we are in that case perpetually bound to act according to our judgment . it is for ever our duty so to do ; and there can no blame , no guilt fall upon us , for so doing , let the consequence of our acting , or not acting , be what it will. so that as to a right conscience , or a well informed judgment , there is no dispute among any sort of men. but the great thing to be inquired into , is , what obligation a man is under to act according to his judgment , supposing it be false , supposing he hath not rightly informed his conscience , but hath taken up false measures of what god hath commanded , or forbidden . now for the resolution of this , i lay down these three propositions , which i think will take in all that is needful , for the giving satisfaction to every one , concerning this point . first , where a man is mistaken in his iudgment , even in that case it is always a sin to act against it . be our conscience never so ill instructed , as to what is good , or evil , though we should take that for a duty , which is really a sin ; and on the contrary , that for a sin which is really a duty : yet so long as we are thus persuaded , it will be highly criminal in us , to act in contradiction to this persuasion ; and the reason of this is evident , because , by so doing , we wilfully act against the best light , which at present we have , for the direction of our actions ; and consequently our will is as faulty , and as wicked , in consenting to such actions , as if we had had truer notions of things . we are to remember , that the rule of our duty , whatever it be in it self , cannot touch or affect our actions , but by the mediation of our conscience ; that is , no farther than as it is apprehended by us , or as we do understand and remember it . so that when all is done , the immediate guide of our actions , can be nothing but our conscience ; our judgment and perswasion , concerning the goodness , or badness , or indifferency , of things . it is true in all those instances where we are mistaken , our conscience proves but a very bad and unsafe guide ; because it hath it self lost its way , in not following its rule as it should have done : but however our guide still it is , and we have no other guide of our actions but that . and if we may lawfully refuse to be guided by it in one in●●ance , we may with as much reason reject its guidance in all . what is the notion that any of us hath of a wilful sin , or a sin against knowledg , but this ? that we have done otherwise than we were convinced to be our duty , at the same time that we did so . and what other measures have we of any mans sincerity or hypocrisie ? but only this ; that he acts according to the best of his judgment , or that he doth not act according to what he pretends to believe . we do not indeed say , that every one is a good man , that acts according to his judgment ; or that he is to be commended for all actions that are done in pursuance of his perswasion : no , we measure vertue and vice by the rule , according to which , a man ought to act ; as well as by the mans intention in acting . but however we all agree that that man is a knave , that in any instance acts contrary to that which he took to be his duty . and in passing this sentence we have no regard to this ; whether the man was right or mistaken in his judgment , for be his judgment right or wrong , true or false ; it is all one as to his honesty , in acting or not acting according to it . he that hath a false perswasion of things ; so long as that perswasion continues , is often as well satisfied that he is in the right , as if his perswasion was true . that is , he is oftentimes as confident when he is in an error , as when he is in the right . and therefore we cannot but conclude , that he , who being under a mistake , will be tempted to act contrary to his judgment ; would certainly upon the same temptation act contrary to it , was his judgment never so well informed and therefore his will being as bad in the one case , as in the other , he is equally a sinner as to the wilfulness of the crime , tho indeed in other respects there will be a great difference in the cases . this i believe is the sense of all men in this matter . if a man for instance , should of a iew become a christian ; while yet in his heart he believeth that the messiah is not yet come , and that our lord iesus was an impostor . or if a papist should to serve some private ends , renounce the communion of the roman church , and joyn with ours ; while yet he is perswaded that the roman church is the only catholick church ; and that our reformed churches are heretical or schismatical : though now there is none of us will deny that the men in both these cases have made a good change ; as having changed a false religion for a true one : yet for all that , i dare say , we should all agree , they were both of them great villains and hypocrites , for making that change ; because they made it not upon honest principles , and in pursuance of their judgment , but in direct contradiction to both . nay i dare say we should all of us think better of an ignorant well meaning protestant ; that being seduced by the perswasions and artifices of a cunning popish factor , did really out of conscience , abandon our communion , and go over to the romanists ; as thinking theirs to be the safest : i say we should all of us entertain a more favourable opinion of such a man in such a case ; though really here the change is made from a true keligion to a false one ; than we should of either of the other men i have before named . all this put together is abundantly sufficient to shew that no man can in any case act against his judgment or perswasion , but he is guilty of sin in so doing , but then , our second proposition is this , the mistake of a mans iudgment may be of such a nature , that as it will be a sin to act against his iudgment , so it will likewise be a sin to act according to it . for what authority soever a mans conscience has over him , it can never bear him out , if he do an evil thing in compliance with it . my judgment is ( as we have said ) the guide of my actions ; but it may through my negligence be so far misguided it self ; as that if i follow it , it will lead me into the most horrid crimes in the world. and will it be a sufficient excuse or justification of my action in such a case to say ; that indeed herein i did but act according to my perswasion ? no verily ; i may as certainly be damn'd without repentance , for acting according to my judgment , in some cases , where it is mistaken , as i shall be , for acting contrary to it in other cases where it is rightly informed . and the reason of this is very plain . it is not my judgment or perswasion that makes good or evil , right or wrong , iustice or injustice , vertue or vice. but it is the nature of things themselves ; and the law of god , ( and of men under that ) commanding or forbidding things , that makes them so . if the moral goodness , or badness of actions was to be measured by mens opinions , and perswasions ; then good and evil , duty and sin , would be the most various , uncertain things in the world. they would change their natures as often as men change their opinions ; and that which to day is a vertue , to morrow would be a crime ; and that which in one man , would be a heroically good action , would in another man be a prodigious piece of villany ; though yet there was no difference in the action it self , or in the circumstances of the man that did it , save only the difference of opinion . but such consequences as these are intolerable , nor indeed do men either talk or think after this manner . every man when he speaks of good or evil , lawful or unlawful , means some certain fixed thing which it is not in his power to alter the nature and property of . that action is good , and a duty , which is either so in it self , or made so by some positive law of god. and that action is evil , and a sin , that is forbid by god in either of these ways . so that unless it was in our power to change the nature of things ; or to alter the laws of god : it will unavoidably follow ; that we shall be for ever obliged to do some actions , and to forbear others , whatever our judgment concerning them , is : and consequently we may be guilty of sin , if in these instances we act contrary to this obligation ; though at the same time it should happen that we are firmly perswaded that we ought so to do . and thus is our proposition fully proved ; but then for the further clearing of it , i desire it may be taken notice of : that we do not thus lay it down , that every mistake of judgment about good or evil , doth involve a man in sin , if he act according to that mistake : but only thus , the mistake of a mans judgment may be of such a nature , that as it will be a a sin in him to act against it , so it will likewise be sin to act according to it . it is not every error in morals that brings a man under the necessity of sinning , if he pursues it in his actions . a mans conscience may mistake its rule in a hundred instances , and yet he may safely enough act according to it . and the reason is because a man may entertain a great many mistakes , mistakes , and false notions of his duty , and act according to them too ; and yet in such actions he shall not transgress any law of god. now this that i say , holds chiefly in these two instances . for example in the first place , if a man believe a thing to be commanded by god which yet indeed is not ; but neither is it forbidden : as if a man should think himself obliged to retire himself from his business , seven times or three times a day , for the purpose of devotion ; or to give half of his yearly income to pious , and charitable uses , if he can do it without prejudice to his family . now in this case he is certainly mistaken in his duty ; for the law of god hath not bound him up to such measures in either of these instances : but yet because god hath not on the other hand laid any commands upon him to the contrary ; it is certain he may in both these instances act according to this mistake , without any guilt in the world ; nay , so long as that mistake continues , he is bound to act accordingly . again in the second place , if a man believe a thing to be forbidden by gods law , which yet is not ; but neither is it commanded : as for instance , if a man think that he ought by vertue of a divine command to abstain from all meats that are strangled or have bloud in them ; or if he believe it unlawful to play at cards or dice ; or that it is forbidden by gods word to let out money at interest : why in all these cases he may follow his opinion , though it be a false one , without sin ; nay , he is bound to follow it , because it is the dictate of his conscience , however his conscience be mistaken . and the reason is plain , because though he be mistaken in his judgment about these matters , yet since god hath not by any law , forbid these things ; there is no transgression follows upon acting according to such a mistake . but then in other cases where a mans mistake happens to be of such a nature , as that he cannot act according to his conscience , but he transgresseth some law of god ; by which conscience ought to be governed : as for instance , when a man looks upon that as a lawful action , or as a duty , which god hath forbidden ; or looks upon that as a sin , or at least an indifferent action , which god hath commanded ; here it is that the mistake becomes dangerous . and in such cases the man is brought into that sad dilemma we have been representing , viz. that if he act according to his perswasion he transgresseth gods law , and so is a sinner upon that account : if he acts against his perswasion , then he is self condemned , and very guilty before god upon that account . well , but is there no avoiding of this ? must it be laid down as a constant universal truth ; that in all cases where a mans judgment happens to be contrary to the rule of his duty , commanding , or forbidding an action ; he must of necessity sin ; whether he act , or not act , according to that judgment ? if indeed he act against his conscience , it is readily granted he sins ; but it seems very hard , that he should be under a necessity of sinning when he acts according to it ; especially when he is perfectly ignorant of , or mistaken in the law against which he offends . this is indeed the great difficulty that occurs in this matter ; and for the untying it , i lay down this third general proposition , viz. that the great thing to be attended to in this case of a mans following a mistaken iudgment , is the culpableness or inculpableness ; the faultiness or innocence of the mistake , upon which he acts ; for according as this is ; so will his guilt in acting according to it be either greater , or less , or none at all . we do not say that a man is always guilty of a sin before god , when upon a misinformation of judgment he omits that which gods law hath commanded ; or doth that which gods law hath forbidden . no though these omissions or actions may be said to be sins in themselves ; that is , as to the matter of them ; as being transgressions of gods law : yet before we affirm that they will be imputed to a man as such ; that is prove formally sins to him ; we first consider the nature of the action , and the circumstances of the man. if we find upon examination that the instance wherein gods law is transgressed , is such an instance as even an honest minded man may well be supposed to mistake in : and if we find likewise that the man had not sufficient means for the informing himself aright as to this matter ; and that he hath done all that he could do in his circumstances to understand his duty : if in such a case as this he be mistaken in his duty ; and act upon that mistake ; yet we do not say that the man is properly guilty of any sin in that action , however that action is indeed contrary to the law of god. on the contrary we believe him to be innocent as to this matter ; nor will god ever call him to an account for what he hath done or omitted in these circumstances . and the reasons and grounds upon which we affirm this are plain , and evident at the first hearing . no man can be obliged to do more then what is in his power to do . and what ever a man is not obliged to do , it is no sin in him if he do it not . so that if a man do all that one in his circumstances can , or should do ; for the right understanding of his duty : if he happens to be mistaken , that mistake cannot be imputed to him as a sin ; because he was not obliged to understand better . and if his mistake be no sin , it is certain to act according to that mistake can be no sin neither . so that the whole point of sinning , or not sinning , in following an erroneous conscience , lies here . whether the man that is thus mispersuaded , is to be blamed , or not blamed , for his mispersuasion . if the error he hath taken up do not proceed from his own fault and negligence ; but was the pure unavoidable effects of the circumstances , in which he is placed ; ( which circumstances we suppose he contributed nothing to , but he was put into them by the disposition of divine providence : ) then of what nature soever the error be ; he doth not contract any guilt by any action which he doth in pursuance of that error . but if it was in his power to rectifie that error ; if he had means and opportunities to inform his conscience better ; and the nature of the action was such , that it was his duty so to do : so that he must be accounted guilty of a gross and criminal neglect in not doing it : in this case the man is a transgressor , and accountable unto god , as such , for all the actions that he doth , or omits , contrary to gods law ; while he acts under that mistake , or in pursuance of it . and accordingly as this neglect or carelesness is greater or less ; so is the sinfulness of the action which he doth in pursuance of it , greater or less likewise . and this is a plain account of this matter . so that we see there is no fatal unavoidable necessity laid upon any man to commit a sin by acting according to his conscience . but if at any time he be brought under those sad circumstances , he brings that necessity upon himself . god never put any man into such a condition , but that he might do that duty which was required of him ; and be able to give a good account of his actions . but here is the thing ; men by their vice and wickedness ; by neglecting the means of instruction , that are afforded them ; and not using their reason and understanding as they should do ; may suffer themselves to be brought under the bondage of such false and evil principles ; that they shall so long as they hold those principles , fall into sin , whether they act according to their conscience , or act against it . i have done with the general points concerning conscience , which i thought needful to be premised , as the grounds and principles of our following discourse . i now come to that which i at first proposed ; and for the sake of which all this is intended ; that is , to speak to the case of those that separate from the communion of the church of england , upon this pretence ; that it is against their conscience to join with us in it . now all that i conceive needful to be done , in order to a full discussion of this case , and giving satisfaction about it , are these two things , first , to separate the pretences of conscience that are truly and justly made , in this matter , from the false ones : or to shew who those are that can rightly plead conscience for their nonconformity ; and who those are that cannot . secondly , to inquire how far this plea of conscience , when it is truly made , will iustifie any dissenter that continnes in separation from the church , as established among us ; and what is to be done by such a person , in order to his acting with a safe and good conscience in this affair . our first inquiry is what is required in order to any mans truly pleading conscience for his refusing to joyn in communion with the established church . or who those persons are that can with justice make that plea for themselves . i think it very convenient to begin my disquisition here , because by removing all the false pretences to conscience ; the controversy will be brought into a much less compass ; and the difficulties that arise will be more easily untyed . the truth is , if the thing be examined , i believe it will be found , that the pretence to conscience in the matter we are talking of , is , as in many other cases , extended much farther than it ought to be . my meaning is , that of all those who think fit to withdraw from our communion , and to live in disobedience to the known laws of the church , and pretend conscience for so doing ; in a great many of them it is not conscience , but some other thing mistaken for conscience , which is the principle they act upon . so that if the true plea of conscience be separated from those counterfeit ones , which usually usurp that name ; we shall not find either the persons to be so many that refuse communion with us , upon the account of conscience truly so called ; nor the cases to be so many in which they do refuse it upon that account . now in order to the making such a separation or distinction between conscience truly so called , and the several pretences to it , in this business of not conforming to the established worship , i lay down this general proposition ; that , if the principles i have laid down about conscience be admitted ; then it is certainly true , that no man among us can justly plead conscience for his separation from the church of england ; or can say that it is against his conscience to joyn in communion with it ; but only such a one , as is perswaded in his own mind , that he cannot communicate with us without sinning against god in so doing . for since , as we have said , conscience is nothing else but a mans judgment concerning actions , whether they be duties , or sins , or indifferent : and since the law of god commanding or forbidding actions ; or neither commanding them , nor forbidding them ; is the only rule by which a man can judg what actions are duties , and what are sins , and what are indifferent : it plainly follows ; that as a man cannot be bound in conscience to do any action which it doth not appear to him that gods law hath some way or other commanded , and made a duty : so neither can it go against a mans conscience , to do any action which he is not convinced that gods law hath some way or other forbidden , and so made a sin. and therefore in our present case . that man only can justly plead conscience for his nonconformity that can truly say he is perswaded in his judgment that conformity is forbidden by some law of god : or which is the same thing ; no man can say , it is against his conscience to joyn in our communion , but only such a one as really believes he shall sin against some law of god , if he do joyn with us , if against this it be excepted ; that it is very possible for a man to be well satisfied that there is nothing directly sinful in our worship ; but yet for all that it may be against his conscience to joyn with us in it : as for instance , in the case where a man takes it really to be his duty to hold constant communion with some other congregation , where he believes he can be more edified , or to which he is related by some church covenant : to this i answer , that in this case , i grant , conscience is rightly pleaded for separation ( though how justifiably i do not now examine : ) but then i say this plea proceeds upon the same grounds i just now laid down . for if the man ( as is supposed in the case ) be convinced that it is his duty by gods law , ( as there is no other measure of duty ) to hold communion with others , and not with us ; then he must at the same time be convinced that he cannot without transgression of gods law , ( that is , without sin , ) joyn with us ; and that is the same account which we give , of its being against any mans conscience to hold communion with us . further , if it be urged against our proposition , that not only in the case where a man is perswaded of the unlawfulness of our communion , but also in the case where he only doubts of the lawfulness of it , a man may justly plead conscience for his nonconformity , so long as those doubts remain : and therefore it is not truly said of us , that in order to the pleading conscience for nonconformity , one must be perswaded in his own mind , that conformity is forbidden by some law of god. i answer , that if the man who thus doubts of the lawfulness of conformity , hath really entertain'd this principle , that it is a sin to do any thing with a doubting conscience ; i grant that it must go against his conscience to conform so long as he doubts . but then , this is but the same thing we are contending for ; for therefore it goes against his conscience to communicate with us , doubting as he doth ; because he believes he shall sin against god if he should . but if the man we are speaking of , do not think it a breach of gods law , to act with a doubting conscience ; then i do not see how it can in the least go against his conscience to communicate with us upon that pretence . so that notwithstanding these two exceptions ; which are all i can think of ; it will still remain true , that no man can justly plead conscience for his separation from the church , but he that is perswaded that he cannot joyn with it without sinning against god. now if this proposition be true , as certainly it is ; then how many mens pretences to conscience for their separating from us , are hereby cut off : and indeed how few ( in comparison of the multitude of dissenters among us ) will be left , that can be able with truth to say that it is against their conscience to communicate with us in our prayers , and in our sacraments . in the first place , it is evident that all those who separate from us upon account of any private grudge or pique ; because they have been disobliged , or have received some disappointment in the way of our church , or by the men that are favourers of it ; and therefore out of a pet will joyn themselves to another communion . all those that think they can serve their own turns more effectually , by being of another way ; as for instance , they can thereby better please a relation from whom they have expectances ; they can better advance their trade , or increase their fortunes ; they can better procure a reputation , or regain one that is sunk . in a word , all those that to serve any ends of pride , or interest , or passion , or out of any other wordly consideration , do refuse us their company in the worship of god , i say , all such are certainly excluded from pleading conscience for their separation . in the second place , all those lay people who refuse our communion upon account that the pastors , and teachers , whom they most love , and reverence , are not permitted to exercise their function among us ; whose pretence it is , that if these good men were allowed to teach in our churches , they would come to our congregations ; but so long as that is refused , they will hear them where they can : i say , all these are likewise excluded from pleading conscience for their separation . for , however it may really and truly be against the conscience of their ministers to conform , ( there being other things required of them , than of ordinary people , ) yet it is not against their conscience so to do ; for they know no ill in conformity , but only that so many good men are silenced . in the third place , all those that refuse our communion upon a meer dislike of several things in our church offices : they do not for instance , like a form of prayer in general , and they have several things to object against our form in particular ; they do not like our ceremonies , they do not like the surplice , or the cross in baptism ; and sundry other things they find fault with : not that they have any thing to say against the lawfulness of these things ; but only they have an aversion to them : all these men likewise are cut off from pleading conscience for their separation . for they do not pretend that it is unlawful , or a sin against god to joyn with us in our service ( which is the only thing wherein their conscience can be concerned ; ) but only they are not pleased with many things in our service ; as fancying them not to be so decent , or convenient , or not to be so prudently order'd as they would have them . but what of all this ? admit the things to be so as they fancy them ; yet still so long as they do not think there is any sin in them , it cannot go against their conscience to joyn with any assembly in which they are practised . because conscience as we have often said is not touched , is not affected where no law of god is transgressed . in the fourth place , all those that are kept from our communion , purely upon the account of education , or acquaintance with persons that are of another perswasion . those that have nothing to say against our worship ; but only that they were bred in another way ; or those that would joyn with us in it , but that they know a great many religious godly persons that do condemn it , and therefore they dare not come at us . these now may be very well meaning men , but yet they cannot reasonably plead conscience upon this account for their separation . for it is not a mans education , or the example , or opinion of other men , that makes any action to be a duty , or a sin , but the law of god commanding or forbidding that action . and therefore before i can say that this , or the other action , is against my conscience , i must believe that gods law hath either in general , or in particular ; either directly , or by consequence , made that action unlawful . i grant the opinions of other men , especially those that are learned , and pious are always to be listned to in doubtful cases . but then , no mans opinion can be the rule of my conscience ; nor am i at all concerned in conscience to follow it , any farther than i am convinced that it declares gods law to me . and therefore sure in this case of church communion , i can be but very little concerned to follow any mans opinion ; when , both there are so many persons , and those as learned and as pious as any others , that are of another opinion ; and when also the publick law , which has much more authority than any private opinion , hath determined what i am to do in the case . so that it is great weakness , & sillyness ; & not conscience , that prevails with these men i am speaking of , to live in disobedience to the laws . if indeed they be really perswaded in their own minds , that our way of worshipping god , is in any part or instance of it unlawful or forbidden , ( let that perswasion be upon what grounds it will , ) then they may truly say it is against their conscience to joyn with us . but if they be not convinced of this ; i do not see how the example , or the advice of their friends and acquaintance , can in the least give them a title to plead conscience for their refusing our communion . fifthly , those that withdraw from the church upon this account , that our governours in their laws and prescriptions about gods worship , have not rightly used the power which they are intrusted with , but have exceeded their bounds ; have made perhaps too great encroachments upon christian liberty ; or laid more stress than was meet upon indifferent things : these likewise are excluded by the former rule from pleading conscience for their separation . for admit the law-givers have been to blame in the exercise of their power in these matters , ( which yet is sooner said then proved , ) and have really done more then they can answer to god for ; yet what is this to them ? the conscience of the governours is indeed deeply concerned about these things ; and they must give an account to god for the abuse of their authority if there be any . but how this doth concern the conscience of the subject , is not easily understood : so long as what is commanded or enjoyned , doth not appear to interfere with any law of god. but having said this ; i fear there is too much reason to add ; that those who so much stand up for christian liberty , and would be thought the great patrons of it ; do by their endless scruples about indifferent things , and refusing to obey authority in such matters , in all appearance , take the most effectuall course to destroy all christian liberty , in the true notion of it ; and to bring in a religion that shall consist of touch not , tast not , handle not ; and such other uncommanded things . sixthly , and lastly , ( to name no more instances ) all those that can communicate occasionally with us , in our prayers and sacraments : as for instance , those that when they have a turn to be served , when there is an office or some such thing in the case ; can come to church , and receive the communion , but at other times they do not afford us their presence : these are also excluded from pretending to conscience , for their not constantly joyning in communion with us . for if indeed they did believe , it was a sin in them to joyn with us in our prayers and sacraments ; with what conscience dare they do it at all ? they ought not for any worldly good , to venture upon such an action as they do believe to be forbidden by gods laws ; but if they do not believe that to joyn in our communion is a sinful thing , ( as i dare say none of these persons do ) then i will be bold to make the inference ; that it cannot be more against their conscience to do it thrice , than to do it once ; and do it constantly than to do it thrice . but let us leave the false pretenders to conscience , and come to the case of those who can justly plead conscience for their separation ; or that can truly say it is against their conscience to joyn in our communion . of this sort are all such , and none but such , as do really believe that our communion is unlawful , or that they cannot communicate with us without sin , as i have before proved . as for those that only doubt of the lawfulness of our communion , but are not perswaded that it is unlawful ; i do not here consider them ; because they cannot say that it is against their conscience to communicate with us ; any more than they can say , that they are bound in conscience to communicate with us : for they are uncertain as to both these things , and are not determined either way . but however because these men may justly plead conscience upon this account ; that they think it is a sin to joyn with us so long as they doubt of the lawfulness of our communion : i shall consider their case afterwards in a particular discourse upon that argument . those that i am now concerned with , are such , as do believe , or are perswaded , that there is some thing in our worship which they cannot comply with without sinning against god. and my business is to examine whether such a belief or perswasion of the vnlawfulness of our communion will justifie any mans separation from us ? or how far it will do it ? and what is to be done by such persons , in order , either to their communicating , or not communicating with us , with a safe conscience ? this is our second point , and i apply my self to it . there are a great many among us , that would with all their hearts ( as they say ) obey the laws of the church , and joyn in our worship and sacraments ; but they are really perswaded that they cannot do it without sin : for there are some things required of them as conditions of communicating with us , which are forbidden by the laws of god. as for instance , it is against the commands of christ to appoint , or to use any thing in the worship of god , which god himself hath not appointed . for this is to add to the word of god , and to teach for doctrines the commandments and traditions of men. it is against the commands of iesus christ to stint the spirit in prayer ; which all those that use a form of prayer , must necessarily do . it is against the commands of iesus christ to use any significant ceremony in religion : as for instance , the cross in baptism , for that is to make new sacraments . it is against the commands of iesus christ to kneel at the lords supper , for that is directly to contradict our saviours example in his institution of that sacrament , and savours besides of popish idolatry . since therefore there are these sinful things in our worship ; and those too imposed as terms of communion ; how can we blame them , if they withdraw themselves from us ? would we have them joyn with us in these practices which they verily believe to be sins ? where then was their conscience ? they might perhaps by this means shew how much they were the servants of men : but what would become of their fidelity to iesus christ. what now shall we say to this ? they themselves are so well satisfi'd with their own doings in these matters , that they do not think they are in the least to be blamed for refusing us their communion , so long as things stand thus with them . they are sure they herein follow their own conscience ; and therefore they cannot doubt but they are in a safe condition ; and may justifie their proceedings to god , and to all the world ; let us say what we please . this is the case . now in answer to it , we must grant them these two things . first of all , that if indeed they be right in their judgment ; and those things which they except against in our communion be really unlawful , and forbidden by iesus christ ; then they are not at all to be blamed for their not communicating with us . for in that case , separation is not a sin but a duty : we being for ever bound to obey god rather than men. and secondly , supposing they be mistaken in their judgment , and think that to be unlawful , and forbidden by god which is not really so : yet so long as this perswasion continues ( though it be a false one ) we think they cannot without sin joyn in our communion . for even an erroneous conscience ( as we have shewed ) binds thus far , that a man cannot without sin act in contradiction to it . these two things i say we grant them , and let them make the best advantage of them . but then this is the point we stand upon , and which if it be true , will render this whole plea for nonconformity upon account of conscience , as i have now opened it , wholly insufficient , viz. if it should prove that our dissenters are mistaken in their judgment ; and that our governours do indeed require nothing of them in the matter of church communion , but what they may comply with , without breach of gods law : then i say it will not acquit them from being guilty of sin before god in withdrawing from our communion ; to say , that they really believed our communion to be unlawful ; and upon that account they durst not joyn with us . it is not my province here to answer all their objections against our forms of prayer , our ceremonies , our orders and rules , in administring sacraments , and other things that concern our communion : this hath been done several times ; and of late by several persons which have treated of all these particular matters ; and who have shewed with great clearness and strength , that there is nothing required in our church appointments , which is in the least inconsistent with , or forbidden by any law of iesus christ : but on the contrary , the establishments of our church , are for gravity , decency , purity , and agreeableness with the primitive christianity ; the most approvable , and the least exceptionable of any church constitutions at this day in the world. these things therefore i meddle not with , but this is the point i am concerned in : whether , supposing it be every mans duty to joyn in communion with the established church ; and there be nothing required in that communion , but what may be lawfully practised ? i say , supposing these two things ; whether it will be sufficient to acquit any man from sin , that withdraws from that communion , upon this account , that through his mistake , he believes he cannot joyn with us without sin ? or thus , whether will any mans perswasion that there are sinful terms required in our communion ( when yet there are not any ) justifie his separation from us . this is the general question truly put ; and this i give as the answer to it : that in general speaking a mans erroneous perswasion doth not dissolve the obligation of gods law , or justifie any mans transgression of his duty . so that if gods law doth command me to hold communion with the church where i have no just cause to break it : and i have no just cause to break it in this particular case , but only i think i have : my misperswasion in this matter doth not discharge me from my obligation to keep the communion of the church ; or acquit me from sin before god if i break it . the truth and reason of this i have fully shewed before , in what i have said about the authority of conscience . i shall now only by way of further confirmation ask this question : was st. paul guilty of sin or no , when he persecuted the christians ; being verily perswaded in his own mind that he ought so to do , and that he sinned if he did not ? if any will say that st. paul did not sin in this , because he did but act according to his conscience ; they contradict his own express words . for he acknowledgeth himself to be the greatest of sinners , and that for this very reason because he persecuted the church of christ. if they say that he did sin in doing this : then they must at the same time acknowledg , that a mans perswasion that a thing is a duty , will not excuse him from guilt in practising it ; if really and indeed it be against gods law : and on the other side , by the same reason , that a mans perswasion that a thing is unlawful , will not excuse him from guilt in not practising it ; if indeed gods law hath made it a duty . so that it infinitely concerns all our dissenting brethren to consider very well what they do , when they withdraw from our communion . schism undoubtedly is a great and crying sin. a sin , against which , there are as many hard things said in the discourses of our lord and his apostles ; and in the writings of the ancient christians ; as against any other sin whatsoever . and therefore let those that forsake our communion ; and set up , or joyn with other assemblies in opposition to ours : i say , let them look to it that they be not involved in the guilt of this dreadful sin. they must be sure that their separation proceeds upon good grounds , if they would free themselves from the imputation of it . it is not always enough to excuse them ; that they do believe there are sinful conditions imposed in our communion , and consequently it is their duty to withdraw . for unless the thing be so indeed ; their believing so will not cancel their obligation to our church communion ; or make it cease to be schism to withdraw themselves from it . this may perhaps at the first hearing seem very strange doctrine to many , but yet it is true for all that ; and will appear a little more evident , if we put the case in another instance , wherein we are not so nearly concerned . here is one of the roman-catholick perswasion , ( as they call it , ) that hath been trained up in popery ; and heartily believes it to be true religion , and the only one , wherein salvation is to be had ; and therefore in obedience to the laws and customs of that church , doth pay religious worship to images ; doth pray to saints and angels ; doth give divine adoration to the consecrated bread in the sacrament ; as really believing it to be turned into the body of christ , to which his soul , and deity is personally united . is now such a person as this guilty of idolatry in these practices or is he not ? he doth verily believe that he is not . he would abhor these practices , if he did in the least believe , that god had forbid them as idolatrous . nay he is so far from believing that they are forbid , that on the contrary he hath been taught to believe that they are necessary duties ; and he cannot be a good catholick , unless he thus worship images , and saints , and the bread of the host. well , now the point is , whether such a man , believing as he doth , be upon that account acquitted from the sin of idolatry ? we all grant , that if he had such clear information about these things as we protestants have ; he would certainly be an idolater if he should contitinue in these practices : but whether his belief , and opinion , and perswasion concerning these things , do not excuse him ; and make that cease to be idolatry , that would otherwise be so ; this i say is the question . but yet none of us make any great question of it . for we do charge the papists indiscriminately , with idolatry in their worship ; notwithstanding their disclaiming it ; notwithstanding their profession to worship god , no otherwise than according to his own will ; notwithstanding they do really take themselves obliged in conscience to give divine worship to the consecrated elements , and those other objects . and we charge them rightly in this . for if it be really idolatry by gods word , to do these things ; then it will be idolatry in any man to do them , let his opinion about them be what it will. a mans ignorance , or mistake , or false opinion doth not alter the nature of things ; it can neither make that cease to be a duty , which god hath commanded , nor that cease to be a sin which god hath forbidden . all that it will do , is , that according to the nature and circumstances of it , it may more or less extenuate the transgression that is committed upon the account thereof . and the case is just the same in the matter before us . for any man to withdraw his communion from that church , with which he ought , and with which he may lawfully communicate ; that is as properly the sin of schism , as it is the sin of idolatry to give divine worship to that which is not god. for any man , therefore , to break the unity of the church ; though it be upon this very account , that he doth believe it is his duty so to do ; or that he cannot communicate with that church without sin : yet if this perswasion of his be false , and erroneous ; he is no less a schismatick for all this ; than the other man is an idolater that thinks it his duty to adore images , and those other undue objects of divine worship among the romanists . it is true , the mans ignorance or misperswasion will according to the greater or less culpability of it ; more or less excuse the mans person before god , as it doth in the other case . but it cannot in the least make that which god hath made to be schism to be no schism ; no more than in the other case , it makes that to be no idolatry which gods word hath declared to be idolatry . well now admitting all this ; here comes the pinch of the thing . it will be said , what , would you have a man do in this case ? he cannot conform with a safe conscience ; and yet he is a transgressor if he do not . if he comply against his conscience , you grant he is guilty of sin in so doing : if he doth not comply ; then you say he is a schismatick ; and so is a sinner upon that account . why to this i say , that both these things are often true ; and here is that dilemma , which men by suffering their minds to be abused with evil principles , and perswasions , do frequently run themselves into . they are reduced to that extremity that they can neither act , nor forbear acting : they can neither obey , nor disobey without sin. but what is to be done in this case ? i know nothing but this : that all imaginable care is to be taken that the error and false principles which misled the man be deposed ; and that his judgment be better informed ; and then he may both do his duty which gods law requireth of him , and avoid sinning against his conscience . but how is this to be done ? why no other way , but by using conscientiously all those means which common prudence will recommend to a man , for the gaining instruction and information to himself about any point that he desires throughly to understand . that is to say , freeing his mind from all pride , and passion , and interest , and all other carnal prepossessions ; and applying himself seriously and impartially to the getting right notions and sentiments about his duty in these matters : considering without prejudice what can be said on both sides : calling in the best assistance of the ablest and wisest men that he can come by : and above all things seriously endeavouring to understand the nature and spirit of the christian religion ; and to practice all that he is undoubtedly convinced to be his duty : and for the matters in question , most earnestly imploring the assistance of gods spirit to guide and direct him . well , but supposing a man has endeavoured to inform his judgment as well as he can , and hath used all those prudent means that were in his power , to satisfie himself of the lawfulness of our communion ; but yet after all , he is of the same perswasion that he was , viz. that he cannot joyn in our worship without sin : what will we say to such a man as this ? will we still say that this man must either conform , though against his conscience ; or he is a schismatick before god ? this is the great difficulty , and i have two things to say to it . in the first place , we do heartily wish that this was the case of all , or of the most of our dissenters , ( viz. that they had done what they can , to satisfie themselves about our communion . ) for if it was , i do verily perswade my self that there would presently be an end of all those much to be lamented schisms , and divisions , which do now give so much scandal to all good men , and threaten the ruin of our reformed religion ; and this poor church of england , which hath so long laboured and groaned , under the furious attacques that have been made upon her , by enemies without , and enemies within her own bowels , would in a little time , be perfectly set free from all apprehension of danger , at the least from the one sort of her adversaries . if all our brethren of the separation would most seriously follow after the things that make for peace , and walk by the same rule as far as they were able , and in things where they were otherwise minded , would religiously apply themselves to god for direction ; and to the use of prudent means for satisfaction : i doubt not but the face of things would presently be changed among us ; and we should hear no more of any division or schism in our nation , that was either dangerous to the church , or to the salvation of the men that were concerned in it . but alas , we fear we have too great reason to say , that the generality of our dissenting brethren , even those of them that plead conscience for their separation ; have not done their duty in this matter ; have not heartily endeavoured to satisfie their minds about the lawfulness of conformity in those points which they stick at . if they had ; one would think that after all their endeavours they should , before they pronounced conformity to be unlawful , be able to produce some one plain text of scripture for the proving it so , either in the whole or in any part of it ; but this they are not able to do . they do indeed produce some texts of scripture which they think do make for them : but really they are such , that if they had not supinely taken up their meaning upon trust ; but would have been at the pains of carefully examining them ; aud using such helps as they have every where at hand for the understanding them : it would have been somewhat difficult for them , to have expounded those texts in such a sense as would infer the unlawfulness of our communion . but further i say , it is not probable that the generality of our dissenters , who condemn our communion as unlawful , have ever anxiously applied themselves to the considering the point , or gaining satisfaction about it ; because they do not seem to have much consulted their own teachers in this affair , and much less those of our way . if they had , they would have been disposed to think better of our communion ; than they do : for not to mention what the churchmen do teach & press in this matter ; the most eminent of their own ministers , are ready thus far to give their testimony to our communion . that there is nothing required in it , but what a lay-person may honestly and lawfully comply with ; though there may be some things inconvenient , and which they wish were amended . nay they themselves are ready upon occasion to afford us their company , in all the instances of lay-communion . but i desire not to enlarge upon this argument , because it is an invidious one . all that i say is , that we wish it was not too apparent by many evidences , that most of those who separate from us , are so far from having done all they can to bring themselves to a complyance with our church constitutions ; that they have done little or nothing at all towards it : but have taken up their opinions , hand over head , without much thinking or enquiring ; and having once taken up an opinion , they adhere to it , without scarce so much as once thinking , that it is possible for them to be in the wrong . if you speak of a man that may with reason be said to have done his endeavour to satisfie himself about the points of his duty in this matter : give us such a one ; as hath no end , no interest to serve by his religion , but only to please god , and to go to heaven ; and who in the choice of the way that leads thither , hath the indifference of a traveller ; to whom it is all one , whether his way light on the right hand , or on the left ; being only concerned that it be the way which leads to his journeys end . give us a man , that concerns himself as little as you please , in the speculative disputes , and controversies of religion : but yet is wonderfully solicitous about the practice of his duty ; and therefore will refuse no pains or trouble that may give him a right understanding of that . give us a man , that in the midst of the great heats , and divisions , and different communions of the church ; is yet modest , and humble , and docible : that believes he may be mistaken , and that his private friends may be mistaken too , and hath such an esteem and reverence for the wisdom of his governours in church or state ; as to admit that it is probable they may see farther into matters of state and religion , than he doth : and that therefore every tenent , and opinion that was inbibed in his education ; that was infused by private men of his acquaintance ; or that was espoused upon a very few thoughts , and little consideration ; ought not to be so stifly maintained ; as to control , or to be set in opposition to the publick establishments of authority . lastly , give us a man , that where the publick laws do run counter to his private sentiments ; and he is at a loss to reconcile his duty to men , with his duty to god : yet doth not presently upon this , set up a flag of defiance to authority ; but rather applies himself with all the indifference , and honesty he can , to get a true information of these matters : and to that end he prays to god continually for his assistance , he calls in the best helps , and consults the best guides he can ; his ears are open to what both sides can say for themselves ; and he is as willing to read a book which is writ against his opinion , as one that defends it : in a word if he be prejudiced , or biassed any way ; it is on the side of authority ; being rather desirous to find himself mistaken , and his governours in the right ; than himself in the right , and his governours mistaken . i say shew us such a man as this ; and we readily grant , you have produced a person , that doth sincerely use his endeavours to satisfie himself about the lawfulness of our communion . but then we must say this also ; that as the case stands between the church of england , and the dissenters ; we can hardly believe , that such a man will long continue in separation from the church ; but will in a little time gain the satisfaction of seeing , not only that he may lawfully joyn with us , but also that it is his duty so to do . but let us admit , that a man may have endeavoured to inform his judgment as well as he can ; and yet be so far from being convinced that it is his duty to joyn with us in our worship ; that he is still of opinion that it is his duty to separate from us : what will we say of such a man ? will we still brand him for a schismatick , notwithstanding he hath done all he can , to bring himself over to us ; but cannot ? to this i answer in the second place , according to the principles i have before laid down , that if such a case do ever happen ; though the man cannot be excused from schism , as to the matter of it ( because wherever there is an actual separation from a church , with which we ought , and with which we may , lawfully communicate ; there is an actual schism commenced ; let the pretence for the separation be what it will : ) yet i trust he shall not be charged before god , with the formal guilt of the schism ; any farther than the error that led him into it , was contracted by his own fault . though schism in it self ( as we have said ) be a great sin : yet we do not say that all those who are engaged in the same schism , are equally guilty before god. in the first place , those that separate from the church , to serve any private secular turn ; these are most horribly guilty of schism , and there is nothing to be said in their excuse . in the second place , those who separate from the church , through misperswasions , and mistakes of judgment , which they groundlessly , and foolishly took up ; and might have avoided ; and would yet still certainly correct in themselves , if they were but so careful , and conscientious about their duty as they ought to be : these men , have indeed far more to say for themselves , than the former ; but yet they are very blameable , and are bound as they love their souls , to take more care of informing their conscience aright ; that so they may leave that sin they are engaged in . but thirdly , those that separate from the church of god , because they know no better , nor never had means to know better : or those that have sincerely endeavoured to understand their duty as much as could be expected from one in their circumstances ; yet through weakness of understanding , or want of opportunity , light into wrong paths : in a word , those that are unhappily engaged in a schism ; but god almighty who searcheth the hearts , knoweth , that it is not through the fault of their wills , but the misfortune of their circumstances : i say , if there be any man among us that is in this condition ; though he be a schismatick materially ; yet he is innocently , at least , pittiably so . and if he be as free from blame in the other parts of his life ; be may be a good christian for all that . and god almighty we hope who judgeth of men by their inward sincerity , and not by their outward circumstances ; will impute that schism ( which in others perhaps is a wilful crime ) to this man , no otherwise then as a pure sin of ignorance , which shall not ( upon a general repentance for all sins known and unknown , ) be accounted for at the last day . especially if this innocently mistaken man we speak of , do to the other regularities of his life , add a diligent care in these four following points . first , that he be not obstinate , and pertinacious in his way , but that he keep his mind readily prepared and disposed to receive any conviction , which god by any means or instruments shall offer to him . secondly , that he separate no farther from the church , of which he ought to be a member , than he needs must ; but do chearfully comply with the publick laws , and establishments in all those instances , where he is satisfied he may do it with a safe conscience . thirdly , that where he cannot give active obedience to the laws ; he do in those instances patiently , and christianly , submit to the penalties , which those laws inflict : neither exclaiming against his governours , or the magistrates , as persecutors ; for enacting , or executing those laws : nor using any undue , illegal means to get himself more ease and liberty : but in all things behaving himself as a quiet and peaceable subject to the government he lives under . and fourthly , and lastly , that he shew himself a good neighbour as well as a good subject ; in avoiding all peevish and bitter censures of those that differ in opinion , and perswasion from him ; and exercising humanity , and friendliness , and charity to all his fellow christians . whosoever i say , of our brethren , of the separation make good these points : that is to say , are in the first place , very sincere in their endeavours , to inform their conscience aright in the matter of our communion : and in the next place , when they cannot satisfie their conscience about our way ; do yet in their dissent from us , observe the four particulars i have now named : i should be loth for my part to censure them either as ill men , or ill subjects , or ill christians . but then all that i have said in this matter , doth no more justifie the sin of schism , or extenuate the hainousness of it in its own nature ; than it would serve to justifie or extenuate the sin of idolatry ; if all that i have now said , was applied to the case of an ignorant , well meaning , devout papist . for i do verily believe that what i have now represented by way of apology for an innocent mistaken separatist ; will hold true , mutatis mutandis , in the case of a deluded romanist , who is invincibly , and without any fault of his , intangled in the practice of their idolatries . but i-believe for all that , the sin of idolatry is in it self a most grievous sin , and so i believe is the sin of schism and therefore notwithstanding all that may be said ; ; concerning the innocence , or excuseableness of some mens mistakes about these matters ; yet nevertheless , it infinitely concerns every person , to have a care how he be engaged , either in the one , or the other . to come to a conclusion , that which i would most seriously press from what hath been said is this . it appears from the foregoing discourse , how absolutely necessary it is ; that every man should endeavour to inform his judgment aright in the matters that offend his conscience ; before he withdraw his obedience from his lawful governours , and his communion from those that worship god in publick under them . it appears likewise that it is not enough to justifie a mans separation ; that this or the other thing in our worship , is really against his conscience ; for he may be a great sinner notwithstanding that , for leaving our assemblies , if it should prove at last that he is mistaken in his notions . what therefore should every dissenter among us do , that hath any regard to his duty , and would preserve a good conscience ? i say , what is there that more concerns him to do ? than presently to set about the true informing of his judgment in the points where he is now dissatisfi'd ; for fear he be found to live in a grievous sin all the time he separates from us . and therefore , let no man that lives out of our communion , satisfie himself with such frivolous pretences as these : that as for all the substantials of religion , the matters of faith and good life , they do agree with us ; and that as for the other matters which concern ceremonies and discipline ; these are nice , controverted points ; points disputed pro and contra amongst the divines : and therefore why should they trouble their heads about them ; nay perhaps if they should , they have neither abilities nor opportunities to understand them . it must be confessed that something of this is true ; but yet it is nothing to their purpose . it is very well , that we all agree in the rule of faith , and manners ; and it would be happy if all the christian world did so too : but still schism is a dreadful sin : and a man may as certainly , without repentance , be damned for that , as for being an heretick in his opinion , or a drunkard , for instance , in his manners . sure i am , the ancient christian fathers thought so . it is true likewise , that the business of church government and discipline , and other points of ecclesiastical conformity , is a matter of dispute , and controversy among us : but who is it that made it so ? the church of england without doubt , would have been very well pleased , if there had been no dust raised , no dispute or contentions moved in these matters ; but that every member would have done his duty peaceably , and quietly in his station : or that if any controversy had arose ; it should have been debated among learned men ; and never have proceeded to separation from the communion . we do not pretend to lay any stress upon skill , and knowledg about these matters , in order to a mans salvation . we believe , and teach that a man may be a very good christian , and go to heaven ; that never understood how to justifie the cross in baptism , or to defend the common prayer book against all the exceptions that are made against it . all that we say is , that if any man will scruple , and except against the use of these things ; it lyes upon him , nay he is bound as he would keep a good conscience , to use the best means he possibly can , to get satisfaction about them : or if he do not ; at his own peril be it , nay even at the peril of his salvation , if he breaks the churches peace , and communion upon that account . and as for those that pretend , that these are subtil points , and above their reach , and capacity ; and they have not understanding , and wit enough to dive into them : why , in gods name , who desires them ? we say that they might innocently enough , and with a good conscience , comply with their governours in these points , as they do in a hundred others , without ever diving into them ; but since , it seems , they have wit , and vnderstanding enough , to cavil and find fault with these things , and upon that account , to deny their obedience to those lawful powers , which god hath set over them : one would think they should at the same time have so much honesty , as seriously to endeavour to give themselves satisfaction as to those things they find fault with : and this is all we desire of them : and it is for their own sakes too ; as well as ours , that we desire it . for otherwise they will never be able to answer either to god or man , for the horrible inconveniences , and mischiefs , that arise to the church of christ , by the division , and separation which they are engaged in . to conclude , if in any instance , that famous precept of the apostle , of proving all things , and holding fast that which is good , do oblige christians ; it doth especially in this . if ever it be a mans duty to satisfie himself , about the goodness , and lawfulness of a thing , that he is apt to doubt of ; it is certainly in the case , where his superiours have laid their commands upon him : for there he cannot disobey without sin ; unless he can assure himself that he hath done all that he can , to reconcile their commands with his duty to god ; but upon the best means he hath used , he finds them irreconcileable . for a man to disobey till he has done this , is an unwarrantable thing , and in the case that i now speak of , it is no less than the sin of formal criminal schism . finis . of conscience by h. hammond. hammond, henry, 1605-1660. this text is an enriched version of the tcp digital transcription a45417 of text r25406 in the english short title catalog (wing h549). textual changes and metadata enrichments aim at making the text more computationally tractable, easier to read, and suitable for network-based collaborative curation by amateur and professional end users from many walks of life. the text has been tokenized and linguistically annotated with morphadorner. the annotation includes standard spellings that support the display of a text in a standardized format that preserves archaic forms ('loveth', 'seekest'). textual changes aim at restoring the text the author or stationer meant to publish. this text has not been fully proofread approx. 117 kb of xml-encoded text transcribed from 17 1-bit group-iv tiff page images. earlyprint project evanston,il, notre dame, in, st. louis, mo 2017 a45417 wing h549 estc r25406 08951305 ocm 08951305 42068 this keyboarded and encoded edition of the work described above is co-owned by the institutions providing financial support to the early english books online text creation partnership. this phase i text is available for reuse, according to the terms of creative commons 0 1.0 universal . the text can be copied, modified, distributed and performed, even for commercial purposes, all without asking permission. early english books online. (eebo-tcp ; phase 1, no. a45417) transcribed from: (early english books online ; image set 42068) images scanned from microfilm: (early english books, 1641-1700 ; 1286:6) of conscience by h. hammond. hammond, henry, 1605-1660. 30 p. printed for r. royston, london : 1645. reproduction of original in the bodleian library. eng conscience. a45417 r25406 (wing h549). civilwar no of conscience. by h. hammond. hammond, henry 1645 20770 15 610 0 0 0 0 301 f the rate of 301 defects per 10,000 words puts this text in the f category of texts with 100 or more defects per 10,000 words. 2005-12 tcp assigned for keying and markup 2005-12 aptara keyed and coded from proquest page images 2006-11 ali jakobson sampled and proofread 2006-11 ali jakobson text and markup reviewed and edited 2007-02 pfs batch review (qc) and xml conversion of conscience . {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} . by h. hamond , d. d. london , printed for r. royston , at the signe of the angel in ivie-lane . 1645. of conscience . § . 1 among the many practicall errours which are gotten abroad into the world , a very large proportion there is of those which have either suckt their poison from , or disguised it under that specious venerable name of conscience . that which the philosophers could call their guardian angell , and justifie the phrase by vouching none but angelicall dictates from it : that which some good-natured atheists did so revere that they defined the onely deity in the world , and in proportion phansied nothing but god-like of it , is now by some christians ( like the true god among the heathens ) worshipt in so many corporeous shapes , that there is at length scarce any thing so vile ( phansie , humour , passion , prepossession , the meanest worldly interest of the ambitious or covetous designer , like the calves , the cats , the crododiles , the onions , the leeks of egypt ) but hath the favour or luck to be mistaken for conscience , and receive all the respect , that i say , not adoration , that belongs to it . § . 2 't will be then but an act of justice and mercy , justice to truth , and mercy to the abused world , and withall a speciall preparative to a prudent reformation , to rescue so divine a man from such heathenish usage , to restore it to its naturall primitive simplicity , and cast out all the false formes which it hath been forced to appeare under . to which purpose all that i shall designe will be reduced to these two enquiries : 1. what is the proper notion of conscience . 2. what is required to entitle a man to a good conscience . § . 3 for the former of these , what is the proper notion of conscience , i shall labour to finde out not among the scholasticall definitions or divisions of it among humane writers , but onely by observing the force and use of the word in the scripture , particularly the new testament . and he that shall meet it there 32 times , and but take a view of it at every meeting , will sure come to some degree of acquaintance with it , and find upon judgement reason to resolve , what for his ease i shall now lay before him . § . 4 that the word {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} , conscience , is no more then science or knowledge , ( and therefore being but once used by the greek translators of the old testament , eccles. 10. 20. it is there set to expresse a word which is otherwise by them commonly rendred {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} and {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} ) onely with a peculiar relation added to it , as that knowledge is in order to action . thus tit. 1. 15. when {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} and {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} , mind and conscience are distinguished , t is obvious to any to discerne the ground of that distinction , that former being properly the denotation of the faculty meerly speculative , or intellectuall ; this latter , of the practicall judgement , or that whether act or faculty of the understanding soule , which extendeth to practice ; the apostle by that phrase , [ the mind and conscience are defiled ] meaning distinctly this , that this errour in mens judgements , ( which is the defiling of their mind ) carryes un-christian practice along with it , ( which is the defiling of the practicall faculty ) this judaicall mistake in th●●r understanding is attended with judaizing actions in their lives ; the former apportioned to the {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} , the false judaicall doctrines , which relate to {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} the mind , the second to the {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} , the commands of men perverting the truth , v. 14. which relate to the {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} , the conscience . § . 5 for the clearing of which ( that it is such a practicall knowledge in the acception of the scripture ) if there need any light , you may have it from the survey of every place severally , and in speciall from this one , 1 pet. 2. 19. this is thank-worthy , if {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} , for conscience of god a man suffer griefe , &c. i. e. if for this obedientiall practicall knowledge of god ( this knowledge of truth attended with a resolution not to disobey god , though it cost a man never so deare ) he suffer g●iefe , &c. § . 6 this being premised , there is but one thing more to be added to this matter , and it is this ; that we take notice of the severall wayes of aspect that conscience hath upon practice ; one forward in the direct line , another backward , or by way of reflection ; which are ordinarily exprest by the double office of conscience , 1. as a custos or monitor , advising and instructing and keeping us to our duty ; 2. as a witnesse testifying to our selves and to god what we have done ; which is in plainer termes no more but this , that there are two sorts of conscience ; 1. conscience of duty to be performed , or full perswasion that such a thing ought to be done , or not to be done by me , a being resolved of the necessity or unlawfulnesse of any thing , and 2. conscience of having performed , or not performed it , a knowing or judging my self to have done well or ill . and under these two notions , all the severalls in the new testament , ( and the one sole place of the apocryphall bookes of the old ) will be contained , if you please , you may see how . § . 7 to the former kind belongs that famous place , rom. 13. 5. you must be subject ( to the supreame powers , v. 1. ) not onely for wrath , i. e. feare or danger of punishment , the effect of wrath ( the magistrate being gods minister , an avenger for wrath , or punishment to him that doth evill , v. 4. ) but also {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} , for or because of conscience , i. e. because it is the command of god , and consequently that which all inferiours ( every soule ) may , if they be not wilfully blind , know to be their duty , [ to be thus subject . ] § . 8 so 1 cor. 8. 7. for some with conscience of the idol , i. e. being resolved in mind , that it is not lawfull to eate or taste of any {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} or {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} , part or portion of the idol-feast ( whether {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} , at the idoll table , or having bought it at the shambles , as it seemes , was the fashion for those {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} ▪ to be sold there at second hand c. 10. 25. ) accounting it unlawfull to eate any meat consecrated to that use , doe yet eate that which is of this nature , and by so doing , their weake i. e. uninstructed conscience is polluted , i. e. they sinne against their conscience , doe that which they are perswaded they may not doe , which although it be never so innocent a harmlesse thing in it selfe ( an idoll being simply nothing ) yet to them which doe it , when they think it unlawfull ( and all have not knowledge , saith he in the beginning of the verse , i. e. are not sufficiently instructed in their duty ) it is pollution or sinne , according to the fore-mentioned place tit. 1. 15. to the pure all things are pure [ all things ] i. e. all things of that nature of which he there speaks , though in themselves indifferent , [ are pure ] i. e. may lawfully be used [ by the pure ] i. e. by them which are rightly instructed , but to the polluted and unbeleevers ( i. e. to them that are misled by jewish fables , or by the dogmatizing of false teachers , and brought to beleeve things to be prohibited by god , which are not prohibited ) to them that are guilty of this kind of judaisme , and ( as it is interpretative ) unbeliefe there is nothing pure , but their mind and conscience are polluted , both their understanding is in an errour , taking falsity for truth , and their practicall resolution is sinfull also , nay obliged to sin , which way soever they turn themselves , whether they abstaine superstitiously , when they are not bound by god to abstaine , ( which is the sinne of those that are subject to ordinances , col. 2. 20. of which i have spoken at large in another place ) or whether they abstaine not , when they are perswaded that they ought to abstaine , which is sin against conscience . § . 9 from whence by the way you may observe the miserable lot of those which have not {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} knowledge in the beginning of that verse , which are missed to think any thing unlawfull which is lawfull , and continue in that errour without seeking of light , which are thus impure ( for to such {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} nothing is pure ) they are , as long as they remaine so , obliged to sinne , which way soever they take to , abstaine or not abstaine . for though in things indifferent and uncommanded , simply to abstaine were no sinne , yet then to abstaine {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} , as from a thing abominable or unlawfull , is both by scripture and the ancient councels , in case of marriage and meats , every where condemned as sinfull : and yet on the other side to eate without , or against faith , i. e. being doubtfull whether it be lawfull or no , or being perswaded it is unlawfull is sin , ( saith the apostle ) and there is great necessity to such of seeking , ( and in others great charity of helping them to ) {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} instruction , or right information in this case , which is the onely cure for this unfortunate malady . § . 10 so againe ver. 10. {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} the conscience of him that is weake , or ( which is the same ) v. 7. and v. 12. the weake conscience ] signifies the false perswasion of him that is in an errour , an erroneous conscience , weaknesse noting sicknesse in the scripture stile john 5. 14. 1 cor 11. 30. and errour being the disease or sicknesse of the soule , and that with a little improvement growing destructive and mortiferous ; as in case he that hath that erroneous sick conscience , doe act somewhat against conscience , and so adde sinne unto errour , for then {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} v. 11. that sick man dyes , perishes of that disease . soch . 10 , 25 , 27 , 28 , 29. the word conscience is still in the same sense , for conscience or consideration of duty , and so 1 pet. 2. 19. forementioned . § . 11 so likewise 1 pet. 3. 21. where baptisme is called {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} the answer of a good conscience to goa , the good conscience signifies conscience rightly instructed in its duty , as in baptizing those of full age it is supposed to be ; which conscience is then to answer and consent to all gods proposals in baptisme ( or the ministers in gods stead ) such as [ wilt thou forsake the devill , &c. ] and so the words will be interpreted in a sense proportionable to that of denying ungodly lusts , tit. 2. 12. which there the appearing of christ is said to teach us . for as lust proposes ungodly questions to us , which we are bound to deny ; so god in baptisme is supposed to propose good questions to us , which we are bound to grant , and stipulate the performance of them , and that is the {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} the answer of a good conscience to god or to his questions proposed in baptisme , after the manner of ancient pacts among the romans made by way of question and answer , as part of the ritus solemns or formalities of them . § . 12 but then for the second acception of the word , as it notes conscience of what we have performed , or passing judgement on my selfe for what i have done , ( and that either for any one individuall act , or for the maine of our lives , our state ; and that againe either 1 acquitting or 2 condemning or 3 considered in a third notion common to both those , passing sentence in generall ) so shall you find it in many other places , and indeed in all the rest which we have not hitherto named . § . 13 for the first of these three species as it acquitteth , you have it act. 23. 1. i have lived , ( or behaved my selfe in all my conversation towards men {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} in all my politique , or publique relations ) with or in all good conscience , in such a manner , as i cannot excuse my selfe of any thing done contrary to my christian profession , or dignity of my apostolicoll calling . so 1 cor. 9. 12. the testimony of our conscience is exprest by what followes , that in simplicity &c. we had our conversation in the world . so good conscience is taken 1 tim. 1. 5. and 19. and 3. 9. and 2 tim. 1. 3. heb. 13. 18. 1 pet. 3. 16. but above all you have a speciall place belonging to this first branch of the second in act. 24. 16. [ {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} ] we render it a conscience void of offence , the meaning is , a confidence and assurance that he hath done nothing subject so much as to the censure of having scandalized others ; for saint paul being there accused by the jewes v. 5. 6. for 3 crimes , sedition , heresie , and profaning of the temple , he answers to the first v. 12. to the second v. 14. to the third v. 16. 18. and his being purified in the temple after the jewish manner he makes an evidence of his innocence in that particular , a proofe of his not having scandalized any jew , which to have done would have been a fault in him , whose office it was to become all things to all men , that he might gaine or save all , and not to discourage or deter any who might be gained by complyance ; and the doing so , is it which is called being {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} 1 cor. 10. 32. giving none offence to the jews , the very word in the place of the acts . § . 14 in the second place , the accusing or condemning conscience is often mentioned also ; john 8. 9. convicted by their conscience , or reproved some for one sinne , some for another . so by intimation heb. 9. 9. where t is said of the legall sacrifices that they could not make perfect as pertaining to conscience , where the word [ {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} ] rendred to make perfect , signifies in the sacred idiom [ to consecrate , ] to make a priest , whose office being {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} to draw neare to god , proportionably {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} to perfect or consecrate as pertaining to conscience signifies to give accesse with boldnesse to god , by taking off that guilt which formerly lay upon their conscience , the same that v. 14. is called , to purge the conscience from dead works , to wash off that guilt of sin past , which hinders their approach to god , obstructs all entrance to their prayers ( for we know that god heareth not sinners , joh. 9. 31. and is . 1. 15. ) whereupon t is observable , that heb. 13. 18. when he bespeaks their prayers for him , he adds this reason to encourage them to doe so . for we trust we have a good conscience , that good conscience being necessary there to have other mens prayers heard for them , as here to give themselves accesse to god in prayer . so heb. 10. 2. conscience , or conscienciousnes of sins , and v. 22. evill conscience , and so wisd. 17. 11. there is mention of wickednesse condemned by her own witnes and prest by conscience . § . 15 and of the last sort , in the latitude common to both , are rom. 2. 15. rom. 9. 1. 2 cor. 4. 2. and 5. 11. and 1 tim. 4. 2. all cleare enough without the help of our paraphrase to adde light to them . § . 16 having thus marshalled all these places of scripture into ranks , and given some hints of generall insight into them , it now remaines that we return a while to the neerer survey of the two generall heads , and first of the former acception of the word , as it imports a monitor , or director of life , by which our actions must be regulated , and from the mistaking of which the chiefe inconvenience doth arise . § . 17 to which end , it will be absolutely necessary to settle and resolve but one question , what is that rule or {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} of conscience , from whence it must receive its regulation . for he that draweth a line of direction for another , must have a rule to draw it by , and that a straight exact one , or else the directions will not be authentique , and they which walke {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} exactly or conscientiously , must {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} walk by rule , phil. 3. 16. and {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} have their eye or thought alway upon that one thing , their rule of direction , or else be they never such {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} in the beginning of that verse , such forward proficients , their end may be perdition v. 19. this when once we have done , the difficulty will soone vanish . and to this purpose i shall take that for granted which in thesi i never heard any doubt of , § . 18 ( though many of our actions look otherwise in hypothest ) that law is this onely rule ; {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} and {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} , rule and law being words of the same importance , and nothing fit or proper to regulate our actions , but that which the law giver , to whom obedience must be payed , hath thought fit to rule them by . to which purpose it is ordinarily observed that {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} , sin , or aberration from that rule by which we ought to walke ( for so that word naturally signifies ) is by saint john ▪ 1 epist. 3. 4. defined {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} which we render a trangression of the law . in which place of saint john , though the truth is , ( {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} and {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} denoting more then the bare commission of sinne in that author generally , viz. the wilfull perpetration of it , and an indulgence in , and habit of so doing ) the word {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} and {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} must proportionably also signifie not onely transgressing , but wilfull habituall contemning the law , being an exlex , or without law ( as the idolatrous atheist is said to be without god in the world ) i. e. without any account or respect of it , ( and so {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} joh. 31. 3. notes the greatest degree of sinfulnesse , we render it workers of iniquity , and so very frequently in the septuagint we finde {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} , where we render the hebrew by mischiefe ) yet still the observation stands good , that law is the rule , in aberration from which all sinne consists , and so {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} is {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} in both senses , the least degree of sinne a deviation from the law , and a malicious contentious sinning a malitious contemptuous deviation , or transgression , and so saint paul hath also resolved it , that where there is no law , there is no transgression , no {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} , rom. 4. 15. no going awry , when there is no rule proposed to goe by . § . 19 this being so cleare in is selfe , and yet through the mistakes , yea and impieties of the world b●come so necessary to be thus farther cleared ; two things there are which will hence inevitably follow , the first negative , the second positive ; the first or the negative , that whatsoever undertakes to direct , or guide our actions , to tell us our duty , that this we must , that we may not doe , and hath not some law , ( in force , and still obligatory to us ) to authorize those directions by , is not conscience , whatsoever it is . § . 20 first , humour it may be , to think our selves bound to doe whatsoever we have a strong inclination to doe ; it being a matter of some difficulty to distinguish between my naturall and my spirituall inclinations , the motion of my sensitive appetite , and my diviner principle , my lower , and my upper soule , and the former commonly crying louder , and moving more lively , and impatiently , and earnestly then the other . § . 21 secondly , phansie it may be , which is a kind of irrationall animall conscience , hath the same relation to sensitive representations ( those lawes in the members ) which conscience hath to intellectuall ( those lawes of the mind ) and then , as aristotle saith , that in those creatures which have not reason , phansie supplyes the place of reason ; so they which have not , or will not have conscience to direct them , phansie most commonly gets into its place . or § . 22 thirdly , passion it may be ; our feares will advise us one thing , our animosities another , our zeale a third , and though that be perhaps zeal of god , yet that zeale is a passion still , one of those which aristotle hath defined in his rhetoricks , being not {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} , according to knowledge or conscience , rom. 10. 2. for the hebrew word , as i told you , is rendred by those two words promiscuously , {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} and {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} , knowledge and conscience . or § . 23 fourthly , diabolicall suggestion or infusion it may be , an enthusiasm of that black spirit ; as it is , ( or of some thing as bad in effect ) infallibly , whensoever rebellion , sedition , murther , rapine , hatred , envy , vncharitablenesse , lying , swearing , sacriledge , &c. come to us under the disguise of religion and conscience ; and therefore the spirits must be searcht whether they be of god , or of the devill ; and no surer way to doe it , then by these and the like symptomes , these fruits and productions of that infernall spirit , which so perfectly represent and owne their parent , that none but blind or mad men or daemoniacks can beleeve them in earnest to come from god . or § . 24 fiftly , false doctrine it may be , and that againe set off either by the authority of the teacher , or by the dignity of some eminent followers and practicers of it , and then the apostle calls it [ having mens persons in admiration ] or by the earlinesse of its representation , being imbibed and taken in first , swallowed and digested before the truth was offered to us , and then it is prejudice or prepossession , and this again alwayes assisted by the force of that old axiom , [ intus existens &c. ] and by that which is naturall to all habits , to be hardly moveable , and yet further improved sometimes by pride and obstinacy , alwayes by selfe-love , which makes us think our own opinions ( i. e. which we are already possest of ) the truest ; which in this case is in effect to think our luck the best luck , and the same which was observed in one worst sort of heathens , who , whatsoever they saw first in the morning , worshipt that all the day after ; a choosing of perswasions as country men choose valentines , that which they chance to meet with first after their coming abroad . § . 25 besides these , many other things it may be , and so , 1. it is oddes enough that it will not be conscience , which pretends to be so , and 2. it is certainly not conscience , unlesse it produce some law for its rule to direct us by . and this was the negative or first thing . § . 26 the second or the positive thing which followes from the premises , is this , that conscience of duty in any particular action is to be ruled by that law which is proper to that action ; as for example : the christian law is the rule of conscience for christian actions ; the law of reason , or morall saw , for morall ; the law nationall , municipall , or locall , for civill ; the naturall , law of all creatures , for naturall actions ; and the law of scandall , ( a branch of the christian law ) for matters of scandall ; and the law of liberty , for indifferent free actions . and as it is very irregular , and unreasonable to measure any action by a rule that belongs not to it , to try the exactnesse of the circle by the square , which would be done by the compasse , and in like manner to judge the christiannesse of an action , by the law of naturall reason , which can onely be judged by its conformity with the law of christ , superiour to that of nature ; so will there be no just pretence of conscience against any thing , but where some one or more of these lawes are producible against it ; but on the other side , even in the lowest sort of actions , if they be regulated by the law proper to them , and nothing done contrary to any superiour law , even by this god shall be glorified , 1 cor. 10. 31. a kind of glory resulting to god from that readinesse of submission and subordination of every thing to its proper rule , and law , to which the great creator hath subjected it , and of all lawes to that supreme transcendent one , the law of christ . and though some touches there are in the scripture of each of these lawes , some fibrae or strings of them discernibly there , so farre , that there is nothing almost under any of the heads forementioned , but by the scripture some generall account may be given of it , and againe , though that of scripture be the supreame law of all , and nothing authorizeable by any inferiour law , which is contradicted or prohibited by that , yet is not that of scripture such a particular code o● pandect of all lawes , as that every thing which is commanded by any other law , should be found commanded there , or be bound to prove its selfe justifiable from thence , any further then that it is not there prohibited , or thereby justly concluded to be unlawful . § . 27 from whence by the way , i conceive direction may be had , and resolution of that difficult practicall probleme , what a man may doe in case he be legally commanded by his lawfull superiour to doe what he may lawfully doe , which yet he is perswaded he may not doe , or doubteth whether he may or no . for in this case if he be not able to produce some plaine prohibition from some superiour law , as from that of scripture , he cannot be truly said to be perswaded in conscience , ( which implyes knowledge ) of the unlawfulnesse of that thing , nor consequently hath he any plea for disobedience to that lawfull command of his superiours . all that may be said , is , that he may from some obscure place misunderstood have cause or occasion to doubt whether he may doe it or no , and then , although doubting simply taken ( i. e. where no command interposes , ) may keep me from doing what i doubt , yet it ought not to be of that weight , as to keep me from my lawfull superiours lawfull command , because that very command is a sufficient ground to supersede my doubting , when i have no plaine prohibition of scripture to the contrary , ( which in this case i am supposed not to have , for if i had , then , first , it were not a lawfull command , and secondly , i should not doubt but be assured ) it being my duty , and part of my christian meeknesse , in doubtfull matters to take my resolution from those whom god hath placed over me , and it being the sinne of dogmatizing to affirme any thing for me or others to doe , which some law of god , &c. still in force , doth not prohibit ; which sin being added to that other of disobedience to my lawfull superiours , will s●re never be able to make that commence virtue , which was before so far from any pretentions to that title . § . 28 having proceeded thus far in the search of the ground of conscience , 't were now time to reduce this operation to practice , and shew you , first , what directions conscience is able to afford from every of those lawes for the ruling of all actions of that kind ; and secondly , what an harmony and conspiration there is betwixt all these lawes , one mutually ayding and assisting the other , and not violating or destroying . but this were the largest undertaking that could be pitcht on in the whole circle of learning , aerodius's pandectae rerum ab omni aev● judicaturum , and all the schoolmens and casuists volumes , de legibus , de jure & justitia , and on the decalogue , would be but imperfect parts of this ; i shall give you but one taste or {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} of it , by which the reader will be perswaded to spare me , or rather himselfe that trouble . § . 29 the prime of these , the christian law , is the rule of all actions that come within that spheare , sets downe the nature of all christian duties of piety , and love of our brethren in generall , and more particularly of faith , hope , charity , repentance ; selfe-denyall , taking up the crosse , &c. of humility , meeknesse , mercifulnesse , peaceablenesse , obedience to superiours , patience , contentednesse , and the like ; and the relation of a christian being a grand transcendent relation , there is no action imaginable , but may either in respect of the matter , or motive , or principle , or circumstances , offend against one of these , ( and then , malum ex qualibet defectu , the least of these defects blemisheth it ) and so conscience directed by that rule or law , will direct me either to doe it , or not to doe it in that manner , and then t is not any complyance with , or agreeablenesse to any or all other lawes , which will make this action christian , which hath any such notable defect or blemish in it ; not to pursue this any farther , having thus named it , and shewed you the vastnesse of the sea it leads to , it will suffice to our present designe to tell you , that from what is said these 3 corollaries , to omit many others , will be deducible . § . 30 1. that it is not possible for conscience ( be it never so strongly perswaded ) to make any action lawfull , which is not regulated by those rules , or lawes which are proper to it , and reconcileable with the grand rule , the christian law . conscience can never transforme profanenesse into piety , sacriledge into justice or holinesse , rebellion into obedience , faction into humility , perjury , or taking of unlawful oathes into religion , rapine into contentednesse , inhumanity into mercifulnesse , adultery , fornication , divorces , ( save in case of adultery ) or any uncleannesse into purity , labouring to shake a kingdome , ( to remove the crosse from my owne shoulders to another mans ) into taking up of the crosse ; but contrariwise , if it be truly and univocally conscience of duty , it will tel me that every one of these foule titles belongs to every such action ( the scripture being so cleare in these particulars , that there is no place or excuse for ignorance or mistake ) and by setting before me the terrors of the lord , perswade me not to venture on any one such action upon any termes ; or if i have ventured , it will smite and wound me for it , and drive me to timely repentance ; or if it doe not , t is either a cauterized insensate conscience , a reprobate mind , or else some of these images , which even now i mentioned , mistaken for conscience ; or if it be a full perswasion of minde , that what i thus am about , i am obliged to doe , ( if that be a possible thing in such matters and under so much light ) t is then in the calmest style an erroneous conscience , which is so far from excusing me ( unlesse in case of ignorance truly invincible , which here is not imaginable ) that it brings upon me the most unparalleld infelicity in the world , an obligation to sinne which way soever i turne my selfe , on one side appearing and lying at my doore the guilt of committing that sinne which i have so mistaken , and on the other the guilt of omitting that ( though sinne ) which my conscience represented to me as duty ; and nothing but repentance and reformation of judgement first , and then of practice , will be able to retrive the one or the other . § . 31 the second corollary will be this , that it is the most unreasonable insolence in the world , for them that can swallow such camell-sins as these without any regrets , nay with full approbation , and direction ( perhaps ) of conscience ( it that may be called conscience which is so divided from , and contrary to knowledge ) yet to scruple and interpose doubts most tremblingly , and most conscientiously in matters of indifferency ; not so much as pretended to be against the word of god , ( and so within the law of christian liberty , that they may be done if he will ) and yet over and above their naturall indifferency commanded by that authority , in subjection to which the christian vertue of obedience consists ; and all this either first upon no ground of conscience at all , but only that it is contrary to their phansy , their humour , their prepossessions ; or secondly because it is a restraint , upon their christian liberty , which yet christ never forbid to be restrained quoad exercitium , as farre as belongs to the exercise of it , but hath permitted sometime the care of not offending the weak brother , i. e. charity , and sometime obedience , to lawfull superiours , to restreine it , ( for if in things indifferent they may not restreine , there can no obedience be payed to them ; ) or thirdly because they are offensive ( though not to them , yet ) to others , who are perswaded they are unlawfull . whereas i that perswasion of those others is erroneous , and not sufficient to justifie disobedience in themselves , much lesse in other men , in case of lawfull humane command , and 2 that their censuring of such indifferent actions , i. e. being angry without a cause , may bee greater matter of scandall , and so more offensive to others , and more probable to work upon them to bring them by that example to be so argry also , then the doing that indifferent action , mistaken by others , and condemned for unlawfull , would be to bring them to transcribe that reprobated samplar , i. e. to doe what they thus condemne ; all men being farre more apt and inclinable to break out into passions , then into acts against conscience , and so more likely to be scandalized or offended , or insnared , by following the former , then the latter example , to sinne ( for company or after another man ) by censuring whom he censures , which is being angry without a cause ; then by doing what they are advised and resolved they ought not to do , which is sinning against conscience . or fourthly , because they are against their conscience to doe , whilst yet they produce no law of god or man against them , and so in effect confesse there is nothing in them against conscience ; unlesse , as before was noted , they wilfully aequivocate in the word conscience ; which will and skill of theirs , as it will not make any thing , unlawfull , which before was indifferent , so will it not conclude ought , save only this , that they which are so artificious to impose on others , and forme scruples where there were none , would not be thought the likeliest men to swallow grosse sinnes under the disguise of vertues , or if they doe so , will have least right to that onely antidote of invincible ignorance to digest them . § . 32 the third corollary will be this , that scrupulousnesse of conscience in some lighter lesse important matters ( if it may be supposed excusable , as a weaknesse of an uninstructed mind , joyned with that good symptome of tendernesse of quick sense , yet ) can never hope to be accepted by god by way of commutation or expiation for grosser sinnes , so that he that falls foulely in any confessed sinne , should fare the better at the great day of account , or be in lesse danger of being cast out of gods favour for the present , because he is over-scrupulous in other things : for sure this were a strange way of supererogation to pay one arreare to god by running into another with him , to discharge a debt by owing more . and yet this is an errour which may seem worth the paines of preventing , it being so notoriously seen , that some men , which professe to have care of their wayes , and must in charity be beleeved to have so , goe on confidently in greivous sins , which they cannot but know will damne without repentance , ( the sentence of not inheriting the kingdome of god , gal. 5. being so distinct , and punctuall , and absolute , and indispensable against them ) and yet have no antidote to relye on for the averting that danger , but onely this of their exactnesse and scrupulousnesse in things indifferent ; which if they shall say they doe not confide in , they are then obliged , in conscience , and charity to their brethren ( who may follow them to this precipice ) either to give over hoping , or to set to purifying , without which there is no true ground of hope . this hint puts me in mind that there is another part of my design still behind , belonging to the second notion of conscience , to examine § . 33 what it is that is required to entitle a man to a good conscience ; which will briefly be stated by premising what before was mentioned , that the good conscience belongs either to particular single performances , or to the whole state of life and actions . to the first there is no more required , but that that particular action be both for matter and circumstance regulated by the rule , or rules which are proper to it , and have nothing contrary to any superiour transcendent rule . as that my meale be with sobriety and thanksgiving , my almes with chearfulnesse , liberality , discretion , done in gratitude and obedience to god , and mercifulnesse to my brother , without reflexion on my own gaine or praise in this world . but for the good conscience , which belongs to the whole state of life and actions , which is called a good conscience in all things , heb. 13. 18. or a good conscience consisting in having a good conversation in all things , ( for so the punctation in the greek will direct rather to render it , [ we have a good conscience , willing to live well , ( or have an honest conversation ) in all things ] there the difficulty will be greater . and yet two texts there are which tend much to the clearing and disinvolving of that one , 1 pet. 3. 16. where {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} , good conscience in the beginning of the verse , is explained in the close by {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} , a good conversation in christ , or a good christian conversation , or such as now through christ , by the purport of the second covenant may and shall be accepted for good . where the word [ conversation ] denoting first the actions and behaviour both toward god and man , and secondly , the whole course and frame of those actions , ( wherein it seems a good conscience consists , i cannot better be explained then either by the apostles , {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} , an accurate exact walking , eph. 1. 15. or the phrase to titus , c. 2. 12. living soberly and righteously and godly in this present world ; the first respecting our duty to our selves , or actions , as private men ; the second , our duty to our brethren , in our more publique capacities ; the third , our duty to god as creatures , men , and christians ; or saint lukes character of zachary and elizabeth , luk. 1. 6. walking in all the commandements and ordinances of the lord blamelesse ; walking blamelesse , in all : universall sincere obedience , ( not entire or perfect without ever sinning , but ) considered with the rules of {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} , or moderation of strict law , ( which is now part of the {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} , the gospel-law , by which a christian is to be nyed , as equity is a part of the municipall law of this land ; such is mercy for frailties , and infirmities , and grosser lapses recovered and retracted by repentance ) now under the gospel , so as to be acceptable to god in christ ; which was intimated ( as in the {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} , in christ , 1 pet. 3. so ) in the former part of that verse , and their character {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} , righteous before god : which phrase [ before god ] hath a double intimation worth observing in this place , first of the perseverance or perpetuity of that righteousnesse ( as opposed to the temporary of the hypocrite ) for the phrase {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} [ before him ] refers to the shew bread of old , exod. 25. 30. which was to be set before god alway ; and therefore is sometime called {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} the bread of faces , or {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} bread before his face , literally {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} , before him , and sometimes {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} perpetuall bread , and secondly , of the acceptation or reception in the sight of god , for that againe was the end of setting the bread alwayes before god , that god looking on it might accept them ; and so righteousnesse before god , is such righteousnesse as god will please in the gospel to accept of , as when visiting the fatherlesse , &c. jac. 1. 27. is called , religion pure and undefiled before god the father ; it noteth such a degree of unblemisht purity , not as excluded all sinne , but as god in christ would ( or hath promised to ) accept of . and the same phrase therefore is in another place of the same chapter , luk. 1. 75. rendred by our church in the gospel for midsummer day by these words , such as may be acceptable for him . § . 34 which being all taken into the description of a good conscience , that it is such a continued good conversation as god now under the gospel promiseth to accept of ; the onely difficulty behind will be , what that is which god promiseth to accept of ; to which end , it will be very instrumentall to take in that other place which i promised , and that is that forementioned , heb. 13. 18. where the good conscience is evidenced ( or the ground of confidence that he hath a good conscience , demonstrated ) by this [ {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} ] willing , or resolving , or endeavouring to live honestly , or to have honest conversation in all things . from whence the onely thing which i desire to collect is this , that the sincere resolution or endeavour to live honestly in all things ( which i remember , one of our ancientest church-writers saint cyrill of jerusalem calls , {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} , and opposes it to {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} , works ) is the scripture nomination of a good conscience , or the {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} , that great treasure of confidence to all which have it ; that ground of mature perswasion for any , that he hath , or shall by god be allowed , and acknowledged to have a good conscience . § . 35 and if it be farther demanded what is necessarily required , ( and how much will be sufficient ) to denominate a man such , what is the minimum quod sic of this sincere resolution , or endeavour , although that , i confesse , will be hard if not impossible , to define in such a manner , as shall come home to every particular , ( the proportions of more or lesse , knowledge or strength , the inequality of the talents of illuminating and assisting grace still interposing and making a variation ) yet will it not be matter of much difficulty to give some generall advertisements , and {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} , which will be acknowledged as soone as mentioned , and being put together , and by each man single applyed to his particular case , by way of self examination , will be able to tell him in some measure , whether he hath a good conscience or no . and the first of these will be , that § . 36 acts and habits of sinne in the former ( heathen or unregenerate ) part of the life , of what nature ( and clothed with what aggravations ) soever , if they are now retracted and renounced by repentance ( as that signifies not onely a sorrow , but a thorow change ) are reconcileable with a good conscience . the truth of which is cleare , first , because the gospel allowes place for repentance , and promises rest to the heavy laden , so he come unto christ , and mercy to him that confesseth and forsaketh . secondly , because the sincerity of resolution and endeavour now , ( which is all that is required to a present good conscience ) is reconcileable with past sins , even of the largest size . thirdly , because saint paul himselfe , which was once a saul , can yet say confidently , that he hath a good conscience . and fourthly , because ( which i shal a little enlarge on ) the sinne against the holy ghost , which alone is by the gospel made uncapable of remission , is , as i conceive , no act , no nor course of any speciall sinne , but a state of final impenitence , a continued persevering resistance of all those saving methods which are consequent to the descent , and are part of the office of the holy ghost . § . 37 to which purpose i shall give you one hint which may perswade the preferring of this opinion before the contrary , and it is by observing the occasion of christs delivering those words concerning the irremissiblenesse of speaking against the holy ghost . those words are delivered by christ both in saint matthew and saint mark upon occasion of that speech of the jewes , that christ cast out devils , by the prince of devils , which was clearly a blaspheming or speaking contumeliously against christ himselfe , or the sonne of man , and there is no passage in the text which can conclude that that speech of theirs was by christ called the blasphemy against the holy ghost , but rather the contrary that it was a blasphemy onely against the sonne of man ; for t is apparent that christ mat. 12. 15. for the space of six verses sets himselfe to convince them of the falsity of that speech ( which probably he would not have done , if they , to whom he spake had been in an irrecoverable irreversible estate of blasphemy . for that he should take such paines onely to leave them unexcusable , 1. there was no great need , in this case they were so already . 2. it is a mistake to think that christ doth so at any time , they are bowels of mercy and not designes of mischieving , or accumulating their sinne , and judgements , which incline him to call and knock , and labour to convince sinners ) and having done that , doth both invite them to repentance by shewing them the possibility of pardon yet , and give them an admonition able to shake them out of all impenitence , by telling them the danger which attended , if the only last method of working on them which was yet behind , did not prosper with or work upon them , this is the importance of that 31 and 32 verse concerning the speaking a word , i. e. standing out against the sonne of man on one side , and the holy ghost on the other ; the summe of which is this , there shall be by the coming of the holy ghost a possibility of pardon and meanes of reformation for those that resist and hold out and even crucifie christ ( as by the coming of christ , there was for those that should beleive on him , though they had formerly lived disobedient unto god the father , resisted those methods of mercy used on them under the old testament ) for them that speak a word . i. e. by an hebraisme doe an action ( of affront , of injury , of contumely ) against christ , yea that resist and beleive not on him , but conceive and affirme him to cast out divels by the power of beelzebub , ( which was as contumelious a thing as could be said of him ) but when christ shall be taken from the earth , and the holy ghost shall be sent down to convince the world of that great sinne of crucifying christ , and to settle in the church of god such an orderly use of all gospell-meanes that may tend to the bringing sinners to repentance ( the use both of the word and sacrament and censures and all other things necessary to that great end of working on the most contumacious ) that if this prevaile not , there is little hope left of ever working on such perversenesse , then it is to be resolved , that those that thus stand out against all those saving methods of gods last oeconomy , shall be left uncapable of any good , of any whether meanes of yet-farther working on them , or of pardon either in the church or in heaven , there being no more persons in the god-head now behind ( unlesse we will change the christians trinity into pythagorasses {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} ) nor consequently meanes in the providence of god , for the reducing of , or obtaining mercy for such . by this it will appeare that this blasphemy against the holy ghost is not any one act no nor habit of sin ( particularly not that speaking against christ there , which you will also guesse by saint luke , who mentions not that speech of theirs concerning his casting-out divels by the prince of divels , and yet sets down this speech of christ , of the irremissibility of this blasphemy against the holy ghost , luke 12. 10. which argues that this hath no neare relation to that ) but a finall holding out against , and resisting the whole office of the holy ghost , and all those gracious methods consequent to it . § . 38 to which i shall only adde in reference to my present purpose ( that there may be no place of doubting even to him which will not receive my interpretation of this place ) that even by those which conceive it to be some speciall kind of finne , yet the unpardonablenesse of it is acknowledged to arise from thence , that it is impossible for any such to repent , yet not for any that repents to find pardon and mercy , which is sufficient for the confirmation of my present proposition . 't is true indeed , that he that is sold a slave of sinne , the unregenerate carnall man , is , whilst he is so , in a most hopelesse , comfortlesse estate , and if he have any naturall conscience left him , it must needs be a kind of seind and fury with him , no peace to such wicked , saith my god , and it is as true that the recovery of such a man out of the grave of rottennesse , that lazarstate in sinne , is a miracle of the first magnitude , a work of greatest difficulty ( christ groanes at the raising of him that was 4 dayes dead and putrified in the grave ) and costs the sinner much dearer to be raised out of it . saul is strucke down in his march towards damascus , blind and trembling before his conversion ; but yet still when this conversion is wrought , he may have a good conscience what ever his foregoing sins were . § . 39 and although the apostles censure heb. 6. 6. and 10. 26. light yet heavier upon those who after the knowledge of the truth and gust of the life to come , and participation of the holy spirit relapse to their former sinnes , it being there affirmed that there is no possibility to renew them , or ( as the greeks read it ) for them to renew or recover to repentance , and consequently the sacrifice for sinne [ {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} ] no longer belonging to or remaining for them , yet doth not this hinder the truth of the present proposition ; for i those places to the hebrews belong not to the sins of the unregenerate life , which only now we speak of , but of the relapse after the knowledge of the truth , 2. even in those places speaking of those sinnes , the doctrine is not , that there shall be any difficulty of obtaining pardon for them upon repentance , ( for the subject of the apostles propositions is the {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} and {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} men considered exclusively to repentance , as abiding in sinne unreformed impenitent , and to such we designe not to allow mercy ) but that this is so great a grieving and quenching of the spirit of god , that it becometh very difficult , and in ordinary course impossible for them that are guilty of it to repent , {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} again to recover to repentance : it being just and ordinary with god upon such sinnes of those to whom he hath given grace , to withdraw that grace againe , according to his method and oeconomy of providence exprest in the parable of the talents , [ from him that hath not made use of the grace or talent given , shall be taken away even that which he hath ] and wisd. 1. 5. the holy spirit of discipline will not abide where unrighteousnesse cometh in ; and so being thus deprived of that grace , it is consequently impossible that those should {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} , in a neutrall sense , renew and recover , or in an active reciprocall renew or recover themselves to repentance , though yet for god to give a new stock of grace it is not impossible , but only a thing which he hath not by revealed promise obliged himselfe to do ; and therefore whether he will doe it or no , is meerly in his own hand and dispositive power , and that which no man hath ground to hope and title to challenge from him . all which notwithstanding our present proposition stands firm , that where there is repentance , or true thorow change , those former retracted acts or habits are reconcileable with good conscience . § . 40 the second this , that sinnes of weaknesse of all kinds , whether first , of ignorance , or secondly , of naturall infirmity , the one for want of light , the other for want of grace , or thirdly , of suddaine surreption , such as both by the law of [ si quis praecipiti calore ] in the code of iustinian , and by the municipal laws of most nations , are matter of extenuation to some crimes , to discharge them from capitall punishment , at least to make them capable of pardon , or fourthly , of dayly continuall incursion , either for want of space to deliberate at all , or because it is morally impossible to be upon the guard to be deliberate always , ( opere in longo fas est obrepere somnum ) or fiftly , which through levity of the matter passes by undiscerned , and the like , are irreconcileable with a good conscience , because againe , be a man never so sincerely resolute and industrious in endeavour to abstaine from all sinne , yet as long as he carries flesh about him , ( which is such a principle of weaknesse , that ordinarily in the new testament , the word flesh , is set to signifie weaknesse ) such weaknesses he will be subject to , such frailties will be sure to drop from him . this , i remember , parisiensis illustrates handsomely , first , by the similitude of an armed man provided with strength and prowesse , and wrestling with another in lubrico , on a slippery ground , who though neither weapons nor strength nor courage faile him , yet may be very probably fall , the slipperinesse of the footing will betray him to that ; or secondly by an horseman mounted on an unmanaged or tender-mouth'd horse , who cannot with all his skill and caution secure himself : from all misadventures , the beast may upon a check come over with him , or getting the bit into the mouth runne into the enemies quarters ; or thirdly , by a city that is provided for a siege with workes , and men , and victuals , and ammunition , and yet by a treacherous party within may be betrayed into the enemies hands ; there is a principle of weaknesse within like that slippery pavement , that tender-mouthed beast , that insidious party , which will make us still lyable to such miscarriages , and nothing in this contrary either to courage or diligence , to resolution , or endeavour . and for such as these frailties , ignorances , infirmities , &c. so they be laboured against , and the meanes of preventing or overcomming them sincerely used ( which if it be done , you shall find them dayly wain in you , and if they doe not so in some measure , you have reason to suspect , and to double your diligence ) there is sure mercy in christ to be had , obtaineable , by dayly confession , and sorrow , and prayer for forgivenesse of trespasses ) without any compleat conquest atchieved over them in this life . it being saint pauls affirmation , very exactly and critically set downe , rom. 5. 6. that christ {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} , we being weake , dyed for the ungodly , to note the universal benefit of his death for such weak ones and such sinnes as these to which meer weaknesse betrayes them . the very doctrine which from that text at the beginning of our reformation our reverend bishop martyr did assert in his excellent preface to his explication of the commandements . § . 41 to which purpose i shall onely adde one proofe more , taken from the {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} or rationall importance of saint pauls exhortation rom. 15. 1. we that are strong , saith he , mus beare the weaknesses , {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} , of them which are not strong , {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} , and not please our selves , for v. 3. christ did not so , but &c. which reason sure must come home to both parts , the affirmative as well as the negative ( or else the logick will not be good ) and so the affirmative be that christ bare the infirmities of the weake ; and so again v. 7. [ {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} ] applyed to the same matter he took us up when we were thus fallen . i might adde more , but i hope rather that i have said too much in so plaine a point , and abundantly evinced the irreconcileablenesse of such frailties with a good conscience . § . 42 a third thing is , that the lusting of the flesh against the spirit is reconcileable with a good conscience , so it be in him that walketh in the spirit , obeys the desires and dictates of that , and fulfilleth not the lusts of the flesh , gal. 5. 16 , 17. there is no spiritually good thing that a man ever doth in his life , but the flesh hath some mutinyings , lustings , and objections against it , there being such a contrariety betwixt the commands of christ and the desires of the flesh , that no man , which hath those two within him , doth the things that he would . ( for so t is , {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} that you doe not , not that you cannot doe ) [ the things that he would ] ( i. e. the things , which either he resolves to doe , or takes delight in ) those he doth not , i. e. either purely without some mixture , or still without some opposition of the contrary , or ( as againe the place may be rendred ) this opposition of these two one against another tendeth to this , that we may not doe , or to hinder us from doing every thing that we would , as indeed we should doe , were there not that opposition within our owne brests . this is the meaning of that 17 verse , which notwithstanding it followes verse 18. that if we be led by the spirit , if that be victorious over the contrary pretender ( as it may , though tother lust against it ) if the production be not works of the flesh , adultery , &c. v. 19. but the fruit of the spirit love , peace , &c. v. 22. against such there is no law , no condemnation , no accusation of conscience here , or hereafter . § . 43 for it must be observed , that there is great difference betwixt this lusting of the flesh against the spirit in them that are led by the spirit , gal. 5. and the warring of the law in the members against the law in the mind , which bringeth into captivity to the law of sin , i. e. to it selfe , rom. 7. for those in whom that latter is to be found , are there said to be carnall , sold under sinne ( as a slave was wont sub hasta to be sold ) and so {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} to be led by the flesh and fulfill the lusts of the flesh , which is of all things most unreconcileable with that mans state ; against whom there is no condemnation in christ , rom. 8. 1. and so with a good conscience . § . 44 and if the resistance of the minde , or the law morall , of the spirit , or the law christian , be sufficient to excuse that action or habituall course which is committed and lived in , in opposition to both of these , or while both of these check and contradict , then sure are sins against conscience become ( if not the most excusable sinnes , yet ) the more excusable for this , that they are against conscience ; that woulding or contending of the mind , or the law of the mind being no other but the dictate of the instructed conscience , ( in them which know the law , rom. 7. 1. which he that obeyes not , but followes the law or command of sin against it , hath not sure a good conscience , in our second sence as that signifies a conscience of well-doing or doing nothing against rule of conscience , for that this man in terminis is supposed to doe . § . 45 having now proceeded thus farre in the affirmative part in shewing what sinnes are reconcileable with a good conscience , i should now proceed to the negative part and shew what are not reconcileable therewith . but before i advance to that , there is one classis or head of sinnes , about which there is some question and difficulty of resolving , to which of the extreames it should be reduced , i. e. whether it be reconcileable , or unreconcileable with a good conscience . and that is the single commission of some act of knowne sinne , which hath not the apology of weaknesse to excuse it , and yet is not indulged or persisted , or continued in , ( for of those that are so , you shall hear anon in the 8 proposition ) but without delay retracted by humiliation and reformation ; for the stating and fatisfying of which it will be necessary first , to observe that § . 46 any such act of wilfull sinne first , hath in it selfe a being , and so is capable of a notion abstracted from the retraction of it . yea secondly , is a work of some time , and though it be never so suddenly retracted by repentance , yet some space there is before that retraction ; and if we speak of that time or space , there is no doubt , but that act , first , is contrary to good conscience , and contracts a guilt , and consequent to that , the displeasure of god and obligation to punishment , which nothing but repentance can do away ; yea and secondly , is a naturall means of weakning that habit of good , of sauciating and wounding the soule , and for that time putting it in a bloody direfull condition , and should god before repentance strike , for ought we know there would be no remission , and so , fearfull would be the end of that soule . § . 47 but then secondly , if before god thus visit in justice , repentance interpose , ( as in this present case we suppose it doth ) if this plank be caught hold on instantly upon the shipwrack , if he that hath committed this act of carnality , &c. lye not down ( after the manner of the grecian horses in saint ambroses expression , qui cum ceciderint , quandam tenent quietis & patientiae disciplinam , are taught , when they fall in the race , not to strive or endeavour to get up again , lye still on the ground with great stilnesse and patience ) walk not after the flesh , ro. 8. 1. then presently is he set right again in gods favour , upon ( performance of the solemnities , as it were , payment of the fees of the court ) humiliation , contrition , confession , and lowly supplications to god for pardon in christ , and so then to him thus repaired there is no condemnation ; beside the forementioned effects that attended that sinne at the time there is no future arrear behind in the other world . § . 48 as for the other effect of sinne in this life , the wasting of the conscience , or provoking of god to withdraw his grace ; though any such act of wilfull sinne may justly be thought to do that also in some degree , first , to stop god from going on in his current of liberality , and secondly , to cast us back from that plenitude and abundance , which before in the riches of gods bounty in christ was afforded , and so much weaken our stock of grace , leave us much more infirme then wee were before the commission ; yet wee find not any threat in scripture that god will , upon this provocation of one single act not persisted in , presently withdraw all grace , but we have reason to hope what the article of our church supposes , that in this case he leaves sufficient grace to enable that child of his , that thus falls , by that his grace to return again . § . 49 and if that sad presage , heb. 6. 6. seem to any to withstand this , the answer will be prompt and easy , by observing that the word {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} , there [ the fallers away ] signifies more then some one single act of sinne presently retracted againe , even a generall apostacie in their practice , ( if not in their faith ) a return to their former unregenerate sinnes , ( as the phrase {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} , [ they being entangled are overcome ] notes 2 pet. 2. 20. a place perfectly paralell to this , and ) as in this place the ancients have generally interpreted . and then though such indulgence in sinne , such returning to the vomit or mire againe in that other place , doe provoke god to withdraw his grace necessary to enable them to repent , yea and cast them back into a worse estate then they were in , not onely before such sinning , but even before their conversion , 2 pet. 2. 20. yet that god will so punish with totall desertion any one act or commission presently retracted againe , it is not affirmed here nor anywhere else , that i have observed , but rather on the contrary , that he will visit them with chastisements which are a grace and a meanes to recall them , without any utter for saking or taking of his loving kindnesse from them , psal , 89. 33. 35. § . 50 that this matter may be throughly cleared , i shall suppose this objection made against what hath hitherto been said of it , that it may seem by this doctrine , [ that the regenerate man may bee under gods displeasure ] that hee that remaines sanctified may be unjustified , for so he will be , if all his sinnes be not forgiven him , which they are not , if this act of sinne not yet repented of , be not forgiven . in answer to this , i shall reinforce my affirmation , that of necessity it must be granted , if we believe the scripture , that any such act of sinne unretracted by repentance , doth certainly stand upon the sinners score unremitted ; for that god ( as some affirme ) doth at the first act of my being justified , forgive all my sinnes not only past , present , but also future too ; cannot be said , but upon a supposition that that man will never commit any such sinne against which the gospell threatens perishing , i. e. any deliberate presumptuous sinne , ( which supposition if it were true , would inferre an impossibility of the regenerate mans thus sinning , not an assurance of his pardon without ( or abstracted from the consideration of ) his repentance , which is the only point , in hand ) for if he doe , then upon confession and forsaking there is promise of mercy , and not otherwise ; and in briefe , without repentance there is no remission : and therefore it is observeable , that they which thus affirm , find themselves enforced to fly to gods omnipotence and immensity , to whom all things are present ; by help of which they can conceive and resolve that at the time of that sinnes being upon him unrepented of , god yet seeing his future repentance as present , may scale his pardon , and then may by the same reason do so also before the commission ; the weaknesse of which arguing , i shall no farther demonstrate then by this rejoynder , that by the same reason it might be said , that a man is justified before he is borne , which yet the objectors doe not affirme , but that at the time of his first conversion , be it at such a sermon or the like , he was justified , and then all his sins past , present , and to come forgiven him , which is as contrary to the notion of all things being present with god , as to say that this act of commission is not forgiven till it be repented of , for sure the time before that mans birth , and the time after it , are as truly present to god before all eternity , as the time of this commission and that repentance . § . 51 the onely way for us to understand our selves or any thing that belongs to gods actions concerning us , is that which the scripture supposes and commands us to walk in , not the way of gods secret counsels , ( which if we knew , were no longer secret ) not the way of gods immensity , ( which if it were intelligible by us , were not immensity ) but the way of his revealed will , which is , that whensoever the sinner repenteth him of his sinne , and amends his life , he shall have his sin blotted out and put out of gods remembrance , i. e. forgiven unto him and not till then : and to suppose he may have remission before such repentance , is to suppose god perjured who sweares he shall not , and to lay falsity to the charge of the whole gospel , which resolves , except ye repent , ye shall all perish . § . 52 to all this i might farther adde that gods justifying the faithfull man , is the approving his fidelity upon tryall of it , and so acquitting him ( upon a {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} or probation ) from suspicion of hypocrisie , pronouncing him faithful , or evangelically righteous , and upon that , owning him as a friend , entring into league with him , as might appeare by gods justifying abraham and calling him friend ( in the sense wherein they are christs friends , which doe whatsoever be commands them , so approve themselves unto him ) if it were now seasonable to examine that businesse . this being supposed , it would be most evident , that such an act of knowne deliberate sinne committed in time of tryall , is quite contrary to justification , even as contrary as abrahams refusing to beleeve gods promise first , or after to sacrifice isaac , you may suppose would have been . of which the least that can be said , will be this , that such a failing is a shrewd blemish to sincerity , which will make it necessary for him that is guilty of it , to repaire his credit with god by expressing a great sence of his miscarriage , and by many future performances of constancy , and resolution , if ever he hope to be approved , or justified by him . § . 53 but now having thus far confirmed this , and so rather strengthned , then weakned the objection , the next thing i shall desire may be observed is this , that every non-remission of a sinne for some time , every displeasure of gods , every not-imputing to righteousnesse , is not an utter intercision of justification , is not a calling all the former forgotten sinnes to remembrance , for to such onely an apostacy , or continued falling away from god betrayes the soule . for , the whole current of my life may approve my fidelity to god , though some one action be very contrary to it : nay secondly , a father may be displeased with his sonne for some one fault , and yet not difinherit him , nay upon farther provocation he may cast him out of his family , and yet afterward receive him into it againe . § . 54 so that there are three degrees observable in this matter , first displeasure , secondly wrath , thirdly fury . first withdrawing of the fathers favour , suspension of pardon , so t is in case of any such single act of sinne presently repented of , considered before its retractation . second , casting out of the family , totall intercision of mercy for that present , so t is in case of such sin persisted in indulgently . third , utter finall irreversible abdication , so t is in case of finall obduration . § . 55 this may be illustrated , 1. by a vulgar , then by an ecclesiasticall resemblance . among friends 1. there may be a matter of quarrell , dislike , displeasure , and one friend justly frowne upon the other , yea and keep some distance from him , and be really angry with him , for some act of injury done by him , contrary to the lawes of friendship , which till he hath some way repaired , the friend may justly not pardon him , and so absteine for that present from the former degree of familiarity with him : but then 2. the injurious friend may continue as injurious still , and go on and persist in that course of falsenesse or unfriendlinesse , and then the injur'd friend wholly forsakes his company , breaks off those bands of friendship with him , yet so as that upon the others relenting and amending , he may yet againe returne to him , and so that totall separation prove no finall one , 3. there is , upon obduration or no manner of relenting , a finall irreversible breach . § . 56 the ecclesiasticall resemblance is , that of the three degrees of excommunication among the jewes , the first or lowest , was niddui separation , not totall turning out of either sacred or civill society , but remotion to a distance , that the offender should not come within foure cubits of any other , and so be denyed the peace of the church , and the familiar kind of communion , which others enjoy . above this there was cherem which was a totall exclusion or distermination with anathemas or execrations joyned with it , but yet was not finall , then thirdly there was schammatha giving up to destruction or desolation , delivering up to gods comming in judgement , and that was irreversible . § . 57 now for the full satisfying of the argument , ( having already shewed you the state of this offender in respect of justification ) it will onely be necessary to adde one thing more , that the state of the same man as it respects sanctification , is parallel and fully proportionable to the state as it respecteth justification , and so the objection will quite fall to the ground . § . 58 to the clearing of which you must know that sanctification may be conceived in a double notion : 1. as a gift of gods , 2. as a duty of mans . to prevent mistake , this i meane , god gives the grace of conversion and sanctification , and he that is effectually wrought on by that grace , is converted and sanctified , this is it which i meane , by the first notion of sanctification , as it is a gift of gods : but the man thus converted and sanctified , i. e. thus wrought on and effectually changed by the spirit of god , is bound by the gospl-law , to operate according to this principle , to use this talent , and this is called , to have grace , heb. 12. 28. i. e. to make use of it to the purpose there specified of serving god {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} ( i. e. either well pleasedly , cheerfully , willingly , or well pleasingly , so as god may and will accept ) in righteousnesse and godly feare , according to the notion of having in the parable of the talents , where t is said that to him that hath shall be given , i. e. to him which makes use of the talent intrusted to him , operates accordingly , doth what that enables him to doe , offends not against it by idlenesse , or by commission of contrary sinnes , which he that doth , is the non habens , he that hath not there , from which shall be taken away , &c. and this having of grace is it which i meane by the second notion of sanctification , as it is a duty of mans , which i conceive is meant by the apostle , when he saith , this is the will of god , even your sanctification , and he which hath this hope purifies himself , and let us cleanse our selves from all filthinesses perfecting holinesse , all which places suppose the thing spoken of , to be the duty of man , which by the help of christ strengthning him , he is able to performe , and therefore upon the supposition of gods working in him both to will and to doe , to will , by sanctifying , to doe , by assisting grace , he is incited and exhorted by the apostle , to work out his owne salvation . § . 59 this being thus cleared , t will be easily granted in the second place , that every such act of deliberate commission as we now speak of , is contrary to sanctification in this latter notion , contrary to the duty of the sanctified man , from which breach of duty it was , that we bound him before under that guilt , which nothing but repentance could rid him of , and if you mark it , that is the onely thing which contracts a guile , the doing somewhat contrary to duty , and so the want of this second notion of sanctification it is , the want of sanctified operations , which interposes any rubs in the businesse of our justification , and not so properly that wherein god onely was concerned , his not giving grace , guilt being still a result from sinne , and sinne being a breach of the law , a contrariety to duty and not to guilt ; and though he that hath not received the gift of sanctification be not justified , yet the cause of his non-justification then , is not , in proper speaking , gods not having given him grace to sanctifie , ( for that is but a negative thing , and cannot produce non-justification , which is in effect a positive thing by interpretation , signifying condemnation , two negatives making an affirmative , non-justifying being non-remitting of sinne , and that the actuall imputing of it to condemnation ) but the sinnes of his former and present impenitent unsanctified life . § . 60 this also being thus cleared , i shall onely adde a third thing , and then conclude this matter , that in the same proportion that any such act of sinne doth unjustifie , it doth unsanctifie also , i. e. shake and waste , though not utttrly destroy , that sanctified state that before the man was in , by the gift and grace of god . § . 61 for as there were three degrees of provocation in the matter of justification , so are there also in this of sanctification , the first , grieving the spirit of god , eph. 4. 30. resisting it , trashing of god in his course of grace and bounty towards us , putting our selves under niddui , as it were , in respect of gods grace , as well as his favour , and so weakning our stock of sanctity , and this the deliberate act of sinne may be thought to doe . the second , is quenching of the spirit , 1 thes. 5. 19. putting it quite out , rebelling and vexing his holy spirit , is . 63. 10. a totall extinction of grace , the cherem that brings the present curse , or anathema along with it ; and this is not done by one sin not persisted in , but onely by a habit or indulgent course of sin ; and the third , is the despighting , or doing despight to the spirit of grace , heb. 10. 29. that which is proportioned to schammatha , that makes the finall irreversible separation betweene us and gods sanctifying grace , the first did not wholly deprive the sinner of all grace , no nor of sufficient to enable to repent ; the second , did so for the present ; the third did so finally also . § . 62 if you will now demand what are the effects and consequents of that displeasure of god , which this single act of sin brings upon the offender ; i answer , that i have in some measure answered that already , shewed you at the beginning many lugubrious effects of it ; and if that be not sufficient to satisfie you , or to shew the non-remission of such sinne till it be recracted by repentance , i shall then proceed one degree farther yet , to tell you , § . 63 that the method of gods dealing in this case ( of such single acts of commission ) seemeth by the scripture to be after this manner . upon any such commission , satan is wont to accuse that man before god , [ such or such a regenerate child of thine is falne into such a sin , and so into my hands as the lictor ) then to desire , or require solemnly , to have him to winnow , by inflicting punishments upon him , and god yeelds many times to this demand of satans , delivers the offender up to him in some limited manner . § . 64 to which delivering though temptations ( or afflictions which ordinarily are signified by temptations in scripture ) are constantly consequent , yet not utter desertion or withdrawing of grace , but allowing of strength sufficient to victory , {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} , ability to beare , 1. cor. 10. 13. {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} , passage out of those difficulties in that same place , {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} , sufficient grace , 2. cor. 12. 9. and assistance of his faith , that it faile not totally , ( which is the importance of christs having prayed for peter , luk. 22. 32. his intercession being a powerfull intercession ( as may appeare by his [ father , i knew that thou hearest me alwayes , iob. 11. 24 ] and so in effect , the obtaining from his father , and actuall conferring on his disciples the grace which he prays for ) and therefore it is observable , that as those which are thus accused and demanded by satan are generally such as , were it not for this present particular commission , would passe both with god and him , for faithfull disciples , and good christians , and therfore do stil retain that title ( as appears by the word {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} , when satan is called the accuser of them , rev. 12. 10. {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} , the accuser of the bretheren , or the faithfull , it seems they are faithfull still , though they have been guilty of some act , for which he thus accuseth them , and so he is called {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} , 1 pet. 5. 8. the plaintiffe or enemy , {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} , of you , i. e. the elect , to whom he writes , c. 1. ● . ) so the end of yeelding to satans request in delivering them up to him is also fatherly and gracious {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} , that they may be disciplined , or taught not to blaspheme , 1 tim. 1. 20. {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} , that he may be ashamed , 2. thes. 3. 14. {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} , that the spirit may be saved , 1. cor. 5. 5. whereupon it is , that the fathers so clearly resolve it far better , and more eligible to be delivered up to satan , then to be delivered up to ones selfe , or ones owne affections or desires ; the first of them being the ordinary punishment of some act , or acts of sinne on purpose to recall to repentance ; the second being the great plague of spirituall desertion , inflicted on indulgent continuers in fin , the first of them a mark of their not-yet-totall abdication , their continuance in sonne-ship whom god thus chastens here , that he may not condemne them with the world ; the second , of their being cut off from that prerogative , whom god thus forsakes . § . 65 to which purpose , of gods dealing mercifully with his servants in case of single trespasses presently retracted by repentance , ( so farre as not to inflict any grand spirituall punishment upon them , such as absolute desertion , or utter disinherizon ) i conceive an image represented to us in christs command to his disciples , how oft they should forgive the trespassing brother , luk. 17. 4. if he trespasse against thee seven times a day , and seven times a day returne againe to thee , saying , i repent , thou shalt forgive ; where trespassing seven times is a phrase , for [ how oft soever he trespasse ] the word [ forgive ] notes the obligation to punishment without forgivenesse , and the interposing the word [ repent ] proportioned to every trespasse , shewes the necessity of that condition to wash off that guilt ; and the word [ turne ] prefixt to that , argues the repentance unavailable , if it containe not turning in it ; upon which , forgivenesse being there commanded , if we shall now adde that other place mat. 6. 36. where gods mercy to us is made the measure of our mercy to our brethren , the argument will come home to prove that god doth so deale with us , and consequently that every such act of sinne contracts a guilt , which is never pardoned but upon repentance , that upon the speedy performance of that duty the patient is preserved from any heavy spirituall punishment , which would otherwise attend that sin . § . 66 what we have hitherto said on this particular , will shew the danger of every act of deliberate sinne , and yet withall the difference betwixt such single acts presently retracted by repentance , and the like persisted , or continued in . to which purpose it will be worth the while to behold what we finde recorded of david . he , we know , had been guilty of severall acts of sinne , markt and censured in the word of god ; and some of them such , as for them he was in a manner delivered up to satan to be contumeliously used ( as he seemes to conceive from shimei's cursing of him , 2 sam. 16. 10. for shimei being an instrument of satans in cursing , and satan thereto permitted by god upon some crime , for which he had accused him to god , he there calls it , gods saying to shimei , curse david , ) and yet because he continued not with indulgence in any of them , ( his heart presently smiting him , as in the case of numbring the people , and recalling him to instant reformation ) save onely in that concerning uriah the hittite ( wherein it appears that he continued neere the space of a yeere , from before the conception till after the birth of the child , as is cleare by the time of nathans comming to him , 2 sam. 12. 1. ) t is therefore left upon record by god , that david did that which was right in the sight of the lord , and turned not aside from any thing that he commanded him all the dayes of his life , save onely in the matter of uriah the hittite , 1 king. 15. 5. § . 67 from whence although i shall not conclude , that god saw no other sinne in david but that in the matter of uriah , ( because i know he saw and punisht that of numbring the people , and for that other though not acted , yet designed under oath against nabal . 1 sam. 25. 22. abigail discernes that it was a causelesse shedding of blood , and an act of revenge , v. 31. ( and so no small sinne in gods sight ) yet t is cleare , that the sin in the matter of uriah , that onely sinne continued in for any long time , made another manner of separation betweene god and david , contracted another kind of guilt , ( and was a farre greater waster to conscience ) then any of those other more speedily retracted sinnes did , was the onely remarkable {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} drawing back , or turning aside from obedience to god , the onely grand defection , shaking off gods yoke , and so the onely chasme in his regenerate state . § . 68 these 4 propositions being premised , whereof 3 were affirmative , and this last of a middle nature , the rest will be negative ; as § . 69 fiftly , hypocrisie is not reconcileable with a good conscience . i mean not hypocrisie which consists in the concealing from the eyes of men the sins or frailties he is guilty of : for supposing those frailties to be what they are , i. e. acknowledging in them a guilt proportionate to their nature , i cannot see why the bare desire to conceale them from the eyes of men ( separated from the sins or frailties themselves , and from any treacherous designe in such concealing ) should be thought to superadde any farther degree of guilt ; when on the other side the publicknesse of a sinne is an aggravation of it , makes it more scandalous , and so more criminous also . nor againe doe i meane that hypocrisie , which is the taking in any thought of the praise of men ( and the like ) in our best actions : for as long as we have flesh about us , some degrees of this will goe neare sometimes to insinuate themselves , and then though they prove blemishes to those best actions , and by anticipating the payment and taking it here before hand , robbe us of that heavenly reward hereafter , which would otherwise be rendred to us according to those works , yet stil being but spots of sons , reconcileable with a regenerate estate , ( as the straw and combustible superstruction , is ( in saint paul ) compatible with the true substantiall foundation , ) they will be reconcileable with good conscience also , which is alwayes commensurate to a regenerate estate . § . 70 but the hypocrisy which i meane , is , first , that which is opposite to ( and compatible with ) sincerity : first , the deceiving of men , with a pretence of piety , putting off the most un-christian sins , having no more of christianity then will serve to mischieve others , i. e. onely the pretence of it to disguise the poyson of a bitter heart . secondly , the deceiving of god , or thirdly , his owne soule , not dealing uprightly with either , and nothing more contrary then this to a good conscience . § . 71 secondly , the maimed mutilate obedience , the compounding betwixt god and satan , the samaritanes fearing the lord and serving their owne gods , joyning others with god , and paying to them a respect equall or superiour to that which they pay to god , serving mammon and god , or mammon more then god . or § . 72 thirdly , the formall profession , the {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} or outside-garbe of godlinesse , not joyning the inward , but making a meer pageant of piety , denying the power thereof . or § . 73 fourthly , the hypocrisy of the wisher and woulder , that could wish he were better then he is , could be well pleased to dye the death of the righteous , to have all the gainfull part , the revenue and crown of a good conscience , but will not be at the charge of a conscientious life ; or § . 74 fiftly , the hypocrisy of the partiall obedient , that is {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} of duty , chooses out the easy , smooth , plyable doctrines of christianity , the cheap or costlesse performances , the {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} , will serve the lord his god of that which costs him nothing , will doe some things that have nothing contrary to passions in generall , or particularly to his passions , like herod that could heare iohn baptist gladly , be present at as many sermons as he could wish , ( and many the like painlesse performances ) but when the weightier matters of the law expect to be taken up also , cannot submit to such burthens . or § . 75 sixthly , the hypocrisy of the temporary , which abstaines onely as long as the punishment is over his head , and awes him to it , or as long as he meets with no temptations to the contrary ; both which what place they have in the death-bed repentance even when it is not onely a sorrow for sinne , but a resolution of amendment also , i leave it to be considered . or § . 76 seventhly , the hypocrisy of those which commit evill that good may come of it , who venture on the most vn christian fins for gods glory , accept the person of the almighty , doe injustice for his sake , or rather suppose him impotent , and fetch in the devill or their owne vile lusts to releive and assist god , of whom the apostle pronounceth their damnation is just , rom. 3. 8. or § . 77 lastly , the hypocrisy of him which keeps any one close undeposited sinne upon his soule . these are each of them contrary to some part of the ground of good conscience , to the foundation of christian confidence , some to the sincerity , some to the resolution , and some to the obedience , {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} in all , and some to the perseverance which is absolutely necessary to the good conscience . § . 78 a sixth proposition is , that a supine wilfull course of negligence and sloth , whether in duties of mans particular calling , or more especially in the duties of the generall calling as we are christians , that sinne of {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} , is not reconcileable with a good conscience , ( omissions being destructive , such they may be as well as commissions ) whether it be omission of the performance of morall or christian precepts ( christs improvements of the law in the sermon on the mount , being not onely as counsells , but precepts obligatory to christians ) or whether it be onely the wilfull supine slothfull neglecting the meanes of knowledge , such as are agreeable to my course of life : or the neglecting to make use of those meanes which are necessary to enable me to get out of any sinne : ( one act of which nature was by christ noted and censured in his disciples , their not fasting and praying to cast out that devill that would not otherwise be cast out . ) or the not avoyding such occasions which are apt to betray me to it ; such acts as these , are ( as christ saith to those disciples ) acts of faithlesnesse and perversenesse , mat. 17. 17. and cosequently the continued course of them contrary to the sincerity of endeavour , and so unreconcileable with a good conscience . § . 79 the seventh proposition is , that all habituall customary obdurate sinning is unreconcileable utterly with a good conscience . i adde the word [ obdurate ] which signifies the hardning of the heart against the knowledge of the truth , against exhortations , against threats of gods word , against checks of naturall conscience , or illuminations of grace , against resolutions and vowes to the contrary , for this will make any habit certainly unreconcileable with a good conscience ; whereas it is possible that some customary sinning may be through ignorance of the duty , and that ignorance if it be not contracted by some wilfulnesse of mine may be matter of excuse to me , and so reconcileable with a good conscience by force of the second proposition . but the obdurate holding out against gods spirit , either knocking for admittance but not opened to , or checking and restraining from sin after conversion , and not harkned to , resisting all gods methods of working on us and still resolutely walking after the flesh , this is by no means reconcileable with a good conscience , nay nor any habit of sin simply taken ( for that is exclusive of the habit of piety necessary to the good coscience ) unlesse it have that authentique plea of faultlesse ignorance to excuse it . § . 80 the eighth proposit on is , that any deliberate presumptuous act or commission of any sin , against which damnation , or not inheriting the kingdome of heaven , is pronounced in the new testament , being not immediately retracted by repentance , humiliation , and all the effects of godly sorrow , 2 cor. 7. 11. is wholly unreconcileable with a good conscience . such are gal. 5. 19. adultery , fornication , uncleannesse , lasciviousnesse , ( foure distinct degrees of incontinence ) idolatry , witchcraft , ( two degrees of impiety ) hatred , variance , emulation , wrath , strife , sedition , heresies , envyings , murthers , ( nine degrees of the pride of life , or that other branch of carnality flowing from {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} , or the irascible faculty ) drunkennesse , revelling , ( the species of intemperance ) and such like : and the same with some variation and addition , 1 cor. 6. 9 , 10. and eph 5. 5. every one of these at the very commission have the nature of peccata sauciantia , wounding the sinner to the heart , letting out a great deale of good blood and vitall spirits , and weakning the habit of christian vertue , of peccata clamantia , crying sins , the voice of conscience so wronged by them , calling to heaven for judgement against such oppressours , or perhaps satan carrying an accusation thither against such offenders ; and if upon this they be not straight retracted by an earnest contrition , humiliation and repentance , they then proceed farther to be ( any one act of them ) peccata vastantia conscientiam , sins wasting & despoiling the conscience , betraying to some sadder punishment , even desertion , and withdrawing of grace , and delivering up to our own hearts lusts , a consequent of which are all vile affections , rom. 1. and that {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} , cursing , heb. 6. 8. § . 81 just as it was the manner of the jewes judicatures . he that was punished by their {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} separation or {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} ( not permirted to come neare any man within foure cubits ) if he did not thereupon shew and approve his repentance within the space of two moneths , on that contumacy was then smitten with their {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} the anathemation or execration , and sometimes cast into prison . so is gods dealing with the sinner remaining imperitent for such a space , substraction of gods grace and spirit , the curse of the gospel is his portion . § . 82 for the clearing of which truth yet fa●therr , t will be observable that the danger that arises from one sinne of the first magnitude , against which the sentence is pronounced , that they who are guilty of such , shall never inherit eternall life , is or may be to him that after the knowledge of the truth relapses into it as great as that which is incurred by many lesser sinnes , or by a relapsing into a generality of impure life , and therefore the remaining in that one sinne , will be as unreconcileable with a regenerate estate , as the remaining in many other , and proportionably one act of it as noxious and wasting to conscience , as apt to provoke god to withdraw his spirit , as many acts of those lesser sins , and though neither any single act either of lesser or greater sinne in a sincere lover of christ , presently retracted , ( as it will be if he continue so ) doth so grieve , as to quench gods spirit utterly , so provoke god , as to make him wholly withdraw his grace and totally desert him ; yet if that one sin be continued in , favoured and indulged to , either by multiplying more acts of it , or by no : expressing repentance for it by all those means which the apostle requires of his incestuous corinthian , or which are named as effects of godly sorrow , 2 cor. 7. 11. this direfull punishment of desertion is then to be expected as the reward of any one such sinne , and from thence will follow any impossibility for that man so diserted ever to return to repentance again , gods speciallayde , which is now withdrawne , being absolutely necessary to that . § . 83 where yet of those , that thus remain in any such sin , there is some difference ; for some that so remain in sinne , doe so remain that they desire not to get out of it , hate to be reformed ; others thoughensnared so in sin that they cannot get out , yet are very earnest and sollicitous to find out some means to break through and escape out of those snares , and then this latter state of soul though it be not sufficient to give claime or right to mercy , ( the victory over the world , the actuall forsaking of all such sins being necessary to that , and not only our wishes that we were victorious ) yet is it a nearer and more hopefull capacity of the grace of repentance , more likely to be blessed by the returning of gods spirit enabling to repent , then that former state of contemptuous continuers in the same sin appeares to be . § . 84 for though in both these states there is no repenting without gods new gift of grace , and no absolute promise that god will be so gracious to such sinners , yet there is a place , 1 iohn 5. 16. which makes a difference betweene sinne unto death , and sinne not unto death ( both of them states of impenitence and persisting in sin , but differing as the two latter degrees of excommunication did among the iewes , cherem and scammatha both noting a totall separation , but the latter a finall also , and by the composition of the word intimating death or desolation , giving up the sinner to divine vengeance , as hopelesse or contumacious , in reference to which the phrase is here used , a sinne unto death , whereas the other , of impenitence , not arrived to that desperate contumacy , is a state of curse under cherem and anathema , but not unto death yet ▪ and allowes this priviledge to the prayers of faithfull men for others , that they shall obtain life for those that have sinned not unto death , where that [ the not being to death ] of a sinne , is to be taken not from the matter of the sinne , but from the disposition of the sinner , and so from this desiring to get out , though he remain in it , or somewhat answerable to that , might , if any doubt were made of it , be proved as by other arguments so by putting together the peculiar use of the word {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} in that authour , for abiding and continuing in sinne , and the no extenuation that such abiding is capable of ( so farre as to make one such abiding so much lesse then another such abiding , as that one should be called {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} , the other not ) save only this of wishing and heaving and labouring to get out , ( which supposes some remainder of exciting , though not of sanctifying or assisting grace ) while the other goes on without any care or love or desire of reformation . § . 85 and though still there be no promise that such a relapst unreformed sinners prayers shall be heard for himselfe upon that bare desire to get out , which his praying for grace will suppose ( there being no such promise of grace to the relapst person upon his prayer , as there is to any else ) yet it is cleare from that place of saint iohn , that this priviledge belongs to the prayers of other faithfull penitents , for such a more moderate degree of unfaithfull impenitents upon their request god will give life to such , i. e. such a degree of grace as shall be sufficient to enable them to recover back to repentance , of which being given them upon the others prayers , if they make use , ( as infallibly they will if they were and continue to be really sollicitous to get out of that state ) they shall undoubtedly live eternally . § . 86 the practice of which doctrine of saint iohns thus explayned , you shall see every where in the stories of , or canons for the paenitents , where they that for any sinne of ecclesiasticall cognizance were excommunicated , did return to the peace of the church , ( an image of the peace of god ) by severall degrees , of which the first was , to stay and oft lye without the church doores , and in the portch at houres of prayer ; and desire those that retained the honour of being accounted faithfull , and so had liberty to go into the church , to pray to god for them . which as the secure supine negligent impaenitent was not likely to doe , so was he not to expect the benefit of it , nor the christian brother obliged to pray for him , though yet by saint iohns [ {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} i say not of that or concerning that state of sinne that he shall pray ] i am not convinced that it were unlawfull so to doe . § . 87 by all this thus set and bounded with its due limitations , the truth of my eight proposition will appeare , of the unreconcileablenesse of such presumptuous acts of such branded sinnes unretracted , with a regenerate estate or good conscience , as being indeed quite contrary to every part and branch of the premised ground of a good conscience . § . 88 to which all that i shall adde is onely this , that he that tenders but the comforts of this life , i. e. of a good conscience , will be sure never to comm●● deliberately and presumptuously , or having by surreption fallen , never to lye downe or continue one minuit unhumbled unreformed in any such sinne , on which that direfull fate is by christ or his apostles inscribed [ shall not inherit the kingdome of heaven ] where yet as i shall not affirme that non● shall subject us to that danger but those which are there specified , ( for there is added and such like , and other sins there may be committed with the like deliberation and presumption , and so as contrary to conscience ) so shall i not say that all that commit any one act of any of these without that deliberation and presumption , or that are presen●ly by their own heart smitten and brought to repentance for them , shall incur that danger ; for the words {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} and {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} , the doers and committers of them signifie the deliberate committing and indulgent yeelding to them , contrary to which the use of surreption ▪ at the time and the instant subsequent retractation of them ( by contrition , confession , forsaking , and reinforcement of greater care and vigilance for the future ) will be sure meanes to deliver from that danger . § . 89 whereto yet this caution must be annext which may passe for § . 90 a ninth proposition . that the frequency or repetition of any such acts after such contrition and resolution is an argument of the unsincerity of that contrition , of the deceavablenesse of that pretended greater care , and so a symptome of an ill conscience , as the spreading of the skall or leprosie after the priests inspection is sufficient to pronounce the patient uncleane . levit. 13. and as that disease in the relapse may be mortall which at first was not . § . 91 other more particular niceties i confesse there are , the distinguishing of which might be usefull for some mens states , and help disabuse them both out of an erroneous and a secure , yea and an over trembling conscience . but because that which would be thus proper to one , being laid down in common , or cast into the lottery , might have the ill hap to be drawn by him to whom it is not proper , ( as that physick which would purge out a distemper from one , wil breed a weaknesse in another ) and because no wise man ever thought fit to take lawes out of generalities , i shall resolve rather to obey such reasons , and to be directed by such examples , not to descend to particulars , then to be in danger first of tempting the readers patience , then of interrupting his peace . pray for us , for we trust we have a good conscience , in all things willing to live honestly . hob. 13. 18. finis . notes, typically marginal, from the original text notes for div a45417e-150 {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} . tatian . {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} . {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} . tr. of wil worship . {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} . {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} . {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} . hooper . vid. coch. exe . gem. sanh . p. 148. & buxtorf . instit. ep. p. 75. tracts hammond, henry, 1605-1660. this text is an enriched version of the tcp digital transcription a45470 of text r9409 in the english short title catalog (wing h608). textual changes and metadata enrichments aim at making the text more computationally tractable, easier to read, and suitable for network-based collaborative curation by amateur and professional end users from many walks of life. the text has been tokenized and linguistically annotated with morphadorner. the annotation includes standard spellings that support the display of a text in a standardized format that preserves archaic forms ('loveth', 'seekest'). textual changes aim at restoring the text the author or stationer meant to publish. this text has not been fully proofread approx. 123 kb of xml-encoded text transcribed from 19 1-bit group-iv tiff page images. earlyprint project evanston,il, notre dame, in, st. louis, mo 2017 a45470 wing h608 estc r9409 11808559 ocm 11808559 49485 this keyboarded and encoded edition of the work described above is co-owned by the institutions providing financial support to the early english books online text creation partnership. this phase i text is available for reuse, according to the terms of creative commons 0 1.0 universal . the text can be copied, modified, distributed and performed, even for commercial purposes, all without asking permission. early english books online. (eebo-tcp ; phase 1, no. a45470) transcribed from: (early english books online ; image set 49485) images scanned from microfilm: (early english books, 1641-1700 ; 495:22) tracts hammond, henry, 1605-1660. hammond, henry, 1605-1660. of conscience. [6], 30 p. printed by henry hall, oxford [oxfordshire] : 1645. imperfect: tracts 2-7 lacking on filmed copy. reproduction of original in bodleian library. 1. conscience -2. scandall -3. will-worship -4. superstition -5. resisting the lawful magistrate under colour of religion -6. sins of weaknesse, wilfulnesse -7. a late, or, a death-bed repentance. eng conscience. a45470 r9409 (wing h608). civilwar no tracts hammond, henry 1645 21752 52 630 0 0 0 0 314 f the rate of 314 defects per 10,000 words puts this text in the f category of texts with 100 or more defects per 10,000 words. 2005-12 tcp assigned for keying and markup 2005-12 aptara keyed and coded from proquest page images 2006-01 emma (leeson) huber sampled and proofread 2006-01 emma (leeson) huber text and markup reviewed and edited 2006-04 pfs batch review (qc) and xml conversion tracts of 1. conscience . 2. scandall . 3. will-worship . 4. superstition . 5. resisting the lawfull magistrate under colour of religion . 6. sins of weaknesse . wilfulnesse . 7. a late , or , a death-bed repentance . {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} . oxford , printed by henry hall , printer to the universitie 1645. the preface . it is a strong presumption that that religion is false which is apt to be made use of for secular advantages , that those opinions have somewhat of the {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} ingredient in them , which are produced as the ground to justifie or authorize practices , otherwise impious and infamous , there is so little communion or complyance betwixt god and belial , that it is very hard even for satan himselfe , that great mpure artificer , to prostitute or debauch any truth of gods , ( which is really so ) to that meane of vile submission of yeelding it self pliable or instrumentall to any design or interest of his . he which can be corrupted or employed by an enemy is either not so honest or not so clear , either not so faithfull , or not so wary as might be expected . this one consideration would prejudge a great part of the divinity of these unhappy times , which in a perfect contrariety to the wisdome which commeth from above , jam. 3. or the fruits of the spirit , gal. 5. is so far from purity , peaceablenesse , gentlenesse , love , joy , long suffering , &c. that it is engaged to owne another extaction , to confesse it selfe his creature , and progeny , whom in the lineaments and features it so visibly resembleth . among the many severals of this kind i have long conceived that the vulgar notions of those foure names , which these ensuing treatises have taken confidence to examine , have had no small part of the guilt of those fatall evils under which this calamitous wretched kingdome now pants a prostrate gastly , and direfull spectacle . and consequently that the obstructing of these fountaines might possibly abate those streames and torrenes ( which have taken rise from thence ) of uncharitablenesse first and then of bloud . the mistaking of every phansy or humour , carnall or satanicall perswasion for conscience ( the acknowledged rule of action ) and the setting up upon too weak a stock for that high priviledge of a good conscience , hath emboldened most of the vices of the world , * petrified the practicall faculty , and made it insensible of any of those stripes , or threats , or discipline , which the law of nature or of christ hath provided for the restraint of their subjects . and from thence it daily happens that not only the most unchristian but unhumane practices , the most unnaturall savage barbarities of these last yeeres , ( which no parasite can flatter , or president extenuate ) are now avowed to be dictates and commands of conscience , and so not onely reconcileable with piety , but advanced and set up for the onely measure of it , and no man allowed to passe for conscientious which hath any remainder of morall or christian virtue ( in the ancient notion of the word ) discernible in his actions ; and so not onely zozimus his slaunder of constantine is become the reall guilt of too many professours , ( those sins confidently committed by them , for which no other religion allowes any expiation ) but , beyond the malice of that false tongue , the sinnes themselves resolved on as a speciall {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} or purgative , an act of supererogating virtue , sufficient to sanctifie any other impurities . to these so grosse errours both in opinion and practice the present height o● animosity , and vehemence of the flame may possibly have betrayed men ; but what it should be that hath so heightned the passion , and first elevated it to this pitch of distemper , will not be discerned any otherwise then by conjecture from the quarrels which have been most insisted on , against the established government and discipline of the church , and the indifferent actions , and ceremonies , and observances either prescribed , or customary among us ; to which when no direct immediate blame or accusation could be affixt , it hath been the manner to object obliquely , somtimes that they have been matter of scandall , and that thought to have been sufficiently proved , if any could be produced who have disliked them , ( as if their being displeased were to be scandalized , or one mans being angry once without a cause , were for ever a just cause for others to be angry at that which were of it self most innocent ; ) sometimes that the crime of will-worship were chargeable on them , supposing first , ( but not proving ) will-worship to be a crime , and then every the least observance uncommanded ( though withall as perfectly unprohibited ) by scripture , to be the interpretation of that crime ; and sometimes that they have been superstitious ; by the equivocallnesse of that word , first perswading themselves and others that every excesse in religion comes under that title , and then that the uncommandednesse of any thing induces that excesse , and consequently involves in that guilt . to which three so inauspicious ( i may adde scandalous ) misprisions broached by satan , {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} , to the fall , and so truly to the offending of many in israel , these ensuing treatises were designed as antidotes or cures ; to which end if they may prove in any degree successefull , the writer of them will never repent that he hath subjected them to the various & passionate censures of the many , hoping thereby that the mature and impartiall judgements of the few may be also provoked to interpose . by whose pleasure and serious examination , whether they shall stand or fall , they are in all humilitie submitted . h. hamond . of conscience . {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} . by h. hamond , d. d. london , printed for r. royston , at the signe of the angel in ivie-lane . 1645. of conscience . § 1 among the many practicall errours which are gotten abroad into the world , a very large proportion there is of those which have either suckt their poison from , or disguised it under that specious venerable name of conscience . that which the philosophers could call their guardian angell , and justifie the phrase by vouching none but angelicall dictates from it : that which some good-natured atheists did so revere that they defined the onely deity in the world , and in proportion phansied nothing but god-like of it , is now by some christians ( like the true god among the heathens ) worshipt in so many corporeous shapes , that there is at length scarce any thing so vile ( phansie , humour , passion , prepossession , the meanest worldly interest of the ambitious or covetous designer , like the calves , the cats , the crocodiles , the onions , the leeks of egypty but hath the favour or luck to be mistaken for conscience , and receive all the respect , that i say , not adoration , that belongs to it . § 2 't will be then but an act of justice and mercy , justice to truth , and mercy to the abused world , and withall a speciall preparative to a prudent reformation , to rescue so divine a man from such heathenish usage , to restore it to its naturall primitive simplicity , and cast out all the false formes which it hath been forced to appeare under . to which purpose all that i shall designe will be reduced to these two enquiries : 1. what is the proper notion of conscience . 2. what is required to entitle a man to a good conscience . § 3 for the former of these , what is the proper notion of conscience , i shall labour to finde out not among the scholasticall definitions or divisions of it among humane writers , but onely by observing the force and use of the word in the scripture , particularly the new testament . and he that shall meet it there 32 times , and but take a view of it at every meeting , will sure come to some degree of acquaintance with it , and find upon judgement reason to resolve , what for his ease i shall now lay before him . § 4 that the word {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} , conscience , is no more then science or knowledge , ( and therefore being but once used by the gre●k translators of the old testament , eccles. 10. 20. it is there set to expresse a word which is otherwise by them commonly rendred {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} and {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} ) onely with a peculiar relation added to it , as that knowledge is in order to action . thus tit. 1. 15. when {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} and {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} , mind and conscience are distinguished , t is obvious to any to discerne the ground of that distinction , that former being properly the denotation of the faculty meerly speculative , or intellectuall ; this latter , of the practicall judgement , or that whether act or faculty of the understanding soule , which extendeth to practice ; the apostle by that phrase , [ the mind and conscience are defiled ] meaning distinctly this , that this errour in mens judgements , ( which is the defiling of their mind ) carryes un-christian practice along with it , ( which is the defiling of the practicall faculty ) this judaicall mistake in their understanding is attended with judaizing actions in their lives , the former apportioned to the {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} , the false judaicall doctrines , which relate to {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} the mind , the second to the {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} , the commands of men perverting the truth , v. 14. which relate to the {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} the conscience . § 5 for the clearing of which ( that it is such a practicall knowledge in the acception of the scripture ) if there need any light , you may have it from the survey of every place severally , and in speciall from this one , 1 pet. 2. 19. this is thank-worthy , if {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} , for conscience of god a man suffer griese , &c. i. e. if for this obedientiall practicall knowledge of god ( this knowledge of truth attended with a resolution not to disobey god , though it cost a man never so deare ) he suffer g●iefe , &c. § 6 this being premised , there is but one thing more to be added to this matter , and it is this ; that we take no●ice of the severall wayes of aspect that conscience hath upon practice ; one forward in the direct line , another backward , or by way of reflection ; which are ordinarily exprest by the double office of conscience , 1. as a cust●s or monitor , advising and instructing and keeping us to our duty ; 2. as a witnesse testifying to our selves and to god what we have done ; which is in plainer termes no more but this , that there are two sorts of conscience ; 1. conscience of duty to be performed , or full perswasion that such a thing ought to be done , or not to be done by me , a being resolved of the necessity or unlawfulnesse of any thing , and 2 conscience of having performed , or not performed it , a knowing or judging my self to have done well or ill . and under these two notions , all the severalls in the new testament , ( and the one sole place of the apocryphall bookes of the old ) will be contained , if you please , you may see how . § 7 to the former kind belongs that famous place , rom. 13. 5. you must be subject ( to the supreame powers , v. 1. ) not onely for wrath , i. e. feare or danger of punishment , the effect of wrath ( the magistrate being gods minister , an avenger for wrath , or punishment to him that doth evill , v. 4. ) but also {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} , for or because of conscience , i. e. because it is the command of god , and consequently that which all interiours ( every soule ) may , if they be not wilfully blind , know to be their duty , [ to be thus subject . ] § 8 so 1 cor. 8. 7. for some with conscience of the idol , i. e. being resolved in mind , that it is not lawfull to eate or taste of any {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} or {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} , part or portion of the idol-feast ( whether {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} , at the idoll table , or having bought it at the shambles , as it seemes , was the fashion for those {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} to be sold there at second hand c. 10. 25. ) accounting it unlawfull to eate any meat consecrated to that use , doe yet eate that which is of this nature , and by so doing , their weake i. e. uninstructed conscience is polluted , i. e. they sinne against their conscience , doe that which they are perswaded they may not doe , which although it be never so innocent a harmlesse thing in it selfe ( an idoll being simply nothing ) yet to them which doe it , when they think it unlawfull ( and all have not knowledge , saith he in the beginning of the verse , i. e. are not sufficiently instructed in their duty ) it is pollution or sinne , according to the fore-mentioned place tit. 1. 15. to the pure all things are pure [ all things ] i. e. all things of that nature of which he there speaks , though in themselves indifferent , [ are pure ] i. e. may lawfully be used [ by the pure ] i. e. by them which are rightly instructed , but to the polluted and unbeleevers ( i. e. to them that are misled by jewish fables , or by the dogmatizing of false teachers , and brought to beleeve things to be prohibited by god , which are not prohibited ) to them that are guilty of this kind of judaisme , and ( as it is interpretative ) unbeliefe there is nothing pure , but their mind and conscience are polluted , both their understanding is in an errour , taking falsity for truth , and their practicall resolution is sinfull also , nay obliged to sin , which way soever they turn themselves , whether they abstaine superstitiously , when they are not bound by god to abstaine , ( which is the sinne of those that are subject to ordinances , col. 2. 20. of which i have spoken at large in another place ) or whether they abstaine not , when they are perswaded that they ought to abstaine , which is sin against conscience . § 9 from whence by the way you may observe the miserable lot of those which have not {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} knowledge in the beginning of that verse , which are missed to think any thing unlawfull which is lawfull , and continue in that errour without seeking of light , which are thus impure ( for to such {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} nothing is pure ) they are , as long as they remaine so , obliged to sinne , which way soever they take to , abstaine or not abstaine . for though in things indifferent and uncommanded , simply to abstaine were no sinne , yet then to abstaine {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} , as from a thing abominable or unlawfull , is both by scrip●ure and the ancient councels , in case of marriage and meats , every where condemned as sinfull : and yet on the other side to eate without , or against faith , i. e. being doubtfull whether it be lawfull or no , or being perswaded it is unlawfull is sin , ( saith the apostle ) and there is great necessity to such of seeking , ( and in others great charity of helping them to ) {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} instruction , or right information in this case , which is the onely cure for this unfortunate malady . § 10 so againe ver. 10. {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} ; the conscience of him that is weake , or ( which is the same ) v. 7. and v. 12. the weake conscience ] signifies the false perswasion of him that is in an errour , an erroneous conscience , weaknesse noting sicknesse in the scripture stile john 5. 14. 1 cor. 11 30. and errour being the disease or sicknesse of the soule , and that with a little improvement growing destructive and mortiferous ; as in case he that hath that erroneous sick conscience , doe act somewhat againsgt conscience , and so adde sinne unto errour , for then {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} v. 11. that sick man dyes , perishes of that disease . soch . 10. 25 , 27 , 28 , 29. the word conscience is still in the same sense , for conscience or consideration of duty , and so 1 pet. 2. 19. forementioned . § 11 so likewise 1 pet. 3. 21. where baptisme is called {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} the answer of a good conscience to god , the good conscience signifies conscience rightly instructed in its duty , as in baptizing those of full age it is supposed to be ; which conscience is then to answer and consent to all gods proposals in baptisme ( or the ministers in gods stead ) such as [ wilt thou forsake the devill , &c. ] and so the words will be interpreted in a sense proportionable to that of denying ungodly lusts , tit. 2. 12. which there the appearing of christ is said to teach us . for as lust proposes ungodly questions to us , which we are bound to deny ; so god in baptisme is supposed to propose good questions to us , which we are bound to grant , and stipulate the performance of them , and that is the {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} the answer of a good conscience to god or to his questions proposed in baptisme , after the manner of ancient pacts among the romans made by way of question and answer , as part of the ritus solen●s or formalities of them . § 12 but then for the second acception of the word , as it notes conscience of what we have performed , or passing judgement on my selfe for what i have done , ( and that either for any one individuall act , or for the maine of our lives , our state ; and that againe either 1 acquitting or 2 condemning or 3 considered in a third notion common to both those , passing sentence in generall ) so shall you find it in many other places , and indeed in all the rest which we have not hitherto named . § 13 for the first of these three species as it acquitteth , you have it act. 23. 1. i have lived , ( or behaved my selfe in all my conversation towards men {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} in all my politique , or publique relations ) with or in all good conscience , in such a manner , as i cannot excuse my selfe of any thing done contrary to my christian profession , or dignity of my apostolicoll calling . so 1 cor. 9. 12. the testimony of our conscience is exprest by what followes , that in simplicity &c. we had our conversation in the world . so good conscience is taken 1 tim. 1. 5. and 19. and 3. 9. and 2 tim. 1. 3. heb. 13. 18. 1 pet. 3. 16. but above all you have a speciall place belonging to this first branch of the second in act. 24. 16. [ {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} ] we render it a conscience void of offence , the meaning is , a confidence and assurance that he hath done nothing subject so much as to the censure of having scandalized others ; for saint paul being there accused by the jewes v. 5. 6. for 3 crimes , sedition , heresie , and profaning of the temple , he answers to the first v. 12. to the second v. 14. to the third v. 16. 18. and his being purified in the temple after the jewish manner he makes an evidence of his innocence in that particular , a proofe of his not having scandalized any jew , which to have done would have been a fault in him , whose office it was to become all things to all men , that he might gaine or save all , and not to discourage or deter any who might be gained by complyance ; and the doing so , is it which is called being {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} 1 cor. 10. 32. giving none offence to the jews , the very word in the place of the acts . § 14 in the second place , the accusing or condemning conscience is often mentioned also ; john 8. 9. convicted by their conscience , or reproved some for one sinne , some for another . so by intimation heb. 9. 9. where t is said of the legall sacrifices that they could not make perfect as pertaining to conscience , where the word [ {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} ] rendred to make perfect , signifies in the sacred idiom [ to consecrate , ] to make a priest , whose office being {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} to draw neare to god , proportionably {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} to perfect or consecrate as pertaining to conscience signifies to give accesse with boldnesse to god , by taking off that guilt which formerly lay upon their conscience , the same that v. 14. is called , to purge the conscience from dead works , to wash off that guilt of sin past , which hinders their approach to god , obstructs all entrance to their prayers ( for we know that god heareth not sinners , joh. 9. 31. and is . 1. 15. ) whereupon t is observable , that heb. 13. 18. when he bespeaks their prayers for him , he adds this reason to encourage them to doe so . for we trust we have a good conscience , that good conscience being necessary there to have other mens prayers heard for them , as here to give themselves accesse to god in prayer . so heb. 10. 2. conscience , or conscienciousnes of sins , and v. 22. evill conscience , and so wisd. 17. 11. there is mention of wickednesse condemned by her own witnes and prest by conscience . § 15 and of the last sort , in the latitude common to both , are rom. 2. 15. rom. 9. 1. 2 cor. 4. 2. and 5. 11. and 1 tim. 4. 2. all cleare enough without the help of our paraphrase to adde light to them . § 16 having thus marshalled all these places of scripture into ranks , and given some hints of generall insight into them , it now remaines that we return a while to the neerer survey of the two generall heads , and first of the former acception of the word , as it imports a monitor , or director of life , by which our actions must be regulated , and from the mistaking of which the chiefe inconvenience doth arise . § 17 to which end , it will be absolutely necessary to settle and resolve but one question , what is that rule or {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} of conscience , from whence it must receive its regulation . for he that draweth a line of direction for another , must have a rule to draw it by , and that a straight exact one , or else the directions will not be authentique , and they which walke {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} exactly or conscientiously , must {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} walk by rule , phil. 3. 16. and {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} have their eye or thought alway upon that one thing , their rule of direction , or else be they never such {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} in the beginning of that verse , such forward proficients , their end may be perdition v. 19. this when once we have done , the difficulty will soone vanish . § 18 and to this purpose i shall take that for granted which in thesi i never heard any doubt of , ( though many of our actions look otherwise in hypoth●si ) that law is this onely rule ; {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} and {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} , rule and law being words of the same importance , and nothing fit or proper to regulate our actions , but that which the law-giver , to whom obedience must be payed , hath thought fit to rule them by . to which purpose it is ordinarily observed that {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} , sin , or ab●rration from that rule by which we ought to walke ( for so that word naturally signifies ) is by saint john 1 epist. 3. 4. defined {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} which we render a trangression of the law . i● which place of saint john , though the truth is , {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} and {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} denoting more then the bare commission of sinne in that author generally , viz. the wilfull perpetration of it , and an indulgence in , and habit of so doing ) the word {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} and {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} must proportionably also signifie not onely transgressing , but wilfull habituall contemning the law , b●●ng an exlox , or without law ( as the idolatrous atheist is said to be without god in the world ) i. e. without any account or respect of it , ( and so {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} joh. 31. 3. notes the greatest degree of sinfulnesse , we render in workers of iniquity , and so very frequently in the septuagint we finde {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} , where we render the hebrew by mischiefe ) yet still the observation stands good , that law is the rule , in aberration from which all sinne consists , and so {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} is {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} in both senses , the least degree of sinne a deviation from the law , and a malicious contentious sinning a malitious contemptuous deviation , or transgression , and so saint paul hath also resolved it , that where ●here is no law , there is no transgression , no {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} , rom. 4. 15. no going awry , when there is no rule proposed to goe by . § 19 this being so cleare in i●s selfe , and yet through the mistakes , yea and impities of the world b●come so necessary to be thus farther cleared ; two things there are which will hence inevitably follow , the first negative , the second positive ; the first or the negative , that whatsoever undertakes to direct , or guide our actions , to tell us our duty , that this we must , that we may not doe , and hath not some law , ( in force , and still obligatory to us ) to authorize those directions by , is not conscience , whatsoever it is . § 20 first , humour it may be , to think our selves bound to doe whatsoever we have a strong inclination to doe , it being a matter of some difficulty to distinguish between my naturall and my spirituall inclinations , the motion of my sensitive appetite , and my diviner principle , my lower , and my upper soule , and the former commonly crying louder , and moving more lively , and impatiently , and earn●stly then the other . § 21 secondly , phansie it may be , which is a kind of irrationall animall conscience , hath the same relation to sensitive representations ( those lawes in the members ) which conscience hath to intellectuall ( those lawes of the mind ) and then , as aristotle saith , that in those creatures which have not reason , phansie supplyes the place of reason ; so they which have not , or will not have conscience to direct them , phansie most commonly gets into its place . or § 22 thirdly , passion it may be ; our feares will advise us one thing , our animosities another , our zeale a third , and though that be perhaps zeal of god , yet that zeale is a passion still , one of those which aristotle hath defined in his rhetoricks , being not {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} , according to knowledge or conscience , rom. 10. 2. for the hebrew word , as i told you , is rendred by those two words promiscuously , {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} and {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} , knowledge and conscience . or § 23 fourthly , diabolicall suggestion or infusion it may be , an enthusiasm of that black spirit ; as it is , ( or of some thing as bad in effect ) infallibly , whensoever rebellion , sedition , murther , rapine , hatred , envy , vncharitablenesse , lying , swearing , sacriledge , &c. come to us under the disguise of religion and conscience ; and therefore the spirits must be searcht whether they be of god , or of the devill ; and no surer way to doe it , then by these and the like symptomes , these fruits and productions of that infernall spirit , which so perfectly represent and owne their parent , that none but blind or mad men or daemoniacks can beleeve them in earnest to come from god . or § 24 fiftly , false doctrine it may be , and that againe set off either by the authority of the teacher , or by the dignity of some eminent followers and practicers of it , and then the apostle calls it [ having mens persons in admiration ] or by the earlinesse of its representation , being imbibed and taken in first , swallowed and digested before the truth was offered to us , and then it is prejudice or prepossession , and this again alwayes assisted by the force of that old axiom , [ intus existens &c. ] and by that which is naturall to all habits , to be hardly moveable , and yet further improved sometimes by pride and obstinacy , alwayes by selfe-love , which makes us think our own opinions ( i. e. which we are already possest of ) the truest ; which in this case is in effect to think our luck the best luck , and the same which was observed in one worst sort of heathens , who , whatsoever they saw first in the morning , worshipt that all the day after ; a choosing of perswasions as country men choose valentines , that which they chance to meet with first after their coming abroad . § 25 besides these , many other things it may be , and so , 1. it is oddes enough that it will not be conscience , which pretends to be so , and 2. it is certainly not conscience , unlesse it produce some law for its rule to direct us by . and this was the negative or first thing . § 26 the second or the positive thing which followes from the premises , is this , that conscience of duty in any particular action is to be ruled by that law which is proper to that action ; as for example : the christian law is the rule of conscience for christian actions ; the law of reason , or morall law , for morall ; the law nationall , municipall , or locall , for civill ; the naturall , law of all creatures , for naturall actions ; and the law of scandall , ( a branch of the christian law ) for matters of scandall ; and the law of liberty , for indifferent free actions . and as it is very irregular , and unreasonable to measure any action by a rule that belongs not to it , to try the exactnesse of the circle by the square , which would be done by the compasse , and in like manner to judge the christiannesse of an action , by the law of naturall reason , which can onely be judged by its conformity with the law of christ , superiour to that of nature ; so will there be no just pretence of conscience : against anything , but where some one or more of these lawes are producible against it ; but on the other side , even in the lowest sort of actions , if they be regulated by the law proper to them , and nothing done contrary to any superiour law , even by this god shall be glorified , 1 cor. 10. 31. a kind of glory resulting to god from that readinesse of submission and subordination of every thing to its proper rule , and law , to which the great creator hath subjected it , and of all lawes to that supreme transcendent one , the law of christ . and though some touches there are in the scripture of each of these lawes , some sibrae or strings of them discernibly there , so farre , that there is nothing almost under any of the heads sorementioned , but by the scripture some generall account may be given of it , and againe , though that of scripture be the supreame law of all , and nothing authorizeable by any inferiour law , which is contradicted or prohibited by that , yet is not that of scripture such a particular code or pandect of all lawes , as that every thing which is commanded by any other law , should be found commanded there , or be bound to prove its selfe justifiable from thence , any further then that it is not there prohibited , or thereby justly concluded to be unlawful . § 27 from whence by the way , i conceive direction may be had , and resolution of that difficult practicall probleme , what a man may doe in case he be legally commanded by his lawfull superiour to doe what he may lawfully doe , which yet he is perswaded he may not doe , or doubteth whether he may or no . for in this case if he be not able to produce some plaino prohibition from some superiour law , as from that of scripture , he cannot be truly said to be perswaded in conscience , ( which implyes knowledge ) of the unlawfulnesse of that thing , nor consequently hath he any plea for disobedience to that lawfull command of his superiours . all that may be said , is , that he may from some obscure place misunderstood have cause or occasion to doubt whether he may doe it or no , and then , although doubting simply taken ( i. e. where no command interposes , ) may keep me from doing what i doubt , yet it ought not to be of that weight , as to keep me from my lawfull superiours lawfull command , because that very command is a sufficient ground to supersede my doubting , when i have no plaine prohibition of scripture to the contrary , ( which in this case i am supposed not to have , for if i had , then , first , it were not a lawfull command , and secondly , i should not doubt but be assured ) it being my duty , and part of my christian meeknesse , in doubtfull matters to take my resolution from those whom god hath placed over me , and it being the sinne of dogmatizing to affirme any thing for me or others to doe , which some law of god , &c. still in force , doth not prohibit ; which sin being added to that other of disobedience to my lawfull superiours , will sure never be able to make that commence virtue , which was before so far from any pretentions to that title . § 28 having proceeded thus far in the search of the ground of conscience , 't were now time to reduce this operation to practice , and shew you , first , what directions conscience is able to afford from every of those lawes for the ruling of all actions of that kind ; and secondly , what an harmony and conspiration there is betwixt all these lawes , one mutually ayding and assisting the other , and not violating or destroying . but this were the largest undertaking that could be pitcht on in the whole circle of learning , aerodius's pandectae rerum ab omni aevo judicaturum , and all the schoolmens and casuists volumes , de legibus , de jure & justitia , and on the decalogue , would be but imperfect parts of this ; i shall give you but one taste or {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} of it , by which the reader will be perswaded to spare me , or rather himselfe that trouble . § 29 the prime of these , the christian law , is the rule of all actions that come within that spheare , sets downe the nature of all christian duties of piety , and love of our brethren in generall , and more particularly of faith , hope , charity , repentance ; selfe-denyall , taking up the crosse , &c. of humility , meeknesse , mercifulnesse , peaceablenesse , obedience to superiours , patience , contentednesse , and the like ; and the relation of a christian being a grand transcendent relation , there is no action imaginable , but may either in respect of the matter , or motive , or principle , or circumstances , offend against one of these , ( and then , malum ex quolibet defectu , the least of these defects blemisheth it ) and so conscience directed by that rule or law , will direct me either to doe it , or not to doe it in that manner , and then t is not any complaynce with , or agreeablenesse to any or all other lawes , which will make this action christian , which hath any such notable defect or blemish in it ; not to pursue this any farther , having thus named it , and shewed you the vastnesse of the sea it leads to , it will suffice to our present designe to tell you , that from what is said these 3 corollaries , to omit many others , will be deducible . § 30 1. that it is not possible for conscience ( be it never so strongly perswaded ) to make any action lawfull , which is not regulated by those rules , or lawes which are proper to it , and reconcileable with the grand rule , the christian law . conscience can never transforme profanenesse into piety , sacriledge into justice or holinesse , rebellion into obedience , faction into humility , perjury , or taking of unlawful oathes into religion , rapine into contentednesse , inhumanity into mercifulnesse , adultery , fornication , divorces , ( save in case of adultery ) or any uncleannesse into purity , labouring to shake a kingdome , ( to remove the crosse from my owne shoulders to another mans ) into taking up of the crosse ; but contrariwise , if it be truly and univocally conscience of duty , it will tel me that every one of these foule titles belongs to every such action ( the scripture being so cleare in these particulars , that there is no place or excuse for ignorance or mistake ) and by setting before me the terrors of the lord , perswade me not to venture on any one such action upon any termes ; or if i have ventured , it will smite and wound me for it , and drive me to timely repentance ; or if it doe not , t is either a cauterized insensate conscience , a reprobate mind , or else some of these images , which even now i mentioned , mistaken for conscience ; or if it be a full perswasion of minde , that what i thus am about , i am obliged to doe , ( if that be a possible thing in such matters and under so much light ) t is then in the calmest style an erroneous conscience , which is so far from excusing me ( unlesse in case of ignorance truly invincible , which here is not imaginable ) that it brings upon me the most unparalleld infelicity in the world , an obligation to sinne which way soever i turne my selfe , on one side appearing and lying at my doore the guilt of committing that sinne which i have so mistaken , and on the other the guilt of omitting that ( though sinne ) which my conscience represented to me as duty ; and nothing but repentance and reformation of judgement first , and then of practice , will be able to retrive the one or the other . § 31 the second corollary will be this , that it is the most unreasonable insolence in the world , for them that can swallow such camell-sins as these without any regrets , nay with full approbation , and direction ( perhaps ) of conscience ( if that may be called conscience which is so divided from , and contrary to knowledge ) yet to scruple and interpose doubts most tremblingly , and most conscientiously in matters of indifferency ; not so much as pretended to be against the word of god , ( and so within the law of christian liberty , that they may be done if he will ) and yet over and above their naturall indisterency commanded by that authority , in subjection to which the christian vertue of obedience consists ; and all this either first upon no ground of conscience at all , but only that it is contrary to their phansy , their humour , their prepossessions ; or secondly because it is a restraint , upon their christian liberty , which yet christ never forbid to be restrained quoad exercitium , as farre as belongs to the exercise of it , but hath permitted sometime the care of not offending the weak brother , i. e. charity , and sometime obedience , to lawfull superiours , to restreine it , ( for if in things indifferent they may not restreine , there can no obedience be payed to them ; ) or thirdly because they are offensive ( though not to them , yet ) to others , who are perswaded they are unlawfull . whereas i that perswasion of those others is erroneous , and not sufficient to justifie disobedience in thems●lves , much lesse in other men , in case of lawfull humane command , and 2 that their censuring of such indifferent actions , i. e. being angry without a cause , may bee greater matter of scandall , and so more offensive to others , and more probable to work upon them to bring them by that example to be so angry also , then the doing that indifferent action , mistaken by others , and condemned for unlawfull , would be to bring th●m to transcribe that reprobated samplar , i. e. to doe what they thus condemne ; all men being farre more apt and inclinable to break out into passions , then into acts against conscience , and so more likely to be scandalized or offended , or insnared , by following the former , then the latter example , to sinne ( for company or after another man ) by censuring whom he censures , which is being angry without a cause ; then by doing what they are advised and resolved they ought not to do , which is sinning against conscience . or fourthly , because they are against their conscience to doe , whilst yet they produce no law of god or man against them , and so in effect confesse there is nothing in them against conscience ; unlesse , as before was noted , they wilfully aequivocate in the word conscience ; which will and skill of theirs , as it will not make any thing , unlawfull , which before was indifferent , so will it not conclude ought , save only this , that they which are so a●tificious to impose on others , and forme scruples where there were none , would not be thought the likeliest men to swallow grosse sinnes under the disguise of vertues , or if they doe so , will have least right to that onely antidote of invincible ignorance to digest them . § 32 the third corollary will be this , that scrupulousnesse of conscience in some lighter lesse important matters ( if it may be supposed excusable , ●s a weaknesse of an uninstructed mind , joyned with that good symptome of tendernesse of quick sense , yet ) can n●ver hope to be accepted by god by way of commutation or expiation for grosser sinnes , so that he that falls foulely in any confessed sinne , should fare the better at the great day of account , or be in lesse danger of being cast out of gods favour for the present , because he is over-scrupulous in other things : for sure this were a strange way of supererogation to pay one arreare to god by running into another with him , to discharge a debt by owing more . and yet this is an errour which may seem worth the paines of preventing , it being so notoriously seen , that some men , which professe to have care of their wayes , and must in charity be beleeved to have so , goe on confidently in greivous sins , which they cannot but know will damne without repentance , ( the sentence of not inheriting the kingdome of god , gal. 5. being so distinct , and punctuall , and absolute , and indispensable against them ) and yet have no antidote to relye on for the averting that danger , but onely this of their exactnesse and scrupulousnesse in things indifferent ; which if they shall say they doe not confide in , they are then obliged , in conscience , and charity to their brethren ( who may follow them to this precipice ) either to give over hoping , or to set to purifying , without which there is no true ground of hope . this hint puts me in mind that there is another part of my design still behind , belonging to the second notion of conscience , to examine § 33 what it is that is required to entitle a man to a good conscience ; which will briefly be stated by premising what before was mentioned , that the good conscience belongs either to particular single performances , or to the whole state of life and actions . to the first there is no more required , but that that particular action be both for matter and circumstance regulated by the rule , or rules which are proper to it , and have nothing contrary to any superiour transcendent rule . as that my meale be with sobriety and thanksgiving , my almes with chearfulnesse , liberality , discretion , done in gratitude and obedience to god , and mercifulnesse to my brother , without reflexion on my own gaine or praise in this world . but for the good conscience , which belongs to the whole state of life and actions , which is called a good conscience in all things , heb. 13. 18. or a good conscience consisting in having a good conversation in all things , ( for so the punctation in the greek will direct rather to render it , [ we have a good conscience , willing to live well , ( or have an honest conversation ) in all things ] there the difficulty will be greater . and yet two texts there are which tend much to the clearing and disinvolving of that one , 1 pet. 3. 16. where {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} , good conscience in the beginning of the verse , is explained in the close by {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} , a good conversation in christ , or a good christian conversation , or such as now through christ , by the purport of the second covenant may and shall be accepted for good . where the word [ conversation ] denoting first the actions and behaviour both toward god and man , and secondly , the whole course and frame of those actions , ( wherein it seems a good conscience consists , ) cannot better be explained then either by the apostles , {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} , an accurate exact walking , eph. 1. 15. or the phrase to titus , c. 2. 12. living soberly and righteously and godly in this present world ; the first respecting our duty to our selves , or actions , as private men ; the second , our duty to our brethren , in our more publique capacities ; the third , our duty to god as creatures , men , and christians ; or saint lukes character of zachary and elizabeth , luk. 1. 6. walking in all the commandements and ordinances of the lord blamelesse ; walking blamelesse , in all : universall sincere obedience , ( not entire or perf●ct without ever sinning , but ) considered with the rules of {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} , or moderation of strict law , ( which is now part of the {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} , the gospel-law , by which a christian is to be tryed , as equity is a part of the municipall law of this land ; such is mercy for frailties , and infirmities , and grosser lapses recovered and retracted by repentance ) now under the gospel , so as to be acceptable to god in christ ; which was intimated ( as in the {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} , in christ , 1 pet. 3. so ) in the former part of that verse , and their character {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} , righteous before god : which phrase [ before god ] hath a double intimation worth observing in this place , first of the perseverance or perpetuity of that righteousnesse ( as opposed to the temporary of the hypocrite ) for the phrase {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} [ before him ] refers to the shew bread of old , exod. 25. 30. which was to be set before god alway ; and therefore is sometime called {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} the bread of faces , or {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} bread before his face , literally {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} , before him , and sometimes {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} perpetuall bread , and secondly , of the acceptation or reception in the sight of god , for that againe was the end of setting the bread alwayes before god , that god looking on it might accept them ; and so righteousnesse before god , is such righteousnesse as god will please in the gospel to accept of , as when visiting the fatherlesse , &c. jac. 1. 27. is called , religion pure and undefiled before god the father ; it noteth such a degree of unblemisht purity , not as excluded all sinne , but as god in christ would ( or hath promised to ) accept of . and the same phrase therefore is in another place of the same chapter , luk. 1. 75. rendred by our church in the gospel for midsummer day by these words , such as may be acceptable for him . § 34 which being all taken into the description of a good conscience , that it is such a continued good conversation as god now under the gospel promiseth to accept of ; the onely difficulty behind will be , what that is which god promiseth to accept of ; to which end , it will be very instrumentall to take in that other place which i promised , and that is that forementioned , heb. 13. 18. where the good con●cience is evidenced ( or the ground of confidence that he hath a good conscience , demonstrated ) by this [ {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} ] willing , or resolving , or endeavouring to live honestly , or to have honest conversation in all things . from whence the onely thing which i desire to collect is this , that the sincere resolution or endeavour to live honestly in all things ( which i remember , one of our ancientest church-writers saint cyrill of jerusalem calls , {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} , and opposes it to {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} , works ) is the scripture nomination of a good conscience , or the {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} , that great treasure of confidence to all which have it ; that ground of mature perswasion for any , that he hath , or shall by god be allowed , and acknowledged to have a good conscience . § 35 and if it be farther demanded what is necessarily required , ( and how much will be sufficient ) to denominate a man such , what is the minimum quod sic of this sincere resolution , or endeavour , although that , i confesse , will be hard if not impossible , to define in such a manner , as shall come home to every particular , ( the proportions of more or lesse , knowledge or strength , the inequality of the talents of illuminating and assisting grace still interposing and making a variation ) yet will it not be matter of much difficulty to give some generall advertisements , and {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} , which will be acknowledged as soone as mentioned , and being put together , and by each man single applyed to his particular case , by way of self-examination , will be able to tell him in some measure , whether he hath a good conscience or no . and the first of these will be , that § 36 acts and habits of sinne in the former ( heathen or unregenerate ) part of the life , of what nature ( and clothed with what aggravations ) soever , if they are now retracted and renounced by repentance ( as that signifies not onely a sorrow , but a thorow change ) are reconcileable with a good conscience . the truth of which is cleare , first , because the gospel allowes place for repentance , and promises rest to the heavy laden , so he come unto christ , and mercy to him that confesseth and forsaketh . secondly , because the sincerity of resolution and endeavour now , ( which is all that is required to a present good conscience ) is reconcileable with past sins , even of the largest size . thirdly , because saint paul himselfe , which was once a saul , can yet say confidently , that he hath a good conscience . and fourthly , because ( which i shal a little enlarge on ) the sinne against the holy ghost , which alone is by the gospel made uncapable of remission , is , as i conceive , no act , no nor course of any speciall sinne , but a state of final impenitence , a continued persevering resistance of all those saving methods which are consequent to the descent , and are part of the office of the holy ghost . § 37 to which purpose i shall give you one hint which may perswade the preferring of this opinion before the contrary , and it is by observing the occasion of christs delivering those words concerning the irremissiblenesse of speaking against the holy ghost . those words are delivered by christ both in saint matthew and saint mark upon occasion of that speech of the jewes , that christ cast out devils , by the prince of devils , which was clearly a blaspheming or speaking contumeliously against christ himselfe , or the sonne of man , and there is no passage in the text which can conclude that that speech of theirs was by christ called the blasphemy against the holy ghost , but rather the contrary that it was a blasphemy onely against the sonne of man ; for t is apparent that christ mal. 12. 15. for the space of six verses sets himselfe to convince them of the falsity of that speech ( which probably he would not have done , if they , to whom he sp●ke had been in an irrecoverable irreversible estate of blasphemy . for that he should take such paines onely to leave them unexcusable , 1. there was no great need , in this case they were so already . 2. it is a mistake to think that christ doth so at any time , they are bowels of mercy and not designes of mischieving , or accumulating their sinne , and judgements , which incline him to call and knock , and labour to convince sinners ) and having done that , doth both invite them to repentance by shewing them the possibility of pardon yet , and give them an admonition able to shake th●m out of all impenitence , by telling them the danger which attended , if the only last method of working on them which was yet behind , did not prosper with or work upon them , this is the importance of that 31 and 32 verse concerning the speaking a word , i. e. standing out against the sonne of man on one side , and the holy ghost on the other ; the summe of which is this , there shall be by the coming of the holy ghost a possibility of pardon and meanes of reformation for those that resist and hold out and even crucifie christ ( as by the coming of christ , there was for those that should beleive on him , though they had formerly lived disobedient unto god the father , resisted those methods of mercy used on them under the old testament ) for them that speak a word . i. e. by an hebraisme doe an action ( of affront , of injury , of contumely ) against christ , yea that resist and beleive not on him , but conceive and affirme him to cast out divels by the power of beclzebub ( which was as contumelious a thing as could be said of him ) but when christ shall be taken from the earth , and the holy ghost shall be sent down to convince the world of that great sinne of crucifying christ , and to s●ttle in the church of god such an orderly use of all gospell-meanes that may tend to the bringing sinners to repentance ( the use both of the word and sacrament and censures and all other things necessary to that great end of working on the most contumacious ) that if this prevaile not , there is little hope left of ever working on such perversenesse , then it is to be resolved , that those that thus stand out against all those saving methods of gods last oeconomy , shall be left uncapable of any good , of any whether meanes of yet-farther working on them , or of pardon either in the church or in heaven , there being no more persons in the god-head now behind ( unlesse we will change the christians trinity into pythagorasses {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} ) nor consequently meanes in the providence of god , for the reducing of , or obtaining mercy for such . by this it will appeare that this blasphemy against the holy ghost is not any one act no nor habit of sin ( particularly not that speaking against christ there , which you will also guesse by saint luke , who mentions not that speech of theirs concerning his casting out divels by the prince of divels , and yet sets down this speech of christ , of the irremissibility of this blasphemy against the holy ghost , luke 12. 10. which argues that this hath no neare relation to that ) but a finall holding out against , and resisting the whole office of the holy ghost , and all those gracious methods consequent to it . § 38 to which i shall only adde in reference to my present purpose ( that there may be no place of doubting even to him which will not receive my interpretation of this place ) that even by those which conceive it to be some speciall kind of sinne , yet the unpardonablenesse of it is acknowledged to arise from thence , that it is impossible for any such to repent , yet not for any that repents to find pardon and mercy , which is sufficient for the confirmation of my present proposition . § 39 't is true indeed , that he that is sold a slave of sinne , the unregenerate carnall man , is , whilst he is so , in a most hopelesse , comfortlesse estate , and if he have any naturall conscience left him , it must needs be a kind of feind and fury with him , no peace to such wicked , saith my god , and it is as true that the recovery of such a man out of the grave of rottennesse , that lazarstate in sinne , is a miracle of the first magnitude , a work of greatest difficulty ( christ groanes at the raising of him that was 4 dayes dead and putrified in the grave ) and costs the sinner much dearer to be raised out of it . saul is strucke down in his march towards damascus , blind and trembling before his conversion ; but yet still when this conversion is wrought , he may have a good conscience what ever his foregoing sins were . and although the apostles censure heb. 6. 6. and 10. 26. light yet heavier upon those who after the knowledge of the truth and gust of the life to come , and participation of the holy spirit relapse to their former sinnes , it being there affirmed that there is no possibility to renew them , or ( as the greeks read it ) for them to renew or recover to repentance , and consequently the sacrifice for sinne [ {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} ] no longer belonging to or remaining for them , yet doth not this hinder the truth of the present proposition ; for 1 those places to the hebrews belong not to the sins of the unregenerate life , which only now we speak of , but of the relapse after the knowledge of the truth , 2. even in those places speaking of those sinnes , the doctrine is not , that there shall be any difficulty of obtaining pardon for them upon repentance , ( for the subject of the apostles propositions is the {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} and {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} men considered exclusively to repentance , as abiding in sinne unreformed impenitent , and to such we designe not to allow mercy ) but that this is so great a grieving and quenching of the spirit of god , that it becometh very difficult , and in ordinary course impossible for them that are guilty of it to repent , {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} , {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} again to recover to repentance : it being just and ordinary with god upon such sinnes of those to whom he hath given grace , to withdraw that grace againe , according to his method and oeconomy of providence exprest in the parable of the talents , [ from him that hath not made use of the grace or talent given , shall be taken away even that which he hath ] and wisd. 1. 5. the holy spirit of discipline will not abide where unrighteousnesse cometh in ; and so being thus deprived of that grace , it is consequently impossible that those should {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} , in a neutrall sense , renew and recover , or in an active reciprocall renew or recover themselves to repentance , though yet for god to give a new stock of grace it is not impossible , but only a thing which he hath not by revealed promise obliged himselfe to do ; and therefore whether he will doe it or no , is meerly in his own hand and dispositive power , and that which no man hath ground to hope and title to challenge from him . all which notwithstanding our present proposition stands firm , that where there is repentance , or true thorow change , those former retracted acts or habits are reconcileable with good conscience . § 40 the second this , that sinnes of weaknesse of all kinds , whether first , of ignorance , or secondly , of naturall infirmity , the one for want of light , the other for want of grace , or thirdly , of suddaine surreption , such as both by the law of [ si quis praecipiti calore ] in the code of iustinian , and by the municipal laws of most nations , are matter of extenuation to some crimes , to discharge them from capitall punishment , at least to make them capable of pardon , or fourthly , of dayly continuall incursion , either for want of space to deliberate at all , or because it is morally impossible to be upon the guard to be deliberate always , ( opere in longo ●as est obrepere somnum ) or fistly , which through levity of the matter passes by undiscerned , and the like , are irreconcileable with a good conscience , because againe , be a man never so sincerely resolute and industrious in endeavour to abstaine from all sinne , yet as long as he carries flesh about him , ( which is such a principle of weaknesse , that ordinarily in the new testament , the word flesh , is set to signifie weaknesse ) such weaknesses he will be subject to , such frailties will be sure to drop from him . this , i remember , parisiensis illustrates handsomely , first , by the similitude of an armed man provided with strength and prowesse , and wrestling with another in lubrico , on a slippery ground , who though neither weapons nor strength nor courage faile him , yet may he very probably ●all , the slipperinesse of the footing will betray him to that ; or secondly by an horseman mounted on an unmanaged or tender-mouth'd horse , who cannot with all his skill and caution secure himself : from all misadventures , the beast may upon a check come over with him , or getting the bit into the mouth 〈◊〉 into the enemies quarters ; or thirdly , by a city that is provided for a siege with workes , and men , and victuals , and ammunition , and yet by a treach●rous party within may be betrayed into the enemies hands ; there is a principle of weaknesse within like that slippery pavement , that tender-mouthed beast , that insidious party , which will make us still lyable to such miscarriages , and nothing in this contrary either to courage or diligence , to resolution , or endeavour . and ▪ for such as these frailties , ignorances , infirmities , &c. so they be laboured against , and the meanes of preventing or overcomming them sincerely used ( which if it be done , you shall find them dayly wain in you , and if they doe not so in some measure , you have reason to suspect , and to double your diligence ) there is sure mercy in christ to be had , obtaineable , by dayly confession , and sorrow , and prayer for forgivenesse of trespasses ) without any compleat conquest atchieved over them in this life . it being saint pauls affirmation , very exactly and critically set downe , rom. 5. 6. that christ {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} , we being weake , dyed for the ungodly , to note the universal benefit of his death for such weak ones and such sinnes as these to which meer weaknesse betrayes them . the very doctrine which from that text at the beginning of our reformation our reverend bishop martyr did assert in his excellent preface to his explication of the commandements . § 41 to which purpose i shall onely adde one proofe more , taken from the {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} or rationall importance of saint pauls exhortation rom. 15. 1. we that are strong , saith he , must beare the weaknesses , {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} , of them which are not strong , {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} , and not please our selves , for v. 3. christ did not so , but &c. which reason sure must come home to both parts , the affirmative as well as the negative ( or else the logick will not be good ) and so the affirmative be that christ bare the infirmities of the weake ; and so again v. 7. [ {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} ] applyed to the same matter he took us up when we were tous fallen . i might adde more , but i hope rather that i have said too much in so plaine a point , and abundantly evinced the irreconcileablenesse of such frailties with a good conscience . § 42 a third thing is , that the lusting of the flesh against the spirit is reconcileable with a good conscience , so it be in him that walketh in the spirit , obeys the desires and dictates of that , and fulfilleth not the lusts of the flesh , gal. 5. 16 , 17. there is no spiritually good thing that a man ever doth in his life , but the flesh hath some mutinyings , lustings , and objections against it , there being such a contrariety betwixt the commands of christ and the desires of the flesh , that no man , which hath those two within him , doth the things that he would . ( for so t is , {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} ) {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} that you doe not , not that you cannot doe ) [ the things that he would ] ( i. e. the things , which either he resolves to doe , or takes delight in ) those he doth not , i. e. either purely without some mixture , or still without some opposition of the contrary , or ( as againe the place may be rendred ) this opposition of these two one against another tendeth to this , that we may not doe , or to hinder us from doing every thing that we would , as indeed we should doe , were there not that opposition within our owne brests . this is the meaning of that 17 verse , which notwithstanding it followes verse 18. that if we be led by the spirit , if that be victorious over the contrary pretender ( as it may , though tother lust against it ) if the production be not works of the flesh , adultery , &c. v. 19. but the fruit of the spirit love , peace , &c. v. 22. against such there is no law , no , condemnation , no accusation of conscience here , or hereafter . § 43 for it must be observed , that there is great difference betwixt this lusting of the flesh against the spirit in them that are led by the spirit , gal. 5. and the warring of the law in the members against the law in the mind , which bringeth into captivity to the law of sin , i. e. to it selfe , rom. 7. for those in whom that latter is to be found , are there said to be carnall , sold under sinne ( as a slave was wont sub hasta to be sold ) and so {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} to be led by the flesh and fulfill the lusts of the flesh , which is of all things most unreconcileable with that mans state , against whom there is no condemnation in christ , rom. 8. 1. and so with a good conscience . § 44 and if the resistance of the minde , or the law morall , of the spirit , or the law christian , be sufficient to excuse that action or habituall course which is committed and lived in , in opposition to both of these , or while both of these check and contradict , then sure are sins against conscience become ( if not the most excusable sinnes , yet ) the more excusable for this , that they are against conscience ; that woulding or contending of the mind , or the law of the mind being no other but the dictate of the instructed conscience , ( in them which know the law , rom. 7. 1. which he that obeyes not , but followes the law or command of sin against it , hath no● sure a good conscience , in our second sence as that signifies a conscience of well-doing or doing nothing against rule of conscience , for that this man in terminis is supposed to doe . § 45 having now proceeded thus farre in the affirmative part in shewing what sinnes are reconcileable with a good conscience , i should now proceed to the negative part and shew what are not reconcileable therewith . but before i advance to that , there is one classi● or head of sinnes , about which there is some question and difficulty of resolving , to which of the extreames it should be reduced , i. e. whether it be reconcileable , or unreconcileable with a good conscience . and that is the single commission of some act of knowne sinne , which hath not the apology of weaknesse to excuse it , and yet is not indulged or persisted , or continued in , ( for of those that are so , you shall hear anon in the 8 proposition ) but without delay retracted by humiliation and reformation ; for the stating and ●atisfying of which it will be necessary first , to observe that § 46 any such act of wilfull sinne first , hath in it selfe a being , and so is capable of a notion abstracted from the retractation of it . yea secondly , is a work of some time , and though it be never so suddenly retracted by repentance , yet some space there is before that retraction ; and if we speak of that time or space , there is no doubt , but that act , first , is contrary to good conscience , and contracts a guilt , and consequent to that , the displeasure of god and obligation to punishment , which nothing but repentance can do away ; yea and secondly , is a naturall means of weakning that habit of good , of sauciating and wounding the soule , and for that time putting it in a bloody direfull condition , and should god before repentance strike , for ought we know there would be no remission , and so , fearfull would be the end of that soule . § 47 but then secondly , if before god thus visit in justice , repentance interpose , ( as in this present case we suppose it doth ) if this plank be caught hold on instantly upon the shipwrack , if he that hath committed this act of carnality , &c. lye not down ( after the manner of the grecian horses in saint ambroses expression , qui cum ceciderint , quandam tenent quietis & patientiae disciplinam , are taught , when they fall in the rac● , not to strive or endeavour to get up again , lye still on the ground with great stilnesse and patience ) walk not after the flesh , ro. 8. ● . then presently is he set right again in gods savour , upon ( performance of the solemnities , as it were , payment of the fees of the court ) humiliation , contrition , confession , and lowly supplications to god for pardon in christ , and so then to him thus repaired there is no condemnation ; beside the forementioned effects that attended that sinne at the time there is no future arrear behind in the other world . § 48 as for the other effect of sinne in this life , the wasting of the conscience , or provoking of god to withdraw his grace ; though any such act of wilfull sinne may justly be thought to do that also in some degree , first , to stop god from going on in his current of liberality , and secondly , to cast us back from that plenitude and abundance , which before in the riches of gods bounty in christ was afforded , and so much weaken our stock of grace , leave us much more infirme then wee were before the commission ; yet wee find not any threat in scripture that god will , upon this provocation of one single act not persisted in , presently withdraw all grace , but we have reason to hope what the article of our church supposes , that in this case he leaves sufficient grace to enable that child of his , that thus falls , by that his grace to return again . § 49 and if that sad presage , heb. 6. 6. seem to any to withstand this , the answer will be prompt and easy , by observing that the word {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} , there [ the fallers away ] signifies more then some one single act of sinne presently retracted againe , even a generall apostacie in their practice , ( if not in their faith ) a return to their former unregenerate sinnes , ( as the phrase {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} , [ they being entangled are overcome ] notes 2 pet. 2. 20. a place perfectly paralell to this , and ) as in this place the ancients have generally interpreted . and then though such indulgence in sinne , such retu●ning to the vomit or mire againe in that other place , doe provoke god to withdraw his grace necessary to enable them to repent , yea and cast them back into a worse estate then they were in , not onely before such sinning , but even before their conversion , 2 pet. 2. 20. yet that god will so punish with totall desertion any one act or commission presently retracted againe , it is not affirmed here nor anywhere else , that i have observed , but rather on the contrary , that he will visit them with chastisements which are a grace and a meanes to recall them , without any utter forsaking or taking of his loving kindnesse from them , psal , 89. 33. 35. § 50 that this matter may be throughly cleared , i shall suppose this objection made against what hath hitherto been said of it , that it may seem by this doctrine , [ that the regenerate man may bee under gods displeasure ] that hee that remaines sanctified may be unjustified , for so he will be , if all his sinnes be not forgiven him , which they are not , if this act of sinne not yet repented of , be not forgiven . in answer to this , i shall reinforce my affirmation , that of necessity it must be granted , if we believe the scripture , that any such act of sinne unretracted by repentance , doth certainly stand upon the sinners score unremitted ; for that god ( as some affirme ) doth at the first act of my being justified , forgive all my sinnes not only past , present , but also future too ; cannot be said , but upon a supposition that that man will never commit any such sinne against which the gospell threatens perishing , i. e. any deliberate presumptuous sinne , ( which supposition if it were true , would inferre an impossibility of the regenerate mans thus sinning , not an assurance of his pardon without ( or abstracted from the consideration of ) his repentance , which is the only point , in hand ) for if he doe , then upon confession and forsaking there is promise of mercy , and not otherwise ; and in briefe , without repentance there is no remission : and therefore it is observeable , that they which thus affirm , find themselves enforced to fly to gods omnipotence and immensity , to whom all things are present ; by help of which they can conceive and resolve that at the time of that sinnes being upon him unrepented of , god yet seeing his future repentance as present , may seale his pardon , and then may by the same reason do so also before the commission ; the weaknesse of which arguing , i shall no farther demonstrate then by this rejoynder , that by the same reason it might be said , that a man is justified before he is borne , which yet the objectors doe not affirme , but that at the time of his first conversion , be it as such a sermon or the like , he was justified , and then all his sins past , present , and to come forgiven him , which is as contrary to the notion of all things being present with god , as to say that this act of commission is not forgiven till it be repented of , for sure the time before that mans birth , and the time after it , are as truly present to god before all eternity , as the time of this commission and that repentance . § 51 the onely way for us to understand our selves or any thing that belongs to gods actions concerning us , is that which the scripture supposes and commands us to walk in , not the way of gods secret counsels , ( which if we knew , were no longer secret ) not the way of gods immensity , ( which if it were intelligible by us , were not imm●nsity ) but the way of his revealed will , which is , that whensoever the sinner repenteth him of his sinne , and amends his life , he shall have his sin blotted out and put out of gods remembrance , i. e. forgiven unto him and not till then : and to suppose he may have remission before such repentance , is to suppose god perjured who sweares he shall not , and to lay falsity to the charge of the whole gospel , which resolves , except ye repent , ye shall all perish . § 52 to all this i might farther adde that gods justifying the faithfull man , is the approving his fidelity upon tryall of it , and so acquitting him ( upon a {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} or probation ) from suspicion of hypocrisie , pronouncing him faithful , or evangelically righteous , and upon that , owning him as a friend , entring into league with him , as might appeare by gods justifying abraham and calling him friend ( in the sense wherein they are christs friends , which doe whatsoever he commands them , so approve themselves unto him ) if it were now seasonable to examine that businesse . this being supposed , it would be most evident , that such an act of knowne deliberate sinne committed in time of tryall , is quite contrary to justification , even as contrary as abrahams refusing to beleeve gods promise first , or after to sacrifice isaac , you may suppose would have been . of which the least that can be said , will be this , that such a failing is a shrewd blemish to sincerity , which will make it necessary for him that is guilty of it , to repaire his credit with god by expressing a great sence of his miscarriage , and by many future performances of constancy , and resolution , if ever he hope to be approved , or justified by him . § 53 but now having thus far confirmed this , and so rather strengthned , then weakned the objection , the next thing i shall desire may be observed is this , that every non-remission of a sinne for some time , every displeasure of gods , every not-imputing to righteousnesse , is not an utter intercision of justification , is not a calling all the former forgotten sinnes to remembrance , for to such onely an apostacy , or continued falling away from god betrayes the soule . for , the whole current of my life may approve my sidelity to god , though some one action be very contrary to it : nay secondly , a father may be displeased with his sonne for some one fault , and yet not disinherit him , nay upon farther provocation he may cast him out of his family , and yet afterward receive him into it againe . § 54 so that there are three degrees observable in this matter , first displeasure , secondly wrath , thirdly fury . first withdrawing of the fathers favour , suspension of pardon , so t is in case of any such single act of sinne presently repented of , considered before its retractation . second , casting out of the family , totall intercision of mercy for that present , so t is in case of such sin persisted in indulgently . third , utter finall irreversible abdication , so t is in case of finall obduration . § 55 this may be illustrated , 1. by a vulgar , then by an ecclesiasticall resemblance . among friends 1. there may be a matter of quarrell , dislike , displeasure , and one friend justly frowne upon the other , yea and keep some distance from him , and be really angry with him , for some act of injury done by him , contrary to the lawes of friendship , which till he hath some way repaired , the friend may justly not pardon him , and so absteine for that present from the former degree of familiarity with him : but then 2. the injuri●us friend may continue as injurious still , and go on and persist in that course of falsenesse or unfriendlinesse , and then the injur'd friend wholly forsakes his company , breaks off those bands of friendship with him , yet so as that upon the others relenting and amending , he may yet againe returne to him , and so that totall separation prove no finall one , 3. there is , upon obduration or no manner of relenting , a finall irreversible breach . § 56 the ecclesiasticall resemblance is , that of the three degrees of excommunication among the jewes , the first or lowest , was niddui separation , not totall turning out of either sacred or civill society , but remotion to a distance , that the offender should not come within foure cubits of any other , and so be denyed the peace of the church , and the familiar kind of communion , which others enjoy . above this there was cherem which was a totall exclusion or distermination with anathemas or execrations joyned with it , but yet was not finall , then thirdly there was schammatha giving up to destruction or desolation , delivering up to gods comming in judgement , and that was irreversible . § 57 now for the full satisfying of the argument , ( having already shewed you the state of this offender in respect of justification ) it will onely be necessary to adde one thing more , that the state of the same man as it respects sanctification , is parallel and fully proportionable to the state as it respecteth justification , and so the objection will quite fall to the ground . § 58 to the clearing of which you must know that sanctification may be conceived in a double notion : 1. as a gift of gods , 2. as a duty of mans . to prevent mistake ; this i meane , god gives the grace of conversion and sanctification , and he that is effectually wrought on by that grace , is converted and sanctified , this is it which i meane , by the first notion of sanctification , as it is a gift of gods : but the man thus converted and sanctfied , i. e. thus wrought on and effectually changed by the spirit of god , is bound by the gospl-law , to operate according to this principle , to use this talent , and this is called , to have grace , heb. 12. 28. i. e. to make use of it to the purpose there specified of serving god {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} ( i. e. either well pleasedly , cheerfully , willingly , or well pleasingly , so as god may and will accept ) in righteousnesse and godly feare , according to the notion of having in the parable of the talents , where t is said that to him that hath shall be given , i. e. ●o him which makes use of the talent intrusted to him , operates accordingly , doth what that enables him to doe , offends not against it by idlenesse , or by commission of contrary sinnes , which he that doth , is the non habens , he that hath not there , from which shall be taken away , &c. and this having of grace is it which i meane by the second notion of sanctification , as it is a duty of mans , which i conceive is meant by the apostle , when he saith , this is the will of god , even your sanctification , and he which hath this hope purifies himself , and let us cleanse our selves from all filthinesses perfecting holinesse , all which places suppose the thing spoken of , to be the duty of man ▪ which by the help of christ strengthning him , he is able to performe , and therefore upon the supposition of gods working in him both to will and to doe , to will , by sanctifying , to doe , by assisting grace , he is incited and exhorted by the apostle , to work out his owne salvation . § 59 this being thus cleared , t will be easily granted in the second place , that every such act of deliberate commission as we now speak of , is contrary to sanctification in this latter notion , contrary to the duty of the sanctified man , from which breach of duty it was , that we bound him before under that guilt , which nothing but repentance could rid him of , and if you mark it , that is the onely thing which contracts a guilt , the doing somewhat contrary to duty , and so the want of this second notion of sanctification it is , the want of sanctifi●d operations , which interposes any rubs in the businesse of our justification , and not so properly that wherein god onely was concerned , his not giving grace , guilt being still a result from sinne , and sinne being a breach of the law , a contrariety to duty and not to guilt ; and though he that hath not received the gift of sanctification be not justified , yet the cause of his non-justification then , is not , in proper speaking , gods not having given him grace to sanctifie , ( for that is but a negative thing , and cannot produce non-justification , which is in effect a positive thing by interpretation , signifying condemnation , two negatives making an affirmative , non-justifying being non-remitting of sinne , and that the actuall imputing of it to condemnation ) but the sinnes of his former and present impenitent unsanctified life . § 60 this also being thus cleared , i shall onely adde a third thing , and then conclude this matter , that in the same proportion that any such act of sinne doth unjustifie , it doth unsanctifie also , i. e. shake and waste , though not utttrly destroy , that sanctified state that before the man was in , by the gift and grace of god . § 61 for as there were three degrees of provocation in the matter of justification , so are there also in this of sanctification , the first , grieving the spirit of god , eph. 4. 30. resisting it , trashing of god in his course of grace and bounty towards us , putting our selves under niddui , as it were , in respect of gods grace , as well as his favour , and so weakning our stock of sanctity , and this the deliberate act of sinne may be thought to doe . the second , is quenching of the spirit , 1 thes. 5. 19. putting it quite out , rebelling and vexing his holy spirit , is . 63. 10. a totall extinction of grace , the cherem that brings the present curse , or anathema along with it ; and this is not done by one sin not persisted in , but onely by a habit or indulgent course of sin ; and the third , is the despighting , or doing despight to the spirit of grace , heb. 10. 29. that which is proportioned to schammatha , that makes the finall irreversible separation betweene us and gods sanctifying grace , the first did not wholly deprive the sinner of all grace , no nor of sufficient to enable to repent ; the second , did so for the present ; the third did so finally also . § 62 if you will now demand what are the effects and consequents of that displeasure of god , which this single act of sin brings upon the offender ; i answer , that i have in some measure answered that already , shewed you at the beginning many lugubrious effects of it ; and if that be not sufficient to satisfie you , or to shew the non-remission of such sinne till it be retracted by repentance , i shall then proceed one degree farther yet , to tell you , § 63 that the method of gods dealing in this case ( of such single acts of commission ) seemeth by the scripture to be after this manner . upon any such commission , satan is wont to accuse that man before god , [ such or such a regenerate child of thine is falne into such a sin , and so into my hands as the lictor ) then to desire , or require solemnly , to have him to winnow , by inflicting punishments upon him , and god yeelds many times to this demand of satans , delivers the offender up to him in some limited manner . § 64 to which delivering though temptations ( or afflictions which ordinarily are signified by temptations in scripture ) are constantly consequent , yet not utter desertion or withdrawing of grace , but allowing of strength sufficient to victory , {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} , ability to beare , 1. cor. 10. 13. {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} , passage out of those difficulties in that same place , {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} , sufficient grace , 2. cor. 12. 9. and assistance of his faith , that it faile not totally , ( which is the importance of christs having prayed for peter , luk. 22. 32. his intercession being a powerfull intercession ( as may appeare by his [ father , i knew that thou hearest me alwayes , ioh. 11. 24 ] and so in effect , the obtaining from his father , and actuall conferring on his disciples the grace which he prays for ) and therefore it is observable , that as those which are thus accused and demanded by satan are generally such as , were it not for this present particular commission , would passe both with god and him , for faithfull disciples , and good christians , and therfore do stil retain that title ( as appears by the word {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} , when satan is called the accuser of them , rev. 12. 10. {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} , the accuser of the bretheren , or the faithfull , it seems they are faithfull still , though they have been guilty of some act , for which he thus accuseth them , and so he is called {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} , 1 pet. 5. 8. the plaintiffe or enemy , {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} , of you , i. e. the elect , to whom he writes , c. 1. ● . ) so the end of yeelding to satans request in delivering them up to him is also fatherly and gracious ▪ {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} , that they may be disciplined , or taught not to blaspheme , 1 tim. 1. 20. {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} , that he may be ashamed , 2. thes. 3. 14. {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} , that the spirit may be saved , 1. cor. 5. 5. whereupon it is , that the fathers so clearly resolve it far better , and more eligible to be delivered up to satan , then to be delivered up to ones selfe , or ones owne affections or desires ; the first of them being the ordinary punishment of some act , or acts of sinne on purpose to recall to repentance ; the second being the great plague of spirituall desertion , inflicted on indulgent continuers in sin , the first of them a mark of their not-yet-totall abdication , their continuance in sonne-ship whom god thus chastens here , that he may not condemne them with the world ; the second , of heir being cut off from that prerogative , whom god thus forsakes . § 65 to which purpose , of gods dealing mercifully with his servants in case of single trespasses presently retracted by repentance , ( so farre as not to inflict any grand spirituall punishment upon them , such as absolute desertion , or utter disinherizon ) i conceive an image represented to us in christs command to his disciples , how oft they should forgive the trespassing brother , luk. 17. 4. if he trespasse against thee seven times a day , and seven times a day returne againe to thee , saying , i repent , thou shalt forgive ; where trespassing seven times is a phrase , for [ how oft soever he trespasse ] the word [ forgive ] notes the obligation to punishment without forgivenesse , and the interposing the word [ repent ] proportioned to every trespasse , shewes the necessity of that condition to wash oft that guilt ; and the word [ turne ] prefixt to that , argues the repentance unavailable , if it containe not turning in it ; upon which , forgivenesse being there commanded , if we shall now adde that other place mat. 6. 36. where gods mercy to us is made the measure of our mercy to our brethren , the argument will come home to prove that god doth ▪ so deale with us , and consequently that every such act of sinne contracts a guilt , which is never pardoned but upon repentance , that upon the speedy performance of that duty the patient is preserved from any heavy spirituall punishment , which would otherwise attend that sin . § 66 what we have hitherto said on this particular , will shew the danger of every act of deliberate sinne , and yet withall the difference betwixt such single acts presently retracted by repentance , and the like persisted , or continued in . to which purpose it will be worth the while to behold what we finde recorded of david . he , we know , had been guilty of severall acts of sinne , markt and censured in the word of god ; and some of them such , as for them he was in a manner delivered up to satan to be contumeliously used ( as he seemes to conceive from shimei's cursing of him , 2 sam. 16. 10. for shimei being an instrument of satans in cursing , and satan thereto permitted by god upon some crime , for which he had accused him to god , he there calls it , gods saying to shimei , curse david , ) and yet because he continued not with indulgence in any of them , ( his heart presently smiting him , as in the case of numbring the people , and recalling him to instant reformation ) save onely in that concerning uriah the hittite ( wherein it appears that he continued neere the space of a yeere , from before the conception till after the birth of the child , as is cleare by the time of nathans comming to him , 2 sam. 12. 1. ) t is therefore left upon record by god , that david did that which was right in the sight of the lord , and turned not aside from anything that he commanded him all the dayes of his life , save onely in the matter of uriah the hittite , 1 king. 15. 5. § 67 from whence although i shall not conclude , that god saw no other sinne in david but that in the matter of uriah , ( because i know he saw and punisht that of numbring the people , and for that other though no● acted , yet designed under oath against nabal . 1 sam. 25. 22. abigail discernes that it was a causelesse shedding of blood , and an act of revenge , v. 31. ( and so no small sinne in gods sight ) yet t is cleare , that the sin in the matter of u●iah , that onely sinne continued in for any long time , made another manner of separation betweene god and david , contracted another kind of guilt , ( and was a farre greater waster to conscience ) then any of those other more speedily retracted sinnes did , was the onely remarkable {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} drawing back , or turning aside from obedience to god , the onely grand defection , shaking off gods yoke , and so the onely chasme in his regenerate state . § 68 these 4 propositions being premised , whereof 3 were affirmative , and this last of a middle nature , the rest will be negative ; as § 69 fiftly , that hypocrisie is not reconcileable with a good conscience . i mean not hypocrisie which consists in the concealing from the eyes of men the sins or frailties he is guilty of : for supposing those frailties to be what they are , i. e. acknowledging in them a guilt proportionate to their nature , i cannot see why the bare desire to conceale them from the eyes of men ( separated from the sins or frailties themselves , and from any treacherous designe in such concealing ) should be thought to superadde any farther degree of guilt ; when on the other side the publicknesse of a sinne is an aggravation of it , makes it more scandalous , and so more criminous also . nor againe doe i meane that hypocrisie , which is the taking in any thought of the praise of men ( and the like ) in our best actions : for as long as we have flesh about us , some degrees of this will goe neare sometimes to insinuate themselves , and then though they prove blemishes to those best actions , and by anticipating the payment and taking it here before hand , robbe us of that heavenly reward hereafter , which would otherwise be rendred to us according to those works , yet stil being but spots of sons , reconcileable with a regenerate estate , ( as the straw and combustible superstruction , is ( in saint paul ) compatible with the true substantiall foundation , ) they will be reconcileable with good conscience also , which is alwayes commensurate to a regenerate estate . § 70 but the hypocrisy which i meane , is , first , that which is opposite to ( and compatible with ) sincerity : first , the deceiving of men , with a pretence of piety , putting off the most un-christian sins , having no more of christianity then will serve to mischieve others , i. e. onely the pretence of it to disguise the poyson of a bitter heart . secondly , the deceiving of god , or thirdly , his owne soule , not dealing uprightly with either , and nothing more contrary then this to a good conscience . § 71 secondly , the maimed mutilate obedience , the compounding betwixt god and satan , the samaritanes fearing the lord and serving their owne gods , joyning others with god , and paying to them a respect equall or superiour to that which they pay to god , serving mammon and god , or mammon more then god . or § 72 thirdly , the formall profession , the {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} or outside-garbe of godlinesse , not joyning the inward , but making a meer pageant of piety , denying the power thereof . or § 73 fourthly , the hypocrisy of the wisher and woulder , that could wish he were better then he is , could be well pleased to dye the death of the righteous , to have all the gainfull part , the revenue and crown of a good conscience , but will not be at the charge of a conscientious life ; or § 74 fiftly , the hypocrisy of the partiall obedient , that is {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} of duty , chooses out the easy , smooth , plyable doctrines of christianity , the cheap or costlesse performances , the {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} , will serve the lord his god of that which costs him nothing , will doe some things that have nothing contrary to passions in generall , or particularly to his passions , like herod that could heare iohn baptist gladly , be present at as many sermons as he could wish , ( and many the like painlesse performances ) but when the weightier matters of the law expect to be taken up also , cannot submit to such burthens . or § 75 sixthly , the hypocrisy of the temporary , which abstaines onely as long as the punishment is over his head , and awes him to it , or as long as he meets with no temptations to the contrary ; both which what place they have in the death-bed repentance even when it is not onely a sorrow for sinne , but a resolution of amendment also , i leave it to be considered . or § 76 seventhly , the hypocrisy of those which commit evill that good may come of it , who venture on the most vn christian sins for gods glory , accept the person of the almighty , doe injustice for his sake , or rather suppose him impotent , and fetch in the devill or their owne vile lusts to releive and assist god , of whom the apostle pronounceth their damnation is just , rom. 3. 8. or § 77 lastly , the hypocrisy of him which keeps any one close undeposited sinne upon his soule . these are each of them contrary to some part of the ground of good conscience , to the foundation of christian confidence , some to the sincerity , some to the resolution , and some to the obedience , {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} in all , and some to the perseverance which is absolutely necessary to the good conscience . § 78 a sixth proposition is , that a supine wilfull course of negligence and sloth , whether in duties of mans particular calling , or more especially in the duties of the generall calling as we are christians , that sinne of {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} , is not reconcileable with a good conscience , ( omissions being destructive , such they may be as well as commissions ) whether it be omission of the performance of morall or christian precepts ( christs improvements of the law in the sermon on the mount , being not onely as counsells , but precepts obligatory to christians ) or whether it be onely the wilfull supine slothfull neglecting the meanes of knowledge , such as are agreeable to my course of life : or the neglecting to make use of those meanes which are necessary to enable me to get out of any sinne : ( one act of which nature was by christ noted and censured in his disciples , their not fasting and praying to cast out that devill that would not otherwise be cast out . ) or the not avoyding such occasions which are apt to betray me to it ; such acts as these , are ( as christ saith to those disciples ) acts of faithlesnesse and perversenesse , mat. 17. 17. and cosequently the continued course of them contrary to the sincerity of endeavour , and so unreconcileable with a good conscience . § 79 the seventh proposition is , that all habituall customary obdurate sinning is unreconcileable utterly with a good conscience . i adde the word [ obdurate ] which signifies the hardning of the heart against the knowledge of the truth , against exhortations , against threats of gods word , against checks of naturall conscience , or illuminations of grace , against resolutions and vowes to the contrary , for this will make any habit certainly unreconcileable with a good conscience ; whereas it is possible that some customary sinning may be through ignorance of the duty , and that ignorance if it be not contracted by some wilfulnesse of mine may be matter of excuse to me , and so reconcileable with a good conscience by force of the second proposition . but the obdurate holding out against gods spirit , either knocking for admittance but not opened to , or checking and restraining from sin after conversion , and not harkned to , resisting all gods methods of working on us and still resolutely walking after the flesh , this is by no means reconcileable with a good conscience , nay nor any habit of sin simply taken ( for that is exclusive of the habit of piety necessary to the good coscience ) unlesse it have that authentique plea of faultlesse ignorance to excuse it . § 80 the eighth proposition is , that any deliberate presumptuous act or commission of any sin , against which damnation , or not inheriting the kingdome of heaven , is pronounced in the new testament , being not immediately retracted by repentance , humiliation , and all the effects of godly sorrow , 2 cor. 7. 11 is wholly unreconcileable with a good conscience . such are gal. 5. 19. adultery , fornication , uncleannesse , lasciviousnesse , ( foure distinct degrees of incontinence ) idolatry , witchcraft , ( two degrees of impiety ) hatred , variance , emulation , wrath , strife , sedition , heresies , envyings , murthers , ( nine degrees of the pride of life , or that other branch of carnality flowing from {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} , or the irascible faculty ) drunkennesse , revelling , ( the species of intemperance ) and such like : and the same with some variation and addition , 1 cor. 6. 9 , 10. and eph 5. 5. every one of these at the very commission have the nature of peccata sauciantia , wounding the sinner to the heart , letting out a great deale of good blood and vitall spirits , and weakning the habit of christian vertue , of peccata clamantia , crying sins , the voice of conscience so wronged by them , calling to heaven for judgement against such oppressours , or perhaps satan carrying an accusation thither against such offenders ; and if upon this they be not straight retracted by an earnest contrition , humiliation and repentance , they then proceed farther to be ( any one act of them ) peccata vastantia conscientiam , sins wasting & despoiling the conscience , betraying to some sadder punishment , even desertion , and withdrawing of grace , and delivering up to our own hearts lusts , a consequent of which are all vile affections , rom. 1. and that {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} , cursing , heb. 6. 8. § 81 just as it was the manner of the jewes judicatures . he that was punished by their {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} separation or {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} ( not permirted to come neare any man within foure cubits ) if he did not thereupon shew and approve his repentance within the space of two moneths , on that contumacy was then smitten with their {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} the anathemation or execration , and sometimes cast into prison . so is gods dealing with the sinner remaining impenitent for such a space , substraction of gods grace and spirit , the curse of the gospel is his portion . § 82 for the clearing of which truth yet fartherr , t will be observable that the danger that arises from one sinne of the first magnitude , against which the sentence is pronounced , that they who are guilty of such , shall never inherit eternall life , is or may be to him that after the knowledge of the truth relapses into it as great as that which is incurred by many lesser sinnes , or by a relapsing into a generality of impure life , and therefore the remaining in that one sinne , will be as unreconcileable with a regenerate estate , as the remaining in many other , and proportionably one act of it as noxious and wasting to conscience , as apt to provoke god to withdraw his spirit , as many acts of those lesser sins , and though neither any single act either of lesser or greater sinne in a sincere lover of christ , presently retracted , ( as it will be if he continue so ) doth so grieve , as to quench gods spirit utterly , so provoke god , as to make him wholly withdraw his grace and totally desert him ; yet if that one sin be continued in , favoured and indulged to , either by multiplying more acts of it , or by no : expressing repentance for it by all those means which the apostle requires of his incestuous corinthian , or which are named as effects of godly sorrow , 2 cor. 7. 11. this direfull punishment of desertion is then to be expected as the reward of any one such sinne , and from thence will follow any impossibility for that man so diserted ever to return to repentance again , gods speciall ayde , which is now withdrawne , being absolutely necessary to that . § 83 where yet of those , that thus remain in any such sin , there is some difference ; for some that so remain in sinne , doe so remain that they desire not to get out of it , hate to be reformed ; others though ensnared so in sin that they cannot get out , yet are very earnest and sollicitous to find out some means to break through and escape out of those snares , and then this latter state of soul though it be not sufficient to give claime or right to mercy , ( the victory over the world , the actuall forsaking of all such sins being necessary to that , and not only our wishes that we were victorious ) yet is it a nearer and more hopefull capacity of the grace of repentance , more likely to be blessed by the returning of gods spirit enabling to repent , then that former state of contemptuous continuers in the same sin appeares to be . § 84 for though in both these states there is no repenting without gods new gift of grace , and no absolute promise that god will be so gracious to such sinners , yet there is a place , 1 iohn 5. 16. which makes a difference betweene sinne unto death , and sinne not unto death ( both of them states of impenitence and persisting in sin , but differing as the two latter degrees of excommunication did among the iewes , c●erem and sc●●matha both noting a totall separation , but the latter a finall also , and by the composition of the word intimating death or desolation , giving up the sinner to divine vengeance , as hopelesse or contumacious , in reference to which the phrase is here used , a sinne unto death , whereas the other , of impenitence , not arrived to that desp●rate contumacy , is a state of curse under cherem and anathema , but not unto death yet ) and allowes this priviledge to the prayers of faithfull men for others , that they shall obtain life for those that have sinned not unto death , where that ( the not being to death ] of a sinne , is to be taken not from the matter of the sinne , but from the disposition of the sinner , and so from this desiring to get out , though he remain in it , or somewhat answerable to that , might , if any doubt were made of it , be proved as by other arguments so by putting together the peculiar use of the word {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} in that authour , for abiding and continuing in sinne , and the no extenuation that such abiding is capable of ( so farre as to make one such abiding so much lesse then another such abiding , as that one should be called {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} , the other not ) save only this of wishing and heaving and labouring to get out , ( which supposes some remainder of exciting , though not of sanctifying or assisting grace ) while the other goes on without any care or love or desire of reformation . § 85 and though still there be no promise that such a relapst unreformed sinners prayers shall be heard for himselfe upon that bare desire to get out , which his praying for grace will suppose ( there being no such promise of grace to the relapst person upon his prayer , as there is to any else ) yet it is cleare from that place of saint iohn , that this priviledge belongs to the prayers of other faithfull penitents , for such a more moderate degree of unfaithfull impenitents upon their request god will give l●fe to such , i. e. such a degree of grace as shall be sufficient to enable them to recover back to repentance , of which being given them upon the others prayers , if they make use , ( as infalsibly they will if they were and continue to be really sollicitous to get out of that state ) they shall undoubtedly live eternally . § 86 the practice of which doctrine of saint iohns thus explayned , you shall see every where in the stories of , or canons for the paenitents , where they that for any sinne of ecclesiasticall cognizance were excommunicated , did return to the peace of the church , ( an image of the peace of god ) by severall degrees , of which the first was , to stay and oft lye without the church doores , and in the portch at houres of prayer ; and desire those that retained the honour of being accounted faithfull , and so had liberty to go into the church , to pray to god for them . which as the secure supine negligent impaenitent was not likely to doe , so was he not to expect the benefit of it , nor the christian brother obliged to pray for him , though yet by saint iohns [ {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} i say not of that or concerning that state of sinne that he shall pray ] i am not convinced that it were unlawfull so to doe . § 87 by all this thus set and bounded with its due limitations , the truth of my eight proposition will appeare , of the unreconcileablenesse of such presumptuou● acts of such branded sinnes unretracted , with a regenerate estate or good conscience , as being indeed quite contrary to every part and branch of the premised ground of a good conscience . § 88 to which all that i shall adde is onely this , that he that tenders but the comforts of this life , i. e. of a good conscience , will be sure never to commit deliberately and presumptuously , or having by surreption fallen , never to lye downe or continue one minuit unhumbled unreformed in any such sinne , on which that direfull fate is by christ or his apostles inscribed [ shall not inherit the kingdome of heaven ] where yet as i shall not affirme that none shall subject us to that danger but those which are there specified ; ( for there is added and such like , and other sins there may be committed with the like deliberation and presumption , and so as contrary to conscience ) so shall i not say that all that commit any one act of any of these without that deliberation and presumption , or that are presently by their own heart smitten and brought to repentance for them , shall incur that danger ; for the words {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} and {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} , the doers and committers of them signifie the deliberate committing and indulgent yeelding to them , contrary to which the use of surreption at the time and the instant subsequent retractation of them ( by contrition , confession , forsaking , and reinforcement of greater care and vigilance for the future ) will be sure meanes to deliver from that danger . § 89 whereto yet this caution must be annext which may passe for § 90 a ninth proposition . that the frequency or repetition of any such acts after such contrition and resolution is an argument of the unsincerity of that contrition , of the deceavablenesse of that pretended greater care , and so a symptome of an ill conscience , as the spreading of the skall or leprosie after the priests inspection is sufficient to pronounce the patient uncleane . levit. 13. and as that disease in the relapse may be mortall which at first was not . § 91 other more particular niceties i confesse there are , the distinguishing of which might be usefull for some mens states , and help disabuse them both out of an erroneous and a secure , yea and an over trembling conscience . but because that which would be thus proper to one , being laid down in common , or cast into the lottery , might have the ill hap to be drawn by him to whom it is not proper , ( as that physick which would purge out a distemper from one , wil breed a weaknesse in another ) and because no wise man ever thought fit to take lawes out of generalities , i shall resolve rather to obey such reasons , and to be directed by such examples , not to descend to particulars , then to be in danger first of tempting the readers patience , then of interrupting his peace . pray for us , for we trust we have a good conscience , in all things willing to live honestly . heb. 13. 18. finis . notes, typically marginal, from the original text notes for div a45470e-210 {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} . arrian . in ep. notes for div a45470e-650 {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} . tatian . {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} . {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} . tr. of wil-worship . {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} . {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} . {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} . hooper . vid. coch. exe . gem. san● . p. 148. & buxto●s . instit. ep. p. 75. good thoughts in worse times consisting of personall meditations, scripture observations, meditations on the times, meditations on all kind of prayers, occasionall meditations / by tho. fuller ... fuller, thomas, 1608-1661. this text is an enriched version of the tcp digital transcription a40668 of text r7345 in the english short title catalog (wing f2436). textual changes and metadata enrichments aim at making the text more computationally tractable, easier to read, and suitable for network-based collaborative curation by amateur and professional end users from many walks of life. the text has been tokenized and linguistically annotated with morphadorner. the annotation includes standard spellings that support the display of a text in a standardized format that preserves archaic forms ('loveth', 'seekest'). textual changes aim at restoring the text the author or stationer meant to publish. this text has not been fully proofread approx. 134 kb of xml-encoded text transcribed from 125 1-bit group-iv tiff page images. earlyprint project evanston,il, notre dame, in, st. louis, mo 2017 a40668 wing f2436 estc r7345 12251600 ocm 12251600 57123 this keyboarded and encoded edition of the work described above is co-owned by the institutions providing financial support to the early english books online text creation partnership. this phase i text is available for reuse, according to the terms of creative commons 0 1.0 universal . the text can be copied, modified, distributed and performed, even for commercial purposes, all without asking permission. early english books online. (eebo-tcp ; phase 1, no. a40668) transcribed from: (early english books online ; image set 57123) images scanned from microfilm: (early english books, 1641-1700 ; 144:11) good thoughts in worse times consisting of personall meditations, scripture observations, meditations on the times, meditations on all kind of prayers, occasionall meditations / by tho. fuller ... fuller, thomas, 1608-1661. [13], 235 [i.e. 236] p. printed by w.w. for john williams ..., london : 1647. errata: p. 235. reproduction of original in yale university library. eng meditations. devotional exercises. conscience. a40668 r7345 (wing f2436). civilwar no good thoughts in worse times. consisting of personall meditations. scripture observations. meditations on the times. meditations on all kind fuller, thomas 1647 21745 373 15 0 0 0 0 178 f the rate of 178 defects per 10,000 words puts this text in the f category of texts with 100 or more defects per 10,000 words. 2002-08 tcp assigned for keying and markup 2002-09 apex covantage keyed and coded from proquest page images 2002-10 jennifer kietzman sampled and proofread 2002-10 jennifer kietzman text and markup reviewed and edited 2002-12 pfs batch review (qc) and xml conversion good thoughts in worse times . consisting of personall meditations . scripture observations . meditations on the times . meditations on all kind of prayers . occasionall meditations . by tho. fuller . b. d. london , printed by w. w. for john williams at the crowne in st pauls church-yard . 1647. to the christian reader . when i read the description of the tumult in ephesus , acts 9. 32. ( wherein they would have their diana to be jure divino , that it fell down from iupiter ) it appears to me the too methodicall caracter of our present confusions . some therfore cryed one thing , and some another , for the assembly was confused and the more part knew not wherefore they were come together . o the distractions of our age ? and how many thousand know as li●tle why the sword was drawn , as when it will be sheathed . indeed , ( thankes be to god ) we have no more house burnings but many heart burnings , and though outward bleeding bee stanched , it is to be feared that the broken vaine bleeds inwardswhich is more dangerous . this being our sad condition , i perceive controversiall writing ( sounding somewhat of drums & trumpets , ) doe but make the wound the wider , meditations are like the ministrel the prophet called for , to pacifie his minda●liscomposed with passion , which moved mee to adventure on this treatise , as the most innocent and inoffensive manner of writeing . i confesse a volumn of another subject , and larger size , is expected from mee . but in london i have learnt the difference , betwixt downright breaking , and craving time of their creditors . many sufficient merchants though not soluable from the present make use of the latter , whose example i follow . and though i cannot pay the principall , yet i desire such small treatises may be accepted , from me as interest or consideration mony , untill i shal god willing be enabled to discharge the whole debt . if any wonder that this treatise comes patron-lesse into the world , let such know that dedications begin now adayes to grow out of fashion . his policy was commended by many , ( and proved profitable unto himselfe ) who insted of select godfathers , made all the congregation witnesses to his child , as i invite the world to this my booke , requesting each one would patronise therein such parts and passages thereof , as please them , so hoping that by severall persons the whole will be protected . i have christian reader , ( so far i dare goe , not inquiring into the syre-name of thy side or sect ) nothing more to ●urthen thy patience with . onely i will add , that i finde our saviour in turtullian and ancient latine fathers , constantly stiled a * sequestrator in the proper notion of the word . for god and man beeing at ods , the difference was sequestied or referred into christs his hand to end and umpire it . how it fareth with thine estate on earth i know not , but i earnestly desire , that in heaven both thou and i may ever bee under sequestration in that mediator for gods glory and our good , to whose protection thou art committed by thy brother in all christian offices . tho. fuller . personall meditations . i. curiosity curbed . often have i thought with my selfe , what dis●ase i would be best con●ented to die of . none please mee . the stone , the cholick terrible , as expected , intollerable , when felt . the palsie is death before death . the consumption a flattering disease , cozening men into hope of long life at the last gaspe . some sicknesse besot , others enrage men , some are too swift , and others too slow . if i could as easily decline diseases as i could dislike them , i should be immortall . but away with these thoughts . the marke must not chuse what arrow shall be shot against it . what god sends i must receive . may i not be so curious to know what weapon shall wound me , as carefull to provide the plaister of patience against it . only thus much in generall : commonly that sicknesse seiseth on men , which they least suspect . he that expects to be drown'd with a dropsie may bee burnt with a fe●vour , and she that feares to bee sw●lne with a tympany may be shriveled with a consumption . ii. deceiv'd , not hurt . hearing a passing-bell , i prayed that the sick man might have through christ , a safe voyage to his long home . afterwards i understood that the party was dead some houres before ; and it seemes in some places of london the tolling of the bell , is but a preface of course to the ringing it out . bells better silent then thus telling lyes . what is this but giving a false alarum to mens devotions , to make them to be ready armed with their prayers for the assistance of such , who have already fought the good sight , yea and gotten the conquest ? not to say that mens charityherein may be suspected of superstition in praying for the dead . however my heart thus powred out , was not spilt on the ground . my prayers too late to doe him good , ●ame soone enough to speake my good will . what i freely tendred god ●airely tooke , according to the integrity of my intention . the partie i hope is in abraham's and my prayers i am sure are returned into my owne ●osom . iii. nor full , nor fasting . living in a country uillage where a buriall was a rarity , i never thought of death , it was so seldome presented unto me . comming to london where there is plenty of funeralls , ( so that coffins crowd one-another , & corps in the grave justle for elbow roome ) i slight and neglect death because grown an object so constant and common . how foule is my stomach to turne all foode into bad humours ? funeralls neither few nor frequent , worke effectually upon mee . london is a library of mortality . uolumes of all sorts and sizes , rich , poore , infants , children , youth , men , old men daily die ; i see there is more required to make a good scholler , then onely the having of many bookes : lord be thou my schoolemaster , and teach mee to number my dayes that i may apply my heart unto wisedome . iiii. strange and true . i read in the * revelatation of a beast , one of whose heads was as it were wounded to death . i expected in the next verse , that the beast should die , as the most probable consequence , considering 1. it was not a scratch , but a wound . 2. not a wound in a fleshly part , or out-limbs of the body , but in the very head , the throne of reason . 3. no light wound , but in outward apparition , ( having no other probe but st. johns eyes to sea●ch it ) it seemed deadly . but marke what immediately followes , and his deadly wound was healed . who would have suspected this inference ●rom these premises . but 〈◊〉 not this the lively em●lem of my naturall cor●uption ? sometimes i conceive that by gods grace i have conquered and kill'd , subdued and ●laine , maim'd and morti●d the deedes of the ●sh : never more shall i be molested or bufseted , with such a bosom sinne when , alas ! by the next ●eturne , the news is , it is r●vived , and recovered . thus tenches though grievously gashed , p●esently plaister themselves whole by that ●limie and unctious hu●our they have in them ; and thus the inherent balsam of badnesse quickly cures my corruption , not a scarre to be seene . i perceive i shall never finally kill it , till first i be dead my selfe . v. blushing to be blushed for . a person of great quality was pleased to lodge a nig●t in my house . i durst not invite him to my family-prayer , and therefore for that time omitted it : thereby making a breach in a good custome & giving sathan advantage to assault it . yea the loosening of such a linke , might have endangered the scattering of the chaine . bold bashfulnesse , which durst offend god , whil'st it did feare man . especially considering that though my guest was never so high , yet by the lawes of hospitality , i was above him , whilst he was under my roofe . hereafter whosoever cōmeth within the dores , shall bee requested to come within the discipline of my house ; if accepting my homely diet , he will not refuse my home-devotion ; and sitting at my table , will be intreated to kneel downe by it . vi . alash for lazinesse . shamefull my sloath , that havedeferred my night-prayer , till i am in bed . this lying along is an improper posture for piety . indeed there is no contrivance of our body , but some good man in scripture hath hanseled it with prayer . the publican standing , iob * ●ting , hezeki●h , lying on his bed , * eli●h with his face between his l●ggs . but of all gestures give me st. paules , * for this cau●e i bow my knees to the father of ●y l● j●sus christ . kn● wh●n they may , then they must be b●nded i have read a copy of a grant of liberty , from queene mary to henry r●ffe earle of sussex , giving him * leave to weare a night-cap or co● in her maj●sties presence , counted a great favour because of his infirmity . i know in case of necessity , god would gratiously accept my devotion , bound downe in a sicke dressing ; but now whilst i am in perfect health , it is inexcusable . christ commanded some to take up their bed , in token of their full recovery ; my lazinesse may suspect , least thus my bea● taking me up , prove a presage of my ensuing sicknesse . but may god pardon my idlenesse this once , i will not againe offend in the same kind , by his grace hereafter . vii . roote , branch , and fruit . a poor man of sevil in spaine , having a fair and fruitfull peare-tree , one of the fathers of the inquisition desired ( such tyrants requests , are commandes ) some of the fruit thereof . the poore man , not out of gladnesse to gratifie , but feare to offend , as if it were a sinne for him to have better fruit , then his betters , ( suspecting on his deniall the tree might be made his owne rod , if not his gallows ) plucked up tree , roots and all , and gave it unto him . allured with love to god , and advised by my owne advantag● , what he was frighted to do● , i wil freely performe . god calleth on mee to present h●m with * fruits , meet for repentance . yea let him take all , soule and body , powers , and parts , faculties , and members of both , i offer a sacrifice unto himselfe . good reason , for indeed the tree was his , before it was mine , and i give him of his owne . bes●des it was doubtfull , whether the poore 〈◊〉 ●ateriall tree , be●ng removed , would grow 〈◊〉 . some plants , transplanted ( especially when old ) become sullen , and do not enjoy themselves , in a ●oile wherewith they were ●nacquainted . but sure i am when i have given my selfe to god , the mov●ng of my soule shall be the ●ending of it , he will dresse so {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} and {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} so prune and purge mee , that i shall bring forth ●ost fruit in my age . viii . god speed the plow . i saw in seed-time an husbandman at plow , in very raining day , askin● him the reason , why h● would not rather leav● off , then labour in suc●foule weather , his answe● was returned me in the● country rythme . sow beanes in the mud and they 'le come up like wood . this could not bu● minde mee of * david expression , they that so● inteares , shall reape i● joy . he that goeth fort● and weepeth , bearing pre●cious seed , shall doubtless● come againe with rejoyceing , bringing his sheave● with him . these last five yeare● have been a wett and ●oeful seeds time to me , ●nd many of my afflicted brethren . little hope have wee , as yet , to come ●gaine to our owne ●omes ; and in a literall sense , now to bring our sheaves , which wee see others dayly carry away , on their shoulders . but if we shall not share in the former , or latter harvest here on earth , the third and last in heaven , wee hope undoubtedly ●o receive . ix . cras cras . great was the abundance and boldne● of the frogs in * egypt , which went up and came into their bedchambers , and beds , and kneadingtroughs , and very ovens . strange that those fenndwellers should approach the siery region ; but stranger , that pharoah should bee so back ward to have them removed , and being demanded of moses when hee would have them sent away , answered , to * morrow hee ●uld bee content with ●eir company one ●ght , at bed and at bord , ●ath belike to acknow●dge either gods justice 〈◊〉 sending , or power in ●emanding them , but ●ill hoping that they ca●ally came , and might ●sually depart . leave i any longer to ●onder at pharoah , and ●en admire at my selfe . ●hat are my sinnes but 〈◊〉 many toades , spit●g of venome & spawn●ng of poyson ; croaking 〈◊〉 my judgement , cree●ing into my will , and ●rawling into my affections , this i see , and suffer and say with pharoah , t●morrow , to morrow i w● amend . thus as the h●brew tongue , hath n● proper present-tense , bu● two future-tenses , so a● the performances of m● reformation , are onely i● promises for the time to come . grant , lord , i may seosonably drowne this pharoah-like procrastination in the sea of repentance , least it drowne me in the pit of perdition . x. green when gray . ●n september i saw a tree bearing roses , ●hilst others of the same ●ind , round about it , were barren ; demanding the cause of the gardi●er , why that tree was ●n exception from the ●ule of the rest , this reason was rendred , because that alone being clipt close in may , was then hindred to spring and sprout , and therefore tooke this advantage by it selfe , to bud in autumne . lord , if i were curb'● and snip't in my younger yeares by feare o● my parents , from those vicious excrescencies , to which that age wa● subject , give mee to have a godly jealousie over my heart , suspecting an 〈◊〉 spring , least corrupt nature , ( which without thy r●raining grace will have a vent ) break forth in my reduced yeares into youthfull vanities . xi . miserere . there goes a tradition of ovid , that fa●ous poet ( receiving ●ome countenance from ●is owne co session * ) ●hat when his father was ●bout to beate him , for ●ollowing the plea●ant , ●ut profitles●e study of ●etrie , he u● correct●on promiss'd his father , ●ever more to make a ●erse , and made a verse , ●n his very promise . pro●ably the same in sense , ●ut certainely more elegant for composure , the● this verse with commo● credulity hath taken up . parce precor , genitor , posthac non versisicabo . father on me pitty take verses i no more will make . when i so solemnely promise my heavenly father to sinne no more . i sinne in my very promise , my weake prayer● made to procure my pardon , increase my guiltinesse , o the dulnesse and deadnesse of my heart therein ! i say my prayers as the * iewes eate the ●ssover in haste . and ●hereas in bodily acti●s motion is the cause 〈◊〉 heate ; cleane contra● , the more speed i make in my prayers the ●older i am in my de●otion . xii . monarchy and mercy . ●n reading the roman , ( whilst under consulls ) 〈◊〉 belgick historie of the ●nited provinces , i re●ember not any ca●itall offender being ●ondemned , ever forgiven●ut alwayes after sentence , followes executio● it seemes that the ve● constitution of a mul● tude is not so inclina● to save as to destro● such rulers in aristocr● cies or popular state● cannot so properly 〈◊〉 called gods , becau● though having the gre●attributes of a deity● power , and iustice , the● want ( or wil● not use then 〈◊〉 god-like property of gods , clemen● to forgive . may i dye in that government , under which was borne , where a m●narch doth comman●kings where they se●●use , have gratiously ●anted pardons , to men ●pointed to death ; ●rein the lively image 〈◊〉 god , to whom belongs 〈◊〉 and * forgive●sse . and , although i ●ill endeavour so to be●ve my selfe , as not to ●ed my soveraignes fa●ur in this kind , yet be●use none can warrant ●s innocency in all ●ings , it is co● fortable ●ing in such a common●ealth , where pardons●retofore on occasion ●ve been , and hereaf● may be procured . xiii . what helps not hurt a vaine thought are in my heart , insta●ly my corruption ●taines it selfe to be 〈◊〉 advocate for it , plea●ding that the worst the could be said against 〈◊〉 was this , that it was vaine thought . and is not this the b● that can be said for 〈◊〉 remember o my sou● the * fig tree was char●ed not with bearing no●ous , but no fruit . yea● barren fig-tree bare 〈◊〉 fruit of annoyance , cut it downe why cumbreth it the groun● ? vain thoughts doe this ill in my heart that they doe no good ●esides the ●ig-tree pester'd but one part of of the garden , good grapes might grow , at the same time , in other places of the vineyard . but seeing my soule is so intent on its object , that it cannot attend two things at once , one tree for the time being is all my vineyard . a vaine thought engrosseth all the ground of my heart , till that be rooted out , no good meditation can grow with it or by it . xiiii . alwayes seen , never minded . in the most healthfull times , two hundred and upwards , was the constant weekely tribute paied to mortality in london . a large bill but it must be discharged can one city spend according to this weekely rate , and not be bankerupt of people ? at least wise must not my short be called for , to make up the reckoning ? when onely seven young-men and those chosen , * by lot , were but yearely taken out of athens , to be devoured by the monster minotaure , the whole citty was in a constant fright , children for themselves , and parents for their children . yea their escaping of the first , was but an introduction to the next yeares lottery . were the dwellers and lodgers in london weekly to cast lotts , who should make up this two hundred , how would every one be affrighted ? now none regard it . my security concludes the aforesaid number , will amount of infants and old folke . few men of middle age and amongst them , surely not my selfe . but oh ! is not this putting the evill day far from me , the ready way to bring it the nearest to me ? the lot is weakly drawn ( though not by mee ) for mee , i am therefore concerned seriously to provide , lest that deaths price , prove my blanke . xv . not whence , but whither . finding a bad thought in my heart , i disputed in my selfe the cause thereof , whether it proceeded from the devil , or my owne corruption , examining it by those signes , divines in this case recommended . 1. whether it came in incoherently , or by dependance on some object presented to my senses . 2. whether the thought was at full age at the first instant , or infant-like , grew greater by degrees . 3 whether out or in the road of my naturall● inclination . but hath not this inquiry , more of curiosity then religion ? hereafter derive not the pedigree , but make the mittimus of such malefactors . suppose a confederacy betwixt theeves without , and false servants within , to assault and wound the master of a family : thus wounded , would he discuss , from which of them , his hurts proceeded , no surely , but speedily send for a surgeon , before he bleed to death . i will no more put it to the question , whēce my bad thoughts come , but whither i shall send them , least this curious controversy insensibly betray mee into a consent unto them . xvi . storme , steere on . the mariners sayling with st. paul , bare up bravely against the tempest , whilst either art or industry could befriend them . finding both to faile , and that they could not any loner be are up into the winde , they even let their ship drive . i have indeavoured in these distemperate times , to hold up my spirits , and to steere them steddily . an happy peace here , was the port wherat i desired to arive . now alasse the storme growes to s●urdy for the pilot. hereafter all the skill i will use , is no skill at all , but even let my ship saile whither the winds send it . noahs arke was bound for no other port , but preservation for the present , ( that sh● being all the harbour ) not intending to find land , but to sloat on water . may my soule , ( though not sailing to the desired haven ) onely be kept from sinking in sorrow . this comforts mee that the most weather-beaten vessell cannot properly be seized on for a wrack , which hath any quick cattle remaining therein . my spirits are not as yet forfeited to despaire , having one lively spark of hope in my heart , because god is even where he was before . 17. wit-out-witted . ioab chid the man , ( unknown in scripture by his name , well knowne for his wisedome , ) fo● not killing absalon when hee saw him hanged in the tree , promising him for his paines , ten shekles and a girdle . but the man , ( having the kings command to the contrary , ) refused his proffer . well hee knew that politick stats men would have dangerous designes fetcht out of the fire , but with other mens fingers . his g●rdle promised might in payment , prove an haltar . yea hee added moreover , that had hee kild absalon , joab himself * would have set himselfe against him . satan daily solicits me to sinne , ( point blancke against gods word , ) baiting me with profers best pleasing my corruption . if i consent , he who last tempted , first * accuseth me . the fauning spannnell , turnes a fierce lion and roareth out my faults in the eares of heaven . grant , lord , when satan shall next serve me , as joab did the nameless israelite , i ma● serve him , as the name lesse israelite , did joa● flatly refusing his deceitfull tenders . xviii . hereafter . david fasted & prayed for his sick sonn● , that his life might be prolonged . put when he was dead , this consideration comforted him . i shall * goe to him , but hee shall not returne to me . peace did long lie languishing in this land . no small contentment that to my poore power , i have prayed and preached for the preservation thereof . seeing since it is departed this supports my soule , having little hope that peace here should returne to mee ; i have some assurance that i shall goe to peace heareafter . xix . bad at best . lord , how come wicked thoughts to perplex me in my prayers , when i desire and endeavour onely to attend thy s●rvice ? now i perceive the cau● thereof . at other times i have willingly entertained them , and now they entertaine themselves against my will . i acknowledge thy justice , that what formerly i have invited , now i cannot expell . give me here after alwayes to bolt out such ill guestes . the best way to be rid of ●uch bad thoughts in my prayers is not to receive them out of my prayers . xx . compendium dispendiune . pope boniface the ●th at the end of each hundred yeares , 〈◊〉 a iubilee at r●me , wherein people , bringing themselves , and money thither had pardon for their sinnes . put centenary yeares return'd but seldome popes were old before and ●vetuous when they came to their place . few had the happinesse to fill their coffers with iubilee-coyne . hereupon , * clement the sixth reduced it to every fifteenth yeare . gregory the eleventh to every three and thirtieth . paul the second , and sixtus the fourth to every twentieth fifth yeare . yea , an agitation is reported in the conclave , to bring downe iubilees to fifteenth , twelve , or ten yeares , had not some cardinalls , ( whose policy was above their coveteousnes ) opposed it . i serve my prayers , as they their iubilees . perchance they may extend to a quarter of an houre , when powred out at large . but some dayes i begrutch this time as too much , and omit the ●reface of my prayer , with some passages conceived lesse material , and ●unne two or three peti●ions into one , so contracting them to halfe a quarter of an houre . not long after , this also seemes two long ; i decontract and abridge the abridgement of my prayers , yea , ( be it confessed to my shame and sorrow that hereafter i may amend it ) too often i shrinke my prayers to a m●nute , to a moment , to a lord have mercy upon me . scripture observations . i. prayer may preach . father , i thank thee ( said our * sav our , being ready to ●aise lazar●s , that thou h●st hea●d me . and i ●now that thou he 〈◊〉 me 〈◊〉 , but because of the p●ople that stand by , i said it , that they may believe that thou hast sent me . it is lawfull for ministers in their publique prayers to insert passages for the edifying of their auditors , at the same time petitioning god & informing their hearers . for our saviour glancing his eyes at the peoples instruction , did no whit hinder the stead fastnesse of his lookes , lifted up to his father . when before sermon i pray for my soveraigne & master king of great britaine , france , and ireland , def●nder of the faith , in all causes , and over all persons , &c. some ( who omit it themselves ) may censure it in me for superfluous : but never more neede to teach men the kings title , & their owne ●uty , that the simple may be informed , the forgetfull remembred thereof , and that the affectedly ignorant , who will not take advice , may have all ●cuse taken from them . wherefore in powring forth my prayers to god , well may i therein sp●inkle some by-drops for the instruction of the people . ii. the vicious meane . zophar the naamath●te mentioneth a sort of men , in whose mouthes wickednesse is sweet , * they hide it under their ton●ue , they spare it , and forsa●e it not , but keepe it still in their mouth . this furnisheth me with a tripartite division of men in the world . the first and best are those , who 〈◊〉 sin out , loathing it in their judgments , and leaving it in their practice . the second sort , notoriously wicked , who swa●low sinne downe , actually and openly committing it . the third endeavouring and expedient betwixt heaven and hell , neither doe nor deny their lusts ; neither spitting them out nor swallowing them downe , but rolling them under their tongues , epicurizing theron , in their filthy fancies and obscene speculations . if god at the last day of judgement hath three hands , a right for the sheep , a left for the goates , the middle is mos● proper for these third sort of men . but both these latter kinds of sinners shall be confounded together . the rather because a sinne thus rolled , becomes so soft and suple , and the throat is so short and slippery a passage , that insensibly it may slide downe from the mouth into the stomach , and contemplative wantonnesse quickly turnes into practicall uncleanesse . iii. store no sore . iob had a custome to offer burnt offerings according to the number of his sonnes , for * he said , it may be that my sonnes in their feasting hav● sinned , and cursed god in their hearts . it may be , not it must be , he was not certaine but suspected it . but now ; what if his sonnes had not sinned ? was iob's labour lost , and his sacrifice of none effect ? oh no! only their property was altered ; in case his sonnes were found f●ulty , h●s sacrifices for them were propitiatorie , & through christ obtained their pardon : in case they were innocent his offerings were eucharisticall , returning thankes to gods restraining grace , for keeping his sonnes from such sinnes , which otherwise they would have committed . i see in all doubtfull matters of devotion , it is wisest to be on the sures● side , better both lock , and bolt , and barre it , then leave the least doore of danger open . hast thou done what is disputable whether it be well done ? is it a measuring cast whether it be lawfull or no ? so that thy conscience may seeme in a manner to stand neuter , su● a conditional pardon out of the court of heaven , the rather because our selfe-love is more prone to flatter , then our godly jealousie to suspect our selves without a cause , with such humilit● heaven is well pleased . for suppose thy selfe over-cautious needing no forgivenesse in that particular , god will interpret the pardon thou prayest for to be the praises presented unto him . iiii. line on line . moses in gods name did counsell joshua , deutronomie 31. 23. be strong , and of a good courage , for thou shalt bring the children of israel int● the land which i sware to them . god immediately did command him , josh. 1. 6. be strong and of a good courage , and againe v. 7. onely be thou strong and very couragious ; and againe v. 9. have i no● commanded thee ? be strong and of a good courage , be not affraid , neither be not dismaid , lastly the rubenites , and gadites heartily desired him , v. 18. onely be strong and of a good courage . was joshua a dunce or a coward ? did his witt or his valour want an edge ? that the same precept must so often be press'd upon him , no doubt neither but god saw it needfull , that 〈◊〉 should have courage of proofe , who was to encounter both the froward iew , and the fierce canaanite . though metal on metal , colour on colour be falfe heraldry , * line on line , precept on precept , is true divinity . be not therefore offended ô my soule , if the same doctrine be often delivered unto thee by different preachers : if the same precept ( like the * sword in paradise , which turned every way ) doth hunt and haunt thee , tracing thee which way soever thou turnest rather conclude that thou art deeply concerned in the practice thereof which god hath thought fit should be so frequently inculcated into thee . v. o the depth . had i beheld sodome in the beauty thereof and had the angel told me , that the same should be suddainly destroyed , by a mercilesse element , i should certainly have concluded that sodome should have been drownd led thereunto by these considerations . 1. it was situated in the plaine of i●rdan , a flat , low , level country . 2. it was well watered * every where , and where alwayes there is water enough there may sometimes be too much . 3. iordan had a quality in the first moneth to overflow * all his bankes . but no dropp of moisture is spilt on sodom , it is burnt to ashes . how wide are our conjectures , when they guesse at gods judgements ? how farre are his wayes abo●e our apprehensions ? especially when wicked men with the sodomites wander in strange sinnes out of the rode of common corruption , god meets them with strange punishments , out of the reach of common conception , not coming within the compasse of a rationall suspition . vi . selfe , selfe-hurter . vvhen god at the first day of judgment , arraigned eve , she transferred her fault on the * serpent which beguiled her . this was one of the first fruits of our depraved nature . but ever after regenerate men in scripture making the confession of their sinnes , ( whereof many precedents ) cast all the fault on themselves alone , yea david when he numbred the people , though it be express'd that * satan prov●ked him thereunto , and though david pr●bably might be sensible of his temptation , yet he never accused the devil , but derived all the guilt on himselfe * i , it is that have sinned , good reason for satan hath no impu sive power , he may strike fire , till he be w●ary , ( if his mal●ce c●n be weary ) except mans corruption bri●g ●he ●nder , the match , cannot be lighted away then with that plea of course . the deuill owed me ashame owe thee he might , but pay thee he could not , unlesse thou wer 't as willing to take his black money , as he to tender it . vii . god , behold a troope commeth . the * amalakite who brought the tidings to david began with truth , rightly reporting the overthrow of the israelites , cheaters must get some credit , before they can cozen , and all falsehood , if not founded in some truth , would not bee fixed in any beliefe . but proceeding he told six lyes successively . 1. that saul called him . 2. that he came at his call . 3. that saul demanded who he was . 4. that hee return'd his answer . 5. that saul commanded him to kill him , 6. that he kill'd him accordingly . a wilfull falsehood told , is a cripple not able to stand by it selfe , without some to support it , it is easie to tell a lye , hard to tell but a lie . lord , if ibe so unhappie to relate a falshood ; give me to recall it or repent of it . it is said of the pismires , that to prevent the growing ( and so the corrupting ) of that corne which they hoord up , for their winter provision , they bite off both the ends thereof , wherein the generating power of the graine doth confist . when i have committed a sinne , o let me so order it , that i may destroy the procreation thereof , and i , by a true sorrow , condemne it to a bles●ed barrennesse . viii . out meanes in miracles . vvhen the angell brought * saint peter out of prison , the iron gate opened of it's owne accord . but comming to the house of mary the mother of john , marke was faigne to stand before the doore , and knock . when iron gave obedience , how can wood make opposition ? the answer easie . there was no man to open the iron-gate , but a portresse was provided of course to unlock the doore , god would not therefore shew his finger , where men's hands were appointed to do the worke . heaven will not super-institute a miracle , w●ere ordinary meanes we ●formerly in peacea● possession . but if they 〈◊〉 depart or resigne ( 〈◊〉 confessing 〈◊〉 ●ufficiency ) there 〈◊〉 succeed in their vacancy . lord , if onely wooden obstacles ( such as can be removed by might of man ) hindred our hope of peace , the arme of flesh might relieve us . ●ut alasse they are iron obstructions , as come not within human power or policy to take a way . no proud flesh shall therefore presumptuously pretend to any part of the praise , but ascribe it soly to thy selfe , if now thou shouldest be pleased after seaven yeares hard apprentiship in civill war●es , miraculously to burn our indentures , and restore us to our former liberty . ix . military mourning . some may wonder at the strang incoherence in the words and acti●ns . 2 s●m . 1. 17. and david lamented , with this lamentation , ●ver saul , and over jona●han his sonne . also hee ●ad them teach the children of judah the use of 〈◊〉 bow . but the connexion is excellent . for that is the most souldier-like-sor●ow , which in middest of griefe can give order , for revenge , on such as have slaine ●heir friends . our generall fast was first appointed to 〈◊〉 the massacre of our ●ethren in ireland . but it is in vaine , to have a finger in the eye , if we● have not also a sword 〈◊〉 the other hand ; such tam● lamenting of lost friends● is but lost lamentation● we must bend our bow● in the camp , as well as ou●knees in the churches , an● second our posture of piety with martiall provision● . x. no stoole of wickednesse . some times i have disputed with my selfe , which of the two were most guilty . david wh● said in hast all men are * lyars , or that wicked man who * sat and spake against his brother , and slandered his owne mothers sonne . david seemes the greater offender ; for mankind might have an action of defamation against him , yea , he might justly be challenged for giving all men the lye . but marke david was in hast , he spake it in transitu , when he was passing , or rather posting by , or if you please , not david , but davids haste rashly vented the words . wheras the other sate , a sad solemne , serious , premeditate , deliberate posture , his malice had a full blow with a steddy hand , a● the credit of his brother . not to say that sate carries with it the countenance of a iudiciall proceeding , as if he made 〈◊〉 session or bench-business● thereof , as well condemnning as accusing unjustly . lord , pardon my cursory , and preserve me from sedentary sinnes . if in haste or heate of passion i wrong any , give me at leisure to aske thee and them forgivenesse . but o let me not sit by it , ●tudiously to plot , or 〈◊〉 mischiefe to any out of malice prepense . to ●hed bloud , in coole ●loud , is bloud with a witnesse . xi . by degrees . ●ee by what staires wicked * ahaz , did climb up to the heigth of prophanesse . first he * saw an idolatrous altar at damascus . our eyes when gazing on sinfull objects are out of their calling and gods keeping . secondly he lik'd it . there is a secred fascination in superstition , and our soules soone bewitched , with the gawdinesse of false service from the simplicity o● gods worship . thirdly he made the like to it . and herein vriah the priest ( patr● and chaplaine well me● was the midwife to del● ver the mother-altar of damascus of a babe , like unto it , at hierusale● . fourthly he * sacrificed on it . what else could be expected , but that when he had tuned this new instrument of idolatry , he would play upon it . fifthly , he commanded the * people to doe the like . not content to confine it to his personall impiety . lastly , he removed gods altar away . that venerable altar , by divine appointment peaceably possess'd of the place , for 200. yeares and upwards , must now be violentlyejected by a usurping vpstart . no man can be starke naught at once . let us stop the progresse of sin in our soule at the first stage , for the further it goes , the faster it will increase xii . the best bedmaker . vvhen a good man is ill at ease , god promiseth to make all his * bed in his sicknesse . pillow , bolster , head , feet , sides , all his bed . surely that god who made him , knowes so well his measure and temper , as to make his bed to please him . herein his art is excellent , not sitting the bed to the person , but the person to the bed , insusing patience into him . but o how shall god make my bed , who have no bed of mine owne to make ? thou foole , hee can make thy not having a bed , to be a bed unto thee . when jacob slept on the * ground who would not have had his hard lodging , therewithall to have his heavēly dreame ? yea the poore woman in jersey , * which in the reigne of queen mary , was delivered of a child , as she was to be burnt at the stake , may be said to be brought to bed in the fire . why not ? if gods justice threatned to cast * jezabel into a bed of fire , why might not his mercy make , the very flames a soft bed to that his patient martyr . xiii . when begun , ended . the scripture giveth us a very short account of some battailes , as if they were flightes without sights , and the armies parted as soone as met . as gen 14. 10. 1 sam. 31.1 2 cro. 25. 22. some will say the spirit gives in onely the summe of the successe , without any particular passages in acheiving it . but there is more in it , that so little is said of the fight . for sometime the question of the victory , is not disputed at all , but the bare propounding decides it . the stand of pikes , oftimes no stand , & the footemen so fitly called as making more use of their feet then their hands . and when god sends a qualme of feare over the souldiers hearts , it is not all the skill and valour of their commanders , can give them a cordiall . our late warre hath given us some instances hereof . yet let not men tax their armyes for cowardise , it being probable , that the badnesse of such as staid at home of their respective sides , had such influence on those in field , that souldiers hearts might be feare-broken , by the score of their sinnes , who were no souldiers . xiiii . too late , too late . the elder brother laid a * sharpe and true charge against his brother prodigal , for his riot and luxury . this nothing affected his father , the mirth , meat , musick at the feast , was notwithstanding no whit abated . why so ? because the elder brother was the younger in this respect , & came too late . the other had got the speed of him , having first accused himselfe , ( 9 verses before ) and already obtained his pardon . satan , ( to give him his due ) is my brother , and my elder by creation . sure i am , hee will be my greivous accuser . i will endeavour to prevent him , first condemning my selfe to god my father . so shall i have an act of indempnity before he can enter his action against mee . xv . lawfull stealth . i find two ( husband and wife ) both stealing , and but one of them guilty of felony . and rachel * had stolne the images that were her fathers , and jacob stole away unawares to laban the syrian . in the former a complication of theft lying , sacriledge , and idolatry ; in the latter no sin at all . for what our conscience tels us is lawfull , and our discretion , dangerous , it is both conscience and discretion to doe it with all possible secrecy . it was as lawfull for jacob in that case privately to steale away , as it is for that man , who findes the sun-shine too hot for him , to walke in the shade . god keep us from the guilt of rachels stealth . but for jacobs stealing away , one may confess the fact , but deny the fault therein . some are said to have gotten their life for a prey if any , in that sense , have preyed on , ( or if you will ) plundered their own liberty , stealing away from the place , where they conceived their selves in danger , none can justly condemne them . xvi . text improved . i heard a preacher take for his text , am i not thy asse , * upon which thou hast ridden ever since i was thine unto this day , was i ever wont to doe so unto thee ? i wondred what he would make thereof , fearing hee would starve his auditors for want of matter . but hence he observed . 1. the siliest and simplest being wronged , may justly speake in their own● defence . 2. worst men , have 〈◊〉 good title to their own● goods . balaam a sorcerer yet the asse confesseth twise he was his . 3. they who have done many good offices , and faile in one , are often not onely unrewarded for former service , but punished for that one offence . 4. when the creatures formerly officious to serve us , start from their wonted obedience ( as the earth to become barren and aire pestilential ) man ought to reflect on his owne sinne as the sole cause thereof . how fruitfull are the seeming barren places of scripture . bad plow-men , which make balkes of such ground . wheresoever the surface of gods word doth not laugh and sing with corne , there the heart thereof within is merry with mines , affording , wherenot plaine matter , hidden mysteries . xvii . the royall bearing . god is said to have brought the israelites out of aegypt an * aeagles-wings . now eagles , when removing their young-ones , have a different posture from other foule , proper to themselves ( fit it is that there should be a distinction betwixt soveraigne and subjects ) carrying their prey in their talons , but young ones on their backs , so interposing their whole bodyes betwixt them and harme . the old eagles body , is the young eagles-sheild , and must be shott through , before her young ones can be hurt . thus god , in saving the iewes , put himselfe betwixt them and danger . surely god so loving under the law , is no lesse gracious in the gospell : our soules are better secured , not onely above his wings , but in his body ; your life is hid * with christ in god . no feare then of harme , god first must be pierced , before wee can be prejudiced . xviii . none to him . it is said of our saviour , his fan * is in his hand . how well it fits him , and he it ? could satans clutches snatch the fan , what worke would he make ? he would fan , as he doth * winnow , in a tempest , yea , in a whirle-winde , and blow the best away . had man the fan in his hand especially in these distracted times , out goes for chaffe , all oposite to the opinions of his party seeming sanctity wil carry it away from such who with true , ( bu● weak grace , ) have ill natures and eminent corruptions . there is a kind of darnell , called lolium murinum because so counterfeiting corne , that even the mice themselves , ( experience should make them good tasters , ) are sometimes deceived therwith . hypocrites in like manner so act holinesse , that they passe for saints before men , whose censures often barne up the chaffe , and burne up the graine . well then ! christ for my share . good luck have hee with his honour . the fan is in so good a hand , it cannot be mended . onely his hand , who knowes hearts is proper for that employment . xx . humility : it is a strange passage , rev. 7.13 , 14. and one of the elders answered saying unto mee , what are these who are arrayed in white robes , and whence came they ? and i said unto him , sir , thou knowest . and he said unto me , these are they who have come out of great tribulation , &c. how comes the elder when asking a question to be said to answer ? on good reasō : for his quaere in effect , was a resolution , he ask't st. iohn , not because he thought he could , but knew he could not answer . that johns ingenuous confession of his ignorance might invite the elder to inform him . as his question is called an answer , so gods comm●nds are grants . when he enjoynes us , repent , believe , it is onely to draw from us a free acknowledgment of our impotency to performe his commands . this confession being made by us , what he enjoynes he will enable us to doe . mans owning his weaknesse , is the onely stock for god thereon to graft the grace of his assistance . meditations on the times . i. name-generall . heber had a sonne borne in the dayes when the * earth was divided . conceive we it just after the confusion of tongues , when mankind was parcelled out into severall colonies . wherefore heber to perpetuate the memorie of so famous an accident , hapning at the birth of his sonne , called him peleg , which in the hebrew tongue signifieth partition or division . we live in a land and age of dissention . counties , cities , townes , villages , families , all divided in opinions , in affections . each man almost divided from himselfe , with feares and distractions . of all the children , borne in england within this last five yeares and brought to the font , ( or if that displeas , to the bason ) to be baptized , every male may be called peleg , and female , palgah in the sad memoriall of the time of their nativity . ii. wofull wealth . barbarous is the custome of some english people on the sea side , to prey on the goods of poore shipwrack't merchants . but more divelish in their designe , who make false fires , to undirect sea-men in a tempest , that thereby from the right road , they may be misled into danger and destruction . england hath been toss'd with an hirricano of a civill warre . some men are said to have gotten great wealth thereby . but it is an ill leap when men grow rich per saltum , taking their rise from the miseries of a land , to which their owne sinnes have contributed their share . those are farre worse , ( and may not such be found ? ) who by cunning insinuations , and false glosings , have in these dangerous dayes trained and betrayed simple men into mischeife . can their pelfe prosper ? not got by valour or industry , but deceit ; surely it cannot be wholsome , when every morsell of their meate is mummie , ( good physick but bad food ) made of the corps of mens estates . nor will it prove happy , it being to be feared , that such who have been enriched with other men's ruines , will be ruined by their own riches . the child of ten yeares , is old enough to remember the beginning of such men's wealth , and the man of threescore and ten is young enough to see the ending thereof . iii. a new plot . vvhen herod had beheaded iohn the baptist , some might expect that his disciples would have done some great matter , in revenge of their masters death . but see how they behave themselves . and his * disciples came and tooke up the body and buried it , and went and told iesus . and was this all ? and what was all this ? alasse poore men ! it was some solace to their sorrowfull soules , that they might lament their losse to a fast friend , who though for the present unable to helpe , was willing to pitty them . hast thou thy body unjustly imprisoned , or thy goods violently detained , or thy credit causelesly defamed ? i have a designe whereby thou shalt revenge thy selfe , even goe and tell iesus . make to him a plaine and true report of the manner and measure of thy sufferings , especially there being a great difference betwixt iesvs then clouded in the flesh , and iesvs now shining in glory , having now as much pitty and more power to redresse thy greivances . i know it is counted but a cowardly trick , for boyes when beaten but by their equals , to cry that they 'l tell their father . but during the present necessitie , it is both the best wisedome and valour , even to complaine to thy father in heaven , who will take thy case into his serious consideration . iiii. providence . marvelous is gods goodnesse , in preserving the young ostridges . for the old one , leaveth her * egges in the earth , and warmeth them in the dust , forgetting that the foot may crush them , or that the wild beast may breake them . but divine providence so disposeth it , that the bare nest hatcheth the egges , and the warm'th of the sandy ground discloseth them . many parents ( which otherwise would have been loving pelicans ) are by these unnaturall warres , forced to be ostridges to their own children , leaving them to the narrow mercy of the wide world . i am confident that these orphanes ( so may i call them whilst their parents are a live ) shall be comfortably provided for . when worthy master samuel herne famous for his living , preaching , and writing lay on his death bed , ( rich onely in goodnesse and children ) his wife made much womanish lamentation , what should hereafter become of her little ones , peace ( sweet heart said hee ) that god who feedeth the * ravens will not starve the hernes . a speech censured as light by some , observed by others as propheticall , as indeed it came to passe , that they were well disposed of . despaire not therefore o thou parent of gods blessing for having many of his blessings , a numerous off-spring . but depend on his providence for their maintenance : finde thou but faith to believe it , he will finde meanes to effect it . v. coles * for fagot . in the dayes of king edward the sixth when bonner was kept in prison , reverend ridley having his bishoprick of london would never goe to dinner at fulham without the company of bonners * mother and sister ; the former alwayes sitting in a chaire , at the upper end of the table , these guests , were as constant as bread and salt at the board , no meale could be made without them . o the meeknesse , and mildnesse of such men as must make martyres ! active charity alwayes goes along with passive obedience . how many ministers wives & childrē , now adayes are outed of house and home ready to be starved , how few are invited to their tables , who hold the sequestrations of their husbands or fathers benefices ? yea many of them are so farr from being bountifull , that they are not just , denying or detaining from those poore soules that pittance , which the parliament hath alotted for their maintenance . vi . fugitives over taken . the city of geneva is seated in the marches of severall dominions , france , savoy , switzerland ; now it is a fundamentall law in that signiory , to give free accesse to all offenders , yet so as to punish their offence , according to the custome of that place wherein the fault was committed . this necessary severity doth sweep their state from being the sink of sinners , the rendevouz of rogues , and head-quarters of all malefactors , which otherwise would fly thither in hope of indempnity . herein i highly aprove the discipline of geneva . if we should live to see churches of severall governments permitted in england , it is more then probable that many offenders , not out of conscience , but to escape censures , would fly from one congregation to another , what * nabal said snllenly and spightfully , one may sadly foresee , & fore-say of this land , many servants now adayes will breake every man from his master ; many guilty persons abandoning that discipline under which they were bred and brought up , will shift and shelter themselves under some new model of government . well were it then if every man , before he be admitted a member of a new congregation , doe therein first , make satisfaction for such scandalous sinnes , whereof he stands justly charged in that church which he deserted . this would conduce to the advanceing of vertue and the retrenching of notorious licentiousnesse . vii both and neither . a city was built in germany upon the river weser , by charles the emperour , & vuidekind , first christian-duke of saxony ; and because both contributed to the structure thereof , it was called * mynethyne , ( at this day , by corrupt pronunciation mindin ) to shew the joynt-interest both had in the place . send lord , in thy due time , such a peace in this land , as prince and people may share therein ; that the soveraigne might have what hee justly calls myne , his lawfull prerogative , and leave to the subjects their propriety . such may be truely termed an accommodation which is ad commmodum utriusque for the benefit of both parties concerned therein . viii . fed with fasting . the salmon may passe for the ridle of the river . the oldest fisherman never as yet met with any meate in the maw thereof , thereby to advantage his conjecture on what bil of fare that fish feedeth . it eats not flys with the pearch , nor swollowes wormes with the roach , nor suckt dew with the oisters , nor devoureth his fellow fishes with the pike , what hath it in the water , but the water ? yet salmons grow great , and very fat in their season . how doe many ( exiles in their owne country ) subsist now adayes of nothing , and wandering in a wildernesse of want ( except they have manna miraculously from heaven ) they have no meate on earth from their owne meanes . at what ordinary or rather extraordinary do they diet ? that for all this have cheerefull faces , light hearts , and merry countenances . surely some secret comfort supports their soules . such never desire , but to make one meale all the days of their lives , on the * continuall feast of a good conscience . the fattest capons yeild but sad merry-thoughts to the greedy glutton , in comparison of those delightfull dainties which this dish dayly affords such , as feed upon it . ix . bare in fat pasture . forresters have informed mee , that out-lodging deere are seldom seen to be so fat as those as keep themselves within the parke . whereof they assigne this reason that those straglers ( though they have more ground to range over , more grasse and graine to take their repast upon , yet they ) are in constant feare as if conscious , that they are trespassers , being out of the protection , because out of the pale of the parke . this makes their eyes and eares alwayes to stand sentinells for their mouthes , least the master of the ground pursue them for the dammage done unto him . are there any which unjustly possesse the houses of others ? surely such can never with quiet and comfort enjoy either their places or themselves . thy alwayes listen to the least noise of newes , suspecting the right owner should be reestated , whose restitution of necessity inferres the others ejection , lord that though my meanes be never so small , grant they may be my meanes , not wrongfully detained from others , having a truer title unto them . x. much good doe you . one * nicias a philosopher having his shooes stollen from him , may they ( said he ) fit his feet that tooke them away . a wish at the first view very harmelesse , but there was that in it , which poysoned his charity into a malicious revenge . for he himselfe had hurl'd or crooked feet , so that in effect he wish'd the theefe to be lame . whosoever hath plundred mee of my bookes and papers , i freely forgive him ; and desire that he may fully understand & make good use thereof , wishing him more joy of them , then he hath right to them . nor is there any snake , under my herbes , nor have i ( as nicias ) any reservation , or latent sense to my selfe , but from my heart doe desire , that to all purposes and intents my bookes may be beneficiall unto him . onely requesting him , that one passage in his ( lately my ) bible [ namely eph 4. 28. ] may be taken into his serious consideration . xi . the use of the alphabet . there was not long since a devout , but ignorant papist dwelling in spaine . he perceived a necessity of his owne private prayers to god , besides the pater nosters , ave maries , &c. used of course in the romish church . but so simple was he , that how to pray hee knew not . onely every morning humbly , bending his knees , and lifting up his eyes , and hands to heaven , he would deliberately repeate the alphabet . and now ( said he ) o good god put these letters together to spell syllables , to spell words , to make such sense , as may bee most to thy glory , and my good . in these distracted times , i know● what generalls to pray for . gods glory , truth and peace , his majesties honour , priviledges of parliament , liberty of subjects , &c. but when i des●nd to particulars , whē , how , by whom i should desire these things to be effected i may fall to that poorepious mans . a. b. c. d. e. &c. xii . the good effect of a bad cause . god in the leviticall law , gave this reward , to the woman causelesly suspected of her iealous husband , that the bitter water , which she was to drinke in the priests presence , should not onely doe her no harme , but also procure her children , * if barren before . that water ( drunk by her to quench the fire of her husbands jealousie , ) proved like the spaw unto her , so famous for causing fruitfulness . thus her innocence was not onely cleared , but crowned . his gracious majesty hath been suspected to be popishly inclined . a suspition like those mushroomes , which pliny * recounts amongst the miracles in nature , because growing without a roote . well he hath passed his purgation , a bitter mornings-draught , hath he taken downe for many yeares together . see the operation thereof ; his constancy in the protestant religion , hath not onely been assured to such who unjustly were jealous of him , but also by gods blessing , he dayly growes greater , in men's hearts , pregnant with the love and affection of his subjects . xiii . the child man . iohn gerson the pious and learned chancelour of paris , beholding and bemoaning the generall corruption of his age , in doctrine and manners , was wont to get a * quire of little children about him , and to intreate them to pray to god in this behalfe . supposing their prayers , least defiled with sinne , and most acceptable to heaven . men now adayes are so infected with 〈◊〉 alice , that little children are the best chaplaines to pray for their parents . but o where shall such be found , not resenting of the faultes and factions of their fathers ? gersons plot will not take effect . i will try another way . i will make my addresse to the holy child jesus , so is he stiled * even when glorified in heaven ; not because he is still under age ( like popish pictures , placeing him in his mothers armes and keeping him in his constant infancy ) but because with the strength and perfection of a man he hath the innocence and humility of a child him onelywill i employ to interceed for me . xiiii . worse , before better . strange was the behaviour of our saviour , towards his beloved lazarus , * informed by a messenger of his sicknesse he aboade two dayes still in the place where i was . why so slow ? bad sending him , or to him , on a dying mans errands . but the cause was , because lazarus was not bad enough for christ to cure , intending not to recover him from sicknesse , but revive him from death , to make the glory of the miracle greater . england doth lie desperately sick , of a violent disease in the bowels thereof . many messengers we dispatch ( monthly fasts , weekly sermons , daily prayers ) to informe god of our sad condition . he still stayes in the same place , yea , which is worse , seemes to go backward , for every day lesse likely-hood , lesse hope of helpe . may not this bee the reason that our land must yet bee reduced to more extremity , that god may have the higher honour of our deliverance . xv . all sinne , all suffer . the mariners that guided the ship in the tempest , acts 27.32 . had a designe for their owne safety with the ruine of the rest ; intending ( under pretence of casting out an anchor ) to escape in a bo●te , by themselves . but the soldiers prevented their purpose , and cut off the cord of the boate , and let it fall into the sea . one and all : all sinck , or all save . herein their martiall law did a piece of exemplary justice . doe any intend willingly ( without speciall cause ) to leave the land , so to avoid that misery which their sinnes with others have drawne upon it ; might i advise them , better mourne in , then move out of sad zion . hang out the * scarlet lace at the casement , ( eyes made red withsorrow for sinne ) but slide not downe out of the window without better warrant . but if they be disposed to depart , and leave their native soyle , let them take heede their fly-boate meets not with such souldiers as will send them back , with shame and sorrow , into the ship againe . xvi . eate worthily . saul being in full pursuite of the flying philistines made a law , that no israelite should * eat untill evening . but it was the judgement of jonathan that the army if permitted to eate had done greater execution on their enemies . for time so lost was gained being layed out in the necessary refection of their bodyes . yea marke the issue of their long fasting . the people at night coming with ravenous appetites did eat the fles● with the * bloud , to the provoaking of gods anger . many english people having conquered some stes●ly lusts which fight against their soules , were still chasing them , in hope finally to subdue them . was it a pious or politique designe to forbid such the r●ceiving of the sacrament ; their spirituall food ? i will not positively conclude that such if suffere● to strengthen themselves with that heavenly repast , had thereby been enabled more effectually to cut downe their corruptions . onely two things i will desire . first that such jonathans , who by breaking this custome have found benefit to thēselves , may not be condemned by others . 2ly i shal pray that two hungry yeares make not the third a glutton . that communicants , two twelve moneths together forbidden the lords supper , come not , ( when admitted thereunto ) with better stomach then heart , more greedinesse then preparation . xvii . devotions duplicat . vvhen the iewish sabbath in the primitive times , was newly changed into the christians-lords . day , many devout people , twisted both together in their observation , abstaining from servile-workes , and keeping both saturday and sunday wholy for holy employments . during these civill warres , wednesday and fryday fasts have been appointed by different authorities . what harme had it been , if they had been both generally observed . but alas ! when two messengers being sent together on the same errand fall out and fight by the way , will not the worke be worse done then if none were employed ? in such a paire of fasts it is to be feared that the divisions of our affections rather would increase then abate gods anger against us . two negatives make an affirmative . dayes of humiliations are appointed for men to deny themselves , and their sinfull lusts. but doe not our two fasts more peremptorily affirme and avouch our mutuall malice and hatred ? god forgive us , we have cause enough to keepe ten but not care enough to keepe one monethly day of huiliation . xviii . law to themselves . some 60. yeares since in the vniversity of cambridge it was solemnly debated betwixt the h●ads , to debarre young schollers of that liberty allowed them in christmas , as inconsistent with the discipline of students . but some grave governours maintained the good use thereof , because thereby in twelve dayes they more discover the dispositions●of schollers then in twe ve moneths before . that a vigilant vertue indeed , which would be earely up at prayers and study , when all authority to punish lay a sleepe . vice these late yeares hath kept open house in england . welcome all commers without any examination . no penance for the adulterer , stocks for the drunkard , whip for the petty larciner , brand for the felon , gallowes for the murderer . god all this time us tries as he did * hezekiah , that he might know all that is in our hearts , such as now are chast , sober , just , true , shew themselves acted with a higher principle of piety , then the ●are a voyding of punishment . xx . the new disease . there is a desease of infants ( and an in●ant-disease , having ●carcely as yet gotten a proper name in latin ) cal●ed the ricketts . wherein the head waxeth too great , whil'st the legges , and lower parts waine too little . awoman in the west hath happily healed many , by cauterizing the veine behind the eare . how proper the remedy for the malady i engage not , experience oftimes out-doing art , whil'st wee behold the cure easily effected , and the naturall cause thereof hardly assigned . have not many now adaies the same sicknesse in their soules ? their heads swelling to a vast proportion , and they wōderfully inabled with knowledge to discourse . but alasse how little their leggs ? poore their practise , and lazy their walking in a godly conversation . shall i say that such may be cured by searing the veine in their head , not to hurt their hearing , but hinder the ( itching ) of their eares . indeed his tongue deserves to be burnt , that tlekes of searing the eares of others ; for faith commeth by hearing . but i would have men not heare fewer sermons , but heare more in hearing fewer sermons . lesse preaching better heard , ( reader lay the emphasis , not on the word lesse , but on the word better ) would make a wiser and stronger christian , digesting the word from his head into his heart to practice it in his conversation . meditations on all kind of prayers . 1. newly awaked . by the leviticall law , the firstling of every cleane creature which opened the * matrix was holy to god . by the morall analogy thereof , this first glance of mine eyes , is due to him . by the custome of this kingdome , there accreweth to the land-lord a fine and herriot from his tenant , taking a further estate in his lease . i hold from god this clay cottage of my body ; ( an homely tenement , but may i in some measure be assured of a better before outed of this . ) now being raised from last nights sleepe i may seeme to renue a life . what shall i pay to my land-lord ? even the best quick creature which is to be found on my barren copy-hold namely the calves of my lips , praising him for his protection over mee . more he doth not aske , lesse i cannot give , yea such is his goodnesse and my weaknesse , that before i can give him thankes , he giveth me to be thankfull . ii. family-prayer . long have i search't the scriptures to find a positive precept enioyning , or precedent observing dayly prayer in a family , yet hitherto have found none proper for my purpose . indeed i read , that there was a * yearely sacrifice offered at bethlehem for the family of iesse ; but if hence we should inferre household holy dutyes , others would conclude they should onely be annuall . and whereas it is said , poure out thine indignation on the heathen , and on the families which have not called on thy name , the word taken there in a large acception reproveth rather the want of nationall , then domesticall service of god . but let not propha● nesse improve it selfe , o● censure family-prayer for will-w●rship , as wanting ● warrant in gods word . for where god injoyneth a generall du y as to ●erve and feare him , there ●ll p●rticular meanes , ( wh●reof prayer a principall ) t●nding thereun●o are commanded . and ●urely the pious house●olds of * abraham , * io●hua , and * cornelius , had ●ome holy exercises to ●hemselves , as broader ●hen their personall devotion , so narrower then the publique service , just adequate to their owne private family . iii. selfe without other-selfe . some loving wife may perchance be ( though not angry with ) grieved at her husband , for excluding her from his private prayers , thus thinking with herselfe ; must i be discommoned from my husbands devotion ? what ? severall closset-chappells , for those of the same bed and board ? are not our credits embarqud in the same bottom , so that they swim or sinke together ? may i not be admitted an auditour at his petitions , were it onely to say amen thereunto ? but let such a one seriously consider what the * prophet saith , the family of the house of david apart , and their wives apart ; the family of the house of nathan apart , & their wives apart . personall private faults must be privately confessed . it is not meet , shee should know all the bosom sins of him , in whose bosom she lieth . perchance being now offended , for not hearing her husbands prayers she would be more offended , if shee heard them . nor hath s●e just cause to complaine , seeing herein nathans wife , is equall with nathan himselfe ; what liberty she alloweth , is allowed her , and may as well as her husband claime the priviledge privately and apart to power forth her soule unto god in her daily devotions . yet man and wife , at other times ought to communicate in their prayers , all other excluded . iv. groanes . how comes it to passe that groanes made in men by gods spirit cannot bee uttered ? i finde two reasons thereof . first , because those groans are so low , and little , so faint , fraile , and feeble , so next to nothing ; these still-borne babes only breath without crying . secondly , because so much diversity , yea contrariety of passion , is crowded within the compasse of a groane . in it is comprized sorrow for our sins , joy in christ , fear of hell , hope of heaven , love of god , hatred of sinne . now as when many men at the same time pressing out at a narrow wicket , all stick , and stop each other , so no wonder if so many passions at the same time , striving to vent themselves at the na●row outlet of a groane , are stayed from being expressive , and the groane become unutterable . how happy is their condition , who have god for their interpreter ? who not onely understands what they do , but what they would say . daniel could tell the meaning of the dreame , which nebuchadnezzar had forgotten . god knowes the meaning of those groanes which never as yet knew their owne meaning , and understands the sense of those sighes , which never understood themselves . v. ejaculations their use . eiaculations are short prayers , darted up to god on emergent occasions . if no other artilery had been used this last seven yeares in england , i will not affirme more soules had been in heaven , but fewer corpes had been buried in earth . o that with david we might have said my heart * is fixed , being lesse busied about fixing of muskets . the principall use of ejaculations , is against the fiery * dartes of the i evill . our adversary inje●s , ( how he doth it god k●owes , that hee doth it we know , ) bad motions into our hearts , and that we may be as nimble with our antidotes , as he with his poysons , such short prayers are proper and necessary . in bard h●vens ( so choacked up with the envious sands that great ships drawing many soote water can not come neare ) lighter and lesser pinnasses may freely and safely arive . when wee are time-bound , placebound , or person bound , so that wee cannot compose our selves to make a large solemn prayer , this is the right instant for ejaculations , whether orally uttered , or onely poured forth in wardly in the heart . vi . their priviledge . eiaculations take not up any roome in the soule . they give liberty of callings , so that at the same instant one may follow his proper vocation . the husbandman may dart forth an ejaculation and not make a balke the more . the seaman never the lesse steere his ship right , in the dark'st night . yea the soldier at the same time , may shoot out his prayer to god , and aime his pistoll at his enemy , the one better hitting the marke for the other . the feild wherein bees feed is no whit the barer for their biting , when they have tooke their full re past on flowers or grasse , the ox may feed , the sheep fat on their reversions . the reason is because those little chymists destil onely the refined part of the floure , leaving the grosser substance thereof . so ejaculations bind not men to any bodily observance , onely busie the spirituall half , which maketh them consistant with the prosecution of any other imploiment . vii . extemporary prayers . in extemporary prayer what men most admire god least regardeth . namely the volubility of the tongue . herein a tertullus may equal , yea exceed saint . paul himselfe whose * speech was but meane . o , it is the heart , keeping time and tune with the voyce which god listneth unto . otherwise the nimblest tongue tires , and loudest voyce growes dumbe before it comes halfe way to heaven . make it ( said god to moses ) in all * things , like the patterne in the mount . onely the conformity of the wordes with the mind , mounted up in heavenly thoughts is acceptable to god . the gift of extemporary prayer , ready utterance may be bestowed on a reprobate , but the grace thereof , [ religious aflections ] is onely given to gods servants . viii . their causelesse scandall . some lay it to the charge of extemporary prayers , as if it were a diminution to gods majesty to offer them unto him , because ( alluding to davids expression to * ornan the jebufite , ) they cost nothing , but come without any paines or industry to provide them . a most false aspersion . surely preparation of the heart , ( though not premeditation of every word ) is required thereunto . and grant the party praying at that very instant fore-studieth not every expression , yet surely he hath formerly laboured with his heart and tongue too , before he attained that dexterity of utterance , properly and readily to expresse himselfe . many houres in night no doubt he is waking , and was by himselfe practising scripture phrase , and the language of canaan , wl ilst such as censure him , for his lazinesse , were fast a sleep in their ●eds . supp● one should make an entertainment for strangers with flesh , fish , foule , venison , fruit , all out of his owne fold , field , ponds , parke , orchard , will any say that this feast cost him nothing who made it ? surely although all grew on the same , and for the present he bought nothing by the penny , yet he or his ancestors for him did at first dearely purchase these home-accommodations , when that this entertainment did arise . so the party who hath attained the faculty and facility of extemporary prayer , ( the easie act of a laborious habit ) though at the instant not appearing to take paines , hath bin formerly industrious with himselfe , or his parents with him ( in giving him pious education ) or else hee had never acquired so great perfection , seeing only long practice makes the pen of a ready writer . ix . night-prayer . death in scripture is compared to sleepe . well then may my night-prayer be resembled to making my will . i will be carefull not to die intestate ; as also not to deferre my will-making , till i am not compos mentis till the lethargie of drousinesse seize upon mee . but being in perfect memory i bequeath my soule to god ; the rather because i am sure the divell will accuse mee when sleeping . o the advantage of spirits above bodyes ! if our clay-cottage be not cooled with rest , the roofe falls a fire . satan hath no such need : the * night is his fittest time . thus mans vacation is the terme for the beasts of the forrest , they move most , whil'st he lies quiet in his bed . least therefore , whilst sleeping i be out-lawed for want of appearance to satan's charge ; i committ my cause to him , who neither ●mbers nor sleepes ; answer for me o my god . x. a nocturnall . david surveying the firmament , brake forth into this consideration , when i considered the heavens the worke of thy fingers , the * moon & thestarres , which thou hast created ; what is man &c. how cometh he to mention the moone and starres , and omitt the sunne . the other being but his pensioners , shining with that exhibition of light , which the bounty of the sun alots them . it is answered ; this was davids night meditation , when the sunne departing to the other world , left the lesser lightes onely visible in heaven , and as the skie is best beheld by day in the glory thereof , so it is best surveyed by night , in the variety of the same . night was made for man to rest in . ●ut when i cannot sleep , may i with this psalmist entertaine my waking , with good thoughts . not to use them as opium , to invite my corrupt nature to 〈◊〉 , but to bolt out bad thoughts , which otherwise would possesse my soule . xi . set prayers . set prayers are prescript formes of our own , or others composing such are lawfull for any , and needfull for some to use . lawfull for any . otherwise god would no● have appointed the priests , ( presumed o● themselves best able to pray ) a forme of blessing the people . nor would our saviour have set u● his prayers , which ( as the towne-bushell is the standard both to measure corne , and other bushels by , ) is both a prayer in it selfe , and a pattern or plat-forme of prayer , such as accuse set-formes to be pinioning the wings of the dove , will by the next returne affirme that girdles and garters made to strengthen and adorne , are so many shackles and fetters , which hurt and hinder mens free motion . needfull for some . namely for such who as yet have not attained ( what all should endeavour ) to pray extempore , by the spirit . but as little children , ( to whom the plainest and evenest roome at first , is a labarinth ) are so ambitious of going , an-hye-lone , that they scorne to take the guidance of a forme , or bench to direct them , but will adventure by themselves , though often to the cost of a knock and a fall : so many confesse their weaknes in denying to confesse it , who refuseing to be beholden to a set-forme of prayer , preferre to fay non-sence rather then nothing in their extempore expressions . more modesty , and no le●e piety it had been for such men , to have prayed longer with set-formes , that they might pray better without them . xii . the same againe . it is no base and beggerly shift , ( arguing a narrow and necessitous heart ) but a peice of holy and heavenly thrist often to use the same prayer againe . christs practice is my directory herein , who the third time said the same * words . a good prayer is not like a stratagem in warre to be used but once . no , the oftener , the better . the cloathes of the israelites whilst they wandered fortie yeares in the wildernesse , never waxed old as if made of perpetuano indeed . so a good prayer , though often used is still fresh and faire in the eares and eyes of heaven . despaire not then thou simple soule ; who hast no exchange of raiment , whose prayers cannot appeare every day , at heavens court , in new cloaths thou maist be as good a subject , though not so great a gallant , coming alwayes in the same sute . yea perchance the very same , which was thy fathers and grand-fathers before thee , ( a well composed prayer is a good heire-toome in a family , & may hereditarily bedescended to many generations , ) but know thy comfort , thy prayer is well know to he●ven to it , which it is a co●stant customer . onely adde new , or new degrees of old affections thereunto , and it will be acceptable to god , thus repaired , as if new erected . xiii . mixt-prayers . mixt-prayers are a methodicall composition , ( no casuall confusion ) of extempore and premeditate prayers put together . wherein the standers , still are the same , and the essentiall parts , ( confession of sin , begging of pardon , craving grace for the future , thanking god for former favours &c. ) like the bones of the prayer remaine alwayes unaltered . whilst the moveable petitions ( like the flesh & colour of thy prayers ) are added , abridged , or altered , as gods spirit adviseth and enableth us , according to the emergencies of present occasions . in the mid-land-sea galleys are found to be most usefull , which partly runne on the legges of oares , and partly flye with the wings of sailes , whereby they become serviceable both in a wind and in a calme . such the conveniency of mixtprayer , wherein infused and acquired graces meet together , and men partly move with the brea the of the holy spirit , partly row on by their owne industry . such medley prayers are most usefull , as having the stedinesse of premeditate , and the activity of extemporary prayer , joyned together . xiiii . take your company along . it is no disgrace for such who have the guift and grace of extemporary prayer , sometimes to use a set-forme , for the benefit and behoof of others . iaacob though he could have marched on a man's pace , yet was carefull not to over-drive the children , and eewes * big with young . let ministers remember to bring up the r●re in their congregations , that the meanest may goe along with them in their devotions . god could have created the world ex tempore , in a moment , but was pleased ( as i may say ' , ) to make it premediatly in a set-method of six dayes , not for his own , ease , but our instruction , that our heads and hearts might the better keep pace with his hands , to behold and consider his workmanship . let no man disdaine to set his owne nimblenesse backward that others may goe along with him . such degrading ones-selfe is the quickest proceeding in piety , when men preferre the edification of others before their owne credit and esteeme . xv . prayer must be quotidian . amongst other arguments inforceing the necessity of daily-prayer , this not the least that christ injoynes us to petition for dayly bread . new-bread we know is best , and in a spirituall sense , our bread , ( though in it selfe as stale and moldie as that of the gibeonites ) is every day new , because a new and hot blessing ( as i might say ) is dayly beg'd , and bestowed of god upon it . manna must dayly be gathered , & not provisionally be hoorded up , god expects that men every day addresse themselves unto him , by petitioning him for sustenance . how contrary is this to the common-practice of many . as camells in sandy-countries are said to drink but once in seven dayes , and then in praesens , praeteritum , & futurum , for time past , present , and to come , so many , fumble this , last , 〈◊〉 next weekes devotion all in a prayer . yea some deferre all their praying till the last day . constantine had a conceite that because baptisme wash't away all sinns , he would not be baptized till his death-bed , that so his soule might never loose the purity thereof , but immediately mount to heaven . but sudden death preventing him , he was not baptized at all , as some say , or onely by an arrian bishop as others a●irme . if any erroniously on the same supposition put off their prayers to the last , let them take heed , least long delayed , at last they prove either none at all or none in effect . xvi . the lords prayer . in this age wee begin to think meanely of the lords prayer , oh how basely may the lord think of our prayers . some will not forgive the lords prayer for that passage therein , as we forgive them that trespasse against us . others play the witches on this prayer . witches are reported ( amongst many , other hellish observations , whereby they oblige themselves to satan ) to say the lords prayer backwards . are there not many , who though they doe not pronounce the syllables of the lords prayer retrograde ( their discretion will not suffer them to be betraied , to such a non-sence sin , ) yet they transpose it in effect , desiring their dayly-bread , before gods kingdom come , preferring temporall benefits before heavenly blessings . oh ; if every one by this marke should be tryed for a witch , how hard would it goe with all of us . lamiarum plena sunt omnia . xvii . all best . at the siedge and takeing of new-carthage in spaine there was dis●ention betwixt the souldiers , about the crown murall due to him , who first footed the walles of the city , two pretended to the crown . parts were taken , and the roman army siding in factions , was likely to fall foule , and mutually fight against it selfe . scipio the generall prevented the danger by providing two murall * crownes , giving one to each who claimed it , affirming that on the examination of the prooffes , both did appeare to him at the same instant to climb the wall . o let us not set severall kinds of prayers at varience betwixt themselves , which of them should be most usefull , most honourable . all are most excellent at several times , crown gro●nes , crown ejaculations , crown extemporary , crown sett , crown mixt prayer , i dare boldly say , he that in some measure loves not all kind of lawfull prayers , loves no kind of lawfull prayers . for if we love god the father , we can hate no ordinance , his child though perchance an occasion may affect one above another . xviii . all manner of prayer . it is an antient stratagem of satan , ( yet still he useth it , still men are cheated by it , ) to set gods ordinance at variance , ( as the desciples fell out amongst themselves ) which of them should be the greatest . how hath the readers pue been clash't against the preachers pulpit , to the shaking almost of the whole church , whether that the word preached or read be most effectuall to salvation . also whether the word pre●ch'd or catechiz'd , most usefull . but no ordinance so abused as prayer . prayer hath been set up against preaching , against catech●zing , against it selfe . whether publick or private , church or closet , set or extempore prayer the best . see how st. paul determines the controversie * {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} with all manner of prayer , ( so the geneva translation ) and supplication in the spirit . preferring none , commending all lawfull prayer to our practise . xx . to god alone . amongst all manner of prayer to god , i find in scripture neither promise , precept , nor precedent to warrant prayers to saints . and were there no other reason , this would incourage me to pray to christ alone because . st. paul struck elimas blind , christ made blind bartemeus see . st. peter kill'd ananias and saphira with his word , christ with his word revived dead lazarus . the disciples forbad the synophaenician woman , to call after christ , christ called unto her after they had forbidden her . all my saviours workes are saveing workes , none extending to the death of mankind . surely christ being now in heaven , hath not lesse goodnesse because he hath more glory , his bowels still earn on us . i will therefore rather present my prayers to him , who alwayes did heale , then to those who sometimes did hurt . and though this be no convinceing argument to papists , 't is a comfortable motive to protestants . a good third , where so good firsts and seconds have been lay'd before . occasional meditations . i. love & anger . i saw two chil dren fighting together in the street . the father of the one passing by , f●rch't his sonne away and corrected him ; the other lad was left without any check , though both were equally faulty in the fray. i was halfe offended that , being guilty alike , they were not punished alike : but the parent would only meddle with him over whom he had an undoubted dominion , to whom he bare an unfayned affection . the wicked sinne , the godly smart most in this world . god singleth out his owne sonnes , and beateth them by themselves : whom hee loveth he * chasteneth . whilest the ungodly ; preserved from affliction , are reserved for destruction . it being needlesse that their haire should bee shaved with an hired * rasor whose heads are intended for the * axe of divine justice . ii. upwards , upwards . how large houses doe they build in london on little ground ? revenging themselves on the narrownesse of their roome with store of stories . excellent arithmetick ! from the roote of one floore , to multiplie so many chambers . and though painfull the climbing up , pleasant the staying there , the higher the healthfuller , with clearer light and sweeter aire . small are my meanes on earth . may i mount my soule the higher in heavenly meditations , relying on divine providence ; ( he that fed many thonsands with * five loaves , may feed me and mine with the fifth part of that one loafe , that once was all mine . higher my soule ! higher ! in bodily buildings , commonly the garrets are most emptie , but my minde the higher mounted , will bee the better furnished . let ●severance to death bee my uppermost chamber , the roof of which grace is the pavement of glory . iii. bew●re wanton wit . i saw an indentu e too fairely engrossed ; for the writer ( beter scrivener then clearke ) had so filled it with flourishes that it hindred my reading thereof , the wantonnesse of his pen made a new alphabet , and i was subject to mistake his d●shes for reall letters . what dammage hath unwarie rhetorick done to religion ? many an innocent reader hath taken damas●en & theophilact at their word , counting their eloquent hyperboles of christs pres●nce in the sacrament , the exact standards of their judgement , whence after ages brought in t●ansubstantiation . yea from the fa●hers elegant apostraphe'es to the d●ad ( lively pictures by hasty eyes may be taken for living persons ) prayers to saints tooke their originall . i see that truths secretary must use a set hand , in wrighting important points of divinity . ill dancing for nimlle wits , on the precipisses of dangerous doctrines . for though they cscape by their agility , others ( encouraged by their examples ) may bee brought to destr●ction . iv. ill. done un done . i saw one● , whether ●ut of haste , or want 〈◊〉 skill , put up his sword the wrong way ; it cut even when it was sheathed , the edge being transposed where the back should have been : so that , perceiving his errour , he was feigne to draw it out , that hee might put it up againe . wearied and wasted with civill warre , wee that formerly loathed the mann● of peace ( because common ) could now be content to feede on it , though full of wormes and putrified : some so desirous thereof that they care not on what termes the warre be ended , so it bee ended : but such a peace would bee but a truce , and the conditions thereof would no longer bee in force , then whilest they are in force . let us pray that the sword be sheathed the right way , with gods glory ; and without the dangerous dslocation of prince and pe●ples right : otherwise it may justly be suspected , that the sword put up , will be drawn out again , and the articles of an i●l agreement , though engrossed in parchment , not take effect , so long as paper would continue . v. a pace a pace . rowing on the thames , the waterman confirmed mee in what formerly i had learnt from the maps ; how that river westward runnes so crooked as likely to lose it selfe in a labyrinth of its owne making . from reading to lon●on , by land , thirty by water an hundred miles . so wantonly that streame disporteth it selfe , as if as yet unresolved whether to advance to the sea , or retreat to its fountain . but the same being past london ( as if sensible of its former lazinesse , and fearing to be checkt of the ocean , the mother of all rivers , for so long loytering ; or else , as if wearie with wandring and loth to lose more way : or lastly , as if conceiving such wildenesse inconsistent with the gravity of his channel , now grown old , and ready to bee ●urted in the sea ) runnes in so direct a line , th●t from london to gravesend , the number of the 〈◊〉 are eq●ally twenty both by land and by water . ala● ! how much of my life is lavisht away ? oh the intricacies , windings , wandrings , turnings , tergiversations of my dece●full youth ! i have lived in the middest of a crooked generation * , and with them have turned aside unto * crooked wa●es . high time it is now for mee to make streight * paths for my feet and to redeeme what is past , by amending what is present and to come . flux , flux ( in the germa●ne tongue ; quick , quick ) was a mot●o of b●shop * jewels , presaging the approach of his death . may i make good use thereof , make haste , make haste , god knows how little time is l●st me and may i bee a good husband to improve the short remnant thereof . vi . alwaies the rising sunne . i have wondred why the romish church do not pray to saint abraham , saint david , saint hezekiah , &c. as well as to the apostles , and their successors since christs time ; for those antient patriarks , by the confession of papists , were long since relieved out of lim bo ( soon out , who were never in ) and admitted to the sight and presence of god , especially abraham , being father of the faithfull , as well gentile as ●ew , would ( according to their principles ) bee a proper patron for their petitions . but it seemes that moderne saints rob the old ones of their honour , a garnet , or late bernard of paris , have severally more prayers made unto them then many old saints have together . new beesoms sweepe cleane ; new * cisternes of fond mens owne hewing , most likely to hold water . protestants , in some kinde , serve their living ministers , as papists their dead sa●uts . for aged pastors , who have bor● the heat of the day , in our church , are justled out of respect by young preachers , not having halfe their age , nor a quarter of their learning and religion . yet let not the former bee disheartened , for thus it ever was and will be , english-athenians , 〈◊〉 for novelties , new sects , new schismes , new doctrines , new disciplines , new prayers , new preachers . vii . charitie , charitie , church storie reports of saint john , that being growne very aged ( well nigh a hundred yeeres old ) wanting strength and voice to make a long sermon , hee was wont to goe up into the pulpet , and often repete these words , babes k epe your selves from idols , brethren love one another . our age may seeme suffi●iently to have provided against the growth of idolatry in england . o that some order were taken for the increase of charity ! it were liberty enough , if for the next seaven yeeres , all sermons were bound to keepe residence on this text . brethren love one another . but would not some fall out with themselves , if appointed to preach unity to others . vindicative s●irits , if confined to this text , would confine the text to their passion : by brethren understanding only such of their own party . but o , seeing other monopolies are dissolved let not this remain , against the fundamentall law of charity . let all bend their heads , hearts and hands , to make up the breaches in church and state . but too many now a daies are like pharaohs magicians , who could conjure up * with their charmes more new frogs , but could not remove or drive away those multitude of frogs which were there before . unhappily happy in making more rents and discentions , but unable or unwilling to compose our former differences . viii . the sensible plant. i heard much of a sensible pl●nt , and counted it a senselesse relation ( a rational beast , carrying as little contradiction ) untill beholding it , mine eyes ushered my judgement into a beleef thereof . my comprehension thereof is this . god having made three great staires [ vegetable , se●sible and reasonable creat●res ] that men thereby might climbe up i●to the knowledge of a deity , hath placed somethings of a middle nature ( as halfe paces betwixt the staries ) so to make the step lesse , and the ascent more easie for our meditations . thus this active plant ( with visible motion ) doth border and confine on sensible creatures . thus in affrick , some most agil and intelligent marmasits may seeme to shake ( fore feete shall i say or ) hands , with the rudest salvages of that countrey , as not much more then one remove from them , in knowledg and civility . but by the same proportion may not man , by custome and improvement of piety , mount himselfe neere to an angelicall nature . such was enoch , who whilest liveing on earth , * walked with god . o may our conversation be in * heaven . for shall a plant take a new degree & proce●d sensible , and shall man have his grace stayed for want of sufficiency , and not vvhilest living here , commence angel , in his holy and heavenly affections . ix . christ my king . i reade how king edward the first , ingenuously surprized the welch into subjection , proferring them such a prince as should be 1. the son of a king . 2. borne in their owne countrey . 3. whom none could taxe for any fault . the welch accepted the conditions , and the king tendred them his sonne edward , an infant , newly borne in the castle of carnarvan . doe not all these qualifications mystically center themselves in my saviour ? 1. the king of heaven saith unto him , thou art my sonne , * this day have i begotten thee . 2. our true countrey man , reall flesh , whereas hee tooke not on him the nature of angels . 3. without spot or blemish , like to us in all things , sin only excepted . away then with those wicked men , who * will not have this king to rule over them . may he have dominion in and over me . thy kingdome come . heaven and earth cannot afford a more proper prince for the purpose , exactly accomplished with all these comfortable qualifications . x. tribulation . i finde two sad etymologies of tribulation . one from ( tribulus ) a three forked thorn , which 〈◊〉 that such afflictions which are as full of paine and anguish unto the soule , as a thorn thrust into a tender part of the flesh is unto the body , may properly be termed tribulations . the other , from tribulus , the head of a flail , or flagell , knaggie and knotty ( made commonly as i take it , of a thick black-thorne ) and then it imports , that afflictions , falling upon us as heavie as the flaile , threshing the corne , are stiled tribulations . i am in a streight which deduction to embrace , from the sharpe or from the heavie thorne . but which is the worst , though i may choose whence to derive the word , i cannot choose so , as to decline the thing i must * through much tribulation , enter into the kingdome of god . therefore i will labor not to bee like a young colt , first set to plough , which more tires himselfe out with his owne untowardnesse ( whipping himselfe with his mis-spent mettle ) then with the weight of what he drawes ; and will labour patiently to beare what is imposed upon me . xi . beware . i saw a cannon shot off . the men , at whom it was levelled , fell flat on the ground , and so escaped the bullet . against such blowes , falliug is all the fencing , and prostration all the armour of proofe . but that which gave them notice to fall downe was their perceiving of the fire before the ordnance was discharg'd . oh the mercy of that fire ! which , as it were , repenting of the mischiefe it had done , and the murther it might make , ran a race , and outstript the bullet , that men ) at the sight thereof ) might bee provided , when they could not resist to prevent it . thus every murthering piece , is also a warning piece against it selfe . god , in like manner , warnes before he wounds ; frights before hee fights . yet forty dayes and ninevegh shall be destroyed . oh let us fall down before the lord our maker ; then shall his anger be pleased to make in us a daily passe over , and his bullets levelled at us shall flie above us . xii . the first fruits . papists observe ( such are curious priers into protestants carriage ) that charity in england lay in a swound , from the dissolution of abbies , in the reigne of king henry the eighth , till about the tenth of queen elizabeth . as if in that age of ruine , none durst raise religious buildings , and as if the axe and hammer , so long taught to beat down , had forgot their former use to build up for pious intents . at last comes * william lambert , esqure , and first founds an hospitall at greenwich in kent , calling that his society ( like politique joab , after * davids name . ) the poore people of queene elizabeth . and after this worthy man followed many , that wee may almost dazle papists eyes with the light of protestants good works . the same papists perchance may now conceive charity so disheartened in our dayes ( by these civill warres and the consequences thereof ) that no protestants hereafter should bee so desperate as to adventure upon a publique good deede . o for a lambert . junior ( & i hope some of his linage are left heires to his lands and virtues ) who shall breake through the ranks of all discouragements ; so that now english protestants , being to begin a new score of good works , might from him date their epoche . such a charity deserves to bee knighted for the valour thereof . xiv . the recruit . i reade how one main argument which the apostle paul enforceth on timothy , to make full proofe of his ministery is this , * for i am now ready to be offered , and the time of my departure is at hand . thus the dying saints , drawing neere to heaven , their marke , is the best spur for the surviving to make the more speed in their race . how many excellent divines have these sad times hastened to their long home ? ( so called in scripture * not because long going thither , but long [ ever ] tarrying there . ) how many have beene sorrow-shot to their heart ? o that this would edge the endeavours of our gen●ration , to succede in the dead places of worthy men . shall the papists curiously observe and sufficiently boast , that their stapleton was borne on the same day , on which sir thomas more was beheaded , ( as if his cradle made of the others coffin , ) and shall not our nurseries of learning supply the void roomes of our worthies deceased . no sin i hope to pray , that our timothyes come not short of our pauls , as in time , so in learning and religion . xv . the mongrel . i finde the naturall philosopher , making a caracter of the lions disposition , amongst other his qualities reporteth that first the lion * feedeth on men , and afterwards ( if forced with extremitie of hunger ) on women . satan is a roaring lion seeking whome hee may devoure . only hee inverts the method , and in his bill of fare takes the second course first . ever since hee over tempted our grand-mother eve , encouraged with successe , hee hath preyed first on the weaker sex . it seemes hee hath all the vices , not the virtues of that king of beasts , a woolfe lion , having his cruelty without his geuerositye . xviii . edification . i read in a learned phisitian , how our pro vident mother , nature , foreseeing men ( her wan ton children ) would bee tampering with the edge-tooles of minerals , hid them farre from them , in the bowels of the earth , whereas shee exposed plants and herbs more obvious to their eye , as fitter for their use . but some bold empericks , neglecting the latter ( as too common ) have adventured on those hidden minerals , oft times ( through want of skill ) to the hurt of many , and hazard of more . god , in the new testament , hath placed all historical and practical matter ( needfull for christians to know and beleeve ) in the beginning of the gospell . all such truths lie above ground , plainly visible , in the litteral sence . the prophe ticall and difficult part comes in the close ; but though the testament was written in greeke , too many reade it like hebrew , beginning at the end thereof . how many trouble themselves about the revelatiou , who might bee better busied in plaine divinity ? safer prescribing to others , and practising in themselves , positive piety ; leaving such mistical minerals to men of more judgement to prepare them . xix . mad , not mad . i finde st. paul in the same chapter confesse and deny madnesse in himselfe . acts. 26. verse 11. and being exceeding mad against them , i persecuted them even unto strange cities , verse 25. when festus challenged him to be beside himselfe , i am not mad most noble festus . whilest hee was mad indeede , then none did suspect or accuse him to be distracted ; but when converted , and in his right minde , then festus taxeth him of madnesse . there is a country in affrica , * wherein all the natives have pendulous lips . hanging downe like dogs-eares , alwaies raw and sore ; here only such as are handsome are pointed at for monsters in this age , wherein polluted and uncleane lips are grown epidemicall , if any refraine their tongues from common sins , alone are gazed at as strange spectacles . xx . the deepest cutt. i beheld a lapidary cutting a diamond , with a diamond hammer and anvil both of the same kinde . god in scipture stiled his servants his * jewels . his diamonds they are , but alas , rude , rough , unpolished , without shape or fashion , as they arise naked out of the bed of the earth , before art hath dressed them . see how god by rubbing one rough diamond against maketh both smooth . barnabas afflicts paul and paul afflicts barnabas , by their hot falling out , hierom occasioneth trouble to ruffinus , and ruffinus to hierom. in our unnaturall war , none i hope so weake and wilfull as to deny many good men ( though misled ) engaged on both sides . o how have they scratcht . and raced , and pierced , and bruised , and broken one another ? behold heavens hand grating one diamond with another ; as for all those who un-charitably deny any good on that party which they dislike , such shew themselves diamonds indeede in their hardnesse ( cruel censuring ) but none in any commendable qualitie , in their conditions . finis . page 57 , line 8. for such , reade sue . notes, typically marginal, from the original text notes for div a40668e-210 〈◊〉 2 kings . 3 15. 〈◊〉 : 3 * seque●er . notes for div a40668e-600 * rev. 13. 7. * iob. ●8 . * 〈◊〉 kings 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 . * eph 3. 12. * weavers f●n . mon. p 635. * math. 3.8 . ioh● 15.2 . * psa. 126. 5 , 6. * exod. 8. 3. * exod. 8. 10. * de tristibus lib. 2 eleg. 10. * exod. ●2 . 11. * dan 9 9. * luk. 13 7. * plut. 〈◊〉 lives in thesco . act. 26. 15. * 2 sam. 18. 13. * rev. 12.10 . * sam. 2. 12. 23. * examen . con . trident . pag. 736. colum . 2. notes for div a40668e-4850 * john 11 41. * job 20.12 . * iob. 1.5 . * esa. 28.10 . * gen. 3.24 . * gen. 3. 10. * chr. 12. 15. * gen. 3. 13. * 1 chro. 21.1 . * 1 chro. 21.17 . * 2 sam 1. * psal. 116 11. * psal. 50. 20. * 2 kings . 16. * verse 10 * ver 11. * ver. 13. * ver. 15. * psal. 41.3 . * ●en . 28.12 . * fox martir 3. volum . * rev. 2.22 . * iuke 15. 14. * gen. 31. 19. * num. 2.2.30 . * exod. 19 4. * colos. 3. 3. * mat. 3. 12. * i ●ke 22. 31. notes for div a40668e-9400 * gen. 10 25. * marti 14 12. * iob. 39. 14. * psal. 147 9. * pro. 25. 22. * fox mar●yrolog . 3. volum . p. 432. * 1 sam. 25. 10. * mun●ers cosmog. li . 3. cap. 45c . * pro. 15. 15. * plutarch moralls . * numb. 5.28 . * nat. hist. lib. 19 ch. 2. * in his life juxta finem . * act. 4. 27. * john 11 6. * jo●h . 2. * sam. 14.24 . * vers. 32. * cro. 2. 32.31 . notes for div a40668e-13960 * e●od . 34. 19. * 1 sam. 20. ●9 . * gen. 18. 19. * josh. 24. 15. * acts 10. 2. * zach 12 12. * psal. 37. * ephes. 6. 16. * 2 cor. 10.10 . * heb. 8.5 . * 2 sam. 24. 24. * rev. 12. 10. * psal. 8.3 . * mat. 26. 44. * gen. * pluta●k in scipo's life . pag. 1807. * eph. 6. 18. notes for div a40668e-19070 * heb. 12. 6. * isa. 7. 20. * mat. 3. 10. * mat. 14. 5. * philip . 2 15. * psal. 125 5. * heb. 12. 13. * in his life . p. 10. * jer. 2. 13. * exod. 8. 7. * gen. 5. 22. * philip . 3 20. * psal. 2 7. * luk 19. 14. acts 14. 22. see cem●dens b●t . in kent pag. 327. * 2 sa● . 12 , 28. * 2 tim. 4 6. * eccles. 125. pitzeus in vita stapletoni in viros prius qu● in terminas saevit . pin. nat. hist. lib. 8. cap. 10. * munster cosmog. * malac. 18.19 . acts 15. 24. comfortable words to afflicted consciences together with a short advice to ministers how to handle them : and also mansio christiana, or, the christians mansion-house, being a sermon preached on the lords-day, 7th feb., anno dom. 1668 at the funeral of mrs. martha walmisley, the wife of mr. charles walmisley, minister of chesham magna in the county of bucks / by william jole ... jole, william, d. ca. 1702. 1671 approx. 122 kb of xml-encoded text transcribed from 76 1-bit group-iv tiff page images. text creation partnership, ann arbor, mi ; oxford (uk) : 2003-09 (eebo-tcp phase 1). a46992 wing j887 estc r8442 12327816 ocm 12327816 59581 this keyboarded and encoded edition of the work described above is co-owned by the institutions providing financial support to the early english books online text creation partnership. this phase i text is available for reuse, according to the terms of creative commons 0 1.0 universal . the text can be copied, modified, distributed and performed, even for commercial purposes, all without asking permission. early english books online. (eebo-tcp ; phase 1, no. a46992) transcribed from: (early english books online ; image set 59581) images scanned from microfilm: (early english books, 1641-1700 ; 189:2) comfortable words to afflicted consciences together with a short advice to ministers how to handle them : and also mansio christiana, or, the christians mansion-house, being a sermon preached on the lords-day, 7th feb., anno dom. 1668 at the funeral of mrs. martha walmisley, the wife of mr. charles walmisley, minister of chesham magna in the county of bucks / by william jole ... jole, william, d. ca. 1702. [6], 120 [i.e. 134] p. printed by john winter for samuel homes ..., london : 1671. title on p. 41: necessary advice to ministers how to handle aflicted consciences. reproduction of original in harvard university libraries. "paul, the pattern of pardoning mercy": p. 101-120 [i.e. 134]. created by converting tcp files to tei p5 using tcp2tei.xsl, tei @ oxford. re-processed by university of nebraska-lincoln and northwestern, with changes to facilitate morpho-syntactic tagging. gap elements of known extent have been transformed into placeholder characters or elements to simplify the filling in of gaps by user contributors. eebo-tcp is a partnership between the universities of michigan and oxford and the publisher proquest to create accurately transcribed and encoded texts based on the image sets published by proquest via their early english books online (eebo) database (http://eebo.chadwyck.com). the general aim of eebo-tcp is to encode one copy (usually the first edition) of every monographic english-language title published between 1473 and 1700 available in eebo. eebo-tcp aimed to produce large quantities of textual data within the usual project restraints of time and funding, and therefore chose to create diplomatic transcriptions (as opposed to critical editions) with light-touch, mainly structural encoding based on the text encoding initiative (http://www.tei-c.org). the eebo-tcp project was divided into two phases. the 25,363 texts created during phase 1 of the project have been released into the public domain as of 1 january 2015. anyone can now take and use these texts for their own purposes, but we respectfully request that due credit and attribution is given to their original source. users should be aware of the process of creating the tcp texts, and therefore of any assumptions that can be made about the data. text selection was based on the new cambridge bibliography of english literature (ncbel). if an author (or for an anonymous work, the title) appears in ncbel, then their works are eligible for inclusion. selection was intended to range over a wide variety of subject areas, to reflect the true nature of the print record of the period. in general, first editions of a works in english were prioritized, although there are a number of works in other languages, notably latin and welsh, included and sometimes a second or later edition of a work was chosen if there was a compelling reason to do so. image sets were sent to external keying companies for transcription and basic encoding. quality assurance was then carried out by editorial teams in oxford and michigan. 5% (or 5 pages, whichever is the greater) of each text was proofread for accuracy and those which did not meet qa standards were returned to the keyers to be redone. after proofreading, the encoding was enhanced and/or corrected and characters marked as illegible were corrected where possible up to a limit of 100 instances per text. any remaining illegibles were encoded as <gap>s. understanding these processes should make clear that, while the overall quality of tcp data is very good, some errors will remain and some readable characters will be marked as illegible. users should bear in mind that in all likelihood such instances will never have been looked at by a tcp editor. the texts were encoded and linked to page images in accordance with level 4 of the tei in libraries guidelines. copies of the texts have been issued variously as sgml (tcp schema; ascii text with mnemonic sdata character entities); displayable xml (tcp schema; characters represented either as utf-8 unicode or text strings within braces); or lossless xml (tei p5, characters represented either as utf-8 unicode or tei g elements). keying and markup guidelines are available at the text creation partnership web site . eng walmisley, martha, d. 1668. sermons, english. funeral sermons. conscience -religious aspects -early works to 1800. mercy -sermons. 2003-01 tcp assigned for keying and markup 2003-02 aptara keyed and coded from proquest page images 2003-06 jonathan blaney sampled and proofread 2003-06 jonathan blaney text and markup reviewed and edited 2003-08 pfs batch review (qc) and xml conversion comfortable words to afflicted consciences : together with a short advice to ministers how to handle them . and also , mansio christiana , or the christians mansion-house . being a sermon preached on the lords-day , 7th . feb. anno dom. 1668. at the funeral of m rs . martha walmisley the wife of m r. charles walmisley . minister of chesham magna in the county of bucks . by william iole . minister of sarrett in the county of hertford . london , printed by iohn winter for samuel homes , at the sign of s. paul in little britain . anno dom. 1671. to the reader . if the matter be sound and seasonable , rest contented , and look not for any rhetorical expressions : these sermons would gladly stoop to the weakest capacities ; we like the receipt if it be proper for the distemper , fainting spirits will find but cold comfort from strong lines and elegancy of phrases ; afflicted consciences can gather but little sweetness from the flowers of rhetorick ; the virtue of a cordial doth not lie in the cup in which it is presented , but in the goodness of the ingredients ; we value the meat more than the garnishes about the dish ; if the meat be savory , do not sleight it because it is not served up in a silver dish ; and beware that you do not say as some are apt to say , ●at this day the world even surfeits by books of this nature ) we think there is safet● in the multitude of counsellors for our po●●●ick and civil state. how ●●mberless are the books and re●●●pts , yea , the physitian for o●r bodies grown , yet w●o says ( we have too many ? ) and y●t so foolish are we to thi●k , that in the distempers and unsettled cases of our souls , we may have too many books , too many counsellors , too many physitians , too many directions . i will add but this : oft times a poor countrey physitian does good , where many great doctors , either overlook or neglect . as a woman that was in a despairing condition , propos●d the doubts , and gave the first occasion of preaching this matter ; so the desire of some other women hath now occasioned the printing it , and for their sakes i have purposely avoided any phrases that might seem dark or difficult ; let not the whole despise that which is prepared for the sick , nor let the strong censure what was intended for the weak . vale. psalm 88 , ver. 6. thou hast laid me in the lowest pit , in darkness , in the deeps . this psalm fully answers the title given to it , ( a psalm containing a grievous complaint ) but the occasion of it is doubtful : some rerefer it to the babylonish captivity , because that is the lowest condition that the church can be brought unto in this world , and so figuratively may be called the lowest pit ; but others more properly make it relate only to heman's own private condition : some expound it of his outward afflictions , or of some sharp fit of sickness that brought him nigh to death , which occasioned those expressions , my life dr●●eth nigh to the grave , i am as a man that hath no st●ength . ver. 3 , 4. but methinks there are many expressions that must rather be interpreted of a wounded spirit lying un●e● the apprehensions of gods wrath . surely if there h●d been nothing but outward afflictions , we should no● have h●ard such deep expressions of inward sorrow , the complain● would not have been so mou●nful as now it is ; and therefore i rather accep● of their interpretation , who understand the 5. ver. to be the words of one that is ready to despair ; ( free among the dead ) as if he should say , the die is cast as to my eternal estate , there is no hope of mercy for me , and then this text doth second it , ( thou hast laid me in the lowest pit , in darkness , in the deeps ) namely as to mine own sense and apprehension . i look upon my condition as d●sperate as one that is condemned to eternal darkn●ss , as if my name were ent●●● among that cursed crue already , as if i were ready to drop into ●●at deep and bottomless pi● of darkne●s ; and so the 7 th . ver. seems to bear the same part . thy wrath byeth hard up●n me . i am under such dreadful apprehensions of wrath , and have so little hope of mercy , that i look o● my self as only not in hell , and also the 15 th . ver. while i suffer thy terrors i am distracted he doth not mean a distraction of madness , but a distraction of the mind , of one that was in doubt what would be●ome of his soul for ever ? i am hampered in such endless doubting that i am even like a distracted person : for division of the words here is , 1. an act , laid . 2. the subject , me. 3. the agent , thou . lastly , the place where . in the lowest pit , in the darkness , in the deeps . note by the way , that heman was one of the holyest and wisest men of his time : and now the doctrine i shall offer is this ; that the dearest of gods children may think themselves in a state of damnation . david is a full instance to confirm this doctrine , 51 psal. 11 , 12. cast me not away from thy presence , and take not thy ●oly spirit from ●e , restore ●nto me the joy of thy salvation . david had lost the comfortable sense and feeling of gods love , and began highly to question his salvation , asaph also , 77 psalm 7 , 8 , 9. shews what a great conflict he had with diffidence . will the lord cast off for ever ? will he be favourable no more ? is his mercy clean gone ? hath god forgotten to be gracious ? hath he in anger shut up his tender mercies ? and so heman here in the text ; thou hast laid me in the lowest pit , &c. 1. because the spirit of bondage always goes before the spirit of adoption ; god doth break and bruise the souls of his servants , before he doth bind up and heal them ; he makes the sinner to hear the terrible voice of the law , before he hears the comfortable voice of the gospel ; he throughly convinceth us of sin , and mak●s us sensible of the odious and defiling nature of it , before he makes us apprehend christ as a saviour to procure us a pardon for it ; god makes us see and feel our selves lost , utterly lost , even in a state of dam●ation , before he give us any lively hope of salvation . all that are brought into heaven at last , are brought near hell-gates at first ; i do not mean all universally , but generally , the greatest part of those that are saved , apprehend themselves for a time to be damned ; the spi●i● of bondage worketh fear and horror ; a malefac●or , whose conscience within , and the witnesses without , convince of murder , when he h●ars the sentence passed against him , and sees the fetters on his legs , and himself thrust into the dungeon , he knows that execution follows ; what fear and horror must needs seize on such a condenmed person , ( unless he be a despera●e rogue ? ) that poor soul that is convinced of murdering the lord of life , and of many thousand sins against god , and heareth his sentence of condemna ion read out of the word of god , and sees the fetters on its soul , ( namely the terror of consc●ence , ) and satan standingready to to●ment him , & finds himself already in danger of despair , what fear and horror must needs surprize such a poor soul ? this is that which makes so many under the spirit of bondage , to fear that god will cast them off for ever , and to complain as though they were in hell already . and questionless , the great torment and mis●rie of a wounded spiri● hath been the reason that made any so bold to say , that there is no hell but that of conscience . the apostles words rom. 8. 15. for ye have not received the spirit of bondage again to fear , do imply , that all the elect undergo the terrors of the spirit of bondage , before they receive the spirit of adoption . 2 reason is , because god may , and often doth leave his children for some time , under spiritual des●rtion . many pretious servants of god lie in the little-ease of an afflicted conscience a great while ; if christ complain as if god had forsaken him , it is no wonder to hear a christian complain of being forsaken . it is ●eported of one who lay in a despairing condition 12 years ; and some think that heman lay in that comfortless condition above threescore years , guessing from the age of his life when he spake those words , ver. 15. from my youth up while i suffer thy terrors i am distracted . the lord may forsake his children for a little moment , ( and though it be as long as they live , yet it is but a moment compared with eternity ) but reprobates are forsaken for ever . 3. a child of god may relapse into some sin which he had repented of , and that may cause terror of conscience ; god redeemed , and brought up israel out of egypt , but they would go back into egypt again , num. 14. ver . 4. and this foolish attempt caused god to forsake them for a long time . christ hath redeemed us from sin ▪ and though the christian have r●pented of sin , yet many times he hath thoughts of going back , and sometimes doth relapse into some sin formerly repented of ; and it is just with god to fright him out of such wicked attempt by the terrors of conscience ; if god shoot terrours into the soul , they will stick fast , and make us go heavily , if god set our ●ins in order before us , he can make the sense of sin to be more painful then the most acute disease , whether stone or srrangury : wracks and strapadoes are but ●asie punishments to the wracking of conscience ; to set out the misery of such a condition , the scripture tells us , the spirit of a man may bear his infirmities , but a wounded spirit who can bear ● 18 prov. 14. the courage and strength of body may wrestle with a disease , but the trouble of mind is insuperable and insupportable ; the grief of the soul , is the soul of grief . if we see the fits of an ague so easily master the greatest spirits , and make them quiver and quake in a cold fit , and burn and be distempered in a hot fit ; if a disease can so punish the bodie , then what terrours can the almighty dart into the soul , even to make our very knees to shake as belshazzar's did when he saw the hand-writing against him ; and for the ●ame reasons which occasioned h●s trembling , namely , because it was a hand from god ; and because the writings mentioned the loss of his kingdom . a wounded conscience is the more filled with horror , because the writing is from god , and it doth threaten the loss of the kingdom of heaven . what consternation was there , what sad thoughts , during the time of that devouring fire in london ? o then , when the soul looks on god as a consuming fire , and thinks it shall dwell with everlasting burnings , what horror and disquiet must it needs be seized with ? usually god dealeth with obstinate sinners , as men deal with sturdy rogues , ( put heavier irons upon them , and give them severer punishment ) the more we load our consciences with sin , the more god loads us with terrors of conscience , and so gives us sour sauce for the seeming sweet-meats of sin ; if we have been great and notorious sinners , god may chastise us with scorpions . manasseh was a great sinner , and it is said ( he was taken among the thorns , and bound in fetters , in the 2 chron. 33. chap. 11. ver. the more we have delighted in any sin , the more it will torment conscience when god reckoneth with us for it : paul a refractory persecutor , was strucken to the ground when god converted him . 4. reason why a child of god may think himself damned for a time , is , because the wisdom of god bringeth much good out of this evil ▪ this will make us more highly to prize both our redeemer and our redemption too : how sweet and comfortable is the sight of a pardon to a condemned person ? ho wpretious is a glimpse of christ's love in any promise to a sinner condemned in his own conscience ? how comfortable is the thought of christ to justi●ie , unto those souls that are ready to be swallowed up of despair ? what love , what thankfulness will such a sight beget in such a soul ? how thankful were the famishing egyptians to iosep● 47 gen. 25. thou hast saved our lives ( though they exchanged their land for bread , ) then what thanks is due to jesus christ who saveth our souls freely ? 2. this good ariseth from this evil of an afflicted conscience , that it will mightily increase our hatred of sin ; this is one of gods great designs in breaking our bones for sin , that he may break our souls from sin ▪ invite a christian that hath lain long in the stocks of the law , to commit any of his former sins , will he not answer , ( i will not buy repentance at so dear a rate ? ) had your soul been so long broken on the wheel of conscience as mine hath been , had you so long carried in your bosom the burning coals of an accusing conscience ; had you been thus scorched with the flames of hell , surely , like the burnt child you would dread the fire more , you would not dare to add sin to sin , and heap up more wrath . 3. we are made to pray more earnestly ; the prisoner at the bar begs heartily because he is begging for life ; a self-condemned sinner prayes heartily , because he is begging for the life of his soul. 4. the terrors of conscience will make us more humble and compassionate all our days , pride will not so easily breed in this bitter wood , the worm takes the sweetest wood soonest , the wormwood of conscience kills pride . 5. gods breaking and bruising is in order to a perfect cure , the last reason why a child of god may think himself damned : it may arise either from a neglect of a serious examination of our condition , or from a melancholy temper which contributes very much to such despairing thoughts . who hath not either read or heard what strange conceits melancholy hath caused some to have of their bodies ? some fancying themselves to be a fourm , and that every one would sit on them ; others thinking themselves to be a glass , and that every thing would break them ; or to be like nebuchadnezar , to have the soul of a beast , and to eat grass like a beast , ( which some say was but a strange effect of a strong melancholy , ) even such strange apprehensions may melancholy christians have of their souls , insomuch that many christians have thought themselves to be in h●ll , and for a long time have led most uncomfortable lives by that fearful expectation of of wrath and ●iery indignation to devour them . application is , 1. for information , we must not censure those too hardly that lie under a spirit of bondage ; those are not damned that may think themselves in a damned state , the new birth hath grievous pangs and throes ; those whose sin is ever before their faces , must needs cry out of a heavy burthen of wrath . before this spirit of bondage , we are like issachar , who is called a strong ass couching under two burthens , gen. 49. ver. 14. we have a burthen of guilt , and a burthen of wrath , and yet we are not sensible of either ; but the spirit of bondage shews the intolerable burthen of sin . that i may endeavour to speak something to afflicted consciences , although you say a spirit of bondage is a woful condition , yet i assure you your condition was much worse before you came under this spirit of bondage . to be hardned in sin , is a worse condition , then to be thus harrased by conscience for sin ; to be bold to commit sin , is far worse then to be bruised for sin committed : you are in a great deal worse condition then all hypocrites that go quietly to hell ; how many thousand in the world that are guilty of the same sins you complain of , and yet are senseless as stones ? it is good to hear christians roar in the sense of sin : to hear a man that is bruised with a fal sensibly complain , and tell where his pain lies , is a good sign that there is hopes of his recovery : it is the same in a christian , to complain of sin , and cry out in the fear of that wrath due to sin , is a good sign that conscience is alive , that conscience is awake . a seared conscience is far worse than an afflicted conscience ; a senseless condition is the very worst conditions : if you rightly consider , you have cause to bless god for a spirit of bondage , that while many millions are riding post to hell , god hath stopt you that were running the same road ; remember therefore for your comfort , that many have been lead to the place of execution , and have stood with the rope about their necks , having the sentence of death in themselves , and yet have been pardoned after so great a fright ; many christians are dealt with after the same manner ; god may leave them a long while in the jaylors custody , in fear of eternal execution , ( i mean buffe●ed by satan under temptations to despair ) and yet god may come in with a pardon at last , only he intends to fright us from sin by this means for the future . i have heard of one whose friends had got him a pardon , and yet suffered him to be lead to the place of execution , to make him be more afraid of lewd courses for the future : there may be a pardon for us in gods hand , and yet it may not so presently be given into our hand ; nay , if you have been very long under a spirit of bondage , though god give a pardon into your hand , yet you may not be able to read it , ( being under the dread of exe●ution ) many now living besides me , may remember a man in oxford , that was to draw lots for his life , and he ●rew that paper wherein was writt ( live , ) but he was so possess●d by fear of death , that he threw it away , supposing that he was to die , until some that stood nigh him read his lott , and told him that was to live ▪ so it may fare with an afflicted conscience , god may write ( live , ) and yet the fear of hell may so far stupify the soul , that it may not be able to read the writing ; in case of temptation it is safest to let some other christian read the writing for us , to let other christians judge of our condition . remember therefore , that you were under satans bondage , before you were under the spirit of bondage ; it is much better to be gods prisoner , than satans , a man hardned in sin , is a prisoner without hope ; but a man bruised for sin , is a prisoner of hope ; and though this terrifying work of a troubled conscie●ce be not grace , yet it is in order ●nto grace , all those terrours that do not end in final despair , are still in order to conversion , and the deep●r god cutts and launces the soul , the sooner it will be healed again . it is a great comfort to a patient to hear that there is good hopes of his recovery , although he be still kept in the chirurg●ons hands , or though they tell him it will be a very long cure , the hope of cure revives him , although he may endure much misery before the cure be perfected ; it is a great comfort to a travailer to hear that he is in his right way , although he may pass through many dirty lanes and rugged paths , and perhaps may be set upon by robbers : although the way be tedious and dangerous , yet this bears him up , it is the right way , and will bring him to his journeys end at last . although the way which the spirit useth , seem a tedious and unpleasant way , yet it is the right way to heaven ; and though you may think you are kept long in a course of spiritual physick , yet the hope of a perfect cure at last , may keep you from despair . and here it w●ll be needful to answer some objections which troubled consciences make . alas you speak all this while to a wrong party : i have no grace , and therefore there is no hope for me . answer , 1. it is a happy turn that you see the want of grace . 2. it is well that you are made desirous to have grace ; these are good steps towards grace . answer , 2. to have grace is one thing , and to know that we have grace is another ; that ioseph liveth is one thing , and that iacob knows that ioseph liveth , is quite another thing , for iacob thought he had been torn in pieces by some wilde beast , and made a solemn mourning for him , gen. 34. ver. 34 , 35. in the obscurity of a winters night all the wares remain in the shop , but we see them not except we have a candle , or tarry till day appear again ; there may be grace in the heart and we not discern it ; commonly those that say they have no grace , have more grace then those that so confidently proclaim themselves to be citizens of heaven . 2 objection . but can such a wretch as i expect grace , that have spent so many years in sinful courses , and have sinned so desperately as i have done ? answer . god s●ith , that if we condemn our selves here , we shall not be condemned hereafter , 1 cor. 11. chap. 31. ver . pre-judging of thy self is a good sign that god is fitting thee for mercy . although such is the froward disposition of men , that repeated affronts breed an irreconcileable alienation in our hearts ; yet so infinitely is gods mercy , that he called upon iudah to return to him , after he had played the harlot with many lovers , ierem. 3. ver . 1. and in the 12 ver . god bids back●●●ding israel to return , and in the 55 isa● . ver . 7. god promiseth mercy to the wicked and unrighteous man ; and because the poor self-condemning sinner says he hath abundance of sin , therefore god says that he will abundantly pardon , not only those that are sinners in their own reckoning , but even those whose lewd lives have deserved the name of wicked and unrighteous ; yet let them return to me says god and they shall be pardoned ; no matter how desperate we think our condition to be , if christ undertake the cure , if he be our physitian . nay , if we believe that christ is now in heaven , who had the sins of all the world laid on his back when he was on earth , we may the more easily believe gods readiness to pardon the greatest sinner , and also christs merit to be able to answer for the greatest fins . a 3 objection . but f●ith and repentance are the conditions of pardon ; but i cannot believe , nor repent , and he that belie●veth not is condemned already , iohn 3. ver . 1s . ans. that scripture speaks of a final unbelief , ●e that dies in unbelief ; to be earnest with god for faith , is a sign of some faith ; that man , mark 9. ver . 24. lord i believe , help thou my unbelief . he did not say , i can , or i cannot believe , but lord i desire to believe , and i believe that thou canst help my unbelief : our saviour seems to say unto troubled consciences , as he said to the blind man , matt. 9. ver . 28. do ye believe that i am able to do this ? and they said , yea lord , then says christ , according to your faith be it unto you ; here was faith enough to fit them for a cure . and for repentance , christ is exalted to give repentance , and remission of sins , acts 5. ver . 31. since you know that you cannot believe , nor repent , pray unto christ , and he will enable you : peter denyed his master thrice , and yet christ looked back upon him , and recovered him again ; let the greatest sinners look unto him , and they shall be pardoned . take heed of cain's unbelief , my sin is greater than i can bear ; or as the note in the margent of the bible , is greater than may be forgiven : he did not say so , because it was so ; but it proved to be so , because he said so : unbelief makes sin unpardonable . no sin can damn the soul , if final unbelief be not added to it ; and this made st. austin say , thou lyest cain , for the mercy of god is far greater than the greatest sin . you say you do not repent ; pray tell me , is sin your solace or your sorrow ? doth it make you mery , or doth it make you mourn ? do you love sin , or do you loath sin ? is it that evil which you allow , or that evil which you allow no● ? paul was a true penitent even when he complained of a body of sin , a law in his members , which made him do the evil which he hated . rom. 7. ver . 15. — 19. compared , it shews you do repent ; seeing that god hath made you so sensibly to bewail your impenitency ; therefore look unto christ whom the father hath exalted to give repentance , and remission of sins , acts 5. ver . 31. alass ! i cannot weep for my sins as i ought : outward sufferings ●etch more tears from my eyes , then my sins ; how bitterly did peter weep upon the remembrance of his denyal ? how plentifully did mary magdalen shed tears when we washed our saviours feet with them ? but alass i can scarce weep at all . answer . abundance of tears do not always declare true repentance ; we read of esa●'s tears , but not of his repentance . gen. 27. ver . 34. — 38. he cryed with an exceeding bitter cry , he lift up his voice and weptt . tears seem to us to be all of a colour , god only can put the difference ▪ esau's tears , and peter's , both wept bitterly , and yet both of them wept savingly . there may be true repentance without a flood of tears ; the thief on the cross was truly penitent , and yet we do not read of a tear that dropt from his eyes : david truly repented , and yet we find no mention of any tears when nathan told him of his sins , 2. sam. chap. 12. ver . 13. mr. perkins in his cases of conscience hath abundantly satisfyed us , that tears are not absolutely necessary to true repentance ; some are naturally more dry of constitution , and barren of tears than others . i knew a boy that was not able to shed a tear to save a whipping : true repentance is to be judged of , more by the inward sorrow of the heart , then by the outward sorrow that runs down the cheeks ; the greater the inward grief is , the fewer tears will fall ; as a high wind keeps back the showers off , the great combustion in the soul may keep back the showers of tears ; and so there may be true repentance with drie cheeks . there is great weeping and wailing in hell , but no true repentance . children are more easie to shed tears than grown men ; sighs and groans is the usual way of expressing the greatest sorrow . and whereas you say you cannot weep so much for sins as for outward sufferings : for ought that we can find , hezekiah wept more at the message of death , than when he humbled himself for the pride of his heart . isai. 38. ver . 14. david's sickness drew more tears from him than his sins , psal. 2. ver . 5 , 6. what bitter lamentation did he make when he received the unwelcome tidings of absalom's death ? 2. kings chap. 18. last ver . and 19. chap. 4. ver . those things that most press the outward senses , do squeeze out most tears : to see our house on fire , would more easily force tears from our eyes , than to hear a sermon of the fire of hell , although that be much more dreadful news . to conclude this particular ; a malefactor that is condemned to the gallows , may shed more tears than one that is pardoned ; and yet he that is pardoned may be more penitent than he that is executed . it is dangerous to make any standard to measure true repentance ; for if you will set any , it must be the highest of all : so that unless you are sure that you weep as bitterly as peter , or mary magdalen , the devil will still tell you it is not true repentance : besides it looks so like a papistical trick ( as if you thought that rivers of tears could wash away sin without the blood of ghrist : ) and when we have wept until we can weep no more , if faith be not mixed with our tears , it is but legal repentance . alass ! but i have committed foul facts since my first conversion . answer . so did both david and peter , and how did they recover themselves but by faith in jesus christ , and repentance from dead works ; therefore confess your sins to god , and think of that comfortable portion of scripture , 1. epistle iohn 2. chap. ver . 1. if any man sin we have an advocate with the father , iesus christ the righteous : it is not said , if any man sin not , but if any man sin ; thus poor sinners go loaded to heaven with abundance of experience of the riches of gods grace , and freeness of his mercy in pardoning their heinous transgressions . there are commonly three hindrances in the way of afflicted consciences . 1. looking only upon sin. 2. a proud kind of seeming humility . 3. a searching for the fruits of repentance , before we are sure of faith. 1. many look only upon their sins , and not to their saviour . alass sayes the afflicted conscience , my sins are crying sins , crimson sins , scarlet sins , scandalous sins , foul , frequent , committed against much light , much love , against much means , much mercy : if a wounded man should only look upon the bleeding wound , would it not make him faint for fear that he should bleed to death ? but when he seeth the skilful chirurgeon about to dress it , and considers his skill to cure it , this upholds his sinking spirits ; even so poor sinners must needs faint , and despair of pardon , while they look no further than their sins , which despairing thoughts would soon vanish , if then we could look up to our saviour , are not all sins easie to be pardoned by infinite mercy . it was an excellent answer that one returned the devil , when he told him of the heinousnefs of his sins , thy sins should be pardoned too , if thou couldst believe . christ can more easily pardon seventy offences to us , then we can seven to one another ; he delighteth to forgive much , so to engage us to love him much . when some ●old the ruler that his daughter was dead , and bid him not trouble the master , mark 5. ver . 35 , 36. christ bids him fear not , only believe ; and so to that other person , mark 9. ver . 23. if thou canst believe , all things are possible to him that believeth . when martha said , by this time he stinketh , for he hath been dead four days , ioh. 11. ver . 39 , 40. christ checks her , said i not unto thee , that if thou wouldst believe , thou shouldst set the glory of god ? these were all desperate c●ses , and therefore the more proper for christ the great physitian . christ ●an cure inveterate ulcers , aswel as green wounds ; therefore look up to christ , while you look down upon your sins ; see what power christ hath to save , while you behold what power sin hath to damn ; that so while you see in your selves great cause of despair , you may see in him far greater cause of hope . 2. hindrance to afflicted consciences , is , a proud humility , or a kind of seeming mannerlyness ; it may be like peter , thou thinkst it not good manners to let christ wash thy feet , iohn 13. ver . 8. thou shalt never wash my feet ; calvin's note on those words is , pride often lurketh under pretence of humility ; away with this destructive manners , seeing that the great work which god requireth of us , is , to believe in christ as our saviour , and to believe tha● he both can and will save us to the uttermost , surely we cannot do it too soon . 3 hindrance . it may be that thou searchest for the ripe fruits of repentance , before thou art sure that thou hast faith ; in the work of our spiritual ingrafting into christ , we are like crab-stocks newly grafted , which do not instantly bear fruit the same day , or week , or the same month that they are grafted ; if we be truly ingrafted into christ by faith , repentance , and the fruits of it will appear afterwards , but not the same hour that we are ingrafted , ( i mean not so as to be discerned by us ) look after faith first , before you search after repentance ; faith will help us to repent : paul did not bid the jailor to repent , but believe first , acts 16. ver . 30 , 31. he knew that faith would work repentance ; if the devil tell you ( that you should hav● repented sooner ) remember that true repentance can never be too late , christ dyed before you sinned ; if therefore you believe in christ now , you shall be as surely pardoned as if you had begun your repentance sooner : repent , for your deferring repentance so long , and remember that the repenting thief was 〈◊〉 rejected , though it were at 〈…〉 h●ur . 4. objection . but i am so continually h●un●ed with temptations , either to blasphemy , or self-murther , or one black and devilish temptation or other , that sleeping or waking i am a terror to my self . ans. so were all true saints more or less haunted with the like temptations that have lain longer under a spirit of bondage : this may be a good sign that we have not given satan a peaceable possession , when he thus strives to make a forcible entry , by such horrid temptations . the devil lets them alone of whom he thinks he hath made sure work , but he assaults those most with the greatest temptations , that ar● striving to get out of his clutches . 5. object . but alass , i have something that tells me , i have withstood my day of grace : answer . that something must be either from god , or satan : it cannot be from god , for he tells none , that they shall die in their sins , but such as obstinately reject jesus christ , and refuse to be saved by him ; indeed christ said to the pharise●s , ● go away , but ye shall die in your sins , io● . 8. ver . 21. but if you take notice of it , ' ●was spoken to them that blasphemed christ , and said , he had a devi● . iohn 17. ver . 20. this may be a comfortable note ; christ said to the penitent adulterer , iohn 8. ver . 11. neither do i condemn thee ; and yet he said to the self-justifying pharisees , ye shall die in your sins . that sinner that confesseth and bewaileth his guiltiness , him christ absolveth ; but that soul that thinks it self righteous without christs righteousness , he abhorreth . if sin be your burden , christ calls you to him ; and therefore this something that tells you you are damned , must be from satan that old lyer . you may know the devil to be a lyer in this , as well as in other things ; for god never made satan of his privie council , to know who are to be saved , and who are to be damned ▪ but pray tell me , suppose the devil should tell you that you should be saved , would you believe him then ? why then do you heed him now , that he sayes you shall be damned ▪ as you would mist●ust your condition more , if satan should tell you tha● you should be saved ; so now you have cause to mistrust it less , because he tels you that you shal be damned ; if the devil should possibly know that you should be damned , for certain he would never tell you so , for fear of awaking your conscience , and makeing you look after salvation ; if jesus christ do not tell us that we are damned , we need not regard what satan says , for whatever he saith , he is a lyer . this is not the first lie satan hath told in this kind , many are now saved in heaven , whom the devil told they should be damned : you may read two remarkable stories in mr. clar ●s description of the lives of mr. balsom , and mr. rothwel ; and because the latter story is apposite to this purpose , i have transcribed it ; the person that was possessed , his name was iohn fox : the devil spake thus to mr. rothwel ; say nothing to me of this man for he is damned : mr. rothwel answers , thou art the father of lies , nor art thou so well acquainted with gods mind concerning this man , which makes thee thus torment him ; therefore ● believe thee not , i believe he shall ●e saved by iesus christ. the devil replyed , he is a murderer , an● thou knowest no murderer must enter into the kingdom of heaven . mr. rothwel . thou ly●st again , for david was a murderer , and yet is in heaven ; and the iews with wicked hands crucified the lord of glory , yet , both christ prayed to his father to forgive them ; and peter exhorts them to repent , that their sins might be blotted out . devil . but this man hath not , cannot , shall not repent . mr. rothw . if he had not , thou wouldst not have told him so ; but if he have not , i believe god will give him repentance , and th●u shalt not be able to hinder it . 6 object . but you know there is a sin unto death , a sin that shall never be pardoned● and i fear i have committed that sin . answer . i am glad you fear it , for it is so much the more likely that you have not sinned that sin : indeed satan doth much perplex troubled consciences with the fear of sinning the unpardonable sin ; yea , i am perswaded , that most of the elect , if not all , are afraid they have , or shall commit that sin . troubled souls are to be disswaded from musing so much on that nice subject . no man can positively determine what the unpardonable sin is , and of all men you are the most unfit to search it out . 7 and last objection . alass , i have lain so long in this despairing condition , that i doubt i shall never get out of it . answer . many were under bodily distempers , and yet were healed at last . when ever christ commeth , he brings a cure with him : we read of a man that was impotent 38 years , iohn 5. ver . 5 , 6 , 7. and yet christ healed him . the woman that was bowed together by an evil spirit 18 years , and yet christ loosed her from her infirmity ; and that which is a comfortable word for thee to consider , christ calls her a daughter of abraham , although she was possessed by a dev●l . luke 13. ver . 16. the continuance of your temptation doth not hinder you from being a daughter of abraham . that i may draw towards a conclusion ; if you consider what hateful sins you have committed , and how long you have lived in sin without any sorrow for sin , you need not wonder that god sends you so long a time of sorrow now . absalom was greatly beloved of david , and yet when he had murthered amnon , he was bannished three years from ierusalem ; and when david recalled him from banishment , yet for two years more he saw not the kings face , 2. sam. chap. 13. ver . ult . and compare it with chapter 14. verse 28. david suffered him to dwell in his kingdom , but did not present●y admit him to his court , to shew his just displeasure against his abominable murder . god may bring a sinner home by converting grace , and yet not make him or her sensible that they are received into favour by comforting grace . god doth not welcom home all his prodigals with musick and feasting ; some one he may to declare his mercy , but not all , to shew his just abhorrence of our prodigality . the blessed spirit is first a refiner , before it prove to be our comforter ; he is a sanctifying spirit before he prove a witnessing spirit , he purgeth away our sin , before he sh●w us our pardon ; the holy-ghost first cleanseth us , then comfor●eth us ; he first removes our 〈…〉 he remove our sorrows . ●he apo●●● sp●aks of those that had received the spirit of adoption , when he ●aid ▪ the spirit it self beareth w●tness with our spirit , in 8 rom. 15 , 16. god may make us his children , and yet may not instantly dandle us on his knee . to shut up this matter : it is said , that israel in egypt did not hearken to the promise of de●iverance , by reason of their anguish of spirit , occasioned by their cruel bondage , a very remarkable scripture . 6. exod. 6 , 7. but though moses spake to them from god , yet they hea●kened not to the promise , for anguish of spirit , and for cruel bondage : the paralel is easie , lying long under a spirit of bondage may make us deaf for a while to all the promises of pardoning mercy , and free grace . now let me pe●swade you to read the promises more often , and more more seriously , study the nature of free grace more , pray more , although satan tell you you are unfit to pray ; for if the thoughts of our unfitness can drive us from prayer , he will always suggest that we are unfit , so to make us still more u●fit by our own neglect ; the more unfit we are to pray , the more need we have to use the words of that disciple in luke 11. ver . 1. lord teach us to pray , &c. the more we see our unfitness to pray , the more need we have to press god to make good that gracious promise in rom. 8. ver . 26. likewise the spirit also helpeth our infirmities , for we know not what we should pray for as we ought , but the spirit it self maketh intercession for us , &c. some advice is needful to ministers , how to handle tender consciences , and that follows in the short notes of the next sermon . nccessary advice to ministers how to handle aflicted consciences . luke 4. ver. 18. the spirit of the lord is upon me , because he hath anointed me to preach the gospel to the poor ; he hath sent me to heal the broken hearted , to preach deliverance to the captives , and recovering of sight to the blind ; to set at liberty them that are bruised . these words are our saviours first text which he taught upon in nazareth , as you may see ver . 16 : god the holy spirit directed christ to that text of scripture , which might mind him of his office , and prove most comfortable to poor sinners . these words are taken out of the 16 of isa●●h , being very little altered , that being the prophecie of what christ now began to perform . for division , 1. here is something affirmed ; the spirit of the lord is upon me . 2. a reason assigned ; because he hath annointed me to preach the gospel , &c. 3. some particular duties of christs office repeated , to preach the gospel to the poor , to heal the broken hearted , to preach deliverance to to the captives , to preach recovering of sight to the blind , to preach liberty to them that are bruised . for explication . the spirit of the lord is upon me . christians receive a measure of the graces and gifts of the spirit , but christ received the spirit without measure , iohn 3. ver . 34. several saints are more eminent in several gifts and graces : moses had the spirit of meekness and miracles , all the judges of israel had the gift of government and fortitude ; solomon had the spirit of wisdom , the prophe●s had the spirits of prophecy , the apostles had the gift of tongues , and interpretation of gospel mysteries , but in jesus christ the fulness of all graces and guifts do meet as in their proper center : a christian may be said to be rich in grace and gifts , but christ only is full , he hath all fulness . because he hath anointed me to preach the gospel . here christ shews the world his lawful commission : be ashamed all ye that climb up into the ministry by any other way , then of lawful ordination ; christ shews his orders from heaven , and mark it ; our saviour doth not say , because the spirit of the lord is upon me , therefore he hath sent me ; but because he hath sent me , therefore the spirit is upon me . god bestows a measure of gifts upon every one whom he sends into the ministry , but he doth not send every one into the ministry upon whom he bestows a measure of gifts ; gifts without ordination , is no lawful commission . to preach the gospel to the poor . this tells for what end christ received the gifts of the spirit , to make him an able preacher of the gospel . to preach the gospel . moses was sent to preach the law , but christ is sent to preach the gospel ; moses the servant of god , handed the law to israel after the flesh : christ the only begotten son of god , handed the gospel unto the spiritual seed ; we have lost nothing ( but time ) by coming last into gods church , they were before us gentiles in time , but we are before them in priviledges . to preach the gospel to the poor . that is to say , to the poor in spirit , such as see and acknowledge their want of righteousness ; those that are sensible that they have provoked god , but they have nothing whereby to appease his wra●h , and need christ to stand their friend , to make peace between god and them . to heal the broken hearted . that is , such whose consciences are terrifyed and tormented with the guilt of sin ; according to the greek word , it is , those whose hearts are cut asunder , meaning with the sense of sin , and sorrow for fin , god hath sent me to purify and pacify such accusing consciences . to preach deliverance to the captives . he meaneth not those whom men have enslaved to their power , but those that see themselves in spiritual slavery to sin and satan . and recovering of sight to the blind . christ is the light of the world , he is the day star from on high that visiteth us who are walking in da●kness . the world without christ was a dark dungeon ; the heathens were like the sodomites when the angel had struck them with blindness : it is said that they wearied themselves to find the dore . gen. 19. ver . 11. christ is called in scripture : the dore of salvation : the blind-folded heathens wearied themselves in vain to find this dore . to set at liberty them that are bruised . those may be said to be bruised , that are struggling with sin , but cannot overcome sin , but get many falls by which their souls are sorely bruised , and their consciences full of pain and torment ; so that by all these expressions we are taught what the gospel offereth to us ; namely , christ offereth us his hand to pull us out of the lowest pit of sin , and out of the dark dungeon of ignorance , to give liberty and spiritual freedom to us that are oppressed with all kinds of miseries , that we that are poor may be enriched with his grace , that we that are blind may be enlightned by the light of his gospel ; that we who by nature are satans bo●d slaves , may be made free , and set at liberty by him . and as the father sent christ on this errand , so christ sends his ministers on the same errand : you see therefore what kind of people you have to deal with , such as are spiritually poor , broken hearted , blind , captives , and bruised . the doctrine i shall name is this . that christ hath an especial eye to those that are afflicted in conscience ; and the reasons may be such as these . 1. the reason in the text , because it is his office to take care of such , god hath sent him for that end and purpose . 2 reason is , the helplesness of such poor sinners , they can do nothing but weep and complain , sigh and mourn , and disquiet themselves more at the apprehension of their misery , but do not know what to do to ease their consciences ; therefore the merciful nature of christ makes him have a tender eye towards such . 3 reason . because such are prepared for christ to deal with , such are prepared to welcom the gospel : christ preacht to the scribes and pharisees , but they thought themselves to be whole and needed not a physitian , and therefore despised his help : but when he preached to the publicans and sinners , they followed him ; he preached to that mary noted as a sinner , and she followed him weeping . luke 7. ver . 37. all the publicans and sinners drew nigh to hear . luk. 15. ver . 1. whereupon the pharises murmured ▪ which gave an occasion to those parables in that chapter , of the lost sheep , the lost groat , and the lost son. christ is sent to save those that see their lost condition without him , and such only will bid welcom to the gospel . 4 reason why christ hath such an eye to afflicted consciences , is , because satan is so buisy with them , he seeks to drive them to final despair of mercy , and to suggest thoughts of self-murther : therefore as the devil hath an evil eye towards them to destroy them , christ hath an eye of pitie and compassion towards them , to deliver them , and to preach salvation to them , if satan desire to winnow peter , christ will take the greater care of him ; if satan ●empt peter to denie his master , christ will look back upon him to reclaim him again : now this is a pattern for christ's ministers to imitate ; have an especial eye to the sin sick souls , the broken hearted . in the close of the former sermon i hinted that some advice was needful unto ministers how to deal with afflicted consciences , i reserved it unto this place , where i might present them with such a blessed pattern to follow . afflicted consciences during the time of temptation , they are like blind men , therefore deal with them as such , lay no stumbling blocks before them , make your doctrine plain and obvious , be you instead of eyes unto them , perform the office of a good guide , and lead them to christ , and to the covernant of grace , and to the promises ; they are broken and bruised already , therefore deal gently with them , handle their souls with smooth , and not with rugged hands . we say a chirurgeon needs an eagles eye , a lyons heart , and a ladies hand : so we may say of a minister , he needs an eagles eye , to be of a piercing sight in the mysteries of the gospel ; he needs a lyons heart , having to do with wounded and ulcerous souls ; he needs a ladies hand , having to do with broken hearted sinners . afflicted consciences are thirsty , and ready to faint ; therefore lead them to the rock jesus christ , from whose side ( being struck by the rod of god , ) do only flow those waters that can allay the scorching heat of an i●flamed conscience , and can refresh and revive the drooping soul that boweth under his burthen of temptations ; hence do issue those waters that can cleanse the conscience , and wash away the guilt of sin , which makes it so disquiet and tormenting : after david had sinned ●ou●y , by adultery and murder , he came to these waters , psalm 51. ver . 2. wash me throughly from mine iniquity , and cleanse me from my sin . moses's rod struck the rock , that water might gush out to the thirsty israelites : god's rod struck the rock jesus christ , that mercy might flow out more freely to the thirsty sinner ; if they be thirsty , lead them to christ the fountain of living waters . a wounded spirit is shot with a poysoned arrow , ( i mean the sting of sin ) be you therefore that loving friend that may draw out the venome with your mouths ; ( i mean , by your godly council and seasonable advice . ) do not tell afflicted consciences of a god only , but of a god reconciled in christ : put them into the clift of this rock jesus christ , when you shew them any thing of the glory of god. they are bruised , therefore speak not all law unto them , but mingle gospel with it , least you break those whom god hath bruised . shew them the cleansing and comforting blood of jesus christ ; and if their trembling souls chance to propose any such questions as are in the 6 micah 7. will the lord be pleased with thousands of rams ? shew them the lamb of god that taketh away the sins of the world . while they cry out of their own sinfulness , set before them christ's perfect righteousness , and that he freely offers to cloath them with it ; shew them not only christs ability to save , but christs willingness to save ; for that is sound advice given by a late writer ; that soul which is disquieted for sin , must be pacifyed by something that is not sin : he that is sensible of his own unrighteousness , must be made to see a perfect righteousness somewhere else , even the righteousness of christ : if it were a prevailing argument with god , exod. 32. ver . 13. to press him to pardon israel for the sake of abraham , isaack , and jacob his servants , and his covenant made with them . then surely it must needs be a stronger argumen● , when a poor sinner shall be seech god to remember jesus christ his only begotten and well-beloved son that dyed for him , and his covenant made with christ : but as afflicted consciences will be much fingering their sore , and so put back their cure . the sight of sin is a thick cloud , which will much hinder the sight of a saviour ; therefore when they complain of great and manifold offenees , do you shew them gods great and manifold me●cies , psalm 51. ver 1. shew them davids argument , psalm 25. ver . 11. o lord pardon mine iniquity for it is great . here is our usual objection turned into an argument ; my sins are great , therefore i fear god will not pardon them , says the doubting sinner ; my iniquity is great , therefore lord pardon it , says the believing david ; even merciless men will do much to purchase them a great name ; the merciful god by pardoning great sinners , gets himself a greater name of being merciful ; shew them how to frame an argument out of gods own words , ier. 33. ver . 8 , 9. and i will cleanse them from all their iniquities whereby they have sinned against me , and whereby they have transgressed agains● me , and it shall be to me a name of joy 〈◊〉 praise and an honour before all the nations of the earth which shall hear all the good th●t i ●o unto them . press the lord with his own words , to exalt his great name by cleansing and pardoning thy sins ; and the more and the greater they are , the more will his mercy be glorifyed : seeing god designeth to be glorifyed in the great attribute of his mercy , we cannot glorifie it more , than by throwing our selves upon it . if satan aggravate our sins , ( as he never fails to do it to the purpose , when he finds a sinner despairing , ) then we must set all the true colours upon mercy , great mercy , glorious mercy , rich mercy , abundant mercy ▪ and that which is beyond all that satan can say of our sins ( infinite mercy ) shew them therefore , that by casting our souls upon gods free mercy , we do exceedingly glorifie the mercy of our god , and the merit of our redeemer . do not rob god of the glory of his mercy by your unbelief . but if the broken hearted sinner yet object against it self ; alas my sins are no ordinary sins , then do you put them in mind , that christ is no ordinary person , his blood is no ordinary price , his redemption no ordinary work , and gods mercy in christ is no ordinary matter . paul did not despair of pardon because he saw himself to be chief of sinners , 1 tim. 1 ch . ver . 15. but gloried so much the more in christs coming to save such as he was : a soul that is once enabled to look upon christ as his saviour , will not despair though conscience tell him he is a great sinner , but can be as willing to accuse ●t self as satan is to accuse it , and yet not despair of pardon , but imploy satans malice as an argument for greater love to jesus christ : those that despair of mercy , should be much pressed with the great injury done to gods infinite mercy , and to christs infinite merit by such as despair of pardon ; for it is as much as to make god an unmerciful god , and christ to be an impotent saviour : and it is a most dangerous sin in respect of us , ●or it blocks up the way to mercy ; ●ll other sins might be pardoned , if unbelief did not intercept our pardon , ●n the 3 io. ver . 18. he that believeth not ●s condemned already , because he believeth ●ot in the name of the only begotten son of ●od . it is not said , because he was a ●hore-monger , or a thief , or a ●runkard , but because he believeth not in the name of christ ; so that unbelief is the greatest sin of all other . satan holdeth many under despairing thoughts a long time , by telling them that they have not been broken enough yet by the terrors of the law , and therefore are unfit for pardoning mercy yet . pray is not this a strange reasoning , as if you should say to a sick man , you seek to be cured too soon ▪ your case must be more desperate , before you go to a physician . doth not reason tell us , that in a dangerous wound , the sooner we look for a chyrurgeon the better and that we cannot go too soon ▪ the longer we defer seeking unto christ , and laying on the sovereign plaister of his blood , we must needs be the longer before we can be healed . if any violent distemper seise on your bodies , you are ready to ask one another , why do not you go forth and seek help ▪ delays are dangerous in this case . now then ask your souls the same question , seeing sin hath made such a dangerous wound in thy conscience , why do not you go forth , why do not you seek after iesus christ ▪ delays are dangerous in this case i am sure . if faith be the condition of the the new covenant , we cannot believe too soon ; urge those that yield to despairing thoughts with those words of reverend dr. sibbs : judas did far worse in despairing of pardon , than in denying of christ ; in the latter ind●ed he destroyed christ's humane nature , but by despair he denyed his divine nature . who doubts but if cain had not despaired , he might have been pardoned . will you flie from christ because you are sinners ▪ will the sick man shun the company of the ph●sician because he is sick ▪ the pharisees upbraided christ , that he was a friend to publicans and sinners , matt. 11. ver . 19. to teach thee that he is no enemy to the vilest sinner that cometh to him for mercy . afflicted consciences are weak sighted ; or like the disciples , their eyes are held , luk. 24. ver . 16. christ is near them , but they see him not . therefore let all ministers , and also all good christians endeavour to help that defect , by leading them unto christ , and opening the promises of the gospel unto them ; end since they feel the sting of the fiery serpent in their souls , shew them their saviour , who is the truth of the brazen serpent ; help them to lean upon christ that tryed stone , so called isa. 28. ver . 16. christ is a tryed stone indeed , whom neither the weight of the sins of the whole world , nor the maliee of all the devils in hell , nor the rage of his persecutors on earth , nor the weight of gods wrath due for the sins of mankind , ( which was much heavier than all the former ) could once make to yield at all , or to fly out of its proper place ; and therefore christ is only fit to be the chief corner stone . he is the only immovable foundation , able to bear up the whole building of his church ; and whosoever builds his soul upon this foundation , ( jesus christ ) the gates of hell shall not be able finally to prevail against him . such as are afraid to fall , lead them to christ that rock of ages , that they may see themselves placed in a safe condition ; and do you carry those young lambs that cannot go : i have not written this as though i were able to advise my reverend brethren of the clergy , but to move them to consider the case of afflicted consciences , that they may labour more to heal the broken hearted , and to set at liberty them that are bruised , that 〈◊〉 people may have greater cause to 〈◊〉 , how beautiful are the feet of those that bring glad tidings of salvation ? mansio christiana , or the christians mansion-house . being a sermon preached on the lords-day , 7th . feb. anno dom. 1668. at the funeral of m rs . martha walmisley the wife of m r. charles walmisley . minister of chesham magna in the county of bucks . by william iole . minister of sarrett in the county of hertford . 2 ephesians 6. and hath made us sit together in heavenly places . london , printed for samuel homes , at the sign of s. paul in little britain anno dom. 1671. to his reverend brother in the gospel m r. charles walmisley , husband of m rs . martha walmisley deceased , grace and peace . worthy sir , that which is reported of egesias the philosopher , that he could so accurately decipher the miseries & wretchedness of life , as to make men out of love with it , and so colour over the grim face of death , as to make it desirable ; that is only really performed by this text : a little rhetorick may serve to perswade a poor man to forsake his thatch'd cottage , if you can assure him that by so doing , he shall have a better habitation : the most effectual way to make a christian to despise life , and desire death , is , to present him with a sight of his heavenly mansion , and then with s. paul , he can groan earnestly to leave this earthly tabernacle , when he knows he hath a building of god , a house not made with hands , eternal in the heavens ; for though nature abhor a dissolution , yet it covets happiness ; so that reason it self may well assent to the desire of being dissolved ; when faith hath rightly informed it that it is far better ; for it is wisdom to admit a change , when we are sure it shall be for our greater advantage . sir , if you thus look on death ( though as a dark entry ) yet as the ready passage to our heavenly mansions , then i shall need to say no more , either to quiet your spirit concerning the death of your dear wife , at whose funeral this sermon was preached , or to make you more willing to entertain more familiar thoughts of your own dissolution ; if it be far better to be with christ , than to linger still on earth , then what remains ? but that we patiently bear the departure of our dearest friends and nearest relations , and cheerfully expect our own ; that we may be so far from fearing death , as rather to welcom it : who baulks a friends invitation , because he imployes a blackamore to be the messenger ? what though christ send his negro ( death ? ) seeing it is to invite us to a feast with him in his kingdom ; we know christ is our best friend , and though at first we may startle at the messenger , yet the very message shews that death be-friends us too ; if god make this sermon useful to be your remembrancer in these great duties , let him have all the praise while you receive the profit . your affectionate brother in the gospel of our blessed lord and master iesus christ. vv. j. john 14. ver. 2. in my father's house are many mansions : if it were not so , i would have told you , i go to prepare a place for you . in occasions of great sorrow a single advice may not be sufficient to quiet and compose our afflicted minds ; christ had advised his disciples in the former verse not to be troubled at his absence , which he backs with a strong reason in this verse ; i go to prepare a place for you : consider the end of my departure , and you have no more reason to be troubled at it , than you have , if a friend that hath invited you to a feast , should say , i must go home before you to see all things set in a readiness for your entertainment : so great a necessity is there for my leaving you now ; christus non abit nos deserere , sed ut lautisimum convivium nobis praeparct . christ doth not mean to leave us , but he goes to make provision for us . christ seeing them troubled , seemed to neglect himself , that he might hearten them against the fear of his crucifixion . it is not unlikely , but that the minds of the disciples might be filled with such troublesome thoughts as these ; alass ! in what hole shall we hide our heads from a melitious devil ● persecuting world , now that our champion is taken from us ? where can we be secure if he suffer ? can we think to escape , if he be put to death ? what crosses must we look for , if innocency it self be crucified ? if they deal thus barbarously with our lord , what will they do , or what will they not do rather against his servants when he is gone ? what will become of us when the light of our eyes is departed ? yea , the very breath of our nostrils ? if the shepheard be smitten , what will become of the timorous sheep ? against all these carnal fears christ opposeth a greater cause of hope ; against all this matter of trouble , he seasonably opposeth a surer cause of spiritual joy & tranquility of mind ▪ bear my absence patiently , for it shall redound to your eternal advantage , i go to prepare a place for you . this text will not admit of such a methodical division , as other texts of scripture do . the first words are christs consolatory reason , why the disciples should not be troubled at his absence : in my fathers house are many mansions . the former words may be added to confirm that assertion , if it were not so i would have told you ; and that you may be sure it is so , i go to prepare ● place for you . in these word , is observable , 1. an act , go. 2. an agent , i go . 3. an end , to prepare a place . lastly , the person for whom , for you . explication , in my fathers house . heaven is called gods house ; because there god dwelleth , and there saints and blessed spirits shall dwell with god for ever : christ calls it his fathers house for our greater consolation , to shew us that he hath much power there , who is the only begotten son and heir of all things ; he is the dominus fac totum : heaven is a place where i have power to make you welcom , for it is my fathers house ; no son and heir can have so much priviledge at home to bid his friends freely welcom , as i have to make you my friends welcom in my fathers house , are many man●ions : there are mansions , not tabernacles , to denote the unchangeableness of the condition of saints in heaven ; here on earth you can have but moveable tents , but in heaven you shall have a settled condition , a mansion-house , even in our english phrase , signifies that house where we live most of our time : great men may have several houses , and yet but one of them is called their mansion-house ; that is to say , the place of their most constant abode , where they dwell the most part of the year ▪ it is but a short time that we spend on earth , but we shall dwell for ever in heavenly mansions . christians are here spoken of , as being great persons ( being made honourable by christ ) who , though they may have earthly tabernacles , yet have but one mansion-house , and that is heaven . many mansions ; there is not only room for me , but for all my members also . though there may be so many thousands of glorious inhabitants in heaven already , yet there is still room for every saint too . in scripture god is represented to us , as a great housholder , and the saints are called gods houshold or family ; every wise man provides a house according to the largeness of his family : aretius says , that the word mansions , is a word of diminution , where little is spoken of the greatest matter ; as if we would call the vast ocean , a great pond . we must not imagine that heaven is divided as the earth is ( into several habitations ) but heaven is fitly called a mansion , because there is a fulness of glory and happiness ; however men live in their flitting-houses , as i may call them , where they stay but a night or two ; yet in their mansion-houses they will far● plentifully , every saint in heaven shall have a fulness of glory and happiness . 2. in heaven there is a permanencie , and therefore called a mansion ; for the greek word 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 , and the latine word mansiones , and the english word mansions , do all imply the eternity of the glory and happiness in heaven . 3. heaven is called a mansion-house , in respect of the different degrees of glory in heaven . in a kings court there are several offices , but all are contented , for all are courtiers ; in heaven , the house is the same , and the happiness is the same ; but there are different degrees of glory : but the saints in heaven shall be as free from envy , as the stars in the firmament are : one star differs from another in glory , yet they do not quarrel about their different degrees of light and lustre ; no more shall the saints in gods house : if it were not so i would not have told you ; i would not delude you , or feed you with vain hopes , promising that which i cannot perform : when you come to heaven you shall find much more than what you are able now to understand of the happiness you shall inherit there . i go to prepare a place for you ; the great end of christs ascending into heaven , is to prepare a place for his elect , to make way for their coming thither : take notice of our saviours consolations ; he doth not say , let not your hearts be troubled , for ere long i will make you earthly princes , and make you ●read on the necks of your enemies ; bu● he gives them comfort of another kind , i am preparing glory for you , let not your hearts be troubled . when by my death and resurrection i have fitted all things for your entertainment , i will come again , and receive you unto my self . it was the manner of bride-grooms , when they had made all things ready , to come themselves , and fetch home their brides to their fathers houses : i go to prepare , and i will come again and fetch you unto my self . o the wonderful tenderness and infinite condescention of divine love ; christ will do all himself . he came once from heaven already to make himse●f known unto us ; but his love engageth him to make one journey more to fetch us , and take us up unto himself : then he came to prepare us for heaven ; he is now gone to prepare heaven for us : i go to prepare a place for you . these may allude to travailers , ( as musculus notes ) where many travail together in a company ; they choose out some one to ride before , and provide lodgings , and a supper for them ▪ our saviour attempereth his speech to our understandings , the incomprehensible things of heaven are painted out in these humane colours , because we are much taken with these things and partly because the disciples did yet dream that christ would establish a worldly kingdom , and would have ruled some time as an earthly monarch ; christ therefore in a sweet and friendly manner works them off from expecting any such thing here , by telling them what he is going to prepare for hereafter : your expectations shall not be altogether disappointed ; you shall have honour and happiness , but it shall be in a better place , in heaven● for thither i go to prepare for you● the providence of god sent ioseph secretly before-hand to provide a place for his unnatural brethren ; christ the truth of iosep● , is gone into heaven to prepare a place for all his brethren , though by our sins we both sold him and crucified him , hebr. 6. v. 20 : christ is called the saints fore-runner , implying that the saints shall follow him into heaven . before christ ascended , he said , father , i will that they also whom thou hast given me be with me where i am , iohn 17. ver . 24. therefore he is gone before to prepare a place for them : heaven is prepared already , but our sins had shut it against us ; christ is gone to provide admission for us . the doctrine i shall offer , is , that christians must look on heaven as their dwelling place . reasons of the doctrine are , 1. because god designeth heaven as our dwelling-place : a christian hath a body and a soul , an earthly and an heavenly part : a body formed of the earth , and a soul infused from heaven ; this earth was made for the delight of the body , here is beauty to delight the eye , and sweetness for the taste , and variety to delight the outward sences : but heaven was made for the soul ; in the body we resemble the beasts on earth , in the soul we resemble the angels in heaven ; the body is contented with the things of the earth , and thinks it good to be here ; but the soul finds nothing able to satisfy it here on earth and therefore is always mounting up to heaven by contemplation , and desirous to be dissolved from its earthly clay . god made man looking upwards towards heaven , and the beasts bowing downward towards the earth to shew us that the earth is the proper place for brute beasts ; but heave● is the place whither man should aspire . 2 reason why christians should look on heaven as their dwelling-place , lyeth in the text ; because christ prepares it for them : and where can he better provide a place than in his and our fathers house ? i asse●d to my father and your father , joh. 20. ver . 17. my father by nature , your father by grace , as s. austin interprets it ; where can he better prepare a place for his elect than in his own kingdom ? it 's the kingdom of our lord and saviour jesus christ , 2 pet. chap. 1. ver . 11. where can christ better prepare a p●ace for them , than in that kingdom which god the father hath freely bestowed on them ? luke 12. ver . 32. fear not little flock , for it is your fathers good pleasure to give you a kingdom ; fear not want or trouble here , but look on your selves as heirs of the kingdom of heaven . where can he prepare a place better than in that kingdom which christ also appointed for them ? luk. 22. ver . 29 , 30. and i appoint unto you a kingdom , that ye may eat and drink at my table , and sit on thrones ●udgeing the twelve tribes of israel ; and therefore you may be sure that this is meant of heaven : for here on earth saints do not sit on thrones , but rather on dunghils , as iob and lazarus did ; they do not judge here , but rather are judged and hardly censured . 3 reason why christians must look on heaven as their dwelling-place , is , because the word of god directs us so to do ; to s●t our affection on things above , and to seek those things : to look on the world but as our inne ; but on heaven as our home . 4 reason . because experience doth shew , that on earth christians have no certain dwelling-place , 1 cor. 4. ver . 11. here we travail and meet with troubles ; here we sojourne , here we suffer , here we have no continuing city , but we seek one to come , heb. 13. ver . 14. indeed neither believer , nor unbeliever have any settled condition on earth ; but it is more especially appropriated to believers . 1. because of the worlds ill dealing with them ; they are always driving them from post to pillar , as we say , from place to place ; moses was much longer a stranger in madian , then a courtier in egypt . 2. because believers do look upon earth as an uncertain place , where they cannot set up their rest ; they look on the world as a camp , where they wall meet with opposition , rather then as a city where they should expect safety and quiet . the christian expects his resting place to be in that city which abraham looked for , hebr. 11. v. 10. a city that hath foundations , whose builder & maker is god. all the cities on earth are so easily removed , as if they had no foundations , heaven only is an immoveable city . last reason why christians must look upon heaven as their dwelling place , is , to move them to a heavenly conversation ; such as our hopes is , such will our conversation be ; if your hope be only in this life , then your trade and dealing , your thoughts and actions shall be to get worldly things , your conversation will be earthly ; the prevailing degree of love in all you do , will be for earthly things ; or as the scripture doth phrase it , you will mind earthly things , philip. 3. ver . 19. all our aims , actions , and endeavours will be but to get money , to buy land , to build houses , to settle your rest on earth ; your discourses will be about dividing the inheritance like theirs , luk. 12. ver . 13. or about making more room for your worldly store like the fool in the gospel : but if your hope be in heaven , your conversation will be heavenly . hope is a deep dye that casts a tincture , and leaves its colour in the whole conversation of a christian. he that looks on the world as his pilgrimage , or place of travel , will provide only as for a traveller ; but he that looks on the earth as his dwelling place , will be providing as for an inhabitant : one room will suffice a traveller ; but an inhabitant wanteth a whole house ; a few things will suffice a man in his journey , but an inhabitant needs a great deal of furniture ; and therefore the scripture alwayes puts a difference between a man in the world , and a man of the world . iohn 15. ver . 19. . by our feet we walk on earth , but by our heart we dwell in heaven . application . 1. for information . to teach us what thoughts we must have of earth and heaven : we must look on the earth as david did , to be but the house of his pilgrimage , psalm 119. ver . 54. but we must look on heaven as our mansion-house , as the text doth represent it , a place prepared for us to dwell in for ever : and what a glorious place must heaven needs be , which the bridegroom of our souls hath now been 16 hundred years preparing for his bride ? we must look upon heaven as our home , our fathers house . if you ask what ground a christian hath for this confidence ? i answer , the text telleth us , christ is gone thither to prepare a place for them . christ entred into heaven as a common person in the name of his elect , and so is gone to take possession in their right , as a guardian takes possession of a house and land in the right of his ward ; but christ entred in his own right and ours both , as he is our guardian . the high-priest under the law entred into the holy of holies , with the names of the twelve tribes on his brest-plate , to shew that he acted there for them whose names were there written ; christ our great high priest is entred into heaven , whereof the holy of holies was but a type : thither hath he carryed the names of his elect , for whom he is to provide mansions ; and therefore christians are said to have an inheritancereserved in heaven for them . 1 pet. chap. 1. ver . 4. how should this make us high in our hopes , and lowly in our hearts ? heaven is ours in reversion ; great hopes , or hopes of great things beget great spirits , and keep men from doing any base or sordid things , which are below what they hope for : a christians hope keeps up his heart , and hinders him from doing any thing unbeseeming his hope : the eagle scorns to catch at flies ; a christias is that true eagle , that soareth above these petty things below ; the hope of heavenly mansions should should lift us above the earth . 2. it should make us lowly in our hearts , not to strive and fight for places here , but to be contented with any place , remembring that while we are in this world we are out of our proper place ; those that are neglectful to look after heavenly mansions , are most quarrelling for places on earth ; a christian may call all the things of this world esek , and sitnah , as isaack named those 2 wells , about which the philistines strove with him , gen. 26. 20 , 21. if god give house or land to a christian , it doth but make the men of the world strive with him and hate him for it , as the philistines did envy isaack's flocks & herds , gen. 26. 14. but a christian may call heaven rehoboth , by the name of isaack's well which they strove not for . now god hath made room for me , says isaack ; a christian hath one place which ugodly men will not strive for ; namely heaven : what an argument therefore is this , to remove our desires from earthly houses , and to fix them on our heavenly mansions ? in earthly houses we are always either wanting room , or furniture , or food , or peace in eating it , or assurance of continuing , but our heavenly mansions have all these properties . heaven is a good place , for it is of christ's own preparing ; heaven is a large place , there is many mansions , room enough , and provision enough of all things to make a saint happy . abraham's servant asked rebeckah , ( i● there room in thy fathers house for us to lodge in ? she answered , we have both straw and provinder enough , and room to lodge in , gen. 24 ver . 23 — 25. a christian need not make such an inquiry concerning heaven , there is room enough , and provision enough . god prepared the world for adams use , before he sent him to be there ; god built the house , and ready furnished it , and then raised up man. god our redeemer is gone to prepare heaven , before he carry his members thither . heaven is also a safe place ; where god dwelleth there can be no fear of enemies to molest us . israel in the earthly canaan had plenty , but not safety ; the cananites continually were invading them ; heaven only is the place of peace . the heavenly ierusalem is described to have a great wall , and high , and 12 gates , and 12 angels watching at the gates , and the city to be built upon a great and high mountain . revel . 20. ver . 10 — 12. namely , all things that may import safety . heaven is too high for danger to climb up to it ; it is so immured that there can be no scaling it , the gates are so strong , that there is no breaking them open , and the watchers so watchful that there can be no fear of surprize . and in heaven also is suitable company , there we shall dwell with god , the holy trinity , with holy angels , aud saints ; here on earth unsuitable company may make us weary of our habitations . lot chose the plain of sodom to dwell in , but what an uncomfortable place did it prove to that righteous man , by reason of the wicked company of those beastly sodomites ? no doubt had he known their evil manners before , nothing could have tempted him to have thought of dwelling there . christians that know and see this earth to be a sodom , must not choose it for their dwelling place . lastly , heaven is a place that abideth for ever ; worldly cities have no firm foundations , but the wall of heaven is described to have twelve foundations , rev. 21. ver . 14. earthly houses may be burned , or beat down either by accident or design , as we see a woful instance in london , that city most famed throughout the world ; but you know that the world it self is reserved for the general conflagration : will you make that your dwelling-place , which you know must be destroyed ? we linger like lot , and are loath to come out of this sodow ; but the lord is merciful by sending us many crosses , pulleth us hence . this sheweth us further how we come to neglect heavenly mansions ; we over-value earthly tabernacles , and that makes us undervalue heavenly mansions , earthly houses are visible , their gardens , and orchards , parks , and forrests , fish-ponds , and motes , arbors , and banquetting-houses ; but heavenly mansions , and what provision is made there , is only known to faith , 1. cor. chap. 2. ver . 9. as it is written , eye hath not seen , nor ear heard , neither have entred the heart of man the things which god hath prepared for them that love him ; which if it be true of those things prepared in the gospel , it is more true of those things prepared in heaven . this consideration of heavenly mansions may much quiet and com●ort those that either are not born to house and land , or that are driven from house and home by any sad providence ; your tents may be removed , but your mansions endure for ever . 2. use of exhortation to all that hope for heavenly mansions . 1. search the land where you hope ●o dwell for ever ; israel ●ent spies to ●earch for canaan , but the●r spies were of two sorts : some brought an evil ●eport on canaan ; saying , there were gyants , and yet brought of the good fruits of the land ; but caleb & ioshus told them the truth , if the lord delight in us , he will bring us into this land , numb . 14. ve . 8. hearken unto caleb and ioshua , unto the faithful spies and true ministers , which declare from the word of god what place heaven is , and hearken not unto any that endeavour to bring an evil report on this good land , where only is fulness of ioy , and pleasures for evermore ; indeed there are some difficulties will meet us in our way thitther , but no impossibilities ; say with caleb , the lord is with us , we are able to overcome them . numb . 13. compared with num● 14. ver . 9. 2. pray against earthly mindedness . the young man that seemed so earnest to get to heaven , as is set out by his postures of running and kneeling , and asking what to do yet his great earthly possessions hindred him from being prevailed with by the promise of heavenly treasure mark 10. ver . 2● . reuben and gad had so much cattle , that they are not eager to dwell in canaan ; iacob's flocks and herds made him drive slowly homewards , gen. 33. v. 14. though i grant his fear of esau might be a great cause also . those christians are in most danger of neglecting heavenly mansions , that are well seated in earthly places , haec sunt quae faciunt invitos mori , these things make us unwilling to die . let us use the earth as the birds do , the air is their proper place , and they care not to descend on the earth but only for their times of feeding ; so long as they keep aloft they are secure ; but when they come to settle on the ground , there are nets or guns , or some snare to endanger them : so long as christians keep their thoughts on heaven , and the thing above , they are ●afe from temptation ; but when they ●et them hover too long upon earth , and the things ●●low , satan is ready to shoot at them , or hath one snare or other to catch them , though your daily bread grows on earth , yet look on heaven as your home , and send your thoughts & desires thither again , that it may appear though you table here , you expect to dwell in heaven . a few words more , and then i shall conclude . 1. be content though god allo● you but a low place , or no place in this world , seeing christ is preparing a place for you in a better world . 2. get your affections more weaned from earthly houses ( you that have them ) and fix your thoughts more on those heavenly mansions ; because children know no better things , they are so much in love with every painted gew-gaw ; it is our ignorance of the joys in heaven that makes us so greatly pleased with these toyes on earth . 3. be not immoderate in grieving for any relations or friends departed , ( no , though you have h●d them but a little while with you . ) so long as we are in the body , we are absent from the lord ; the apostle paul groaned earnestly in desires of enjoying his heavenly mansion , 2 cor. chap. 5. ver . 2. and he gives us his reason in the 1. ver . who would not go out of a thatcht cottage to inherit a pallace ? those that die in the lord , do but leave an earthly tabernacle , to inherit an heavenly kingdom ; and will you think it too s●on for them to be thus happy ? solon being asked who were happy ? tells a story of two youths , who out of affection drew their mothers chariot to the temple , and the gods to recompence them , caused them to die presently : those are happy that can number death among their priviledges , and bid it welcom ; if i could offer your wife or children , house , or land , would you say , ( no i thank you , i cannot spare them yet , they shall tarry with me one year longer before they go to possess it . ) we are wiser in earthly matters , why are we such fools in heavenly matters ? if we did cordially believe , and seriously meditate on the blessedness in heaven , we should grudge at every hour we ●arry on earth , we should think the shortest life too long , and like the next heir , be eagerly desirous to inherit . i say nothing of the party deceased ( though she hath left a good name behind her ) because i was totally ● stranger to her . finis . paul , the pattern of pardoning mercy . being a sermon on 1 tim. chap. 1. ver. 15. howbeit for this cause i obtained mercy , that in me first iesus christ might shew forth all long-suffering for a pattern to them which should hereafter believe on him to life everlasting . 1 tim. 1. chap. 16. ver. howbeit , for this cause i obtained mercy , that in me iesus christ might shew forth all long suffering for a pattern to them which should hereafter believe on him to life everlasting . this verse referreth to the last words of the former verse , ( whereof i am chief ; howbeit for this cause i obtained mercy ; ) as if the apostle would say , although i was so heinous a sinner , yet iesus christ hath made me a pattern of mercy to all others . as god makes some stand as fearful monuments of his wrath to fright ●hose that are impenitent , ( like lot's wife tu●ned into a pillar of salt to season after ages . ) so god is pleased to set others as monuments of free-grace to invite all penitent sinners ; the apostle tells us what was gods aim in pardoning him that was so great an offender , to make a pattern of long suffering to encourage the greatest sinners to lay hold on his mercy . for division of the words , 1. here is an act mentioned ( obtained . ) 2. the thing mentioned , ( mercy . ) 3. the person mentioned . ( i that needed long sufferings , i the chief of sinners . ) lastly , the reason mentioned , ( for this cause , that i might be a pattern to them that shall hereafter believe , ) that is to say , that by my example the greatest sinners m●ght be encouraged to lay hold on the offer of free pardon , seeing such a desperate opposer of jesus christ as i was , received into favour , that none might hereafter despair of pardon , but all sinners might be encourag'd to come to god through jesus christ. the doctrine will be most comfortable thus rendred . that god hath set paul as a glorious pattern of mercy , to encourage all sinners by his example to seek for pardoning mercy . the orderly handling of this doctrine will be , 1. to see what a pattern is . 2. how paul may be said to be a pattern ? 3. why paul was made a pattern ? lastly , what excellent ●ncouragement all sinners hereafter may make of this glorious pattern of free-grace ? for the first , what a pattern is ? for on this word 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 , lyeth the stress of the whole matter . a pattern is , materi● proposita ad imitandum , something that is laid before our eyes for us to imitate ; when a li●mner hath drawn some curious picture in which he thinks he hath shewed much of his art , he hangs it out for all passengers to look on , to shew them what he can do ; every piece is not fit to be a pattern , but the most exact pi●ces ▪ in the converting of paul ( who by his own confession was one of the greatest sinners in the world . ) god doth shew to all men in this pattern , what free grace can do , how he can pardon the greatest sinners ; god hath made paul fit to be a pattern of pardoning mercy , to shew all the world how much he can forgive . and this leadeth me to the next particular . how paul might be said to be a pattern . 1. consider his own confession what a kind of sinner he was , and that will lend some light into this phrase . 2. con●ider the manner of his conversion . 3. gods dealing with him after his conversion . 1. let us hear his own confession how great a sinner he was , chief of sinners ; not only sensu humilitatu , so in his own apprehension ; nor only salvandorum primus , chief sinner of those that shall be saved ; but as he was a proud pharisee that went about to set up his own righteousness in direct opposition to christs rightouiness : surely , ( except the unpardonable sin ) there cannot be a greater sin than this ; and in this sense christs words may be understood , that publicans and harlots were nearer heaven , than the self-justifying pharisees , mat. 21. ver . 31. for publicans and harlots did not deny that christs imputed righteousness was the only meriting cau●e of our justification ; but the pharisees denyed this . the apostle confesseth how exceeding mad he was against this doctrine so long as he was a pharisee , and persecuted all that professed to be justifyed by faith in jesus christ , acts. 26. from ver . 9. to ver . 12. he would not yield to cast away the thoughts of his own righteousness , and to relie upon the righteousness of christ imputed ; and this made him persecute unto the death all such as professed a contrary way of being justified ; and herein he was a greater sinner , than if he had been a thief , or drunkard , or any othe● kind of sinner , those are trespasses against the commands of the law , but this is the highest trespass against the great command of the gospel ; namely , that we should embrace christ as he is called , the lord our righteousness , ier. 23. ver . 6. there is more hopes of publicans and harlots , of theeves and murderers , than of those that reject christs imputed righteousness , except the devils & damned in hell ; christ can have no greater enemies , than those that cry up their own righteousness , and cry down the doctrine of his imputed righteousness . paul before conversion , was tooth & nail , as we say , against this doctrine ; so that we may see a most elaborate piece of the work of free grace , ( 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 , may be derived from 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 , ) saith passor , nota incisa , insculpta , percussione , vel pulsatione facta . the chra●cter of free grace is deeply cut in this pattern ; paul , a proud pharisee , was beaten down to the ground ; and he that before so hotly persecuted the name of christ , is now made a preacher of it ; here is now the depth of humility , where there was the height of pride before ; here god hath wrought a curious frame out of a rugged knotty piece of timber . here is a lion-like nature changed into a lamb ; he that before was 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 , from 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 , interpo●ito v , ) that is to say , unquiet like the sea , and turbulent , is now paul , quiet and peaceable ; see what free grace can do : here is a rare pattern indeed ! for a physician perfectly to cure one that is stark mad , and bring him to his right mind , this shews great skill indeed : this god hath done ; paul was exceeding mad , persecuting all wheresoever he met them , that professed to be justifyed by faith in christs righteousness ; and yet the grace of god hath perfectly cured him , and now makes him to seek to christ for righteousness , and count his own righteousness but dung , and to preach the same way of justification to others . if a chyrurgeon go into an hospital , and pick out those that are most desperately sick & lame , and cure them , is it not the greater argument of his skill ? so here in paul's conversion and pardon ; god doth shew what free grace can do ; for paul 〈◊〉 per●ect●y cured , that was most 〈◊〉 sick of pride and self-love . 2. consid●r the manne of his conversion , and then his name paul may be derived from the hebrew word 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 , which signisies wonderful , for the manner of his conversion was wonderful indeed , recorded , acts 9. ver . 1. while he was yet breathing out threatnings and slaughter against the church , he made himself accessory to the murder of stephen , by holding the garments of them that stoned him , acts 8. ver . 58. but this did whet his malice , and sharpen his rage the more , this did but flesh his fury , and make him more eager to persecute ; this was but a younger practice , to what he af●erwards intended ; he seeks to get a commission to impower him to persecute all that came in his way ; and being armed with authority , and come nigh to damascus , ( which was the end of his journey , ) god surprized him suddenly , and turned a p●oud saul into an humble paul , and made him a zealous preacher of christ , who came thither out of a design to shew himself a bitter persecutor of that name ; he that was prancing on horse-back before , is now fallen to the earth ; he that came to punish christs disciples , now owneth christ as his lord , and begs now to know wh●t he will have him do , acts 9. ver . 14. he that was r●ging before , is trembling and astonished now ; a little light from heaven , will tame the most furious persecutor , any discovery either of th● glorious majesty of jesus christ , o● of our vileness , will humble any sinner ; see here the irresistible power of grace , that can meet with a wol● seeking for his prey , and can suddenly change him into a harmless lamb. 3. consider how graciously god dealt with him after conversion , in imploying him as a prime officer in the church of christ ; yea , as a master-builder , and as a chief pillar of that church which he sought before to pull down . god sent him as an honorable embassador to bear christs name before kings , and the children of israel , whose great ambition before was to be the saints common executioner : christ intended that paul should suffer much for his name , who came to damascus to make all them suffer that professed christs name . it is remarkable , that of all the apostles , paul only was wrapt up in the thi●d heaven ; god dealt so graciously with him , that he that was the greatest enemy to christ before his conversion , is now used as the most indeared friend of christ after his conversion , and hath the most glorious discoveries of christ , and of the mysteries of his gospel of all others , and now his name may be called wonderful indeed ; for here is a scene on which before conversion , corrupt nature acted her outragious fury ; and after conversion , sanctifying grace sh●wed her sacred force , and both to such an extent , as few stories can parallel . in saul was seen as much as can well be in a man void of grace ; and in paul was discovered as much as need be looked for in the most eminent saint ; his former madness is equalled by his present zeal , and now all that ie●ish learning which he had raked together , intending onely thereby to defend the righteousness of the law , and the traditions of the elders , and to dispute against christ and his gospel ; god imploys it better , to make him more able to confound the iews , and to prove that jesus is the very christ , acts 9. ver . 22. none preach christ crucifyed so plainly , and the doctrine of justification by christs impured righteousness so powerfully , and so thorowly as paul does ; none beat so much on this string , as he , romans 3 ver . 27. galat. 2. ver . 16. and in galat. 3. ver . 10. none cry down the righteousness of the law so vehemently , nor cry up the imputed righteousness of christ so earnestly as paul does : thus as he was behind no man in wickedness before his conversion ; so was he not infer , or to the very chief apostles after conversion , but laboured more abundantly than they all , i cor. chap. 15. ver . 10. now he would preach nothing but christ crucifyed , 1 cor. chap. 2. ver . and would glory in nothing , but in the cross of our lord jesus , gal. 6. ver . 14. thus paul was even a miracle of mercy , and a glorious pattern of grace . the next particular is , why paul was hung out as a pattern of free grace ? 1. because he had been such a notorious persecuter ; and therefore as the noise of his mad and ignorant zeal had filled the world before , so now the news of his conversion would be the more wonderful , and he would be the more fit to be a pattern , because the example of so great a sinner , would be more encouragement for other sinners to seek for mercy , galat. 1. ver . 23 , 24. when the churches heard that paul preached the faith which he once destroyed , they glorifyed god in him . when sinners remember that paul was pardoned , they may glorify go●s mercy by seeking pardon too . 2. paul was made a pattern of free grace , because he was an eminent iew , and by sect , a pharisee , and so might prove a leading pattern to all the iews , and to that obstinat sect of the pharisees , to leave off per securi●g the church of chr●st , and to joyn themselves unto it , ●o follow his example in renouncing the righteousness of works , and embracing the righteousness of faith : paul was well read in all their jewish traditions , and was as zealous of them as they , and therefore they might see more of the power of grace in his conversion , that now made him h●zard his own life to advance that way , which before he persecuted unto death . 3. paul was chose to be a pattern , because in such a pattern the freeness of grace would appear more clearly , here all the world may see , that we are not saved out of any wo●ks foreseen ; here was nothing to fit him to receive grace ( unless making havock of the church be a preparatory work ) such works the romish saints are full of ; here was a raging persecutor tamed and pardoned . it is not our faith apprehending christ that saves us , but our christ apprehended by faith ; christ is the meriting cause , and faith is the instrumental . lastly , paul was set as a pattern of free grace , to encourage other sinners beholding the mercy of god unto him to look after mercy too , that as in a glass or mirrour , all men may see more clearly the freeness of grace , it is a good means to prevent our despair when we see such an instance of pardoning mercy before our eyes ; and this leadeth me to the last particular : what encouragement may other sinners draw from this great pattern of paul's obtaining pardon . my meaning is not , that others should expect to be miraculously converted , as paul was ; ( for you may as well expect to be caught up into the third heaven : ) but by paul's being pardoned , you may look after a pardon : paul believed and was obedient to the voice from heaven , and so obtained mercy . this voice from heaven was the voice of christ , why p●rsecutest thou m● ? and acts 9. ver . 5. i am iesus whom thou persecutest . the gospel now is christs voice from heaven , he that believeth this voice , and is obedie●● to it , shall as surely obtain pardon as ever paul did ; and he that will not obey christs voice in the gospel , shall n●ver be pardoned . it is remarkable , that christ did not tell paul by the voice from heaven , what he should do , but sent him to be taught by ananias , who was a minister of the gospel , acts 9. ver . 6. so now he doth not miraculously tell sinners what they must do to be saved , but sends them to his word and ministers to be instructed ; and therefore pray compare those two places together , hebr. 4 ver . 7. to day if you will hear his voice : what is that voice of christ ? luk. 10. ver . 16 ▪ he that heareth you , heareth me . christ spake this to his seventy disciples when he sent them out to preach the gospel ; christ gives his ministers the same power to preach , as he did them , though he hath not given them power to work miracles : he still says , he that heareth you heareth me ▪ for it is christs word , and not ministers to re●urn to the queston , how other sinners may draw encouragement from pauls obtaining mercy ? w●y this this a pattern for other sinners , ( ad imitandum paul● fidem ) to believe , and so they shall obtain mercy . when you see a very deformed person well married , you are apt to say , nay , then , none need ever hereafter despair of a husband ; other sinners may say so from this pattern of free grace . seeing that paul the chief of sinners is married to jesus christ ; seeing so great a si●ner is pardoned , no sinner hereafter need despair of pardon ; thus one begger encourage●h another ▪ by ●elling them , or shewing them what a good alms they have 〈◊〉 ; i sped well at such a door and 〈◊〉 enco●rageth others to go 〈◊〉 too . though indeed begging is now grown such a common trade , that you may be soon wearied out with beggers ; such is mans emptiness , that he cannot be always giving ; but such is gods fulness , that he delights to be dealing of his dole of mercy ; the oftner you come to the door of mercy , the better you shall speed , and therefore this is an encouraging pattern : and consider beloved , how great is gods goodness in giving us such patterns to invite us to the throne of grace ? to see matthew and zaccheus , two publicans pardoned , may encourage all publicans to look after pardon too ; to see mary magdalen , out of whom went seven devils ; and the woman taken in the very act of adultery , both pardoned , may encourage all sinners to seek pardon ; to hear paul say , i was a blasphemer , and a persecutor , and injurious , but i obtained mercy , may greatly encourage all sinners to follow god by prayer for to shew them mercy ; it is a very great mercy that we have not only promises of pardon , but also patterns of notorious sinners that have been pardoned . 1. because such patterns sufficiently declare the infinite merit of christs death : who could be fitter trumpets of christs power and mercie , then those blind , and lame , and leprous , and the woman cured of her bloody issue , and that other woman bowed together ; all which christ cured in the days of his flesh ? when the jews spake against christ , the man whom he had restor'd to sight pleaded hard for him , iohn 9. ver . 30. 33. if this man were not of god he could do nothing : the jews knew not what to object , but proudly asked him , dost thou undertake to teach us , ver . 34. ? what can any poor sinner object against the power & mercy of christ , when they see ten lepers cleansed at once ? but may be enforced to cry out with that leper , matt. 8. ver . 2. lord if thou wilt thou canst make me clean : he that cured ten , can cure ten millions ▪ though it is not so with bodily physicians , their art is fallible , but christ is the infallible physician . to hear that christ came to save sinners , may not move us so much as to see it in the examples of manasseh , and the theef on the cross , and those others before-mentioned ; such remarkable instances do abundantly declare , that the merit of christs death is exceedingly beyond the demerit of our sins ; christs healing all manner of diseased that were brought unto him shews that he can heal all manner of diseased souls that come unto him now . 2. such instances do evince , that god is ready to deal out pardons to all sorts of sinners , let their sins be what they will , that come in christs name to ask pardon : the poor soul is apt to say , how shall i know that god will pardon such a wretched sinner as i am ? why you may believe it in such patterns as paul , and those before mentioned . 3. it is a great mercy to have such patterns of pardoning mercy ; for in these we may more clearly see what is the great design of free grace ? namely to set open the door of mercy , and invite all sinners to come freely , and to give pardons to all that will come to god in christs name : and therefore peter and paul the two greatest apostles and pillars of the church , are both set as patterns of free grace , to encourage other sinners to look after pardon ; peter denyed , yea abjured his saviour , and yet was pardoned . paul persecuted him , and blasphemed his name , and compelled others to do so to , and yet was pardoned : now as some prophane wretches in salvians time did presume to sin , because david , and noah , and lot sinned , si david , cur non & ego ; si noah , si lot , cur non & ego ? here the poor penitents may turn their presumption into a blessed hope , and say with an humble confidence , si petrus cur non & ego ? si paulus , cur non & ego ? si david , si noah , si lot , cur non & ego ? if all these were pardoned , why may not i follow god for pardon ? gods gracious design in suffering such examples to be registred of notorious sinners that were pardoned , is , that by such presidents of mercy , all other sinners might take encouragement to seek for mercy in such marv●●lous ex●mles as these , satans greatest obj●ction is answered to our hands . what doth such a wicked creature as you hope for pardon ? in such patterns of m●rcy , as manasseh , peter , paul ▪ and the like . god teacheth us how to answer the devil : god hath pardoned as great sinners as i am ▪ and therefore i am sure god can pardon me , and i believe god will pardon all that seek to him in christ for pardon ; and therefore i will ply the throne of grace in christs name to beg pardon ; in such patterns god doth as it were make a shew of his mercy , that we may see no sins are so great but they shall be pardoned , if we do not add unbelief unto them . mr. lightfoot hath an excellent note to this purpose on pauls conversion the most notorious persecuter that the gospel had yet found , is chosen of all others to be the doctor of the gen●●les , that 〈…〉 his own example , or rather the glorious example of gods mercy in his conversion , might be a comfortable doctrine to those notorious sinners of the gentiles , as well as his preac●ing . lastly , it is a great mercy to have such patterns of pardoning mercy , because such instances are a good means to keep all sinners from despair ; your case is not desperate if the counsellour can shew you a president of the like : if the physician can shew you many now living whom he hath recovered of the same distemper , this may be a good encouragement for you to hope for a cure too : this is paul's meaning when he calls himself chief of sinners , and says , that he obtained mercy for this cause , that he might be a pattern to others ; as much as to say , ●n me god shews as from an high tower , that all sinners may be pardoned as i was , if they seek to him in christs name as i did ; and as david said , they that fear thee , will be glad when they see me , psal. 119. ver . 24. it may be turned here , they that see david pardoned , and paul pardoned , they may be glad of such encouraging patterns to make them hope for pardon too ; the doctrine of free grace is the only doctrine to invite guilty sinners , if pardon be offered freely to all that will ●ome to god in christ : then if i go to pray to god for pardon in the name of his son jesus christ , i shall be pardoned as well as they ; and this consideration moves the poor sinner to go to the throne of grace to beg pardon . god who hath no respect of persons , can have no motive from within , but his own free love , to pardon a poor sinner ; and the word sinner , sufficiently declares that there can be no motive from without ; therefore , the same free grace that hath pardoned other sinners , will pardon all sinners that seek pardon ; yea , this is a good sign that god intends to pardon us , when he makes us with david pray ●arnestly to be pardoned . application ; is for exhortation , to press all sinners to draw that encouragement from this glorious pattern of paul's obtaining mercy , which god intends us ; why do we sit still , as the lepers said one to another , 2 kings chap. 7. ver . 3. why do not we pray for pardon ? there are three things which god doth most delight to glorify , his name , his son , his covenant , and then we most glorify these three things when we look after pardon . as for gods name ▪ he tells us p●ain enough , ier. 33. ver . 8 , 9. that he would exalt his name before all nations of the earth by pardoning his people israel ; therefore let us urge god with his own words , lord glorifie thy name of mercy in pardoning my sins , that all the world may be enforced to say in those words , 〈◊〉 7. ver . 18. who is a god like unto thee , that pardon●th iniquity , &c. concerning his son , god therefore named him iesus , that all the world might hear by that very name , that he was sent to be a saviour ; thus paul ●old the jews , acts 5. ver . 30 ▪ 31. that ●●sus whom they hanged on a tree , god had exalted to be their saviour , to give repentance to israel , and forgiveness of sins . and concerning the covenant , you know it is called , the covenant of grace ; pardon of sin is the great promise of the covenant of grace , ier. 31. ver . 34. last words , for i will forgive their iniquity , and remember their sin no more , then we glorify gods name of mercy , and christs name as a saviour , and the name of the covenant 〈◊〉 grace , when we are moved by these to pray for pardoning mercy ; reme●ber now is the day of grace ; that 〈◊〉 to say , now god is ready to give us pardon , if we seek pardoning grace : heaven is said to have twelve gates , rev. 21. ver . 12. intimating to us , that now there is free admission every way , to all sinners that come to the throne of grace ; but there is a day of judgement coming , then god will as much delight to glorifie his justice in damning all those that refused to seek for pardon in the day of grace . there are twelve steps that lead a sinner to the hope of pardon . 1. to see his absolute need of pardon . 2. to set a possibility of pardon ; for we can have no hope of that we judge impossible ; he sees it possible by the glorious patterns of such as have been pardoned . 3. to desire a pardon . 4. to admire the freeness of grace in all such as have obtained mercy . 5. to see that the only way of obtaining mercy , is , to believe in the lord jesus . 6. to see christs ability to pardon , and to begin to seek after him . 7. to read and eye the promises of pardon . 8. to believe the truth of those promises . 9. to desire to have an interest in those promises . 10. to venture our souls on the free offer of pardon . 11. to follow god by prayer in the name of christ to pardon us . lastly , now the sinner arriveth at the cape of good hope , and a good hope is the beginning of assurance . when the poor sinne● looks towards christ , then it begins to hope for pardon . no matter what the disease was , if the party had but faith to be healed , as is said of the man lame in his feet , acts 14. ver . 9. no matter what our sins are , if we ●ave but faith to believe in christ for pardon . physicians care not for medling in dangerous cases ; but such desperate cases bring more glory to jesus christ ; thus curing him that had been thirty eight years impotent . ioh. 5. to ver . 8. and healing her that had spent all upon physicians , mark 5. ver . 25 , 26. and raising lazarus that had been dead four days , ioh. 11. 39. working through these natural impossibilities , made christs power be more admired by all that saw his miracles : even so this high pattern of paul a persecuter , and a blasphemer , and one of the chief of sinners ; and yet obtaining mercy , doth much more advance the riches of free grace , and may be a greater encouragem●n● to all that hear of it to seek after pardoning mercy ; no matter how desperate our case seem to us , if we make use of christ as our physician . god hath set us two grea● 〈◊〉 in p●ter and 〈◊〉 , both great sinners , yet both obtaining pardoning mercy . the lord giye us his grace , that we may imitate peter's sincere repentance , and paul's saving faith , that we may also obtain mercy , through christ jesus that came to save sinners . the cause and cure of a vvounded conscience by tho. fuller ... fuller, thomas, 1608-1661. this text is an enriched version of the tcp digital transcription a40653 of text r1315 in the english short title catalog (wing f2414). textual changes and metadata enrichments aim at making the text more computationally tractable, easier to read, and suitable for network-based collaborative curation by amateur and professional end users from many walks of life. the text has been tokenized and linguistically annotated with morphadorner. the annotation includes standard spellings that support the display of a text in a standardized format that preserves archaic forms ('loveth', 'seekest'). textual changes aim at restoring the text the author or stationer meant to publish. this text has not been fully proofread approx. 157 kb of xml-encoded text transcribed from 94 1-bit group-iv tiff page images. earlyprint project evanston,il, notre dame, in, st. louis, mo 2017 a40653 wing f2414 estc r1315 12182157 ocm 12182157 55697 this keyboarded and encoded edition of the work described above is co-owned by the institutions providing financial support to the early english books online text creation partnership. this phase i text is available for reuse, according to the terms of creative commons 0 1.0 universal . the text can be copied, modified, distributed and performed, even for commercial purposes, all without asking permission. early english books online. (eebo-tcp ; phase 1, no. a40653) transcribed from: (early english books online ; image set 55697) images scanned from microfilm: (early english books, 1641-1700 ; 890:18) the cause and cure of a vvounded conscience by tho. fuller ... fuller, thomas, 1608-1661. [16], 160 p. printed for john williams ..., london : 1647. reproduction of original in cambridge university library. table of contents: p. [13]-[16] eng conscience. christian ethics. a40653 r1315 (wing f2414). civilwar no the cause and cure of a vvounded conscience. by tho: fuller, b.d. fuller, thomas 1647 25951 109 5 0 0 0 0 44 d the rate of 44 defects per 10,000 words puts this text in the d category of texts with between 35 and 100 defects per 10,000 words. 2002-08 tcp assigned for keying and markup 2002-09 apex covantage keyed and coded from proquest page images 2002-10 judith siefring sampled and proofread 2002-10 judith siefring text and markup reviewed and edited 2002-12 pfs batch review (qc) and xml conversion the cause and cure of a vvovnded conscience . by tho: fuller , b. d. prov. 18. 14. but a wounded conscience who can beare ? london , printed for john williams , at the crowne in s. pauls churchyard . m d c xlvii . to the right honourable , and vertuous lady , frances mannours , countesse of rutland . madam , by the judicial law of the jewes , if a servant had children by a wife which was given him by his master , though he himselfe went forth free in the seventh yeere , yet his children did remain with his master , as the proper goods of his possession . i ever have been , and shall be a servant to that noble family , whence your honour is extracted . and of late in that house i have been wedded to the pleasant embraces of a private life , the fittest wife , and meetest helper that can be provided for a student in troublesome times : and the same hath been bestowed upon me by the bounty of your noble brother , edw : lord montague : wherefore what issue soever shall result from my mind , by his meanes most happily marryed to a retired life , must of due redound to his honour , as the sole proprietarie of my paines during my present condition . now this booke is my eldest off-spring , which had it beene a sonne , ( i mean , had it been a worke of masculine beauty and bignesse ) it should have waited as a page in dedication to his honour . but finding it to be of the weaker sexe , little in strength , and low in stature , may it be admitted ( madam ) to attend on your ladiship , his honours sister . i need not mind your ladiship how god hath measured outward happinesse unto you by the cubit of the sanctuarie , of the largest size , so that one would be posed to wish more then what your ladiship doth enjoy . my prayer to god shall be , that shining as a pearle of grace here , you may shine as a starre in glory hereafter . so resteth your honours in all christian offices , tho : fuller . boughton , ian. 25. 1646. to the christian reader . as one was not anciently to want a wedding garment at a marriage feast ; so now adayes , wilfully to weare gaudy cloathes at a funerall , is justly censurable as unsuiting with the occasion . wherefore in this sad subject , i have endeavoured to decline all light and luxurious expressions : and if i be found faulty therein , i cry and crave god and the reader pardon . thus desiring that my pains may prove to the glory of god , thine , and my owne edification , i rest , thine in christ jesus , thomas fuller . the contents of the severall dialogues . 1. dialogue . what a wounded conscience is , wherewith the godly and reprobate may be tortured . page 1. 2. dial. what use they are to make thereof , who neither hitherto were ( nor haply hereafter shall be ) visited with a wounded conscience . p. 7. 3. dial. three solemne seasons when men are surprised with wounded consciences . p. 14. 4. dial. the great torment of a wounded conscience , proved by reasons and examples . p. 20 5 dial. soveraign uses to be made of the torment of a wounded conscience . page 30. 6. dial. that in some cases more repentance must be preached to a wounded conscience . p. 36. 7. dial. onely christ is to be applyed to soules truly contrite . p. 43. 8. dial. answers to the objections of a wounded conscience , drawne from the grievousnesse of his sins . p. 50. 9. dial. answers to the objections of a wounded conscience drawn from the slightnesse of his repentance . p. 59 10. dial. answers to the objections of a wounded conscience , drawn from the feeblenesse of his faith . p. 72. 11. dial. god alone can satisfie all objections of a wounded conscience . p. 76. 12. dial. means to be used by wounded consciences , for the recovering of comfort . p. 81. 13. dial. foure wholsome counsels for a wounded conscience to practice . p. 95. 14. dial. comfortable meditations for wounded consciences to muse upon . p. 102 15. dial. that is not alwayes the greatest sin whereof a man is guilty , wherewith his conscience is most pained for the present . p. 111. 16. dial. obstructions hindring the speedy flowing of comfort into a troubled soule . p. 118. 17. dial. what is to be conceived of their finall estate who die in a wounded conscience without any visible comf●…rt ; p. 124. 18 dial. of the different time and manner of the comming of comfort to such who are healed of a wounded conscience . p. 134. 19. dial. how such who are compleatly cured of a wounded conscience , are to demeane themselves . p. 140 20. dial. whether one cured of a wounded con●…cience , be subject to a relapse . p. 147. 21. dial. whether it be lawfull to pray for , or to pray against , or to praise god for a wounded conscience . p. 152. the cause & cure of a wounded conscience . i. dialogue . what a wounded conscience is , wherewith the godly and reprobate may be tortured . timotheus . seeing the best way never to know a wounded conscience , by wofull experience , is speedily to know it by a sanctified consideration thereof : give me ( i pray you ) the description of a wounded conscience , in the highest degree thereof . philologus . it is a conscience frighted at the sight of * sin , and weight of gods wrath , even unto the despaire of all pardon , during the present agony . tim. is there any difference betwixt a broken * spirit , and a wounded conscience , in this your acception ? phil. exceeding much : for a broken spirit is to be prayed and laboured for , as the most healthfull and happy temper of the soule , letting in as much comfort , as it leakes out sorrow for sinne : whereas a wounded conscience is a miserable maladie of the mind , filling it for the present with despaire . tim. in this your sense , is not the conscience wounded every time that the soule is smitten with guiltinesse for any sinne committed ? phil. god forbid : otherwise his servants would be in a sad condition , as in the case of david * smitten by his owne heart , for being ( as he thought ) over-bold with gods anointed , in cutting off the skirt of sauls garment ; such hurts are presently heal'd by a plaister of christs blood , applyed by faith , and never come to that height to be counted and called wounded c●…nsciences . tim. are the godly , a●… well as the wicked , subject to this malady ? phil. yes verily : vessels of honour as well as vessels of wrath in this world , are subject to the knocks and br●…ises of a wounded conscience . a patient job , p●…ous david , faithfull paul may be vexed therewith no lesse then a cursed cain , perfidious achit●…phil , or treacherous judas . tim. what is the difference betwixt a wounded conscience in the godly , and in the reprobate ? phil. none at all ; oft times in the parties apprenensions , both ( for the time being ) conceiving their estates equally desperate ; little , if any , in the widenesse and anguish of the wound it selfe , which ( for the time ) may be as tedious and torturing in the godly , as in the wicked . tim. how then doe they differ ? phil. exceeding much in gods intention , gashing the wicked , as malefactors , out of justice , but lancing the godly , out of love , as a surgeon his patients . likewise they differ in the issue and event of the wound , which ends in the eternall confusion of the one , but in the correction & amendment of the other . tim. some have said , that in the midst of their pain , by this mark they may be distinguished , because the godly , when wounded , complain most of their sinnes , and the wicked of their sufferings . phil. i have heard as much ; but dare not lay too much stresse on this slender signe , ( to make it generally true ) for feare of failing . for sorrow for sin , and sorrow for suffering , are oft times so twisted and interwoven in the same person , yea in the same sigh and groane , that sometimes it is impossible for the partie himself so to separate and divide them in his owne sense and feeling , as to know which proceedeth from the one and which from the other . onely the all-seeing eye of an infinite god is able to discerne and distinguish them . tim. informe me concerning the nature of wounded consciences in the wicked . phil. excuse he herein : i remember a passage in s. * augustine , who enquired what might be the cause that the fall of the angells is not plainly set down in the old testam. with the manner and circumstances thereof , resolveth it thus : god , like a wise surgeon , would not open that wound which he never intended to cure : of whose words thus farre i make use , that as it was not according to gods pleasure to restore the devils , so it being above mans power to cure a wounded conscience in the wicked , i will not meddle with that which i cannot mend : onely will insist on a wounded conscience i●… gods children , where , by gods blessing , one may be the instrument , to give some ease , and remedy unto their disease . ii. dialogue . what use they are to make thereof , who neither hitherto were ( nor haply hereafter spall be ) visited with a wounded conscience . tim. are all gods children , either in their life or at their death , visited with a wounded conscience ? phil. o no : god inviteth many , with his golden scepter , whom he never bruiseth with his r●…d of iron . many , neither in their conversion , nor in the sequell of their lives , have ever felt that paine in such a manner and measure , as amounteth to a wounded conscience . tim. must not the pangs in their travell of the new-birth be painfull unto them ? phil. painfull , but in different degrees . the blessed virgin mary ( most hold ) was deliver'd without any paine ; `as well may that child be borne without sorrow , which is conceived without sin . the women of israel were sprightfull and lively , unlike the egyptians . * the former favour none can have , in their spirituall travell ; the latter some receive , who though other whiles tasting of legall frights and fears , yet god so * preventeth them with his blessings of goodnesse , that they smart not so deeply therein as other men . tim. who are those which commo●…ly have such gentle usage in their conversion ? phil. generally such , who never were notoriously profane , and have had the benefit of godly education from pious parents . in some corporations , the sons of free-men , bred under their fathers in their profession , may set up and exercise their fathers trade , without ever being bound apprentices thereunto . such children whose parents have been citizens of new * jerusalem , and have been bred in the mysterie of godlinesse , oftentimes are entred into religion without any spirit of bondage seizing upon them , a great benefit and rare blessing , where god in his goodnesse is pleased to bestow it . tim. what may be the reason of gods so different dealing with his owne servants , that some of them are so deeply , and others not at all afflicted with a wounded conscience ? phil. even so father , because it pleaseth thee . yet in humility these reasons may be assigned , 1. to shew himselfe a free agent , not confined to follow the same precedent , and to deal with all as he doth with some . 2. to render the prospect of his proceedings the more pleasant to their fight , who judiciously survey it , when they meet with so much diversity and variety therein . 3. that men being both ingorant when , and uncertaine whether or not , god will vi●…it them with wounded conciences , may wait on him with humble hearts , in the worke of their salvation , looking as the eyes of the * servants to receive orders from the hand of their master , but what , when , and how they know not , which quickens their daily expectations , and diligent dependance on his pleasure . tim. i am one of those , whom god hitherto hath humbled with a wounded conscience : give me some instruction for my behaviour . phil. first be heartily thankfull to gods infinite goodnesse , who hath not dealt thus with every one . now because repentance hath two parts , mourning , and mending , or humiliation , and reformation , the more god hath abated thee , in the former , out of his gentlenesse , the more must thou increase in the latter , out of thy gratitude . what thy humiliation hath wanted of other men , in the depth thereof , let thy reformation make up in the bredth thereof , spreading into an universall obedience unto all gods commandements . well may he expect more work to be done by thy hands , who hath laid lesse weight to be borne on thy shoulders . tim. what other use must i make of gods kindnesse unto me ? phil. you are bound the more patiently to beare all gods rods , poverty , sicknesse , disgrace , captivity , &c. seeing god hath freed thee from the stinging scorpion of a wounded conscience . tim. how shall i demeane my selfe for the time to come ? phil. be not high minded , but feare ; for thou canst not infallibly inferre , that because thou hast not hitherto , hereafter thou shalt not taste of a wounded conscience . tim. i will therefore for the future with continuall feare , wait for the comming thereof . phil. wait not for it with servile feare , but watch against it with constant carefulnes . there is a slavish feare to be visited with a wounded conscience , which feare is to be avoided , for it is opposite to the free spirit of grace , derogatory to the goodnesse of god in his gospel , destructive to spiritull joy , which we ought alwayes to have , and dangerous to the soule wrecking it with anxieties , and unworthy suspitions . thus to feare a wounded conscience , is in part to feele it , antidating ones misery , and tormenting himselfe before the time , seeking for that he would be loth to finde : like the wicked in the * gospel , of whom it is said , mens hearts failing them for feare , and looking for those things which are comming . far be such a feare from thee , and all good christians . tim. what feare then is it , that you so lately recommended unto me ? phil. one consisting in the cautions avoiding of all causes and occasions of a wounded conscience , conjoyned with a confidence in gods goodnesse , that he will either preserve us from , or protect us in the torture thereof ; and if he ever sends it , will sanctifie it in us , to his glory , and our good . may i , you , and all gods servants , ever have this noble feare ( as i may terme it ) in our hearts . iii. dialogue . three solemne seasons when men are surprized with wounded consciences . tim. what are those times , wherein men most commonly are assaulted with wounded consciences ? phil. so bad a guest may visit a man at any houre of his life : for no season is unseasonable for god to be just , satan to be mischievous , and sinfull man to be miserable ; yet it happeneth especially at three principall times . tim. of these , which is the first ? phil. in the twilight of a mans conversion , in the very conflict and combat betwixt nature and innitiall grace . for then he that formerly slept in carnall security , is awakened with his fearfull condition : god , as he saith , psal. 50. 21. setteth his sins in order before his eyes . inprimis , the sin of his conception . item , the sinnes of his childhood . item , of his youth . item , of his mans estate , &c. or , inprimis , sinnes against the first table . item , sins against the second ; so many of ignorance , so many of knowledge , so many of presumption severally sorted by themselves . hee committed sinnes confusedly , hudling them up in heaps , but god sets them in order , and methodizeth them to his hand . tim. sins thus set in order must needs be a terrible sight . phil. yes surely , the rather because the metaphor may seem taken from setting an army in battell array . at this conflict in his first conversion , behold a troup of sinnes commeth , and when god himself shal marshall them in rank and file , what guilty conscience is able to endure the furious charge of so great and well order'd an army ? tim. suppose the party dies before he be compleatly converted in this twilight condition , as you term it , what then becomes of his soule , which may seeme too good to dwell in outer darknesse with devils , and too bad to goe to the god of light ? phil. your supposition is impossible . remember our discourse onely concerneth the godly . now god never is father to abortive children , but to such who according to his appointment shall come to perfection . tim. can they not therefore die in this interim , before the work of grace be wrought in them ? phil. no verily : christs bones were in themselves breakable , but could not actually be broken by all the violence in the world , because god hath fore-decreed , a bone of him shall not be broken . so we confesse gods children mortall , but all the power of devill or man may not , must not , shall not , cannot kill them before their conversion , according to gods election of them to life , wth must be fully accomplished . ti : what is the 2. solemn time , wherin wounded cōsciēces assault men ? phil. after their conve●…sion cōpleated , and this either upon the committing of a conscience-wasting sin , such as tertullian calleth peccatum devoratorium salutis , or upon the undergoing of some heavy affliction of a bigger standard and proportion , blacker hu●… and complexion then what befalleth ordinary men , as in the case of job . tim. which is the third , and last time , when wounded consci●…nces commonly walke abroad ? phil. when men lie on their death-beds , sathan must now roare , or else for ever hold his peace : roare he may afterwards with very anger to vex himselfe , not with any hope to hurt us . there is mention in scripture of an evill day ; which is most applyable to the time of our death . we read also of an houre of * temptation ; and the * prophet tells us there is a moment , wherein god may seeme to for sake us . now sathan being no lesse cunning to finde out , then carefull to make use of his time of advantage , in that moment of that houre of that day , will put hard for our soules , and we must expect a shrewd parting blow from him . tim. your dolefull prediction disheartens me , for feare i be foild in my last encounter . phil. be of good comfort : through christ we shall be victorious , both in dying and in death it selfe . remember gods former favours bestowed upon thee . indeed wicked men , from premisses of gods power collect a conclusion of his weaknesse , psal. 78. 20. behold be smot the rock , that the waters 〈◊〉 out , and the streames over-flowed : can he give bread also ? can ●…e provide flesh for his people ? but gods children * by better logick , ●…rom the prepositions of gods former preservations , inferre his power and pleasure to protect them for the future . be assured , that god which hath beene the god of the mountaines , and made our mountaines strong in time of our prosperity , will also be the god of the valleys , and lead us safe * through the valley of the shadow of death . iv. dialogue . the great torment of a wounded conscience , proved by reasons and examples . tim. is the paine of a wounded conscience so great as is pretended ? phil. god * saith it , we have seene it , and others have felt it : whose complaints , ●…avour as little of dissimulation , as their cries in a fit of the cholique , doth of counterfeiting . tim. whence comes this wound to be so great and grievous ? phil. six reasons may be assigned thereof . the first drawn from the heavinesse of the hand which makes the wound ; namely , god himslfe , conceived under the notion of an infinite angry judge . in all other afflictions , man encountreth only with man , and in the worst temptations , only with sathan , but in a wounded conscience , he enters the lists immediately with god himselfe . tim. whence is the second reason fetcht ? phil. from the * sharpnesse of the sword , wherewith the wound is made , being the word of god , and the keen threatnings of the law therein contained . there is mention gen. 3. 24. of a sword turning every way : parallel whereto is the word of god in a wounded conscience . mans heart is full of windings , turnings and doublings , to shift and shunne the stroke thereof if possible , but this sword meets them wheresoever they move , it fetcheth and finds them out , it hants and hunts them , forbidding them during their agony , any entrance into the paradise of one comfortable thought . tim. whence is the third reason derived ? phil. from the tendernesse of the part it selfe which is wounded ; the conscience being one of the eyes of the soule , sensible of the smallest hurt . and when that callum , schirrus or inerustation drawn over it by nature , and hardned by custome in sinne , is once 〈◊〉 off , the conscience becomes so pliant and supple , that ●…he least imaginable touch is painf●…ll 〈◊〉 it . tim. what is the fourth reason ? phil. the folly of the patient : who being stung , hath not the wisedome to looke up to christ , the brazen serpent but tormenteth himselfe with his owne activity . it was threatned to * pashur , i will make thee a terrour to thy selfe : so fareth it with gods best saint during the fit of his perplexed conscience ; heareth he his owne voice , he thinketh , this is that which so often hath sworne , lyed , talked vainly , wanton , wickedly ; his voice is a terrour to himselfe . seeth he his own eyes in a glasse , he presently apprehends , these are those which shot forth so many envious , covetous , amorous glances , his eyes are a terrour to himselfe . sheep are observed to flye without cause , scared , ( as some say ) with the sound of their own feet : their feet knack , because they flye , and they fly , because their feet knack , an emblem of gods children in a wounded conscience , selfe-fearing , selfe ▪ frighted . tim. what is the fift reason which makes the paine so great ? phil. because sathan rak●…s his clawes in the reeking blood of a wounded conscience . belzebub the devils name fignifieth in hebrew the lord of flyes ; which excellently intimates his nature and employment : flyes take their selicity about sores and galled backs , to infest and inflame them . so sathan no sooner discovereth ( and that bird of prey hath quick sight ) a soule terrour-struck , but thither he hasts , and is busie to keepe the wound raw , there he is in his throne to doe mischiefe . tim. what is the sixt and last reason why a wounded conscience is so great a torment ? phil. because of the impotency and invaliditie of all earthly receipts to give ease thereunto . for there is such a gulfe of disproportion betwixt a mind-malady and bodymedicines , that no carnall , corporall comforts can effectually work thereupon . tim. yet wine in this case is prescribed in scripture , * give wine to the heavy hearted , that they may remember their misery no more . phil. indeed if the wound be in the spirits , ( those cursiters betwixt soule and body ) to recover their decay or consumption , wine may usefully be applyed : but if the wound be in the spirit in scripture phrase , all carnall , corporall comforts are utterly in vaine . tim. me thinks merry company should doe much to refresh him . phil. alas , a man shall no longer be welcome in merry company , then he is able to sing his part in their joviall consort . when a hunted deere runs for safeguard amongst the rest of the herd , they will not admit him into their company , but beat him off with their hornes , out of principles of selfe-preservation , for feare the hounds , in pursuit of him , fall on them also . so hard it is for man or beast in misery to find a faithfull friend . in like manner , when a knot of bad-good-fellowes perceive one of their society dogg'd with gods terrours at his heeles , they will be shut of him as soone as they can , preferring his roome , and declining his company , lest his sadnesse prove infectious to others . and now if all six reasons be put together , so heavy a hand , smiting with so sharp a sword on so tender a part of so foolish a patient , whilst sathan seeks to widen , and no worldly plaister can cure the wound , it sufficiently proves a wounded conscience to be an exquisite torture . tim. give me i pray an example hereof . phil. when adam had eaten the forbidden fruit , he tarryed a time in paradise , but tooke no contentment therein . the sunne did shine as bright , the rivers ran as cleare as ever before , birds sang as sweetly , beasts played as pleasantly , flowers smelt as fragrant , herbs grew as fresh , fruits flourisht as faire , no puntilio of pleasure was either altered or abated . the objects were the same , but adams eyes were otherwise , his nakednesse stood in his light ; a thorne of guiltinesse grew in his heart , before any thistles sprang out of the ground ; which made him not to seeke for the fairest fruits to fill his hunger , but the biggest leaves to cover his nakednesse . thus a wounded conscience is able to unparadise paradise it selfe . tim. give me another instance . phil. christ jesvs our saviour , he was blinded , buffeted , scourged , scoffed at , had his hands and feet nailed on the crosse , and all this while said nothing . but no sooner apprehended he his father deserting him , groaning under the burthen of the sins of mankind imputed unto him , but presently the lambe , ( who hitherto dumb before his shearer opened not his mouth ) for paine began to bleat , my god , my god , why hast thou forsaken me ? tim. why is a wounded conscience by david resembled to arrowes , * thine arrowes stick fast in me ? phil. because an arrow ( especially if barbed ) rakes & rends the flesh the more , the more mettall the wounded partie hath to strive and struggle with it : and a guilty conscience pierceth the deeper , whilst a stout stomach with might and main seeketh to out-wrastle it . tim. may not a wounded conscience also work on the body , to hasten and heighten the sicknesse thereof ? phil. yes verily , so that there may be employment for * luke , the beloved physitian , ( if the same person with the evangelist ) to exercise both his professions : but we meddle onely with the malady of the mind , abstracted from any bodily indisposition . v. dialogue . soveraign uses to be made of the torment of a wounded conscience . tim. seeing the torture of a wounded conscience is so great , what use is to be made thereof ? phil. very much . and first , it may make men sensible of the intollerable paine in hell fire . if the mouth of the fiery fornace into which the children were cast , was so hot , that it burnt those which approached it , how hot was the fornace it selfe ? if a wounded conscience , the suburbs of hell , be so painfull , oh how extreame is that place , where the worme never dyeth , and the fire is never quenched ? tim. did our roaring boyes ( as they call them ) but seriously consider this , they would not wish god damne them , and god confound them so frequently as they doe . phil. no verily : i read in theodoret of the ancient donatists , that they were so ambitious of martyrdome , ( as they accounted it ) that many of them meeting with a young gentleman requested of him , that he would be pleased to kill them . he , to confute their folly , condescended to their desire , on condition , that first they would be contented , to be all fast bound : which being done , accordingly he took order that they were all soundly whipt , but saved their lives . in application : when i heare such riotous youths wish that god would damne or confound them , i hope god will be more mercifull , then to take them at their words , and to grant them their wish ; only i heartily desire that he would be pleased , sharply to scourge them , and soundly to lash them with the frights & terrours of a wounded conscience . and i doubt not , but that they would so ill like the paine thereof , that they would revoke their wishes , as having little list , and lesse delight to taste of hell hereafter . tim. what other use is to be made of the paine of a wounded conscience ? phil. to teach us seasonably to prevent , what we cannot possibly endure . let us shunne the smallest sinne , lest if we slight and neglect it , it by degrees fester and gangrene into a wounded conscience . one of the bravest * spirits that ever england bred , or ireland buried , lost his life by a light hurt neglected ; as if it had beene beneath his high minde to stoop to the dressing thereof , till it was too late . let us take heed the stoutest of us be not so served in our soules . if we repent not presently of our sinnes committed , but carelesly contemne them , a scratch may quickly prove an ulcer ; the rather , because the flesh of our minde , if i may so use the metaphor , is hard to heale full of cholerick & corrupt humors , and very ready to rancle . tim. what else may we gather for our instruction from the torture of a troubled mind ? phil. to confute their cruelty , who out of sport or spight , willingly and wittingly wound weak consciences ; like those uncharitable * corinthians , who so far improve their liberty in things indifferent , as thereby to wound the consciences of their weake brethren . tim. are not those ministers too blame , who , mistaking their message , instead of bringing the gospell of peace , fright people with legall terrours into despaire ? phil. i cannot commend their discretion , yet will not condemn their intention herein . no doubt their d●…sire and designe is pious , though they erre in the pursuite and prosecution thereof , casting down them whom they cannot raise , and conjuring up the spirit of bondage which they cannot allay againe : wherefore it is our wisest way , to interweave promises with threatnings , and not to leave open a pit of despaire , but to cover it again with comfort . tim. remaineth there not as yet , another use of this poi●…t ? phil. y●…s , to teach us to pitty and pray for those that have afflicted consciences , not like the wicked , * who persecute those whom god hath smitten , and talke to the griefe of such whom he hath wounded . tim. yet eli was a good man , who notwithstanding censured * hannah , a woman of a sorrowfull spirit , to be drunke with wine . phil. imitate not eli in committing , but amending his fault . indeed his dimme eyes could see drunkennes in hannah where it was not , & could not see sacriledge & adultery in his own sonnes , where they were . thus those who are most indulgent to their owne , are most censorious of others . but eli afterwards perceiving his errour , turned tho condemning of ha●…nah into praying for her . in like manner , if in our passion we have prejudiced , or injur'd any wounded consciences , in cold blood let us make them the best amends and reparation . vi . dialogue . that in some cases more repentance must be preached to a wounded conscience . tim. so much for the maladie , now for the remedy . suppos●… you come to a wounded conscience , what counsell will you prescribe him ? phil. if after hearty prayer to god for his direction , he appeareth unto me , as yet , not truely penitent , in the first place i will presse a deeper degree of repentance upon him . tim o miserable comforter ! more sorrow still ! take heed your eyes be not put out with that smoking flax , you seeke to quench , and your fingers wounded with the splinters of that bruised reed you goe about to breake . phil. understand me sir . better were my tongue spit out of my mouth , then to utter a word of griefe to drive them to despaire , who are truly contrite . but on the other side , i shall betray my trust , and be found an unfaithfull dispencer of divine mysteries , to apply comfort to him who is not ripe and ready for it . tim. what harme wol●…d it doe ? phil. raise him for the present , and ruine him , without gods greater mercy for the future . for comfort dawbed on , on a foule soule , will not stick long upon it : and instead of pouring in , i shall spill the precious oyle of gods mercy . yea i may justly bring a wounded conscience upon my selfe , for dealing deceitfully in my stewardship . tim. is it possible one may not be ●…oundly humbled , and yet have a wounde●… conscience ? phil. most possible : for a wounded conscience is often inflicted as a punishment for lacke of true repentance : great is the difference betwixt a mans being frighted at , and humbled for his sinnes . one may passively be cast downe by gods terrours , and yet not willingly throw himselfe downe , as he ought , at gods foot-stoole . tim. seeing his pain is so pittifull as you have formerly proved ; why would you adde more griefe unto him ? phil. i would not adde griefe to him , but alter griefe in him ; making his ●…orrow , not greater , but better . i would endeavour to change his dismall , dolefull dejection , his hid●…s , and horrible heavines , his bitter exclamations , which seeme to me much mixed in him , with pride , impatience , and impen●…tence , into a willing submission to gods pleasure , and into a kindly , gentle , tender gospell-repentance , for his sinnes . tim. but there are some now adayes who maintaine that a child of god after his first conversion , needeth not any new repentance for sinne all the dayes of his life . phil. they derend a grievous and dangerous errour . consider what two petitions christ coupleth together in his prayer : when my body which every day is hungry , can live without gods giving it daily bread , then and no sooner shall i believe , that my soule , which daily sinneth , can spiritually live , without gods forgiving it its trespasses . tim. but such alledge , in proof of their opinion , that a man hath his person justified before god , not by pieces and parcels , but at once and for ever in his conversion . phil. this being granted doth not favour their errour . we confesse god finished the creation of the world , and all therein in six dayes , and then rested from that worke , yet so , that his daily preserving of all things by his providence , may ●…till be accounted a constant and continued creation . we acknowlege in like manner , a child of god justified at once in his conversion , when he is fully and freely estated in gods favour . and yet seeing every daily sinne by him committed , is an aversion from god , and his daily repentance a conversion to god , his justification in this respect , may be conceived intrirely continued all the dayes of his life . tim. what is the difference betwixt the first repentance , and this renewed repentance ? phil. the former is as it were the putting of life into a dead man , the latter the recovering of a sicke man from a dangerous swound ; by the former , sight to the blind is simply restored , and eyes given him ; in the latter , only a filme is removed , drawn over their eyes , and hindering their actuall sight . by the first we have a right title to the kingdome of heaven : by our second repentance , we have a new claime to heaven , by vertue of our old title . thus these two kinds of repentance may be differenced and distinguished , though otherwise they meet and agree in generall qualities : both having sinne for their cause , sorrow for their companion , and pardon for their consequent and effect . tim. but are not gods children after committing of grievous sinnes , and before their renewing their repentance remaine still heires of heav●… , married to christ , and citizens of the new hierusalem ? phil. heires of heaven , they are , but disinheritable for their m●…demeanour . married still to christ , but deserving to be divorced for their adulteri●… . citizens of heaven , but yet outlawed , so that they can recover no right , and receive no benefit , till their out-lawry be reversed . tim. where doth god in scripture injoyne this second repentance on his owne children ? phil. in severall places . he threatneth the * church of ephesus ( the best of the seaven ) wich removing the candlesticke from them , except they repent : and christ telleth his own disciples , true converts before , but then guilty of ambitious thoughts , that * except yee be converted yee shall not enter into the kingdome of heaven . here is conversion after conversion , being a solemne turning from some particular sinne ; in relation to which it is not absurd to say , that there is justification after justification ; the latter as following in time , so flowing from the former . vii . dialogue . onely christ is to be applyed to soules truly contrite . tim. but suppose the person in the ministers apprehension heartily humbled for sinne , what then is to be done ? phil. no corrosives , all cordialls ; no vineger , all oyle ; no law , all gospell must be presented unto him . here blessed the lippes , yea beautifull the feet of him that bringeth the tidings of peace . as * elisha , when reviving the sonne of the shunamite laid his mou●…h to the mouth of the child . so the gaping orifice of christs wounds must spiritually by preaching , be put close to the mouth of the wounds of a conscience : happy that skilfull architect , that can shew the sick man , that the * head stone of his sprituall building , must be laid with shouts , crying grace , grace . tim. which doe you count the head-stone of the building , that which is first or last laid ? phil. the foundation is the head-stone in honour , the top-stone is the head-stone in height . the former the head-stone in strength , the latter in stature . it seemeth that gods spirit , of set purpose ▪ made use of a doubtfull word , to shew that the whole fabricke of our salvation , whether as founded , or as finished , is the only worke of gods grace alone . christ is the alpha and omega thereof , not excluding all the letters in the alphabet interposed . tim. how must the minister preach christ to an afflicted conscience ? phil. he must crucifie him before his eyes , lively setting him forth , naked , to cloath him ; wounded , to cure him ; dying , to save him . he is to expound and explaine unto him , the dignity of his person , pretiousnesse of his blood , plenteousnesse of his mercy , in all those loving relations , wherein the scripture presents him : a kind father to a prodicall child , a carefull hen to a scatter'd chicken , a good shepherd that bringeth his lost sheep back on his shoulders . tim. spare me one question , why doth he not drive the sheepe before him , especially seeing it was lively enough to lose it selfe ? phil. first , because though it had wildnesse too much to goe astray , it had not wisedome enough to goe right . secondly , because probably the ●…lly sheep , had tired it selfe with wandring ; habbabuk 2. 13. the people shall wearie themselves for very vanity , and therefore the kind shepheard brings it home on his owne shoulders . tim. pardon my interruption , and proceed , how christ is to be held forth . phil. the latitude and extent of his love , his invitation without exception , are powerfully to be prest ; every one that thi●…teth , all ye that are heavy laden , whosoever beleeveth , and the many promises of mercy are effectually to be tendered unto him . tim. where are those promises in scripture ? phil. or rather , where are they not ? for they are harder to be mist , then to bee met with . open the bible ( as he * drew his bow in battle ) at adventur●…s ▪ if thou lightest on an historicall place , behold precedents ; if on a doctrinall , promises of comfort . for the larter , observe these particulars , gen. 3. 15. exo. 33. 6. isa. 40. 1. isa. 54. 11. mat. 11. 28. mat. 12. 20. 1 cor. 10. 13. heb. 13 ▪ 5. &c. tim. are these more principall places of consolation , then any other in the bible ? phil. i know there is no choosing , where all things are choicest : whosoever shall select some pearles out of such a heap , shall leave behind as precious as any he takes , both in his owne and others judgement ; yea which is more , the same man at severall times may in his apprehension preferre severall promises as best , formerly most affected with one place , for the present more delighted with another ; and afterwards conceiving comfort therein not so cleare , choose other places as more pregnant , and pertinent to his purpose . thus god orders it , that divers men ( and perchance the same man at different times ) make use of all his promises , gleaning and gathering comfort , not only in one furrow , land , or furlong ▪ but as it s scattered clean through the whole field of the scripture . tim. must ministers have varie●…y of severall comfortable promises ? phil. yes surely : such masters of the assembly being to enter and fasten consolation in an afflicted soule , need have many nailes provided aforehand , that if some for the present , chance to drive untowardly , as splitting , going awrie , turning crooked or blunt , they may have others in the roome thereof . tim. but grant , christ held out never so plainly , prest never so powerfully , yet all is in vaine , except god inwardly with his spirit perswade the wounded conscience to beleeve the truth of what he saith . phil. this is an undoubted truth , for one may lay the bread of life on their trencher , and cannot force them to feede on it . one may bring them downe to the spring of life , but cannot make them drinke of the waters thereof ; and therefore in the cure of a wounded conscience , god is all in all , only the touch of his hand , can * heal this kings evill , i kill and make alive , i wound and i heale , neither is there any that can deliver out of my hand . viii . dialogue . answers to the objections of a wounded conscience drawne from the grievousnesse of his sinnes . tim. give me leave now sir to personate & represent a wounded conscience , and to alledge and inforce such principall objections wherewith generally they are grieved . phil. with all my heart , and god blesse my endeavours in answering them . tim. but first i would be satisfied how it comes to passe , that men in a wounded conscience have their parts so presently improved . the jewes did question concerning our saviour , * how knoweth this man letters being never learned ? but here the doubt , and difficulty is greater ; how come simple people so subtile on a sudden to oppose with that advantage , and vehemency , that it would puzzle a good and grave divine to answer them ? phil. two reasons may be rendred thereof . 1. because a man in a diste●…per , is stronger then when he is in his perfect health . what sampsons are some in the fit of a feaver ? then their spirits , being intended by the violence of their disease , push with all their power . so is it in the agony of a distressed soule , every string thereof is strained to the height , and a man becomes more then himselfe to object against himselfe in a fit of despaire . tim. what is the other reason ? phil. sathan himselfe , that subtile sophister assisteth them . he formes their arguments , frames their objections , fits their distinctions , shapes their evasions ; and this discomforter ( aping gods spirit the comforter , john 14. 26. ) bringeth all things to their remembrance , which they have heard or read to dishearten them . need therefore have ministers , when they meddle with afflicted men , to call to heaven afore-hand to assist them , being sure , they shall have hell it selfe to oppose them . tim. to come now to the objections , which afflicted consciences commonly make : they may be reduced to three principall heads . either drawne from the greatnesse and grievousnesse of their sinnes , or from the slightnesse and lightnesse of their repentance , or from th●… faintnesse & feeblenesse of their faith . i begin with the objections of the first forme . phil. i approve your method i p●…ay proceed . tim. first sir , even since my conversion , i have beene guilty of many grievous sinnes , and ( which is worse ) of the same sinne many times committed . happy * judah , who though once committing incest with thamar , yet the text saith , that afterward he knew her again no more . but i vile wretch have often re-fallen into the same offence . phil. all this is answered in gods promise in the * prophet , though your sins be as scarlet , i will make them as snow . consider how the tyrian scarlet was dyed , not overly dipt , but throughly drencht in the liquor , that coloured it , as thy soul in custome of sinning . then was it taken out for a time , and dryed , put in againe , soakt , and sodden the second time in the fatt ; called therefore {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} , twice dyed ; as thou complainest thou hast been by relapsing into the same sin . yea the colour so incorporated into the cloath not drawne over , but diving into the very heart of the wool , that rub a scarlet rag on what is white , and it will bestow a redish tincture upon it : as perchance thy sinfull practice , and president , have also infected those which were formerly good , by thy badnesse . yet such scarlet sins so solemnly and substantially coloured , are easily washt white in the blood of our saviour . tim. but , sir , i have sinned against most serious resolutions , yea against most solemne vowes which i have made to the contrary . phil. vow-breaking , though a grievous sinne , is pardonable on unfaigned repentance . if thou hast broken a vow , t●…e a knot on it , to make it hold together againe . it is spirituall thrift , and no mis-becomming basenesse , to piece and joynt thy neglected promises with fresh ones . so shall thy vow in effect be not broken , when new mended : and remain the same , though not by one intire continuation , yet by a constant successive renovation thereof . thus * jacob renewed his neglected vow of going to bethel ; and this must thou doe , re-inforce thy broken vowes , if of moment , and materiall . tim. what mean you by the addition of that clause , if of moment and materiall ? phil. to deale plainly . i dislike many vowes men make , as of reading just so much , and praying so often every day , of confining themselves to such a strict proportion of meate , drinke , sleepe , recreation , &c. many things may be well done , which are ill vowed . such particular vowes men must be very sparing how they make . first , because they savour somewhat of will-worship . secondly , small glory accrews to god thereby . thirdly , the dignitie of vowes are disgraced by descending to too triviall particulars . fourthly , sathan hath ground given him to throw at us , with a more steady aime . lastly , such vowes , instead of being cords to tie us faster to god , prove knots to intangle our consciences : hard to be kept , but oh ! how heavy when broken ? wherefore setting such vowes aside , let us be carefull with david , to keep that grand and generall vow , * i have sworne , and i will performe it , that i will keep thy righteous judgements . tim. but sir i have committed the sinne against the holy ghost , which the saviour of mankind pronounceth unpardonable , and therefore all your counsells and comforts unto me are in vaine . phil. the devill , the father of lyes , hath added this lye to those , which he hath told before , in perswading thee , thou hast comitted the sinne against the holy ghost . for that sinne is ever attended with these two symptomes . first , the party guilty thereof never grieves for it , nor conceives the least sorrow in his heart , for the sinne he hath committed . the second ( which followeth on the former ) he never wisheth or desireth any pardon , but is delighted , and pleased with his present condition . now if thou canst truely say , that thy sinnes are a burden unto thee , that thou dost desire forgivenesse , and wouldest give any thing , to compasse and obtaine it ; be of good comfort , thou hast not as yet , and by gods grace , never shalt , commit that unpardonable offence . i will not define how neere thou hast beene unto it . as david said to jonathan , there is not a haires breadth betwixt death and me : so it may be thou hast m●…st it very narrowly , but assure thy selfe , thou art not as yet guilty thereof . ix . dialogue . answers to the objections of a wounded conscience drawne from the slightnesse of his repentance . tim. i beleeve my sinnes are pardonable in themselves , but alas my stony heart is such , that it cannot relent and repent , and therefore no hope of my salvation . phil. wouldest thou sincerely repent ? thou dost repent . the women that came to embalme * christ , did carefully forecast with themselves , who shall role away the stone from the doore of the sepulcher ? alas their fraile , faint , feeble arms were unable to remove such a weight . but what followeth ? and when they looked , they saw that the stone was rolled away , for it was very great . in like manner , when a soule is truly troubled about the massie mighty burden of his stony heart interposed , hindring him from comming to christ ; i say when he is seriously and sincerely solicitous about that impediment , such desiring is a doing , such wishing is a working . doe thou but take care it may be removed , and god will take order it shall be removed . tim. but sir i cannot weep for my sinnes ; my eyes are like the pit wherein joseph was put , there is no water in them , i cannot squeeze one teare out of them . phil. before i come to answer your objection , i must premise a profitable observation . i have taken notice of a strange opposition betwixt the tongues and eyes of such as have troubled consciences . their tongues some have known ( and i have heard ) complaine that they cannot weepe for their sinnes , when at that instant their eyes have plentifully shed store of teares : not that they speake out of dissimulation , but distraction . so somtimes have i smiled at the simplicity of a child , who being amased , and demanded whether or no he could speake ? hath answered , no . if in like manner at the sight of such a contradiction betwixt the words and deeds of one in the agony of a wounded conscience , we should chance to smile , knew us not to jeere , but joy , perceiving the party in a better condition , then he conceiveth himselfe . tim. this your observation may be comfortable to others , but is impertinent to me . for as i told you i i have by nature such dry eyes that they will afford no moisture to bemoan my sinnes . phil. then it is a naturall defect , and no morall default , so by consequence a suffering and no sinne , which god will punish . god doth not expect the cock should runne water , where he put none into the cisterne . know also , their hearts may be fountaines whose eyes are flints , and may inwardly bleed , who doe not outwardly weep . besides * christ was sent to preach comfort , not to such only as weep , but mourne in zion . yea if thou canst squeeze out no liquor , offer to god the empty bottles ; instead of tears , tender and present thy eyes unto him . and though thou beest water-bound , be not wind-bound also , sigh , where thou canst not sob , and let thy lungs doe what thy eyes cannot performe . tim. you say something , though i cannot weep , in case i could soundly sorrow for my sinnes . but alas , for temporall losses and crosses , i am like r●…chell , ●…amenting for her children , and would not be comforted . but my sorrow for my sins is so small , that it appeares none at all in proportion . phil. in the best saints of god , their sorrow for their sinnes being measured with the sorrow for their sufferings , in one respect , will fall short of it , in another must equall it , and in a third respect doth exceed and goe beyond it . sorrow for sins falleth short of sorrow for sufferings , in loud lamenting or violent uttering it selfe in outward expressions thereof ; as in roaring , wringing the hands , rending their haire , and the like . secondly , both sorrowes are equall in their truth and sincerity , both farre from hypocrisie , free from dissimulation , reall , hearty , cordiall , uncounterfeited . lastly , sorrow for sinne exceeds sorrow for suffering , in the continuance and durablenesse thereof : the other like a land-flood , quickly come , quickly gone ; this is a continuall dropping or running river , keeping a constant stream . my sins , saith david , are ever before me ; so also is the sorrow for sinne in the soule of a child of god , morning , evening , day , night , when sicke , when sound , feasting , fasting , at home , abroad , ever within him : this griefe beginneth at his conversion , continueth all his life , endeth only at his death . tim. proceed i pray in this comfortable point . phil. it may still be made plainer by comparing two diseases together , the tooth-ache and consumption . such as are troubled with the former , shreek and cry out , troublesome to themselves , and others , in the same and next roofe ; and no wonder , the mouth it selfe being plaintiffe , if setting forth its owne grievances to the full . yet the tooth-ache is knowne to be no mortall maladie , having kept some from their beds , seldome sent them to their graves ; hindred the sleep of many , hastned the death of few . on the other side , he that hath an incurable consumption saith little , cryes lesse , but grieves most of all . alas , he must be a good husband of the little breath left in his broken lungs , not to spend it in fighing , but in living , he makes no noise , is quiet , and silent ; yea none will say , but that his inward griefe is greater then the former . tim. how apply you this comparison to my objection ? phil. in corporall calamities , thou complainest more , like him in the tooch-ache , but thy sorrow for thy sinne , like a consumption , which lyes at thy heart , hath more solid heavinesse therein . thou dost take in more griefe for thy sinnes , though thou mayest take on more grievously for thy sufferings . tim. this were something if my sorrow for sinne were sincere , but alas , i am but a hypocri●…e . there is * mention in the proph●…t of gods besome of destruction ; now the trust of a hypocrite , job 8. 14. is called a spiders web , here is my case , when gods besome meets with the cobwebs of my hypocri●…e , i shall be swept into hel-fire . phil. i answer , first in generall : i am glad to heare this objection come from thee , for selfe-suspition of hypocrisie , is a hopefull symptome of sincerity . it is a david that cryes out , as for me i am poore and needy ; but luke-warme laodicea that braggeth , i am rich and want nothing . tim. answer i pray the objection in particular . phil. presently , when i have premised the great difference , betwixt a mans being a hypocrite , and having some hypocrisie in him . wicked men are like the apples of * sodome , seemingly faire , but nothing but ashes within , the best of gods servants , like sound apples , lying in a dusty loft , ( living in a wicked world ) gathering much dust about them , so that they must be rubb'd or pared , before they can be eaten . such notwithstanding are sincere , and by the following marks may examine themselves . tim. but some now adayes are utter enemies to all markes of sincerity , counting it needlesse for preachers to propound , or people to apply them . phil. i know as much ; but it is the worst signe , when men in this nature hate all signes : but no wonder if the foundred horse , cannot abide the smiths pincers . tim. proceed i pray in your signes of sincerity . phil. art thou carefull to order thy very thoughts , because the infinite searcher of the heart doth behold them ? dost thou freely and fully confesse thy sinnes to god , spreading them open in his presence , without any desire or endeavour to deny , dissemble , defend , excuse , or extenuate them ? dost thou delight in an universall obedience to all gods lawes , not thinking with the superstitious jewes , by over-keeping the fourth commandement , to make reparation to god for breaking all the rest ? dost thou love their persons and preaching best , who most clearly discover thine owne faults and corruptions unto thee ? dost thou strive against thy vindicative nature , not only to forgive those who have offended thee , but also to wait an occasion with humility to fasten a fitting favour upon them ? dost thou love grace and goodnesse even in those , who differ from thee in point of opinion , and civil controversies ? canst thou be sorrowfull for the sinnes of others , no whit relating unto thee , meerly because the glory of a good god , suffers by their profanenesse ? tim. why doe you make these to be the signes of sincerity ? phil. because there are but two principles , which act in mens hearts , namely , nature and grace ; or , as christ distinguisheth them , flesh , and bloud , and our father which is heaven . now seeing these actions , by us propounded , are either against or above nature , it doth necessarily follow , that where they are found , they flow from saving grace . for what is higher then the roofe , and very pinnacle , as i may say , of nature , cannot belower then the bottome and beginning of grace . tim. per●…hance on serious search , i may make hard shift , to finde some one or two of these signes , but not all of them in my heart . phil. as i will not bow to flatter any , so i will fall down as farre as truth will give me leave , to reach comfort to the humble , to whom it is due . know to thy further consolation , that where some of these signes truly are , there are more , yea all of them , though not so visible and conspicuous , but in a dimmer and darker degree . when we behold violets , and prim-roses , fairely to flourish , we conclude the dead of the winter is past , though , as yet , no roses , or july-flowers appeare , which , long after , lye hid in their leaves , or lurke in their rootes ; but in due time will discover themselves . if some of these signes be above ground in thy sight , others are under ground in thy heart , and though the former started first , the other will follow in order : it being plaine that thou art passed from death unto life , by this hopefull and happy spring of some signes in thy heart . x. dialogue . answers to the objection of a wounded conscience , drawne from the feeblenesse of his faith . tim. but faith is that which must apply christ unto us , whilest ( alas ! ) the hand of my faith hath not only the shaking , but the dead palsy ; it can neither hold nor feele any thing . phil. if thou canst not hold god , doe but touch him and he shall hold thee , and put feeling into thee . saint paul saith , * if that i may apprehend that , for which also i am apprehended of christ jesus . it is not pauls apprehending of christ , but christ apprehending of paul , doth the deed . tim. but i am sure my faith is not sound , because it is not attended with assurance of salvation . for i doubt ( not to say despaire ) thereof . whereas divines hold , that the essence of saving faith consists in a certainty to be saved . phil. such deliver both a false , and dangerous doctrine ; as the carelesse mother * killed her little infant , for she over-laid it : so this opinion would presse many weak faiths to death , by laying a greater weight upon them then they can bear , or god doth impose ; whereas to be assured of salvation , is not a part of every true faith , but onely an effect of some strong faiths , and that also not alwayes , but at some times . tim. is not certainty of salvation a part of every true faith ? phil. no verily , much lesse is it the life and formality of faith , which consisteth onely in a recumbency on god in christ , with jobs resolution , * though he slay me , yet will i trust in him . such an adherence , without an assurance , is sufficient by gods mercy to save thy soule . those that say that none have a sincere faith without a certainty of salvation , may with as much truth maintaine , that none are the kings loyall subjects , but such as are his favourites . tim. is then assurance of salvation a peculiar personall favour , indulged by god , onely to some particular persons ? phil. yes verily : though the salvation of all gods servants be sure in it selfe , yet is onely assured to the apprehensions of some select people , and that at some times : for it is too fine fare for the best man to feed on every day . tim. may they that have this assurance , afterwards lose it ? phil. undoubtedly they may : god first is gracious to give it them , they for a time carefull to keep it , then negligently lose it , then sorrowfully seeke it . god again is bountifull to restore it , they happy to recover it , for a while diligent to retaine it , then againe foolish to forfeit it , and so the same changes in ones life time often , over , and over againe . tim. but some will say , if i may be infallibly saved without this assurance , i will never endeavour to attaine it . phil. i would have covered my flowers , if i had suspected such spiders would have suckt them . one may goe to heaven without this assurance , as certainly , but not so cheerfully , and therefore prudence to obtaine our owne comfort , & piety to obey gods command , obligeth us all to give diligence to make our calling and election sure , both in it selfe , and in our apprehension . xi . dialogue . god alone can satisfie all objections of a wounded conscience . tim. but , sir , these your answers are no whit satisfactorie unto me . phil. an answer may be satisfactorie to the objection , both in it selfe , and in the judgement of all unprejudiced hearers , and yet not satisfactorie to the objecter , and that in two cases : first , when he is poss●…ssed with the spirit of peevishnesse and perversnesse . it is lost labour to seeke to feed and fill those , who have a greedy horseleach of cavilling in their heart , crying give , give . tim. what is the second case ? phil. when the bitternesse of his soule is so great and grievous , that he is like the * israelites in egypt , which hearkned not to moses , for anguish of spirit , and for cruel bondage . now as those who have meat before them , and will not eate , deserve to starve without pitty : so such are much to be bemoaned , who through some impediment in their mouth , throat , or stomach , cannot chaw , swallow or digest comfort presented unto them . tim. such is my condition , what then is to be done unto me ? phil. i must change my precepts to thee into prayers for thee , that ●…od would * satisfie thee early with his mercy , that thou mayest rejoyce . ministers may endeavour it in vaine , whilest they quell one scruple , they start another , whilst they fill one corner of a wounded conscience with comfort , another is emptie . only god can so satisfie the soule , that each chink and cranny therein , shall be filled with spirituall joy . tim. what is the difference betwixt gods , and mans speaking peace to a troubled spirit ? phil. man can neither make him to whom he speakes , to heare what he saith , or beleeve what he heares . god speakes with authority , and doth both . his words give hearing to the deafe , and faith to the infidell . when , not the mother of christ , but christ himselfe , shall salute a sicke soule with peace be unto thee , it will leap for joy , as john the babe sprang , though imprisoned in the darke womb of his mother . thus the offender is not comforted , though many of the spectatours , and under-officers tell him he shall be pardoned , untill he heares the same from the mouth of the judge himselfe who hath power and place to forgive him ; and then his heart reviveth with comfort . tim. god send me such comfort : meane time , i am thankfull unto you for the answers you have given me . phil. all that i wil adde is this . the lacedemonians had a law , that if a bad man , or one disesteemed of the people , chanced to give good counsell , he was to stand by , and another , against whose person the people had no prejudice , was to speake over the same words , which the former had uttered . i am most sensible to my selfe of my owne badnesse , and how justly i am subject to exception . only my prayer shall be , that whilst i stand by , and am ●…ilent , gods spirit which is free from any fault , and full of all perfection , would be pleased to repeat in thy heart , the selfe-same answers i have given to your objections : and then what was weak , shallow and unsatisfying , as it came from my mouth , shall and will be full , powerfull , and satisfactorie , as re-inforced in thee , by gods spirit . xii . dialogue . meanes to be used by wounded consciences , for the recovering of comfort . tim. are there any usefull meanes to be prescribed , whereby wounded consciences may recover comfort the sooner ? phil. yes , there are . tim. but now adayes some condemne all using of meanes , let grace alone ( say they ) fully and freely to do its own worke : and thereby mans mind will in due time return to a good temper of its ow●… accord : this is the most spirituall serving of god , whilst using of meanes , makes but dunces , and trewants in christs schoole . phil. what they pretend spirituall , wil prove ai●…ry and empty , making lewd and lazie christians : meanes may and must be used with these cautions . 1. that they be of gods appointment in his word , and not of mans meere invention . 2. that we stil remember they are but means , and not the main . for to account of helps more then helpes , is the high-way to make them hindrances . lastly , that none rely barely on the deed done , which conceit will undoe him that did it , especially if any opinion of merit be fixed therein . tim. what is the first meanes i must use , for i re-assume to personate a wounded conscience ? phil. constantly pray to god , that in his due time he would speake peace unto thee . tim. my prayers are better omitted then performed : they are so weak they will but bring the greater punishment upon me , and involve me within the * prophets curse , to those that doe the worke of the lord negligently . phil. prayers negligently performed , draw a curse , but not prayers weakly performed . the former is when one can do better , and will not ; the latter , is , when one would do better , but alas , he cannot : and such failings as they are his sinnes , so they are his sorrows also : pray therefore faintly , that thou maist pray fervently ; pray weakly , that thou mayest pray strongly . tim. but in the law they were forbidden to offer to god any lame * sacrifice , and such are my prayers . phil. 1. observe a great difference , betwixt the materiall sacrifice under the law , and spiritual sacrifices ( the calves of the lips ) under the gospell . the former were to be free from all blemish , because they did typifie and resemble christ himselfe : the latter ( not figuratively representing christ , but heartily presented unto him ) must be as good as may be gotten , though many imperfections will cleave to our best performances , which by gods mercy are forgiven . 2. know that that in scripture is accounted lame , which is counterfeit , and dissembling , ( in which sense * hypocrites are properly called halters ) and therefore if thy prayer though never so weake , be sound , and sincere , it is acceptable with god . tim. what other counsell do you prescribe me ? phil. be diligent in reading the word of god , wherein all comfort is conteined ; say not that thou art dumpish and undisposed to read , but remember how travellers must eat against their stomach ; their journey will digest it : and though their palate find no pleasure for the present , their whole body will feele strength for the future . thou hast a great journey to go , a wounded conscience is farre to travell to find comfort , ( and though weary , shall be welcome at his journeys end ) and therefore must feed on gods word , even against his own dull disposition , and shall afterwards reap benefit thereby . tim. proceed in your appointing of wholsome dyet for my wounded conscience to observe . phil. avoid solitarinesse , land associate thy selfe with pious and godly company : o the blessed fruits thereof ! such as want skill or boldnesse to begin or set a psalme , may competently follow tune in consort with others : many houses in london have so weak walls , and are of so slight and sl●…nder building , that were they set alone in the fields , probably they would not stand an houre ; which now ranged in streets receive support in them selves , and mutually returne it to others : so mayst thou in good society , not only be reserved from much mischiefe , but also be strengthened and confirmed in many godly exercises , which solely thou couldest not perform . tim. what else must i do ? phil. be industrious in thy calling ; i presse this the more , because some erroneously conceive that a wounded conscience cancels all indentures of service , and gives them ( during their affliction ) a dispensation to be idle . the inhabitants of the bishoprick of * durham pleaded a priviledge , that king edward the first had no power , although on necessary occasion , to presse them to go out of the country , because ▪ forsooth , they termed themselves haly-worke-folke , only to be used in defending the holy shrine of s. cuthbert . let none in like manner pretend , that ( during the agony of a wounded conscience ) they are to have no other imployment , then to sit moping to brood their melancholly , or else only to attend their devotions ; whereas a good way to divert or asswage their pain within , is to take paines without in their vocation . i am confident , that happy minute which shall put a period to thy misery , shall not find thee idle , but employed , as ever some secret good is accrewing to such , who are diligent in their calling . tim. but though wounded consciences are not to be freed from all worke , are they not to be favoured in their worke ? phil. yes verily . here let me be the advocate to such parents and masters , who have sonnes , servants , or others under their authority afflicted with wounded consciences , o , doe not with the egyptian task-masters , exact of them the full tale of their bricke , o spare a little till they have recovered some strength . unreasonabl●… that maimed men , should passe on equall duty with such souldiers as are sound . tim. how must i dispose my selfe on the lords day ? phil. avoid all servile work , and expend it only in such actions , as tend to the sanctifying thereof . god the great landlord of all time hath let out six da●…s in the weeke to man to farme them ; the seaventh day he reserveth as demeanes in his owne hand : if therefore we would have quiet possession , & comfortable use of what god hath leased out to us , let us not incroach on his demeanes . some popish * people make a superstitious almanacke of the sunday , by the fairenesse or foulenesse thereof , guessing of the weather all the weeke after . but i dare boldly say , that from our well or ill spending of the lords day , a probable conjecture may be made , how the following weeke will be imployed . yea i conceive , we are bound ( as matters now stand in england ) to a stricter observation of the lords day , then ever before . that a time was due to gods service , no christian in our kingdome ever did deny : that the same was weekly dispersed in the lords day , holy dayes , wednesdayes , fridayes , saturdayes , some have earnestly maintained : seeing therefore , all the last are generally neglected , the former must be more strictly observed ; it being otherwise impious , that our devotion having a narrower channell , should also carry a shallower streame . tim. what other means must i use for expedition of comfort to my wounded conscience ? phil. confesse * that sinne or sinnes , which most perplexes thee , to some godly minister , who by absolution may pronounce , and apply pardon unto thee . tim. this confession is but a device of divines , thereby to skrne themselves into other mens secrets , so to mold , and manage them with more ease to their owne profit . phil. god forbid they should have any other designe , but your safety , and therefore choose your confessour , where you please to your owne contentment ; so that you may finde ease , fetch it where you may , it is not our credit , but your cure we stand upon . tim. but such confession hath beene counted rather arack for sound , then a remedy for wounded consciences . phil. it proveth so , as abused in the romish church , requiring an enumeration of all mortall sinnes , therein supposing an error , that some sinnes are not mortall , and imposing an impossibility , that all can be reckoned up . thus the conscience is tortured , because it can never tread firmly , feeling no bottome , being still uncertain of confession , ( and so of absolution ) whether or no he hath acknowledged all his sinnes . but where this ordinance is commended as convenient , not commanded as necessary , left free , not forced , in cases of extremity , soveraigne use may be made , and hath been found thereof , neither m●…gistrate nor minister carrying the sword or the keyes in vaine . tim. but , sir , i expected some rare inventions from you , for curing wounded consciences : whereas 〈◊〉 your receipts hitherto are old , stale , usuall , common , and ordinary ; there is nothing new in any of them . phil. i answer , first , if a wounded conscience had been a 〈◊〉 disease , never heard of in gods word before this time , 〈◊〉 perchance we must have been forced to find out new remedies . but it is an old malady , and therefore old physick is best applyed unto it . secondly , the receipts indeed are old , because prescribed by him , who is the * ancient of dayes . but the older the better , because warranted by experience to be effectuall . gods ordinances are like the cloathes * of the children of israel , during our wandring in the wildernesse of this world , they never wax old , so as to have their vertue in operation abated or decayed . thirdly , whereas you call them common , would to god they were so , and as generally practiced , as they are usually prescribed . lastly , know we meddle not with curious heads , which are pleased with new-fangled rarities , but with wounded consciences , who love solid comfort . suppose our receipts ordinary and obvious ; if * naaman counts the cure too cheap and easie , none will pitty him if still he be pained with his leprosie . tim. but your receipts are too loose and large , not fitted and appropriated to my malady alone . for all these , pray , reade , keep good company , be diligent in thy calling , observe the sabbath , confesse thy sinnes , &c. ) may as well be prescribed to one guilty of presumption , as to me ready to despaire . phil. it doth not follow that our physick is not proper for one , because it may be profitable for both . tim. but despaire and presumption being contrary diseases flowing from contrary causes , must have contrary cures . phil. though they flow immediately from contrary caufes , yet originally from the common fountaine of naturall corruption : and therefore such meanes as i have propounded , tending towards the mortifying of our corrupt nature , may generally , though not equally be usefull to humble the presuming , and comfort the despairing ; but to cut off cavills in the next dialogue , wee 'l come closely to peculiar counsells unto thee . xiii . dialogue . foure wholsome counsells , for a wounded conscience to practice . tim. performe your promise , which is the first counsell you commend unto me ? phil. take heed of ever renounceing thy filiall interest in god , though thy sinnes deserve that he should disclaime his paternall relation to thee . the prodigall * returning to his father did not say , i am not thy sonne , but , i am no more worthy to be called thy sonne . beware of bastardizing thy selfe , being as much as satan desires , and more then he hopes to obtaine . otherwise thy folly would give him more then his fury could get . tim. i conceive this a need full c●…tion . phil. it will appeare so if we consider , what the * apostle saith , that we wrestle with principalities and powers . now wrestlers in the olympian games were naked , and anointed with oile to make them slick , and glibbery , so to afford no hold-fast to such as strove with them . let us not gratifie the devill with this advantage against our selves , at any time to disclaime our sonne-ship in god : if the devill catcheth us at this lock , he will throw us flat , and hazard the breaking of our necks with finall despair . oh no! still keep this point ; a prodigal sonne i am , but a sonne , no bastard : a lost sheepe , but a sheepe , no goate : an unprofitable servant , but gods servant , and not absolute slave to sathan . tim. proceed to your second counsell . phil. give credit to what grave and godly persons conceive of thy condition , rather then what thy own fear , ( an incompetent judge ) may suggest unto thee . a seared conscience thinks better of it selfe , a wounded worse , then it ought : the former may account all sinne a sport , the latter all sport a sin : melancholy men , when sick , are ready to conceit any cold to be the cough of the lungs , and an ordinary pustle , no lesse then the plague sore . so wounded consciences conceive sinnes of infirmity to be of presumption , sins of ignorance to be of knowledge , apprehending their case more dangerous then it is indeed . tim. but it seemeth unreasonable that i should rather trust anothers saying , then my own sense of my selfe . phil. every man is best judge of his own selfe , if he be his own selfe , but during the swound of a wounded conscience , i deny thee to be come to thy own selfe : whilst thine eyes are blubbering , and a teare hangs before thy sight , thou canst not see things clearely and truly , because looking through a double medium of aire and water ; so whilst this cloud of pensivenes is pendent before the eyes of thy soule , thy estate is erroneously represented unto thee . tim. what is your third counsell ? phil. in thy agony of a troubled conscience alwayes look upwards unto a gracious god to keep thy soule steady , for looking downward on thy selfe , thou shalt find nothing but what will encrease thy feare , infinite sinnes , good deeds few , and imperfect : it is not thy faith , but gods faithfulnesse thou must relie upon ; casting thine eyes downwards on thy selfe to behold the great distance betwixt what thou deservest , and what thou desirest , is enough to make thee giddy , stagger and reel into despaire : ever therefore lift up thine eyes unto the * hils , from whence commeth thy helpe , never viewing the deepe dale of thy own unworthines , but to abate thy pride when tempted to presumption . tim. sir , your fourth and last counsell . phil. be not disheartned as if comfort would not come at all , because it comes not all at once , but patiently attend gods leisure : they are not styled the swift , but the * sure mercies of david : and the same prophet saith , * the glory of the lord shall be thy rereward , this we know comes up last to secure and make good all the rest : be assured , where grace patiently leads the front , glory at last will be in the reare . remember the prodigious patience of eliahs servant . tim. wherein was it remarkeable ? phil. in obedience to his master : he went severall times to the sea ; it is tedious for me to tell what was not troublesome for him to doe , 1 , 2 , 3 , 4 , 5 , 6 , 7. times sent down steepe carmel , with danger , and up it again with difficulty , and all to bring newes of nothing , till his last journey , which made recompence for all the rest , with the tydings of a cloud arising . so thy thirsty soule , long parched with drowth for want of cōfort , though late , at last , shall be plentifully refreshed with the dew of consolation . tim. i shall be happy if i find it so . phil. consider the causes why a broken leg is incureable in a horse , and easily cureable in a man : the horse is incapable of counsell to submit himselfe to the farrier , & therefore in case his leg be set , he flings , flounces , and flies out , unjoynting it again by his mis-imployed mettle , counting all binding to be shackles & fetters unto him ; whereas a man willingly resigneth himselfe to be ordered by the chyrurgeon , preferring rather to be a prisoner for some dayes , then a cripple all his life . be not like a * horse or mule , which have no understanding ; but let patience have its perfect worke . in thee ▪ when god goeth about to bind up the * broken hearted , tarry his time , though ease come not at an instant , yea though it be painfull for the present , in due time thou shalt certainly receive comfort . xiv . dialogue . comfortable meditations for wounded consciences to muse upon . tim. furnish me i pray with some comfortable meditations ; whereon i may busie and imploy my soule when alone . phil. first consider that our saviour had not only a notionall , but an experimentall and meritorious knowledge of the paines of a wounded conscience , when hanging on the crosse : if pau●… conce●…ved himselfe happy being to answer for himself , before king agrippa , especially because he knew him to be expert in all the customes and questions of the jewes ; how much more just cause hath thy wounded conscience of comfort and joy , being in thy prayers to plead before christ himself , who hath felt thy pain , and deserved that in due time by his stripes thou shouldst be healed ? tim. proceed i pray in this comfortable subject . phil. secondly , consider that herein , like eliah , thou needest not complaine that thou art left alone , seeing the best of gods saints in all ages have smarted in the same kind ; instance in david : indeed sometimes he boasteth how he lay in green * pastures , and was led by still waters ; but after he bemoaneth that he sinks in * deepe mire , where there was no standing . what is become of those greene pastures ? parched up with the drowth . where are those still waters ? troubled with the tempest of affliction . the same david compareth himselfe to an * owle , and in the next psalme resembleth himselfe to an eagle . doe two fowles flie of more different kind ? the one the scorne , the other the soveraigne ; the one the slowest , the other the swiftest ; the one the most sharp sighted , the other the most dimme-eyed of all birds . wonder not then , to find in thy selfe sudden , and strange alterations . it fared thus with all gods servants , in their agonies of temptation , and be confident thereof , though now run aground , with griefe , in due time thou shalt be all afloate with comfort . tim. i am loath to interrupt you in so welcome a discourse . phil. thirdly , consider , that thou hast had , though not grace enough to cure thee , yet enough to keep thee , and conclude that he , whose goodnesse hath so long held thy head above water from drowning , will at last bring thy whole body safely to the shoare . the wife of manoah , had more faith then her husband , and thus she reasoned ; * if the lord were pleased to kill us he would not have received a burnt and a meat offering at our hands . thou mayst argue in like manner : if god had intended finally to forsake me , he would never so often have heard and accepted my prayers , in such a measure as to vouchsafe unto me , though not full deliverance from , free preservation in my affliction . know god hath done great things for thee already , and thou mayst conclude from his grace of supportation hitherto , grace of ease , and relaxation hereafter . tim. it is pitty to disturb you , proceed . phil. fourthly , consider , that besides the private stock of thy owne , thou tradest on the publick store of all good mens prayers , put up to heaven for thee . what a mixture of languages met in hierusalem at pentecost , * parthians , medes , and elamites , &c. but conceive to thy comfort , what a medley of prayers , in severall tongues daily , center themselves in gods eares in thy behalfe , english , scotch , irish , french , dutch , &c. insomuch , that perchance thou dost not understand one syllable of their prayers , by whom thou mayst reap benefit . tim. is it not requisite to intitle me to the profit of other mens prayers , that i particularly know their persons which pray for me ? phil. not at all , no more then it is needfull that the eye or face must see the backward parts , which is difficult , or the inward parts of the body , which is impossible ; without which sight , by sympathie they serve one another . and such is the correspondency by prayers , betwixt the mysticall members of christs body , corporally unseen one by another . tim. proceed to a fift meditation . phil. consider , there be five kinds of consciences on foot in the world : first , an ignorant conscience , which neither sees nor saith any thing , neither beholds the sinnes in a soule , nor reproves them . secondly , the flattering conscience , whose speech is worse then silence it selfe , which though seeing sin , sooths men in the committing thereof . thirdly , the seared conscience , which hath neither sight , speech , nor sense , in men that ar●… * past feeling . fourthly , a wounded conscience , frighted with sinne . the last , and best , is a quiet , and cleare conscience , pacified in christ jesus . of these the fourth is thy case , incomparably better then the three former , so that a wise man would not take a world to change with them . yea a wounded conscience is rather painfull then sinfull , an affliction , no offence , and is in the ready way , at the next remove , to be turned into a quiet conscience . tim. i hearken unto you with attention and comfort . phil. lastly , consider the good effects of a wounded conscience , privative for the present , and positive for the future . first , primative , this heavinesse of thy heart ( for the time being ) is a bridle to thy soule , keeping it from many sinnes it would otherwise commit . thou that now sittest sad in thy shop , or walkest p●…sive in thy parlour , or standest sighing in thy chamber , or lyest sobbing on thy bed , mightest perchance at the same time be drunke , or wanton , or worse , if not restrained by this affliction . god saith in his prophet to judah , * i will ●…edge thy way with thornes , namely , to keep judah from committing spirituall fornication . it is confest that a wounded conscience , for the time , is a hedge of thornes , ( as the messenger of satan , sent to buffet s. paul , is termed a * thorne in the flesh . ) but this thornie fence keeps our wild spirits in the true way , which otherwise would be stragling : and it is better to be held in the right road with bryars and brambles , then to wander on beds of roses , in a wrong path , which leadeth to destruction . tim. what are the positive benefits of a wounded conscience ? phil. thereby the graces in thy soule will be proved , approved , improved . oh how cleare will thy sun-shine be , when this cloud is blowne over ? and here i can hardly hold from envying thy happinesse hereafter . o that i might have thy future crowne , without thy present crosse ; thy triumphs , without thy tryall ; thy conquest , without thy combat ! but i recall my wish , as impossible , seeing what god hath joyned together , no man can put asunder . these things are so twisted together , i must have both or neither . xv . dialogue . that is not alwayes the greatest sinne whereof a man is guilty , wherewith his conscience is most pained for the present . tim. is that the greatest sin in a mans soule , wherewith his wounded conscience , in the agony thereof , is most perplexed ? phil. it is so commonly , but not constantly . commonly indeed , that sin most paineth and pincheth him , which commands as principall in his soule . tim. have all mens hearts some one paramount sinne , which rules as soveraigne over all the rest ? phil. most have . yet as all countries are not monarchies , governed by kings , but some by free-states , where many together have equall power ; so it is possible ( though rare ) that one man may have two , three , or more sinnes , which joyntly domineer in his heart , without any discernable superiority betwixt them . tim. which are the sinnes that most generally wound and afflict a man , when his conscience is terrified ? phil. no generall rule can exactly be given herein . sometimes that sin , in acting whereof , he took most delight , it being just , that the sweetnesse of his corporall pleasure , should be sauced with more spirituall sadnesse . sometimes that sinne , which ( though not the foulest ) is the frequentest in him . thus his idle words may perplex him more , then his oathes or perjury it selfe . sometimes that sin ( not which is most odious before god , but ) most scandalous before men , doth most afflict him , because drawing greatest disgrace upon his person and profession . sometimes that sin which he last committed , because all the circumstances therof are still firme and fresh in his memory . sometimes that sin , which ( though long since by him committed ) he hath heard very lately powerfully reproved ; and no wonder , if an old gall new rubbed over , smart the most . sometimes that sinne which formerly he most slighted and neglected , as so inconsiderably small , that it was unworthy of any sorrow for it , and yet now it may prove the sharpest sting in his conscience . tim. may not one who is guilty of very great sinnes , sometimes have his conscience much troubled onely for a small one ? phil. yes verily : country patients often complaine , not of the disease which is most dangerous , but most conspicuous . yea sometimes they are more troubled with the symptome of a disease ( suppose an ill colour , bad breath , weak stomach ) then with the disease it selfe . so in the soule , the conscience oft-times is most wounded , not with that offence which is , but appeares most , and a sinne incomparably small to others , whereof the party is guilty , may most molest for the present , and that for three reasons . tim. reckon them in order . phil. first , that god may shew in him , that as sinnes are like the sands in number , so they are farre above them in heavinesse , whereof the least crum taken asunder , and laid on the conscience , by gods hand , in full weight thereof , is enough to drive it to despaire . tim. what is the second reason ? phil. to manifest gods justice , that those should be choaked with a gnat-sinne , who have swallowed many camel-sinnes , without the least regreat . thus some may be terrified for not fasting on friday , because indeed they have been drunk on sunday : they may be perplexed for their wanton dreames , when sleeping , because they were never truly humbled for their wicked deeds , when waking . yea those who never feared babylon the great , may be frighted with little zoar ; i meane , such as have been faulty in flat superstition , may be tortured for committing , or omitting a thing , in its owne nature , indifferent . tim. what is the third reason ? phil. that this paine for a lesser sinne may occasion his serious scrutiny , into greater offences . any paltry curre may serve to start and put up the game out of the bushes , whilst fiercer , and fleeter hounds are behind to course and catch it . god doth make use of a smaller sinne , to raise and rouze the conscience out of security , and to put it up , as we say , to be chased , by the reserve of far greater offences , lurking behind in the soule , unseene , and unsorrowed for . tim. may not the conscience be troubled at that , which in very deed is no sinne at all , nor hath truly so much , as but the appearance of evill in it ? phil. it may . through the error of the understanding such a mistake may follow in the conscience . tim. what is to be done in such a case ? phil. the parties judgement must be rectified , before his conscience can be pacified . then is it the wisest way to perswade him to lay the axe of repentance , to the root of corruption in his heart . when reall sinnes in his soule are felled by unfained sorrow , causelesse scruples will fall of themselves . till that root be cut downe , not onely the least bough , and branch of that tree , but the smallest sprig , twig , and leafe thereof , yea the very empty ●…hadow of a leafe ( mistaken for a sinne , and created a fault by the jealousie of a misinformed judgement ) is sufficient intollerably to torture a wounded conscience . xvi . dialogue . obstructions hindring the speedy flowing of comfort into a troubled soule . tim. how commeth it to passe , that comfort is so long a comming to some wounded consciences ? phil. it proceeds from several causes , either from god , not yet pleased to give it ; or the patient , not yet prepared to receive it ; or the minister , not well fitted to deliver it . tim. how from god not yet pleased to give it ? phil. his time to bestow consolation is not yet come : now no plummets of the heaviest humane importunity can so weigh downe gods clock of time , as to make it strike one minute before his houre be come . till then his mother her selfe could not prevaile with * christ to worke a miracle , and turn water into wine : and till that minute appointed approach , god will not , in a wounded conscience , convert the water of affliction , into that wine of comfort , which maketh glad the heart of the soule . tim. how may the hindrance be in the patient himselfe ? phil. he may as yet not be sufficiently humbled , or else god perchance in his providence fore-seeth , that as the prodigall child , when he had received his portion , riotously mis-spent it ; so this sick soule , if comfort were imparted unto him , would prove an unthrift and ill husband upon it , would lose and lavish it . god therefore conceiveth it most for his glory , and the others good , to keep the comfort still in his owne hand , till the wounded conscience get more wisdome to manage and employ it . tim. may not the sick mans too meane opinion of the minister , be a cause why he reaps no more comfort by his counsell ? phil. it may . perchance , the sicke man hath formerly slightand neglected that minister , and god will not now make him the instrument for his comfort , who before had beene the object of his contempt . but on the other side , we must also know that perchance the parties over-high opinion of the ministers parts , piety , and corporall presence , ( as if he cured where he came , and carryed ease with him ) may hinder the operation of his advice . for god growes jealous of so suspicious an instrument who probably may be mistaken for the principall . whereas a meaner man , of whose spiritualnesse the patient hath not so high carnall conceipts , may prove more effectuall in comforting , because not within the compasse of suspition to eclipse god of his glory . tim. how may the obstructions be in the minister himselfe ? phil. if he comes unprepared by prayer , or possessed with pride , or uns●…ilfull in what he undertakes ; wherefore in such cases a minister may doe well to reflect on himselfe , ( as the * disciples did when they could not cast out the devill ) and to call his heart to account , what may be the cause thereof ; particularly whether some unrepented-for sinne in himselfe , hath not hindred the effects of his councells in others . tim. however you would not have him wholly disheartned , with his ill successe . phil. o no ; but let him comfort himselfe with these considerations . first , that though the patient gets no benefit by him , he may gain experience by the patient , thereby being enabled more effectually to proceede , with some other in the same disease . 2. though the sickman refuseth comfort for the present , yet what doth not sink on a sudden , may soake in by degrees , and may prove profitable afterwards . thirdly , his unsucceeding paines may notwithstanding facilitate comfort for another to worke in the same body , as solomon built a temple with most materialls formerly provided , and brought thither by david . lastly , grant his paines altogether lost on the wounded conscience , yet his * labour is not in vaine in the lord , who without respect to the event will reward his endeavours . tim. but what if this minister hath beene the means to cast this sick man downe , and now cannot comfort him againe ? phil. in such a case , he must make this sad accident the more matter for his humiliation , but not for his dejection . besides , he is bound , both in honour and honesty , civility and christianity , to procure what he cannot performe , calling in the advice of o●…hers more able to assist him , not conceiving out of pride or envie , that the discreet craving of the helpe of others , is a disgracefull confessing of his owne weaknesse ; like those malitious midwives , who had rather that the woman in travaile should miscarry , then be safely delivered by the hand of another , more skilfull then themselves . xvii . dialogue . what is to be conceived of their finall estate who die in a wounded conscience without any visible comfort . tim. what thinke you of such , who yeeld up their ghost in the agony of an afflicted spirit , without receiving the least sensible degree of comfort ? phil. let me be your remembrancer to call or keep in your mind , what i said before , that our discourse onely concerneth the children of god : this notion renued i answer . it is possible that the sick soule may receive secret solace , though the standers by doe not perceive it . we know how insensibly satan may spirt and inject despaire into a heart , and shall we not allow the lord of heaven to be more dextrous and active with his antidotes , then the devil is with his poysons ? tim. surely if he had any such comfort , he would shew it by words , signes , or some way , were it onely but to comfort his sad kindred , and content such sorrowfull friends which survive him ; were there any hidden fire of consolation kindled in his heart , it would sparkle in his looks and gestures , especially seeing no obligation of secrecie is imposed on him , as on the * blind man , when healed , to tell none thereof . phil. it may be he cannot discover the comfort he hath received , and that for two reasons : first , because it comes so late , when he lyeth in the merches of life and death , being so weak , that he can neither speak , nor make signes with zechariah , being at that very instant ▪ when the silver cord is ready to be loosed , and the golden bowle to be broken , and the pitcher to be broken at the fountaine , and the wheele to be broken at the cisterne . tim. what may be the other reason ? phil. because the comfort it selfe may be incommunicable in its owne nature , which the party can take , and not tell ; enjoy , and not expresse ; receive , and not impart : as by the assistance of gods spirit , he sent up * groanes which cannot be uttered : so the same may from god be returned with comfort , which cannot be uttered ; and as hee had many invisible and privy pangs , concealed from the cognizance of others , so may god give him secret comfort , known unto himself alone , without any other mens sharing in the notice thereof . * the heart knoweth his owne bitternesse , and a stranger doth not intermeddle with his joy . so that his comfort may be compared to the new name given to gods servants , * which no man knoweth , save he that receiveth it . tim. all this proceeds on what is possible or probable , but amounts to no certainty . phil. well then , suppose the worst , this is most sure , though he die without tasting of any comfort here , he may instantly partake of everlasting joyes hereafter . surely many a despairing soule , groaning out his last breath , with feare and thought to sinke downe to hell , hath presently beene countermanded by gods goodnesse to eternall happinesse . tim. what you say herein , no man alive can confirme or confute , as being knowne to god alone , and the soule of the party . only i must confesse , that you have charity on your side . phil. i have more then charity , namely , gods plain & positive promise , * blessed are such as mourne , for they shall be comforted . now though the particular time , when , be not expressed , yet the latest date that can be allowed , must be in the world to come , where such mourners , who have not felt god in his comfort here , shall see him in his glory in heaven . tim. but some who have led pious and godly lives , have departed , pronouncing the sentence of condemnation upon themselves , having one foot already in hell by their owne confession . phil. such confessions are of no validity , wherein their feare bears false witnesse against their faith . the finenesse of the whole cloath of their life , must not be thought the worse of , for a little course list at the last . and also their finall estate is not to be construed by what was dark , doubtfull , and desperate at their deaths , but must be expounded , by what was plaine , cleare , and comfortable , in their lives . tim. you then are confident , that a holy life , must have a happy death . phil. most confident . the logicians hold , that , although from false premises a true conclusion may somtimes follow ; yet from true propositions , nothing but a * truth can be thence inferred , so though sometimes a bad life may be attended with a good death , ( namely , by reason of repentance , though slow , sincere , though late , yet unfaigned , being seasonably interposed ) but where a godly and gracious life hath gone before , there a good death must of necessity follow ; which , though sometimes dolefull ( for want of apparent comfort ) to their surviving friends , can never be dangerous to the party deceased . remember what s. paul saith , * our life is hid with christ in god . tim. what makes that place to your purpose ? phil. exceeding much . five cordiall observations are couched therein . first , that god sets a high price , and valuation on the soules of his servants , in that he is pleased to hide them : none will hide toyes , and trifles , but what is counted a treasure . secondly , the word hide , as a relative importeth , that some seeke after our soules , being none other then sathan himself , that roaring lyon , who goes about * seeking , whom he may devour . but the best is , let him seeke , and seeke , and seeke , till his malice be wearie , ( if that be possible ) we cannot be hurt by him , whilst we are hid in god . thirdly , grant satan find us there , he cannot fetch us thence : our soules are bound in the bundle of life , with the lord our god . so that , be it spoken with reverence , god first must be stormed with force or 〈◊〉 , before the soule of a saint-sinner , hid in him , can be surprized . fourthly , we see the reason , why so many are at a losse , in the agony of a wounded conscience , concerning their spirituall estate . for they looke for their life in a wrong place , namely to finde it in their owne piety , purity , and inherent righteousnesse . but though they seeke , and search , and dig , and dive never so deep , all in vaine . for though adams life was hid in himselfe , and he intrusted with the keeping his owne integrity , yet , since christs coming , all the originall evidences of our salvation are kept in a higher office , namely , hidden in god himselfe . lastly , as our english proverb saith , he that hath hid can finde ; so god ( to whom belongs the * issues from death ) can infallibly finde out that soule that is hidden in him , though it may seeme , when dying , even to labour to lose it self in a fit of despaire . tim. it is pitty , but that so comfortable a doctrine should be true . phil. it is most true : surely as * joseph and mary conceived , that they had lost christ in a crowd , and sought him three dayes sorrowing , till at last they found him beyond their expectation , safe and sound , sitting in the temple : so many pensive parents solicitous for the soules of their children , have even given them for gone , and lamented them lost ( because dying without visible comfort ) and yet , in due time , shall finde them to their joy and comfort , safely possessed of honour and happinesse , in the midst of the heavenly temple , and church triumphant in glory . xviii . dialogue . of the different time and manner of the comming of comfort to such who are healed of a wounded conscience . tim. how long may a servant of god lye under the burden of a wounded conscience ? phil. * it is not for us to know the times and the seasons , which the father hath put in his owne power . god alone knows whether their griefe shall be measured unto them , by houres , or dayes , or weeks , or moneths , or many yeeres . tim. how then is it that sain●… paul saith , that god will give us the * issue with the temptation , if one may long be visited with this malady ? phil. the apostle is not so to be understood , as if the temptation and issue were twins , both borne at the same instant ; for then no affliction could last long , but must be ended as soone as it is begun ; whereas we * read how aeneas truly pious , was bed-rid of the palsie 8. yeeres ; the woman diseased with a * bloody issue 12. yeeres ; another woman bowed by infirmity * 18. yeers ; and the man * lame 38. yeeres at the poole of bethesda . tim. what then is the meaning of the apostle ? phil. god will give the issue with the temptation , that is , the temptation and the issue bear both the same date in gods decreeing them , though not in his applying them : at the same time , wherein he resolved his servants shall be tempted , he also concluded of the means and manner , how the same persons should infallibly be delivered . or thus : god will give the issue with the temptation ; that is , as certainly , though not as suddenly . though they goe not abreast , yet they are joyned successively , like two links in a chaine , where one endeth , the other doth begin . besides , there is a two-fold issue ; one , through a temptation ; another , out of a temptation . the former is but mediate , not finall ; an issue , to an issue , onely supporting the person , tempted for the present , and preserving him for a future full deliverance . understand the apostle thus , and the issue is alwayes both given and applyed to gods children , with the temptation , though the temptation may last long after , before fully removed . tim. i perceive then , that in some , awounded conscience may continue many yeeres . phil. so it may . i read of a poore widdow , in the land of * limburgh , who had nine children , and for 13. yeares together , was miserably afflicted in mind , only because she had attended the dressing and feeding of her little ones , before going to masse . at last it pleased god , to sanctifie the endeavours of franciscus junius , that learned godly divine , that upon true information of her judgement , she was presently and perfectly comforted . tim. doth god give ease to all in such manner , on a sudden ? phil. o no : some receive comfort all in a lump , and in an instant they passe from midnight , to bright day , without any dawning betwixt . others receive consolation by degrees , which is not poured , but dropt into them by little and little . tim. strange , that gods dealing herein should be so different with his servants . phil. it is to shew , that as in his proceedings there is no * variablenesse , such as may import him mutable or impotent , so in the same there is very much variety , to prove the fulnesse of his power , and freedome of his pleasure . tim. why doth not god give them consolation all at once ? phil. the more to employ their prayers , and exercise their patience . one may admire why * boaz did not give to ruth a quantity of corn more or lesse , so sending her home to her mother , but that rather he kept her still to gleane ; but this was the reason , because that is the best charity , which so relieves anothers poverty , as still continues their industry ▪ god in like manner , will not give some consolation all at once , he will not spoil their ( painful but ) pious profession of gleaning ; still they must pray , and gather , and pray and gleane , here an eare , there a handfull of comfort , which god scatters in favour unto them . tim. what must the party doe when he perceives god and his comfort beginning to draw nigh unto him ? phil. as * martha , when she heard that christ was a comming staid not a minute at home , but went out of her house to meet him : so must a sick soule , when consolation is a comming , haste out of himselfe , and hie to entertain god with his thankefullnes . the best way to make a homer of comfort encrease to an ephah , ( which is * ten times as much ) is to be heartily gratefull for what one hath already , that his store may be multiplyed : he shall never want more , who is thankefull for , and thrifty with a little : whereas ingratitude doth not only stop the flowing of more mercy , but even spils what was formerly received . xix . dialogue . how such who are compleatly cured of a wounded conscience , are to demeane themselves . tim. give me leave now to take upon me the person of one recovered out of a wounded conscience . phil. in the first place , i must heartily congratulate thy happy condition , and must rejoyce at thy upsitting , whom god hath raised from the bed of despaire : welcome david out of the deepe , daniel out of the lions den , jonah , from the whales belly : welcome job from the dunghill , restored to health and wealth againe . tim. yea , but when jobs bretheren came to visit him after his recovery , every one gave him a piece of * money , and an eare-ring of gold : but the present i expect from you , let it be i pray some of your good counsell , for my future deportment . phil. i have need to come to thee , and commest thou to me ? faine would i be a paul , sitting at the feet of such a gamaliel , who hath been cured of a wounded conscience , in the height thereof : i would turn my tongue into eares , and listen attentively to what tidings he bringeth from hell it selfe . yea , i should be worse then the brethren of dives , if i should not believe one risen from the dead , for such in effect i conceive to be his condition . tim. but waving these digressions , i pray proceed to give me good advice . phil. first , thankfully owne god , thy principall restorer , & comforter paramount . remember that of * ten lepers , one onely returned to give thanks ; which sheweth , that by nature , without grace over-swaying us , it is ten to one if we be thankful . omit not also thy thankfulnesse to good men , not onely to such , who have been the architects of thy comfort , but even to those , who though they have built nothing , have borne burthens towards thy recovery . tim. goe on i pray in your good counsell . phil. associate thy self with men of afflicted minds , with whom thou mayst expend thy time , to thine and their best advantage . o how excellently did paul comply with aquila and priscilla ! as their hearts agreed in the generall profession of piety , so their hands met in the trade of * tent-makers , they abode and wrought together , being of the same occupation . thus i count all wounded consciences of the same company , and may mutually reap comfort one by another . onely here is the difference : they ( poore soules ) are still bound to their hard task and trade , whilst thou ( happy man ) hast thy indentures cancelled , and being free of that profession , art able to instruct others therein . tim. what instructions must i commend unto them ? phil. even the same comfort , wherewith thou thy selfe was * comforted of god : with david tell them what god hath done for thy soule ; and with peter , being strong * strengthen thy brethren : conceive thy 〈◊〉 like joseph , therefore sent before , and sold into the egypt of a wounded conscience , ( where thy feet were hurt in the stocks , the irons entered into thy soule ) that thou mightest provide food for the famine of others , and especially be a purveyor of comfort for those thy bretheren , which afterwards shall follow thee down into the same dolefull condition . tim. what else must i doe for my afflicted bretheren ? phil. pray heartily to god in their behalfe : when david had prayed , psal. 25. 2. o my god i trust in thee , let me not be ashamed ; in the next verse ( as if conscious to himself , that his prayers were too restrictive , narrow , and nigardly ) he enlargeth the bounds thereof , and builds them on a broader bottome ; yea , let none that wait on thee be ashamed : let charity in thy devotions have rechoboth , roome enough : beware of pent petitions confined to thy private good , but extend them to all gods servants , but especially all wounded consciences . tim. must i not also pray for those servants of god , which hitherto have not been wounded in conence ? phil. yes verily , that god would keepe them from , or cure them in the exquisite torment thereof : beggars when they crave an almes , constantly use one main motive , that the person of whom they beg may be preserved from that misery , whereof they themselves have had wofull experience : if they be blind , they cry , master god blesse your eye sight ; if lame , god blesse your limbs ; if undone by casuall burning , god blesse you and yours from fire . christ , though his person be now glorifyed in heaven , yet he is still subject by sympathy of his saints on earth , to hunger , nakednes , imprisonment , and a wounded conscience , and so may stand in need of feeding , cloathing , visiting , comforting , and curing : now when thou prayest to christ , for any favour , it is a good plea to urge , edge , and enforce thy request withall , lord grant me such or such a grace , and never mayst thou lord , in thy mysticall members , never be tortured and tormented with the agony of a wounded conscience , in the deepest distresse thereof . tim. how must i behave my self for the time to come ? phil. walke humbly before god , and carefully avoid the smallest sinne , alwaies remembring * christs caution ; behold thou art made whole , ●…inne no more , lest a worse thing come unto thee . xx . dialogue . whether one cured of a wounded conscience , be subject to a relapse . tim. may a man , once perfectly healed of a wounded con●…cience , and for some yeares in peaceable possession of comfort , afterwards fall back into his former disease ? phil. nothing appeares in scripture or reason to the contrary , though examples of reall relapses are very rare , because gods servants are carefull to avoid sinne , the cause thereof , and being once burnt therewith , ever after dread the fire of a wounded conscience . tim. why call you it a relapse ? phil. to distinguish it from those relapses more usuall and obvious , whereby such , who have snatcht comfort , before god gave it them , on serious consideration , that they had usurped that , to which they had no right , fall back again into the former pit of despaire : this is improperly termed a relapse , as not being a renewing , but a continuing of their former malady , from which , though seemingly , they w●…re never soundly recovered . tim. is there any intimation in scripture of the possibility of such a reall relapse in gods servants ? phil. there is , when david saith , psal. 85. 8. i will heare what god the lord will speake , for he will speake peace unto his people , and to his sain●…s , but let them not turn again to folly : this importeth , that if his saints turn again to folly , which by wofull experience , we find too frequently done , god may change his voice , and turn his peace , formerly spoken , into a warlike defiance to their importeth . tim. but this me thinkes is a diminution to the majesty of god , that a man , once compleatly cured of a wounded conscience , should again be pained therewith : let ●…ountebanks palliat cures break out aga●…n , being never soundly , but superficially healed : he that is all ●…n all , never doth his worke by halves , so that it shall be undone afterward . phil. it is not the same individuall wound in number , but the same in kind , and perchance a deeper in degree : nor is it any ignorance , or falshood in the surgeon , but folly , and fury in the patient , who by committing fresh sins , causeth a new pain in the old place . tim. in such relapses men are only troubled for such sins , which they have run on score since their last recovery from a wounded conscience . phil. not those alone , but all the sinnes which they have committed , both before , and since their conversion , may be started up afresh in their minds and memories , and anguish and perplex them , with the guiltinesse thereof . tim. but those sinnes were formerly fully forgiven , and the pardon thereof solemnly sealed , and assured unto them , and can the guilt of the same recoile again upon their consciences ? phil. i will not dispute what god may do in the strictnes of his justice : such seales , though still standing firm & fast in themselves , may notwithstanding breake off , and fly open in the feeling of the sick soule : he will be ready to conceive with himselfe , that as * shimei , though once forgiven his railing on david , was afterwards executed for the same offence , though upon his committing of a new transgression , following his servants to gath , against the flat command of the king : so god , upon his committing of new trespasses , may justly take occasion to punish all former offences ; yea in his apprehension , the very foundation of his faith may be shaken , all his former title to heaven brought into question , and he tormented with the consideration that he was never a true child of god . tim. what remedies doe you commend to such soules in relapses ? phil. even the selfe-same receipts which i first prescribed to wounded consciences , the very same promises , precepts , comforts , counsels , cautions . onely as jacob the second time that his sonnes went downe into * egypt , commanded them to carry double money in their hands ; so i would advise such to apply the former remedies with double diligence , double watchfulnes , double industrie , because the malignity of a disease is riveted firmer and deeper in a relapse . xxi . dialogue . whether it be lawfull to pray for , or to pray against , or to praise god for a wounded conscience . tim. is it lawfull for a man to pray to god to visit him with a wounded conscience ? phil. he may and must pray to have his high and hard heart , truly humbled , and bruised with the fight and sense of his sinnes , and with unfained sorrow for the same : but may not explicitely , and directly pray for a wounded conscience , in the highest degree , and extremity thereof . tim. why interpose you those termes explicitely and directly ? phil. because implicitly , and by consequence , one may pray for a wounded conscience : namely , when he submits himselfe to be disposed by gods pleasure , referring the particulars thereof , wholly to his infinite wisedome , tendring , as i may say , a blank paper to god in his prayers , and requesting him to write therein what particulars hee pleases ; therein generally , and by consequence he may pray for a wounded conscience , in case , god sees the same , for his owne glory , and the parties good ; otherwise , directly he may not pray for it . tim. how prove you the same ? phil. first , because a wounded conscience is a judgement , and one of the sorest , as the resemblance of the torments of hell . now it is not congruous to nature , or grace , for a man to be a free , and active instrument , purposely to pull downe upon himselfe , the greatest evill that can befal him in this worl●… . secondly , we have neither direction , nor president of any saint , recorded in gods word to justifie and warrant such prayers . lastly , though praying for a wounded conscience may seemingly scent of pretended humility , it doth really and rankly savour of pride , limiting the holy one of israel . it ill becoming the patient to prescribe to his heavenly physitian , what kind of physicke he shall minister unto him . tim. but we may pray for all meanes to increase grace in us , and therefore may pray for a wounded conscience , seeing thereby , at last , piety is improved in gods servants . phil. we may pray for and make use of all means , whereby grace is increased : namely , such means , as by god are appointed for that purpose ; and therefore , by virtue of gods institution , have both a proportionablenesse , and attendency , in order thereunto . but properly those things are not means , or ordained by god , for the increase of piety , which are only accidentally over-ruled to that end , by gods power , against the intention and inclination of the things themselves . such is a wounded conscience , being alwayes actually an evill of punishment , and too often occasionally an evill of sinne : the byas whereof doth bend and bow to badnesse ; though over-ruled by the aim of gods eye , and strength of his arme , it may bring men to the marke of more grace , and goodnesse . god can , and will extract light out of darknesse , good out of evill , order out of confusion , and comfort out of a wounded conscience : and yet darknesse , evill , f●…sion , &c. are not to be prayed for . tim. but a wounded conscience , in gods children , infallibly ends in comfort here , or glory hereafter , and therefore is to be desired . phil. though the ultimate end of a wounded conscience winds off in comfort , yet it brings with it many intermediate mischiefs and maladies , especially as managed by humane corruption : namely , dulnesse in divine service , impatience , taking gods name in vaine , despaire for the time , blasphemy ; which a saint should decline , not desire ; shun , not seek ; not pursue , but avoid , with his utmost endeavours . tim. is it lawfull positively to pray against a wounded conscience ? phil. it is , as appeares from an argument taken from the lesser to the greater . if a man may pray against pinching poverty , as wise * agur did ; then may he much more against a wounded conscience , as a far heavier judgement . secondly , if gods servants may pray for ease under their burthens , whereof we see divers particulars in that * worthy prayer of solomon ; i say , if we pray to god to remove a lesser judgement by way of subvention , questionlesse we may beseech him to deliver us from the great evill of a wounded conscience , by way of prevention . tim. may one lawfully praise god , for visiting him with a wounded conscience ? phil. yes verily . first , because it is agreeable to the * will of god , in every thing to be thankfull ; here is a generall rule , without limitation . secondly , because the end , why god makes any work , is his owne glory ; and a wounded conscience being a work of god , he must be glorified in it , especially seeing god shews much mercy therein , as being a punishment on this side of hell fire , and lesse then our deserts . as also , because he hath gracious intentions towards the sick soule for the present , and when the maladie is over , the patient shall freely confesse , that it is good for him that he was so afflicted . happy then that soule , 〈◊〉 in the lucid intervals of a wounded conscience can praise god for the same . musick is sweetest neere , or over rivers , where the eccho thereof is best rebounded by the water . praise for pensivenesse , thanks for teares , and blessing god over the flouds of affliction , makes the most melodious musick in the care of heaven . the conclusion of the author to the reader . and now god knows how soon it may be said unto me , physitian heale thy selfe , and how quickly i shall stand in need of these counsels , which i have prescribed to others . herein i say with eli to * * 1 sam. 3. 18 samuel , it is the lord , let him do what seemeth him good : with * * 2 sam. 15 26. david to zadock , behold here i am , let him do to me as s●…emeth good unto him . with the * * acts. 21. 14. disciples to paul , the will of the lord be done : but oh how ea●…ie it is for the mouth to pronounce , or the hand to subscribe these words ! but how hard , yea without gods garce , how impossible , for the heart to submit thereunto ! only hereof i am confident , that the making of this treatise , shall no wayes cause or hasten a wounded conscience in me , but rather on the contrary ( especially if as it is written by me , it were written in me ) either prevent it , that it come not at all , or deferre it that it come not so soon , or lighten it , that it fall not so heavy , or shorten it that it last not so long . and if god shall be pleased hereafter to write * * job . 13. 26 bitter things against me , who have here written the sweetest comforts i could for others , let none insult on my sorrowes : but whilst my wounded conscience shall lye like the * * acts 3. 2. criple , at the porch of the temple , may such as passe by be pléased to pit●…y me , & permit this booke to beg in my behal●…e , the charitable prayers of well disposed people ; till divine providence , shall send some peter , some pious minister , perfectly to restore my maimed soule to her former soundnes . amen . finis . notes, typically marginal, from the original text notes for div a40653e-160 exod. 21. 4. notes for div a40653e-1430 * psa. 38. 3 * psal. 51. 17. * 1 ▪ sam. 24. 5. * angelicū vulnus ver●… medicus qualiter factū sit indicare noluit , dum illud postea curare non destinavit . de mirab. . scrip●… . lib. 1. c. 2. * exod. 1. 19. * psal. 21. 3. * gal. 4. 26. eph. 2. 19. heb. 12. 22 ▪ * psa. 123. 2 ▪ * luke 21. 26. * revel. 3. 10. * isa. 58. 7. * 1 sam. 17. 36. 2 cor. 1. 10 * psa. 23. 4 * prov. 18. 14. * heb. 4. 12 * jer. 20. 4. * prov. 31. 6. * psa. 38. 2 * col. 4. 14. * sir tho. norris , president of munster , ex levi vul●…ere neglecto sublatus . cambdens elizab. an. 1641. * 1 cor. 8. 12. * ●…sa ' . 69. 26. * 1 sam. 1. 13. 14. * rev. 2. 5. * mat. 18. 3 * 2 kings 4. 34. * zacha. 4. 7. * 1 king : 22. * deut. 32. 39. * john 7. 15. * g●… . 38. 36. * isaiah 1. 18. * compare gen. 28. 20. with gen. 35. 1 * psal. 119 106. * mark 16. 3. * isa. 61. 3 : * isa. 14. 23 * solinus polyhistor in judea . * phil. 3. 1●… * 1 kings 3 19. * jo●… 13. 15 * exo. 6. 9. * psal. 90. 14. * jer. 48. 10 * deut. 15. 21. * 1 kings 18. 21. * cambd. brit. in durham . * ifitrains on sunday before messe , it will raine all weeke more or lesse . a popish old ●…ime . * 2 sam. 12. 13. mat. 3. 6. * dan. 7. 9. * deu. 29. 5. * 2 kings 5 12. * luk. 15. 21 * ephes 6. 12. * psal. 121 1. * isa. 55. 3. & 58. 8. * 1 kings 18. 43. * psal. 32. 9. * james 1. 3. isa. 61. 1. * acts 26. 2 * psa. 23. 2 * psa. 69. 2. * compare p●…al . 102. 6 with psa. 102. 5. * judg. 13. 23. * acts 2. * ephes. 4. 19. * hos. 2. 6. * 2 cor. 12 7. * john 2. 4. * mat. 17. 19. * 1 cor. 15 58. * mar. 8. 26. * rom. 8. 26. * prov. 14. 10. * rev. 2. 17 * mat. 5. 4. * ex veris possunt , nil nisi ve●…a sequi . * col. 3. 3. * 1 pet. 5. 8 * psal. 68. 20. * luk. 2. 48 * act. 1. 7. * ●… cor. 10. 13. * act. 9. 33 * mat. 9. 2. * luk. 13. 11. * joh. 5. 5. * melchior adamus in vita theologorum 〈◊〉 pag. 198. * jam. 1. 17 * ruth 2. 8 * joh. 11. 20 * exo. 16. 36. * job 42. 11 * luk. 17. 17. * act ▪ 183. * 2 cor. ●… . 4. * luk. 22. 32. * joh. 5. 14. * 1. kin ▪ 2. 44. * gen. 43. 12. * pro. 30. 8 * 1 kings 8. 33. * 1 thes. 5. 18. ephes. 5. 20. psal. 103. 22. & 145. 10. the picture of the conscience drawne to the life, by the pencell of divine truth. vvherein are set out 1. its nature. 2. infirmities. 3. remedies. 4. its duties. consisting first in the truths to be beleived [sic]. 2. the vertues to be practised. 3. the vices to bee avoyded. 4. the heresies to bee rejected. all seasonable for these distracted times. by alexander rosse. ross, alexander, 1591-1654. this text is an enriched version of the tcp digital transcription a91988 of text r208720 in the english short title catalog (thomason e1195_1). textual changes and metadata enrichments aim at making the text more computationally tractable, easier to read, and suitable for network-based collaborative curation by amateur and professional end users from many walks of life. the text has been tokenized and linguistically annotated with morphadorner. the annotation includes standard spellings that support the display of a text in a standardized format that preserves archaic forms ('loveth', 'seekest'). textual changes aim at restoring the text the author or stationer meant to publish. this text has not been fully proofread approx. 154 kb of xml-encoded text transcribed from 106 1-bit group-iv tiff page images. earlyprint project evanston,il, notre dame, in, st. louis, mo 2017 a91988 wing r1980 thomason e1195_1 estc r208720 99867646 99867646 119965 this keyboarded and encoded edition of the work described above is co-owned by the institutions providing financial support to the early english books online text creation partnership. this phase i text is available for reuse, according to the terms of creative commons 0 1.0 universal . the text can be copied, modified, distributed and performed, even for commercial purposes, all without asking permission. early english books online. (eebo-tcp ; phase 1, no. a91988) transcribed from: (early english books online ; image set 119965) images scanned from microfilm: (thomason tracts ; 168:e1195[1]) the picture of the conscience drawne to the life, by the pencell of divine truth. vvherein are set out 1. its nature. 2. infirmities. 3. remedies. 4. its duties. consisting first in the truths to be beleived [sic]. 2. the vertues to be practised. 3. the vices to bee avoyded. 4. the heresies to bee rejected. all seasonable for these distracted times. by alexander rosse. ross, alexander, 1591-1654. [22], 182 [i.e. 186], [4] p. printed by tho. badger, for m.m. and gabriel bedell, and are to be sold at their shop neere temple-bar, at the middle temple gate, london : 1646. page 186 is misnumbered 182. the words "its nature. .. its duties" are bracketed together on title page. reproduction of the original in the british library. eng conscience -early works to 1800. conscience, examination -early works to 1800. a91988 r208720 (thomason e1195_1). civilwar no the picture of the conscience drawne to the life, by the pencell of divine truth.: vvherein are set out 1. its nature. 2. infirmities. 3. r ross, alexander 1646 27415 16 10 0 0 0 0 9 b the rate of 9 defects per 10,000 words puts this text in the b category of texts with fewer than 10 defects per 10,000 words. 2007-04 tcp assigned for keying and markup 2007-04 apex covantage keyed and coded from proquest page images 2007-05 john latta sampled and proofread 2007-05 john latta text and markup reviewed and edited 2008-02 pfs batch review (qc) and xml conversion the pictvre of the conscience drawne to the life , by the pencell of divine truth . vvherein are set out 1. its nature . 2. infirmities . 3. remedies . 4. its duties . consisting first in the truths to be beleived . 2. the vertues to be practised 2. the vices to bee avoyded . 4. the heresies to bee rejected . all seasonable for these distracted times . by alexander rosse . london printed by tho , badger , for m. m. and gabriel bedeil , and are to be sold at their shop neere temple-bar , at the middle temple gate . 164● . to the right honorable the lord scudamore , viscount sligo . my lord , when the orbe of learning is illustrat by the irradiation , and benigne aspect of princes favours , then all things in a kingdome are conspicuous and beautifull ; but when the great luminaries and patrons of knowledge are eclipsed , the orbe must needs bee obscured , and every thing within its circumference darkned ; hence ( as in the darknesse of the aire ) men are troubled with strange and mishapen apparitions , which they veryly beleeve are reall visions , whereas indeed they are but phantomes and imaginations of our brains , which upon the introduction of a candle are easily dissipated ; even so in the intellectuall darknesse , men are troubled with uncoth and hideous opinions , beleeving and embracing them as reall truths , whereas indeed they are but illusions . morte obita quales fama est volitare figuras , aut quae sopitas deludunt somnia sensus . which upon the approach of the light of scripture and truth , do vanish into nothing . in this time when darknesse hath overwhelmed the minds of many men , who are molested with strange fancies , which they call new lights , whereas indeed they are but the glating of rotten wood , or of glowwormes , or those skipping lights ( which wee call jack in the candle ) i have adventured to bring in this little tract , as a peice of waxe candle , after so many bright torches , that men may be undeceived , and that the true abjects both of faith and practice may be manifested ; to which small peice j have prefixed your lordships name , as being bound in the obligation of duty and affection to your goodnesse and eminent parts in generall ; whose knowledge , judgment , conscience , and sincerity are such , and so well known , both at home and abroad , as they need not the help of any pen ; so likewise , j am tyed by this small mite to expresse my gratitude , in particular for your lordships favorable aspect on , & respect to me ; which i cannot better testifie , then by acknowledging my selfe . your lordships humble servant to command alexander ross . the contents of the diseases and cures of the conscience . 1. conscience what it is ? 2. an erring conscience , how farre it bindes . 3. the conscience how ruled by opinion . 4. the doubtfull conscience not to bee followed . 5. the scrupulous conscience both a punishment and a tryall . 6. six causes of a scrupulous conscience : 7. tenne remedies against the diseases of the conscience . the contents of what we must believe . 8. our conscience bindes us to beleeve 1 there is a god . 2. that he is one . 3. immutable . 4. eternall . 5. omnipresent . 6. omnipotent . 7. infinite . 8. the chiefe good . 9. most perfect . 10. most simple . 11. incomprehensible . 12. invisible . 13. truth it selfe . 14. ever-living . 15. the trinity , and the reasons why . 9. our conscience binds us to beleeve 1. the creation . 2 ▪ christs incarnation . 3. that in him were the passions of fear anger and sorrow , and how ? 4. that in him were two wills . 5. that his mother was a perpetuall virgin . 6. and the mother of god . 7. and that christ was accessary to his owne death , how ? 8 and that in his death the divinity was not separate from his body . 9. and that hee rose the third day , with the scarres of his woundes . 10. and that he ascended above all heaven . 11. and that he sits at his fathers right hand . 12. and that he is judge of the quick and dead . 10. our consicence bindes us to believe that the holy ghost proceeds from the son as well as from the father . 11. wee are bound to beleeve the unitie and universalitie of the church . 12. and the communion of the saluts with christ and among themselves . 13. and that god only forgives sins . 14. and that our bodies shall rise againe . 15. and that there is an eternall life of glory , after this of nature and grace . 16. our conscience bindes us to beleeve the truth and authority of scripture . 17. we are bound to beleeve that there are an gels . 18. and that god created man , whose body he made of earth , and infused his soule , which soule is immortall , and not by traduction , and how infected with originall sinne . 19. we are bound to believe the doctrine of predestination . 20. our conscience bindes us to beleeve that wee are justified by christs righteousnesse , or by his active and passive obedience . 21. and we are bound to beleive that the good and evill things of this life , come to passe by gods providence . contents of what we must practise . 1. our conscience bindes us to feare . love , and obey god . 2. to call upon god , when , where , and how , but not to use imprecations . 3. wee are not strictly bound to certaine houres , places and gestures . 4. we are bound sometimes to fast . 5. and to make confession of our faith . 6. and to detest openly idolatry and sin . 7. and to flye when we are persecuted . 8. and to heare gods word ; how . 9. and to heare profane ministers , and to receive from them the sacraments , when there is no other meanes . 10. parents are bound in conscience to bring their children to baptisme . 11. god-fathers also are bound in conscience to see there god-sons performe what they promise in baptisme . 12. what in conscience wee are bound to performe , who have beene baptised . 13. we are bound in conscience to receive the lords supper , when and how . 14. the minister is bound to give , and the people to receive the cup . 15. wee are bound in conscience to love one another . 16. and to worship god onely ; not angels , saints , or christs humanity . 17. we are bound to sweare only by god , and not by the creatures . 18. christians may sweare with a safe conscience , why and how . 19. we are bound in conscience to keepe our oathes , though to our prejudice . 20. we must not falsifie the oath which we sweare by the creatures . 21. what oathes are not to bee required . 22. vnlawsull oathes must not bee kept . 23. nor oathes made to our neighbours prejudice . 24. nor oathes made by them who are not of their owne power . 25. equivocation in oathes unlawfull . 26. what oathes must be kept that are forced . 27. what erroneous oathes must bee kept : 28. we must not make one sweare a falshood , though he think it to be true . 29. a second oath contrary to the former that was lawfull must not be kept . 30. the oath must bee kept , whose forme remaines . 31. the oath ex officio unlawfull . 32. the oath to conceale a thiefe must be broken . 33. what vowes we must make and keep . 34. the monkish 3. vowes unlawfull . 35. what works must be done on the sabbath . 36. we must hasten our conversion . 37. we must meditate on gods law ; why . 38. and we must make our election sure ; how ? 39. we are bound seriously to repent . 40. and to cherish the spirit ; how . 41. and to be holy . 42. and to hope in gods promises . 43. and to be comforted in afflictions . 44. and to resist temptations . 45. and to bee cheerefull in our spirituall desertions . 46. and to be comforted against the feare of death . 47. and in all our infirmities to bee cheerfull . 48. we are bound to obedience for many causes . 49. and to humility . 50. and to the knowledge of god in christ . 51. and to sincerity . 52. and to speake truth . 53. wee are still bound to speake the truth . 54. wee must speake truth when commanded . 55. the duties of judges . 56. we are bound to be zealous . 57. we must labour for contentation . 58. we must doe good works . 59. and must search for true wisdome . 60. and are bound to be vigilant . 61. we may use worldly policy ; how . 62. we are bound to forgive wrongs . 63. we may safely goe to law . 64. wee may safely in our owne or brothers defence kill the invader . 65. we must not kill our selves . 66. wars when and how lawfull . 67. souldiers should know the justice of the cause for which they fight . 68. we are bound to suffer for christ . 69. we must labour for patience . 70. and for sobriety or temperance . 71. we must avoyd drunknesse . 72. hereticks may be punished ; how . 73. we must submit our selves to gods correcting hand . 74. we must love god for himselfe . 75. and wee must love him above all things . 76 wee must subdue our pride . 77. how we must pray at all times . 78. we must avoyd evill spirits , witches , southsayers , inchanters , &c. 79. we are bound to confesse our sinnes . 80 lotteries how farr lawfull . 81. marriage , how and when lawfull . 82. consent is required in marriage . 83. polygany unlawfull . 84. the mutuall duties of husband and wife . 85. divorce when lawfull . 86. wanton and fleshly lusts to be avoyded 87. in what cases we may separate our selves from a church or congregation . 88. the ministers duties , and of excommunication . 89 how they should be qualified . 90. in what cases we must make restitution . 91. how we are bound to reprove . 92. and how to receive reprooffe . 93. how we must love our neighbour as our selves . 94. the necessity of a holy life . 95 how farr schisme must be avoyded . 96 ▪ we must be carefull of our good name 97 wee must speake and think well of all men , till we know the contrary 98 how far we may conceale our neighbours sinnes . 99 wee are bound to imploy our talents well . 100 the duty of magistrates and people 101 of masters and servants . 102 of parents and children . 103 of ministers and their flocks . 104 , when we are to stand to our bargaines . 105 what usury is lawfull , what is not . 106. callings needfull , beggers condemned 107 rich mens duties . 108. we are bound to be bountyfull . 109. and to shun covetousnesse . 110 , what wee are to eat , and when to refraine . 111. of apparaell , and cautions in wearing it . 112. of recreations , and when to be used , and how . 113. we are bound to abhor slanderers . 114. we are bound to avoyd sinne . 115. in things indefferent , we must use liberty . 116. wee must not omit duties for feare of scandal . 117. how farr forth the law is necessary . 118 we must rely on gods providence as not to neglect the meanes . 119. ministers marriage is lawfull . 1.20 religion ought to be the princes cheife care . 121. christians may be kings or magistrates . 122. princes may with a good conscience demand tribute . the contents of heresies and doctrines to be avoyded . 1 concerning god we must avoyd idolaters , epicures , atheists , anthropomorphits , blasphemers , manich●es , gentiles , stoics , orpheus , homer , hesiod , chrysippus , tertullian , simon magus , cerinthus , &c. 2 concerning the trinity , samosatcnus , arius , servelus , iewes , sabellius , tritheists , antitrinitaries . 3 concerning gods omnipotency ; euripides , simon magus , &c. 4 concerning the creation , aristotle , democritus , &c. 5 concerning christ , the ebionites , arians , cerinthus , &c. 6 concerning christs nativity , saturninus , basilides , &c. 7 concerning christs two natures , samosatenus , monothelits , &c. 8 concerning maryes virginity , cerinthus , carpocrates , &c. 9 concerning the personall vnion , nestorius , &c. 10 concerning christs death , simonians , saturninians , &c. 11 concerning the indissoluble vnion , nestorians , &c. 12 concerning christs resurrection , iewes , ceri●hians , &c. 13 concerning christs ascention , christolyts , manichees , &c. 14 concerning christs sitting at gods right hand , papists &c. 15 concerning christs iudiciary power , astrologers , &c. 16 concerning the holy ghost , macedonians , servetians , &c. 17 concerning the catholick church , papists , pepuzians , &c. 18 concerning communion of saints , nicolaitans , &c. 19 concerning remission of finnes , donatists , &c. 20 concerning the resurrection , menandrians , &c. 21 concerning life eternal , millenaries , &c. 22 concerning the scriptures , marcionits , &c. 23 concerning angels , sadduces , &c. 24 concerning mans creation , rabbins , &c. 25 concerning mans soule , epicurees , &c. 26 concerning gods jmage , saturninians , &c. 27 concerning original sin , armenians , &c. 28 concerning predestination , celestinians , &c. 29 concerning iustification , papists , &c. 30 concerning gods providence , epicures , &c. the picture of a christianmans conscience , where in wee may see 1. its nature , 2. infirmities , 3 remedies , 4. duties ; breifly and plainly delineated , with the pencill of divine truth . conscience which is the invisible iudge that sits upon the tribunall of our soules , sentencing our good and bad actions ; shewing us what is to be done , what to be undone ; a witnes either excusing or accusing us ; a schoolemaster having in one hand a booke to instruct us , in the other a rod to correct us : and like a horsman having a bit to curbe us , that we may not run out , and a whipe to slash us when wee are unruly : which the poets expressed by the snakie haired furies , by the raven of prometheus , continually eating up his heart , and by the dart that sticks in the side of the wounded deere . this conscience i say , is an act ( not a habit ) of the reason , or intellect ( not of the will ) by which it prescribes what is good or evil , right or wrong , to be done or undone ; if we do wel it affords us a continuall feast ; if evill , phalaris his brasen bull is not such a tormentor ; & somuch the crueller in that it is unavoydable , accompanying us where ever we go , as the shaddow doth the body as the evill spirit haunted saul . there are foure infirmities to which the conscience is obnoxious , 1. error , 2 opinion , 3. doubts , 4. scrupulosite . 1 an erring conscience is a bad iudge ; yet the dictats thereof must be obeyed , because it is conceived to be the law , will , and oracle of god ; who therefore resisteth such a conscience , resisteth gods will in his own interpretation and conceit , & goeth against his own beleife ; for he beleeves that he is in the right , though indeed he is an error ; now , what is done either against or without faith , is sinne . rom. 14. for the egyptian mid-wives who beleeved that they might with a safe conscience lye to save the hebrew infants from drowning , had done against their faith and conscience & so been guilty of murther formaly though not materialy , if they had not lyed . but we must note that though we are bound never to resist the erring conscience , yet we are not obliged , alwayes to follow it ; for if the error be voluntarily contracted , we are not tyed by any obligation to yeeld obedience to it ; yet we are bound by a simple ligation not to doe any thing against it , because the conscience beleeves this error to be truth , & remaines as yet not convinced ; untill which time , these actions which in themselves are materially evill , yet are not evill formally ; as when a man lyeth with his neighbours wife , beleeving her to be his own , he commiteth adultery materially & in effect , though not formally or in his conscience and intention ; and for the same reason the dictates of an erroneous conscience , are to be preferred to the precepts of a superior until the error be removed by the superior , who cannot injoyne us to do that which destroyes the law of nature , but to do any thing against our conscience , were to thwart and oppose that very law of nature . 2 opinion is the second infirmity to which the conscience is subject in this life , by reason we are ignorant of the true causes of things , without which there can be no knowledge ; for scire est per causas cognoscere ; but opinion is a bad rule for men to square their actions by ; seeing we can never give a firme assent unto that which we perfectly know not but by way of probabilitie , therefore the assent is timerous cum formidinecontrarij ; yet it is opinion that for the most part bares rule in the world , and causeth men without scruple of conscience to runne headlong into many errors and absurdities ; it is opinion that imboldens men to persecute without remorse of conscience al such as dissent from them , and in this they think they do god good service ; hence the arians of old thought they were bound in conscience to persecute the orthodox christians , and so the papists are led by the same opinion , at this day in persecuting the protestants , dissonant opinions have as well armed mens consciences with boldnesse , as their hands with fire and sword against each other ; the opinion of universalitie and antiquity hath kept the world so long in blindnesse of popery , causing them without scruple of conscience to swallow down their grosse errors which notwithstanding luther could , not disgest ; neither he of late nor athanasius of old , could satisfie their consciences with the opinion of universalitie ; the opinion that the scholars have of their teachers worth and integrity , make them without any check of conscience maintaine & defend even to their own undoing , and of the place where they live , their masters errors , be they never so absurd ; and this is the cause that the church hath been stil pestered with so many heresies ; the opinion that the subject hath of the princes authority and power , as also the necessity of obedience to his commands , makes them without any controlement of conscience put in execution what soever he commands , be it right , or wrong ▪ and when they take an evil opinion of the prince , though he deserve it not , their conscience sets them on work to rise against him : some physitians think they may kil men with a safe conscience by trying experiments : their conscience doth not check them for murther , because they have an opinion that what they did , was for the furthring of their own knowledge , and the benefit of others : so from the opinion the lawyer hath that it is lawfull for him to live by his profession , he makes no scruple to receive his clients mony , and to plead for him in a wrong cause . 3. the third infirmity of the conscience is doubting ; to which so long as we are subject , our actions can neither stand with love nor faith , nor goodnesse ; not with love ; for how shall we love god , when we doe that which wee doubt is not consonant to his will : not with faith , for faith is an assurance and firm assent ; but that can be neither assent nor assurance , where there is doubting , and what is done without faith is sinne , saith the apostle . not with goodnesse ; for that action cannot bee good which is done without knowledge ; but where doubting is , there cannot be knowledge . maximum malae mentis judicinm fluctuatio : therfore if the action bee doubtfull which we goe about , it were better bee for borne then put in execution ; for there may be danger in performance , there can bee none in forbearance : a man that doubts of his impotency and ineptitude for mariage , were better abstaine then marry ; hee that doubts whither the goods or estate which hee enjoyes bee his owne or not , were better restore then retaine them , if he can find the right owner , if he cannot find him , then hee were best bestow them on the poore , or else retaine them with that intention and resolution , to restore them to the right owner , and for that cause use his best endeavours to finde him out ; so when we doubt whither the princes command imposed upon us , be just or not ; wee ought to bee resolved either by the prince , or by some other wise and religious man , of the lawfulnesse of that command . if the vsurer doubt whither hee may lawfully take use or not ; he were better forbeare then demand it , for there may bee sinne hee doubts , in taking , there can be none in forbearing . 4. the fourth infirmity of the conscience is scrupulositie ; a disease that gives it no rest ; for after it hath assented to one part , yet it remaines anxious and wavering , whither that be the rightest part , it hath assented to , and is easily removed from its assent which it gave to this part , & inclined to assent to the contrary , being troubled at every smal conceit , & scruple , perplexed with every shaddow , & imagination of sin ; sometimes making us feare that we have omitted what should have been done : and sometimes that that we have committed what should not have been done ; this sicknesse is sometimes layd upon us by god , as a punishment of our sins , and somtimes as a meanes to try our faith , constancy , and patience , & its a part of our sprituall warfare ; let us not then be dejected ; the end of this tryall is not to hurt , but to help us ; not to kill , but to save us ; neither hath satan any more power to vex our minds with such scruples , then he had to afflict iobs body with soares ; he doeth it by permission from god for our further weal : these scruples like the angels of satan are sent to buffet us ; but let us not despaire , gods grace is sufficient for us . the causes then of our scruples are principally , 1 god himselfe , 2. instrumentally satan 3. the conversing with scruplous and rigid men , 4. hearing such sermons , reading of such bookes , as beget and increase scruples in us , 5. the evill constitution also of our bodies , and the bad disposition of the spleen , and braine . the cheifest means to cure us of these foure diseases , are 1. principally prayer , 2. then meditating on gods word , 3. hearing of such sermons , & conversing with such ministers as are judicious , learned and pious , who with the good samaritan can poure oyle of comfort into our wounds , and apply the balme of gilead to our soules ; and who have more need of such spirituall physitians , then they who are troubled in miude ? for a wounded conscience who can beare ? 4. abstaning from conversing with such persons , reading of such bookes , hearing of such sermons , as will rather make the wound wider then heale it . 5. diligence in our particular calling ; for often times idlenesse breeds doubtings and scruples , 6. striving to be cheereful & merry , & to converse with such as are of a cheerful and merry disposition ; for the life of a christian consisteth not in sadnesse , pensivenesse and melancholy , but in cheerfullnesse , mirth and alacrity , reioyce alwayes in the lord , i say againe unto you rejoyce , saith the apostle . 7 temperance in our diet , moderation in our passions , & a fit appliction or use of physick , whereby diseases may be prevented & our humours rectified 8. let us not intertain any scruples in our minds when they come , but reject them and resist their first ' motions ; principijs obsta : 9. we must set before our eyes the death of christ which is of infinite value to save all sinners ; the bloud of christ cleanseth us from all sinne , saith saint iohn . christ gave himselfe to be a ransome , saith st. paul 1 tim. 2. 6. likewise the greatnesse of gods mercy which is above all his workes , psalme 145. 9. the plentifulnesse of redemption with him , psalme 130. 7. the sufficiencie of his grace , 2 cor. 12. 9. even in pardoning of grievous sinners , as of david , salomon , manasses , peter , paul , and others ; he doth not breake the bruised reed , nor quench the smoaking flax ; hee did not despise the canaanitish woman though a dog , nor matthew though a publican , nor the woman possessed with a devill ; nor the thiefe upon the crosse , nor the apostle that denyed him , nor the apostle that persecuted him ; he is a father who will not reject , but imbrace his prodigall sonne if he returne ; he is a physitian who will not hurt , but cure the patient that comes to him , hee invites all that are weary and laden , to come to him , and he will refresh them , matth. 11. 28. he calls upon all that are thirstie to come to the water and drinke , esay 55. 1. hee professeth that hee came to call sinners to repentance , matth. 9. 13. many such places may be alleadged . 10. if we will not bee troubled with the scruples of conscience , and the temptations arisihg thence ; wee must avoyd solitarinesse , and too much retirednesse ; for satan takes occasion to assault us , when hee sees us alone , as hee dealt with christ in the desert . 11. let us strive for true knowledge , faith , love , and obedience , which are the maine remedies against all these diseases of the conscience ; for opinions prevaile where true knowledge failes ; and where there is but little faith , there will bee much doubting ; want of love is the cause of so many errors ; and want of obedience to spirituall superiors is the cause of so many scruples . thus having poynted at the diseases of the conscience , and their remedies , i will shew the credenda and agenda of a good christian , that is what we are bound to beleeve , and what with a safe & good conscience we are bound to doe . vvee are bound in conscience to beleeve that there is a god ; for even the greatest atheists that ever were , have been accused , checked , judged , and affrighted by their conscience , even for their secret and invisible sins , intimating thereby that there is a secret and invisible indge , to whom they must give an account of those hidden actions ; many men have been checked by their conscience for doubting or denying that there is a god , but never was man checked by his conscience for beleeving the diety , but rather incouraged thereto , and cherished , being directed to beleeve this both by the light of nature , and the light of grace . 2 and as we beleve there is a god , so we are bound to beleeve that there is but one god , having both reasons and scripture , to induce us to this faith ; the simplicity , & perfection of gods nature , as also the unity of this universe force this beleif upon us . 3 we are bound in conscience to beleeve that god is immutable , because he is not passible . 2. and that he is eternall , because he is immutable , 3. and that he is the only ubiquitary entity , both 1. in regard of his essence , by which all things have existence , 2. in respect of his knowledge , by which all things are naked to his eyes , 3. in respect of his power , to which all things are subjected . and 4. that he is infinit , because he is not confined , by forme or matter , or his own nature . and 5. that he is the cheifest good , 1. because he is cheifly appetible . 2. and the cheifest end of the creatures . 3. and the cheifest cause of all that perfection and goodnesse that is in the creature . 6. and that he is most perfect . 1. because he is the cause of all things . 2. in whom are contained the perfections of al his effects , that ever were or shall be . 3. and because he is not a passive , but an active principle . 4. neither is there in him any defect at all , 7. and that he is most simple , because in him there is neither composition nor parts , nor act & possibilitie , nor can he be the effect of things , 8. and that he is incomprehensible , because he is infinit , 9. and that he is invisible , because sight is a bodyly act , which hath no proportion to a spirituall substance ; and we see the species and similitude of the object , but gods perfection excludes all similitude , 10. and that he is truth it selfe , because of that transcendent conformitie which is between his intellect & entity , 11. and that he is the ever-living because he is the ever working god , for the excellency & eternity of his operation shew the excellency and eternity of his life 12. & that he is omnipotent , because his essence is infinit , & no wayes confined or limited . 4 we are bound in conscience to beleev that ther is in god a trinity of persons , or three wayes of existence , because in the nature of god , there are three reall relations , to wit , paternity , filiation , and procession ; the father alone is unbegott ; the son is of the father as of his originall , not as of a cause , which includes , 1. prioritie , 2. dependence , and 3. a different essence , which things are not in god : the holy ghost is of the father , and the son , not by way of generation as the word is from the intellect , which is the property of the son , who is therefore called the ( word , ) but by way of procession , or love ; for the holy ghost is said to proceed from the father , and sonne , as these two persons love each other mutually ; hence the holy ghost loveth essentially and personally ; essentially , as he is the love that proceeds from the father , and the sonne ; personally , as he from whom this love proceeds . 5 we are bound in conscience to beleeve the creation of the world , because we know this is affirmed by scripture , and learned men of all ages ; because god is omnipotent , wise and good ; because the world is not god , therefore not infinit , nor eternall , neither in it selfe wholly or in the parts thereof . 6 we are bound in conscience to beleeve that in the fulnesse of time god was made man that his invisible atributes of wisdom , goodnesse , justice , and power , might be made known to us ; his wisdome in finding out a way to pay so great a price ; his goodnesse , which is communicative of it selfe , in that he despised not the infirmitie and basenesse of our nature ; his justice in making man , whom satan meant to destroy , the meanes of satans own destruction : lastly his greatnesse ; for the incarnation of the son of god , was far greater then the creation of the world . 7 wee must beleeve that in christ were the three passions , of sorrow , feare , and anger , 1. of sorrow or paine , for the faculties of his soule were natural , and his body was sensible ; for as the evill of paine is apprehended by the outward sense of touching , so is the evill of sorrow , by the inward sense of imagination ; these i call evils , not of sin , but of punishment , 2. feare was in him , as it is from the apprehension of future evill ; but not as it includes either the incertainty of the event , or the perturbation of reason , for the one presupposeth ignorance , the other sin ; 3. there was in him also the anger of zeale which proceeds of iustice , but not the anger of revenge arising from sin , or of the perturbation of reason . 8 we may with a cleare conscience beleeve that christ had two wills , other wayes he could not have had two natures ; notwithstanding , apollinarius , einychus , and onefurious , maintaine the contrary ; for an intelligent nature cannot be perfect without the will ; therefore as god , his will was divine ; as man , his will was humane ; but as he was man , he was also a sensitive creature ; therefore not only had he a rationall will , but also a sensitive appetite ; by this , he willed the cup to passe from him ; by that , he dranke of the cup , here was a diversite of wils , but no contradiction , because it was not secundum idem . 9 we may safely beleeve that mary the mother of christ , lost not her virginity , neither before , nor in , nor after the conception ; for otherwise this could not have stood either with the dignitie of the father that sent him , nor of the son that was sent , nor of the holy ghost that conceived him ; nor yet with the end of christs incarnation , which was to make us the sons of god , by a pure and virgine like regeneration . 10 we may safely beleeve that mary is the mother of god , though not of the godhead ; because she was the mother of that person , who is both god and man ; for this cause there is in christ but one filiation , if wee looke upon the subject or person , but two filiations if we respect the two natures . 11 we may safely beleeve that christ was the cause of his own death ; because he did not hinder it , when he might , either by suppressing his persecutors , or withdrawing himself from them , or by immortalizing his body , but he was accessary to his own death indirectly only , and without sin , that by it he might destroy sinne , and death , and him that had the power of death . 12 wee may beleeve safely that though in christs death and buriall , the soule was separated from the body , yet his divinity was not separated either from the soule or the body ; for the gifts of god are irrevocable , and without repentance ; and the gift of this hypostaticall union was the greatest of all gods gifts ; therefore all christ was in the grave but not wholly , totus sed non totaliter ; because neither the body , nor the soule was separated from the person of the sonne of god . 13 we must beleeve that christ rose the third day with the scars of those wounds which he received in his passion , both to confirme the truth of his resurrection , and by them to make intercession to his father for us ; for they were as so many powerfull orators , imployed by our intercessor to plead for us ; besids they were honourable badges of his victory ; and love tokens of his true affection toward us , and marks of his enemies implacable malice . 14 we must beleeve that christ ascended above al heavens , not by his own power , that is , of his humane nature , yet by his own power , that is of his divinity ; and though it was against the nature of his earthly body to ascend , it was not against the nature of his body as it was the body of the sonne of god , and as it was glorifyed , to ascend . and this he did , that he might prepare a place for us ; that from thence , as our king sitting on his throne , he might give gifts unto men ; as our high preist he might enter into the holy place to make intercession for us ; and as our prophet he might , by sending his spirit from thence , inwardly instruct us . 15 wee must beleeve that christ sits on gods right-hand , not as man only , by being hypostatically united to the divinitie , but as god also by eternall generation , injoying the same glory , felicity and power with the father from eternitie ; therefore although the humanitie of christ is not to be honored with divine worship : yet the man christ is to be adored as being united to god ; the word humanitie intimating the nature , but the word man , the whole person , because of the hypostaticall union . 16 wee must beleeve that christ is iudge of the quick and dead , not as god only , but as man also ; for as in both natures he is our mediator , and head of the church , so in both he is our iudge ; and as in his humane nature he was judged by the world , so in the same nature he shall judge the world ; and because no man hath seen god at any time , and the iudge should be visible , therefore it is fit that christ in the visible forme and nature of man should judge the world . 17 wee may with a cleare conscience beleeve against the tenure of the greeke church , that the holy ghost proceedeth from the son , as well as from the father ; for otherwayes in the persons there would be a dualitie only , and not a trinity , neither are the son and holy ghost otherwayes distinguished but by generation and procession ; and if the sonne be the wisdom and knowledge of the father , and the holy ghost the love of both ; he must doubtlesse proceed from the sonne , because love proceeds of knowledge . 18 wee must beleeve that there is one church universall , in respect of time , place , and person , which neither hath erred , nor can erre , in things fundamentall and absolutely necessary ; and that the head of this church , is christ only , both in respect of eminencie , dominion , efficacie and perfection , as containeing al those graces of spirituall sense , motion , life , and other good things , which he imparts to his members ; and the church of rome is not this catholick church , but a mishapen and lame member therof : and that neither her antiquity , nor multitudes , nor succession , nor miracles , nor continuance , nor unity , nor outward splendor , &c. are true markes of a true church . 19 wee are bound in conscience to beleeve , that there is a communion and fellowship of the saints , among themselves here on earth , consisting in their mutuall loves , in imparting spirituall gifts , and supporting each other , with their mutuall helps : as also with the saints in heaven , they praying for us , and we earnestly desireing to be with them . and with christ also , as the branches with the root , builders with the foundation , the wife with the husband , the members with the head ; he imparting to us his righteousnesse , merits , and prerogatives : and we imparting againe to him , our sins , punishments , and infirmities . 20 we are in conscience to beleeve that god doth forgive sins , and that he alone hath this power ; the minister only pronounceth the pardon ; and that all sins are pardonable , though not actually pardoned , by reason of impenitency , & unbeleife ; & that our sins are pardoned , not for our merits , but for christs obedience : 21 so we are to beleeve the resurrection of bodies , because otherwayes the members cannot be conformable to their head , nor can god bee the god of the living , but of the dead ; christ rose in vaine , our faith is vaine & we are of al men most miserable ; and this resurrection must be of al , because al must be rewarded or punished ; but this resurection shal not be the work of nature , because naturaly from the privation to the habit ther can be no regresse ; and though there may be a natural disposition in the matter to bee reunited to its forme , yet there is no active power in nature to cause this union ; and though there is an inclination in the soule to bee united againe to its body ; yet in the dust there can bee no naturall inclination to the soule of man . 22 we are also to beleeeve that besides this life of nature , and of grace here , there is a life of glory hereafter eternall in the heavens ; which in scripture is called peace , a refreshing , a rest , our masters joy , our fathers house , the kingdome of heaven , abrahams bosome , paradise , the new ierusalem , this life must be eternall , because god is eternall , the soule is immortall , and we that suffer for christ without it , must be of all men most miserable ; the testimony of scripture , the translation of henoch , the rapture of eliah , and the ascension of christ doe confirme the truth of this doctrine . 23. our conscience also bindes us to believe the truth of gods word ; and that the scripture which we cal canonical are the dictates of the holy ghost ; if either wee consider the majestie of the stile , or the efficacy of the phrase in working upon the heart , like a sharp two edged sword , deviding betweene the soule and the spirit , the joynts and the marrow ; or if we looke upon the antiquity of the scripture , or upon gods providence in the miraculous preserving , and divulging of them against , all opposition ; or if upon the inveterate hatred of satan , and of the world in persecuting , and labouring to falsifie them if they could ; or if upon the fearefull and horrid ends of those men who have hated and persecuted the scripture ; or again , if wee take notice of the divine matter which is contained in them , of the truth of their predictions , and accomplishment of their prophesies ; of the wonderfull harmony and consent of doctrine through all the parts thereof ; of the generall consent of the church through all the world maintaining and preserving the scripture : of the transcendent miracles recorded in them , of the constancy of the martyrs in suffering all kind of tortures for maintaining thetruth of them : if lastly we consider the miraculous calling , the selfe insufficiency , and yet the extraordinary abilities of the men that penned them ; our conscience wil assure us that the scripture were indicted by gods spirit . wee must are beleeve , that there are ministring spirits which in scripture are called angels , gods , sonnes of god , morning starres , seraphim , cherubim , men of god , &c. these wait upon the throne of god , & are imployed by him to comfort , instruct , defend , and deliver from danger the children of god , to carry their soules into abrahams bosome , to gather their bones together in the last day , to pnnish the wicked here , and to separate these goates from the sheep hereafter ; these were created in the beginning all good , some of which persevered in their integrity , partly by the goodnesse of their owne will , partly by gods decree before time , and by his assisting grace in time , and partly by reason of the excellent knowledge they have of god , both naturall , experimentall , and supernaturall or revealed ; and some of them fell by pride and envy , affecting equality with god , and maligning mans felicity , for which cause they were thrust out of heaven , and strucke with blindnesse in their mindes , and perversenesse in their wils ; yet much knowledge they have , both naturall , experimentall , and revealed ; and much strength also , by which they worke upon the bodayes , the minde , and senses of men ; yet they know not our thoughts , nor things to come , except by revelation or conjecture . we are bound also to believe that god made man after his own image , which consisted in righteousnesse , holinesse , and immortality , which image being lost by sinne , was restored againe by christ , and that mans body was made of earth , but his soule of nothing , and not of the heaven , or the fire , or the ayre , or the divine substance . and that there is not one soule of all men , nor a transmigration of soules out of one body into another , nor that the soules were created before the world , or that they are mortall ; being they are simple and uncompounded substances , and not made of matter , or contrary elements ; besides , that the word of god , the consciences of men , the excelency of the soul , the inorganicall faculties thereof , and the consent of all ages and nations do prove its immortality ; therefore it is not educed out of the matter as other formes are , but introduced , and infused by god immediatly , who breathed into adam the breath of life ; and albeit the soule is infused pure by god , yet no sooner enters it into the body , but is infected with originall sin , not by any physicall contact of the body , but by gods just judgment , imputing adams sin to all his posterity , being in his loynes when he sinned , upon which imputation followes an inclination to sin , as a punishment of adams transgression : so the child is infected with originall sinne , not because his soule is united to his body , but because he is the sonne of adam . 25 we are also to beleeve that god from all eternity decreed to create man to his image , and foreseeing his voluntary fall , ordained to elect some in christ to salvation , and to passe by others , which election depended not on mans foreseen faith or works , for god could foresee nothing in himbut what he was to give him , nor could the cause be posterior to its effect , but election is the cause of faith , and good works , for we are elected , that we might be holy . eph. 1. 4. therefore faith and works foreseen , are no more the causes of election then of vocation , and justification . 26 we may like wayes safely beleeve , though there be no inherent righteousnesse in us , wherby we may be accounted just in gods sight , yet that we are justified by christs righteousnesse being imputed to us ; not only by his passive obedience in dying for us , but also by his active ; in fullfilling of the law ; for christ is totally ours ; both in doing and suffering ; and as adams active disobedience made us unjust , so christs active obedience hath made us just ; and as our sins were to be expiated , so life eternall was to be procured for us ; his suffering expiated our sins ; therfore his fulfilling of the law , did purchase life eternall for us . 27 we are bound also in conscience to beleeve that the good and evill which befalls us in this life , comes not to passe by any stoicall or fatall necessity , nor by fortune , or haphazard ; but by gods speciall providence , by which he guides the world , not only in generall , but in every particular creature and action also , so that the evill actions of men , which he ordained not by his predestination , are ordered by his providence ; for god infuseth not evill into mens wills , but directeth unto good ends that evill which they perpetrat of their own accord . thus having breifly shewed the credenda , or what in conscience we are bound to beleeve ; now i will as breifly set down the agenda , or what things with a safe conscience we are bound to performe . wee are bound in conscience to feare god as our lord , and able to cast body and soule into hell fire ; and as being our father , to love him with all our heart , all our strength &c. and patiently to beare his corrections , as being arguments of his love , and knowing that he will lay no more upon us then we can beare ; also to obey him with the same cheerfullnesse and alacritie , that the angels in heaven do , and to be thankfull to him , from whom we receive all good things , and the blessings both of his right and left hand ; blessing god the father of our lord iesus christ , who hath blessed us with all spirituall blessings in heavenly places in christ . 2 we are bound in conscience to call upon god upon all occasions , and to lift up pure hands in all places , so that our prayer may be accompanyed with faith , fervency , love , reverence and humilitie , and grounded not upon our own worth , but on christs merits ; and not directed to angels or saints , but to god himselfe , who alone is omnipotent , omnipresent , omniscient , and will not have his glory given to any other ; and we are not to pray only for our selves , but also for all men , even for our enemies ; therefore must not use imprecations against the person of any man , though against their sinns and errors we may ; for the imprecations we read of in scripture , were either predictions , or temporary execrations , or else they were uttered only against sinne ; or by such as had the gift of discerning , or to whom gods will was known in that case . 3 we are not bound in conscience , to observe all canonicall houres in prayer , but we may at all times call upon god ; nor are we necessarily tied to any place , but in all places we may lift up pure hands ; nor to any particular gesture , but we may use any gesture that is reverend ; nor are we tyed to use the voice ; for god can heare the inward cries of the heart ; [ non vox sed votum . ] 4 we are bound in conscience not only to pray , but use sometimes to fast , that our prayers may be the more servent and effectuall , that the untamed lust of our flesh may be kept under , that our unworthinesse , humilitie , contrition , and repentance may the more appeare ; and this we must doe not only when gods judgements hang over us , but also when we have any great blessing to procure , or any great work to perform ; & not only must we abstaine from meate and drinke , but also from all delights , and comfortable recreations , so farre forth as the strength of our bodies will permit ; but withall we must take heed of any conceit of merit , or of distinction of meates for conscience sake , or of set times urged as necessary which ought to be arbitrary . 5. we are bound in conscience to make open profession of our faith , when we are required thereto by the magistrate , or by such as may command us , that wee may bee known ; or when we see by our silence god is like to bee dishonoured , and the church prejudiced ; hee that confesseth me before men saith christ , him will i confesse before my father which is in heaven . 6. if at any time we converse with prophane and idolatrous people , we are bound in conscience to shew our dislike both of the one and the other , not onely inwardly in our mindes , but also outwardly by our voyce and gesture ; for god will be honoured of us , both in our bodyes and soules ; for he made both ; neither must wee thinke to serve god and belial at the same time . 7. if at any time we are persecuted for the truth , and a good conscience , if we see that there is a lawfull way to escape presented to us ; if we know that we have not strength to resist temptations , and fierie tryals , if our persons bee chiefly aymed at , if we have no hope to doe good by our stay , if our resolution be not utterly to forsake our publike charge , if we have any ; but to returne when the times are quiet ; wee may with a safe conscience flye , having both christs counsell , and example for it , besides the practise of many holy men ; other wayes if by our flight god shall be dishonoured , the church prejudiced ; the magistrate , or the state where wee are , wronged , we are not to flye , especially when all lawfull meanes of escape is denyed us . 8. if we will heare the words of god with profit , and comfort , wee are bound in conscience to lay aside all prejudiciall or evill opinion of the preacher , to cast aside all superfluity of maliciousnesse , and to put away all over-weaning conceit of our own worth & abilities , and all disturbed affections , hardnesse of heart , itching eares , cares of the world , and to receive the word with meeknesse , faith , and love to it , that we being sanctified by prayer to receive it , it may be rooted in us , treasured up in our hearts and dwell plentifully amongst us . 9. if wee live in such a place where there are none but hereticall or prophane ministers , wee are bound in conscience to heare the vvord , and to receive the sacraments by their mouth , and hands , rather then bee deprived of both ; for the efficacy and dignity of the vvord , and sacraments depend not on the minister that convayes them to us , but on christ , who bestowed them upon us ; a raven may conveigh wholesome foode to elijah , and judas may teach true doctrine to the people ; and the scribes and pharises may sit in moses chaire . 10. wee are bound in conscience to bring our children to baptisme , when it may bee had , because the signe should not bee denyed them to whom the thing belongeth , for to them belongeth the kingdome of heaven ; therefore wee must suffer little children to come to christ ; we must become as little children , or else wee cannot enter into heaven ; god is the god of our seed after us ; the promise is made to us , and our children ; the precept of baptizing is indefinit , to al men , under which children are comprehended ; children are subject to original sin , therfore ar capable of the laver of regeneration ; children were sealed with circumcision , therefore should not be debarred from baptisme , which is come instead of circumcision ; without regeneration of water , and of the spirit , children cannot enter into heaven ; all the israelites that passed through the red sea , were baptized , amongst which were children ; so the apostles baptised whole families , and children are part of the families ; children also have faith potentially , and in their faithful parents : yet god is not so tied to baptisme , as if hee could not save without it ; the danger lyeth not so much in the want as in the contempt of the sacrament . 11. as every one who hath bin baptized is bound in conscience to performe what hee hath promised in baptisme , by his god-fathers and god-mothers ; so these are also bound in conscience to see the performance of those things which were promised by instructing and exhorting their god-children , if their parents be dead , or negligent . 12 all we which are baptized , are bound in conscience to rise and walke in the newnesse of life , to mortify and drown the deeds of the flesh , represented to us by baptisme , also to forsake the devill , the world and the flesh , to fight under christs banner , to continue his faithfull souldiers to our liv●s end , according to our promise in baptisme ; to keepe our selves cleane , and our vessels in holynesse ; for seeing we are washed , how shall we defile our selves ? to maintain love and unity , one with another , being all by one spirit baptized into one body , to adhere to christ seeing we have put him on by baptisme , to be conformable to the image of christ our head , in bearing the crosse in our spirituall death , buriall , and resurrection , and to cherish the gifts of the holy ghost , who by the laver of regeneration is abundantly powred upon us . 13. we are all bound in conscience to receive the sacrament of the lords supper , as often as we have opportunity , if there be no just impediment to the contrary ; for by so doing , we shew our obedience to christs command , and give good example to others ; by these meanes also our faith is confirmed , christs death is declared , and the benefits represented and sealed by this sacrament are received ; but , we must be carefull first to examine our selves , that we may come with knowledge , faith , love , and repentance ; then with a longing desire to partake of christ and his benefits : lastly with thankfulnesse and a stedfast resolution to amend our lives . 14 as the minister is bound in conscience to give , so is the people bound to receive the cup , as well as the bread in the sacrament ; for the bread alone doth not fully represent unto us christs death and passion , neither is bread alone without drinke perfect nourishment ; christ instituted the sacrament in both kinds ; and its wickednesse to alter , or impare the will of the testator : the israelits had not only manna , but also water out of the rock given them , to represent christ ; they did eat the same spirituall meat , and drinke the same spirituall drinke ; and therefore they participate of both ; and if there were not as great need of the one as of the other , it had been needlesse that christ and paul should use them , and urge the receiving of them . 15 we are bound in conscience to love one another , as we see the love of god in this sacrament represented to us ; for this is a love-feast ; so are we bound to be charitable , and bountifull to the poore members of christ , whose bounty in giving to us his own body and blood , is represented in this sacrament ; and lastly , we are bound to offer up our bodies and soules , our wills and affections , to his service , who offered up his precious body and blood on the crosse for our redemption . 16 we are bound in conscience to feare god both inwardly in our mindes ; and outwardly in our bodyes , and to serve and worship him alone , because he made and redeemed both soule and body , and is the preserver and defender of both ; and none but he ; therefore this honor we must not give to angels , for they are our fellow servants , nor to the departed saints , for they know us not ; nor to reliquies and images , for we must not fall down before them nor worship them ; nor to kings and princes , for though a civill respect is due to them , as they are called gods , yet they are but flesh , and shall dye like men ; nor lastly is the humanity of christ , though united to the person of the son of god , to be worshiped with divine worship , considered by it selfe ; but the whole hypostasis , or person of the sonne of god , is the object of divine adoration ; therefore to give dulia to saints and images ; hyperdulia to christs humanitie , and to his mother ; latria to the crosse , is to commit idolatry . 17 we are bound in conscience to sweare by none but by god only ; for swearing is a part of divine worship , which is not to be given to the creature ; besids to sweare by the creature takes away the majesty of an oath , which should not be taken but with reverence , and feare ; lastly such kindes of oathes are scandulous , and offend the weaker brethren : and somuch the rather because , they were used and commended by hereticks , as austin sheweth l. 19. cont. faust . c. 22. where he reproves the manichees for sweareing by the creatures . 18 a christian may sweare with a safe conscience , when he is required thereto , by the magistrate ; for in the old and new testament , we read that abraham , isaac , iacob , paul , and other holy men did sweare , yea christ himselfe sweares , and so doth god sweare by himselfe ; and he commands us to sweare , deut. 6. and 10. ierem. 4. the apostle shewes how needfull an oath is for the ending of any controversies ▪ heb. 6. swearing is a part of divine worship , thou shalt feare the lord thy god &c. and sweare by his name . deut. 6. which the gntiles knew , who in swearing layd their hands upon the altar ; but we must take heed that we sweare not rashly , for that is to take gods name in vaine ; nor falsly , for that is to adde a lye to an oath ; nor to the prejudice of our neighbour , whither in his goods , name , body or soule , for this is to breake both the tables at one time ; by dishonoring god in sweareing falsly , we breake the first table ; by wronging our neighbour , we breake the second table . 19 we are bound in conscience to keepe the oath which we have taken , though it be to our prejudice . psal. 15. we have in this the example of that brave roman attilius regulus , who will rather suffer death and torture by the carthaginians , then falsifie the oath he made to them ▪ god is a speciall revenger of perjurie , as we read in the story of zedichias who falsified his oath to the king of babel : and in the story of iohannes huniades , of the great overthrow the christians had for breaking the oath they made with the turke ; therefore how greivously doth the pope offend , in taking upon him to break the oath of allegiance , which people owe to their princes ; but we must take heed we sweare not things impossible , or unlawfull ; for the one cannot , the other must not be kept . 20 we are bound to keepe the oath which wee have made , if the things which we sweare be lawfull ; though we have sworn by the creatures , or by false gods ; for he that sweares by false gods thinkes them to bee true gods ; and the creature is instead of god to him that sweares by it ; therfore laban that swore by his false god , was as much bound to keepe his oath , as iacob was who swore by the true god . 21. the magistrate cannot with a safe conscience exact an oath of a profane , man who makes no conscience of an oath ; for so hee gives an occasion of perjury ; neither is hee to impose oathes about frivolous things , for that is to take gods name in vaine , neither must hee cause any man sweare by angels or the saints ; for this is to sweare by those that are not gods ; this is to deïfie the creature , and to give it the knowledge of our secret thoughts and to give it that justice and power in punishing perjury , which belongs only to god . 22. we are bound in conscience to breake an unlawfull oath ; for keeping such an oath is dishonourable to god , and hurtfull to our owne soules , and against the nature of an oath , which was not ordained to bee the band of iniquity ; such was the oath of iepthe , of herod , of monkes . iepthe had better broake his oath , then kill his daughter : so had herod , then murther the baptist ; so had the monkes ; they were better violate the oath of coelebate , then commit fornication . 23. we are bound in conscience to breake the oath which is made to the prejudice of our neighbour ; such is the oath of monkes , prejudicial to parents and kindred ; such is the oath when we sweare never to lend money ; for this is flat against charitie , such was davids oath , 1 sa. 25. which he broke , knowing it was better to violate a rash oath , then by keeping of it to murther the innocent . 24. they are not bound in conscience to keepe the oath which they tooke , when they were not in their own power , but under the jurisdiction of an other ; such is the oath children take either of marriage , or of monasticall life , being as yet under the tuition and power of their parents : such oathes or vowes , are to be broken , we may see in 5. 30. of numbers ; neither doth an oath of impossibilities tye any man to performance . 25 we are bound in conscience when we sweare to speake simply , plainly , and sincerely , without equivocation , mentall or verball ; otherwayes by swearing equivocally , we cannot end controversies , nor confirme and beare witnesse to the truth ; but we maintaine a lye , and by deceiving others we make them assent to a falshoode ; and so we abuse gods name , in making it a witnesse to our lye ; besides that by this meanes any kind of lye may be maintained . 26 if an oath be drawne from us by force or fear , we are bound to keepe it , if it be lawfull and in our power , though it be wrongfully extorted from us ; as when we sweare to a theife , to pay him the summe he demands , that we may escape with life and liberty , because by taking god as a witnesse to our oath , we have bound our selves to him , which band we must not forfeit , without wrong done to god . 27 we are bound to keepe the oath we make , though we were deceived in the circumstance ; so ioshua kept the oath he made with the gibeonites , though he was deceived by them , thinking they had dwelt farther off ; many are deceived in their marriages , thinking they marry rich woemen , who prove but poore , but the marriage is good still ; for this is only a circumstantiall error ; but iacob was not bound to performe the oath of marriage with leah , which was put to him instead of rachel ; for this was a substantiall error . 28 we should wrong our conscience , if we should urge a man to sweare that which he thinks is true , though we know it to be false ; for though he sins not that sweares , yet we sin that urge him to it , because we wrong him in making him sweare , to that which is false , and we wrong god in makeing him witnesse to a falshood . 29 if we take a second oath contrary to the former , which was a lawfull oath , we are bound to stand to the former : for the second oath is not only in it selfe unlawfull , but also is made unlawfull by the former promise . 30 we are bound to keepe our oath , so long as the essentiall forme thereof remaines ; but when that failes , we are free ; thus we are bound to the oath we made to our master , so long as hee remaines our master , but when that relation is broken off , we are no more bound to him by our oath . 31 the iudge cannot with a safe conscience take an oath of any man to accuse himselfe , of any hid crime ; which is called the oath ( ex officio ) because no man is bound to accuse himselfe , and such an oath will minister occasion of much perjurie ; besids god only is the judge of secret sins 32 i am bound in conscience to reveale a theife , though i am tyed by oath out of feare to the contrary ; for the concealeing of him is wrong to justice , and prejudiciall to the state , and an occasion that others may lose their lives or goods ; besides in concealing him , i am made partaker of his sinne : [ qui non vetat peccare cum possit , jubet . ] 33 we are bound to make vowes only to god , and having made them , to performe them ; for this is a part of gods worship ; he only knowes the heart and purpose of him that vowes , and can punish the violation therof ; the iewes were bound to vow many ceremoniall duties , from which we are exempted ; but we are tyed to the vow of moral obedience which we tooke in baptisme , and which we renew as often as we repent ; as for the vowes of such bodyly exercise which may help devotion , wee are bound to make them , if we see that our devotion will be helped and increased by such vowes , otherwayes we are left to our christian liberty . 34 we are not bound to vow or to keep the vow ( if we have made it ) of voluntary poverty for so we make our selves unable to do good ; nor of monasticall obedience for so we infringe our christian liberty , and become the servants of men , in submitting and binding our consciences to the ordinances of man ; nor of perpetuall chastity , which is not in our power , and by which wee wrong our own nature , by hindering the continuation of the species , which is effected by propagation . 35 as we are bound to rest upon the sabbath or lords day from our bodyly labour ; so we are also bound to do the works of piety , of mercy or charitie , and of necessity upon that day ; yea the works of liberty too , as to dresse meat , to make beds , &c. if so be they are not scandalous , nor offensive , nor hindrances to gods worship ; for the sabbath was made for man , not man for the sabbath ; i say such workes may be done with a safe conscience . 36 we are bound in conscience to hasten our conversion to god , with what speede we can , because god requires it , and delayes are dangerous ; procrastiation argues unwillingnesse , and the custome of sin takes away the sense of sinning ▪ so the longer we put off our repentance ; the more obdurate wee grow in sin , and the greater wrong we offer to god and to our own soules , in delaying to cast out sin , which is his and our enemy , and the more difficult we make our conversion , by increasing the number and guilt of our sins ; thereby incensing gods anger the more against us , which fire we ought to quench without delay , least it suddenly consume us ; our life is uncertaine , and we are not sure to live till we be old : or if we live , we are not sure then of that grace of repentance , which now we reject ; the times and seasons are not in our power ; late repentance is seldome true ; let us then strike the iron while it is hot , and enter into this poole of bethesda , whilst the waters are stirring . 37 we are bound in conscience to meditate seriously in the law of god , that there as in a glasse we may see our own filthynesse , and inabilitie to goodnesse , and so we may in all humilitie fly from our selves , and from all other creatures in which there is no helpe , and with true sorrow and feare , may lay hold on the promises of the gospell , and hunger earnestly after the righteousnesse of christ , by true faith . 38 we are bound to make our election and calling sure , by cleansing our consciences from evill workes , by setling our affections upon god , by hearkning to his word , by obeying his voice by delighting in the company of the saints , by slighting the honors , riches , and pleasures of this world , accounting them but dung in respect of christ , and by cherishing the holy spirit , by whom we are sealed unto the day of redemption . 39 we are bound seriously to repent our wicked lives , by considering the majesty of god whom we have offended , the greatnesse of his goodnesse towards us ; the fiercenesse of his anger against sinne , the great happynesse we have lost , and the multitude of miseries befallen to us by reason of sinne ; by considering also what christ hath suffered for us ; how impenitency is the greatest of all sins ; and how without repentance wee cannot attaine true happynesse ; now this repentance consisteth in sorrow for sinne , in a constant , fervent , implacable hatred against every sinne ; and in a serious and assiduous purpose to avoyd all sinne , to walke in all righteousnesse , and to use all the meanes whereby wee may attaine the same . 40. vvee are bound to cherish the good motions of gods spirit in us , and not by our wicked lives to quench or grieve the spirit ; now the meanes to cherish the spirit , are prayer , meditation , obedience , faith , hope , and love . 41. vve are bound to be holy , because wee are commanded , because god is holy , because without holinesse no man shall see the lord ; neither can there be true faith nor justification without it ; holinesse was a part of gods image , which we lost ; it is also the end of our election , and calling ; and 't is a part of our future happinesse , now this holinesse consisteth in our walking with god , in our wrestling against the flesh , in running the wayes of gods commandements ; in avoyding sin and the occasions of sinne , and in a perfect reformation of all our powers and faculties of our soule . 42. vvee are bound to trust and rely on gods promises ; for hope is our anchor ; it is hope that supports us in all our actions and sufferings , and makes us goe on with courage , and constancy ; it is the end of our calling ; it is hope that saves us , and it will not make us ashamed , because it cannot bee frustrated ; it bringeth also patience , and true spirituall joy . 43. wee are bound in all afflictions , to comfort our selves and to be cheerefull ; because we have god who afflicts us , for our father , christ for our advocate and redeemer , the holy ghost for our guide and comforter , the scriptures for our instructers ; besides , gods love towards us , and his decrees are unchangable ; our afflictions are short , our reward is eternall ; no thing befals us without gods providence ; god will give us strength with the temptation : christ hath suffered and overcome all for us ; nothing doth befall us , but what hath befallen others ; and let us consider the fruit or end of affliction which is sweet and comfortable . 44. vvhen wee are tempted to evill , we are bound to avoyd all occasions of entertaining such a temptation , to resist it as an enemy , to extinguish the first sparkles of this fire ; to betake our selves to prayer and meditation , and to kill this cockatrice in the egge ; and to put on the whole armour of god against it , and not to give way to this enemy ; for it is the chiefe part of our spirituall warfare , to fight against temptations . 45. in our spirituall desertions , wee are bound to comfort our selves with the remembrance of gods love and promises , who will never utterly forsake us , but onely for a time , even for a moment will hide his face from us , because wee have angered him ; and this is for our good , that wee may the more earnestly seeke him , that our faith , patience , constancy , and other vertues may be the more exercised , and that wee may the more abhorre our sins : and withall wee should call to mind , how that the best of gods saints , even christ himselfe , have for a time beene deserted . 46. against the feare of death wee are bound to comfort our selves , that christ hath taken away the sting of death , that neither death nor life can seperate us from the love of god in christ ; that death is a gate to future happines , that the death of the saints is precious in the sight of the lord , that death frees us from sinne , from temptations , from the inticements of the flesh and of the world , from all the miseries of this life , and the vanities of the world , that christ will raise us againe in the last day , by the vertue of his resurrection ; let us therefore in consideration of this , keepe a good conscience , waite with patience our appointed time till our change come ; let us therfore strive to the newnesse of life , and to the contempt of the world . 47 we are bound to comfort our selves in our infirmities , in that we have a high priest who is sensible of our infirmities ; in that we have a father , who will take pittie of our infirmities ; in that wee have the holy spirit who helpeth our infirmities ; in that the best of gods servants have been subject to diverse infirmities . 48. vvee are bound to obey gods commands , because wee are tied to him in many obligations , he is our father , our lord , redeemer , and preserver ; because of his supreame authority , and absolute power hee hath to punish the disobedient ; because hee promiseth many blessings to those who obey his will ; because god reapes no benefit by our obedience , but we our selves ; because wee have the example of christ himselfe , who was in all things obedient to his father , even to the death of the crosse . 49. vvee are bound to carry our selves humbly and lowly , considering the vilenesse of our nature , the greatnesse and majestie of god , the benefits which we receive by humility ; for it is the way to glory , it makes us capable of grace , of vvisdome , and other vertues ; by it wee are fitted as houses for god to dwell in , for god to looke upon , for god to exalt out of the mire , and to set us with princes ; and it is a powerfull meanes to avert his anger and judgments . 50. we are bound to labour for the true knowledge of god in christ , without which wee cannot have life eternall , without which the people perish , without which all our knowledge is but ignorance , our wisdome but foolishnesse , and our light but darknesse ; this key of knowledge will open heaven gates to us ; this is that knowledge which will truely open our eyes , that we may see , and be like unto god ; it is the true foode of the soule , without which wee shall never grow fat and well likeing in heavenly things . 51 we must conscionably labour for sinceritie in all our actions , because god hateth hypocrisie , and delighteth in sincerity and in the inward man ; for he knoweth the heart , and searcheth the reines ; because there can be no peace and security , but in sincerity , wch consisteth not so much in outward ceremony , as in inward truth and integrity , not so much in service of the eye , as of the heart ; looking rather to gods approbation then mans ; performing not only the greatest but the the least duties , looking not for reward from men , but from god , serving him as well in private as in publique , as well in adversitie as in prospiritie , as well when he punisheth as when he rewardeth ; abstaining not only from evill , but from all appearance of evill ; and that not only in the light , but in the darknesse also . 52 we are bound in conscience to speake the truth every man to his neighbour ; for god is truth it selfe ; and the devill is the father of lyes ; which are an abomination to god ; a lye is a part of the old man , which we should put off , and mortifie ; a lye is so hatefull to man that stands upon poynt of honor , that it cannot be expiated without a stab ; lying takes all credit away from the lyar , that he is not beleeved when he speakes truth ; it breakes off all societe , and communion betweene man and man , which is grounded on truth ; a lyar is injurious to god the author of truth ; to his neighbour to whom he ought to speake truth ; and to his speech which ought to be consonant to his mind . 53 we are not bound at all times to speake all the truth , or any part thereof , when neither justice , charity , nor piety , do require it ; yet we must beware of iesuiticall equivocation , or mentall reservation , which is indeed plaine lying ; they utter that which is false , and this is a materiall lye ; and that which they knew to be false , and this is a formall lye . 54 when we are commanded by our superior or iudge to confesse the truth ; we are bound in conscience to do it ; for otherwayes we fall into the sin of disobedience ; and by our silence , we wrong both god , the iudge , our selves , and our neighbour , and the state wherein we live ; for god is honored by our confession , and dishonored by our silence ; by our confession , also sinne shall be restrained , justice advanced , and the delinquent either totally cut off , or amended . 55 the iudge is bound in conscience to make diligent inquiry before he pronounce the sentence , to judge righteously , to bewarre of partialitie , and acception of persons , to beware of delayes , and demurrs , by which justice may be put off , and to beware of corruption and bribery , whereby justice is perverted ; to informe the witnesses of their duty , that they must bewarre of lying , malice , calumnie , that they must discharge their conscience by speaking the truth , that so god may be honored , the party accused may be either cleare or condemned , the law executed , & so justice and peace maintained ; which cannot be better performed , then by punishing him who out of purpose and malice beares false witnesse , according to the law of retaliation . 56 we are all bound to be zealous of gods glory , and of good works ; for without true zeale god cannot be honored , nor sinne suppressed , nor gods judgements averted , nor our true love to god witnessed ; nor true comfort of conscience , or life eternall obtained ; but let our zeale be according to knowledge out of true indignation against sinne , and true love to gods glory , with true sorrow for dishonoring god ; let it also be joyned with constancy , fervency in gods cause , and mildnesse in our own , as we see in moses and christ . 57 in what condition soever we are , we ought to be content ; if we consider gods providence , in ordering all things according to his pleasure ; if the shortnesse of this life , if the estate of the richest and greatest men , how little satisfaction or comfort they reape even out of their greatest plenty ; if the fullnesse of content and happynesse reserved for us in heaven ; if the true tranquillitie of mind which we receive by our contentation , and lastly if we consider the miserable condition , tentations , unquietnesse , and anxieties , of those that want this gift of contentation . 58 we are bound to exercise our selves in doing good , because we are commanded , because good works are the way to heaven , in which we must walk ; they are testimonies of our faith and profession ; the fruits of every good tree ; the meanes whereby our heavenly father is glorified ; by them we are made conformable to christ our head , who went about doing good ; they are the end of our election and calling ; and this exercise must be constant , fervent , sincere , and with delight and readinesse , with a true hatred of sinne , with prayer and meditation ; yet we must not confide in our workes , but lay hold on christs merits by faith , acknowledging our own imperfection and inabilitie . 59 we are bound to search for that true wisdome , which consisteth in seeking out and useing the meanes , of advanceing gods glory and our own salvation , and in avoyding all hindrances thereof ; especially the wisdome of this world which is an enemy to god , and by him accounted foolishnesse ; because it will not be subject to the wisdome of god , nor doth it comprehend the things of gods spirit . 60 we are bound to be vigillant over our selves ; for we have watchfull enemies , and we are in danger every howre to be devoured by them ; the time , place , and manner of our death is uncertaine ; we know not at what howre our master will returne , or our bridegroome will come , the eye of the almighty which runs through all the world , and is still observing all our actions , neither slumbers nor sleepes ; and that we may be the more watchfull , let us take heed least at any time we be overcome with surfeiting and drunknesse , let us be sober and watch unto prayer . 61 we may with a safe conscience make use of worldly policy , as joshua , gideon , david , paul , and other holy men have done ; if so be that this policiy is not beyond or against our private calling ; nor repugnant to justice , nor injurious to religion , nor opposite to gods glory . 62 we are bound to forgive the wrongs done unto us , for so christ hath taught us , both by his example and precept ; the lords prayer teacheth the same god is ready at all times to forgive us ; it is the glory of a man to passe by an injurie ; revenge belongs to god , and he will repay ; therefore we must remit both the revenge and the punishment ; yet we may take notice of the wrong and require satisfaction , without the breach of christian clemency . 63 we may with a safe conscience right our selves by law when we are wronged , as paul when he appealed to caesars tribunall ; for the law is gods ordinance , and iudges are his ministers to end controversies ; but we must take heede of anger and malice in our law suits , and that we goe not to law upon every light occasion , or for every trifle rashly ; but to use all meanes of reconciliation rather then law , and to beare as much as we can with patience , shewing our christian moderation , and acknowledging gods providence in this our tr●all , and with all our love to our adversaries . 64 we may with a safe conscience kill another to save our selves , if so be we are injuriously and suddenly set upon , and have no other meanes of escape ; nor any intent of revenge ; for to defend our selves , and to preserve our lives , though by the death of another , we may by the law of nature , [ vim vi repellere licet ] and likewayes by the law of god exod. 22. 2. so we may defend our innocent brother , by killing the theife that invades him ; for we must love our neighbour as our selfe ; and a woman may thus defend her chastity , by killing him that would ravish her ; for chastity is no lesse precious then life it selfe ; abraham sinned not when he rescued his kinsman lot , with the slaughter of many men ; nor had lucretia sinned , had she killed tarquinius . 65 though we must not upon any pretence kill our selves , because such a murther is contrary to gods law , the law of nature , iustice , and charitie ; yet we may with a safe conscience suffer our selves to be killed , for a publique good , for the maintainance of innocency , justice , and religion , for the advanceing of gods glory . 66 one nation may lawfully make war against another , because they may lawfully repell force , by force , because god commanded it ; neither the baptist , nor christ do absolutely forbid it ; the magistrate beareth not the sword in vaine ; and nationall injuries can not be otherwayes many times repelled , or vindicated , but by wars ; but care must be had , that all meanes be first used , befo●● war be undertaken , that the authority of the undertakers be lawfull , that the cause be just , the meanes , and wayes be honest , or honorable , and that the end be good , to wit gods glory , and future tranquillity , and that the innocent be not oppressed with the guilty ; as it is in storming and direption of townes , castles , and shipps ; except it be upon unavoydable necessity . 67 inferior souldiers whither they be subjects of , or strangers to the prince that imploys them , ought to be sure of the justice of the cause , before they fight ; otherwayes they fight against their conscience if they know the cause to be evill ; and if they doubt , they ●●●ht without faith , which is sin ; for though they are bound to obey , yet they are not bound to a blind , or to an unconscionable obedience . 68 we are bound with a christian courage and fortitude , to undergoe all hazards and difficulties for christ , because he hath suffered somuch for us , and hath redeemed us , because this is the end of our election and calling , because god hath promised to be with us in all our extremities , because we shall be more then conquerers , through him that loved us ; and we know that all things shall worke together for the good of them that love god , and that great is our reward in heaven , even the crown of righteousnesse which is layd up for us : this courage will not faile us , if we call upon god , if we love him , and if we put our trust in him . 69 we are bound to labour for patience , in beareing of crosses , and in waiting for releife ; fot without patience , we cannot possesse our soules , nor without patience can we run the race set before us ; therefore we have great need of patience , that after we have done the good will of god , we may receive the promise ; thus the apostle laboured to approve himselfe in much patience , in afflictions &c. 70 we are bound to be sober and temperate , moderating our affections concerning profit and delight , by making a covenant with our eyes , eares , and mouth , by considering the vanities , and instabilitie of sublunary things , and the latter end of unlawfull pleasures , and how all wise and good men have despised them ; and that there is only content , satisfaction , and delight in heavenly things . 71 we are bound to avoyd intoxicating our selves , or others with strong or excessive drinking , and likewise the company of drunkards , and the occasions of drinking , by which our reason , judgement , and memory are either weakned , or overthrown , our health and wealth impared , our time mispent , our fame and good name wounded , good men greived , god himselfe angred , the practice of holy duties hindred , and our hearts in this finne harnded ; besides drunknesse is the occasion that many other sinnes are committed . 72 the civill magistrate is bound to punish hereticks , not as they differ in opinion from the church , but as they are peevishly obstinate , and disturbers of the publique peace ; and if their heretical opinions be blasphemous , he should put them to death , if they obstinately persist in their blasphemy ; for the magistrate beareth not the sword in vaine ; yet he must not use violence or force to compell men to imbrace the truth ; for compelled faith will never prove sincere , but hypocriticall ; and the act of faith is voluntarie , and therefore free . 73 we are bound with all humilitie to submit our selves to gods correcting hand , without grudging or murmuring ; or shrinking from our duty and obedience , or flying to unlawfull meanes of ease , or dispairing ; because god who corrects is our father , who will lay no more on us then we can beare , who wil not forsakeus in our extremities , but will go with us through fire and water ; because the time of our afflictions is short , and they not worthy of the glory to be revealed , because our sinnes have deserved more greivous punishments then we can suffer here ; and because christ our head indured the crosse , despised the shame , and by patient suffering of afflictions hath entred into his glory . 74 we are bound to love god , not somuch for his bounty towards us , as for his own goodnes and transcendent perfection ; for to love god because of his bounty to us , is to love our selves before him , whereas our love to him , should be like his love to us ; his own goodnesse induced him to love us , in whom he found no goodnesse at all ; so that same divine goodnesse should induce us , to love him , who is goodnesse it selfe ; besides , the love of freindship is more perfect then the love of benevolence ; for the love of true freindship is grounded upon vertue and goodnesse , whereas the love of benevolence , is grounded on bounty or beneficence . 75 we are bound to love god above all things ; that is , we must be willing to forsake the things we affect most , that we may injoye him , we must shun all such meanes as may induce us to anger him ; nothing must greive us so much as when we offend him ; nothing , neither prosperity nor adversity , must separate us from him ; no company must somuch please us , as the society of them that belong to him ; nothing must content us untill we be fully united to him . 76 we are bound to subdue and keepe under our proud affections , to which naturally we are all prone ; by considering the greatnesse of god , the vilenesse of our own nature , the wrath of god against pride , both in the angels and in men , and the many obligations in which we are bound to subject our selves to god , who hath made and redeemed us , and doth still sustaine and protect us , and at last will crowne and reward us . 77 we are bound to pray at all times in respect of preparation , and disposition to prayer ; so we are bound to pray actually upon all occasions , because satan upon all occasions is ready to tempt us ; our dangers are many , our wants are great ; prayer is a part of that service we must performe to god , it is the meanes by which we converse and conferre with god ; therfore we ought to take all opportunities of prayer , as christ and all holy men were wont to do ; and withall we are bound to pray fervently , having our minds bent on god , to whom we pray ; on the matter for which we pray ; and on our own hearts , that we may know with what disposition and affection we pray . 78 we are bound to avoid all conversation with evill spirits , or such as commerce with them , as also to reject all such meanes as they worke by , which meanes have no power or efficacie at all , either from god or nature , men or angels , to produce the effects they seeme to produce ; but are the tricks of satan , to delude and seduce men ; therefore witches , inchanters , southsayers , and such as consult with them , and use their help , do plainly forsake god , and mancipat themselves to satan , gods enemy , by which they shew that they have renounced the faith , and mistrust the power , goodnesse , and justice of god ; therefore judiciall astrologers , fortune-tellers , necromancers , and such as trust to physiagnomie , palmestry , dreames , and superstitiously are perplexed with the crossing of a heart , the falling of salt , with such as they cal unluckie dayes , with characters and charmes , and such like , are not to be suffered among christians ▪ 79 we are bound to confesse our sins to god in prayer , either explicitly , or implicitly , because in prayer we must acknowledge our own unworthynesse , in all submission and humility , without which we cannot obtaine any blessing from god , nor can our consciences be eased ; nor god glorified , nor satan confounded ; for if we accuse not our selves , he will accuse us ; let us then prevent him , by a detestation of our sinnes ; but we are not bound to confesse every particular sinne to the priest . 80 we may safely use divisory lotteries , for deciding and determining of some things , if so be we are necessitated , and have no other meanes , to determine a doubtfull thing , if we dishonor not gods providence , by ascribing any thing to fortune , if we use no deceit or fraud , nor have any bad or sinistrous intentions ; but these lotteries , which they call divinatory , and consultory , are not lawfull , for we have no warrant for such , and they are a tempting of god , and little better are the gameing lotteries with cards and dice , by which gods providence is dishonored , time lost , quarrels are raised , and often times swearings and blasphemies uttered , besides cheating is countenanced , and many mens estates wronged . 81 if we have not the gift of continency , we are bound to marry ; for its better to marry then to burne ; by this meanes we avoyd fornication , we live more comfortably together then alone , our family is propagated , the state is strengthned , and the church inlarged ; therefore marriage hath been still honorable among all nations ; god ordained it in paradise , christ honored it with his own presence , and first miracle , in cana ; but we must not marry within the prohibited degrees of consanguinitie , or affinitie , because it is against modesty , against the inlarging of freindship , and the end of matrimony , which is , to make two one flesh , which is already effected in consanguinitie . 82 we cannot with a safe conscience marry a woman without her own consent and the consent of her parents ; for this is a duty that children owe to their parents ; and hath been the practise of holy men ; and this consent must be free and voluntary , not forced ; and the parties consenting must be of age , and such as are guided by reason , and have power to dispose of themselves . 83 wee cannot with a safe conscience have above one wife at once ; for god gave a dam but one evah ; the husband will love one wife better then two ; for love divided is weaker , then united ; the children will be more carefully educated ; we read of two , that by marriage are made one flesh , not of three ; we see divers creatures are by nature taught to content themselves with single mates ; polygamie is often times the cause of jarres in families , and therefore cannot be lawfull , but where there is an immediate dispensation from god , as is supposed was among the patriarchs , before the flood , and sometime after . 84 the husband and wife are bound to love and respect each other , and to dwell together , to have all things in common ; to professe the same truth , and to communicate to each other the use of their bodies , according to the law of marriage ; the man is to cherish and maintaine , to instruct and guide his wife ; and she is to honor , feare , and obey her husband ; she must temper her tounge , and he must keepe in his hands ; he may reprove , admonish and instruct , but not strike , which causeth hatred and strife , and shewes want of true love ; she may not give away his goods , without his consent , neither must they live apart except upon urgent occasions . 85 a man cannot with a safe conscience put away his wife , except it be for adultery , for that unties the band of matrimony ; yet this band may be tied againe , upon the desire and consent of the innocent party , in whose favour the divorce was made . 86 we are bound to abstaine from fleshly lusts , which fight against the soule ; which destroy the body , which dishonor god , which wrong man-kind , and are the causes of many other sins ; therefore we must make a covenant with our eyes , not to looke upon wanton or immodest objects whither in apparell , pictures , bookes , or lascivious gestures , wee must make a covenant with our eares , not to heare , immodest words or songs , wee must covenant with our tongues , to speake only such words as edifie , and not by them utter what is not lawfull to bee done ; for immodest actions are concealed , so should immodest speeches bee , by which god is dishonoured , the soule of the speaker and so likewise of the hearer is indangered , and good men are grieved , and we should make a covenant with our hearts not to entertaine lascivious thoughts with delight , but to reject them with detestation ; otherwise cogitation wil breed delight , delight consent , consent action , and actions a habit . lastly , wee must take heed of lascivious kissing , embracing , touching of women , and immodest dances ; and of luxurious and unchast speeches , gestures , or any other such like expressions in stage-playes , which have made both the actors , and the sports , & the recreation it self hatefull , tho otherwise tolerable . 87. vvee are bound in conscience to separate our selves from that church where gods name is dishonoured , idolatry practised , and wickednesse countenanced , least wee pertake of her sinnes , and so of her punishment ; but wee are not therefore bound to separate our selves from all congregations , where some bad men are suffered ; for in this life is no perfection , and the sheepe here are mingled with goates ; in the same net are good and bad fishes ; in the same field corne and tares , which must not be suddenly pluckt up ; we must exercise our patience in induring such churches infimities and indevour to amend them , & not by our departure increase them , or exasperate our weake brethren and give occasion of schisme . 88. ministers are bound to preach and catechise their flocks , sincerely , purely , constantly , boldly , powerfully ; to administer the sacraments without superstition ; to resist schisme and heresie , beate downe sinne and iniquity ; to suspend from the sacrament , and to excommunicate in cases of extremity , which censure is indeed the act of the whole church , whereof the minister is the mouth ; but one church is not to excommunicate an other , not being subordinate , although upon just cause there may bee separation or desertion ; but although the church may refuse to cast pearls before swine , or give that which is holy to dogges , and is bound to purge out the old leaven ; yet she cannot debarre men from hearing the word , unlesse they bee obstinate dispisers and scoffers of it , nor can shee keepe them out of heaven , except they bee impenitent ; nor can shee breake off the oeconomicall communion that is betweene husband and wives , parents and children , masters and servants , nor yet the politicall society , that is betweene magistrates and subjects . 89. every minister is bound to have learning , integrity of life , dexterity of preaching , and a will bent to doe god service , and to edifie the church , and not to respect his owne honour , wealth or profit , or to intrude himselfe into that sacred function , without both inward and outward calling , as many doe , who by friends , simonie , or any other sinistrous way creepe in at the window , but enter not in at the dore ; neither must they forsake the charge once undertaken , except they be forced or necessitated . 90 we are bound to make restitution of our neighbours goods whither we detaine them by loane , fraud , or theft ; for it is a theft to detain the owners goods to which we have no interest , against his will ; and it is both a violation of justice , and also of that love we owe to our neighbour ; which restitution must be made , either really ( if we are able ) or else mentally , and in our resolution , if we cannot ; wee must also restore to the right owner if he can be found , or else to him that is next a kin ; if there be none , then dedicate it to god , in some pious or charitable use ; and we must restore the very thing it selfe if we can , or else the full value of it ; so we are bound to restore his good name , which we have hurt , either by recantation , or accusation of our selves , or compensation for the wrong he hath sustained ; or if we have hurt him in his body , we are to make such satisfaction as the law requires ; or if we have hurt a woman , in the losse of her chastity , we must make restitution by marriage , or by paying her portion . 91 we are bound in conscience to reprove sinne in whom soever we find it , for it is an argument of love , and no lesse needfull then almes to him that is in want ; if it be mercy to pull our neighbours beast out of the mire , much more to pull himselfe out of the pit of sinne , where his soul will perish ; but our reproofe must be grounded on gods word , must be sweetned with mildnesse and discretion , and uttered in love , opportunity of time , place , and other circumstances must be observed ; our superiors must be reproved with reverence , our equals and inferiors with love , and benevolence ; and because charity begins at home , we ought first to reprove our selves for that sinne , which we reprove in others , and not to take more notice of our neighbours moates , then of our own beames . 92 we are bound to hearken to reproofe , accounting the wounds of a freind , better then the kisses of an enemy ; and to receive reproofes with all humility , love and patience ; and to resolve to make use of such physick , though unpleasant ; for it is no lesse wholsome for the soul , both to cure , and prevent spirituall diseases , then aloes , though bitter , yet fit to purge us of our bodily humors . 93 we are bound to love our neighbour as our selves , by wishing , and doing the same good for him that we wish and do for our selves , and with the same mind and sincerity , not wishing him any hurt , except it be for his further good , and for gods glory ; so we may wish the losse of his goods , for the gaine of his soul ; and the death of a tyrant for the safety of the state , nay we may safely venture the losse of our own bodies , for the saving of our neighbours soules ; and we are to pray for him , as for ourselves ; even for our enemies , by this , sheweing we have committed our cause to god , and that we desire not revenge , and in this we immitate our heavenly father , who causeth his sunne to shine upon the good and bad ; and his raine to fall upon the just and unjust ; and who hath been pleased to reconcile himselfe to us his enemies . 94 wee are bound by a holy life to shew good example to others ; for the imployment of our talent is required ; god by this is gloryfied , others by our example in goodnesse incouraged ; otherwayes good men by us will be offended , and by our scandalous life the gospell will be hindred , and the church of god reproached , and profane men in their wicked waies animated and hardned . 95 we are bound to avoyd and prevent rents or schismes in the church ; for they often times make way for heresies , they overthrow the life of the church which consists in unity , they hinder the edification of the church and the growth of christianity , they also destroy love and charity ; and as we are bound to avoyd schisme , so must we shun the company of schismaticks , least we seeme to countenance their schisme , and that we may not be infected therewith , or give occasion to others to follow our example ; yet he is no schismatick , that separates himselfe from that church which persecutes him for the truth ; or with which he can hold no communion without manifest danger of sinne and seduction . 96 we are all bound to be tender of our fame and good name , cheifly magistrates and ministers ; otherwayes god will be dishonored , the church hindred , the gospell and justice scandaled ; but if our fame be without cause wounded , we must with patience beare it , being a part of our crosse , which christ and his best servants have with patience endured . 97 wee are bound to speake and thinke well of all men , whilst we have no reason to the contrary , and not to judge , censure , or condemne any man rashly , which argues in us , either inadvertency , to timerite , levitie , or malice ; it is a sinne repugnant both to charitie and justice ; for every man hath as great right to his good name , as to his goods ; we wrong a man more by taking his good name away , then by stealing his goods ; for in this we make him to be pittied , but in the other to be dispised and hated ; we also wrong god by usurping his office , for he is the only iudge of secreets . 98 we are bound to conceale the secret infirmities of our neighbour , least by divulging them we wrong his reputation ; except it be when we have no other way to reclaime him ; or when we see that the concealing of his sinne , may prove dangerous to others ; then a publike good is to bee preferred to a private . 99 wee are bound to imploy the talent which our lord hath given us , and not to hide it in a napkin ; wee must impart our gifts of knowledge , wisedome , wealth and such , like unto others ; for wee are not lords , but stewards of them ; and the more eminent wee are , the more careful should we be , in the cariage of our selves , least we spoyle others by our bad example . if much be given us , much will bee required of us ; and inferiour men are apt to bee drawne by the example of their superiors : whereas indeed they are bound to respect and honour them as their superiours , but not to follow them , if they bee bad christians . 100. magistrates are bound to maintaine their people in peace , to defend them from oppression , to advance religion , and learning arts and industrie ; to reward the good and punish the evill doers ; for hee is the minister of god for our weale , so the people are bound to submit themselves to their governours , to honour them , and maintaine their charge ; to bee obedient to their commands , and thankfull for the good they receive from them . 101. masters are bound to feed and cloath their servants , to pay them their wages , to use them with gentlenesse , to instruct them in the wayes of godlinesse ; to help them in their sicknesse , and to use them according to their deservings to punish them for their stubbornnesse ; so servants are bound to love , feare , and obey their masters , to bee humble and faithfull , even to untoward masters , expecting their reward from god . 102. parents are bound to love , feede , cloath , and instruct their children ; to correct them to season them with the feare of god , to provide maintenance , and fit matches for them ; so children are bound to love , feare , and honour their parents , to be subject and obedient to them , to beare with their infirmities , to cover their nakednesse , and with thankfullnesse to repay their love , charges , and tender affection over them . 103 as ministers are bound to love , teach , and to edifie by their good example the people , to watch over them , to exhort , instruct , and rebuke them , and to pray for them ; so the people are bound to love , reverence , to obey , and to maintaine their ministers , and to have them in more then abundant honor for their works sake . 104 all men that make bargaines , are bound to stand to them ; if they be not under yeares or tuition , or mad , if they be not cheated and deluded besides their meaning , and intention , if they be not forced to the bargain by feare or violence ; if the thing for which they bargaine be impossible , unusefull , or unlawfull , that is either sinfull , or sacred , ( this is called simony ) in such cases no man is bound to performe these bargaines . 105 we may with a safe conscience let out mony upon use ; seeing our mony would bring in gaine , if any otherwayes imployed ; seeing there can be no tradeing , without lending and borrowing ; seeing it was lawfull for the iewes to to take use of strangers ; christ borrowes a similitude from the vserers without reproving them , which he would not have done , had usury in it selfe been unlawfull ; neither doe the scriptures condemne any usury , but such as is against charity , and such as is exacted of the poore , and which tendeth to the detriment of the borrower , this is called biting usury in scripture . 106 every man to whom god hath given strength , and meanes , is bound to professe some calling , whereby he may honor god , benefit the common-wealth , injoye the peace of his own conscience , and provide for his family , and not to be burthensome to others , as sturdy beggers are who will not work , but by begging wrong those that are truely poore ; giving themselves to idlenesse , the mother of mischeife , and practising nothing but profanesse ; whereas the apostle will not have them to eate who will not worke , and god hath injoyned labour to man as a part of his punishment ; nay adam had not been idle in paradise . 107 rich men are bound to imploye their wealth to gods glory , to the good of the church and state , to the releife of the poore , to the help of their families , and not to waste them too lavishly , and vainly , nor to hoord them up too miserably , as many doe . 108 every man is bound according to his ability , to be bountyfull to those that are in want and misery ; for so god is gloryfied , our charity is declared toward our neighbour , and our love towards god , and so is our thankfullnesse ; for what have we which we have not received ? but we must take heed of pride , and contempt of the poore , and repining ; god loves an humble and a cheerfull giver ; humility , piety , and charity , readynesse , cheerfulnesse and prudence must accompany our bounty , which shall not go unrewarded . 109. we are bound to avoyd all coveteousnesse , whether it consists in desiring , in acquiring , or in retaining of our wealth inordinately : for this sinne is the roote of all evill , it argues mistrust of gods goodnesse and providence ; it wounds the heart with many thorny cares , and makes it commit idolatry with the world ; which sin we might easily subdue , if we would with david pray heartily against it , if we would seriously meditate upon the vanity of riches , and their uncertainty , and the shortnesse of our life , and the fatherly care or providence of god toward us , and the hidden riches of grace , and the permanent riches of glory treasured up in heaven for us ; these considerations would keep us from immoderate desire of wealth , or unlawfull wayes of attaining it , or setting our affections with ahab upon naboths vineyard ; or enslaving our selves to that which should bee our servant , or abusing our wealth to gods dishonour , our owne and our neighbours hurt . 110. wee are bound to abstaine from those meates which the magistrate forbids ; because otherwayes wee shall seeme to despise authority ; and wee shall scandall our weake brethren ; yet in case of necessity wee may eate of prohibited meates , as david did of the shew-bread ; but wee must bee carefull that what wee eate bee our owne , not stolne or got by oppression , cheating , or any other wrongfull way ; that we eate moderatly , and to gods glory , and for the satisfying of nature , and strengthening of our bodies , and at seasonable times , and to remember the poore , and to use prayer and prayses . 111. vvee may with a safe conscience weare rich apparell , if our calling and dignitie require it , and if our estates will beare it , and if the laws and customes of the place where we live will permit it ; but we must take heed of pride and vanity ; our cloathes must bee decent and comely ; in wearing of which let us be humble for adams sinne , which brought shame on him , and his posterity , which we must cover that our filthy nakednesse may not appeare , and let us be carefull to cast off the old man of ●in , and put on the lord iesus that being clothed in the rich robes of innocency , and righteousnesse of our elder brother , we may obtaine a blessing from our heavenly father . 112. vvee cannot with a safe conscience use such recreations as tend to gods dishonour , the prejudice of our neighbour , or the scandall of weake christians , and even in lawfull recreations ; we must observe time , place , and moderation , not to set our affections too much on them , nor to lose too much of our precious time which we ought to redeem ; nor to neglect our callings , nor to forget the afflictions of ioseph ; nor of the account wee must give of our talent ; nor refused to consider the work of the lord . 113 wee are bound to stop our eares against detractors or slanderers of our neighbours good name ; whither they slander him by belying him , or by aggravating his offence , or by concealing his good parts , and blasing abroad his infirmities , or by sinistrously censuring his intentions ; which sinne is repugnant to charitie & , is the daughter of envie ; if it were not for receivers , there would bee no theevs , and if it were not for hearers , there would bee no slanderers ; for as the slanderer hath the devill in his mouth , so the listner hath him in his eare . 114. we are bound to avoyd sinne , and all occasions of sinne , because sinne excludes us from the kingdome of god ; by sinne we grieve the holy ghost , by whom wee are sealed unto the day of redemption ; by sinne wee offend god , who wills not iniquity , neither shall any evill dwell with him ; by sinne the name of god is dishonoured , and evill reported amongst the gentiles ; by sinne we are made slaves to satan , and captives to his will , by sinne wee are made subject to the curse of god , & to al his plagues publick & private , temporal and eternal , corporall and spirituall : by sinne the gospell is dishonoured , our faith weakned , our conscience wronged and al goodnes in us destroyed 115. we are bound in things indifferent to keep our christian liberty , and not to make our selves the servants of men ; but let us take heed wee doe nothing doubtfully and without faith ; for though nothing in it selfe bee uncleane , yet to him that thinkes it to bee uncleane , it is uncleane ; and we must be carefull in things indifferent , not to offend our weake brethren ; for though the apostle had liberty to eate of any thing that was sold in the market , yet rather then he should offend him by his eating , for whom christ dyed , hee would not eate flesh for ever ; but withall wee are not bound to abridge our selves of our liberty , to please the obstinate ; for paul that circumcised timothy , that he might not offend the weake jewes , would not circumcise titus , to please the obstinate iews . 116 wee are bound in conscience to go on cheerefully in the service of god , and performing of our christian duty , although men should be offended , and scandalized thereby ; for this is a scandale received , not given ; and it is better to obey god then man ; christ himselfe was a scandal to the iewes , he was a stumbling stone , and the rock of offence to the house of israel ; christs sermon concerning the eating of his flesh , was an offence to the capernaits ; the iews were offended , because peter preached to the gentils ; but blessed are they sayeth christ , who are not offended in me : for god is pleased to permit such offences , because of mens blindnesse , pride , malice , and contempt of his word and ministers . 117 we are bound to receive the morall law , and to square our actions by it ; for though the just man hath no law to compell and condemne him , yet he hath a law to direct and instruct him ; therefore the law is a schoolemaster to bring us to christ ; a lanthorne to direct our feet , a looking-glasse to let us see our filthinesse , and a rule whereby we must square all our words and actions ; by the threatning of the law , out of nathans mouth , david was brought to acknowledge his sinne ; and by peters preaching of the law , the iewes were brought to compunction , and repentance ; therefore by the law cometh the knowledge of sinne ; and the law worketh wrath , and is the ministry of death ; because it lets us see our sinnes , it denounceth gods wrath against sinnes ; and it lets us know that wee deserve death for sins . 118 wee are bound through the whole course of our life to lay hold on the meanes of gods providence , and not to neglect them , relying upon his extraordinary and miraculous workes ; for he hath decreed the meanes as well as the end , meat as well as life , physicke as well as health ; he is absolute lord of his creatures ; who useth them as the meanes of his glory , and of our comfort ; wherein we may see the love and goodnesse of god towards us , making all things worke together for our weale ; therefore we are bound to acknowledge in this , his wisdome , goodnesse and power , and to put our trust in him as in our father , to feare and reverence him who can command all the creatures to be for us , or against us ; to be as constant in serving him , as he is in protecting us ; in adversity to put our trust in him , in prosperity to praise him . 119 the ministers of the gospell may with a safe conscience marry ; for we read of preists , prophets , apostls , evangelists and bishops in the primitive church were married ; a bishop must be the husband of one wife ; marriage is honorable among al men ; the levits of old were permitted to marry ; it is a note of antichrist , and the doctrine of devills to forbid marriage . god hath made ministers as fit for marriage as other men ; and it is better to marry then to burn , or to commit fornication , adultery , incest and sodomy . 120 kings and magistrates are bound to have a care of religion ; for they are keepers of both tables ; they are called nursing fathers of the church , they are the ministers and officers of god for this purpose ; they are commanded to kisse the sonne , and to serve the lord in feare : so david had care to transport the ark to ierusalem , solomon to build the temple , iosiah to overthrow the idolatrous altars , groves & high places ; ezechiah to take down the brazen serpent , to purg the temple , and to reforme the priests ; so moses was cheifly carefull in the constituting and ordaining , of priests , levits , and the tabernacle with its utensills , and in destroying of the golden calfe . 121 a christian may with a safe conscience be a magistrat , for god himselfe is the author & constitutor of magistrates ; every power is of god , the powers that be , are ordained by god ; by me saith wisdome kings raigne ; it is god saith daniell , that sets up kings , and translates kingdomes ; christ commands us to give unto caesar what is caesars ; therefore kings are called gods servants and officers ; abraham prayed for king abimilech , iacob blessed king pharoah ; ieremiah will have the iewes pray for the king of babylon , and the apostles will have us put up our prayers and supplications for kings and all that be in authority : we read of many excellent christian kings and magistrates , such as constantine , theodosius , ludovic the godly , edward the confessor , &c. 122 princes may with a safe conscience demand tribute or tole of their subjects , for the supportation of their charges and greatnesse , and for the defence of themselves and people ; for david and other kings imposed it without reproof ; christ himselfe payd it , and so did the christians in the primitive church ; but princes must be moderate in their demands ; for they are called fathers of their country ; and shepheards , whose office is to sheare their sheepe and not to flea them ; rehoboam for want of this moderation lost ten tribes . and somuch breifly of those duties which in conscience wee are bound to practice ; having then poynted at the credenda , and agenda of a christian , i will now as breifly set down the fugienda or what we are bound in conscience to avoyd and flye from , and these are of two sorts , the one is error and heresie repugnant to what we are bound to beleeve ; the other is sinne and iniquity , contrary to what we are bound to practice . concerning god we are bound in conscience , to reject and detest all idolaters , who give gods glory to idols ; epicures , who make god idle and carelesse ; atheists , who deny god ; anthropomorphits , who make a corporall god ; blasphemers , who speake against god ; idle sweares who take gods name in vaine manichees with their two gods , and such like wretches . 2 concerning the trinity , we are bound to reject samosatenus , arius , servetus , and iewes , who deny the divinity of the second person ; sabellius who held there was but one person of the divinity , the tritheists who make three essences , or gods ; and in a word , all antitrinitaries ; so we are bound to reject the gentiles , and other mad opinions concerning god ; homer and hesiod , who say that the gods were borne ; orpheus , who affirmed god to be begotten of the aire , the stoics who will have god to be a corporeall substance , which was also tertullians error , orpheus homer , hesiod , chrysippus , the stoics , and others who brought in multitudes of gods , which also was the heresie of simon magus , cerinthius , menander , basilides , valentinus and diverse others . 3. concerning gods omnipotency we are bound to reject euripides , simon magus , plinie , valentinus , and diverse others who affirme god to bee omnipotent in some things ; as the israelites of old who thought god could not prepare a table for them in the wildernesse . 4. concerning the creation , wee are bound to reject aristotles opinion who held the world eternall , plinie who held this world to bee an eternall deïtie , democritus who held infinite worlds , and he with leucippus and epicurus affirmed that the world was made of atomes , meeting by haphazard into one body ; anaxagoras and the stoics , who thought there was before the world an eternall chaos . 5. concerning christ we are bound to reject the ebionits , arians , cerinthus , carpocrates , the helchsaites , acacians , marcellus , photinus , arius , eunomius , mahumetans , and all others who have denyed the divinity of christ ; as also carporates who held that christ was begot as others are , to wit by the help of man . manes who held the sonne of god to bee a part of his fathers substance . bonosius who affirmed that christ was only gods adopted sonne ; the priscillianists who subjected christ to the fates and starres , affirming that he did al his works by fatall necessities . 6. concerning christs nativitie wee are bound to reject saturnius , basilides , marcion , cerdon , and others who have denyed the humanity of christ , affirming that he only appeared in the shape of man . valentinus who sayd that christ brought his flesh downe from heaven , and passed through mary as water through a channell . apelles who affirmed that christ made to himselfe a body of aire , which vanished into the elements at his ascension . apollinaris who thought that christ tooke our flesh , but without the soule ; the armenians and others who denyed that the substance of christs body was al one with ours , but incorruptible , impatible , & heavenly 7. concerning christs two natures , we are bound to reject samosatenus , who said that god was no other wayes in christ then he was in other prophets . eutiches , who taught that there was in christ but one nature , which was made up of the comixture of his flesh & divinity as water mixt with wine . the monophysits , monothelits , & acephali , who affirmed there was in christ but one nature , one will , and one operation . 8. concerning maries virginitie , wee are bound to reject cerinthus , carpocrates , and others who taught that christ was conceived , and borne of ioseph and mary , and after the manner of other men . julian the apostate , iovinian , and paulitians , who said that mary lost her virginity , and had other children besids christ . the helvidians and antidicomarianits , who believed that ioseph had other children of mary after christs birth , called the brethren of our lord ; too many of these are tolerated in poland and elswhere . 9 concerning the unitie of christs person , wee are bound to reject nestorius , who would give him too personalities , because he had two natures , and therefore denyed mary to be {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} or the mother of god . 10. concerning christs death and passion , wee are bound to reject simonians , saturninians , basilidians , cerdonians , marcionites , docets , apellites , manichees , who affirme that christ suffered and dyed only in shew , not really ; so the eutychians , theopaschites , severits , armenians , who teach that the divinity suffered . the noetians , sabellians , patrispassians , who held that the father suffered : pelagians , and celestinians , who deny death to bee the wages of sinne ; pontificians , who are dayly sacrificing christ in the masse , and by their indulgences , purgatory , and merits , annihilate the death of christ . 11. concerning the indissoluble union of the two natures in christ , wee are bound to reject nestorians , cerinthians , gnostics , christolyts , who part christ into two persons , as the valentinians into three ; so the eutychians , armenians , iacobites , who teach that the humane nature was swallowed up by the divinity ; so the acephali , and severits , who though they grant that the two natures remaine yet they confound the properties , which is indeed to destroy the natures ; for [ tollens proprietates , tollit natur as . ] 12 concerning christs resurrection , we are bound to reject iewes and cerinthians , who deny the resurrection ; the manichees who teach that christ had no scarrs of the wounds after his resurrection ; the eutychians who say the humane nature was converted into the divine nature after christ rose ; the vbiquitaries , who give to christan uncircumscribed and omnipresent body , the gnostics who would perswade us that christ remained 18. months here one earth after his resurrection . 13 concerning his ascension , we are bound to reject the christolyts , who say that christs divinity ascended only ; the manichees , and seleucians , who teaeh that christs body ascended no higher then the sun , where it remaines ; the carpocratians , who affirme that only christs soule ascended ; the vbiquitaries , which make christs ascension nothing else but his invisible and gloryfied condition , after his resurrection , and heaven to bee only a spirituall place diffused every where ; lasty the apellits , who make christs ascention a dissolution into the foure elements . 14 concerning christs sitting at gods right-hand ; we are bound to reject the pontificians , who make saints and angels our patrons and mediators ; the seleucians , proclianits , and hermians , who deny that christ in the flesh sits at his fathers right-hand ; the vbiquitaries , who make the sitting of christ at gods right hand to be nothing else but the majesty and omnipresence of christs body . 15 concerning christs comeing to judge the world , we are bound to reject iudiciall astrologers , euthusiasts , and circumcellians , who take upon them to poynt out the determinat day of christs coming , the millenaries , who say that christ will raigne here on earth a 1000 yeares , the originists , who will have all both men and angels to be saved after those 1000 yeares are expired ; lastly all profane scoffers who laugh at the doctrine of the last judgement , and aske where is the promise of his coming . 16 concerning the holy ghost , we are bound to reject macedonians , servetians , arians , originists , acatians , aetians , who affirme the holy ghost to be a creature ; simonians , who say the holy ghost is only the power of god in the world ; some anabaptists who teach that the holy ghost had his beginning after christs resurrection ; the hierachits , who would have the holy ghost to be melchisedec ; manes , who called himselfe the holy ghost , so did simon magus and montanus the helcesaits , who called the holy ghost christs sister ; the sadduces , who deny the holy ghost ; theodoret , damscen , rusticus , diaconus , and the rest of the greeke church , who deny that the holy ghost proceedeth from the sonne . 18 concerning the catholick church , we are bound to reject papists , pepusians , donatists , who confine her to one place , being diffused every where ; schismaticks , hereticks , who disturbe her peace and breake her union ; hypocrits , tyrants , who openly , or secretly wrong her ; profane livers , who vex and scandal her ; novatians , audians , donatists , anabaptists who require absolute purity and perfection in her ; the luciferians , who confined the church to their own sect alone ; the eunomians , severians , aetians , who allowed all sort of impurity in her . 19 concerning the communion of the saints , we are bound to reject the nicolaitans , who would have wives common among christians , as also the anabaptists , who would have all mens goods and estates in common . 20 concerning remission of sinnes , we are bound to reject the donatists , novatians , catharists , meletians , quartra●cimans , and apostolicks , who deny remission of sinne to those that fall ; the pelagians , and celestinians who deny originall sinne ; the iovinians , who make all sinnes equall ; the messanians , and euchyts who taught that sinnes were pardoned onely for good workes and prayers . the priscillianists , who adscribe our sinne to the starres and fates : the monkes , who deny concupiscence to be sinne , that originall sin deserves not death , and that mary and iohn baptist were conceived and borne without originall sinne ; the manichees and acatians , who make sinne the very substance and nature of man , and not an accident . 21. concerning the resurrection of the flesh , wee are bound to reject the menandrians , hymeneus , and philetus , who taught that the resurrection was already past ; the originists , and them who say that our bodies shall arise heavenly and spirituall substances : the atheists , sadduces , gentiles , saturninians , simonians , carpocratians , basilidians , valentinians , marcionits , cerdonians , and many others , who deny the resurrection . the arabians and psyehopannychits , who say the soules of the dead sleepe in the grave till the resurrection , and then are raised . the saracins and mahumitans , who assigne corporall pleasures to men after the resurrection . the tertullianists , who say that wicked mens soules shall in the resurrection be turned to devills ; the pythagoreans , basilidians , carpocratians , manichees , originists , marcionits , who dreame of a transanimation : and lastly the manichees , who in the resurrection give new bodies to men , but not the very same that fell . 22. concerning life eternall , we are bound to reject millinaries cerinthians , nepotians , and mahumetans , who place it in corporeall pleasures . atheists , epicures , democritus , plinie , galen ; who deny any life after this . the peputians , who say that life eternall is in this world . pope iohn the twentieth , who taught that the blessed soules see not gods presence till the resurrection . 23. concerning the scriptures , wee are bound to reject the marcionits , manichees , valentinians , tatians , cerdonians , simonians , and others who deny the old testament to bee gods vvord . the guostics , and priscillianists , who counted the prophets mad men ; the saducees , and samaritans who acknowledge the five bookes of moses onely for gods word . papists , eucratits , manithees , who equall there traditions to the written word . montanists , donatists , enthusiasts , monkes , anabaptists , who obtrude their dreames , and revelations to us , instead of gods word . those that reject the book of iob , ecclesiastes , and the canticles ; and lastly the papists who subject the scriptures authority to the church ; who account apocryphall bookes as canonicall , and forbid the people to reade the scripture , shutting it up in an unknowne tongue . 24. concerning angels wee are bound to reject sadducees and samakitans , who taught that there were no angels or spirits . plato , tertullian , and origen who held that angels were corporeall substances . basilides and proclus the philosopher , who taught that the angells begot one another . the manichees who affirme that god begot the angells of his owne substance . mahumet , who held that the angels were created of fire , and that they were mortall . the sethians who taught that the angells had carnall commerce with woemen , and of them begot man ; the nicolaitans , who said that the angels were begot of light and darknesse ; basilidians , archontics , gnostics , who held that the wisdom of god was the mother of the angels ; the manichees and priscillianists , who said that the evill angels were created so ; lastly the originists , who taught that the evill angels should at last be saved . 25 concerning mans creation , we are bound to reject the rabbins , who held that the angels assisted god in the making of man ; the manichees who denyed that adam and eve were made by god , the patricians , who will not have god the creator of mans body ; the pelagians , and celestinians , who taught that adam should have died , though he had not sinned ; the eunomians , and paterninians , who sayd that mans lower parts were made by the devill ; lastly aristole , who held that man had no beginning . 26 concerning mans soule , we are bound to reject epicures , and sadduces , who deny the immortality of the soule , themestius , and averrois , who thought that all men had but one soule ; apollinaris , who said that one soule begetts another , the originists , who taught that the soules were long in heaven before the bodies were created ; platonics , mannichees , gnostics and priscillianists , who would have the soule a part of divine substance ; the pythagorians , who held transanimation ; the nazarreans , who will have the soules of men and of beasts to be of the same nature ; the arabians , who will have the soules of men and of beasts to sleepe , or dye with their bodyes ; the tertullianists , who say that mens soules are corporall , and that wicked mens soules after death are turned into devills ; and that all soules are by traduction . 27 concerning gods image in man , we are bound to reject the saturninians , who by gods image understand celestiall light ; the anthropomorphits , and manichees , who will have this image to consist in some corporeall shape , making god himselfe corporeall , flaccus illyricus , who taught that the righteousnesse and holines , wherein gods image consisted , to be the very essence of the soule . 28 concerning originall sin , wee are bound to reject the armenians , who deny that there is any originall pollution ; the carpocratians and catharists , who bragged of their own purity , and that they were by nature the sonnes in god ; the manichees who will have concupisence to be a substance , and not an originall infirmity ; the pelagians who deny that originall sinne is derived by propagation , but contracted by example and imitation , and teach that adams sinne was hurtfull to none but to himselfe , and that he should have dyed though he had not sinned . 29 concerning predestination , we are bound to reject the celestinians and pelagians who deny predestination ; the priscillianists , who attribute it to the starrs , and to the fates ; the pelagians and semipelagians who teach that there is no election , but that the cause of mans salvation is in himselfe ; the libertins who thinke they shall be saved or damned without the meanes , therefore do what they list ; pontificians , and others who attribute the cause of election to foreseene workes and merits ; so did the basilidians and pelagians of old . 30 concerning iustification ; we are bound to rejectthe papists who teach we are justified by workes , and by the sacraments ; that christ satisfied for our sinnes only , not for our punishments ; the libertins who thinke that a justified man may do what he list ; osiander who taught wee are justified by the essentiall righteousnesse or essence of god , and all such as confound justification , with sanctification , lastly epicures ; who reject good workes as needlesse , because wee are justified by christs righteousnesse . 31 concerning gods providence , wee are bound to reject the epicures who held the world to be guided by chance or fortune ; the stoics and priscillianists who taught that destiny , inevitable fate did rule all things , even god himselfe ; the astrologians who will have the starrs to rule all sublunary things ; the simonians , carpocratians , severians , marcits , manichees , menandrians who held that the inferior world was guided by the devill , therfore gave themselves to the study of magick : lastly all such as make god either carelesse of inferiour things , or so imployed that he is not at leasure , or sostately , as that he will not abase himselfe to behold the things that are here below . thus have i breifly set down what every man is bound in conscience to beleeve , what to practice , and what errors concerning matter of faith he is bound to avoyd ; it remaines that i should also shew what is to be avoyded in matter of practice , but because i have already spoke of some of them , which are most remarkable , and rectum est index sui & obliqui , he that knowes what he is bound to do , cannot be ignorant of what he is bound to avoyd ; therefore what wee have already set down may suffice to pacifie a mans conscience , and to make him a perfect christian ; in these unhapy times of ours ; we see christianity was never more professed , conscience never more pretended ; but alas truth never lesse beleeved ; goodnes never lesse practised ; and consequently the conscience never more cheated ; so that in name we are christians , but in many doctrinall poynts plaine hereticks , and in our practice very pagans , or rather atheists ; god grant we may indeavour to be , what we would seeme to be , and lay aside our hypocriticall vizards , by which wee deceive the eyes of men ; but the peircing rays of that all seeing eye , who sees us in the darke , and knowes of our down sitting , and up-rising , and our thoughts long before , we cannot delude ; our consciences are seared with a hot iron , or fast asleepe , if they can content themselves with a mouthfull of scripture phrasses , having our eyes full of wantonnesse , our hearts full of malice , and our hands full of blood ; be not deceived , the conscience of a turk or pagan will not be thus satisfied : st. pauls conscience was voyd of offence towards god and towards men ; and he shewes that a good conscience is still accompanyed with charity , a pure heart , and with faith unfained ; neither can that conscience be good , which is not purged from dead works to serve the living god . finis . septem. the 14th . 1646. i have perused this judicious and learned treatise intitled the picture of a christian mans conscience , and finding it to be very profitable and seasonable , i adjudge it worthy to be printed and published . io. downame . errata . pag. 27. l. 5. read oneserus for onefurious . pag. 41. l. 1. read , we must also beleeve that there are ministring spirits . pag. 114. l. 12. for heart , read hare . pag. 133. l. 7. read temeritie . pag. 145. l. 21. put out off . pag. 146. l. 1. read refuse . pag. 160. l. 12. read carpocrates . pag. 161. l. 5. read saturninus . pag. 163. l. 17. read {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} {non-roman} a preparatiue for the new passeouer very profitable to be perused and read of all those who are called to the holy table of our lord / by maister william cowper ... cowper, william, 1568-1619. 1607 approx. 155 kb of xml-encoded text transcribed from 63 1-bit group-iv tiff page images. text creation partnership, ann arbor, mi ; 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(eebo-tcp ; phase 1, no. a19504) transcribed from: (early english books online ; image set 27521) images scanned from microfilm: (early english books, 1475-1640 ; 1850:2) a preparatiue for the new passeouer very profitable to be perused and read of all those who are called to the holy table of our lord / by maister william cowper ... cowper, william, 1568-1619. [124] p. printed by william ferebrand, and are to bee solde in the popes-head pallace, nere the royal exchange, london : 1607. signatures: a-g⁸ h⁶. reproduction of original in the harvard university. library. created by converting tcp files to tei p5 using tcp2tei.xsl, tei @ oxford. re-processed by university of nebraska-lincoln and northwestern, with changes to facilitate morpho-syntactic tagging. gap elements of known extent have been transformed into placeholder characters or elements to simplify the filling in of gaps by user contributors. eebo-tcp is a partnership between the universities of michigan and oxford and the publisher proquest to create accurately transcribed and encoded texts based on the image sets published by proquest via their early english books online (eebo) database (http://eebo.chadwyck.com). the general aim of eebo-tcp is to encode one copy (usually the first edition) of every monographic english-language title published between 1473 and 1700 available in 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overall quality of tcp data is very good, some errors will remain and some readable characters will be marked as illegible. users should bear in mind that in all likelihood such instances will never have been looked at by a tcp editor. the texts were encoded and linked to page images in accordance with level 4 of the tei in libraries guidelines. copies of the texts have been issued variously as sgml (tcp schema; ascii text with mnemonic sdata character entities); displayable xml (tcp schema; characters represented either as utf-8 unicode or text strings within braces); or lossless xml (tei p5, characters represented either as utf-8 unicode or tei g elements). keying and markup guidelines are available at the text creation partnership web site . eng consolation -early works to 1800. conscience -religious aspects -christianity. 2003-07 tcp assigned for keying and markup 2003-08 spi global keyed and coded from proquest page images 2003-09 rina kor sampled and proofread 2004-01 spi global rekeyed and resubmitted 2004-03 kevin hawkins sampled and proofread 2004-03 kevin hawkins text and markup reviewed and edited 2004-04 pfs batch review (qc) and xml conversion a preparatiue for the new passeouer . very profitable to be perused and read of all those who are called to the holy table of our lord. by maister william cowper , minister of gods word . vvisdomes proclamation . come , eate of my meate , and drinke of the wine that i haue drawn . pro. 9.5 . my fruite is better then golde , euen then fine golde , and my reuennues better then fine siluer . prou. 8. ritches and honour are with me , durable ritches and righteousnes : vers . 18. hee that findeth me findeth life , and shall obteine fauour of the lord. 34. london printed for william ferebrand , and are to bee solde in the popes-head-pallace , nere the royal exchange . 1607 to the right worshipfull sir dauid murray , speciall gentleman of the prince his bed-chamber , multiplication of mercy , grace , and peace . right worshipfull , albeit no distance of place can disioin them in affeccion , whōe god hath conioyned by the band of one spirit : yet is it no small stop of that christian conference , whereby either of them might happily edifie , and bee edified of others . i haue therefore taken mee to the next remedie , since i cannot reach towards you with my tongue , i haue endeuoured by writing to bestow vpon you some spirituall gift , according to my line or measure : for recompence of that comforte , which i haue reaped of that grace of god , which is in you . i knowe these colder partes of the i le , wherin wee soiourne , doe not vsuallie render such ripe fruites as those on which the sun beates more hotly ; yet are they also profitable in their kind for nourishment , specially of such , who from their youth haue beene accustomed to feede vpon them . neither hath the lord our god debarred vs from communion of that which is the greatest glorie of the i le : the sun of righteousnes hath shined vpon vs also . the lord hath made our darkenes to be light , & led vs who were blind , a way we knew not . the lord hath set his standerd amongst vs. he hath not onely said to the south , keep not backe , but he hath also commaunded the north to giue , & to bring vnto him his sonnes from farre , and his daughters from the endes of the earth . as the going foorth of the sunne is from the one end of heauen to the other , rising in the east , and running on like a mightie man , his race towards the west ; so hath the lawe gone foorth of sion , and the word of the lord from ierusalem : the light of the gospell through many natiōs hath come frō them of the east toward vs in the west , where now it standes more maruellously , thē the sun stood in gibeō in the dais of ioshua , tilthe fulnesse of the gentiles in these parts , the remnants of iaphets house be brought into the tents of sem. how long it wil so continue the lord knoweth . now the shadowes of the euening are stretched ouer them of the east : the sun is gone down ouer their prophets . darknes is vnto them in steade of diuination . if our vnthankfulnes prouoke the lorde to withdraw it from vs , woe in like manner shal be to this land , when god departs from it . there was neuer people before vs had any more but their day of grace , some longer , some shorter : but as they had a morning , so hath an euening also ouertaken them . while therfore we haue the light , let vs walke in the light : blessed shall we be , if we knowe those thinges which belong to our peace : for in our daies , that promise which the lord made 2000. sixe hundred yeres agoe , is aboundantly performed ; that hee would giue the endes of the earth to his son for a possessiō : happie are they amōg vs , who shall be found of that number , sought out by the candle of the gospell , as peeces of lost money , and like wandring sheep taken out of the mouth of the lyō , and giuē in a gift to christ , that he may saue them : these are the redeemed of the lord , let them praise the lord ; and among them come yee in also , and giue glorie to god : take in your heart and mouth with dauid , that song of thanksgiuing : the lines ▪ are fa●●en vnto mee in pleasant places : and i haue a faire heritage . it is written of theodosius , that hee thanked god more , for that hee was a christian , then for that he was an emperour ; because the glorie hee had by the one would vanish , but the benefits he enioyed by the other , hee knew wereto continue for euer : and though it may bee most iustlie great matter of your ioy , that by the fatherlie care of our gracious soueraigne , ye haue beene placed a domestique attendant on his maiesties moste princely sonne , euen from his verie cradle ( wherin hitherto you haue beene praised for fidelitie , & i hope shall be so to the end ) yet let this bee your greatest glorie , that the lord hath made you partaker of that blessing which commeth by the gospell , and giuen you the earnest of that inheritance prepared for thē , who are sanctified by faith in christ iesus , for increase whereof in you , as i dayly send vp my weake prayers vnto the lord , so shall i be aboundantly contented to know that these smal fruits of my husbandry , which haue grown this last summer in the pleasant valley of perth , not farre from your natiue soile , m ay bee any way profitable to confirme and establish that which god hath wrought in you . let them therefore ( right worshipfull ) come towards you , as those fruites which iacob sent to ioseph from canaan southward , to more plentifull aegypt ; though not as supplements of your neede , yet as testimonies of that loue which i beare toward you in the lord , to whose mercie i commēd you for euer in iesus christ. your w. in the lord iesus , m. william cowper , minister of christ his euangel at perth . goe conquest credit from a heauenly heart , thou little volumne of a larger light : thy worthy patrone , soone will take thy part , for sympathie , fore thou come in his sight , the eagle mounts by other fowles in flight , so doth this preacher in his subiect soare : his spirit transported , runnes the race aright , vnto that feast that lasts for euermore . get vp , good reader , follow him therefore , that thou may meete with th y bridegroome aboue , addresse thee heere , with duety to adore , thy king , thy crowne , thy light , thy life , thy loue , reade and reuolue , reuolue againe and reede , heere let thy soule on heauenly manna feede . m. w. buchanan . if any icare in this earthly crete , imprisoned in the labyrinth of sinne : lyes famished for hunger , at the feete ofspirituall minos , that hath lock't him in : come , heer 's a dedall that will make him meete , with heauenly winges , sinnes deadly clowdes to twin and set him at gods table there to dine , on god with god , by soules repast diuine . iohn stewart . the principall pointes of doctrine , contained in this treatise . what a feruent desire christians haue to be vnited with christ. s●ct . 1 death is desired by them in so farre as it is a meane of this vnion . 1 inexcusable then are they who neglect this holy sacrament . sect . 2 how shall it be thought they will suffer with him on mount caluarie , who refuse to banquet with him in his parlour . 2 penitent sinners should waite for this table with such affection , as these sicke persons waited on the wate rs of bethesda . sect . 3 at siloam poole , onely he was healed , who first stepped downe , not so at shiloh his table . 3 yet there is great danger in comming without preparation . sect . 4. two parts of the precept , fi●st that we trie , secondly that wee eate , last part fi●st handled , and why . sect . 5 we are bound by the lords commaund to communicate . sect . 6 but an apostate man will eate where god forbids him , and will not eate where god commands him . sect . 7 beleeuing the seducer and not the sauiour . 7 ignorance is the mother of all recusancie to communicate . sect . 8 some refuse , because they know not the excellencie of this sacrament . sect . 9 these are foolish like naaman , reckoning the riuers of damascus better then the waters of israell . 9 worldlings refuse not a good gift , although giuen by small meanes . sect . 10 farre lesse should christians refuse this heauenly gift , because it is propined by earthly meanes . 10 the lesse we see in this table , the more we are bound to beleeue . sect . 10 others refuse vpon pretended reasons , sect . 11 their reasons refuted : first if it bee want of preparation , the fault is their owne . 11 secondly if it be variance with their neighbour , they excuse one sinne by an other . 11 better excuses thē these reiected by christ . sect 12 they who excuse their recusancie , because of variance , are yet further conuinced . sect . 13 in effect they preferre barrabas to christ , sect . 14 who wil rather renounce their communion with christ , then renounce their wicked will. 14 they consent not to the marriage of the lambe who refuse the smallest token of his loue . 14 they loue not christ , who refuse to communicate : sect . 15. ignorance of both the sortes of recusants discouered . sect . 16 they refuse to eate of that bread which christ calleth his body . 16 in this sacrament are thinges of sundrie kindes , which must be distinguished . sect . 17 yet are they so to be distinguished , that we destroy not their vnion . sect . 18 three rules to bee obserued in the right discerning of the lords bodie . sect . 19 first rule is , that euerie thing in this sacrament be taken vp in the owne kinde . sect . 20 against this rule faile papists ; and how . 20 against it faile also bastard professors ; sect . 21 not considering that here the bread and wine are changed . 21 the second rule is , that this sacrament be vsed according to christes institution . sect . 22 papists faile against this rule also . 22 sacrilegiouslie they abstract the vse of the cup from the people . sect . 23 the pope and councell contrarie . 23 the third rule is , that this sacrament be vsed to the right endes . sect . 24 the first ende of this sacrament , is a thankefull commemoration of christes death . sect . 24 error of concomitance disprooued . sect . 25 concomitance destroyeth the first ende of this sacrament . 25 the second end of this sacrament , is the communication of christ , to them who are his . sect . 26 in this sacrament , christ is truely exhibited & giuen . sect . 27 yet is not he receiued of euerie one , who receiueth the bread . sect . 28 for there is a d●fference betweene exhibition and acceptation . 28 the wicked eat not christ in the sacrament . 28 conclusion of the first part of the praecept is , they refuse a greate gift , who refuse to communicate . sect . 29 the second part of the precept commaundes tryall before communion . sect . 30 for the lord will not that this table bee a snare to vs , as was absaloms to ammon . 30 yet many so make it , not considering who they are themselues . sect . 31 banquetters at this table s●ould bee holy persons . sect 32 vnreuerent handling of holy thinges , hath neuer beene left vnpunished . 32 neither will the lord shew vs his presence without our preparation . 32 excellencie of this sacrament . sect . 33 an exhortation to come vnto it with reuerence . sect . 34 that we putnot new wine into olde vessels . 34 comfort for the tender conscience , caste downe with the sight of sinne after tryall . sect . 35 two sorts of tryal , one of things perfect , another of thinges imperfect . 35 the tryall here commaunded is a searching out of our imperfections . 35 and therefore should wee not be discouraged , although after tryall wee finde them to bee many sect . 36. this comfort confirmed by consideri●g those who were bidden to the banquet : sect . 37 banquetters there , were the poore , the maymed , the hault and the blinde· 37 this tryall is not that dayly and ordinarie tryall required in all our actions . sect . 38 dayly tryall moste necessarie . 38 miserable is their state , who liue without daylye tryall , they die like achitophel , putting their house in order , not their soule in order . sect . 39 but a singuler and extraordinarie tryall is required before communion . sect : 40 euerie new sight of our selfe discouereth a newe corruption . 40 what a l●borious worke is inioyned to man , when he is commaunded to trye himselfe . sect . 41 man being well tryed , shall appeare a new found world of wickednes . sect . 42 foure bands of cogitations , which oppresse the minde . 42 two thinges necessarie for this tryall . sect . 43 first the spirit of god. 43 next the word of god. sect . 44 for euerie i●perfect thing must be tryed by an other then it selfe . 44 many trie themselues by wrong rules , and are deceaued . 44 how we may profit by comparing our selues with others . sect , 45 it is not enough that pastors and elders t●y vs , we must trie our selues . sect 46 for others cannot know whether thou come to the table as a iohn , or as a iudas . 46 let euerie man therfore aske for himselfe , is it i lord ▪ 46 we shold trie our selues & not other men . sect . 47 this reprooueth them , who before communion tryeth faults done to them , more then sinnes done by them . 47 but it taketh not away brotherlie admonition , s. 48 the chiefe pointes of preparation before communion , are two . sect . 49 first that we lay aside our olde sinnes . 49 otherwaies no communion with the lord. 49 how esther was purified , ereshe was presented to ahasuerus . 49 without diuorcementfrom our olde sinnes , no mariage with the lambe . sect . 50 not a generall confession , but a particular inquisition should be made of our sinnes . sect 51 the second point ofpreparation is , that wee put on the new christian disposition , consisting in these three ; sect . 52 first that toward god we be holy , and heauenly minded . sect . 53 so that we become wearie of our earthlye pilgrimage ; 53 and neuer rest til we return to the lord , sect . 54 for our soules cannot rest but in him . 54 two thinges profitable to helpe vs to this heauenly disposition . sect . 55 consideration of the place wherin this sacramēt was instituted . 55 consideration of the time . 55 the time warneth vs to celebrate this supper like a passeouer . 55 but moste of all , the meditation of the loue of god is profitable to worke in vs this heauenly disposition . sect . 56 it is not a light meditation of this loue , that wil raise vp our heartes . 56 neuer such loue shewed in the world , as christ iesus hath shewed vnto vs. sect . 57 stronger then the loue of ionathan to dauid . 57 or the loue of any mother to her children . 57 a proofe of christ his wonderfull loue towards vs. sect . 58 christ on the crosse prepared as a food in the sacrament , is exhibited vnto vs. 58 what a notable comfort we haue here , that this banket begun on earth , shal be fulfilled in heauen sect . 59 worldlings if they were touched with a sence of this loue would forsake all & follow christ . sect . 60 sinfull women would change their life like marie magdalen . 60 and sinfull men would change their life like mathew the publican . 60 the second part of our new christian disposition , is that toward our neighbors we be louing . sect . 61 without loue we cannot be of the communion of saints . 61 by what effects is our loue to be tried . sect . 62 readinesse to forgiue a rare vertue . 62 christians liue now like iewes and samaritans ofolde . 62 as men are mortall , so should their anger be . 62 readinesse to doe good vnto others is as rare a vertue . sect . 63 professors now liue like the sonnes of anak , churlish na●all , or the rich glutton . 63 the third point of our new christian disposition is , that webe sober & litle in our own eies . sect . 64 with mephibosheth , iacob , the centurion , the woman of canaan , and elizabeth . 64 how necessarie our humiliation is , for our vnion with god. 64 with this inward humili●ie , we should also , haue an hungring for the lords saluation , sect , 65 for the lord will fill the hungrie , 65 none meete banquetters heere , who are not hungrie : 66 the comfortable fruit arising to them , who after prescribed preparation communicate at this holy table : 66 a preparative for the new passeouer . 1. cor. 11.28 . let a man therefore trie himselfe , and so let him eate of this bread , and drinke of this cup. my helpe is in the name of the lord. t s the soule of a christi●an longeth for nothing more , then to bee fully vnited with the lord iesus ; so doth he greatly account of euerie meane , wherby t●is vnion is aduanced . the aposte s. paul was so inflamed with the loue of christ , that in comparison of him , he esteemed all other thinges to be but doung , and euerie thing an aduantage that might serue to conioyne him with christ : for albeit the nature of man abhorreth nothing more then d●ath ( yea euen the soule of the godly desires not to lay aside the body , if it might stand with the lords dispensation , which the apostle is not ashamed to protest of himselfe : we wold no● ( saith he ) be vncloathed , but would be cloathed vppon , that mortalitie might bee swallowed vp of life ) yet did the loue of christ so farre ouercome him , that he was content through the valley of death to followe his lord , yea moste desirous to be dissolued by death , in so much as he knew it to be a meane to cōioyne him neerer with christ. and herin he stands vp to witnesse vnto vs , that vnlesse we haue a most feruent desire to participate of this holy sacrament , which the lord hath instituted to seale vp , & increase our spirituall communion with him ; wee are manifestly conuinced to b●e such , as in whom there is no loue of the lord iesus : if we will not goe with him to eate and drink in his parlour at ierusalem , it is not likely that we will follow him out of the cittie ▪ bearing his reproach to be crucified with him on mount caluerie . the apostle is desirous to goe through death , that he might come to christ : & it was the notable worde of that auncient ignatius , the scholler of christs best beloued disciple saint iohn . nihil visibilium moror , nihil inuisibilium modo christum acquiram . i stande ( said hee ) vpon nothing visible , nor inuisible : i care not what torments come vpon me , so that i enioy christ iesus : and will not we then ( casting away all impediments ) come ioyfully forwarde to this holy table , wherein our blessed sauiour communicates himselfe vnto vs , and wherevnto this day so louingly he inuites vs ? now he standes at the doore , an● hee knocks , offering to come in , and suppe with them w●o will open vnto him . now the maister shall say to his disciples : take yee and eate , this is my bodie . now saies the bridegroome to his friends : eate , o my friends , and m●ke you merrie my welbeloued . now doth the angell intimate that proclamation , which hereafter will be resounded with greater ioy from heauen : let vs be glad and reioyce , for the marriage of the lambe is come . and now the sauiour calles vppon sinners with outstretched armes : come to me all yee who are wearie , and laden , and i will refr●sh you . these diseased creatures who lay at the poole of bethesda , wayted diligently on the occasion , when they should step downe into the water : for he that first stepped in , after the angel had troubled the water , was made whole , whatsoeuer his disease was : praysed be god , though we haue not now these waters of siloam , wherein with that blind man wee may cure our bodily diseases ; wee haue the waters of that shiloh , of the which , who soeuer drinks shall not thirst any more : these are the waters of life , that are able to cure all our spirituall infirmities , the benefit is not restrained to one , that first sits downe at his table , but is extended to all those who make themselues readie to come vnto him . let vs not therefore neglect so faire an occasion of grace , but let vs vp and arise , let the bride make herselfe readie , and goe foorth to meete the bride-groome . let vs begin in this wildernesse to eate the fruits of our promised canaan , which is aboue : let vs open to the king of glory that knocks : let vs goe to our sauiour that cries come , and ioyfully communicate with our lord , who commaunds take and eat● , this is my bodie . for here is giuen the greatest gift , and that in the most excellent manner , that god hath to giue on earth vnto the sons of men : for here he giueth it , as it were with both his hands , that is , not only by his word , but also by his sacrament onelie ; take heede to this warning , let a man trie himselfe , and so let him eate there is danger in hearing of the worde , and therefore our sauiour forewarnes vs : take heede howe you heare . there is danger also in cōmunicating : in the preceding verse the apostle forewarned vs of it ; hee that eates of this bread , and drinks of this cup of the lord vnworthily , is guiltie of the bodie and blood of the lord. in the subsequent verse hee forewarnes vs also of the danger . he that eates and drinkes vnworthily , eateth and drinketh his own damnation . and in this interiected verse , which now by the grace of god wee haue to handle , hee sheweth vs the way how to eschew them both , and therefore let vs hearken the more attentiuely vnto it . this precept hath two partes : in the first we are commaunded to trie before we eate ; in the second we are commaunded to eate after triall . before we communicate , he requires triall ; and after triall hee commaundes to communicate : and so he encounters with two sorts of men , whereof the one eats of this bread , and tries not ; and these faile against the first : the other tries themselues , but eats not of this bread , and these faile against the second ; both of them are here corrected by the apostles precept . in handling whereof , wee begin first at the last part , that such as are resolued to bide away , if it please god , may bee made willing to come ; and then by god his grace , we shall returne to the first , that such as are willing to come , may bee instructed how they should communicate . and so let h●m eate . it is not then as ye may perceiue , left free vnto men to communicate or abstaine from the communion , as they please ; but wee are bound by a commaundement to eate and drink at this table . do this ( said our sauiour ) in remembrance of me . our first father adam failed in eating of that tree of knowledge of good and euill , whereof god forbade him to eate ; but many of his sonnesfailes in refusing to eat of that tree oflife , whereof god commaundes them to eate . in their worde they condemne the fact of their fathers , because they were , sicut omnium parentes , ita omnium peremtores , & prius peremptores quam parentes : perishers of their posteritie ere euer they were parents ; and in their deed they are dayly imitators of their folly . it was a punishment vnto adam to bee debarred from the tree of life , and it is but a pastime to many of his foolish posteritie to debarre themselues from it . thus stands the corrupt nature of man still in contrarie termes with the lord , and the children fulfilles the measure of their fathers iniquitie : where god forbids man to eate , there will hee eate , and where the lord commaunds him to eate there will he not eate . the serpent spake from the earth : alb●it yee eate of that tree ( which god hath forbidden ) ye shall not dye , and man harkned vnto it . the lord iesus speakes from heauen , come and eate of the tree of life , and yee shall liue ; bu● man will not heare him . o sillye and feareful rebellion , the seducer is beleeued and the sauiour is not beleeued . this day wisdom hath prepared his table , hee calls vppon you all : come and eate of my meate , and drinke of the wine that i haue drawne : hee that findeth me findeth life , and shall obteine the fauour of the lord ; but he that sinneth against me , hurteth his owne soule , and all that hate me loue death . thus are wee louinglye called , and fairely forewarned , and all these are made inexcusable that will none of his counsell , they will not eate of this bread , but shall eate of a worse : for they shall eate the fruite of their owne way , and be● filled with their owne deuises , their pathes shall tend vnto death , because they refuse to lay hold on the tree of life . what euer be the pretended excuse of these recusants , ignorance is the mother of their sinne , and therefore may i say that vnto them , which the lord iesus said vnto that samaritane woman : if thou knewe the gift of god , and who it is that saies to thee , giue mee a drinke , thou wouldest haue asked of him , and hee woulde haue giuen thee the water of life . this sweete gradation of our sauiour his words : if ●hou knew thou wouldest aske , if thou asked i would giue , euidently points out the sinne of these men to b●e ( as i haue saide ) the daughter of ignorance ; whereas out of doubt , if they knewe the gift that is giuen them here by god , they would answere with those iewes , lord euermore giue vs this bread , & with that samaritane woman , when shee was better informed , lord euermore giue mee of that water to drinke , that i thirst no more . but that we may deale particularlye with such as refuse , wee are to knowe , that albeit , this their rebellion proceedes of ignorance ; yet they who refuse , are ofsundrie rancks , some knowes not the vtilitye and excellencie of this sacrament : these thinke they may bee christians good enough , although no communicants : they looke to this table with naturall eyes , they iudge of it by thinges which they see , and so despise it , because after their reckoning , they haue better replenished tables at home . these are like naaman the syrian , who came to elisha to bee cured of his leprosie ; he was commaunded to goe & wash himselfe seauen times in iordan , which at the first he disdayned to do : are not ( said he ) aabanah and pharpar riuers of damascus better then all the waters of israel ? ●e contemned the meanes commaunded by the prophet ; hee went away in displeasure , and his leprosie went with him : but after ward , when hee reuerently vsed the meanes prescribed vnto him : hee was made cleane of his leprosie . wherin we are taught , not to despise the ordinance of god , although it seeme neuer so base vnto naturall iudgement : it pleaseth god by the foolishnesse of preaching , to saue them who beleeue , and he hath in like manner appointed this sacrament for communication of his christ to them who are his . let a man therfore be content to take saluation out of the hand of god , by such meanes as hee in his wisdom hath concluded to giue it : no worldling wil refuse treasure of golde , although it were giuen him in a boxe of wood ; nor a pre●ious pearle propined to him in a purse of leather : and wee see that noble personages disdaine not to take infeftments of stately buildings , and faire inheritances , by acceptation of a contemptible little peece of earth and stone : and shall a christian refuse so excellent a gift , because it is giuen by so small a meane ? far be it from vs , that we should examin the ordinance of god , but rather that wee prepare our selues in faith and feare to obey it : let vs not looke to the meanes , but to the blessing by gods promise annexed to the meanes ; to the gift more then to the manner of giuing . in this banquet we must learne to exercise our faith , not to satisfie our sences , it is no banquet for our bodie : if so the lord had intended it , he could haue furnished his table with delicate things , & made thee a banquet farre exceeding that which ahasuerus made to the princes and gouernours of his prouinces : for al the foules of the ayre and beastes that feede on mountaines and f●eldes are hi● . hee may commaund as his owne , all the creatures of his three store houses , the ayre , the earth and the sea , but herethe lesse wee see , the more we are bound to beleeue . say with vnbeleeuing naaman , what better is this bread and wine then other breade and wine ? such blasphemies somtime hath fallen out of the mouthes of ignorants , whose darkenes we shal ( god willing ) discouer by the light ofgods word hereafter : for the present , my conclusion to the recusant is , that if as thou pretend , thou bee a louer ofchrist ; then wilt thou esteeme euerie new token of his loue , a newe benefit vnto thee ; and what euer he puts in thine hand as a pledge of himselfe , in that respect it shall be deerer vnto thee , then all the world beside . others againe there are , who knowes both the vtilitie , and excellencie of this sacrament , and yet refuse to communicate ( but as they thinke ) with a reason , pretending that it is not contempt but reuerence of the sacrament , which makes them to absteine . to whome i answere , that there is no excuse in the world can warrant a man to bide backe from christ iesus , when he calles vppon him : for what art thou able to alleadge ? want of preparation ? the fault is thine owne : for since the mariage of the lamb is come , and thou art warned therevnto , why dost thou not make thy selfe readie , and remoue the impediments ? and yet if thou alledge that common excuse of the ignorant multitude , that thou art at variance with thy neighbour , by reason of some iniuries done to thee , not as yet repaired by him , nor to be borne withall and disgested by thee ; what doest thou , but by a singular subtiltie of sathan , excuse one sinne by another , as who would teach thee to wash away the spottes of thy face with puddle water : were not that in steade of cleansing , to make thy selfe more vncleane , and thou while as thou wilt iustifie thy contempt ofgod his calling , by alledging thy vnsanctified affection and heart that cannot forgiue ; doest no other thing , but make thy selfe guiltie ofa double rebellion , as one that will not discharge thy christiā duety , neither to god nor mā . consider i pray thee , the excuses pretended by these who were bidden to the marriage of the greate king , and com●pare them with thine : one of them said , i haue bought a farme and will goe see it ; another said , i haue bought fiue yoake of oxen , and must goe prooue them : and the third said , i haue maried a wife , and may not come . the worst of their excuses is better thē thine , and yet were they all repelled : the vse ofhusbandrie and marchandice and the dutie that a man oweth vnto his wife , are sometime lawfull , albeit not to be preferred vnto that duetie wee owe vnto iesus christ : but that thou should liue at variāce with thy neighbor , & carrie within thee a hart that cānot forgiue , is neuer lawfull . if that which somtime is lawfull , cannot excuse thy delaying to come vnto christ when he calles vpon thee , what mockerie of god is it to alleage that which neuer is lawfull ? and here also beside the offence done against thy god , consider what preiudice thou doest vnto thy selfe ; what folly is this , that because thy neighbour hath sinned against thee , thou wilt also sinne against thine own soule ? i suppose as thou hast said , he hath wounded thee and hurt thee in thy bodie , goods , or name , is that a reason why thou sholdest contemne the calling of christ , who offers to cure thy woundes , and heale al the infirmities of thy soule : yea to pacifie all those passions and perturbations of minde , wherwith thy impacience disquiets thee ? hee forewarned his owne , that in the world , they shold finde trouble , but in him they should haue peace : ifthou finde ( as he forespake ) trouble in the world , why wilt thou not goe and seeke that peace in him , which hee hath promised ? as to thy right , i require not thou shouldest lose it ; neither yet forbid i , that by ordinarie meanes ●hou sholdst seeke a redresse of these wrongs , which against order are done vnto thee : for the lawe is the stay of confusion , & the synewe of the common-wealth ; without which , no fellowship can bee entertained amongst men ▪ & god hath appointed the magistrate , that vnto good men he should be like the rain vnto fields new mowen , vnder whome they may flourish ; but should bee to the wicked like that westerly winde , which draue those locusts into the red sea , that troubled the land : but as to g●udge , rancour , hatred , malice , & such like . what haue they to doe in the heart of the child of god ? since we are commanded to forgiue one another , euen as god for christs sake forgaue vs : & plainly foretold , that if we do not forgiue mē their trespasses , no more will our father forgiue vs our trespasses . a fearfull recōpence that we should possesse our own sins , because we wil not forgiue the sins of others : certainly thou that dost so , giuest out a hard sentence against thy self : for in steed of mercy thou criest for iudgement , as oft as thou praiest , forgiue me my sins as i forgiue them that haue sinned aga●nst me : for that is , lord forgiue me not at all it was a horrible sin of the iewes that they preferred barrabas a wicked malefactor to the lord ; but i pray thee cōsider , how nere thy sin draws to theirs , if thou iudge rightly of it : for when thou refusest to come to this holy table , vnles thou haue amends of such wrongs as are don vnto thee , thou saist in effect , rather thē i le renoūcemy wil , i wil renoūce my part of christ , & cōmuniō with him ; for heere is the very question : whether wilt thou forsake thy cōmunion with christ or thine own corrupted wil● say not now to me these are hard speches , god forbid that euerye one who is no partaker of this sacrament , shold in so doing , forfet his part of cōmunion with christ. i grant indeed they are hard speeches , but true speeches , & no harder thē thy sin deserueth : for i pray thee , to what end did our sauiour institute this sacramēt ? was it not that in it he might cōmunicat himself to thee ? how cāst thou then excuse thy selfe , & say thou hast not reiected him , seeing thou reiects the meanes wherby he is giuē to thee ? whē eli●zer the seruāt of abra. sought rebecca in mariage vnto isaac , what way did she testifie her cōsent ? surely not only by word , but by acceptatiō of those iewels of siluer and golde , which he gaue her as loue tokens in the name of isaac . now we are sent foorth to you as the ambassadors of the liuing god to win you in mariage vnto his son & to prepare you , that yee may be presented a chast spouse vnto him : & we are cōmanded to minister vnto you this holye sacrament as a pledge of his loue towards you . i● yee agree to the marriage , and bee content to forsake your fathers house , and goe with vs to the house of abraham : then testifie your consent by receiuing these h●lye tokens of his loue , which in his name we exh bit vnto you : but if yee will not , then shall we stand vp as witnesses against you , that we haue called you , and ye refused to come . o man ! what wilt thou doe for thy christ , that wilt not come and banquet with him at his table ? how canst thou say thou louest him , when so small an impediment keep●s thee back from going vnto him ? hast thou not cause to hang downe thy head for shame , when thou art conuinced to haue lesse loue to thy sauiour then esau had to iacobs pottage ; for loue of them he solde his birth-right , which hee should haue kept : but thou for loue of christ , wilt not forsake thy corrupted will , which thou art boūd to abandon . abraham for the loue of god , was content with his own hands to slay his onely lawful son ; and thou for the loue of god , wilt not slay thy vnlawful bastard affections , nor do the holy wil of god , except thy wicked will be first fulfilled . this euidently proues that ●hou hast not abrahā for thy father , but art of the race of wicked cain , that hated his brother vnto the death assuredly , except thou repent , that merciles iudgement abides thee , presignified in that mercilesse seruāt , who hauing gotten mercie from his king , could shew none to his companion : oughtest not thou to haue had pittie on thy fellow , as i had pittie on thee ? thy former sins shall bee imputed vnto thee , and thou shalt be deliuered to the iaylor , til thou pay all that is due vnto thy lord , which thou shalt neuer be able to doe . but that the pittiful ignorance of both these sortes of recusants may the better appeare , and farther light may arise to such as are willing to communicate ; wee are to consider what a banquet this is , and what are the delicates , vnto the participation whereof , wee are here called . the apostle saith not , let a man eate bread & drink wine , but let him eate of this bread & drink of this cup. the particle ( this ) tels vs it is no cōmon bread & wine : no surely , the comfort is greate ▪ that we are commaunded to eate of that bread , wherof our sauiour saith , this is my body , and to drinke of that cup which he calles his blood of the new testament shed for the remission of the sinnes of many . he that eates of my bread , & drinks of any cup vnwor●hily becomes guiltie of the abuse of gods creatures : but he that eates of this bread , and drinkes of this cup vnworthily , becomes guiltie of the bodye and blood of the lord , and eates his own damnatiō ▪ beca●se he discerneth not the lords body . and therefore that wee fall not into this f●arfull sinne , wee are to know that this sacrament is not a simple thing , but a compound , wherin are things of sundry kinds which must be distinguished ; and so the word of discerning , imports that secret . there are here things o● sund●ie sorts , we must discerne euery thing in the owne kinde : so our sauiour taught vs , and after him his apostles : and this truth from them the auncient fathers haue deliuered vnto vs : eucharistia ( said irenaeus ) ex ●uabus r●bu● constat , ●erren● et caelesti the eucharist cōsists of two kinde of thinges , the one earthly ▪ the other heauenly ; and augustine , calleth it v●sibile st●num inu●fibilis gratiae : the visible signe of inuisible grace . and macarius calleth this bread & wine 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 exem●l●r●● figurae seut●p● carnis et sauguinis christs . resemblances , figures & types of the body & blood of christ iesus . now it is ●u●e that a type , patterne , or figure must euer bee distinguished from that , wherof it is a figure . this sacrament then being a compound thing must bee considered , not as a simple , but as a compound thing : if it bee asked whether a man be earthly or heauēnly , because hee is a compound creature ? it must bee answered by a distinction . if it bee asked how a christian , being on the earth , the apostle saieth , that hee hath his c●nconuersation in the heauens ? it must bee answered by a distinction ; and if also it bee asked whether this sacrament be an earthlye or an heauenlye thing , how the signe is giuen , & how the thing signified : how christ iesus is in the heauen , & yet present in this sacramēt ? all these i say must be answered by a distinction : sursum est dominus ( saide augustin ) sedetiam hic est veritas dominus : corpus enim domini in quo resurrexit vno loco esse potest , veri●as eius vbique diffusa est . our lord is aboue in heauen , yet heere also is our lord , as he is the truth ; for the body of our lord , in which he arose from death , can bee but in one place , but his truth is diffused into euerie place . and againe , ibat per id quod hom● erat , & manebat per id quod deus : ibat per id quod vno loco erat , & manebat per id quod vbique erat : he went hence by that which was man , hee stayed by that which was god : he went away by that which was but in one place , he stayed by that which was in al places . and againe : ascendit super omnes coelos corpore nō recessit maiestate : hee ascended aboue all the heauens in his bodie , but he departed not hence in his maiestie . and cyrill in like maner : non enim quia nunc non adest in carne ex eo outes , quo● spiritu medio hic nō ad●it : think not that with his spirit he is not here amongest vs , because hee is not now amongst vs with his bodie . thus ye see we must vse a distinction . and yet albeit we are forced here to acknowledge the sundrie natures of things compound , and consider them in their owne kinds : wee must for all that take heed to the wonderfull vnion , and s●cramentall coniunction that is bet●eene them , which is so strait , that vnto the right receiuer , they are inseparable , for the which also the earthly thing receyues the name of the heauenly . and this must also be considered , least on the other hande separating those thinges which god hath conioyned , we make this bread , and this wine , but naked and bare signes ; and so iustly incurre that blame , which our aduersaries vniustly would lay vpon vs : and in like manner this punishment which here the lorde threatens against them , who are euill discerners . we are therefore to consider , that for the right discerning of the lords body , these three rules are to be obserued : first , that in this sacrament we take vp euery thing in the owne nature , & kind . next that we vse euerie one of thē in the maner appointed by christ , & with reuerence that is due vnto them . and thirdly , that this sacramēt be celebrated vnto the right ends , for which our sauiour appointed it . against the first ▪ failes both papists and bastard professors : papists are euill discerners , because they take the signe for the thing signified ; the earthly thing for the heauenly : the men of lystr● were euill discerners , when they tooke paul and barnabas for iupiter and mercurius , gods in their account ; and therfore would haue worshipp●d them as gods : but ( in this light ) farre blinderarethey , who will adore a creature in steede of the creator , and that with the same kinde of worshippe 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 which by their owne confession is due to god onelye . they alleadge for their error the word of truth : iesus christ speaking ( say they ) of the bread , called it his bodye ; wee say in like manner , that this bread is christes bodye , but sacramental●ye : but denye that the bread i● transubstantiate into the verie naturall bodye of christ , as they against the principles of faith and nature , falsely affirme . it is strange to see what backward peruerse handlers of holy scripture , these men bee : where they should sticke to the letter , they inforce an allegorie to serue their purpose . what plainer historie then that which moses hath : god made two great lights : the greater ●o rule the day , the lesser 〈◊〉 rule the night : yet is this place violently wrested , when out of it they will gather , that the papall digni●ie , which ( as they say ) god hath appointed to rul● ouer the spiritualtie , is greater then the regall ; and that the pope by as manye degrees excelleth the emperour , as the sunne excells the moone . and againe , where the spirit of god vseth a figure , there they sticke to the leter , these wordes according to the letter : m●ndant fla●●ium , commaund an impietie : and therefore by augustines rule , should be esteemed figuratiue : si pracepti●a loquutio est , aut flagitium , aut facinus vetans , aut vtilitatem & beneficentiam ●●bens , non est figurata loqu●tio : si aute● flagitium vel facinus videtur i●bere , au ▪ vtilitatem aut beneficentiam vetare , figurata loquutio est ( nisi manduca●eritis ( inquit christus ) carnem filij hominis , facinus iubere videtur ) figura est ergo praecipiens passion● domini esse communicandum et suaniter & vt●liter reco●dendum in memoria , quod pro nobis car● eius crucifixa sit . if a speech of precept , either forbid some sinne , or heynous deede , or else commaund a profitable or good deede , then is it no figuratiue speech ; but if it seeme to commaund a sinne or heynous deede , or forbid a profitable & honest actiō , then it is a figuratiue speach : vnlesse thou eat of the flesh of the sonne of man ( saith christ ) here hee seemes to commaund a hainous ●ction and therfore ●t is a figure commanding vs to communicate with christs passion , and sweetly & profitably to lay this vp in our memory that his flesh was crucified for vs. and after this maner also the perpetuall phrase of the holy spirit doth teach vs to interpret them , when he calles circumcision , the couenant ; the lambe , the passeouer ; baptisme , the lauer of regeneration : the wine , the cup of th● new testament : in al these they are forced to acknowledge a figure : only here , this is my bodie , they will adhere to the letter . the learned & godly fathers , haue with vs also acknowledged this for a sacramentall speech : so tertul. expoūds , hoc est corpus meum , id est figura corporis mei : this is my body : that is , the figure of my body . and againe : dominus pane corpus suū r●prae●●ntat : god represents or resembles his body by bread . and augustine said in like maner : non dubitauit dicere hoc est corpus meum , cum fignum daret corporis sui . he doubted not to say . this is my body , whē he gaue onely a signe of his body . and again , iudam adhibuit ad conuiu●um , in quo corporis & sanguinis sui figuram cōmendauit discipulis . christ admitted iudas to his supper , in which he cōm●nded to his disciples the figure of his body and blood . as iesus christis called a stone , and called bread : so is this bread called his bodie , & that saies ber. is per significationē non proprietatē by significatiō , not that properly it is so . and as for carnall professors , they are also euill discerners , because they esteem lesse of this bread and wine then they ought , putting no difference betweene it and comm●n bread and wine , whereas it is not so indeed ; for in all the worlde there is not the like of this bread and this wine , except in the like action : it is changed by the ordinance of christ , and vertue of his institution : not changed in the substance , but in the vse and end : panis ( enim ) ●●rrenu● percipiens vocationem de● , iam non communis panis est , sed eucharistia : for that earthly receiuing gods appointment , is now no common bread , but the eucharist . the lord who calleth things that are not , & maketh them to be , doth here appoint this breade and this wine to a farre more ex●ellent vse , then that whereunto they serue by nature . as wax stamped with the seale of a king , in substance differs not from other wax ; and yetfor value is much more excellent , & may not b evnreuerently handled , without contempt of the king ; so this bread though in substance it differ not from other bread , yet concern●ng the vse , it is seper●te , and much more pretious then anye other bread in the world : being now appointed by god to be a signe and a seale , and an exhibiting instrument of christ his body , and therefore cannot bee profaned , nor abused without contempt of christ iesus . against the second condition required in the right discerning of the lords bodye , papists faile in like manner , because they peruert christs institution , and vse not this sacrament as he commaunded : for , seeing our sauiour is the orde●n●r of this sacrament ( saies cyprian ) v●ique id nos face●e oportet quod christus fecit , e● quod faciendum manda●i● . of ●ruth , wee ought to doe that which christ did , & which he cōmanded vs to do . and ambrose writing vpon this same place , saith plainely : indignum est domino , mysterium hoc aliter celebrare , quam ab cotraditum est . it is an indignity to our lord , to celebrate this mystery otherwise then hee deliuered it . christ ordeyned it a sacrament for the communication of himselfe to the faithfull at the table ; they haue turned it into a sacrifice for the oblation of christ to his father on an altar . iesus brak the bread & gaue it : but they , if they break the bread , they giue it not , & if they giue it , they breake it not . in their dayly masse , the priest breaks the bread , he abuses the words of christ secretly ; whispering thē , accip●te , comedite : he bids others take & eate , but giues thē nothing , & when he giues hee stoppes it whole in the mouthes of the people & breaks it not . thus most sacrilegiously they alter our sauiour his sacred institution , as though of purpose they had concluded to be cōtrary to him . besides this ▪ they withdraw frō the people the vse of the cup , & so mutilate the holy s●crament : a horrible sacriledge in like maner , yet ratified by y e decree of y e haeretical coūcel of trent . si quis dixer● ex dei praecepto , vel de necessitate salutis esse , omnes et singulos christi fideles , viramque speciē eucharistae , sumere debere anat●ema sit . if any man auouch that it is by gods commaundement , or vppon nece●sitie of our saluation , that all christes faithfull people should receiue the eucharist vnder both kindes , let him be accu●sed : to whome it contents at vs this time to oppose the decree of their owne pope : gelasius : comper●mus , quod quid●m sumpta tantūmodo cor●oris sacri portione , a calice sacrati cruoris ●bst meant : qui proculdubio , quoniam n●so●o qua superstitione docentur , astricti aut integra sacramenta percipi●nt , aut ab integris , ●reeantur ; quod diuisio vnius eiusdemque mystery sine grandi non sit sacrilegio . wee vnderstand , that certaine receiuing only the portion of christes bodye , absteine from the cup of his sacred blood : which men ( because vndoubtedlye they are trayned vp in some kinde of superstition ) let them be inforced either to receiue the whole sacrament , or to bee restayned from the whole , because this diuiding of one and the same mysterie , cannot bee without great sacriledge . in this contrarietie among themselues , which way i pray you shall the poore people turne them ? the coun●ell curses all them , who affirme this sacrament should bee ministred with bread and wine . the pope sayes plainly it is superstition , and sacriledge , to giue the one without the other , and commaunds that either we abstaine from both , or retaine them both togither . if ye follow the counsell , the pope shal condemne you ; if you follow the pope , the councell shal accurse you : but , curse as they will , the lord shall blesse them , who in faith communicate at his holy table according to his institution ; and the curse of god shal not faile to cleaue vnto th● , surer thē the leprosie of naaman to g●●●sa ▪ yea their part shall be taken out of the booke of life , who dare presume to change the ordinance of god. the apostle hath deliuered vnto vs , that which he receyued from the lord , how not only he tooke the bread , blessed it , and brake it , and gaue it : but that in like maner he tooke the cup , and gaue also to his disciples : what boldnesse is it then to take from the people , that which christ by his apostles hath deliuered vnto them ? and thus while they boast of antiquitie , they are found fathers of noueltie . and against the third , they faile who vse not this sacrament to the right endes ; which are especially two . the first is the commemoration of christes death and passion , with thanksegiuing ▪ f●r the which also the grecians called it 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 the second is the communication of chr●st to them who are his ; and for this the apostle calleth it 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 the first i take out of our sau●our his words , do this in r●membrance of me . and from the apostle : so ●ft as ye eate of thi● bread , and drinke of this cup , shew foo●th the lords death , till his ●omming againe . and in verie deede , this holy sacrament beeing v●ed according to christes institution , is a liuely representation of christ crucified ; while as the signes of his blessed bodye and blood , being sundred one of them from the other , the one is broken , the other poured out ; rem●mbring vs how his blessed body was broken with the crowne of thornes , the scourge , the nailes , and the sp●are ; and his blood shed for the remission of our sinnes ; which should worke in vs , so oft as wee beholde it , an inward contri●ion , and godly sorrow for our sinnes , wherewith wee pierced and wounded our blessed sauiour vnto the death ; and inde●de , if wee bee of the number of those vpon whom god hath powred out the spirit of grace and compassion , so often as wee looke vpon him , whom we haue pierced as ( heere in this sacrament we may see him crucified before our eyes ) as often shall wee lament for this , as one mourneth for his onely sonne , or is sorrowfull for his first borne : but of this we shall speake god willing hereafter . now here is also discouered the vanity of that error of concomitance , wherwith the aduersaries would excuse their dismēbring of this holy sacramēt : for ( say they ) by concomitance where the bodye of christ is , there is his bl●od and therfore the breade which is his bo●die , being giuen : there is no neede ●o giue the cup. but as the lord asked the king of tyrus in derision . art thou wiser then daniell ; so ●ay wee aske of them , are yee wiser then christ ? will ye amend his institution ? this assertion takes away one of the principall ends of this sacrament , to wit , the commemoration of christes death and passion : for to haue the blood within the bodie ▪ is no declaration of a crucified man : nor a shewing foorth of the lordes death : whereas our blessed sauiour ordeyned them to bee exhibited and receaued sundrie , that it might not onely be preached to our eares , but represented also to our eyes , how his blessed body and blood were sundred for our sinnes . the second end for which this sacrament was ordeyned , is : that it might bee a mean of the communication of christ to all them who are his ; for the sealing vp of our spiritual vnion with him : ideo en●m sacramentum il●ud hominibu● datur , v● caput in terris corporicoadune●ur . and this ( as i said ) i take out of the words of the apostle : the bread which we breake , is it not the communion of the bodye of christ ? and in this respect , this holye bread and wine are not onely signes representing christ crucified ; nor seales confirming our faith in him , but also effectuall instruments of exhibition , wherby the holy spirit makes an inward applycation of christ crucified to all that are his . and heerein standes our greatest comfort ; for if wee had no more a doe in the celebration of this holye sacrament , but to remember christes death and passion : then certainel ye looking to it onely were sufficient to put vs in remembrance therof ; but when we heare and see , that this bread , which is his body is giuen vs , and we are commaunded to take and eate it ▪ what shall wee thinke ; but that we● are called to this high mercy , as to bee partakers of christ and all the benefits that flowe from his death ? the lord doth neither deceiue vs with wordes , to bid vs take when he giues nothing : neither calleth he vs only to a cōmunion of naked bread and wine : farre be it from vs to thinke so baselye of this holy sacrament . certainly , he that with any measure of light and grace , wil ponder these wordes of our sauiour , take and eate , this is my body : shall perceiue that there is here a real and eff●ctual exbition made of the lord iesus , to the penitent and beleuing receauer . and yet let no man thinke , that albeit the breaking and giuing of the bread be the cōmunication of christs bodie , that therfore the bread is transubstantiate into his body , or that euery one receiues the bodye of christ who receiues the bread : for there is greate difference between communication & acceptation , on the part of god. in this sacrament , there is indeed a communication & exhibitiō of christ , but on y e part of the vnbeleuing receiuer , it failes for fault of acceptatiō ; because they haue no faith , whereby to receiue him , nor a purified heart , wherin to lodge him . it is therfore a vile error also of the papists , who affirme that the wicked in this sacrament eate christ , but to their damnation : it is contrarie to the word of god & reformed antiquitie : for whosoeuer ( saith christ ) eateth my flesh and drinketh my blood , hath eternall life : and i wil raise him vp at the last day . sacrame●num quibusdam ad vitam , quibusdam ad exitium ▪ ●es vero ipsa cuius est sacramentum , omni homini ad vitam , nulli ad exitium . item , qui non manet in christo , et in quo non manet christus , proculdub●o non manducat spiri●ualiter carnem , nec bibit sanguinem eius , licet visibiliter premat dentibus sacramentum sanguinis , et corporis e●us . the wicked who beleeues not , may with iudas eate : panem dommini , non panem dominum the breade of the lorde , but not the bread which the lorde himselfe is , to his worthy receauers . of all this , then it is euident , that this banquet is moste heauenlye and excellent , wherein as there is no lesse offered then ▪ christ iesvs , so no lesse is refused by them , who refuse to communicate : they proclaime by their deede ( if they continue in it ) that they haue no portion in dauid , neither inheritance in the sonne of ishai . but no● wee leaue them , and returne to speake as wee promised of that tryall , w●ich they whominde to communicate , are to take it of themselues . let a man therefore try himselfe . this particle ( therefore ) is relatiue to that which went before : since there is a daunger ( will hee say ) and many ea●es and drinkes vnworthily : therefore take yee heede how yee come : hee saith not simplie , let a man eat , but let a man trye himselfe , and so let him eat . this warning then of the apostle , stands in the ent●ie to t●is holy action , like that cherubin armed a with sword in the entry of paradice : yet not to hold out the sonnes of adam , but only to terrifie vs , that wee presume not to draw nere without sanctification . and herein doth our lord iesus discouer his wonderfull loue towards vs ; who before he inuite vs to eate and drinke at his table , dooth first of all instruct vs how we shold doe it ▪ absalom c●lled his younger brother ammon to a banquet , onely of purpose to slay him : he prepared delicate meate and drinke aboundantly for him , but concealed the danger . it is not so with our elder bro●●er , he calles vs here to a banquet ▪ not of purpose to slay vs , but to saue vs ; he is no way willing , we should make this table a snare to trappe our selues to damanation , which he hath ordeined as a meane of our saluation : and therefore before hand forewarnes vs of the danger , that we may eschew it . it is pittie to see how the great multitude runne to this holy sacramēt without tryall and examination of themselues , and all because they heare of a breade of life , which heere is exhibited to the communicants at this holye table : it is verie true , that great thinges are exhibited heere indeede , but thou shouldest first of all enquire of thy selfe , who art thou ? what interest thou hast in this communion ? and whether or no thou be one of those to whom these holy thinges do appertaine ? for if thou in thy person be a profane and vnsanctified creature , thy touching of these holye thinges may defile them , and make thee giltie of the contempt of them , but shall not benefit thee ; yea a greater cursse then that which elisha pronounced on the vnb●leeuing samaritane prince , shall light vppon thee : thou shalt see ▪ the table of the lord , & heare of the plentie of the breade of life therein communicate , but shalt not eate of it : let a man therefore trie himselfe , and so let him eate of this bread , and drinke of this cup. for as this sacrament is a holy and excellent thing , so should they who celebrate it , bee holye , and seperate persons . it should not bee receiued with common handes , that is , with e●rthlye hearts , and vnsanctified affections . the pharises would not eate their common meate with vnwashed handes , and that was but superstition ; but heere to wash before we● eate , both our handes and our head with peter , yea , to wash as ieremy exhorts vs , our hearts from our wickednesse , is deuotion , and good religion both commended and commaunded by the word of god : otherwise fearefull is that ▪ warning of our sauiour . if i wash thee not , thou shalt haue no part with me . to the vncleane all thinges are vncleane , for euen their consciences are defiled . the lorde hath neuer suffered vnpunished the vnreuerent looking to , or handling of the holy signes of his presence . them of bethshemeshe looked vnreuerently into the ark , and the lord slewe fifty thousand of them . vzza touched vnreuerently the arke , and the lord in like manner strook him instantly to death ; ahim●l●ch would not giue to dauid the hallowed bread of proposition , but conditionallye , that the young men , who were with him , were sanctifyed . no vncircumcised man might eat of the pascall lambe , vnder paine of death , and such as were circumcised , being vncleane , behooued to absteine till they were clensed , according to the lawe ; yea , such of them , as were cleane , did not eate without foure daies preparation , for the lord commaunded them , to take the lambe the tenth day , and not to slay it til the foureteenth day at night , that all the space betweene , they might the better prepare themselues to that holy action . neither will the lord anye other way be familiar with vs ▪ except we be sanctified . before the lord came downe on mount sinai to giue his law to israel , hee appointed them three dayes of preparation , wherein ●o sanctifie thēselues . the lord appeared to moses in the fierie bush , but reuealed not his will vnto him , til he put off his shooes : i wil be sanctified ( saith the lord ) in all that draw nere vnto me . the lord will not take a wicked man by the hand , nor haue fellowship with the throne of iniquitie : his eye is so pure , that hee can behold no iniquitie , vnlesse wee put off our worldly thoughts and sinfull affections , whereby we haue troad in the vncleane wayes of sin : it is not possible that the lorde can be familiar with vs. all these stand vp as examples , warning vs to drawe neere to this holy action in assurance of faith , sprinckled in our hearts from an euill conscience : here is a sacrament more excellent thē the passeouer ; here is bread more holye then that shew-bread ; heere are the tokens of gods presence , more glorious thē the arke ; heere the lord commeth downe , and saluation vnder his winges : not to sound by angel● the precepts of his lawe on sin●i , but to seale vp by his spirit the promises of his gospell to the inhabitants of sion ; shall we then presume to come to this holye table without sanctification ? or if wee will , may we not looke assuredly for iudgement ? the corinthians were stricken with death and sundrie diseases , because they discerned not the lordes bodye ; and which is most fearfull of all , he that came to the marriage , wanting his wedding garment , was hee not taken from the banquet table , and cast into the place of vtter darknes ? and shall wee looke to escape the like iudgement , if wee fall into the like contempt of god ? prepare thy selfe , oh israel , to meet thy god : let vs search and trye our waies : let vs lift vp our hands with our hearts vnto god in the heauens . if wee bee this day come to the lord with all our heart , let vs put away our strange gods ( which are our sinnes ) from among vs : let vs with iosephs brethren , make ready our presents , sith wee haue no better thing then our heart : le● vs ●acrifice our hearts to the lord , & that in the best estate that pos●ible we can get it ; for the lord our god is a greate king. cursed is he that hath a male in his flock ●nd voweth , and sacrificeth a corrupt thing to the lord. beware therefore , wee offer not that , which is lam● and torne to the lord● a diuided heart , a ●alting heart betweene two an vnpenitent heart , is neither a meete sacrifice to offer vnto the lord , nor a meete vessell wherein to receiue th●t holye thing , which heere the lord offers vnto thee . the apostle saieth , that the breaking of this breade is the communion of the bodye of iesus ; sith christ is that holy thing which heere is communicated , take heede how we make readye the heart , wherein to receaue him : ioseph of arim●thea , and the rest of those goly ones , who tooke downe iesus from the crosse , wrapped his deade bodye in pure and fine linnen ; what shall wee then doe with the liuing bodye of iesus ? shall not wee receiue it into pure , fine , and well prepared hearts ? no man ( sayes our sauiour ) puts new wine into old v●ssels , far lesse wil any man put the ordin●r● food of his body into vnclean vnseasoned , and vnsauerie vessels ; but least ● of all should men presume with vnholy hearts and handes , to meddle with things saccred and h●auenly : here is new wine indeede , let vs not put it into old vessels ; heere is heauenly manna , let vs not receaue it with earthlye hearts : any man that is in christ should become a new creature : if we be these blessed ones , who are called to the participation of the lambes supper , then shall it be graunted to vs , to bee arayed with pure , fine linnen , and shining ; which is the righteousnesse of the saints . the lord vouchsafe this grace vpon vs , that sith hee hath made vs partakers of the heauenly vocation , and ca●led vs to the marriage of his sonne , that wee receiue not so excellent a grace in vaine , but it may be vnto vs his seruants , according to his word . and now before wee enter to speake of this tryall , least the tender consciences of the godlye , by reason of that which i haue spoken should be discouraged , and cast downe with the sence of their owne vnworthinesse ; which at all times is great in their eyes , but greatest when by tryal ▪ they looke most narrowlie vnto themselues : we haue therefore to consider , that there bee two sortes of tryals ; one whereby a thing perfect is tryed in such sort , that it is not made better , but found to bee that which it is ▪ and with this kinde of try●ll man is saide to trie the lord and his word , so speakes the lord by malachie : proue me & try me now , if i will not poure you ou●● blessing without measure . by this tryall ▪ if a man fall too , to trye the lord , hee shall finde him such as hee is ; true , constant and faithfull to performe that which he hath spoken ; or if againe man will enter , and trie the word of the lord ; hee shall finde that the lawe of the lord is perfect , no drosse in it , but like siluer fined seauen times in the fire . there is againe another tryall , whereby thinges imperfect are so tried , that they are made better ▪ and at the length perfected ; and hereby god tries man , for so hee speakes by the same malachie : the lord wil fine the sonnes of leui , and purifie them as gold and siluer that they bring offerings to him in righteousnesse : and with this triall also man tries himselfe , searching out his iniquities that he may forsake them : and this triall tendes indeed to a perfection at the last , but stands rather , in a finding out , and forsaking of our imperfections , then in any present perfection : and of this tryall the apostle meanes heere ; so that this precept dooth commaund vs to search out our iniquities , & to depart frō them , but doth no way import that we should not communicate at this table , because that new tryall discouers to vs new transgressions ; for we come not he●e as men without sin , but as poore ▪ and miserable sinners , seeking the sauiour of the world , knowing that hee came not to call the righteous , but sinners vnto repentance . thou then , who after examination , shalt finde the selfe a miserable , and yet a penitent sinner ; say not with peter , lord depart from me , for i am a sinfull man : but so much the rather goe to him and crie with dauid , haue mercy on mee o god , and according to the multitude of thy cōpassions , put away mine iniqu●ti●s : for it is a true saying : christ came into the world to saue sinners . stay not thou therfore backe from him , because ●hou art sinfull ; onelye trie if thou bee wearie of thy sinnes ; for we are sure , that a sin discouered by tryall , and cast out by repentance , will neuer condemne vs : wash you ( saith the lord ) make you c●●an , take away the euil● of your workes from before my eies : and then though your sinn●s were as crimson , they shall be made whi●e as snowe , though they were red lik● sva●●● , they shall be as vvool. omne quod ipse mimihi non imputare aecr●uerit , s●c est quasi ●on fuerit ; euerie sin saieth the ancient , which god hath concluded not to impute vnto me , is as if it had neuer beene : if therefore in thy conscience thou feele thy sins an hea●y burden vnto thee , vnder the which thou sigh●st & gronest , and wherof thou earnestly desir●st to be rele●ued , crying with that holy apostle : o miserable man , who shall deliuer me from ●his bo●●e of sinne ? then goe thou to the lord iesus , for surely thou art one of those whome hee is seeking ; he● came into the worlde to saue thee , and the like of thee : lay thy burden vppon the backe of christ , and hee shall be●re it , and take thou vp his yoake which is ●asie , and his bu●den which is light : so sh lt thou finde r●st to thy soule . o happy exchange ▪ when we are taken from the se●uitude of sin , & entred into the seruice of christ , whē the burden of sin that presse●h vs downe is taken from our backe , and the sweete yoake of christ that lifteth vs vp , is laid vpon vs : for albeit it be called a burdē ▪ yet is it such a burden as easeth vs , & maketh vs lighter like the wings of a bird : q●●d ●nim leu●●● eo onere , quod non solum o●erat , sed port a●●mnem c●i portandum ●mpo●i ur . where for our farther comfort , let vs con●ider what manner of guestes these were , whome the greate ▪ king commaunded to bring into his banquetting house , euen the poore , the maymed , the halt and the blinde . take h●ede vnto this , o thou that arte disquieted in minde , and wounded in spiri●● , with the sence of thy infirmities ; the lord is gratious and ready to shew mercie : hee will not breake the b●used reed● , ●●r qu●nch the smoaking flax , hee will not despise thee , because thou art weake , but bids thee come to him , that hee may heale all thy infirmi●ie● , art thou then poore & destitute of spirituall grace in thy feeling ? turne thee to christ , who being rich , became poor for thy sake , that thou in him mights be made rich . art thou weak & d●seas●d ? remember , they who a●e whole need no phisi●●an , but the sick : & that it is the glorie ofthis excellent phisitian , to cure diseases , otherwise incurable : quid e●●m tam ad mortem quod christi morte non sanetur . art thou lame , and complainest that thou cāst not , with dauid runne the way of the commaundements of god : yet indeuour to halt forward with iaacob vnto canaan , and to creep to the lord iesus , as one of his little babes praying vnto h●m : o lord that raisest-vp the crooked , i beseech thee to order my goings aright , and to staye my steps in thy pathes , that i slide not anye more , as i haue done . and thou who laments thy blindnesse , & the weak measure of thy knowledge , now in this time of light ( alas ) as wee haue all more then cause to complaine , that by our own default , the eyes of our vnderstanding are not lightned , and wee haue so little insight into the ritches of that glorious inheritance , and rich mercies manifested to vs by the gospel , in comparison of that we might haue had , if wi●h the angels wee had be●ne desirous to behold them : surely in regarde of time , we should haue beene teachers , yea , the meanest inhabitant of ierusalem should haue beene as dauid , and dauid as the angel of god. but wee are become such ▪ as haue neede that the principles of god should bee taught againe vnto vs , yet must we not dispaire , but goe to iesus , who gi●eth sight to the blinde , and pray to him ; lord open ou● eies that wee may see the wonders of thy law . let vs goe to this table , stand and ●rie with th ●e two blinde men : iesus the sonne of dauid haue mercie on me , o lord enli●hten mine eies ●hat i sleepe not in death : comfortable ●hē is that message sent by the lord iesus to the church of laodicea , i knowe tho● art miserable and poore , & blinde , and naked , ●et i councel thee come to mee : i haue the fi●e go●de tha● will mak● thee rich ; i haue the white rayment to couer thy filthy nakednes ; i haue the eie salue , that wil opē thy ●ies ; let vs no● therfore he●rkē to the voice of our infidelitie against so cleere testimonies of the word of god ; neither so looke on our miseries , that we turne our backe vpō gods mercies , but rather let our ●iseries chase vs to him , who of his aboundant mercie , is a●le to fulf●ll all our nenecess●ties , aboue all that wee can aske or thinke . but now to returne , and speake of the tryall here required ▪ wee must consider that as this acti●n is not a daily action , so i● requir●s a tryal abo●e our dayl● trial : a● to our daily and ordina●ie tryall , in it , we are bound to examine all our actions in the court of conscience , that we may cal our selues to accoūt : not cōcealing the iniquitie of our bosome , as adam did , but iudging our s●lues ●hat we may not be iudged of the lord. and this tryal without a daily los●e cannot be neglected ; for since we are subiect to so many chāges , that euen the iust man falleth●●euen times in the day , and no man knoweth the errors of his life ; we haue great need by daily conside●ati●n to view the state of our c●nscienc●s , and to looke into the course of our life , whither or not , it bee such as will lead vs vnto that end , wherat we would be . such profit found godly dauid by the ex●mination of his waies , that he● praised the lord. who gaue ●im counsell , and made h●● reyn●s to ●e●ch h●m in the night . and he acknowledgeth it a specia● meane , wherby many times he was reduced into the way of life , when hee had wandred from it . i haue considere● ( saieth he ) my w●ies , and ●urned m● feet vn●o thy ●estimon●es . as dauid learned this from god , so doth hee recommend it vnto vs , that morning and eueni●g wee should examine our selues , as a moste profitable meane , to nourish that holy feare in vs , where by wee keepe ou● sinne , when wee are tempted to it , or caste ou● sinne , when we haue once conceiued it : for this holy feare is innocen●iae c●st●s : tremble therefore ( saieth he ) and sinne not , examine your hearts vpon your b●ds , and be yee still : againe , he protests that eueri● day he was punished , and chastised ●uerie morning : that he daily cleansed hi● heart , & washed his hands in innocencie . euerie day of our life we cōtract some new debt of sinne ▪ & wisdom ●rau●● , that euerie day we should seeke a discharge thereof . as we cannot liue without daily foode , far lesse can we liue without daily mercy ; & therfore our sauiour who in the one petitiō taught vs to pray ▪ giue vs this day our daily bread ; in the next he taught vs also to pray , and forgiue vs our sins , that no day should goe by vs , without examinination of our selues , & crying of god mercie for our sinnes . but he●re commeth to bee lamented the sencelesse s●upidity of this generation : in all their affai●es , they vse consideration & b●●ng to accoūt & re●koning their whole businesse with men ; but as touching their conuersation towards god , and the state of their consciences , & whether or not , they be translated frō nature into grace : there are they so carryed away by presumption , that they lea●e no place to the examination of themselues , but proclaime peace to thēselues , though there be no peace ; blessing th●mselues in their hearts , albeit , god ( in their hearing ) pronounce them , and their actions accursed in his word . they are wise like achitophel : hee put his house in order , but not his soule in order , w●se in things perishing , concerning this life : there they ouersee nothing ; wise enough in the●r generation , but fooles concerning things perteining to li●e eternal for they suffer a daily debt run on vpō their soules , which at length shall ouer-charge them . a count that is long ouerpassed , in the end becomes difficult to be finished ; & he who long hath liued in darkenes , if ye bring him to the light , cannot holde vp his eies to looke vppon it , but is forced to cast them downe toward the ground : euen so shal it be with him , who suffers his debt of sin to multiplie , and the reckoning of his transgressions to runne on ; in the end , his own wickednesse shal reprooue him , the lord shall drawe him out of his lurking holes , and bring him out of the dark chambers of his imagination : & as now , his secret sinnes are set in the light of gods countenance , so then shall the lord set them in order before him , that did them . he shall manifest his inward thoughts to the light , and present him naked vnto iudgement : and then , with what confusion and astonishment , with what trembling and blacknesse of face , shall hee that was prodigall of the time of grace , liuing in his sinnes a contemner of god ▪ come forward vnto iudgemēt ? and this to awake vs to the daily tryall and ordinarie examination of our hearts . as to this action , it is not ordinarie , and therefore requires a singular and extraordinarye tryall , farre aboue that which euerie day wee are to take of our selues : for if ( as i said ) the ie●es had assigned to them the space of foure daies for preparation , before they eate their passeouer , wha● shall wee doe that ha●e to celebrate a more excellent misterie ? they searched diligently euery corner of their house , to see that no leauen were in it ; but more diligentlie should wee search euerie corner of our hearts , that no knowne leauen of wickednesse and maliciousnesse bee left in it , which wee haue not purged and cast out by repentance : then shall we finde that eueri● new sight of our selues shall discouer a new corruption ; for the heart of man is a great deepe , and deceitfull aboue all things ; manie chambers of corruption are in it . if we haue entred into one , and seene the abhominations which are there , thinke not for that we haue entred in all . no doubt the prophet esay , knewe before that hee was a sinfull man , but a new vision of the maiestie of god brought him to a deeper insight of his owne vncleanenesse , and made him to crie out , woe is me , for i am vndone : bec●use i am a man of p●lluted lipp●s , and mine eyes ha●e seene the king , the lord of hostes : i haue seene ( saith iob ) the lord , therfore doe i now ab●o●re m● s●lfe . and this i marke , that none of vs think a new trial vnnecessary , but that euenye , who through grace haue beene accustomed euerie morning to chastice your selues , and euerie euening to examine your hearts in your beds , may bee warned : to you also belongeth this precept , let a man trye himselfe , and so let him eate . which shall appeare more euidently , if thou ponder this precept , try thy selfe : it is a r●stlesse and laborious worke , that heer is inioyned to thee , tho● art set to a taske which may holde thee exercised all the daies of thy life . the lord by this precept will haue euerie thing that is in man , brough● vnder examination ; man as he is the workmanship of god , is euerie way so maruailous , that no maruaile the philosophers called him a little world ! augustine in his estima●ion , ac●counted man a greater miracle then all the miracles that euer were wrought amōgst men but as he is peru r●ed by sin , & become the workmāship of s●than , he is so fraughted with iniquit● , y e s. iames cals one member of his body , a world of wickednes● & if in the toung only , which is but a small mēber of the body , there is so much wickedn●sse , that the spirit of god , who giueth names to thinges as they are , calleth it a world of wickednes what shall we thinke of the rest ? what bottomles depth of iniquitie must there bee in the fountaire , when there is so much in the streame : and therefore i say ●e hath n●ede to be full of eies , within and without , that will practise this precept of the apostle , let a man trie him selfe . for if ye shall begin to take a view of your minde , and consider how farre it is inlightned , and what naturall darknesse yet remaineth in it ▪ how many bands of strange cogitations at s●uerall times soiourne in it ? s●me flowing fr●m the loue of the world and her deceitfull pleasures , intending to steale our hearts after them ; some from the ro●te of concupisence , and her inordinate lusts , that of●entimes violently oppresse vs : and some from the roote of bitt●rnesse , raysing wonderfull c●mmotions , and perturbations within vs , reeling too & fro by courses , in our swelling and restlesse mindes , raging like waues of the sea , carried with furious windes , besides infinit armies of other vaine , and ydle cogitations , wherof we cannot tell frō whence they come nor whither they go : and if from the minde they proceede to the heart , which is the seate of the affections : and take a particular view of them , how our loue and our hatred , our feare and our confidence , our ioy and our griefe , our care and our contentment are renewed , and framed , according to that word , which is the rule of righteousnes . and if againe , ye goe to try the affections , and see how the members of your bodies are imployed as weapōs of righteousnes in the seruice of god , if ye haue made a couenant with your eyes or not , that they regard not vanitie , or if negligently ye let them stand open as windowes , at the which death enters euerie moment into your soules ; and if ye haue learned to take heede to your lippes , that ye sinne no● with your tongue ; if ye shal also take a time to consid●r the ignorances of your youth ▪ and sinnes of your old age : if i say yee looke vnto all these ▪ which yet are fewe in regarde of manie moe we haue to looke vnto ; what shall appeare , but a new found world of wickednes discouered vnto thee ? which mo●te iustlie may make th●e ashamed , and compell thee to crie out with dauid ; o lord , who knoweth the errors of his life : lord cleanse me from my secret sinn●s , and k epe me from presumptuous sinnes , that so i may bee made cleane from much wickednesse : yea , thou shalt wish with ieremie ; o that my head were full of water , and m ne eyes fountaines of teares , that all the whole day long i might with ezekiah recount my sinnes , i● the bitternesse of my heart ; and all the night cause my bed to swim , and water my couch with ●eares , for the manifolde transgressions , wherewith i haue offended the lord my god. and now because this tryall of our selues is so necess●rie , let vs heere remember that there are two things , without which we cannot profit in this work● of tryall . the one is t●e spirit of god , the other is the word of god. as to the first , man by nature is so blinded with selfe-loue , that he accounts his owne deformitie , beautie , and his bondag● libertie : what vyler bondage then the seruitude of sinne ? o quam multos domi●os hab●t qui v●um non habet ( said ambrose ? ) and yet man ( vnregenerate ) cou●teth it his liberty to liue vncontrolled in the seruice of his lustes , to doe what he will : what libertie againe so ●xcellent as to be the freeman of god ; seru●re deo est regnare : and yet foolish man , accounts the obedience of gods lawe ( which is the law of liberty ) a seruitude , and the commaundements of god , he esteemes as bonds , wherewith he will not be boūd , walking the footsteps of other rebels before him : he cries out ; let vs breake their bonds and cast their cords from vs. it was not the disease of the laodiceans onely to account themselues happy , when indeed they were miserable ; it is the natural disease of al the sonnes of adam : for euery mans way seemeth good in his own eyes . a pitifull blindnesse that death should reigne ouer man , and man not feele it ; y t strāge lords who can claime no right vnto him , shold tiranise ouer him , and he not endeuour to withstand it ; & that sathan shold lead him away in captiuity , boūd with cheines , euen the cords of his own sin , blinder thē zedekiah , hauing his eyes pulled out , & man should not lament for it : but where the spirit of the lord is , there is liberty and freedome , there is a knowledge and detestation of sinne , and a sighing to god for deliuerance from the bondage . the prophet ezechiel could not see the abominable idalitries of the house of israel , till the lord taught him to digge through the wall : but we shal be farre lesse able to see the vile abominations that are in our owne hearts , vntill the spirite of the lord digge through and demolish that thicke and hard wall of induration , that naturallie hideth vs from the sight of our sins , and keepeth vs in blindnes vnder sathans bondage . the other thing wherby wee are to proceede in this tryall , is the word of god ; for euerie thing that is imperfect , must betryed by another not by it self : golde is tryed by the fire & touchstone ; the weight of a thing is tryed by the ballance , and the spots of the face are tryed by the glasse . thus euerie imperfect thing that is tryed , is tryed by another not by it self . as to the law of god , it is a moste perfect rule , by which god will haue men and their actions tryed ; but it is to bee tryed by no other then it selfe . if any man will trie scripture , hee must with the nobles of beraea , trie it by the scripture so then the word serueth vnto vs as a touchstone for our tryall , as a glasse for discouery of our spots ; and as the ballance of the sanctuarie , wherein wee must bee weighed in the last day the secrets of all hearts wil be iudged by the gospel , and therefore it were good that in time wee did iudge our selues by it ; some trie themselues by it ; some trye themselues by themselues , supposing they are such indeede , as they haue conceiued themselues to bee : some againe measure thēselues by others , speciallie with such as in their opinion , are behind them , not with such as in light and grace doe farre excell them ; like that pharisie ; who when he came to examine himself before god , thought hee was good enough , because he was not like the publican wherein hee was also miserablie deceiued ; for suppose he spake the truth , yet spake it ignorantlie , as caiaphas saide , that one behooued to die for the people : he was not like the publican ▪ indeede the publican was much better then he : for he came to the temple , humble , and penitent , and went home to his house iustified , whereas the pharisee puft vp with a conceit of his owne righteousnesse , and iustifying himselfe , went away out of the temple ▪ more 〈◊〉 then he came . in the tryall therefore of thy selfe make not thy neighbours disposition thy rule , least thou in like maner be deceiued . and yet if thou would proffit by the example of others , remember it is a great follie to thinke that thou art religious enough , because in religion some are behinde thee , and not rather to bee displeased with thy wants , when thou seest so many before thee , enriched aboue thee in all spirituall grace , and haue profited more th n thou in the mo●tification of their sinfull lustes : hauing out runne thee farther in the way of gods commaundements , then that other disciple ouer-ran peter vnto christs sepulchre , to learne his resurrection . it is pitie that the sonnes of men in worldlie things can looke to those who are aboue thē , thinking they haue little , because they haue not somuch as others , yet in spirituall things ▪ they should looke to others , that are inferior to them , & so easily stand content with the little beginning of religiō they haue , because there be many , who in their iudgemēt haue not so much ; wheras certainly if we could try our selues by the right rule , we shold finde that as yet we are far frō that which we should bee , and therfore haue more need then that holy apostle : to forget that which is behinde , & indeuour our selus to that which is before : following hard toward the mark for the prise of the hie calling of go● in christ i●sus . we haue therfore heere , yet farther to obserue , that seeing the apostle commaunds vs to try our selues , we thinke it not enough that others try vs , & giue vs their approbation ; we must also try our selues . the pastors may try thy knowledge , & thinke it good enough , thy superiors may trie thy cōuersatiō , & find it vnreprouable of mā : but thou must ●ry thy own cōsciēce , for no mā knowes the thing● of a man saue the spirit of man ; the minde of a man will shew him more sometime then seuen watchmen that are in a tower . when this sacrament was first instituted , there were twelue who communicated with the lord iesus , and one of them was a deuil and a traiterous hypocrite : the remnant knew him not , and therefore could not reproue him , but that made not iudas the better man ; yet the fault w●ich man could not finde out , the lord discouered it : one of you ( said he ) will betray me . thinke it not therefore enough , albeit vnchallenged of man , thou maiest sit down at the lords table . remember the king wil come , and take a view of the guests , euen he who is the god of the spirits of all flesh , and to whom the secrets of the heart are manifest . iosapha●s garment cannot hide achab from him , hee is not blinde like isaac , that he should be deceiued to take one for another ; therefore try thou thy self , how thou comest to this holy table , whether iohn louing iesus , & beloued of him , or as a iudas betraying christ , and accursed of him ▪ for as christ foretolde th●m , that one of them was a deuil , so the apostle hath foretold vs , that many will eate and drinke vnworthilie at this holy table ; who they are , wee know not , yet are they knowne to the lord ; let euerie one of vs striue to purge one ; euerie man trie himselfe , and wash his heart from his wickednes , and so shal we bee all cleane ; let euerie man aske for himselfe with the disciples , is it i lord , is it i ? am i one of them that comes to betray thee ? to crucifie thee againe , and to tread the blood of the new testament vnder my feete ? let vs neuer rest till wee haue gotten the lords certificate in our consciences , and tha● after due tryall of our selues , we come not as hypocrites , vnpenitent and vnbeleeuing atheists , but as diseased and poore sinners , to seeke the lord iesus , the sauiour of the world : for , if we doe so , then shall we get that answer , which the angel gaue to the two maries ; feare not yee , because ye seek iesus , who was crucified : we shal eate at this table and bee satisfied , and shall goe away , not without feareindeed , but hauing our feare tempered with great ioy , because we found the lord. and lastly , let vs take heede that the apostle commaundeth vs to trie our selues , and not to trie other men . it is a corrupt custome of men at those times ofholy communion , to fift the conuersation of their neighbour ; and brethren more narrowly , then euer laban searched the stuffe of iacob , to see ifhe could find any thing wherewith to charge him ; and this they doe not of a heart to forgiue , which were commendable , but of purpose to seeke the vttermost recompence and satisfaction for smallest offences done against them , and so where they should cast open the dore of their hearts , to the king of glory , and prepare in the desert a path for our god , by making lowe that which is high within thē , & making streight that which is crooked , and plaine that which is rough , by the contrarie they stoppe all the passages and waies of god his accesse vnto them : for now their affections are exalted so high by pride against god , that they dispise the councell of his word : crooked were they before , but more crooked now ; they liued without loue before , and dissembled it , but now are not ashamed : when god calleth them to the table ofloue , plainely to professe with rough & fierce speeches , the hatred of their hearts , they put off that which the apostle commaunds thē to put on ; as the elect of god , namely tender mercy , humblenesse of minde , meekenesse and long suffering : they insist to search out the sinnes done a-against them by men ; and ouerpasse the sinnes by themselues done against god ; louers of themselus more th●n l●uers of god. i graunt indeed it is a point of christian duetie to admonish our brethren of their sins , if it be done in loue : for so we are commaunded , thou shalt no● hate thy brother in thy heart , but shalt reprooue him . it is hatred and not loue , for the father to spare correction , or the brother to spare admonition of his brother in his sinnes . i conf●sse in like manner that he who hath offended is bound to reconcile himselfe with thee before ●e● offer his sacrifice to the lord ; but in case that he neglect to doe it , yet standest thou bound and obliged to forgiue him , and to take heed that thou despis● not so great a saluation offered by the lord , because an other dischargeth not that brotherly duetie , which hee ought vnto thee . as another mans faith will not iustifie thee , so another mans sinne will not condemne thee ; and th●rfore ▪ mourning for that which we cannot amend in others , let vs chiefly attend to our selues , as we are heere commaunded . but now leauing to speake any more of this tryall in generall , wee enter to speake of the particular points of this tryall . the whole tryal and examination required in those who are to bee banquetters at this holy table , i reduce to these two : the first is , that we trye our selues , whether or not with ioshua wee haue cast away our filthy garments , that is , if we haue cast off the old mā , which is corrupt through deceiueable lusts . and next , if we haue put on our mariage garment , that is , put on the new man , which after god is created in righteousnesse , and true holinesse . first of all therefore , we must take paines to remoue the impediments that may hinder our vnion with christ , that wee come not to this table ( as iudas did ) with our old sinnes , hauing that lodged in our hearts , which wee dare not present vnto god : for since no man wil sit down at the table of his enemie , what great persumption is it in vs to sit downe at the lords table , as long as our sinne , which is the cause ofenimitie is not remoued : there can bee no commu●ion betweene light and darkenesse . let vs therefore bee changed from that which we are , let vs cast away the works of darknesse , and bee renewed in the spirit of our minde , if so bee we desire to be vnited with the lord : he is the holye one of israel , god blessed for euer , in whom there can be no shadowe of alteration , so that of necessitie the change must be vpon our part . it is written of the lyonesse , that hauing had commixtion with the leopard , she washes herselfe in water before shee companie againe with the lyon , that so hee should not by sent discerne her adulterie . and basile in his hexameron writes , that the viper a most pernitious kind of serpēt , before his copulation with that seasish called muraena , dooth first vomit , and cast out his venemous poyson : thus the beasts in their kinde ( so farre as they can ) doe reuerence one to another , to teach man , that hee is worse then a beast indeed , except he cast off the filthie slime of his olde sinnes , that he may beioyned with the lord : for by nature we are more adulterous then the lyonesse ( for what is the vanitie after which we haue not gonawhoring ) more venomous also we are thē y ● viper , ful of hatred , malice , enuie , debate , and therfore haue neede to vomit out our iniquities by repentance , and to wash our selues in that foūtain opened to the house of dauid . before that ester was presented to abasuerus , shee was purified by the space of twelue mōthes , 6. moneths with oyle of myrrhe , & 6. monthes with sweet odours : shall such reuerence bee done to mortal flesh , whose carkasse was shortly to be made a pray to the wormes & shal we carry no reuerence to our immortall husbād the lord iesus ? shall we take no paines to purifie our heart , that we may be presented as a chaste spouse vnto him ? let vs not deceiue our selues ▪ except we forsake our fathers house & our own people , y ● is , except we be deuorced from our old sins , wherin we were born & brought vp : it is not possible that the king shal haue ●leasure in our beau●ie . let vs call our deeds to examination before the tribunall of our cōscience : let vs cast out the canaanites & not pitty thē , that the peace of god may dwel with vs : let vs deliuer barrabas to be crucified , y ● christ iesus may liue in vs ; why shall these serpents ( i meane our crooked affections ) be nourished any longer in our bosome , which liue vpon our blood , & cannot liue except we die ? oh that wee could make this day a day of new diuision betweene vs and our old sinnes . neither must we here thinke it enough to fight against our sins , but we must euery one of our selues make a particular inquisition of these domestique sins , and predominate euil affectiōs , y t hath moste of all oppressed vs : for there is none of vs al but we haue in vs our own idol , wherunto many times we doe seruice , to the great offence of god. and albeit , this narrow tryall of our sins shall discouer to vs a wonderful discordance between our nature and the most holy law of the lord , yet let vs not be discouraged , considering that wee are best in the eyes of god , whē we are worst in our own eies , & most acceptable to him , when we are moste displeased with our selues . the lord was mooued euen with achab his temporall humiliation : seest thou not ( said he to eliah ) how achab is humbled before me ? because he submiteth himself before mee , i will not bring that euill which thou hast spoken in his daies : and will not then the lord much more be mooued with the true humiliation of his owne seruants ? no doubt , if we cast downe our selues before the lord , hee shall lift vs vp , if we humble ourselues , he shall exalt vs. if we iudge of ourselues , wee shall not be iudged of the lorde : for the lord is neare to them that are contrite , and will saue such as are afflicted in spirit . but if we come before the lord in the presumption of our minds ▪ & not touched with the sence of our sins , then shal he execute that feareful threatning vpō vs : i will enter into iudgement with thee , because thou sayest i haue not sinned : though thou wert high ▪ & exalted like the caedars of bebanon , & the oakes of bashan , proud and hautie in thy conceit : the lord shall abase thee , and bring thee lowe : for he is the lord that resisteth the proud , and giueth grace to the humble . the other point of our tryall and preparation , stands in putting on that three fold christian disposition ; that towards our god we be holy and heauenly minded ; towards our neighbour louing , righteous , and mercifull ; and as concerning our selues , that we be sober and lowelie : for so the grace of god , which hath appeared , teacheth vs that we shold deny vngodlinesse and worldly lusts , and should li●e godly , righteously , and soberlie in this present world . this is our wedding garment , euen that pure , fine and shining linnen , which is the righte●usnesse of the saints . a garmment not partiecoloured like iosephs , but compact ofmanie vertues and graces of christ iesus . these be his badges and cognisances , wherby we are knowne to be his ▪ the putting on of these , is the putting on of christ ; for his grace translateth vs out of nature , and transformeth vs into his image by his owne spirit . and first as concerning our disposition towards god , it should not onely bee holy ( as i haue saide ) but also heauenly : for since we call him our father which is in heauen , we must see what heauenly disposition we haue to goe after him : and whether we be weary of our absence from the lord , like dauid wearie of his dwelling in the tents of kedar , and desire with the apostle to remoue out of the body , that wee may dwell with the lord : for here is not the place of our rest . the best of our life vpon earth , ( except it be the little taste of that hid manna , where with the lord ▪ now and then comforteth our soules in this barrē wildernesse ) it is but like the life of that forlorne sonne , who hauing banished himselfe from his fathers house , was driuen to fill his belly with the huskes , that was giuen to the swine , and often times could not get them . we haue experience enough of the vanitie of worldlie comforts , wherein there is no contentment ; would to god we could also learne with that prodigall sonne to bethinke our selues , and conclude to make home againe to our fa●hers house , i● whose face ●s the fulnesse of ●oy : surely the least of them that dwelles in our fathers house hath bread enough , they are filled with the ●atnesse of his house , and receiue drink out of the riuers of his pleasures : what pleasure then should it be to vs to liue here in this strange land ▪ where our soules are almost dead for hunger ? there is no greater thankefulnesse that man can shew to the lord , then to declare in his affection , that he cannot liue without the lord , nor rest content , so long as he is absent from him . the lord in the worke of creation neuer rested till he had made man , and man can doe no lesse of dutie then passing by all gods creatures , to resolue with himselfe ; i will neuer rest till i enioy the lord. the soule of man should be like that doue of noah , which being sent forth from the arke , found no rest to the sole of her foote , vntill she returned againe to him that sent her : and indeed without the lord where can we rest ? goe thy way with salomon , and proue all the goodnesse of the children ofmen , which they enioy vnder the sunne , thou shalt find it is but vanitie and vexation of spirit , whatsoeuer man cleaueth to , beside iehouah the true subsisting lord : it is but a lying vanitie , which hath not in it that substance , and certaintie , which man imagineth ; yea , mā ( without god ) in his best estate is altogether vanitie , & his wisest actions are but a disquieting of himse●fe in vaine . it is a godlie saying of august●ne , which the word of god and experiēce taught him ; fecist● nos domine ad te , et semperinquietum est cor nostrū , don●● requiescat in te ; thou madest vs o lord vnto thy selfe , and our heart is euer vnquiet till it rest in thee . the wicked who are strangers from the wombe , pretend in their countenan●e what they wil , yet euen in laughter their heart is sade for there is no ioy nor peace to the wicked , ( saieth my god ) their heart is moued as the trees of the forrest shaken with the wind : as the point of the mariners compasse , so long as it is not direct to the north , trembles continually ; so the spirit of the wicked ( not set vpon the lord ) is neuer quiet , but tossed too and fro with restlesse perturbations , which in a part presently he feeles , but shall better perceiue it , when he goeth out of the body . for tribulation and anguish shal be on the soule of euerie man that doth wickedlye : this is the portion of them that forsake god , and wander after vanitie . it is good therefore for vs to draw nere vnto god , saying with dauid , whome haue i in the heauen but thee ? and i haue desired none in the earth with thee . the lord worke this heauenly disposition in vs. and now to helpe forward our earthly mindes vnto it , wee haue to consider both the time and place ▪ when and where our sauiour did institute this sacrament . the place is recorded by saint luke , to haue beene an vpper parlour : the consideration of the place ( saith naz●āzin ) doth some waie warne vs that wee should celebrate this holy sacrament with high & heauenly affections . when god gaue the lawe , he came downe from heauen to the top of sinai , and moyses went vp from the plaine to it , and so ( saieth he ) had familiar conuersation with the lord : and heere as the lord cometh downe as lowe as he can in this sacrament for our capacitie , it becommeth vs to mount vp as high as possible we can in our affections , if so be we be desirous to meete the lord , otherwise if the lord shall abide in his glorie ▪ and in acces●ible light , and if man shall lye still in the darke dungeon of hi● base and earthly minde , what familiar meeting can there be , betweene god and man ? and as to the time , saint iohn witnesseth that our sauiour ordeined this sacrament when he was to go out of the world to his father ; wherin said augustine : spes membris in capi●e data , quod essent in illo transeunte sine dubi● seq●●tura . yea , not onlie should it nourish our hope , that where he is there once we shal be , but should waken our affection and desire to goe after him : we should eat and drinke at this holie table , not as if we were here to remayne , but shold celebrate this supper like a passeouer , standing as pilgrimes and our loynes girded vp , hauing our staues in our hand readie to follow our lord , who is gone into heauen before vs : and euerie day of our communion should be a new departing of our hearts out of this world , vnto our heauenly father ; yea , we should receiue this meate from the lord , with that warning which the angell gaue to eliah , in the wildernesse : vp and eate , for thou hast yet a great iourney to goe . this bread is giuen vs , that in the strength thereof , wee may walke forward in the way , which is before vs , not that we should lie downe and rest vs in this wildernesse , as if we had now attained to the end of our iourney . the angell wakened eliah twice sleeping vnder the iuniper , twice he touched him , and twice he bad him , vp , eate and walke ; at length hee arose and walked in the strength of that bread fortie dayes : but alasse , our securitie is greater then his . many a time hath the lord warned vs of the iourney that is before vs : many a time hath he proposed heauenly food vnto vs , and now against this day , the lord reneweth his mercy towards vs. the lord waken vs , and graunt at the length , that we may rise and walke , following the lord , till we appeare before the face of our god in s●on . but of all other meanes , the moste forceable to rauish our hearts afte● y e lord , is a deep meditatiō of the loue of god towards vs. the apostle protesteth it is a loue that passeth knowledge ; the height and breadth , the length & depth wherof , none is able to comprehend ; he that at one time cryed out ; come and i will tell you what god hath done to my soule , is compelled another time to confesse : o lord my god , thou hast made thy wonderful works so many , that none can coū● in order to thee the thoghts towards vs ; i would declare and speake of them , but they are more then i am able to expresse . and yet although we be lesse able , then the elephant at one draught to drinke vp the riuer of iordane , let vs be content with the wearied passenger , willinglie to take in so much as may refresh vs ; wee cannot measure the waters of the sea in our fist , nor number the starres of heauen ; and how then shall we number his mercies which are aboue all his workes ? shall we therefore not looke to them , nor beholde that glorie of god which shineth in them ? though we cannot comprehend his incomprehensible loue ( yea blessed are we if it shall comprepend vs : ) let vs notwithstanding earnestlie and frequentlie meditate vppon it , not by starts and vanishing motions : for as a candle dooth not at the first receiue light from the fire , were it neuer so bold , but if for a time it be holden constantlie to the fire , it is at the length enlightened : so is it not vanishing meditations that wil warm our harts with the loue of god ; but if we shal continue without wearying to exercise our thoughts vpon this great loue , that the lord hath borne towards vs ; it shal happilie fall out at length , that the powers of our soule shall bee inflamed with his loue , and we shall finde the sauour of death in euerie thing that smelleth not of his loue . no greater loue then this ( saith our sauiour ) can be shewed among men then that a man should bestowe his life for his friendes : but that which mā is not able to shew , our lord iesu● god & man hath shewed to the children his good will : for the loue he bore to vs , he gaue himself in a sacrifice for our sins on the crosse , euē when wee were his enemies ; and hath here in this sacramēt giuen himselfe a food , and nourishment vnto vs : for so that disciple belooued of him doth testifie ; when iesus knew that his houre was come , that hee should goe out of the world vnto his father , forasmuch as he loued his owne , vnto the end he loued them : therefore did he institute this sacrament , that therein he might communicate himselfe to them . o wonderfull loue , stronger then the loue of ionathan to dauid ! when ionathan and dauid behooued to part companie because of saules tyrannie , ionathan gaue dauid his garment , his girdle , and his armour : he had no better , and could giue no better , & so with many teares and mutuall imbracings , departed from him : but our blessed sauiour , before he remoued his corporall presence from vs , gaue his life to redeem our life frō the death : he sent out bloody sweat aboūdantly , as the witnesses of his burning loue towards vs , hee prowred out an euerlasting prayer to his father for vs , he hath left behinde him , in his laste will , his peace for our portion ▪ he hath giuen vs his spirit for a comforter , his word for a warner , and this sacrament for a spirituall foode , vntil his second coming againe . no marueile his spouse in the canticle praised his loue to be far aboue the loue of women : for though in some of thē y e strength natural of affection be so great , that it makes them indure the painful bearing & bringing vp of their children with the milke of their brests ; yet what is that comparable to this ? nothing indeed . such a loue as here our sauiour hath discouered towards vs , is not to be foūd againe in the world : for whereas mothers ( saieth c●risostome ) either commit their children to nurses , or else brings them vp vpon the milke of their owne breasts : iesus christ feedes vs not with the milke of another , but with his owne flesh , and his owne blood . necessitie sometime hath compelled the mother to eate her owne children , but wee neuer reade that compassion hath mooued the mother to giue her owne flesh to preserue her children , that they should not die in famine . but our lord iesus is that kinde pelican , that sendeth out his owne blood to nourish his young ; and all this hath our lord iesus done not grudgingly , but willingly , prouoked hereunto , by that feruent loue hee bare to the glorie of god his father , and to our saluation . which shall yet appeare more euidently out of his owne comfortable saying to his disciples : i haue greatly desired to eate this passou●● with you . o word full of consolation ! sundrie passeouers had he eaten before with them , but he protesteth this was his desired passeouer : see ye not heere his vnquenchable loue ? he knew it was the last hee was to eate vpon the earth ; he knew he was to drinke no more with them of the fruite of the vine , till it was fulfilled in his fathers kingdome . hee knew that the same night they wold betray him , and that after supper a bitter cup of passion was abiding for him ; yet his loue ouercame all these impediments , and made him thinke long to eate of this passeouer : and which is much more ; before euer he gaue himselfe to be crucified for vs on the crosse , he prouided this sacrament as a means of the communication of himselfe vnto vs , thereby assuring vs , that his subsequent passion should not defraude vs , but rather affoord vnto vs , and make ready for vs that righteousnesse and life by christ purchased on the crosse , and communicate in his holye table to them who are his . in the one he was prepared , & made ready as the onely foode of our soules to eternall life , in the other he is applyed , communicated & giuen vnto vs ; both of these necessarily behoued to bee done for the worke of our saluation . sicut enim ad potandum vinum venire ne●● potest , nisi botrus calcetur ante , et prematur : sic nos sanguinem christi bibere non potuimus , nisi christus prius fuisset calcatus et pr●ssus . it was a great loue which made our sauiour , content that his blood shold bee shed out on the crosse , & so should be made both a ransome , & a conuenient foode for vs , for the father sent him . quasi saccūplenū misericordia , in passione cōscindendū vt effundatur quod in eo latet pretium nostrū . so is this also a new declaration of his loue , that before his body was brokē & his blood was shed , he first ordeyned the meanes whereby it should be communicated vnto vs. these and many more spirituall meditations , should be vnto vs as the breathings of the mouth of god , to kindle in our soules that little sparke of the loue of god , which alasse , for fault of entertainmēt , is almost ouer-gone & extinguished with the ashes of our corruptiō : for seeing our sauiour lōged to eat with vs , shal not we long to eat with him ? he greatly desired to giue himselfto vs in this table , & for vs on the crosse ; & shall not we earnestly desire to receiue him ? hee knew it was the last he shold eat vpō earth , & that after it , heauy sufferings abode him : we know that our banquetting here , is the bāquet that shal be accōplished in heauen ; it is begun here , it shal not end here . cōfortable is y e word of our sauiour : it shall be fulfilled in my kingdō● ; & wil not we then ioyfully begin this banquet ? shal we be so foolish as to wait vpō lying vanities , & forsake our owne mercies ? shal we turne our back vpon y e fountaine of liuing waters ▪ and dig to our selues cisterns y t can hold no water ? crtain●ly our darkene ; is grosser thē the darkenesse of egipt , and our hearts harder then the adamant , except this burning loue of the lord iesus rauish vpward our hearts after him . the spouse in the canticle , professeth she was sicke of the loue of her glorious husband the lord iesus , but alasse we are not touched with the like loue , we feele not the smell of his oyntments , and therefore with the rest of the virgins we runne not after him . eliah touched elisha with his mantle , and therwithall the lord ioyned his inward calling , & suddenly elisha left his plough of oxen , & of a husbādmā became a prophet . now the lord cals vpon vs by his word & sacramēt , let vs also pray , that the lord wold shed abroad in our hearts by his holy spirit the sence of that loue of god ; then should we neglecting all things runne after the lord , seeking onely to inioy him . the men of this world maruell to beholde the suddaine change of life , which is made in the children of god by his effectuall calling ; they maruell to see them running so feruently after christ , seeking him by continuance in prayer , by hearing of his word , by participation of his sacrament , and that with such an insatiable desire , that in this life they can neuer be satisfied with hearing , reading , praying , and communicating : but if the lord should in like manner touch their hearts , and let them feele the power of an inward calling then would they marueile no more , farre lesse disdaine , yea , they would make haste , and ioyne themselues to the company of the godly : and saul also shold become amōgst the prophets . the womā , who had liued before a licentious life , would now change it with marie magdalen : she had beene a greate sinner in the citie , but became an example of repentance to all the sinners in the citie : she prostrates no more her body to her carnall louers , but falles downe at the feete of christ , to craue his mercie ; in steed of her wanton lookes , her eies poure out teares , & her beautifull hayre , which before shee set out as a proclaimer of her luste , now shee pulleth downe to wash the feet of christ. thus all the former meanes of her sin , she maketh new witnesses of her repentance ; the man in like manner , who had sate al his daies with mathew at the receipt of custome , that is , who had liued in y e sinful trade of vnlawful gaine , wold now in like manner forsake it : but where the lord by effectuall calling works not in the heart an earnest loue of god ; no maruaile they lie stil in the graue of their sins , & rise not to walk after the lord. we are therfore so much the more to vse all the ordinary meanes , which may entertain in vs y ● little spark of the loue of god , til it grow vp vnto a great flame , for the farther vnion & coniunction of our soules with iesus christ ; and this for our dispositiō towards god. as concerning our christian disposition to our neighbour , it is vsuall to the spirit of god , to comprise it vnder loue . our sauiour saith that loue is the cognisance of his disciples , & the apostle calleth it the band of perfection and fulfilling of the law ; & no maruell , for loue speaketh with the tongue of euerie vertue . all the sundrie precepts , we are commanded to doe vnto our neighbour , are summarily comprehended vnder this one , loue one another , as this sacrament sealeth vp the cōmunion of the members with the head , so it seales vp the communion of the members amongst themselues : for this bread whereof we eate , is of many graines of wheat made vp into one bread ; & the wine is the iuice of many berries collected & vnited into one , to teach vs that all the communicāts at this holy table , how many soeuer they be , ought to agree together in one , like mēbers of one body , as hauing one father , one faith , one baptisme , one inheritance , as brethren quickned al by one & the selfe same spirit , ( which is not to bee found againe in all the world , except in this excellent brother-hood : ) as we cannot be ioyned to the heade without faith , so can we not be knit to the member without loue . stones and timber cannot make vp a building till they be ioyned , and sundry peeces of mettall cannot bee melted in one worke without fire ; no more can christiās be vnited in one mistycall body without loue , and therefore our sauiour at the celebration of this sacrament , recommended lou● to his disciples by a new commaundement , which he so called , because it should neuer wax olde : yea , so much doth he account of it , that he will accept no seruice wee owe to himselfe , without that duety of loue we owe to our bretheren . if thou bring thy gift to the altar , & there remembrest that thy brother hath ought against thee , leaue thy offering , goe thy way , and ●●rst be reconciled to thy brother , then come and offer thy gift : of this it is euident , that without loue to our brethren , wee can doe no acceptable seruice to the lord. in this therfore , let vs trie and examine our selues , what compassion finde we in our hearts , toward our brethren : what willingnesse to do them the good we can , what loue to beare one anothers burden : what readiness● to forgiue when wee are offended : what humblenesse of minde to aske them forgiuenesse against whome we haue sinned , practising these precepts : while ye haue time to doe good to all men : and againe , for beare one another , forgiue one another , euen as god for christs sake fo●gaue you . the maiestie of god ( suppose first offended ) did firs● seek man to be reconciled with him ; and shall man that hath offended thinke euill to seeke his brother , to be reconciled with him ? but alas●e , are thes● fruites of godlinesse now to be found amongst men ? it thou seeke them thou shalt finde th em as the sommer gatherings , or as the grapes of a vintage cut downe ; though thy soule desire to eat the frui● thereof , thou shalt not find it : for the good man is perished out ofthe of the earth , such as are christians by name , they liue like iewes and the samaritans , of whome it is written , that they might not conuerse together : to forbeare and forgiue one another , to them are precepts of an vncouth language , which they vnderstand not : as a sparckle of fire easily kindles a heape of powder , so a smal offence remooueth all their affections : they are not slowe vnto wrath like the lord , and farre lesse like him in readinesse to forgiue . as men ( saith lactantius ) are mortall , so should their anger be mortall : our sauiour saith , the sunne should not go down vpō our wrath : the apostle cōmaunds vs to be children concerning anger & maliciousnesse , who as they doe not deepely conceiue it , so they do not long reteine it , but are shortly familiar with them , with whome they were a little before offended : but as it was doubted of sylla , syllane prio● , an syllae iracundia sit extincta , so is it out of all doubt , that in many vipers of this age , anger dieth not , til● they die themselues . and as for doing of good to their neighbors and brethren , they liue in the world like mōsters , or like these gyants , the sonnes of anak : they alone will bee lordes of the earth , as ifthe world were made for thē only , or they at the least were born for thē selues , churchlish like nabal : shall i take ( saide hee ) my bread and my flesh , & giue vnto dauid ? al that they haue , they account so to be theirs as ifthey had not receiued it , or were not the lords stewards boūd to distribute to the necessities of his saints ; the rich gluttōs , they vse it as a morsell for their own mouth : now my soule thou hast enough for many daies , let lazarus find as he may : they thinke with caine , they are no keepers of their brethren ; that which dieth let it die . these and many moe are the common and s●ene corruptions of this age : wherein we are to examine our selues , how farre the renewing grace of the lord hath made vs to depart from them , and what holy loue we haue put on : for hee that loueth not , knoweth not god , because god is loue ; and he that loueth not his brother whome hee hath seene , how can he loue god whom he hath not seene ? hereby wee know that wee are translated from death to life , because we loue the br●thren . and thus much we are content to haue touched of our disposition toward our neighbour . now last of all concerning our disposition in our selues , let vs be sober esteeming basely of our selues , highly of the lords mercie , hungring and thirsting for his saluation : and in verie deed , the more we shall consider how god hath magnifie● his holy name by his maruelou●mercies towards vs ; the more shall we be compelled to cast downe our selues befo●e him in all humilitie and submission of our spirits . when dauid promised to mephiboseth , that hee would shew him kindenesse for ienathan his fa●hers sake ; meph●boshe●h humbled himself to the ground and said , what is thy seruant that thou shouldest looke to such a dog as i am ? but heere the lord o●r god , not onely promiseth vnto vs kindenesse for his sonne christ iesus sake , but presently performes it , & inuesteth vs againe with our fathers inheritance , which we forfeited in adam : and where we were of our owne nature ▪ but deade dogs vncleane creatures , dead in sinne & trespasses ▪ now behold what loue the father hath shewen vs : he hath made vs partaker● ofthis heauenly voc●tion , as to be his sonnes & his heires ; and shall not we then in our very hearts be humbled before him , acknowledge our great vnworthinesse and his excellent mercies . let vs confesse with god lie iacob , i am not worthie ( o lord ) ofthe of the least of all thy mercies , and let euery one of vs say with the cēturion , i am not worthie lord , that thou shouldest entre within my roofe . let vs with the womā of canaan , acknowledge our owne roome , if the lord should giue vs but the benefit of whelps & dogs , that is , should suffer vs to goe vnder our maisters table , and eate of the crummes that fall from it , yet were 〈◊〉 it more then any way we haue deserued : & how then are we bound to haue our hearts and our mouthes filled continually with the praises of our god , who hath bestowed vpon vs his greatest mercies , whē we were not worthy of the least ; & hath set vs down as sons & daughters & heires at the table of his children , that were not worthy as dogs and whelps to creepe vnder it ? haue we not cause to crie out with dauid : o lord what is man that this maner of wa● thou art mind●ful ●f him ? elizabeth maruailed y t mary came to vis●●e her , & in the humility of her hart cryed out : w●ēc● cōmeth this that the mother of my lord sh●ld come vnto me ? but we haue more cause to maruell at the maruaillous mercies of the lord : for what are we , that the fairest ●mong the children of men shold be d●lighted with our loue , and our lord should come to visit the base estate of his seruants , & cōmunicate himselfe , his light and his life , and his grace vnto vs ? let no mā think that i haue multiplied these places of scripture without a cause . the beginning of the diuisiō between vs & the lord , flowed from the pride of our nature ; & vnlesse we humble our selues , & be cōtent in our mind to sit lower then dust & ashes , by reason of our sin , it is not possible , we can bee vnited with the lord. this is the councell that in few words , michah giueth vnto vs , he hath shewed thee o mā what ●s good , and what ●he lord requireth of thee ; surely to doe iustly , and to loue mercy , & to humble ●hy selfe to walke w●th thy g●d . the lord is indeede a moste high god , yet he is nearest vnto them , & they goe soonest vp vnto him , who are least in their owne eyes , and trem●le at his words . and beside this inward humiliation ●rising of the sence of our owne vnworthinesse and weakenesse , let vs come with a hunger and thirst of the lord his righteousnesse and saluation : for he will sati●fie the hungrie , but the full he s●●deth away emptie : onelie they that haue the spiritull appetite , hunger and thirst , are meete to be communicants ●t this holy table . as that oyle multiplyed by el●sha , ceased not so long as the widdow had any vessell wher●in to receiue it : so shall neuer that oyle of grace decay , but bee multiplyed and increased vnto all , that with open & inlarged hearts are ready to receiue it . thou therefore , who art more ready to faint for spirituall hunger then was ionathan , come hither , put out y e hād offaith , eate of this hony and make thee full ; and thou that art sicke ( with the spouse in the canticle ) for the loue of ies●s , come either and the lord shall stay thee with the flagons of his wine . art thou almoste dead like that aegiptian , the seruant of an amalekite whō dauid found in the fieldes , take and eate of this bread , and thy spirit shal returne againe vnto thee . but alasse , where is this spirituall appetite to be found amongst vs ? the deadnesse of our heart is lamentable : we see not our wants : we see not his beautie : wee smell not his oyntments : we taste little of his goodnesse , and therefore ●e make not ▪ haste to runne after him . dauid mourned ouer the dead body of ab●er , but alasse ( if we could ) we haue much more cause to mourn ouer our dead soules . oh that there were in vs y e holy desire which dauid protesteth to haue beene was in him : my soule fayn●eth for the saluation of god : a● the heart brayeth for y ● riuers of waters , & thirstie ground desireth rain , so my soule pa●teth aft●r the liuing god ; blessed are they who hunger and thirste for his righteousnesse ; for they shal bee satisfied . these onely are the guests & banketters that shall eate of the delicates which here he hath prepared , and whose soule shall bee delighted with his fatnesse . these shall go from this table , as moses came down from mount sinai , and his countenance changed , they shall arise with eliah , and walke on in the strength of this bread al the whole daies of their pilgrimage ; they shal go on in their way with s●mpson , eating of the hony which they haue found . they shall depart from this table , as the two maries did from the sepulchree with great ioy . these shall goe home to their owne houses iustified with the publicane ; reioycing because they haue found a treasure , and hath felt the sweetnes of this manna : they shal shal not be able to conceale this great ioy from israel , but shall be forced to tell euerie nathana●l whome they meet : we haue found the messiah . and in all time to come , their soules shall cleaue to the lord without separation more streightly thē the mē of iudah & ierusalem cleaued vnto dauid their king : they shall say to the lord as elizeus said to eliah ; as the lord liueth , and as thy soule liueth , i will not leaue thee , and with peter whither o lord , shall i goe from thee , seeing thou hast the words of eternall life ? the lord worke this spiritu all disposition in vs for iesus christs sake , to whome with the father & the holy spirit , be all honour , praise and glory for euer . psal. 36.7 . how excellent is thy mercie o lord ? therefore the children of men trust vnder the shadowe of thy wings : they shall be satisfied with the fatnesse of thine house , and thou shalt giue them drinke out of the riuers of thy pleasures . psal. 6● . 4 blessed is the man whome thou choosest , and causest to come to thee ; he shall dwell in thy courts , and shall be satisfied with the pleasures of thine house . let glorie be giuen to the lord , and his blessing be vpon his people . finis . notes, typically marginal, from the original text notes for div a19504-e100 rom. 1 , es , 42 16 : esa : 49 : 22 esay . 43 , 6 psal. 19 : 6 esai . 2 : 3. iosh. 10 1● . ro. 11 : 25 gen 9 , 27 mich , 3 , 6 hos. 9.12 io. 12 , 35 luk. 19 42 psalme . 2. luk. 15 : 8 psal. 16 : 6 act. 20 : 32. gene. 43 , 11 notes for div a19504-e3870 the feruēt desire of a christian to be vnited with christ. phil. 3.8 death should bee desired so farre ▪ as it is a meane of this vnion . 2. cor. 5.4 . phil. 1.23 sect. 2 inexcusable thē are the neglecters of this holye sacrament they wil not suffer with him on mount caluarie , who refuse to bāquet with him in his parlour . he. 13.13 euseb. ●● : 3 cap : 36 reu. 3.20 ma. 26.16 cant. 5.1 reu. 19.7 . math. 11.28 . sect. 3 we should com tothis holy table more feruētly , then tho●e diseased persons hasted to the waters of siloam . iohn . 5 , ● . iohn . 9 , 7. gene. 49 10. ioh. 1 , 14 at s●●oam poole , only hee was healed , who first stepped downe : not so at ●h●o● his table . sect. 4 but there is a dāger in cōming without preparatiō luk. ● . 18 sect. 5. two parts of this precept . 1. that wee trie . 2 that we eate . last part of the precept first handled , and why : sect. 6 wee are bound by gods cōmaund to eat at this ●able . bern. super euan. missus : hom . 2. sect . 7. the apostate man will eate where god forbids him , and will not eate , where god cōmands him . mat. 24. ●● . because the seducer is beleeued , & not the sauiour . prou. 9.5 pro. 8.34 pro. 1.30 and 31. sect . 8. ignorance is the mother of recu●ancie . ioh. 4.10 ioh. 6.34 ioh. 4.15 sect . 9. some refuse to cōmunicate because they know not the excellencie of this sacrament . these are foolishlike naaman the syrian ● . king. 5.10.12 1. cor. 1 ●1· sect . 10. worldlings will not refuse a good gift ●lthough giuen by small meanes . farrelesse shoulde christians refuse this heauenly gift , because it is propined by earthly meanes . est. 1.3 . psal. 50.10 . the lesse we see in this table , the more we are bound to beleeue ▪ sect . 11. others refuse on pretended reasons . their reasons refuted . 1 if it bee want of preparation , the fault is their own 2 if it be variance with their neighbour they excuse one sin by another . sect . 12. better excuses then these reiected by christ mat. 22.4 sect· 13. they who excuse their recusancie , because of variance , are further conuinced iohn 16 33 psal. 726. exod. 10.13 mat. 6.15 sect . 14. they who doe so , prefer barrabas vnto christ renouncing their communion with christ , befo re they ren ounce their own wicked will. gen 2●●3 we cōsen● not to th● marriage of the lambe , vnlesse we r●ceue the smallest token of his loue . gen. 24 53 2. cor . 5 20 sect. 15 they loue not christ who wilfully refuse to communicate . gen. 25.30 gen. 22 10 1. iohn . 3 sect . 16. ignorance of both the sorts of recusāts discouered they refuse to eat of this bread which christ calles his 〈◊〉 sect . 17 in this sacrament are things of sundrie kindes , whi●h must bee distinguis●ed . iren. lib. 4 con . valēt cap. 34. mac. hom aug. in 10 cap. 7. tract . 29. cyril . catech . 14. sect. 18 yet are they so to be distinguished , that we destroy not their vnion . sect . 19 three rules to be obserued in the right disc●rning of the lords bodie . sect . 20. 1. rule , that euerie thing in this sacrament be tak en vp in the own kind . act. 412 papists are euill discerners and why ? gen. 1.16 aug. de doct . christiana . lib. 3 , cap. ●6 . tert li. 4. cont . mar. aug. in p●al . ● . ber. in ass . mariae . serm . 5. sect . 21. bastard professors esteeming lesse of this bread and wine then they should , are also euill discerners . iren. cont . valent. lib. 4. ca. 34. how the bread and wine are changed . sect. 22 2. rule . that this sacramēt be celebrated according to the institution of christ. cyp lib. 2 epist. 3. ambrose . 1. cor. 11 ●6 papists faile against this rule , because they peruert christes institution . sect . 23 sacr●legiously they abstract the vse of the cup 〈◊〉 p●ople . con. tri. d● conse . dist . 2. ca. comperimus . the pope and the counsell contrarie the one to the other . reue. 22 19 sect. ●4 3. rule . that this sacrament be vsed to th● right end●s . the first end of this sacrament is ● thankful commemo●●tion of christes death . zach. 12. ●0 . sect 25 error of concomitance disprooued e●ech . 28 3. cōcomitance destroi●s the first end of this sacrament . sect . 26 the second end of this sacrament is the communication of christ to them who are his . sect . 27. in this sacrament chr●st is truly ex●ibit and giuen . sect. 2● ▪ yet christ is no● receiued o● euery one who receiu●s the bread . for there is a great ●ifference betwene communication & acceptation . the wicked ●ate not christ in the sacrament ●oh . 6 54. aug. in ●o●n . cap. 6. tract . 26. sect. 29 they refuse a great gift , who refuse to cōmunicate . 2. sam. 20.1 sect. 3● . the second part o● the precept commau●d●s t●yall before commu●io● gen. 3.24 2. sam. 13 for the lord will not that this table be a snare vnto vs. sect . 31. many make it a snare , that consider not , who they them selues are . hag. 2.14 2. kin . 7.2 ▪ sect. 32. banquetters at this holy table should be holie persons . lu. 11.38 ioh. 13.9 . ierem. 4 14. vnreuerent handling of holie things hath neuer bene left vnpunished . 1 sam . 6. 1 sam . 21 ex. 12.48 exo. 12.6 neither will the lord shew vs his presence without our preparation . exod. 19.9 . exod. 3.5 abac. 1.13 sect . 33. excellencie of this sacrament 1. cor . 11 math. 22.13 sect . 34. an exhortation to come to this holy table with reuerence . lam. 3.40 1. sam . 7.3 gen. 33. mal. 1.14 1 cor . 10.16 . ioh. 19.40 . that we put not new wyne into old vess●ls . mat. 9.17 . 2. cor. 5.17 reuel . ●9 . 9 . sect . 35. comfort to the tender cōscience casten do wne after triall with the sight of sin two sorts of tryall : one of things perfect another of thinges im●e●f●ct malach. 3. psal. 19.7 psal. 12. mala. 3.3 . the triall here commanded , is a searching out of our imperfections . luk. ● . 32 sect. 36 therefore we must not be discouraged , suppose after t●yall we finde them to bee many . luke . 5. ● psal. 51.1 1. tim. 1.15 esai . 1.16 ber. in c●t ser. 23. rom. 7. mat. 11.29 b●r. epist. 72. sect. 37 this cōfort confirmed by considering them who were bidden to the banquet . math. 22 math. 12 20 e●ay . 42.3 b●nque●ters there were the poore , the m●imed , the blind . 2 , cor. 8 , 9. luk. 5 . 3● psal. 119. ps. 146.8 1. pet. 1.12 . heb. 5.12 zach. 12. psal . 146. p●a . 119. psal . 13. reu. 3.18 eph. .3.20 sect . 38 this triall is not that daili● and ordinarie triall required in all our actions pasal . 19 12. psas. 16.7 , ho● nec●ss●ry the dayly triall is . psal. 119.59 cyp. lib 2 ●pist . 2 , ●●al , 4 , 4. psal , 73.13 . sect. 39. miserable is their estate , who liue without daily tri●ll . they are like achito●●el w●●●ut his hou●e in order , but not his ●oule . 2. sam . 7. ● 33. iere. 2.19 psal . 90.8 psa . 50.21 sect. 40. but a singular & extraordinarie triall , is required before cōmunion : euerie new sight of our selues discouers new coruption . esa. 6.5 . iob. 42.6 . sect 41. what a labourous work is in ioyned to man when he is commanded to try himselfe . iam , 3 , 6 sect . 42. man being well tryed shall appeare a new found world of wickednes foure bands of cogit●tiōs whi●h oppresse the mynd . rom. 6 , iob. 31.1 psa . 39.1 psa 19.12 ierem 9.1 es 38.15 psal , 6 sect 43 wi●hout these two things we can do no thing in this work o● tryall . 1. the first is the spirit of god. psal. 2.3 reuel , 3 , pro. 16.2 ezec. 8.9 , sect . 44 the next is the word of god. for euery imperfect thing must be tryed by another thē it selfe . act. 17 , 11 : rom , 16 manye try themselues by wrong rules , and therefore are deceiued : luke , 18.11 . sect. 45. how we may profit by comparing our selues with others . ioh. 20. phil. 3.4 sect . 46. it is not enough that pastors & ●lders try vs , we must try our selues , 1. cor , 2 , 11 , ecclesiast , 37 , 14 other mē cannot know whether thou come to the table as a iohn or as a iudas . let euery man therfore aske for himselfe : is it i lord ? sect. 47 we shold try our selues , and not other men . gene. 31. the reprooues them who before cōmunion try faults done to them , more then sinnes don by them . esa , 40 , 3 sect ▪ 4● . but takes not away brotherly admonition . leu t 19 17 , ●●ct . 49. 〈…〉 of 〈◊〉 before 〈◊〉 are 〈…〉 3. 〈◊〉 . 4 1 〈◊〉 first ●hat we aside 〈◊〉 old 〈◊〉 . ● , cor. 6 , 14. ●om . 13.2 . iam , 1.17 otherwise no communion with the lord. basil hexam . hom . 7 how esther was purified , ere she was presented to ahasuerus . esh. 2.12 2 , cor . 11 2. sect . 50 without diuorcemēt from our olde sinnes , no mariage with the lambe . psal . 45. sect , 51 not a generall confession , but a particular inquisition should bee made of our sinnes 2. king 21.29 . 1. pet . 4. 1. cor . 11 31. psal 34.18 . ierem. 2.35 . esa. 2.12 1. pet . 5.5 sect. 52. 2 the other point is , that we put on the new christian disposition consisting in these three . tit. 2.11 reuel , 19.8 , gen ▪ 37 , 23 , colos , 3 , 12 , sect , 53 , first that towards god , we be holie & heauenlie mynded . psal , 120 , phil , 1 , 23 in such sort that we become wearie of our earthlie pilgrimage . psa. 16.11 sect , 54 , and neuer rest till we returne to the lord. gene. 1 our soules cannot rest but in him eccl , 2 , 3 psal . 39 , 5 , august : pr. 14 , 13 esay 48.22 , esay . 7 , 2 rom , 2 , psal , 73 , sect , 55 ▪ two thinges profitable to help vs to this heauenly disposition . 1 consideration of the place wherein this sacrament was first instituted . 2 consideration of the time . august . in ioan. the time warneth vs to celebrate this supper like a passeouer . 1 , kin , 19 7. sect , 56 but moste of all the meditatiō of the loue of god is profitable to worke in vs this heauenly disposition . ●phe . 3 , 18 psal . 66 16 psal . 139. iob. 40.18 psal. 145.9 it is not a light meditation of this loue , that will raise vp our hearts sect . 57 neuer such a loue shewne as iesus h●th shewed vnto vs. iohn . 15 , 13 ioh. 13 , 1 stronger then the loue of ionathan to dauid . 1. sam . ●0 iohn . 17 cant. 5.9 or the loue of a mother to her children . chrisost. ser. de corpore christ sect. 58 a proofe of christs wonderful loue towards vs. luke . 22 cyp. lib. 2. epist 3. ber. in epiph . ser. 1 sect . 59 what a notable comfort we haue heere , that this banquet begū in earth , & shall be fulfilled in heauen . luke . 22.16 . iona. 2.8 iere. 2.13 cant. 5.8 cant . 1. 1. kin. 19 19 rom. 5. sect. 60 worldlings , who tarry from christ , if they were touched with the sence of this loue , wold forsake all & follow him . 1. sam . 19 ●4 sinfull women would be changed like marie magdalen luk● . 7 and sinful men shold be chainged like m●thew the publicane . sect . 61. the secōd part of our new christian disposition is that towards our neighbour we be louing without loue we cannot be of the cōmunion of saints . iohn . 13 , 3● . math. 5. sect. 62. of the eff●cts by which our loue shold be tryed . gal. 6.10 ephe. 4 readines to forgiue rare ●o be foun● . mich. 7.1 psal. 12 christians liue now like iewes and samaritans of old . as men are mortall , so should their anger be . sect. 63 readines to doe good to others is as rare . professors liues like the sonnes of anak , churlish nabal , or the rich glutton . zac. 11.9 1. iohn . 4.8 sect. 46 the third point of our christian new dispositiō is , that we be sober and little in our owne eies . 2. ●am . 9. with mephibosheth . ephe. 2. 1. ioh. 3.1 with iacob & the centurion the womā of canaan and elizab●th . psal. ● luke . 1 our humiliation necessarily required for effecting our vnion with god mich. 6.8 sect. 65. with this humili●tion we should haue also an hungring for the lords s●luation ▪ luk ▪ 1.53 for the lord filleth the hungrie , and strengthēs them , who are ready ●o faint . ● . sam . 3.33 . psal. 42 math. 5. sect . 66 none meet banketters at this holy table , but they who are hungry . exo. 34.35 the comfortable fruite arising to thē , who after this prescribed preparation communicate ▪ luk. 18.4 2 , kin. 7. iohn . 1 1. cor. 7.35 . 2. sam . 5. 2 , king , 2 2. ioh ▪ 6.68 . balme from gilead to recouer conscience in a sermon preached at pauls-crosse, octob. 20. 1616. by samuel ward, bach. of diuinitie, and preacher of ipswich. ward, samuel, 1577-1640. 1618 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(eebo-tcp ; phase 1, no. a14732) transcribed from: (early english books online ; image set 20112) images scanned from microfilm: (early english books, 1475-1640 ; 1121:11) balme from gilead to recouer conscience in a sermon preached at pauls-crosse, octob. 20. 1616. by samuel ward, bach. of diuinitie, and preacher of ipswich. ward, samuel, 1577-1640. gataker, thomas, 1574-1654. [10], 85, [1] p. by t[homas] s[nodham] for roger iackson, and william bladen, and are to be sold neare the conduit in fleet-street, and at the signe of the bible at the great north-doore of pauls, printed at london : 1618. editor's note "to the reader" signed: thomas gatacre. printer's name from stc. with a title-page woodcut. the first leaf is blank except for signature-mark "a". reproduction of the original in harvard university. library. created by converting tcp files to tei p5 using tcp2tei.xsl, tei @ oxford. re-processed by university of nebraska-lincoln and northwestern, with changes to facilitate morpho-syntactic tagging. gap elements of known extent have been transformed into placeholder characters or elements to simplify the filling in of gaps by user contributors. eebo-tcp is a partnership between the universities of michigan and oxford and the publisher proquest to create accurately transcribed and encoded texts based on the image sets published by proquest via their early 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english -17th century. conscience -religious aspects -christianity -early works to 1800. 2003-08 tcp assigned for keying and markup 2003-08 aptara keyed and coded from proquest page images 2003-09 judith siefring sampled and proofread 2003-09 judith siefring text and markup reviewed and edited 2003-10 pfs batch review (qc) and xml conversion balme from gilead to recouer conscience . in a sermon preached at pauls-crosse , octob. 20. 1616. by samvel ward , bach. of diuinitie , and preacher of ipswich . printed at london by t. s. for roger iackson , and william bladen , and are to be sold neare the conduit in fleet-street , and at the signe of the bible at the great north-doore of pauls . 1618. to the reader . vouchsafe , good reader , in a word or two to vnderstand the occasion of bringing this meditation to the presse , that was purposed onely for the pulpit : the rather for that it commeth not from the authors owne hand , who would no doubt more exactly haue polished it , could hee haue beene perswaded to publish it himselfe . but hee , out of his modestie ( as hee deliuered it , not like a scholler his lesson learned without booke , nor brought with him any intent to haue it further made publi●e , so ) could not be induced ( though instantly laboured both by my selfe and many others , desiring further fruit of so learned and religious ● labour ) eyther to publish it himselfe , or to haue any hand at all in the publishing of it . howbeit at length , vpon extreame importunitie ( rather to preuent the wrong that by imperfect copies printed he might otherwise sustaine , then to satisfie such as were earnest sutors to him for the same ) hee was with much adoe drawne before his departure from the citie , to deliuer his notes to a friend , ( with reference of the whole businesse , to the iudgement and discretion of others , to deale in , and dispose of as they should deeme sit , ) who being present at the speaking of it , with the authors notes , and his owne helpes , hath done his endeauour to penne it as neare as he could , to that which by the author himselfe was then deliuered . which though it be not altogether verbatim the same , yet it is hoped that there is not any thing materiall wanting , that the diligent hearer shall desire : besides that hee shall finde some things ouer and aboue , that straits of time , and default of memory were then a meanes to keepe backe . if any aske , what needed such importunitie in this businesse , there being already so many sermons abroad , that euen printers themselues complaine , that the presse is oppressed with them ? i answere : true it is , that there are sermons indeede abroad by some more then enough ; but yet not enough ( i dare say it ) such as this is , that deale so pit●ily , so effectually , in points of practise so necessary , so ordinary , as this doth ; wherein learning and pietie , delightfull manner of handling , together with profitable and vsefull matter , so concurre , that if it please not any , they are those alone , whose prophane palates can relish nothing that sauoureth of grace , though ne●er so delightfull otherwise : if it profit not any , it is to be feared they are such , whose corrupt consciences are growne wel-neare irrecouerable , if not wholy incurable . but i am lo●th to be long , where the worke it selfe is not . this little be spoken rather in way of apologie for my selfe and such others as vrged the publishing of it , then in commendation of the worke , which in the very reading of it , to any iudicious , ingenious , and religious , will sufficiently commend it selfe . for my selfe , considering the generall approbation giuen it by all sorts that heard it , together with the earnest suites of many others , so in●tantly desiring it vpon their reports , and finding vpon view and serueigh the thing it selfe fully to answere both the reports of the one , and the desires of the other , i was right willing and ready ( as hee speaketh in plato ) though one barren hitherto in this kinde my selfe , to performe some midwiue-like office to another , for the further enlargement of so generally blessed , and so deseruedly desired a birth . wherein if thou shalt chance to finde any defects , consider ●ut ( i pray thee ) how hard a thing it is for another ( though not vnskilfull ) to perfect a worke that some curious artist hath left vnfinished . and so wishing onely , that it may through gods gracious assistance , eyther worke into , or increase in thee a good conscience , and the comfort thereof ; i leaue the worke to thy pervsall , and it to his blessing , whose gift a good conscience is , and with whom , beside the present comfort of it heere , is a plentifull reward reserued for it else-where . thine in christ , thomas gata●re . balme from gilead , to recouer conscience . hebr. 13. 18. for wee are assured , that wee haue a good conscience , desiring in all things to walke honestly . i will vse no other preface , but the short one before my text ; and that not as a preface , but in way of earnest suite , pray for mee : for i desire this day , in treating of a good conscience , both so my selfe to keepe and discharge one , and so to speake home to yours , that the dead consciences may heare the voyce of god in my text , & be quickened , the secure ones awakened , the troubled ones comforted , the tender confirmed , the good bettered , and all receiue some light and life : that wee may all depart hence in the peace of a good conscience , assured ( with our apostle ) that we haue a good one , desiring in all things to walke honestly . this worke , god witnessing to my conscience , i much desire to doe ; and in so doing , i know i desire a worthy worke : a worke so highly and peculiarly needfull for these times , that a sharpe seer of them , was often heard to pray , that god would stirre vp some to write and preach of this argument : and another to augustines wish , that hee might heare paul preach , addeth his owne ; that the text and theame might be conscience : they both saw it gasping , drawing on , and dying ; and therefore desired that some life might be put into and kept in it , before it should be vtterly ouerwhelmed in death and darknesse . the time indeede was , in the beginning of time , when adam by his first sinne brought death vpon his soule , and caused it to raigne ouer all the powers of it , that this facultie had most life left in it , like iobs messengers , to tell newes of the great losse . this little sparke was left fresh , to shew what great light had beene extinguisht ; but now this also through affected blindnesse and wilfull malice , is so smoothered and suffocated , through a daily custome of sinning , the eyes of it so pecked out , the mouth so stopped , the very heart of it so wounded and quelled , that ( as the world iustly complaynes ) it is dead long since ; yea , long since buryed in the graue of habituall sinning , with the stone of hardnesse rouled vpon it ; that , as mary said of lazarus , the very name of it is growne vnsauoury , odious , and i feare ridiculous in the eares of many . is it not then high time for the lord to worke ? and for vs to see if by crying aloud ( as elias said of the dead idoll ) wee may fetch life againe into it , which is the very life of our spirituall life , and soule of our soule ? the time is now come vpon vs , wherein men affect and desire good names , estates , wiues , houses , good cloathes , good euery thing ; but content themselues with meane and vile consciences , which ought to be the chiefe and onely good : wherein men loue to exercise and shew , in preaching , in hearing , in trading , and all manner of conuersing , their memorie , their skill and cunning , and al other their good parts , as they call them , neglecting this which is the whole of a man ; and despising pauls exercise , and pauls policie , to haue a good conscience before god and man : wherein men loue preaching indeede and knowledge , but not wholsome doctrine ; preaching to the conscience and knowledge of themselues , which makes this pulpit and church-yard full of polemicall and schoole-diuinitie ; while the plaine , practicall , and asketicall part lyeth vntilled and vnregarded : which maketh citie and country full of craft and cunning , but voyd and destitute , not onely of the power but shew of conscience . all which maketh me to chuse rather with the apostle to speake fiue words to the heart , then tenne thousand to the eare ; yea , one to shew you a good conscience , then ten thousand to shew all the science in the world . sermon you heare vpon sermon , till this manna●comes ●comes out at your nostrils : but as o●e said of lawes ; one is yet wanting for the practising of all the rest . now conscience is the spring of practise , and the wheele that must set all the rest on going : is it not high time to speake to conscience , that wee be no longer hearers onely , but dooers also ? the time is now approaching , as wee may easily discerne , if wee haue not drunke or slept out our eyes , as in the times of noah , in which christ is powring out his viols vpon the earth : and shortly , wherein the bookes shall be opened , these clasped and sealed bookes of our consciences , the contents whereof are now like letters written with the iuyce of orrenges , that cannot be read till it come to that fire which shall make the secrets of all hearts legible ; yea , euery the least fraction , euen the least idle thought or speech : all which are faithfully registred in them ? is it not then high time to looke into these bookes , to cast vp these bookes ; yea , to be well skilled and versed in them , for the sake and rectifying whereof all other good bookes are written , that we might be able to pro●e and examine our selues , whether vpon good ground wee can say with our apostle ; we are assured we haue a good conscience ? &c. which text when i reade and pronounce , which i doe that you may well vnderstand , mee thinkes 〈◊〉 heare pauls voyce , and discerne ●is spirit , as the mayd knew pe●ers voyce . i heare him vse the ●ike appeale in the very like case , when the hebrewes accused him , and ananias bad smite him on the ●outh ; i haue in all good conscience serued god to this day . in the selfe-sam● case , when they hyred tertullus to paint him 〈◊〉 with his rhetoricke for a pestilent fellow , a troubler and commotioner of the whole world , he● vsed the like prouocation ; i endeauour alwaies to haue a good conscience towards god and man. the● very like protestation against the surmises of the same hebrews , 〈◊〉 9. yea , so often , that 2 cor. 1. 12. 〈◊〉 cals this , and claimes it as his owne glory : this is my boasting , a 〈◊〉 conscience . so that as we discerne ships by their flags ; so may wee paul by this flagge of comfort and defiance , which he hangs out almost in euery epistle ; and if wee may guesse at the whole cloath by the list , this epistle , as this triumph , is his : and worthily indeed becomes it this chosen vessell , to glory in this choise iewell , with which the whole world compared and weighed in the ballance , will be found as light as drosse and vanity , and without this , losse , dung , and vexation of spirit . for mine owne part , when i view this triumph , and the apostle so frequently and so confidently vsing it ; i professe my selfe deepely affected therewithall . the world hath many stately sights , glorious obiects , as namely strong towers , tall ships vnder saile , armies vnder banners , sumptuous buildings , pleasant orchards and gro●●s : but when i represent to my selfe , when i seriously conceiue and consider paul , riding in this triumphant chariot , aduanced aboue the reach of mens thoughts and tongues , yea aboue all sublunarie changes , all the fore-mentioned are in mine eies , but stately bables , pompous fantasies , painted pageants . did paul in the fruition of this , enuie agrippa's golden chaine ? no : it was but for manners sake paul excepted his chaine . and he that hath this good , needes not enuie , i say , not any greatnesse here present : no not nebuchadnezzers stalking in his magnificent galleries , built for his honour : the great turke garded with his ianizaries : the triple-crowned man of pride riding vpon mens shoulders , and treading vpon emperours necke● much lesse the rich foole in the gospell , with his goods increasing ▪ and barnes enlarged : or the rich glutton , with his delicate fare and purple rayment , or any other glistering apparences of happinesse ▪ which dazle the eyes of the doti●● world . let become of the rest wh●● will , so that this be my lot an● portion ( which euer let be my wi●● aboue all wishes ) that through● gods grace and christs blo●d , 〈◊〉 may haue a good conscience , and b● assured that i haue one , desiring i● all things to walke honestly . in which text or * woofe of scripture , which i may call pauls triumph , i finde these threads : 1. the excellent matter , a good conscience . 2. the glorious manner , a certaine confidence . the trophies are not meane and base , but the richest gift which christ ascending on high , left vs to reioyce in , a good conscience . the boasting is not vaine : it 's no fantasticall opinion , no fanaticall reuelation , but a true perswasion ; we are assured : it 's no audacious presumption , but a grounded assertion , built vpon these foure pillers , as so many characters of a good conscience , 1. desiring , 2. in all things , 3. to walke or conuerse , 4. honestly . now that we may more distinctly apprehend the contents of the text , and that which is best of all , attaine the scope and subiect-matter thereof , which is the end of all , a good conscience ; because many talke of conscience , few know it ; i will first discouer the nature of it , which hath beene darkned by schoole definitions , and rhetoricall descriptions . secondly , because many slips and bad ones goe for currant and good ones : most bragge of a good one , and fewest haue it , i will shew you the goodnesse thereof , wherein it consists , how it is made good , and how it is distinguished from seeming good ones , and how by foure infallible characters it 's certainely approued and knowne to be good . because it 's a dead commodity , a grape of canaan , the sweetnesse whereof few haue tasted , and they that haue it cannot vtter it ; i will shadow out the excellency of it , as my poore skill and experience will allow me . lastly , when i haue taught conscience to know it selfe and it own worth ; i will set it a worke to doe it office in the application of the points of this & al other sermons . briefly collect and remarke the heads . 1. what conscience is . 2. what a good one is ; how it may be discerned from bad ones , and knowne to be good . 3. how good a thing it is . and 4. what is the vse , office and effect of a good one . the first part . for the nature of it . things that are neerest , and most neerely concerne vs , are commonly farthest off our knowledge and respect . as god , that is in vs and neere vnto vs ; our owne faces and visages are hardliest knowne , hardliest remembred . som fooles doubt whether there be such a thing in them , yea or no. origen thought it a spirit or genius , associated to our soules , to guide and tutour them : but this is like some of his other conceits . the carnal atheist thinks it a melancholy humour of the body , and so thinkes all the checks thereof to be effects of humour . the schoole men somewhat acuter , thought it , some , an habite , some , an act of the soule . the latter diuines , a faculty of the intellectuall part : but the trueth is , it 's no such in-mate , no such guest of the soule , but an in-bred faculty of it : a noble and diuine power , plante● of god in the soule , working vpon it selfe by reflection : or thus . the soule of a man recoyling vpon it selfe . a facultie i call it , because it produceth acts , and is not got & lost as habits are , but is inseperable from the soule , immoueable from the subiect , as neither acts nor habits are , which is thomas his chiefe reason to proue conscience an act , quia deponi potest ; the cleane contrarie whereof is true , though indeede one might thinke some had laid aside and lost their conscience . a noble faculty i call it , because so admirably strange in the reciprocall working of it . the eye of man sees not it selfe but by the helpe of a looking-glasse : neither hath any creature in this world this priuiledge and property besides the soule of man. i giue it roome , and place it in the whole soule , and thrust it not , as some haue done , like a spider , into some corner of it , as if it were a part of a part ; whereas the operation and power of it is circumscribed in no narrower bounds then the soule it selfe , and therefore the hebrewes more aptly call it 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 heart or soule , and the grecians 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 . if our heart condemne vs , 1 ioh. 3. 20. it hath indeed the vnderstanding for the throne and pallace thereof , where it is chiefly resident , whereby it exerciseth the principall functions , from whence commonly it hath it name conscience ; as the emperour of russia from mosco his chiefe citie : and looke how the soule it selfe is chiefly seated in the head , and there performeth the chiefe actions of reason , discourse and sence , yet is in all and euery part of the body , and in them performeth , baser and meaner offices of nourishment and motion : right so the conscience keepeth a compleat court in the whole soule , commonly called forum conscienciae . in the vnderstanding part it is a iudge , determining and prescribing , absoluing & condemning de iure . in the memory , it is a register , a recorder , and witnesse , testifying de facto . in the will and affections , a iayler and executioner , punishing and rewarding . say wee not in common vse of speech , which is the emperour of words , my conscience tels mee i did or did not such a thing , which is an action of the memory ? my conscience bids mee doe , or forbids me to doe this or this , which is but an action of the will : it smites mee , it checkes mee , it comforts , or it torments mee : what are these but actions of the affections recoyling vpon the soule ? but if any list to contend about these subtilties , conscience tells them , it hath no such custome . conscience falsely so called , delighteth to languish about questions not tending to edification ; let vs rather turne our eyes , to behold and wonder at the diuine royalties and endowments of it , it being in man the principall part of gods image , and that by which man resembleth most the autarchie and selfe-sufficiencie of god , which i graunt is proper to his infinitenesse , to be content and compleat within it selfe : but vnder him , and with his leaue and loue , this facultie makes man selfe-sufficient and independant of other creatures ; like vnto those selfe-mouing engins , which haue their principle of motion within themselues . thus , adam when hee was alone , was not yet alone & desolate , but might conuerse with this his conscience , as well as with a thousand companions and acquaintances . secondly , god hath giuen it more force and power to worke vpon men , then all other agents whatsoeuer : it being internall and domesticall , hath the aduantage of all forraigne and outward . man in this respect being like to the earth , immoueable of all the windes , though at once they should blow from all the points of the compasse , yet easily shaken by a vapour from within : whence it is that the approofes and reproofes of it , are so powerfull and terrible , the one chearing more then any cordiall , the other gnawing more then any chest-worme ; tormenting worse then hot pincers , boyling caldrons , rackes , strappadoes , or what other the cruelty of tyrants hath inuented . if one had angels daily ascending and descending , as iacob had to comfort him , it were not so comfortable , or if langold or coupled to diuels , no more terrible . thirdly , it being indiuiduall and inseperable , there is no putting of it to flight , or flying from it : ne● fugere , nec fugare poteris . it was bred and borne with vs , it will liue and die with vs. agues a man may shake off , tyrants and ill masters a man may flye from : but this saith ( as ruth to naomi , ) i will goe with thee whether so euer thou goest . it hath more immediate deputation and authoritie from god ( of whom all principalities and powers receiue theirs ) then angels , kings , magistrates , father , mother , or any other superiour . it 's onely inferiour to god : it is a certaine middle thing betweene god and man , and hath the dignitie of earles and nobles , that are comites regum . and so paul is bolde , romanes 9. to call his conscience a co-witnesse with god ; whence it hath the name conscience , there being no other creature with whom it can beare witnesse : none knowing what is in man , saue god , and the spirit , or conscience which is man ; which makes paul ioyne them in one appeale , romanes 9. it 's his spie and intelligencer in our bosomes and bed-chambers ; a most exact notarie of what euer wee thinke or doe : it 's his lieutenant , and vnder him the principall commaunder , and chiefe controler of mans life , yea , euery mans god in that sense that moses was aarons . it 's the surest prognostication and prae-indgement of gods last iudgement , and best almanacke within a man 's owne breast , foretelling him what will become of him at that day . wonderfull is the greatnesse and soueraigntie of it : oh men therefore , and oh consciences , know your selues , and in this sence loue , respect , and reuerence your selues more then all other creatures , friends and acquaintance : if they could speake , they would say to mans conscience , as the people to dauid , a thousand of vs are not equall to thee in worth . it fares with conscience as with simple constables ; many an officer , if hee knew his place , would stand more vpon it , and take more vpon him then hee doth . the husband-man were happy , if he knew his happinesse : the horse were strong , if he knew his strength . conscience , if it knew power and authoritie , would not suffer it selfe , so to be silenced , abused , snibbed , and kept vnder , being vnder god , the lord controuler of the soule , and super visour of our life . the second part. thus haue wee seene in part the greatnesse of conscience : doth it not concerne vs now to see the goodnesse of it ; the greatnesse of it making it , if good , nothing better , if bad , nothing worse ; the surest friend and the seuerest foe ? whose heart burnes not within him , to heare wherein that goodnesse consists , and how hee may come by it . the goodnesse of it , is the peace of it ; for stirring , accusing , and galling consciences , are consequents of sinne , and presuppose some euill . they secondly proue good vnto vs onely by accident , and gods goodnesse , which maketh them as afflictions , gather grapes of thornes : yea , all things worke to the best of his beloued , as physitians doe poysons in their confections . and thirdly , they doe not alwayes produce this effect . sometimes , as sicknesses and purgations , they are in order to health , as in the iewes , act. 2. oftentimes as in cain , iudas , achitophell , they destroy their owners . good consciences therefore , properly to speake , are onely quiet ones , excusing and comforting ; but here take heede the diuell , the great imposter of our soules , put not vpon our folly and simplicity , three sorts of quiet ones , as hee doth to most . the blinde , the secure , and the seared . b●inde and ignorant consciences speak peace or hold their peace , because they haue not skill enough to accuse & fin● fault : they swallow many a flie , and digest all well enough . while the scales were vpon pauls eyes , hee was aliue and quiet : he thought concupiscence , the sincke and breeder of all sinne , to be no sinne . such consciences discerne ●innes as wee doe starres in a darke night ; see only the great ones of the first magnitude , whereas a bright euening discouers milions : or as wee see a few moates in darke houses , which sunne-light shewes to be infinite . such thinke good meaning will serue the turne , that all religions will saue , or a lord haue mercy on vs , at the last gaspe : and that which is worst of all , they loue to liue vnder blinde sir iohns , seeke darke corners , say they are not booke-learned nor indeede will suffer their consciences to proue good lawyers in gods booke , least they should proue common barrettors . the law which nature hath engrauen they tread out with sins , as men do the ingrauings of tombs they walk on , with foule shooes : they dare not looke in the glasse of gods law , which makes sin abound , least the foulnesse of their soules should affright them . a number of such sottish soules there be , whose consciences if god opens as he did the eyes of the prophets seruant , they shall see armies and legions of sinnes and diuels in them . in as pittifull a plight as this , are secure , sleepy , and drousie consciences , who see , but will not see ; with whom sinne , sathan , and their conscience is not at peace , but at truce for a time : safe they are not , onely secure they be and carelesse . these sleepe and delight in sleeping ; and two wayes especially , the diuell pipes and luls them a sleepe , by mirth , and by businesse . ease and prosperitie slayes some fooles , wealth and hearts-ease , like dal●●ah , rockes them asleepe on her lap : iesting and merry tales , eating and drinking casts them into a spirit of slumber , and puts their sinne and iudgement farre away , and makes them say they shall neuer be moued . while they prosper and flourish in the world , their consciences deale as creditors with their debters : whiles they are in trading and doing , say nothing to them , but if once downe the winde , in sicknes , crosses and pouerty , then arrest vpon arrest , action vpon action , then come the fowles of the aire and seaze vpon the sicke soule , as the rauens vpon sicke sheepe , write bitter things against them , and make them possesse the sinne of their youth . marke this you that dwell at ease , and swimme in wealth in london . your consciences that lie stil like sleepy mastiues ; in plague times and sweating sicknesses , they flie in the throate : they flatter like parasites in prosperitie , and like sycophants accuse in aduersitie . businesse also and cares of this life choake the conscience , and the voice of manifold imployments drowne the voyce of conscience , as the drummes in the sacrifices to moloch the cry of the infants . and such consciences are quiet , not because they are at peace , but because they are not at leasure . marke then you that haue mils of businesse in your heads , whole west-minster-hals , bursses , exchanges and east-indies , ( as i feare many of you haue whilst i am speaking to your conscience ) that making hast to be rich , ouerlay your braines with affaires , are so busie in your counting-house and bookes , and that vpon this very day , that you neuer haue once in a week , or yeere , an houres space to conferre with your poore consciences ; yea , when did you ? let your consciences answere within you . no , but if at a sermon you appoint them a time , and say you will , you disappoint them and say as agrippa to paul , wee will heare thee another time : and for the most part doe as hee did , that is , neuer heare them againe . all these sleepers haue but a ●rensie mans sleepe ; this tranquilitie will be sure to end in a tempest . yet in a more horrible case , and step nearer hell , are such as seare their consciences with an hot iron , harden them of purpose , as men doe steele , by quenching the motions of them ; brand them with often sinning against their checking ; fleshing tender nouices with this counsell , when their consciences trouble them for any thing , then to doe it the rather , and so they shall heare no more of them : and so it proues through gods iust iudgement giuing them ouer to a reprobate sense , that their consciences serue them as moses did pharaoh , hauing receiued many repulses , and at last commanded to come no more in sight , forbare to lose any more breath vnto him , but complained to god , who swept him and his hoast away with a finall destruction . when tutors and paedagogues are weary with pupils , they giue them ouer to their parents fury : these are 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 , and to these villaines there is no peace , saith my god , and my text. these men● consciences if euer they awake , ( as seldome they doe ) they awake as ionas , in fearefull astonishment ; and if they sleepe out this life till their long sleep , yet their condemnation sleepeth not . thinke of this you monsters , scorners , and mock-gods , that forget your consciences , least they awake and teare you in pieces . be not my brethren deceiued with any of these deceiuing consciences ; children of darknesse : though conscience be not vsually mocked , yet many deceiue their owne heart , iam. 1. 26. for want of examination . many say & thinke in their consciences , that they haue good consciences , when god saith , oh that this people had such a good conscience : and so paul speakes in my text , as once to agryppa , oh that you were as i am , assured that you haue a good conscience , desiring , &c. what then is a good conscience ? that which speakes peace with gods allowance , which is a messenger of good things between god and vs , that vpon good grounds , is in good tearmes with god : it lyes in the lawfull peace of it , and not in integritie and freedome from sinne . if my conscience accuse me not , yet am i not thereby iust●fied , god is greater then my conscience . if any conscience say to any man , hee hath no sinne , it lyes in the throate , and is a lyer . adam onely had such a paradise , such a good conscience , walking with god , without sinne , without feare , in the state of innocencie . there is but one way now to come to it : our peace ▪ is now to be had by mediation and reconciliation ; being iustified by christs bloud wee haue this peace . in stead of many , marke one remarkable place of scripture for this purpose . if you aske what makes a good conscience , there is but one thing in the world will make it , hebr. 9. 14. the bloud of christ once offered by his eternall spirit , without fault , purgeth our consciences from dead workes . yea , so admirable is the force of this bloud , that it leaues no more conscience of sinne within it . this lambe takes them away , and carries them out of gods remembrance into the wildernesse of obliuion . if thy conscience rage as the sea , christ cast into it , as ionas , whists all the waues of it . if the law make it as mount sinay , couered with darknesse , the gospell calmes and lightens it presently . if tossed as the ship where the disciples sayled in the night , hee rebukes the windes , and they are still : if the diuels rend and rage in it , he casts them out presently . the iaylor came in trembling , ready to fordoe himselfe , beleeue in christ , sent him out leaping and reioycing . it 's strange how freely , effectually , and speedily hee quiets all . oh all ill consciences , heare and beleeue ; this is the honour , royalty , and peculiar dignitie of christs bloud , to pacifie and make good our consciences ! i doe not so much admire at all his miraculous healings of diseases , lepries , blindnesse , and lamenesse , daemoniackes of all sorts , as i doe at his gracious and sodaine quietting of the conscience of mary magdalen , of zacheus , of paul ; and so the like vertue this bloud hath still , to day and yesterday the same . nothing else in the world hath this vertue saue his bloud : all other merriments haue no more power to quiet conscience , then holy-water and charmes to coniure the diuell . i finde in a french comedie one brought in as troubled in conscience for sinne , and he runs vp and downe like a hart with an arrow in the side , for remedie , hee buyes a pardon , runnes to shrift , whips himselfe , goes on pilgrimages ; and all this while , like an aguish man that drinkes water , or leapes into a poole , his disease increaseth ; then fals hee to seeke merry company , to see if hee can play away his trouble ; but like sauls ill spirit , it returnes with greater violence , & brings seauen worse with it to torment . in the end hee findes christ , or rather is found of christ , and so findes peace , & this is the good conscience we speake of , to which being in christ , there is no condemnation , no accusation . wouldst thou purchase a good conscience at an easier rate ? wouldst thou haue it for sleeping ? when thou hast tried al conclusions , come hither & buy salue for thy conscience without money . when thou hast spent all thy time and money about what will not quiet thy minde , as alchimists smoake out all in seeking the philosophers-stone , here is that which will doe it ; beleeue and proue , and thou and thy conscience shall be safe and quiet : this is approued , thus paul got his . yea , but is this all ? is it so cheape and easie athing ? may we now sing a requiem to our soules , lay the reynes on our neckes cast care away , and doe what we list ? i feare not such an obiection from a true beleeuing conscience . they that prattle thus , know not ingeniū fidei & bonae conscientiae , the good nature of faith and a good conscience . let me not daube your consciences with vntempered morter . faith as it pacifieth , so it purifieth conscience . christ purgeth our consciences to serue the liuing god , and after all his cures , bids the healed goe away and walke after the spirit , and sin no more . there are indeede a generation of libertines and hypocrites that serue christ , as lewes the 11. is reported to haue serued his leaden crucifixe which he vsed to weare in his hat , & when he had blasphemed or done any villany , he would pull it off and kisse it , and so sinne ouer and ouer againe ; like our common swearers , that crye god mercy , and aske him leaue to abuse his name againe , and that wittingly and willingly . these and such like , let their consciences speake peace to them , as the fryer in stephan ▪ absolued a gentleman , that would needes pay well , yet would not promise to amend his fault , in stead of an absolution hee pronounced a curse vpon him in latine , which hee tooke for pay ; christ absolue thee , which i beleeue he will not ; and bring thee to heauen , which is impossible . many sentencs hath the master of sentences borrowed from ambrose , against such consciences , which i omit to rehearse , least as abners body , they hinder the passing of the people by . a good conscience stands not with a purpose of sinning ; no , not with an irresolution against sin . he is a foole and a vaine mocker , no true penitent , that mournes for sin past , and yet meanes at the same time to sin for the time to come . with which sophisme the most perish at this day , with this in their mouthes ; they beleeue on christ , and haue as good a conscience as the best , and yet walke in sinne . but oh thou vaine fellow , shew mee pauls good conscience by pauls proofe , by his desire in all things , &c. is christ able to saue thee , and is he not able to sanctifie thee ? let mee with tertullian , tell thee , that the promises standing true , thy faith is false , & the gospel remaining safe , thou shalt perish . titus , a trades-man or lawyer here present , happily is desirous to haue peace of conscience , is sorry for his oathes & frudulent courses this week past , but knowes he shall fall to the like the week comming , hates them not , and meanes not to striue against them , but to returne to the myre , my text saith not to him , goe in peace , to such loose and licentious consciences that make christ a bawd of sinning , & faith a cloak of liberty . i haue heard that the pope hath sold a pardon for a murther past , with a dispensation annexed for the next . : but christ my lord and master ( as bountifull & gracious as he is ) grants no such . if he forgiue that which is past , hee giues at least so much grace , as to deny vngodlinesse for the time to come . to conclude this point ; thou desirest a good conscience , without indending or conditioning , i bid thee beleeue in christ , & thou hast one ; yet take this , not into the bargaine , but as an after prouiso : art thou willing to haue a good conscience , and to be assured thereof , here follow foure infallible characters and marks of a good one , which i desire you to mark attentiuely , and by them to try your consciences throughly . hitherto i haue shewed how you may get one : now how you may proue one . here are foure elements or humors , which well compounded & mixed , make vp a perfect health of conscience : if any one be wanting , or faile in a iust measure or proportion , conscience is accordingly defectiue and sicke . the first , is that which must be the first in euery good action , that is , the will , that the bent & inclination of that be set right . i would the word had been plainly translated as it is in other places , verbatim , willing : it implyes first ; that hee that hath a good conscience , doth not onely doe well , but wills to doe well , doth it voluntarily , not forcedly , or out of externall and si●i●ter motions , but from an internall principle , a sanctified and rectified will , which god accepts for the deede , and aboue the deed . secondly , that he doth not onely wish and faintly desire , which translation may flatter an hypocrite that hath some sluggish lusts and some sodaine good pangs and moodes , and such as for the time little differ in sicknesse and starts from a regenerate will : but the word notes a strong and setled resolution , a constant purpose , and such as produceth endeuour . hee th●t will be rich , pierceth himselfe through with many sorrowes , where the same word is vsed ; i graunt it is carnificina , a racke to a good conscience , to say , it must alwaies doe well ; and contrarily , it 's a true ground of comfort , to say , that a will and purpose is sufficient testimonie and approofe of a good one : but then it must be meant , not euery languishing and lazie flash of euery wisher and woulder , but of a willer ; and this word is equal with the other two , which are good synonimaes and glosses vpon this , vsed by paul , act. 23. 24. i labour , or exercise my selfe , and 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 , i lay my policie , or bend my wit and will to haue a good conscience , and to serue god , &c. it may be said of some , they would be good , but they haue no will to it . there is none so prodigall or sloathfull but would be rich ; yet we say not , such will be rich , that is , set it downe , determine it vltimata voluntate . there are none so wicked , but at some times would be good , and leaue sinne ; but these dispositions breed imperfect essayes and profers , ripen not , hold not , discerne not the name of will. corrupt flesh hath many such propensities and bubles , and is very prodigall in momentanie purposes , and promises ; but dauid saith , hee will keepe gods commaundements : i haue vowed , sworne , &c. when michol mocked , i will yet be more vile ; as resolute swaggerers , whose will is set and sould to sinne : they sinne and will sinne , say preachers what they can . ahab will goe , crie micaia● what hee please ; so iosuah will serue god , let others doe what they will. sanctified will may be crossed , and captiued , and hindered , but yet it holds it owne bent , and ouercomes the law of rebellion , is predominant , and can neuer be forced to sinne , or to will to sinne , without a curbe in the mouth , the more stiffe and steady this will is , the better symptome of a good conscience . secondly , this will must extend it selfe to 〈◊〉 ; though in many things our deedes fai●e : which extent ●et paul expound with a distribution , towards god and man , acts 2. in duties diuine , humane , of charitie and piety , whatsoeuer is done for gods sake and for conscience sake , is done equally : no man makes a conscience of one , but hee that doth of all : hee that delights in the breach of one commandement , hates all the rest . the rich and precious boxe of a good conscience , is polluted and made impure , if but one dead flye be suffered , i say not , if one flye of infirmitie light in it , against the will fore-mentioned , but if with our will it lye , and dye , and putrifie in it . when christ purgeth maries conscience , hee casts out not sixe but seauen diuels , yea , hee leaues not one of the legion remaining , not one spot of leprie in any one member , but saith , faith hath made thee whole . here i see many fall short , and i pitie to see so many ciuill men and hypocrites to come so neere the kingdome of heauen and a good conscience , and yet one thing is wanting . foolish herod , that doest many things and stickest at one : foolish ananiah , that spilst and losest all thy cost with a small reseruation . foolish hypocrite , why takest thou paines to climbe so high on the hill of piety , and yet for one step of iniustice to thy neighbour , ascends not into gods mountaine , though thou commest often into gods tabernacle . thou ciuill honest man , why giuest thou almes , liuest fairely with man , and forgettest the maine , art so farre short of this all things , that thou forgettest that which should be all in all , that is , pietie to god ? vniuersall and catholicke obedience , is the best distinguishing touchstone of trueth and falsehood , of good & bad consciences . this vniuersality must also extend to great and small duties . i say vniuersality , not equality : a good conscience mainely desires to please god in the great commandements , as christ cals them , and then in euery complement , in euery hoofe and naile , so neere as he can , yet obseruing a due proportion . it most of all straines at grosse sinnes , yet swallowes not gnats . it trembles a● wounds and blood , feares faith and troth . it abhorres adulterie , hates daliance : it payes tithe-sheaues carefully , it detaines not tithe , mint , and anniseede : it sayes not , an inch breakes no square , and small faults must be wincked at ; and in this sence may well be said to be scrupulous , because it being tender feeles scruples : onely here i lay a caueat , that it be not erronious , or ignorantly dubious and scrupulous , like the wall-eyed or bird-eyed horse , that starts vpon euery shaddow without occasion or cause : makes conscience where god and his word makes none , makes many questions for conscience sake . light and information is as good as tendernesse , both together make an excellent conscience , and obiter for the sake of scrupulous consciences , that desire vnfainedly in all things to walke honestly , i giue them these solemne charges . first , that they study the peace of the church . secondly , that they study their liberties . thirdly , that they be humble towards god and their superiours , and willing to illuminate and regulate their consciences by the word , and be established in what they are to doe , not admitting euery feare of the contrary without ground , yet remembring pauls rule , to follow the dictate of conscience , rather then of angell , potentate or prelate , yea of apostle . for , after the apostle had determined that , in the 14. to the romanes , he yet requires in the eater a plerophorie , and blesseth him that doth it with consent of conscience , and makes all other sinne a sinne against conscience , being worse then a sin against man , yea , next to the sinne against the holy ghost . an erronious conscience holds the wolfe by the eares , bindes to the act , frees not from the fault : oh therefore labour to get a salue , and thinke not your owne eye-sight to be sharper then the eagles . endeauour to informe your consciences aright , and hauing so done , be carefull in all things to keepe a good conscience , and that throughout the whole tenour and course of your liues , which is required in the next terme of conuersation . a word that addes to the former , constancy , and equality : there are in the life of man many turnings , references , and diuers respects , in all these ; at euery turne to be the same man , requires the 〈◊〉 of a good conscience : to 〈…〉 well , a childe or a 〈…〉 may , but to walke euen 〈…〉 turne hither and th●●her 〈◊〉 , argues ●●rength . a 〈◊〉 or ● broken paced horse , may rack● or stri●e a stroke or two right , but to maintaine the thorough-pace , at euery stop & turne to be at the commaund of the rider , argues mettall and goodnesse . this terme is expressed by paul , acts 23. 1. i haue alwayes , or throughly , to this day ; and 24. 16. 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 . that is , without tripping or stumbling , or without oftence to other , &c. a weake conscience falls at euery turne ; godly in one company , prophane in another : a good one , as a square cube , is the same which way soeuer you turne him : turne him to god , to his neighbour , turne him to company , turne him alone , turne him loose to all occurrences , he holds his owne , and wa●kes honestly . for example , one day is the briefe of a mans whole life , and is a little life , bounded with the night and the morning , as with birth and death : wherein a conscionable man first turnes to god in prayer alone , then with his family , then to his calling , then to his recreation , to society , eating and drinking , and at night returnes to god and his rest ; in all these walking god●y , soberly , righteously , and is able to say trulier then the epicure at night , i haue liued this day : i haue walked honestly ; hee is a good dayes-man , or iourney-man , or tasker , which is an excellent mysterie of well liuing and redemption of time , a working vp our saluation in holinesse and righteousnesse , all the dayes of our life : hee that le ts slip one dayes watch and worke , may sleepe at night in a whole skinne , but not in a sound conscience . such crazie consciences haue , as broken brains , their good and euill dayes . conscience as a vessell may easily be kept pure and cleane if rinsed euery day ; but if it goe longer , it gathers soyle , and askes harder scouring by more then ordinary repentance . daily washing will keepe it pure and faire , which is the last thing which is yet wanting to perfection , such perfection as is to be found in the way : and that being added , will s●t on the roofe and pinnacle vpon this building . 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 , hones●ly , i could wish the translatours had vsed some other word , because this is so disgracefull and con●●●p●●ble as the world goes , though the word in the ou● signification is honourab●e , hones●●e in trueth ( as ironically as the world vseth it ) being onely truely honourable , forcing honour from the breasts of men , which is the seat of honour , which brauerie doth but begge . the word is comprehensiue , and compasseth in the fadome of it , as much as any or all the other aduerbs in scripture , worthily , decently , accurately , circumspectly , grauely , after the best fashion , or comely , praise-worthy , liuely , famously . it notes the lustre and grace of an action , which makes our conuersation shine before men , and sets out gods glory . 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 , a thing that citizen and courtier much standvpon in their actions , yea all men now a daies build , feast , weare apparell , not for bare necessity , but for their credit , so as they may get honestie by them . vnconscionable men slubber ouer their worke , and thinke any thing good enough for god , as in malachie : and content themselues with reasonable seruice , for so they translate that , rom. 12. wheras paul often requires christians should be excellent ringleaders in faire workes ; and prouide honest or honourable things before men , and to possesse their vessels , much more their consciences in honour , that they may be fit temples for the holy ghost . as theodoret most diuinely vpon exodus , looke how the temple was adorned with the finest gold , siluer , silke , purple , scarlet , iewels , &c. so must thy conscience , of which temples this was but a type . there is in euery dutie , besides the deed done , an honourable decorum annexed , as in hearing , to heare swiftly ; in preaching , to labour & to be instant in season , &c. in giuing almes , to doe it cheerefully ; in trading to be at a word ; in payments & promises to keepe day and touch : and thus it becomes a christian to exceede the p●arisee , and the ciuill man , or else it is not for his , and his masters honour . dauid did excellently when he would not offer a sacrifice without cost : the woman that spent her costly spicknard on christ , the smell whereof perfumed all the house , and holds the scent to this day : the widdow that gaue all her substance . our honourable personages , how meane are they in allowances to ministers , in almes to the poore , or any expences , that respect god and their soules . a good conscience for the sake of this honestie , auoides and flies , not onely scandalous blemishes and staines , but all the least blushes and appearances of euill , all brackish tasted things his stomacke goes against them : if hee knew neuer so well cards , dice , vsurie , nonresidencie , plurality to be neuer so lawfull , yet because they stand not with this honour , he will none of them . he askes not what he may doe with a safe conscience , but with an excellent one ; not what is lawfull and expedient , but honourable . thus haue we seene the apostle riding in this triumphant chariot , drawne as it were with these foure horses , the foure euidences of conscience . the first proues it good ; the second , true ; the third , strong ; the fourth , excellent . hee that hath the will , hath the seeds of religion , and is a christian , and no atheist . he that willeth in all things , is a sound christian , and no hypocrite , he that conuerseth or walketh , is a grown christian , no babe or weakling . he that walks honourably , is an excellent christian , no ordinary one . he that hath all these , may well say and glory with the apostles confidence , that he is assured . hee that hath them not , as most haue them not , may well conclude , we are assured our consciences are euill and impure , willing to sinne , and walke after the flesh . the word is pauls word , and yet he speakes it in the plurall number by way of syllepsis , changing the number , because hee would haue it the word of euery christian. 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 is a word of as good certainty as 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 , it seconds and binds it , as the better word , rom. 14. i know and am assured . of it as of the roote , springs 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 , for all bellarmine would eleuate it . it imployes a grounded perswasion , not from inspiration or reuelation , but from arguments and experience . faith is the subsistance and euidence ; and the perswasion or assurance of a christian is as firme as is any worldlings for his estate ; yea , a thousand times surer . you rich men think your selues sure of estates here vpon earth , but wee christians know our selues sure of heauen . conscience knowes it selfe , as well as science any principle , or sense any obiect . without which certainety , christians were of all men most miserable . popery and nature , and the old leuen of pelagius newly worse sowred by arminius , neuer hauing had experience of this plerophorie , serue christians , when they boast of this their confidence , as ananias did paul , strike them on the face with the terme of pride and presumption ; yea , sticke not to giue them the lie ; but such betray themselues with their owne noyse . i would aske them but pauls question , doe not you know ? if they answere as vsually they doe , no ; nor they thinke any man liuing on earth : i would pray them to marke what followes , except you be reprobate , reffuse , or reiectanij , as yet in the state of reprobation , for ought they know . indeed it becomes the strumpet and adultresse to doubt of her husband , and not to call him ishi , but let him marke ( saith bernard ) the spouses language ; my beloued is mine and i am his . see ( saith he ) what a good conscience dares doe . habet ecclesia spirituales suos qu● fiducia●iter agunt cum christo : the church hath her spirituall ones that relye boldly on christ , or confidently ; the very terme that bellarmine excepts against . and , id audet vnus , quod audet vniuersit as ; ego puluis & cinis &c. yea , euery particular person dares doe as much as the catholike church ; i that am dust and ashes dare apply this to my selfe . and tompson vpon that text. these things ( saith hee ) are not written , for i know not what ayrie notions or idaea's , but for mee and thee . without which , who would be a christian ? a mans conscience is deepe and deceitful , but the spirit of man , especially helped by the spirit of god , and vpon examination and tryall , may and doth know as well ( saith augustine ) his charity wherwith he loues , as his brother whom he loues ; and if his charitie , then his faith. three scioes i finde in the end of iohns epistle . the major or proposition is gods word ; the beleeuer is saued . the minor is assumed by gods spirit & the conscience , two sufficient witnesses , fortified and assisted by many pr●misses , by the compasse within , the land-markes without , faith , and the fruits of faith. dost thou beleeue , saith christ ? i beleeue , saith the man. and this is the restipulation of a good conscience in baptisme , and in euery true beleeuer . credis ? credo , was the ancient forme , which answere , all wauerers must reuerse and innovate . latitudes of assurance i grant in babes and old men . dauid knew when he came to hebron , that god meant to establish the kingdome to him and his , which he knew before , but now with a confirmed knowledge . the ba●lances of the scoale shake and tremble at the first , after the weight is in a while it settles and rests : and so our soules . and euen this certaintie is of the nature of all precious faith , though experienced faith increaseth it . it 's this confidence that makes a good conscience , this valour makes the value of it invaluable & invtterable . the third part. looke vpon my text , and see how valiantly by the right and interest of it , paul first challengeth & commands prayers , euen at the hands of the iewes . who waters a dry stake with any heart ? what comfort hath peter to pray for simon magus in the gall of bitternes ? but with what hope of audience might hee pray for cornelius , and such as he was ? so iohn for gaius and the elect lady , walking in the truth ; not so for diotrephes . secondly , see how hee begs , not their good opinion and good words of him , though hee knew they had strange surmises and suggestions of him from the false apostles ; to be a very proteus and polypus , the graund cheater of the world , but in stead of apologies and captation of good will , hee relies to this fort , passeth not for mans day : he is happy enough without them : he carryes his comforter in his bosome and breast , and hath a selfe-sufficiency . a dependant and beholding happinesse is halfe a misery , like mils that cannot grinde without winde or water , saul cannot be merry without a filder : ahab without naboths vineyard : ●aman without mordecayes curtesie . a good cons●●●nce without musicke , or money , or honour , is happy and merry a●one , and is like the late eng●n of the perpetuall motion . as rich men stand vpon tearmes , i can liue by you , and without you : so saith a good conscience to the world . it layes clayme not one●y to the prayers and communion of saints , but to the attendance of angels . as luther is said to haue said , they are cookes and butlers to this continuall feast : they ascend and descend to them with messages from heauen . christ , as ahash●erosh with hester , delights to suppe with such . the holy ghost takes vp in them his aboade and temple . see in the canticles how christ is inamoured with the beauty and familiaritie of his spouse , and they often mutually inuite one another to walkes and feasts . thirdly , which is more , in the faile of all other comforts ; yea , in despight of the greatest discomforts and disgraces that can be , in the greatest stormes and stresse , in the foulest weather , this shippe raignes and rides at anchor , as in a harbour and lee , hangs out the flag of comfort and defiance . let the iewes thinke and speake what they will , it stirs not paul : he soares like an eagle , not respecting the chitting of sparrowes ; is aboue the scourges and razors of tongues . i am much taken vp with admiration , when i reade acts 27. how paul in the angry adriaticall sea , at midnight , when the tempestuous euroclydon blew , after fourteene daies want of meat and light , when the marriners despayred , how couragious he was : but i wonder as much and more , to see his conscience passe with top-saile & banners displayed , through the sea and waues of good report and bad report ; to see him singing & praying at midnight in the dungeon , all manacled & fettred , in a wounded skinne , but whole and merry conscience . censures and rumors , the world is full of : who escapes ? not paul himselfe ; yet is aboue them , and giues a secret item to all such as censure him , that they wronged him in iudging a good conscience . the fashion is , to iudge and c●nsure all courses wee reach not , or sauour not ; and so we smite many a good conscience . in this respect what neede haue wee all of good consciences , seeing tongues spare none● there be three dayes especially , the day of sicknesse , of death , of iudgement ; in which comfort is worth a world , and then all worldly comforts and comforters , like run-away seruants and drunken seruing-men , are to seeke when one hath most vse and neede of them , as iob complaineth of the brooks of teman in the drought of summer : which makes the triumph of the wicked ( iob 20. ) momentany , and as a ●●ght vision , when as the prophet said , one dreames of bread , and wakes hungry . in these times you shall see the merry and iolly worldling hang the head like a bul-rush , and the ruffians brags lagge like a starcht ruffe in a storme . how doe such droope , euen in old age , and say , the dayes are come , wherein there is no pleasure ? the storme comes after the raine , that which is worst , an ill conscience like a blood-hound hunts dry-foot , and brings the scent of sins of his youth ; wheras the conscience of a well-passed life is the staffe of age , pabulum senile , better then all the sacke and sugars , and such pittifull comforters . when the stomacke failes , and the grinders waxe few , and appetite ceaseth , this is a continuall feast . in the decay of sleepe , this is a downe-pillow . in all our tribulation , this simon helps vs to beare our crosses . in all our euill daies , it 's at hand . it sustaines the infirmities of the body . when princes sat in counsell against dauid , this was his ionathan to solace him . when the lyon roares , the righteous is bold as the lyon , and feares not what man can doe vnto him . but if once death begin to looke vs in the face , how doth naball dye like a stone ? how doe achitophel and iudas dye the death of cowardly harts and hares , pursued with the full cry of their sinnes , which makes them dead in the ne● before they dye : then a kingdome for a good conscience . then send ( as in the sweating sicknesse and the plague ) for mr minister , but alas he is come , hee can but speake to the eare , and all in vaine , vnlesse god open the conscience to heare and be quiet , to heare and imbrace comfort . but when speech failes , & all thy senses shut vp their doores and windowes , then who or what can auaile but a good conscience ? when thy wife & thy friends doe augment thy griefe with parting and loath to depart , as pauls friends broke his heart with weeping ; then this onely and alone dies , or rather liues with thee , and seeing land approaching , bids thee be of good comfort . more cheerefully haue i seene it make some dye , then other wed . all the martyrs from stephen the proto martyr , down to the last that suffered , are clouds of witnesses : it hath inabled them to imbrace their stakes , clap their hands , leape , as doctor taylor did , within two stiles of the stake , or ( as hee said ) of his home and fathers house . lastly , at the last day , and after the last day , when all these shadowes shall flye away , this substance shall abide . a good wife is a good thing , but sarah must part with abraham ; and these relations shall cease in heauen , but a good conscience , attended with good workes , shall follow : and the better it hath beene here , the better in degree it shall be there , the wider entrance and entertainment it shall finde there . when all bookes shall perish , and heauen melt like a parchment scrole , this booke shall be of vse ; when all diuels and damned shall tremble , and wish the hils to couer them , this shall lift vp thy head , for thy redemption approcheth : when neither friends , nor a full purse shall pleade , nor the wicked stand vpright in iudgement , then , then , well-fare a good conscience ; then shal conscience haue it mouth opened , tongue vntied , & god will bid it speake . happy hee then that hath an excusing one , miserable he that hath it an accusing aduersary . yet still further : faith and hope are excellent things here in this valley ; these shall cease , but conscience abides . a good one was a petty heauen vpon earth , a mount tabor , a glimpse of glory here : a bad one was a hell , a purgatory , or limbo , at the least , tasting of the flashes and smoak of hel : but hereafter how intollerable shall be the horror of the one , and how inconcei●eable the ioyes of the other . without this worm that dies not , hell should not be hel ; without this continual feast , heauen should not be heauen . next the happy vision of god shall be the company of a good conscience , and next to that ●he societie of saints and angels . the last part . but oh lord , who beleeues our ●eport ? or to whom is the benefit ●nd excellencie of this creature of 〈◊〉 reuealed ? oh lord , to whom ●hall we speake & apply what hath ●een said ? you the sonnes of men ●aue ●ost your hearing , charme we ●euer so wisely , thunder we neuer 〈◊〉 earnestly , you despise vs mini●●ers . you thinke we come hither to play our prizes , to speake out of forme , and not of conscience , or to speake out of choller and passion . besides , if you would heare vs , wee are strangers to your secrets , to your hearts and wayes ; we are confined to our cells and studies , and are not acquainted with the tythe of the worlds villanies : besides , when the houre-glasse is out , wee can say no more to you , and perhaps shall neuer see you againe ; but your consciences know you , though happily you be strangers to them , they compasse your pathes , your lying downe , and accustomed wayes . i will therefore turne my speech ( as the prophet to the earth and heauen ) to your consciences . hearken oh consciences , heare the word of the lord. i call you to record this day , that it 's your office to preach ouer our sermons againe , or else all our sermons and labours are lost . you are the cuds of the soule , to chew ouer againe , against your reproofes , and against your secret and faithfull admonitions what exception can any take , your balme is precious , your smitings break not the head , nor bring any disgrace . god hath giuen you a faculty to worke wonders in priuate and solitude . follow them home therefore , cry aloud in their eares , and bosomes , and apply what hath now , and at other times beene deliuered . conscience . if the house and owner where thou dwellest be a sonne of peace , let thy peace , and thy masters peace , abide and rest on him : that peace which the world neuer knowes , nor can giue , nor take away . be thou propitious , and benigne , speake good things , cherish the least sparks and smoake of grace : if thou findest desire in trueth , and in all things , bid them not feare and doubt of their election and calling : with those that desire to walke honestly , walke thou comfortably ; handle the tender and fearefull gently and sweetly : be not rough and rigorous to them , binde vp the broken-hearted , say vnto them , why art thou so disquieted and sad ? when thou seest them melancholy for losses and crosses , say vnto them in cheere , as elkanah to annah : what doest thou want ? am not i a thousand friends , wiues , and children vnto thee ? clap them on the backe , hearten them in well doing , spurre them on to walke forward , yea winde them vp to the highest pitch of excellencie , and then applaud them : delight in the excellent of the earth . be a light to the blind and scrupulous . be a goad in the sides of the dull ones . be an alarum and trumpet of iudgement to the sleepers and dreamers . but as for the hypocrite , gall him , and pricke him at the heart ; let him well know , that thou art gods spie in his bosome , a secret intelligencer , and wilt be faithfull to god. bid the hypocrite walke in all things . bid the ciuill , adde piety to charity . bid the wauering , inconstant , and licentious , walke constantly . bid the luke-warme and common protestant , for shame amend , be zealous , and walke honestly . but with the sonnes of belial , the prophane scorners , walke ●●●wardly with them , haunt and molest them , giue them no rest till they repent , be the gall of bitternesse vnto them ; when they are swilling and drinking , serue them as absolons seruants did amnon , stab him at the heart : yet remember so long as there is any hope , that thine office is to be a paedagogue to christ , to wound and kill ; onely to the end they may liue in christ , not so much to gaster and affright , as to leade to him ; and to that purpose , to be instant in season and out of season , that they may beleeue and repent . but if they refuse to heare , and sinne against thee , and the holy ghost also : then shake off the dust off they feete , and either fall to torment them before their time , and driue them to despaire ; or if thou giue them ease here , tell them thou wilt flie in their throat at the day of hearing , when thou shalt and must speake , and they shall and must heare . conscience , thou hast commission to goe into princes chambers and counsell tables : be a faithfull man of their counsell . oh that they would in all courts of christendome set policie beneath thee , and make thee president of their counsels , and heare thy voyce , and not croaking iesuites , sycophants and lyers ; thou mayest speake to them ; subiects must pray for them , and be subiect for thy sake , to honour and obey them in the lord. charge the courtiers , not to trust in vncertaine fauours of princes , but to be trusty and faithfull , as nehemiah , daniel , ioseph , whose histories pray them to reade , imitate , and beleeue , aboue machiauels oracles . tell the foxes and polititians , that make the maine the by , and the by the maine , that an ill conscience hanged achitophell , ouerthrew haman , shebna , &c. tell them it 's the best policie , and salomons , who knew the best , to get and keepe thy fauor , to exalt thee , and thou shalt exalt them , be a shield to them , and make them as bold as the lion in the day of trouble , not fearing the enuie of all the beasts of the forrest , no , nor the roaring of the lyon , in righteous causes . conscience , thou art the iudge of iudges , and shalt one day iudge them ; in the meane while , if they feare neither god nor man , be as the importunate widdow , & vrge them to doe iustice , oh that thou satest highest in all courts , especially in such courts as are of the iurisdiction , and receiue their denomination from thee : su●●er not thy selfe to be exiled , make foelix tremble , discourse of iudgement to them . to the iust iudges , bid them please god and thee , and feare no other feare : assure them for what ●u●r they doe of partialitie or popularitie thou wilt leaue them in the lurch ; but what vpon thy suite and command , thou wilt beare them out in it , and be their exceeding great reward . if thou meetest in those courts , & findest any such pleaders as are of thine acquaintance and followers , be their fee and their promoter , tell them if they durst trust thee , and leaue sunday workes , bribing on both sides , selling of silence , pleading in ill causes , and making the law a nose of waxe , if they durst pleade all and onely rightfull causes , thou hast riches in one hand , and honour in the other to bestow on them . as for the tribe of leui , there mayest thou be a little bolder , as being men of god , and men of conscience by profession . be earnest with them to adde con to their science , as a number to cyphars that will make it something worth . desire them to preach , not for filthie lucre or vaine-glory , but for thy sake ; wish them to keepe thee pure , and in thee to keepe the mysterie of faith : assure them thou art the onely ship and cabbinet of orthodoxall faith , of which if they make shipwracke , by lazinesse and couetousnesse , they shall be giuen ouer to poperie and arminianisme , and lose the faith , and then write bookes of the apostasie and intercision of faith , and a good conscience , which they neuer were acquainted withall , nor some drunkards of them euer so much as seemed to haue . and whereas thou knowest that many of all sorts are discouraged with the taxation and slaunders ; some that conferre , some that are fearefull and doubtfull , if they doe it to the lord and thee ( as who knowes but god ? ) bid the world as paul doth here , turne censuring into praying ; and if they will not , let them as they preach thee , so regard thee in all godly simplicity , and expect their reward at the hand of the great shepheard . for the citie , get thou into the high places , into the pulpits , into the entries and gates of the citie ; crie aloud , and vtter thy words in the streetes : oh that thou wert free of it , and hadst freedome of speech and audience in all their courts and companies , and that for thy sake they would make and keepe wholesome constitutions for the sabbath , and orderly keeping of it , and see that well executed and obserued , which is the nurse of all piety and conscience . charge them that are rich citizens , and in their thousands , that they lay no weake foundation , no three halfe-penny foundation , but be bountifull to pious vses , to the poore , and to the ministery of the citie , that they take away the scandall of the times , and vpbrayding of the romish penninuah , against the anna of our times : let the hospitall , widdowes and orphanes , taste of their bountie ; with such sacrifices ( if they come from faith and a good conscience ) god is pleased . bid them not trust in the shaddow of siluer and gold , which will wither as ionahs gourd ; but in thy shelter . goe home with them this day , i inuite thee to their table ; if i had liberty ( as they say it 's a courtesie for the preacher to inuite a guest , ) conscience , thou shouldest be my guest . deferre not till to morrow , lest businesse hinder thee . this day reckon and walke with them , and talke with them : bid them lay aside all 〈◊〉 bookes , and reckon 〈…〉 and often reckoning will make you friends . be at their elboes when they vse false weights and ballances , and giue them priuie nips : let the mutuall profit of buyer and seller be the rule of buying and selling , and not the gaine of the one of them alone . assure them that are hourders by fraud , that they hatch as the hen , the partriges egge , that hath wings and will flie away ; and that they heape vp wrath against the day of wrath , and are in the meane time selfe-condemned ; whereas thou wouldst make them rich , and adde no sorrow , nor grauelly greet in their mouth , but such gaine as will stand with content and selfe-sufficiencie . if thou meetest with simonaicall patrons , tell them , they and their money shall perish : for selling thee and the soules of the people . i haue not , as ezechiel , a map of the citie , but thou knowest all the lurking dennes , stewes , and infinite bookes . i send thee to preach and cry vnto them . roare and thunder in the eares of the roaring boyes , of all the swaggering crue , and tell them they must for all these come to iudgement . to the fashion-mongers , both the statelier sort , and the light-headed yellow-banded fooles , tell the one , that the richest lining and inside , is a good conscience : and for the other , if thou wilt vouchsafe , tell them , that plaine apparell and a good conscience , will doe them more honour , then all these apes-toyes . as for the players , and sesters , and rimers , and all that rablement , tell them , thou wilt one day be in earnest with them , & though thou suffer them to personate thee vpon their stages , and shew their wit , and breake their iests on thee now , thou wilt owe it them , till they come vpon the great stage , before god , and all the world : where my sides , memorie , and knowledge faile , adde , enlarge , and apply : print it in the hearts of as many as thou canst , and the lord grant thee grace and audience in their eares , that they may suffer the words of exhortation , and so i end with the prayer after my text , which is like a rich garment , that hath facing , gards , and seluage of it owne . the god of peace , that brought againe from the dead our lord iesus , the great sh●pheard of the sheep , through th● b●ood of the euerlasting couenant , make you perfect in all good workes , to 〈◊〉 his will , &c. 〈◊〉 o lord , that hast wonder 〈◊〉 planted and formed our con●ci●nces within vs , that onely know stand searchest our consciences , ●hat hast thy chaire in the heauens , & onely art able to teach them , & purifie them . thou which woundedst , and healedst 3000. at one sermon , whose hand is not shortned : stretch out thine arme , & doe the like in these latter times . forgiue the sinnes against thee and our consciences , and the frequent checkes of it and thy spirit . ouertbrow the man of sinne , that tyrant and vsurper of conscience . mollifie and enlighten the obstinate consciences of the iewes , turkes , and pagans . illuminate and sanctifie all christian princes , especially our soueraigne , and ●ill the royall treasure of his conscience full of excellent comfort : and that he may as much excell in conscience all other kings of the earth , as hee doth in science , without all comparison . comfort the aflicted , direct the doubtfull and scrupulous , and remoue all snares and scandals of weake consciences , which thou hast not planted , and which thou knowest are not for the peace of thy sion . the grace of our lord iesus christ , and the loue of god our father , and the comfortable fellowship of the holy-ghost , and the peace of a good conscience , be with you all now and euer . amen . finis . iethro's ivstice of peace . a sermon preached at a generall assises held at bvry st. edmvnds , for the countie of suffolke . by samvel ward batchelour of diuinitie . london , printed by augustine mathewes , for iohn marriot and iohn grismand , and are to be sold at their shops in saint dunstones church-yard , and in pauls alley at the signe of the gunne . 1621. to the right honovrable sr. francis bacon knight , lord chancelor of england , &c. when wee see one goe or doe amisse , though his feete or hands bee the next actors and instruments of his errour : yet wee say not , are you lame ? but , haue you no eyes ? or can you not see ? what euer sweruings or stumblings any part of the holy politique maks , the blame lights not vpon the gentry or comminalty , the immediate delinquents , but on the principall lights in magistracy or ministry , which being as guardiants and tutors of the rest , should either preuent or reforme their aberrations . and herein miserable is the condition of these two opticke peeces , that they are more subiect , and that to more distempers then other inferiour parts : yet heerein more , that being hurt , they are more impatient of cure ; not only of searching acrimonous waters ( which yet oft are needefull ) but shie of the most soft and lawny touches : but most of all in this , that being once extinct , they leaue a voyd darkenesse to the whole body , exposing it to the pits of destruction . as exceeding great on the other hand , is the happines , honor & vse of them , if cleere and single . for this our nationall body , it will little boot either to applaude the one , or to bewaile the other : i rather wish ●nd looke about mee for some eye-salue , which may helpe to descry and redresse , if any thing be amisse . and behold heere ( right honourable ) a confection promising something thereto : it was prescribed first by iethro , whom moses calls the eyes of israel , num. 10. 31. and newly compounded by an oculist , of whom as i may not , so i need not say any thing at all . next vnder the sacred fountaine of light ( the light of our israel ) i worthily accompt your lordship most sufficient in law to accept , to make vse , to iudge , to patronize it . the subiect of the book is the principall obiect of your office , to elect , direct and correct inferiour magistracy . to which purposes , nature , literature and grace haue inabled you , that if you should faile the worlds expectation , they will hardly trust any other in hast . many in rising haue followed the stirrop , pampered and letting honor not standing the ground , but once seated haue done renownedly . but your lordship had neuer any other graces them your birth and desert ; to which , hereditary dignity hath so gently tendred it selfe , that you haue not let fal your name of religion in getting vp . therefore now you are in the top of honour , all that know you looke you will be exactly honourable . for my part , bounden to your lordship for a fauour formerly receiued , greater then your honour knowes of , or i can expresse : i shall leaue iethro to be your montoir , and my self remaine euer an humble suitor to god , who hath made you a iudge of conscience , that he would make you continue a conscionable iudge , improouing your place & abilities to the best aduantage belonging to it , the furtherance of your reckoning at the last day . your honours daily beadsman , nath . ward . exod. 18. 21. 22. 23. moreouer , thou shalt prouide out of all the people able men , such as feare god , men of truth , hs●ing couetousnesse , and place such ouer them , to ●ee rulers of thousands , and rulers of hundreds , rulers of fifties , and rulers of tens . and let them iudge the people at all seasons : and it shall be that euery great matter they shall bring vnto thee , but euery small matter they shal iudge : so shal it 〈◊〉 easier for thy selfe , and they shal beare the burthen with thee . if thou doe this thing , and god command thee so , then thou shalt be able to endure , & al this people shall also goe to their place in peace . if iethro were , as the fashion of those times , and the nature of his stile will beare , and ( as some conceipt ) both prince and priest ; then was hee beyond all exception , euery way qualified ; for skill , as a iudicious diuine ; and for experience , as an aged gouernour , to giue direction in matters of magistracy , and to cast mo●ses a mold for a policie in israel . sure i am , a godly and religious man hee was , for he begins with prayer and ends with sacrifice . and such as himselfe , was his aduise , sage and holy . and howsoeuer it passed from him at the first vnder gods correction , yet afterward allowed by god and practised by moses , becomes of good policie , sound diuinity ; of priuate counsell , a generall oracle : ruling for the substance of it , all ages and persons . venerable it is for the very antiquity of it . what price doe men set vpō old copies , coynes and statues : who passeth by a christall fountaine be●ring some ancient name or date , and tastes not of it , though no thirst prouokes him ? such is this , the cleare head-spring of al ensueing brookes in scripture & other 〈◊〉 concerning magistracy . all those texts ( which i wish were set as a frontlet betweene the eyes & as a seale vpon the harts of al in authority iehosaphats charge , 2 chro. 16. 5. iob his character , cha . 29. dauids vow , psas. 101. the scattered parables of salomon , & passages of the prophets , cheefly that round & smart one isai. 33. 14. are they not all branches of this root ? in which respect it must needes be of souaraigne vse for the discouering and reforming of whatsoeuer error time hath soyled gouerment withall . how are defaced copies and disfigured pictures better amended , then by reducing them to their originall ? if the pipe faile , goe we not to the head ? heere is the archetype or first draught of magistracy , worthily in this regard chosen by iudicious buc●r to presse vpon edward the sixt , for the purgation of his offices and lawes , from the drosse and filth contracted vnder the 〈◊〉 confusion : which considering , that worthy iosiah of ours tooke in such good part , and practised with such good successe . yea , moses himselfe learned in al good litterature , trained vp in court , the greatest law giuer that euer was , and father of all law-giuers , of the thrice great hermes , lycurgus , solon . plato , iustinian , & the rest . yea , gods familiar fauorite , faithfull in his house , knowne by name and face , honoured with miraculous power , &c. and that at the hands of one ( age and fatherhood excepted ) his inferiour . i trust that none will dare to reiect or sleight it of , remembring that diuinity , as the mistresse taketh vpon her to direct her hand-mayd , and that the scripture is the best man of counsell for the greatest statesman in the world : this little portion therof containing in it more then all lipsius his bee-hiue , or machiauels spider-web . all which will best appeare by the opening of this rich cabinet , and viewing the seuerall iewels in it , which are these . the parts of the text. it first giues order for the care and circumspection in the choyce , prouide . secondly , it directs this choyce by foure essentiall characters of magistrates . 1. men of ability . 2. fearing god. 3. men of truth . 4. hating couetousnesse . thirdly , it applies these foure to magistrates of all degrees , in an exact distribution of them , by way of gradation ascending step by step , from the highest to the lowest . and place such ouer them to be rulers . 1. of thousands . 2. of hundreds . 3. of fifties . 4. of tens . fourthly , it prescribes to the magistrates , thus qualified and chosen , their offices ; viz. to iudge the people in the smaller causes , &c. and their assiduity and industry therein . and let them iudge the people at all seasons , &c. and it shall be that they shall bring euery great matter to thee , but euery small matter they shall iudge . lastly , it propounds the blessed fruit & emolument that will necessarily ensue thereupon . first to moses himselfe , so shall it be easier for thy selfe , and they shall beare the burthen with thee , and thou shalt bee able to endure . secondly , to the people , and all this people shall goe to their place in peace . the first poynt , techezeh , prouide , or looke out . a word implying all exactnesse and curiosity incident to elections , as inspection , circumspection , inquisition , suspition , information , deliberation , comming of chozah , to see or contemplate , whence the prophets were called chosi , seers . it is in a manner translated by a word of the like force in a businesse of the like nature ▪ acts 6. 5. 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 , suruey the whole body of the people , & chuse the best you can cull out . it were somewhat strict and strange to say , that prayer and fasting must be vsed : and yet this i finde practised in such cases , acts 1. and numb . 27. 16. let the lord god of the spirits of all flesh set a man ouer this congregation . yea , iethro himselfe sanctified this his aduice with a prayer , verse 19. god be with thee . and good reason hee should be called to counsell whose the iudgement is , and whose prouidence is alwayes very speciall in those elections , whether sought or no. if god supravise not , samuel the seer shall take seauen wrong before one right . some mens faults are palpable , and goe before election , som are cunningly concealed and breake not out till after . first , therefore looke vp to god , and then amongst the people , haue thine eyes in thy head , all the care that may bee will be little enough . say not there are no sufficient persons , nor yet think euery one that thinkes himselfe so , or commonly goes for such , is sufficient : seeke out such , and such may be found . looke amongst the oliues , vines , and flg-trees : such trees must be climbed . brambles will lay holde on the sleeue for preferment . ne sit qui ambit . let him neuer speed that sues . lay hands on none rashly . they that are fit & able , must and will bee sought to ; yea , haled out of their ease & priuacy into the light of employment : the charge & danger wherof they waighing , as wel as the credit , or gaine , and knowing them to bee callings , will not meddle with them , till they be called to them . which ambitious inconsiderates not being able to ponder , much lesse to sustaine , thrust their shoulders vnder , and either by hooke or crooke come in , or climbe into the chaire of honor , more tickle then the stoole eli brake his necke off : whither when they haue aspired with much trauaile and cost they fit as in the top of a mast in feare and hazard , and often fall with shame & confusion . not vnlike to some rash youth , that hauing gotten an horse as wilde as himselfe , with much a doe backes him , sits him in a sweat , and comes downe with a mischeefe . for the preuention of all which euils vnauoidably attending ambition , lighting partly vpon the intruders , themselues , partly vpon the admitters , but most heauily vpon the common weale , see how needeful iethro's counsell was and euer will bee ; that such be prouided , not as would haue places , but as places should haue . which care , as iethro commits to moses , so both the scripture and reason imposeth vpō the superiour magistrate , in whose power and place , it ●s either to nominate or constitute inferiour authorities : and whose fault cheefly it is , if they be otherwise then they ought , or the people iniured in this kinde . how circumspect and religious ought such to be , in the performance of this greatest and waightiest duty . vnlesse you will reply , as i feare many a fox doth in his bosome ; thus indeede you haue heard it sayd of olde , but those times were plaine , and iethro a simple meaning olde man. a beaten politician of our times , learned in the wisdom of newer state , & acquainted with the mysteries of the market , that knows how to improue things to the best , for his owne time and turne , and to let the common body shift for it selfe , would haue proiected moses a farre more commodious plot , after this or the like manner : now you haue offices to bestow , a faire opportunity in your hand , to ma●e your selfe for euer , to raise your house , to pleasure your friends , eie●h●r proclamime it openly or secretly , set it abroach by some meanes or other , see who bids fairest , waigh the sacrifices , chuse the men of the best and greatest gifts . oh gall of bitternesse ! oh root of all euill to church and common-wealth , when authorities and offices of iustice shall be bought and solde , as with a trumpet or drum to the candle or outrope . the partic●lar branches whereof , when i seriously consider , i wonder not that christ with s●ch zealous seuerity brake down the bankes , and whipt out the chapmen ●ut of the temple : nor that peter with such fiery indignation banned simon and his money . for if such ●en & money perish not , kingdoms and churches must perish , and both ciuill and ecclesiasticall courts will soone prooue dens of theeues . whose soule bleedes not to see mens soules bought and solde , like sheep at the market to euery butcher ; of this you lawyers ●uch complain against the clergy men , for bying of ●enefices : which you might doe the more iustly , if your selues were not often the sellers of them . i would the fault rested onely in benefices , and reached not into offices and ciuill dignities . indeede that kinde of purchase we cal not simony , it may from his other name be fitlier stiled magick , for by i know not what kinde of witch-craft , men sinne by leaue and law in these ciuill purchases . the lawes and statutes prouided for the remedie of the euil in som cases , tolerating it in other , and the practise by meanes of this allowance growing intolerable . some of thē ( as the world reports ) offices for life & at pleasure , amounting to the rate of lands and inheritances . i am not ignorant of the distinction of iudicature , trust and paines ; but are they not all offices of iustice ? doe they not prepare to iudicate , and lies it not in them to guide or misguide , to hasten or delay iustice , &c. which how can they freely giue , which buy dearely . doth not bucer deale faithfully with his soueraigne ? offices are not liuings and salaries , but charges and duties : not preferments for fauourites ; but rewards of deserts , &c. doth iulius , ●ustinianus , or theodosius their lawes giue allowance to any ? see then how prouidētly iethro prouides against this hemlock-root of iustice ? out of whose prouiso i conclude that which augustine saw in his time , and deere experience confirmes in others : that such as prouid themselues places , and are not prouided for them ; come into them , and execute them , not with a minde of doing good , but domineering ; not of prouiding for others welfare , but for their owne turnes . le● vs pray , that if it be possible this fault may bee forgiuen and amended . and not this onely ; but another neere of kinde to this , met withall in the very next clause of my text , among all the people ( mical hagnam ▪ ) where iethro restraines not moses to his owne familie , to any particular tribe , or to the richer sort : but requires this freedome , as well as the former circumspection . generality and impartiality being requisite to the good being of a choyce : and limitation and restraint the very banes of election ; yea , contradictions to it . as if one should say , you shall chuse amonst twenty , but you shall chuse this or that on● : doth he not in effect say you shall not haue your choyce ? will a man when hee goes to market be confined to any shop or stall , if hee meane to prouide the best ? how grossely is the countrey wronged & befooled , cheefly in the choyse of such , as into whose hands they put their liues and lands at parliaments , by a kinde of conge defliers , vsually sent them by some of the gentry of the shires , perswading ( if not prescribing ) the very cople they must chuse . thus haue we seen naturalls tied to a poste with a straw , which they durst not breake . this text bids you know and stand fast in your lawfull liberties of election , which that you may not abuse , i come to the second part of the text. the second part. it teacheth you how to order and direct it by these foure markes following : which ireckon as foure supporters of the throne of iustice , not altogether vnlike to those foure in christs throne , so often mētioned in the old and new testament , which being properties of angels , are symbolls both of magistrates and ministers . these foure whosoeuer is compounded of , is a man after gods own heart , and a starre in his right hand . hee that wants any of them , is but a blazing comet , how high soeuer hee seemes to soare . these will not onely serue for the triall of such as are candidati , and to bee chosen : but also of such as are inuested and already in place to approoue or reprooue their condition . and for this end and purpose , let vs vse them this day , as foure waights of the sanctuary , whereunto whatsoeuer officer heere present , from the iudges to the bayliffes , shall not answer : this text ( as the hand-writing on the wall ) shall say vnto him from god ; thou art waighed in the ballance , & found too light , and thine office ( at least ought to be ) taken from thee . the first character or weight abilitie . the first and prime marke is abilitie ( anishi chaijl ) . so our new translation expresseth it well in a comprehensiue word , and so i finde it in scripture signifying and comprising all the seueralls that belong to facultie or abilitie : whereof i number first three complementall for conveniencie ; secondly , three substantiall and of necessitie . first chaijl includes strength of body and manhood , such as inableth ●hem for riding , going , sitting , watch●ng , & industrious execution of their 〈◊〉 : such as the scripture commends in caleb at fourescore and fiue , ●nd stories in vespatian , our alfred , hardicanutus , ironsides , &c. which our straight buttoned , carpet and effeminate gentry , wanting , ●annot indure to hold out a forenoon 〈◊〉 afternoone sitting without a to●acco baite , or a game at bowles , or ●ome such breathing to refresh their bodies and mindes , little acquainted with the tediousnes of wise and serious businesse : woe to the people ( saith salomon ) whose princes are children and eate in the morning ; and blessed are ●he people whose gouernors eate in time and for strength . eccles. 10. secondly , neither is wealth to be excluded : that diana of the world , which it onely accounts abilitie , and calls it opes & potentia , which yet is better called value then valour , yet may it concurre to make vp that which our law terme calls mieulx vailiant ; and though at the beame of the sanctuary money makes not the man , yet it adds some mettall to the man. and besides there is some vse of these ●rappings to the common sort , ad populum phaleras , which taught agrippa to come to the iudgement seat with pompe , state , and attendance like that of our sheriffs not to be neglected , as that which procures some terror and awe in the people : which alexander well aduised of , left his gigantique armour behinde him among the indians , and vsed more state then at greece . yet remembring that these complements without the substance are but empty gulls and scarbuggs of maiestie , the sophistry of gouernment , as one calls them : and as zachary the prophet saith , the instruments of a foolish gouernour . and such as ieremie derides in shallum the sonne of iosia , thinkest thou to rule because of thy large building , cedar seeling , painted with vermilian , did not thy father prosper when he did execute iudgment and iustice ? which is indeed the truth & substance , th' other but the flourish . thirdly , i exclude not birth and blood , which many times conveyes spirit & courage with it , blessed is the land whose princes are the sonnes of nobles . eagles produce eagles , and crowes crauens , yet regeneration & education often corrects this rule : and experience tells vs , that cottages and ploughs haue brought forth as able men for the gowne & sword , as pallaces and scepters . gideon came out of the poorest of the familie of manasse , and he the least in his fathers house , a poore thresher . dauid was taken from the sheepefold &c. yet both mighty men of valour , and speciall sauiours of their people : and the wisdome of some of our neighbour natiōs is much to be commended in this , that if they discerne an excellent spirit & facultie in any man , they respect not his wealth , or birth , or profession , but chuse him into their magistracie and weighty imployments . but these three are but of the by and well being , the three following of the maine & essentiall to magistracy , all comprised vnder the word cha●l , as first wisdome and experience , which the preacher tels vs is better then strēgth , either of body or estate . and of this abilitie moses expounds this word in his practise , deutr● . 1. 15. which is a good commentary vpon his fathers aduice . and indeede without this what is a magistrate , but a blinde polyphemus , or a monster without an eye . if hee want either skil in the lawes , or obseruation of his owne , must hee not bee tutored by his clarke , as it often falls out ? or shall hee not bee misled by some counsellor , crossed & contradicted by euery stander by , that shall tell him this you cannot do by law , or i take it you are besids your book . the second is strength of mind , to gouerne and manage passion and vnruly affections , which he that weilds at will , is stronger then hee that subdues a city and conquers a kingdom , to beare and forbeare , and to order the mutinous perturbations of the minde , is that abilitie which the grecians call 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 . very requisite in a iudge , who must not suffer his affection to disquiet his iudgement and vnderstanding , in rising at the first complaint ; nor at any accident or present miscarriage of either party , suddenly occasioned , which is collaterall to the cause , and impertinent to the question , but hee must bee patient and meeke towards their personall weakenesse . likewise long-minded , to endure the rusticity and homelinesse of common people in giuing euidence after their plaine fashion and faculty , in time , and multitude of words , happily with some absurdities of phraise or gesture , nor impatient towards their foolish affected eloquent termes , nor any thing else whereby the truth of their tale may be ghessed at . lastly and principally , i vnderstand with the geneua translation , that fortitude , valour and magnanimity , which we call courage and spirit ; typified in iudah the law-giuing tribe , whose emblem or scutchion was the lyon couchant , that sits or lies by the prey without feare of rescue , that turnes not his head at the sight of any other creature , prou. 30. which salomon symbolized in the steps of his throne adorned with lyons : the athenian iudges by sitting in mars-street . some thinke that from this vertue constantine was termed reucl. 12. the churches male or man-child : others apply it to luther : others to christ , the true lyon of iuda and though i regard not the salick law , because the god of spirits hath often put great spirits into that sex ; yet i mislike not theodorets obseruation vpon that in leuiticus , where the ruler for his sin is enioyned to offer an hee goat , the priuate man a shee-goat . the male suits the ruler best , and the female the ruled . this ability is so requisite , that it is often put for the onely qualitie , as if this alone would serue , as in moses charge to ioshua , and dauids to salomon . and experience hath taught , that where this one hath abouuded , though the other haue been wanting in some magistrates : they haue done more good seruice to their country , then many others who haue had som tolerable measure of the rest , but haue failed onely in this . had not the principall posts of an house need to be of hart of oake ? are rulers & standarts that regulate othe● measures , to bee made of soft wood or of lead , that will bend and bow● pleasure ? doe men chuse a startin● horse to leade the teeme ? had no th● neede be of dauids valour , and san●●sons courage● that must take the 〈◊〉 out of the lyons mouth , and rescu●● the oppressed from the man that 〈◊〉 too mighty for him ? had not he nee● to be of some spirit and resolution that must neglect the displeasure and ●●ownes , reiect the letters and suits o● great men and superiours ? it is incredible to those that kne● it not , what strength great men wil● put to ( especially if once interested for the vpholding of a ' rotten ale● house , countenancing of a disordere● retainer , &c , the resistance whereof 〈◊〉 quires it not some spirit ? had not th● braine neede to be of a strong constitution , that must dispell and dispers● the fumes ascending from a corrup●liuer , stomacke , or spleene ? i mean the clamorous , rumours , and sometimes the flatteries of the vulgar , which often intoxicate able men , and make them as weake as water , yeelding and giuing as pilate , when hee heard but a buze that he was not caesars friend , and saw that in dismissing christ , he should displease the iewes . what heroycal spirit had he neede haue , that must encounter the hydra of sinne , oppose the current of times , and the torrent of vice , that must ●urne the wheele ouer the wicked ; especially such roaring monsters , and rebellious chora's such lawlesse sons of belial ; wherwith our times swarm , who sticke not to oppose with crest and brest , whosoeuer stand in the way of their humours a●d lusts ? surely , if lethro called for courage in those modest primitiue times , and among a people newly tamed with aegyptian ●okes : what doe our a●dacious and fore-headlesse swaggerers require ? our lees and dregs of time ; not vnlike to those wherein god was faine to raise vp extraordinary iudges , to smi● hip and thigh , &c. what atlas shall support the state of the ruinous and tottering world , in these perilous ends of time ? for all these fore-named purposes , how vnapt is a man of a soft , timorous , and flexible nature ? for whom it is as possible to steere a right course without sweruing to the left hand or right , for feare or fauour , as it is for a cock-boat to keep head against wind and tide , without helpe of oares or sailes : experience euer making this good , that cowards are slaues to their superiours , follow-fooles to their equals , tyrants to their inferiours , and winde-mills to popular breath , not being able to any of these to say so much as no. wherfore this text proclames and speakes , as gedeon in the eares o● all the faint-hearted . whosoeuer i● fearefull and timorous , let him depart from mount gilead , and there departed twenty thousand ; and yet god the second time , out of the remnant , viz. ten thousand , defaulks all the lazie persons , and reduced that huge army to three hundred able persons . it were excellent for the cōmon-wealth , if such a substraction might bee made : and the weake-hearted would resigne their roomes to able men . for what haue seruile cowards to doe with the sword of the lord , and gedeon , with god and the kings offices . on the contrary , it sayth to all men of ablity , as the angell to gedeon , the lord is with thee thou mighty man of valour , goe on in this thy might to saue israel , &c. what is our office that are ministers , but as gods trumpetters and drummers to encourage , hearten & put life in those that fight his battles and doe his worke . by the vertue then of this my text , i say to euery good-hearted magistrate , proceede and goe on from strength to strength . and if any aske mee , who then is sufficient for these things ? or where shall we get this strength , that are but flesh and bloud , and men as others ? i answere with iob , siluer hath his veine , and gold his mine where it is found , i● 〈◊〉 is taken out of the earth , and brasse moulte● out of the stone , but the place of this ability is not to be found in the land of the liuing . nature saith it is not to be found in me , wealth and honor sayes not in me : it is fals ly said of cato and fabricius , that the sun might sooner be stayed or altered in his race then they in the course of iustice. the stou●est ●nd the richest wil yeeld . but dauid t●lls his sonne salomon on his death-bed , where hee shall finde it . th●●e o 〈◊〉 , is greatnesse and power , 〈…〉 the head of all riches ; honor and 〈…〉 hands , it is in thee to 〈…〉 , &c. this god hath taught dauid to breake a bow of steele with his hands : it is hee that looseth the coller of princes , girdeth their loines , & vngirdeth them again , befooles the counsellor , the iudge & the spokesman : he it was that made the shooes of ioseph as strong as brasse , ieremiah as a wall of brasse , calch as strong at fourescore and fiue as at forty ; if sampsons haire be off , and god depar●ed from him , he is ●s other men , and ●he can strengthen him againe without his lockes at his pleasure . if any man want wisdome or strength , let him pray , and hee can make him wiser then the children of the east , and stronger then the anakins : wherefore bee strong in the lord , faint not , be not weary of well-doing , for feare of opposition and crossing : though in rowing this ship , the windes blow , and the seas rage , christ can straight send and halcion , and set it on shore . it is the fault of many christian magistrates , euer to be complaining and groning vnder the burthen : as if ease and dilicacie were to be sought for in gouernment . what if there be a lyon in the way ? the righteous is bolder then the lyon : what if thou bee weake ? is not god strength ? and doth not hee perfect his strength in our weaknesse ? what if there be many opposites in the way ? true courage is strong as death , and will trample all vnder feete without resistance . yea , but what if an host come against thee , and as bees encompasse thee ? true faith sees more on gods side then against him , euen guards of angels , as plainely as men doe the sheriffs halberts , and doubts not , but in the name of the lord to vanquish them all . one concluding place for all , out of a preachers mouth , that knew what he said , wisdome strengthens one man more then twenty mighty potentats that are in a city , he that feareth god shall come foorth of all dangers . whence by way of passage , note that the next point of the feare of god , is that which giueth life to the fore-going , and to the two following also : and is placed in the text , as the heart in the body , for conueying life to al the parts ; or as a dram of muske , perfuming the whole box of oyntment . fearing god. iethro must be vnderstood not of the poore bastardly slauish feare , which depraued nature hath left in all : nor of any s●dden flash of feare wrought by word or workes , such as foelix , balshazzar & caligula were not voyd of , and yet neuer the better magistrates : but such a filiall feare , as faith and the assurance of gods loue and saluation breeds ; such as awed ioseph , cornelius , dauid , &c. this is the feare required by iethro , 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 quae parit 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 , godlines which breedeth an heedfulnesse in all our wayes and actions . without this feare of god , what is ability but the diuels anuile , wheron he forgeth & hammereth mischiefe ? what is wisdome but subtilty ? what is courage vnsanctified , but iniustice ? wherin is such skill in the lawes commonly employed , but in colouring and couering bad causes and persons , & in making the lawes a nose of wax to priuate ends ? other men haue other bits and restraints , but men in authority , if they feare not god , haue nothing else to feare . wherefore christ ioynes thē well in the vnrighteous iudge , that hee feared neither god nor man. if hee be a simple coward , he feares all men , if a man of ability , he feares none at all . what are the nerues and sinewes of all gouernment , the bondes and cōmands of obedience , but an oath ? and what are oaths to prophāe men , but as sampsons cords , which he● snapt asunder , as fast as they were offered him . the common sort of our people count the oaths that men take when they take offices , no other then formall : so they distinguish them ( a strange distinction ) from other oaths of contract , and dally with them accordingly . they discerne god no more in oaths , then christ in the sacramēts : and therefore take them , and breake them rashly and regardlesly , which when they haue done , the diuell enters into them , as into iudas ; & runs them headlong into all periurd courses : which makes the land to mourne for the contempt of oathes , and neglect of duties . what is the ground of all fidelity to king & countrey , but religiō ? welfare constantinus his maxime , he cannot be faithfull to mee , that is vnfaithfull to god. why then , what are oathes for athests and papists , other then collers for monkies neckes , which ●lip thē at their pleasure ? such neither are nor can be good subiects : muchlesse good magistrates . papists wil keepe no faith with protestants , let protestants giue no trust to papists though they swear vpon al the books in the world. finally , what is the principal scope of magistracy in gods intention , whose creature and ordinance it is ; but to promote his glory , countenancing the gospell & the professours of it , safe-gard of the church and common-wealth , the first & second table , & principally the two former . now for all these , cheefly for the cheefest , what cares a cato or a gallio , who beares the sword in vaine for god and his ends ; who neuer minds any thing but his owne cabinet , or the ship of the common-wealth at the best : for the other , sincke they swim they , all is one to him , he tooke no charge , nor will he take notice of them . wherefore i conclude , that the feare of god is the principall part , as of my text , so of a good magistrate , whom christ calls a ruler in israel , paul gods minister and sword-bearer : yea , the very forme and soule of such an one : yea , it troubles mee to make it , but a part which salomon cals the whole of a man , especially such a man who is sent of god , for the praise of the godly , and the punishment of euill doers . in which respect being the maine of my text , giue me leaue to giue you a short character of such a magistrate , as this quality will make him , where euer it is found in any good latitude . hee is one that came into his place by gods doore , and not by the diuels window : when he is in , he eyes him that is inuisible , euen god in the assembly of gods : and therefore sits on the iudgement seat in as great , though not in so slauish a feare of offending , as olanes vpon the flead skin of his father sylannes , nayled by cambyses on the tribunall : or as a russian iudge that feares the boiling caldron , or open battocking : or the turkish senate , when they think the great turke to stand behind the arras , at the dangerous doore . who hath alwaies , ( as god enioyneth , deutro . 〈◊〉 . 18. ) a copy of the law of his god before him , and reads it all the dayes of his life , that he may learne to feare the lord his god , and to keep the cōmandement without turning aside , either to the right hand or left . if at all he be glad of his place , it is not as a chaire of honour , or frame of commodity , nor sword of reueng : but only as a meane of furthering his reckoning , and pleasuring his countrey . for his oath , he remembers it , and trembles , lest if carlesly he transgresse it , the winged flying booke ouertake him before he get home : if he cut but the skirt or lap of iustice , his heart smites him with a priuy pinch , till he sets all right againe with god and man. hee dares not so much as by countenance offend any of gods little ones , nor afford a good looke to a varlet , nor yet so to respect their persons , ●s to wrong their cause , for he knowes all these to be abhomination to his lord , into whose hands he dreads to fall as knowing him a consuming fire , and one that hath prouided tophet for princes . when an vnlawfull suit is commenced by power or by friendship , his heart answers ( if not his tongue ) with iob : how shal i doe this , and answer god when hee comes to iudgement . as for bribes , hee dares not looke on them , lest they blinde his eyes before he beware : such pitch he dares not touch , nor receiue into his bosome , lest it defile him in the open sunne , if tendered in closet or chamber , he feares the timber & stones in the wall would be witnesses against him when he comes in court , he fixeth his ey● , neither before him on that person , nor about him on the beholders , nor behind him for bribes , but vpward on god : generally considering that christ is lord paramont of all courts of iustice , and that now his father hath resigned all iudgement into his hands . hee stewards all to his content , promotes his profits without wrong to the tennant . looks so to the church , that the common-weale receiue no detriment : and so to the common-wealth , as the church shall surely flourish : so countenancing the seruants of god , that hee wrong not the worst worldling : maintaines piety , and neglects not equity : keepes his house well , but his church better : in frequenting whereof , he with his family are presidents to all the hundreds where hee dwells : and in a word , doth as much good by his example , as by his authoritie . this is the godly man , whom the lord chuseth and guideth , whose praise and reward is of god : which dauid hauing found true in his life , a little before his death , recordeth to al ages . the spirit of the lord spake by me , and his word was in my tongue . the god of israel spake to me , the strength of israel sayd , thou shalt beare rule ouer men , being iust , and ruling in the feare of god. euen as the morning light when the sunne riseth , the morning , i say , without clowds , so shall mine house be , and not as the grasse of the earth is by the bright raine . for god hath made with mee an euerlasting couenant , perfect in all poynts and sure . let the diuell & the world storm and burst with enuy , one of these is worth a thousand of the common sort , though men will see no difference , but say ; are not all honest and sufficient men ? let men talke of their quiet and peaceable neighbours , and good house-keepers , good common-wealths men : though these be good things , yet if religion com not in , as a number to make them of some value , they are but all as cyphers in gods account now if god thinke so meanely of these , who are either meere ciuil and politique men , or idle pleasurable gentlemen , what reckoning doe we thinke hee makes of such prophane vncircumcised vice-gods ( as i may in the worst-sense best terme them ) that sell themselues to work wickednesse ? that giue themselues to all good fellowship ( as they call it ) and to all excesse of riot ( as the apostle calls it ) and that hate to be reformed : such i meane as hold religion a disparagement to gentry , and feare nothing more , then to haue a name that they feare god , who thinke when they haue gotten an office , they may swear by authority , oppresse by licence , drinke and swill without controll . what shall i say of such ? are these gods , and children of the most high , or the charracters of his most holy image ? diuels are they rather , then deputies for him , imps of his kingdome , farre better becomming an ale-bench , then a shire-bench , and the barre , then ● iudgement seat . but what shall i say to such mock-god-like esau's● shall i take vp the words of moses : if thou wilt not feare this glorious name , the lord thy god , i will make thy plagues wonderfull , and of great continuance : or those of dauid , which perhaps will fit them better and these times of imminent changes , they know not , and vnderstand nothing , they walke in darknes , albeit the foundations of the earth be mooued : i haue sayd ye are gods , but yee shall die like men , and fall like others . or wil they suffer the prophets exhortation , who art thou that dreadest a mortall man , whose breath is in his nostrils , whom the moth shall eat like a garment , and the worme like wooll : and forgettest thy maker , that hath spred the heauens , laid the foundations of the earth , that giueth the first and latter raine , that hath set the bounds to the sea , &c. or will they heare salomons end of all ? feare god , that will bring euery secret to iudgement : or a greater yet then salomon , feare him that is able when he hath killed the body , to destroy the soule also in hell fire for euermore . well , the lord cause them to heare , that hath planted the eare : and plant his feare in their hearts where it is not , increase it where it is , that there may bee more holy magistrates , and that the holy may yet be more holy . and then we hope the other two properties following will more abound , and we shall spend the lesse time and labour about them : for men fearing god truely , will be also men of truth . without which , shew of religion is but lying vanity : a glorious profession , but plaine hypocrisie : and courage , if it bee not for the truth and in the truth , is but either thrasonicall audacity , or wicked impudency . and therefore this character added to the former , ioynes those which are in the forme of iurates , and ought to bee in all offices , good men and true . this stile , men of truth , admits two interpretations , both compatible with the text and theme . a man of truth is either a true israelite , a true nathaniel voyd of guile , as truth is opposed to hypocrisie , or else a louer of the truth , as truth is opposed vnto falshood . one that in particular cases , suites , & controuersies betweene man & man , counts it his honour to sift out the truth , maintaine the truth , stick to it , not suffering himselfe to be misinformed by tale bearers , prompters and sycophants : nor misled and peruerted by the false pleading and colouring of consciencelesse counsellors : but brings iudgement to the ballance and rule of righteousnesse , & delights ( as the hound doth naturally in senting out the hare ) to search and trace out the truth , out of all the thickets and dens of iuggling & conueyance , labouring as much to boult it out by examination in hypothesi , as the philosophers by disputations in thes● : being of his temper that worthily sayd , plato is my friend , socrates my friend , but the truth is my dearest friend . or like iob , who couered himselfe with iustice ▪ & to whom iudgement was as a robe & crowne , who when he knew not the cause , sought it out diligently . and for this purpose , a man of truth keeps men of truth about him : and with dauid , abandons all lyers out of his houshold : whereas of a prince that harkneth to lies , all his seruants are liers . and of such iustice , which is in truth and for truth , i say ( as of old it was sayd ) neither the euening nor the morning star equalls it in brightnesse . but withall , i must complaine as o● old , that truth is fallen in the streets , and vtterly perished from among men , iudgement failes and stands a farre off , equity enters not . the cōmon trade of the times , being to weaue hes in all cases , esepecially against the true seruants of god. and the common weaknesse of the times , to receiue the slāders which are broa●hed and bruited by tongues set on fire from hell : so that he that refraines from cunning , makes himselfe a prey , the latin whereof was all that lewis the eleuenth would haue his sonne to learne : and is al● the policy that most ●udy and practise : insomuch that the common by words are , that when men sweare by faith and truth , they swea●e by idols that are not , names they are and notions , things they are not , nor substances : iewels they are but such as vse them ' die beggers : honourable ladies and mestresses they are , but such as follow them close at the heeles , may haue their teeth dashed out of their heads . well , let deceiuers thus deceiue themselues , let cunning heads and glozing tōgues make as much as they wil of tiberius his art , or the diuels rather , the father of the art , of dissimulation . in the end they shall proue it to bee most pernicious to the students and masters of it . let the children of truth iustifie their mother , which hath the reward of honour in her right hand , and of wealth in the left . and if it should be attended with hatred and crosses for a time , yet hee that is amen , the true witnesse , yea truth it selfe , will reward them in th● end : when he shall shut out with the dogs , all such as loue and make lies ; with whose exhortation i close vp this lincke , and knit with the following , buy the truth and sell it not , which hee that meanes to doe must be a true hater of couetousnesse , else will salomans seuerall prouerbs meet in him . the wicked giues heed● to the false lip , & the lier to a naughty tongue . he taketh the gift out of the bosome to wrest iudgement . acceptation of gifts proue commonly preuaricatiō to the truth . it is impossible to be a champion to truth , & a slaue to mammon : but hee must loue the one and hate the other . it is best therfore to hate the worst , yea the worst of al vices incident to magistracy : the root of all euil , which if it be not rootod out of the magistrates heart , it alone will poyson all the three former qualities required in him . neither strength , nor religion , nor loue of the truth , shall bee able to preserue him from enchauntments of couetousnes . which being an inordinate loue of money , an euill concupiscence of hauing more then god hath alotted , or a lawfull course affoordeth : is such a kinde of idolatry , as transformeth the worshippers of this golden calfe into idolls themselues , making them to haue eyes that see not , eares that heare not : only leauing them hands to handle that which peruerteth the eyes of the wise . it bores out their eyes , and maketh them as blind as euer was sampson and zede●iah . eyes you know are tender things , and small motes annoy them , euen handfulls of barley and morsels of bread make such men to transgresse : and a drams waight iniected , encline the golden scales of iustice to win●● side they please . there is such a strange bewitching power in bul●ams deceiptfull wages , that he that will admit them for iustice , shall soone take them for iniustice , if the right hand be full of bribs the left hād must be full of mischiefe . the diuell as well as the briber laieth his hookes in this sharp , whereof he that is greedy , & will needs be rich , falleth into his snare , and many other ●oysome lusts , which sinck men into perdition , peirceth their soules with sorrow , their names with reproach ● cause them to swerue from the truth ▪ and make shipwracke of a good conscience : eue● the most precious things are vile and cheap in his eyes : to whom money is deare , he will not sticke with ahab to sell euen himselfe to worke wickednesse for the compassing of that his soule loueth and longeth after . but thou oh man of god flie these things , and hate couetousnes with a perfect harred . hate 〈◊〉 as ammon did thamar , first thrust it out of thy hart , and shut & locke the doore after it . secondly , let thy behauiour and conuersation be auerse and strange from the loue of money . let all sordid and ff●●hy●u●re he abhominable : all ill gotten goods exeerable ▪ let them stincke in thy nostrils , as ill as vespatians tribute of vrine . shake thy lap of bribes with nehe●●miah consider as bernard 〈…〉 eugenius , how the ●eople may grow rich vnder thee , & not thou by them . remēber the end of b●b●ms wages , and of iudas his bag . and wish with damianus rather to haue gehazies lepry , then his curse intailed to thee and thy posterity , & inheritance after thee : fretting thine estate as a canker and moth , consuming your flesh as fire , and crying in the eares of the lord of hosts for vengeance . but what doe i making my selfe ridiculous to this olde doting couetous age of the world : this thame only made the pharisies laugh at christ his w●es , because they were couetous : and so doe they serue all our cauears against couetousnesse , applauding themselues and laughing in their sleeues , when they behold their bag● in the chest , and their lands from of their turrets , saying to themselues , what is a man but his wealth ? what is an office but the fees ? there is a text in esay , that if paul had the preaching of it , hee would make euery groping and griping falix to tremble , i meane such as the scripture termeth roring lyons , ranging beares , horse-leeches , wolues , deuouring all in the euening , and leauing none till the morning : as well iudges that iudge for reward , and say with shame , bring you ; such as the country calls capon-iustices : as also such mercenary lawyers , as sell both their tongues and their silence , their clients causes and their owne consciences : who only keep life in the law , so long as there is money in the purse ; & when this golden streame ceaseth , the mill stands still , and the case is altred : such extorting officers of iustice , as inuent pullies and winches for extraordinary fees , to the miserable vndoing of poore suitors : such false periurd sheriffs , stewards of liberties and their deputies , as for money falsifie their charges : such corrupted iurates and witnesses of the post , which are as hammers and swords , and sharpe arrowes in their bretherens hearts : such cheese-bayliffs and lamb-bayliffs , as vex the poore countrey-men with vn●●ist summons to the assises & sessions , with the rest of that rabble . these muck-wormes of the world , which like the gentles breede of p●trefaction , & beetles fed in the dung , relishing nothing else but earthly things : thinke there is no other godlinesse but gaine , no happines but to scrape and gather , to haue and to hold . let such consult shame to their houses : let such make their offices as easting nets for all fish that come : till they get the diuell and all : let them heape vp treasures of wickednesse & treasures of wrath withall . but where there is any feare of god and loue of the truth , let iohns counsell preuaile with them , to bee content with their due wages : let paul perswade them , that godlinesse is ga●●e with contentation : salomon , that gods blessing maketh rich , and adds no sorrow therewith : so shall they follow ●ethro's aduice the better , and proue compleat magistrates & officers : men of courage , men of religion , men of truth , hating couetousnesse , these are the foure cardinall vertues of magistrates , of which if all were compounded ; and were as ominent for them as for their place : and did ( as the great dictator of reason speakes in his politicks ) as far exceede the vulgar sort in those heroycall vertues , as the statues of the gods , the statues of men : then would people become voluntary subiects , put the scepters into their hands , and the law of commanding and obeying become easie , things thought irreparable would easily be reformed . the third part . but before i come to make vse of what hath beene sayd , let mee , as the third part of my text , and the distribution of magistracy requires , tell you to whom all this hath beene spoken : not to iudges and iustices of peace only , as i feare most haue imagined in hearing it : but to al from the highest and greatest , to the lowest & least instrument of iustice , from the gouernour of the thousand , to the centurion , from him to the tithing-man or decinour . to the which ancient diuision of the iewish cōmon-wealth , our platforme agrees in substance . their sanedrim or senate of seuenty , to our parliament , counsell-table , starr-chamber , exchequer-chamber , &c. our iustices of assises in their circuit , and iustices of peace in their general commission or dominion , & high sheriffs in their shires , answering to the rulers of thousāds . our iustices in their seuerall diuisions , iudges of hundred courts and turnes to their rulers of hundreds , to whom i may adde high constables in their places , our court-leets , and court-barons , to the rulers of fifties ; to whom i add ordinary constables in their offices , our cheefe pledges , tything-men or deciners , to their rulers of tens . now all these iethro meanes , and speakes of euery one of them in their station and degree , conceiuing the common-wealth , as an instrument not well in tune , ●but the lest of these strings be false or naught . contrary to the common and dangerous opinion of the vulgar , who to their owne iniury thinke & say , that it matters not for petty officers , constables and bayliffs , &c. though they be of the lees and dregs of men ; nay , they hold that for some offices , it is pitty any honest men should come into them . alas , alas , the more subiect to tentation & vice it is , the more needfull it is that none other should haue them . oh but ( say they ) a good iudge or iustice may help all ; they erre & are deceiued ; it is no one beame , though neuer so bright , that enlightens all : it is not the light and influence of the fixed starres , though the greatest and highest , but of the sun and moone , and the lowest and neerest orbs that gouerne the world . it is the ground-wind , not the rack-winde , that driues mills and ships . it is the ciuill , as in the ecclesiasticall body : if bishops be neuer so learned , and the parishi●nall minister negligent , worldly , proud , or blind sr. iohns , the people perish for want of vision . what can the superiour doe , if the inferiour informe not : what can the eye doe , if the hand and foot be crooked and vnserviceable ? yea , not onely if such as be organs of iustice , such as haue places of iudicature : but if the media and spectacles of the sense will yeeld a false report , how shall the common sense make a right iudgement ? if pl●aders and attourneyes will colour and gloze , if the clarkes and pen-men make false records , may not any of these disturb or peruor iustice ? if the least finger or toe of this body be distorted , i meane iaylor or sergeant , or any other that should execute iustice , be remisse and slacke , then must the dutch-mans prouerb be veryfied , looke what the bell is without the clapper , such are good lawes and iudgements without d●e execution . thus we see in this curious clock-work of iustice , the lest pin or whee●e amisse may distemper & disorder all : but if care were had to frame all ●hese parts of the building according to the plat-forme of this skilfull architect , what an absolute ●armony of the parts , what an exact perfection of the whole ; yea , what golden times should we liue to see ? hearken o yee mountaines and little hills , you rulers of thousands , you rulers of tens , you reuerēd sages of the lawes , you worshipfull knights and gentlemen of the countrey : yee listen to this charg of iethro : ye of the meanest place of the common-welth , weigh not things nor persons at the common beame of custome & opinion , but as the golden standart of gods sanctuary , with these goldsmiths waights of my text : which if i shall perswade you to doe , i feare that wee must say with the psalmist , that sonnes of men beni-adam , yea the cheefest men beni-ish , to be layed vpon the ballance , will bee found lies and lighter then vanity : heere money will not make the man , nor craft carry it away . euery nabal of mount carmel , nor euery achitophel may not bee admitted . this text saith to euery timorous , prophane , falseharted , couetous person , as samuel to saul , god hath rent thine office from thee : and bestowed it on thy better : or as the scripture of iudas , let another more worthily take his place : if this order & rule of triall might take place , how many would bee turned out of commission ? how many would bee effici● perdae ? how would benches & shire-houses bee ●hinned ? as for this present , to the which god hath called me to speake ( for if i had called my selfe , i could not , nor durst not speake ) giue me leaue without offence , to speake that plainly and openly , which i conceiue inwardly : when i haue come into the shire-house , sometimes to obserue the state of it : it hath presented it selfe to my view , not vnlike to that image of dan●el , or picture in horace , or table of the popes of rome , which for memories sake i reduce to these two disticks ex auro caput est , argentea brachia , vēter aeneus , admisto ferrea cruraluto diuino capiti , ceruix humana , ferinus assuitur truncus daemonijque pedes . the head of gold . and with such honourable iudges god hath vsually & for a long time blessed this circuit . if i had euer heard other of these present , i durst not giue titles , lest my maker should condemne me : yet being vnknowne to me but by fame , which hath spoken all good : i desire you to proue and weigh your selues by iethro's weights , and accordingly to haue peace and approofe in your owne consciences , before the iudge of all iudges . the shoulders of siluer . a worthy bench , yet mingled with som drosse , and not so refined as i haue knowne and seene it , like the skie in a cleere euening , bespangled with bright stars . many such there bee at this present , god be praised , religious & able iustices and so many , as i beleeue , few other benches are furnished withall , yet in this siluer i feare some drosse , some whose skill & ability the countrey doubts of , being conceiued to be either so simple or so timorous , that they dare meddle with none that dare meddle with them : or else so popular they will displease none . the diuell himselfe they say may keepe an ale-house vnder their nose . others whose religion they call into question , at lest for the truth , and for the power of it : vnlesse religion may stand with common swearing , with drinking , with familiarity with papists & recusants , with vngouerned and vngodly families , voyd of all exercises of religion , fraught with spirits of the buttery , ruffians , ale-house hunters , and such as are the sin-tutours and sin-leaders to all the countrey about them , i hope there bee but few such , i could wish there were none at all . the brest and belly of brasse , the strength of the countrey , in which ranke i account the great inquest , iury-men and constables , of which number how few make a conscience to present disorders according to oath , or that know and regard the bond of an oath ? the legs and feet of iron and clay , or mire . indeed the very mire & dirt of the countrey , the bayliffs , stewards of small liberties , bum-bayliffs , laylours , &c. if beelzebub wanted officers , he needed no worse then some of these : what misteries haue they to vex the poore countrey-men with false arrests ? and by vertue of that statute tying euery free holder of forty shillings per annum , to attend the assises , but i list not to stirr this sediment of the countrey too vnsauoury to be taken vp in a sermon . oh that some iehosophet would 〈◊〉 & reforme , or that you iudges in th●se your dayes of visitations , wold redresse some part of these greeuances , and reduce all to this ideae of lethro's which indeede would make an heauen vpon earth amongst vs. an vtopia i feare some will say , too good to be true , obiecting to me as to cat● , that he not discerning the times hee liued in , looked for plato's common-wealth in the dreggs of romulus . and so that these magistrates thus limbed ou● , might be found in moses golden age of the world , but not in these lees of time . to which i answere , that if iethr● were now to giue aduice , hee would double the force of it : if dauids r●a●son bee true , it is now high time for god to worke , for men haue destroyed his law. was there euer more 〈◊〉 of courage then now , when sin 〈◊〉 audacious ? of truth , when 〈◊〉 ? of religion , when hypocrisie & i●iquity ? of contentation , when the 〈◊〉 of the world so abounds ? the onely way to repayre these ruines of the dying world is to renew gouernmēt to the primitiue beauty of it : the f●ce whereof i haue now shewed in this excellent mirrour or looking-glasse : so you goe no● away , and forget both the comlinesse and sports it hath shewed you , but wash and bee cleane , and such as it would haue you to bee . there being nothing else remaining ●o your perfection , & the peace of the common-wealth , but this one item following in my text , requiring assiduity and diligence . let ●hem iudge the people at al times , &c ▪ a most needefull 〈…〉 in times that loue ease and priuate employments , with neglect of publique , sitting in the gate is perpetually needefull . diligence in hearing and ending ca●ses would preuent that greeuance of delayes , which occasioned iethro his discourse . how doe you thinke it would haue affected him , to haue seen six or seuen i haue heard sixteene sums set vpon one suit . these our english delayes being ( as marnixius complayned ) worse then the spanish strapadoes . and it is fit , though publique and generall courts haue their termes , yet 〈◊〉 particular audience of petty gree●ances should haue no vacation . many are the suits and controuersies , many are the criminall offences that neede continuall inspection . let him therefore that hath an office , attend to his office with cheerefulnesse ; hee that hath no leisure to heare his neighbours causes : let him ( as the woman said to philip ) haue no leisure to beare office . cursed is he that doth the worke of the lord negligently , & withholdeth his hands there from . you gentle-men complaine often of idoll shepheards , dumb dogs , &c. in the ministery . but how many such in ●he magistracy ? som in commission , that neuer sit on the bench but for fashion : constables that are but cyphers in their place . forsooth they will be no pragmatical fellowes , no busiebodies to trouble the countrey . is there no mean between busi-bodies and tell-clockes , between factotum and fay't neant . from this neglect comes that wrong and iniury to the assises , that such petty causes , tribling actions and complaints trouble these graue and reuerend personages , which a meane yeo man were iudge fit enough to end in a chaire at home : when the whole shire must be troubled to heare and iudge of a curtesie made out of the path , or a blow giuen vpon the shoulder vpon occasion of a wager ▪ or such like bawble-trespasses which i shame to mention . and to punish euery petty larceny , euery small ryo● or disorder , which lighter controuersies and faults , if perticular office●s wold comprimize & redresse in their spheares , these greater orbs should not be troubled with them . then indeed would that follow , which iethro assures moses of in the last part of my text , ver . 23 if thou do this thing ( god so commanding thee ) then shalt thou & thy people endure , & al this people shal go quietly to their place . an admirable emolument of magistracy & sufficient reward of all the paines of it : that they and the people may goe home in peace , sit vnder their vines and fig-trees , follow their callings , and that which is the cheefe iewell of all , may lead their liues in al godlines and honesty . that the gold , blew & purple silke might shine and glister within the tabernacle , the out side was couered with red skins and goats haire , such a shelter is magistracy to gods church and religion . nebuchadnezzar was a great tree , & euery particular magistrate a little one vnder whose boughs people build & sing , & bring vp their young ones in religious nurture , euen foster fathers ●s ioseph in aegypt such were the rich & religious ●imes vnder dauid & salomon , & vnder such as are described , esa. 32. which whole chapter is worth the reading , as a iust commētary vpon this poynt , setting foorth the felicity , quietnesse , plenty , vertue and piety of iust gouernours , as are hiding places from the winde , and refuges from the tempest , riuers of waters to dry places , and as raine to the new mowen grasse , &c. such also were the times enioyed by the church vnder constantine , deciphered as i take it , reu●la . 8. when there was silence in the heauen about halfe an houre , the golden vialls filled with sweet odors , the prayers of the saints ascending as a pillar of smoke vp to heauen . of these times see panegyricall sermōs , and encomiasticall discourses storied of old , and one of them at large recorded by eusebius , which whole booke is nothing but an elogium of those peaceable dayes , wherin the church was edified & multiplied . the common-wealth being to the church , as the elme to the vine , or as the garden to the bees ; the flourishing of the one , the thriuing of the other ; and the disturbance of the one ; the disquiet of the other . how can men either attend gods seruice or their owne worke , when they are molested at home with drunkards , barretors , quarrelous persons , when hurried vp to london with suits . as i haue knowne a constable molested with fiue or six actions , for an act o●●●stice , in punishing vice according to his office . with what bitternesse of spirit do men groāe vnder delayed and peruerted iustice , when it is turned into hemlocke , and turnes them out of their wits , some of them swouning at the sight of their orders , as i haue heard from credible eye-witnesses , others ready to destroy themselues , their aduersaries , yea & sometime their iudges . oh the benefit of good magistrats , it is an vnknowne good , as the country-man in an ancient poet , when he had met withall , feelingly cries out , that hee had found that summum bonum , which the philosophers so much sought after , he now enioying more sweetnes of little , then of great reuenues in troublous times . surely , we christians ought to prize it as the meane of our greatest good , of our peaceable frequenting of our churches , and our seruing of god. marchants make a higher vse , & are more glad of a calme then common passengers : so should we christians the● heathens , by how much wee may and ought to improoue it for richer ends of gods glory , and the saluation of our soules . lord what manner of persons ought we to be in all godlinesse and honesty , which enioy such length & latitude of halcion dayes , as we doe ; the tithe whereof , not onely former dayes , but our neighbour nations would now be glad of . god giue vs the vse and fruite of them , continue and encrease them , which will then bee , when this text shall be more studied and practized . then ( s amos speakes ) shall iudgement flow as waters , and righteousnesse run downe as a mighty torrent ; or as dauid , then shall the earth encrease , al people shall praise god , and god euen our god shal blesse vs , and all the ends of the earth shall feare him . and so i make iethro's preface my conclusion . i haue giuen you counsell this day : hearken to my voyce , and the lord god bee with you all . amen . finis . to my louing brother mr. samvel ward . brother , if you meete with your iethro's counsel returned from beyond the seas , and as much 〈◊〉 your expectation preserued aliue , as his 〈◊〉 in law was against 〈◊〉 iniunction , mer●● as much as you will , but bee no more offended 〈◊〉 you haue cause . ioab 〈◊〉 wider on the 〈◊〉 hand in destroying dauids absolon , contrary 〈◊〉 be serious charge , yet ioab was pardoned , and 〈◊〉 no brother . i haue noted you hitherto inexora●●● for your owne publishing of any thing of your 〈◊〉 ▪ whether out of iudgement , modesty , curio●● ▪ or melancholy , ● iudge not : but when others 〈…〉 them with fruit and acceptance ▪ 〈◊〉 the light , i haue seene you rest content with 〈◊〉 publique good . the like leaue i haue taken , 〈◊〉 like successe , assuring you and my selfe 〈◊〉 the generall welcomnes and vsefullnes heereof to all whom it concernes , which are the greatest number of the land , euen so many as haue any reference to sessions and a●●iles , if not all sorts of christians . onely i feare that the corruption of our times is growne so grosse and eglon-like , 〈◊〉 it doth not e●ud-like enough sh●rpen the poy●● , and send them home to the 〈◊〉 , that they 〈◊〉 to the quicke . i had my selfe added thereto a pro●ect and per●wasion for the redresse of many abuses crept into offices and officers● ▪ hauing spent so much time in the study of the law , and 〈◊〉 of some offices , ●s made me weary of the errours i ●aw , and heartily wi●h the reformation of them : but ●caring i haue learned too much bluntnesse and plumpne●se of speech among the lutherans , which is here as p●rme a quallitie , as smoothnes with you , as also loath to meddle out of mine o●b , in my second thoughts i suppressed it . and so wishing vnto this , many diligent , conscionable and ingenuous readers and appliers ▪ and to them gods blessing and the fruit intended , i take my leaue . from 〈◊〉 in prusia . your brother in the ●lesh , in th● ' lord , and in the vvorke of the minist●ry . nath . ward . notes, typically marginal, from the original text notes for div a14732-e150 socrates apud plat. in theaet . notes for div a14732-e290 scintilla reliq . rect● rat●●is . lips. acts 24. 16. and 33. 1 cor. 14. * 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 , seges gloriae . serius triumphus . 〈…〉 hugo & bern●●●us . lyp● . pol. praei●dicium extremi iudicij . tertul. heb. 10. 2. lib. 4. dist. 14. 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 . 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 . 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 . 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 . 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 . turbid● & lucid● int●rualla . 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 . 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 . 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 . 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 , &c. 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 . 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 . hose● 2. 〈…〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 . notes for div a14732-e5350 cohen . 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 . ●gnat . ad m●●rian cassob . diuision . circumspection . 1 samuel 19. tanqum sub●asta . aug. lib. 10. de 〈◊〉 . dei. cap. 14. generality . strength . wealth . 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈…〉 ierem , 22. 14. birth . eccles. 10. 17. iudg. 6. 19 1 wisdome and experience . ●ceies . 9. 16. monstrum cui lumen ademptum . 2 moderation of minde , or equanimity courage or magnanimity . 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈…〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 . iudg. 7. 3. iob 28. 〈…〉 cant. ● eccles 7. 14. the second character . 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 . nulla sides haben da papistis 〈…〉 io●● 3. rom. 13. eccles 12. 13. 1 pet. 2. summ●boni iudicis est ne● respicere , neque circumspicere . sed su●picere . ferus in iob. 5. 30. 1 sam. 23. 2. 3. 4. isa. 52. 8. 12. 13. ier. 5. 22. 24 the third character 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 . iob 29. 26 psal 101. 7. 〈…〉 isa 54. 4. qui nescit dissimulare nescit ●i●ere . the fourth character . prou. 17. 4 acceptatio ●●uneris est pr●●aricatio veritatis . 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 . ex●d 27. deut. ●6 19. ezek● 3 8. 〈…〉 1 tim. 6. heb. 13. 5. 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 . trees vt de sub 〈◊〉 cres● ai● neq●● qum , sed vt ipsi de ●e . esay . 33. 14. 〈…〉 〈◊〉 psal 6● . 9. ob. answ. the fourth part . the fift part . euseb. lib. 10 the second part of the true watch containing the perfect rule and summe of prayer: so plainlie set downe, that the weakest christian, taking but the leas paines, may in a very short space, learne to pray of himselfe, with much assurance and comfort: both to get strength to obserue the lords watch; and to helpe to turne away, or at least finde comfort in the euils that are to come. true watch. part 2 brinsley, john, fl. 1581-1624. 1607 approx. 180 kb of xml-encoded text transcribed from 74 1-bit group-iv tiff page images. text creation partnership, ann arbor, mi ; oxford (uk) : 2004-03 (eebo-tcp phase 1). a16881 stc 3776 estc s119301 99854508 99854508 19934 this keyboarded and encoded edition of the work described above is co-owned by the institutions providing financial support to the early english books online text creation partnership. this phase i text is available for reuse, according to the terms of creative commons 0 1.0 universal . the text can be copied, modified, distributed and performed, even for commercial purposes, all without asking permission. early english books online. (eebo-tcp ; phase 1, no. a16881) transcribed from: (early english books online ; image set 19934) images scanned from microfilm: (early english books, 1475-1640 ; 1196:7) the second part of the true watch containing the perfect rule and summe of prayer: so plainlie set downe, that the weakest christian, taking but the leas paines, may in a very short space, learne to pray of himselfe, with much assurance and comfort: both to get strength to obserue the lords watch; and to helpe to turne away, or at least finde comfort in the euils that are to come. true watch. part 2 brinsley, john, fl. 1581-1624. [42], 105, [1] p. printed by f. k[ingston] for samuel macham, and are to be sold at his shop in pauls church yard, at the signe of the bul-head, at london : 1607. dedication signed: iohn brinsley. printer's name from stc. reproduction of the original in the bodleian library. created by converting tcp files to tei p5 using tcp2tei.xsl, tei @ oxford. re-processed by university of nebraska-lincoln and northwestern, with changes to facilitate morpho-syntactic tagging. gap elements of known extent have been transformed into placeholder characters or elements to simplify the filling in of gaps by user contributors. eebo-tcp is a partnership between the universities of michigan and oxford and the publisher proquest to create accurately transcribed and encoded texts based on the image sets published by proquest via their early english books online (eebo) database (http://eebo.chadwyck.com). the general aim of eebo-tcp is to encode one copy (usually the first edition) of every monographic 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2003-11 emma (leeson) huber sampled and proofread 2003-11 emma (leeson) huber text and markup reviewed and edited 2003-12 pfs batch review (qc) and xml conversion the second part of the true watch , containing the perfect rule and summe of prayer : so plainelie set downe , that the weakest christian , taking but the least paines , may in a very short space , learne to pray of himselfe , with much assurance and comfort : both to get strength to obserue the lords watch ; and to helpe to turne away , or at least finde comfort in the euils that are to come . luk. 21. 36. watch and pray continually , that you may be accounted worthie to escape al these things that shall come to passe , and that yee may stand before the sonne of man. esay 62. 6. 7. yee that are the lords remembrancers , giue him no rest . at london printed f. k. for samuel macham , and are to be sold at his shop in pauls church yard , at the signe of the bul-head . 1607. to the right honorable my singular good ladie , l. elizabeth countesse of huntingdon . ovr sauiour hath not without good cause , ( right honorable ) so oft called on vs to watch and pray , ioyning these two together ; and warning his disciples in their greatest dangers to watch and pray , that they might not fall into temptation ; and also charging vs al to watch and pray continually , that wee may bee accounted worthy to escape all the euils that shal come to passe , and to stand before the sonne of man : because wee can neither watch vnlesse we pray , to obtaine strength from the lord by it ; nor pray with any comfort or power vnlesse we watch ; nor euer get assurance to escape the euils that shall come on the world , much lesse the temptations of satan , and damnation of hell , and appeare with boldnes before our sauiour , vnlesse we both watch and pray . in regard whereof , first my dutie to the maiestie of god , who prepared the watch against so needfull a time ; and after so graciously caused my poore desire therein to be accepted in his church , hath encouraged me to endeuour to adioine vnto the watch , this short directiō for praier , as a secōd part & vnseparable cōpaniō , for the further good of his seruāts , of whō sundry haue desired it at my hands . and secōdly , your ladiships most fauourable acceptance of it , being dedicated vnto my honorable lord , perswading mee of your honors vnfained desire both to obserue the same , and walke in al the waies of the lord , haue imboldened mee to presume to offer this vnto your honorable ladiship : both to testifie my dutifull & thankfull affection to your honor also : and withall my feruent desire that you may both walke hand in hand all your daies , in the selfesame narrow way of eternall life ; as being of the same heart and holy accord ; inabled thereunto by the spirit of the lord , obtained by continuall and instant prayer . that so ye may shine as glorious lights together in the earth , and after in the heauens aboue the brightnes of the sunne for euermore . this shall bee in the meane time your key into the palace of the almightie , and to the presence chamber of his glorious maiestie : whereby you may be admitted at al times to most familiar conference ; receiue immediate answers from his highnes : obtaine the riches and pleasures of his house , with the most pretious iewels of his treasurie , to adorne you farre more gloriouslie then al the pearle & pretious stones of all the princes of the earth : all which shall vtterly vanish as the dimmest star , when the brightnesse of your glory shall appeare . you shall as israel preuaile with your god ; haue his angels and all the hoasts of heauen at your desire ; all being at a perpetuall league with you : vanquish the diuels and put them to slight : ouerthrow the plots of the wickedest , and bee accepted for the church : subdue in your selfe each corruption : bring euery thought into an holy obedience : finde the comforter at hand in all your trials ; the sweete voice of the spirit , making you with cōfidence to call him abba , oh father ; and giuing you most strong assurance of a kingdome , and the life of the angels in the very terrours of death . and in a word , you shall thus most happilie redeeme the daies of our vanitie , and treasure vp in heauen abundantly against the time of the perfect accomplishment of your eternall triumph and felicitie . wherunto according to my perpetuall bounden dutie i shall alwaies striue during my life ; both by my incessant prayer , and all other holy meanes , which the lord shall in mercie vouchsafe vnto mee his poore and vnworthie seruant . and in this studie towards your eternall glory and happines i rest my selfe ; nothing doubting of your like honorable acceptation of this my poore endeuour , howsoeuer penned in a most plaine and familiar stile ; not to delight the curious with an houres reading , ( which i leaue to others ) but to helpe the honest heart that is desirous to learne of our sauiour how to pray , and con●inue therin in this life without fainting , to reioyce and sing with the angels for euer after ; when all others shall weepe and mourne , and neuer find any comfort or release . your honors in the lord euer to be commanded . iohn brinsley . the preface to the christian reader , containing a large and plaine direction to all the simpler sort , how to vse this aright ; and an earnest exhortation to all sorts to giue themselues instantly to watching and prayer . it hath bin wished ( christian and louing reader ) that as i haue gone briefly thorow the commandements and articles of the faith , to set downe the true watch ; so i would take some paines in like manner to go thorow the lords prayer , to set downe the rule and summe of prayer , for the further perfecting and our better performing the same watch . whereupon notwithstanding my great inabilitie , in respect of many of my brethren , yet considering the lords former mercie , who shewes his power in weakenes ; and that by this motion of diuers , he seemes to require my poore labour in this also , i haue attempted likewise to make triall herein : the better to inable the simpler sort , and to stir vp all sorts to this holy dutie of prayer ; that wee may obtaine strength from the lord to keepe his watch more faithfully , with innumerable other benefits procured by the same . and the rather waying well into what dangerous times we are fallen ; wherein the greatest part ( as it is much to be feared ) in such a declining to atheisme , and generally to extreame coldnes or luke-warmenes , do seldome or neuer pray priuately ; vnlesse perhaps they vse the lords prayer without vnderstanding . and of those who vse to pray , some although they pray much , yet they do it verie superstitiously , to the prouoking of the lord , and hurt of their owne soules , insteed of receiuing any true comfort therein ; as all our popish sort doe . others haue a desire to pray , but want abilitie or leasure ; as all our young and weak christians . a third sort droope in their troubles , temptations and feares , & are at their wits end , as iacobs sons , not knowing what way to take , and so continue fretting & vexing themselues , or attempt vnlawfull meanes for their reliefe and comfort . a fourth are afraid to vse the lords praier as a prayer , because they cannot comprehend the power and meaning of it in so short a forme . a fifth haue gone forth with our sauiour into the garden , promising and beginning to watch & pray , which yet through our long peace , ease and prosperitie , are fallen a sleepe . anoother sort liue in monstrous sinnes , as in oppression and vnmercifull dealing , deceit , secret vncleannesse and the like , without repentance ; and yet imagine that they do pray , that their prayers are accepted , and that they shall be heard in the day when they crie , deceiuing their owne soules . a last sort , and those one only and scarse to befound abide therein with our sauiour , in watching , cries and teares ; wrastling and weeping as iacob for the deadly malice & bloodie threats of esau ; and holding vp their hands with moses against amaleck , and also to pacifie the lords wrath , that it may not be powred out vpon his people , for all our grieuous prouocations . to witnes my loue therefore yet further to all these , and all other the lords people , i haue thought it my dutie , to offer this weake labour also vnto the church of god , commending the successe vnto him who is only wise , and worketh by what instruments it pleaseth him , and aboue all that we are able to conceiue : yet not before i had first communicated it vnto some , much reuerenced of all , for their learning and pietie . now i onely craue pardon to speake freely , to each of these sorts particularly . and first to you that pray not at all , looke but vpon the necessitie of prayer , and consider well in what state you stand vntill you both can and vse to pray ; that you are in state of damnation , hauing all things accursed vnto you , and working your perdition ; and that you but onely tarrie for the execution of gods vengeance ; and then if god open your eyes to see your selues and your danger , i shall not neede to call vpon you : for , i know you will giue no rest vnto your eyes , vntill yee both can and do practise this dutie : nor that you will euer let day passe hereafter , but reserue some part of it frō your pleasures and profits , to bestow on the lord in praier , at least a morning and an euening sacrifice . for you that pray in an vnknowne tongue , or without vnderstanding , bee aduised to spend no more labor in vain , deceiuing your owne soules : but learne of your lord and sauiour to pray according to that heauenly paterne , wherein all true wisedome and comfort are to bee found , and which hee hath prescribed vnto you to vse , if you be any of his disciples ; warranting you , that if you so aske you shall haue ; and then shall you finde him to answere to your hearts desire , and carry you into all his sauing truth . and you that haue a desire to pray , but know not how to performe this dutie aright ; i haue chiefely intended your good , both to direct you for the things which are principally to be begged of vs , cōtained in the lords praier , the summe whereof i haue indeuoured to set downe plainely in these short formes , applying them to the times ; and also to helpe you for the maner of vttering your requests ; ayming at this specially , that by daily practise and meditation herein , you may better attaine to the true vnderstānding of the lords prayer , and euer haue it in fresh memorie : which being the true perfection and paterne of all holy prayer , doth in the infinite wisedome of god comprehend whatsoeuer wee can aske . that so you hauing first gathered by wise obseruation in the watch , a true catalogue of your owne speciall sinnes and wants , together with the maine sins and wants of the church and land , may be able of your selues both for matter and words , to make a most holy confession of sinnes , and powre forth your supplications according to your necessities , with comfort and assurance . i haue set them downe in two formes , both containing the same matter , as they are one set against the other : the one more shortly , because of our wearinesse in the best things , and chiefely in this dutie of praier , ( though of all other most necessarie ) the other somewhat more largely , for the fuller vnderstanding of it ; & the heads of both in the margent , for the better remembring therof , or conceiuing the like . not intending to tie any necessarily euer to vse one of these , ( though it were much better to vse them or the like , then not to pray at all , or to pray vnprofi●ablie ) nor to vse the whole euer at large ; although all the things therin comprized , are to be begged daily for our selues , or our brethrē ; but to vse those most which chiefely concerne our speciall necessities , and the necessities of the church & our land ; all which may be referred to one of these sixe petitions ; as when we would pray for the glorie of god , or to kindle the zeale of it in our hearts , or that hee would shew his glorie in the preseruation of our king and realms , to vse the first . for the church of god and perfect vnitie therein , and against the proude enemies thereof ; or to get more assurance that we are true members of it , to vse the second petition . the third for cheerefulnes in doing gods will or submission to the same . the fourth for dependance on god , for the things of this life , and against all worldly cares . the fifth for forgiuenes of sins . the last against dangers or feare of temptation , or any euill whatsoeuer . i haue laboured to set downe the heads so plainly in the margent , distinguishing them by figures , that euerie one that is desirous to learne , hauing but the seuerall parts of the lords prayer in his mind may meditate of them happily at his worke , or as god giues any leasure ; first marking how many things are chiefely to bee learned in the preface ; then in each petition ; so in the conclusion : and withall labouring to feele the need that hee hath of them , our miserie without them , and our happinesse in inioying them ; stirring vp his heart to a vehement desire of them : and then at time of prayer , to trie how hee can pray of himselfe according to the same order ; vsing in the meane time , the helpe of one of the prayers set downe , to get fit words ; and withall a daily meditation of his particular sinnes , ( chiefely those following his nature and course of life , with his principall wants , dangers , chastisements and mercies receiued ; ) which wil be the speediest teacher to the simplest to pray with true feeling and power . if you would yet wish further direction for the generall confession of sinne , you may vse the first and second helpes in the watch of the miseries and hainousnes of sin , edit . 2. p. 5. l. 9. if for an increase in holines , the third helpe of the blessings following a holy conuersation , pag. . 11. if for true comfort and thankesgiuing ; you may vse the helpe of the rules for direction and comfort in our examination , pag. 13. all which with the graces we haue obtained in the law , and promises wee are assured of in the gospell , must needes cause the simplest to send forth most sweete prayers and thankesgiuings vnto the lord. and so much for you that are desirous to pray . now to you that droope and faint vnder your seuerall troubles and temptations , not knowing what to doe , the lord hath here shewed you plainly what you should doe . learne of eliphas in iob : acquaint your selues with your god , search your sins by the true triall ; make peace with him ; then you may lift vp your face to god , make your prayer vnto him , and he will heare you : and his light shall shine vpon your waies . when others are cast downe you shall be lift vp , and god will saue the humble person . therfore continue in prayer , wrastling with him , let him not go before he haue blessed you , hee will certainly doe it : proue and see . onely , waite vpon the lord in the way of righteousnes vntill hee send you comfort ; vsing all holy and warrantable meanes to helpe herein , to serue his diuine and fatherly prouidence ; but bee afraid of so much as euer thinking of any indirect course ( as to do but the least euil to obtaine neuer so great a good ) and much more of rebelling against the lord or his anointed , and that authoritie which he hath set ouer you ; lest aboue all other your miseries , you bring vpon you the terrors of an accusing conscience , and procure vnto your selues most certaine w●e and endlesse damnation . and thus much also for you that faint in your trials . if you desire further aduice , looke the watch , pag. 127. you that are afraid to pray , vsing the lords praier as a praier , because you cannot comprehend the meaning of it in so few words : and for that the multitude abuse it ; accept my earnest endeuour to knit our hearts in one , both by assisting you , that you may haue the summe of the chiefe heads euer in fresh memorie , as before your faces ; and that those who abuse it without vnderstanding may learne a more holy vse thereof . if yet you say , that you cannot so comprehend the full meaning of it , and all things contained in it , the like you may say ( as i take it ) of euery seuerall petition thereof , and so we should vse none of them in our prayers at all . for you beloued that sometimes were feruent in prayer , but now are cold and heauie , or altogether fallen asleepe ; i say not vnto you awake ; behold frō whence you are fallen , and the danger wherein your selues and the church of god stand continually ; seeing our experience teacheth vs , that there is but a haire bredth betweene vs and death ; especially if euer the lord should leaue his anointed , our iosiah , the breath of our nostrils , for one minute , into the enemies hand . but only ● put you in mind of the speech of our sauiour to his drowsie disciples ; sleepe hencef●●th & take your rest . i beseech the lord that i may neuer see that day . but what meane all our prodigious signes ? and aboue all the worst , that almost all are * fallen asleepe in the midst of such inueterate and deadly malice , with all sorts of grieuous sins , increased to the vttermost , to prouoke the lord : after so many bloodie practises , and terrible forewarnings giuen so oft , and gratiously to preuent the fierce wrath of the lord ; with such sudden and insolent ouer flewings ; some of them in the middest and highest part of the land , where the people were altogether secure , as not hauing the least thought of any danger by water ; which together with the former , ( principally of the raging seas ) all must needs acknowledge to bee the finger of god. if our sinnes had been so increased in the daies of popish blindnes , they had been nothing in respect ; but now in such a glorious light , wherin all of vs haue been conui●ced so many waies ; and subscribed in our hearts to the truth of god ; and also doe generally still iustifie the good waies of god ; and yet for most part set our selues to trample all vnder our feete , hating or scorning all that so walke , how gratious , dutifull and blamelesse soeuer they bee ; this must needs make our sins vnmeasurablie sinfull , and aboue the sins of all other people . and you that imagine you pray , and are accepted of the lord , and yet liue in your vnmerciful oppression , or any other such haynous sin ; may it not well be demaunded of you , as the lord doth of the people before the captiuitie : will you sweare , lie , dissemble , oppresse , build your houses with blood , commit adulterie , drinke the blood of soules and all other euil , and yet crie , the temple of the lord , we are the seruants of the lord , and call vpon his name ? will the lord take a wicked man by the hand ? can the hypocrite call on god in the day of his aduersitie ? no , no , you deceiue your own soules ; vntill you haue made peace with god by vnfained repentance , and by zacheus restitution peace with men . nay although you cōmit not halfe these sins , but liue in any one of them , or any other like , hath not the lord saide you shall surely die for it ? what good then can your prayers doe , when the lord turnes away his eare ( as frō that which is abominable , ) and will laugh at your destruction ; because you would not first harken vnto him to turne from your euill waies , while he stretched forth his hands vnto you ? therefore vnto you ( my deere brethren of all sorts and degrees ) who haue continued with our sauiour hitherto , in watching , prayers and teares , and yet at length begin with moses to faint , with long holding vp your hands , or are in danger thereof ; i vnfainedly desire of the lord , that i may bee as aaron or hur , to helpe to confirme your weake hands and wearie knees . let not your hearts faint . the lord our god is with vs while we are with him . let vs continue wrastling and weeping , and become so much more instant and importunate as the sins & dangers increase ; vrging him euer with his owne glorie , the pride of his enemies , and their blasphemies , if euer they should preuaile : together with his gratious promises , loue and former mercies , both to all his owne people in all ages , and especially towards our selues , declared hitherto in all our peace , prosperitie , miraculous deliuerances , with continuance of the gospell beyond all expectation . oh that all in the land fearing the lord , and the tokens of his displeasure , had hearts to performe but these three duties to his heauenlie maiestie . first that euerie one of vs would but learne to know our owne speciall faults and wants by carefull meditation in the law , together with the sins and wants of the church and land , and so to consider each night how we preuaile in reforming our selues ; and then frame our praiers and thankesgiuing accordingly : for each of our particular and principall sins , are as satan that stood at iehosuahs right hand , that our praiers cannot go vp vnto the lord. and of all others , that euery one whose conscience doe accuse them of crueltie towards their brethren , would take away that crying sin of oppression , crying louder for vengeance then al the sins of the earth besides , which brought the floud of waters , when the earth was filled with crueltie ; and brought in the fierce babylonian , to oppresse and spoile the great men in iudea , and to make those goodlie houses desolate , which had formerly been built by the oppressions and spoiling of the poore : which makes the poore to sigh being wearie of their liues , whose sighes the lord must needes heare and auenge , when man regardeth them not : which will so shut vp the bowels of the lords mercie and compassion , that hee will shew vs no more mercie , but , reiect all our praiers , because we would haue no mercie of the poore ; no , though noah , iob and daniel were amongst vs ; that they should but saue their owne soules ; and so must needs bring a fearefull desolation vpon our sinfull nation , vnlesse it be speedilie redressed : besides the blasphemies of the idolatrous enemies of the church of god , and their braggs of their workes of mercie and pitie ; thereby mouing the people to a discontentednes , & to dislike of the religion of the lord , as being the breeder and nourisher of all such cruel and vnmercifull dealing ; though euen in this same bloodie sin , they be as deepe as any other . secondly , that all would learne of our sauiour to pray as he hath commanded . i haue this consident hope , that the weakest christian amongst vs hauing a good heart , although he haue neuer been able to vtter his requests to god for himselfe or gods church , would in few weekes ( but following this poore direction ) learne to pray in feeling with much comfort : & those who want good hearts , would by this practise obtaine them . thirdly , that wee would all ioyne to pray according to the two first petitions , for the church of god , our prince and realmes , with true vnitie therein , and against all the enemies of them ; for then vndoubtedly we should neither neede to feare the practises of the popes seminaries nor diuels , nor yet all the enemies of the world ; but only stand still with moses , and see what the lord would still do for vs. happie shall they be , whom the lord singles out vnto this worke , to be if it were but as one of gedeons three hundred , for the perpetuall preseruation of the church of god and their countrey . but for the rest , although they scape the beare , yet a lion shall teare them in peeces ; for being deliuered with gods s●ruants from the temporal iudgement , the eternall wrath of god doth certainly remaine for them . wherefore giue me leaue to speake a little further vnto your soules in this important businesse , if i may awake but some of you . you that spend your liues in pleasures , will you not be perswaded to spend some houres in this heauēly work , to talke with god for the sauing your owne soules and the people of the lord ? oh that you knew the vnspeakable sweetenesse that heerein you should find ; whereas in your vaine pleasures what can you looke for , but intolerable bitternes in the end ? will not all these increase the wrath against vs ? whereas the changing them into prayers , with fasting and teares , would be as the sacrifice of noah , wherein the lord would certainly smell a sauor of rest ; and as the repentance of niniuie , that hee that had compassion on the poore ignorant heathen , would much more cause his face to shine still more bright , vpon vs , whom he hath vouchsafed so long the profession of his name . know it for certaine , as the lord hath giuen any of you mo of his outward blessings , & with them more time & meanes to serue him , so hee lookes for so much more time at your hands to be spent in instant prayer , then of any other of the earth , and so must your account be . do not the popish sort that liue in your bosoms obserue , besides your extreame irreligiousnes , how you neuer vse to pray priuately , or with any deuotion ? and are they not hereby hardened to like far better of their owne blind superstition ; wherein they spend so much time in praier ? how will you answere your god for the blood of so many soules as hereby perish ? if you could bee perswaded ( which you will one day feele , either in this life , or when it is vtterlie too late ) that these & all other your sins , wherein now is your felicitie , will bee as so many swords to peirce your poore soules , and so many diuels to torment you eternally ; and your repentance & death altogether vncertaine : you durst not let one minute passe , but would fall into bitter mourning for all your sinnes , and for your time so ill spent , and bee warned by our sauiour to begin to watch and pray , that you might escape all these miseries , that will certainly come vpon you . you also that haue filled your houses with the spoiles of the poore , & the earth with their cries , the crie of your sinnes is gone vp into the heauens , that the lord threatneth to be auenged forthwith . let the counsell of daniel to nabuchadnezar be acceptable vnto you , if you will escape the decree that is comming forth against you . breake off your sins by righteousnes , and your iniquities by mercie towards the poore . repent and make restitution while you may ▪ cease to do euil , learne to doe well , seeke iudgement , releeue the oppressed , iudge the fatherlesse and defend the widow , as the lord bids you by his prophet . then you may pray , and your praiers shall be heard : though your sins were as crimson ( that is , most bloodie sins ) yet they shall be made white as snow . if yee consent and obey , yee shall eate the good things of the land : but if yee refuse and be rebellious , ye shall be deuoured with the sword ; for the mouth of the lord hath spoken it . your oppressiōs which haue pressed downe the poore vnto the ground , will one day crush you into the bottome of hell , and will be a loade heauier then the whole earth vpon you : that you would giue all the world , if you had it , to be disburdened of them ; and at your death the iudgement threatned vnto iehoiakim shall surely light vpon you , that none shall lament or mourne for you , to say , ah lord , ah his glorie ; but all shall reioyce that the earth is eased of you ; and your remembrance shall remaine most vile and loathsome to all posteritie , as the memorie of other oppressors doth before . and for you that would neuer spare so much as one houre from your worldly businesses to priuate praier , when god opens your eyes to discerne the true profit hereof , aboue the other , & that hitherto you haue been meerely of the world , and vtterly without god ; howsoeuer you look to your worldly businesse , you will looke to this businesse of the lord , and set your selues times of praier , which the gaining of the world cannot make you to forget . and in a word , so many of you as can talke with men of any earthly matter , and make any request for this present life , for whatsoeuer you need ; and yet could neuer vtter so much as one speech , no not in secret to your father in heauē , nor make any one supplication for any heauenly thing with feeling ; how can you thinke that euer you were touched with zeale of gods glorie or his kingdome ? or how can you imagine that you can be the children of the heauenlie father , or haue any interest in the lord and his kingdome ; or be any thing but meere worldlings , sauoring onely the world , and it alone your portion , hauing a world of miseries and torment remaining for you for euer ? learne therefore to praie aboue all ; you will finde this a treasure ten thousand times better then all the wealth & pleasures of the world . for what you would haue , this will vndoubtedlie procure you , as far as shall be good ; and whereas all the honors , pleasures , riches and friends in the world , can neuer giue you any true contentmēt , nor adde one minute vnto your life ; this only will fill your hearts in heauenly contentation , with abundant ioy and gladnesse , and make you liue and raigne with christ for euer in the heauens . now so many as acknowledge that thus indeede you ought both to watch and pray , and yet but only giue these the reading , without care to learne the practise of them , or happily hauing some good motions or purposes , to put them forthwith in practise , or it may be , haue begun well , yet through your pleasures or worldly businesse , or at least a carnall sloth and securitie leaue them off , and returne to your old courses , bee warned from the lord ; for this will certainly be one further witnesse and conuiction against you , then euer formerly you receiued , and much better it had bin for you , that you had neuer seene this way of life , thus plainly and easily set before you , and how you may either helpe to preserue the whole , or at least escape your selues from the euils to come ; then after you haue knowne it , and subscribed in your hearts to the truth and necessitie of it , and happilie put your hands to the plow , to looke backe againe . remember lots wife ; if you be out of sodome hie for your liues , vntill you be safe in zoar ; and being safe your selues , learne to be as importunate with the angell of the couenant , when you but thinke of the sins of the land , as faithfull abraham was : comforting and incouraging your selues in this , that you are not alone but many with you , and the lord hath yet his ten righteous left , in all quarters some , that mourne and crie for all the abominations . if in this attempt i haue failed of that i desire , i humblie craue pardon ; and also that my good will may be accepted , in this endeuour intended chiefely to helpe the simple . vouchsafe me your better direction , and i shall willinglie follow it . my desire is to labour herein also to bring this together with the watch to more perfection , if i shall find it accepted , and that it may bring the least good to gods church ; in which i desire not to liue one day longer , then i may bee some way profitable . i haue so oft made reference to the watch as to a maine ground of prayer , and for that this is as a second part , and an vnseparable companion thereof , ( as the apostle makes them ephes. 6. ) and also that i neede not trouble you with oft repetition of the same things . cōcerning the present necessitie hereof , ( that i may neither seeme ouer bold , not yet to fearful of some grieuous iudgment without cause ) i desire of all sorts that you would examine it betweene the lord and your owne consciences ( to whom i appeale , and which i know will witnesse with me , when i shall stand before the great tribunall ) your consciences i say , not asleep in this deepe security , but either throughly awaked by the law , or as they were vpon the instant of the discouerie of the gunpowder plot ; or at any time before any of our great deliuerances , fullie accomplished in the midst of our extreame dangers . remember but whether your hearts weare not then as my heart is now ; that if god had done with vs as he then threatned , he had not been most righteous , and wee iustlie deserued it . did not all hearts tremble in the acknowledgement of the truth of his maiesties sacred speech in the parliament house at that time ? and who would not haue confessed in any of these dangers , that it had not been full time for each to haue betaken himselfe to this armour ; to haue run to god by instant supplication , and stood vp in the breach ; and for euery one to haue learned to watch and pray ? and must not our case since be far more desperate , wee hauing receiued thus our third most terrible admonition , together with so many mercies still heaped vpon vs ? let vs but thinke what wee haue done since that time , to secure vs from the finall execution of his vengeance : haue we not most fearefully increased the transgression , going still many degrees backwards , running from the lord , and suncken deeper in our rebellion , insteed of turning to him according to our oft promises , and his infinite mercy ? besides our impudencie in sinning ; and our eating vp one another in euery corner and degree , racking al things to the vttermost farthing , and all commonly to maintaine pride and all excesse ; countenancing the lewdest in euery place , disgracing and treading vpon the vpright , that he that abstaines from euil maketh himself a prey : let but the shamelesnes of that one sin of quaffing , condēned by the heathē , in assuerus court in their greatest pomp and excesse that euer we reade of , and registred in gods book for that cause , be witnes : although we cānot imagin that euer it was practised in halfe so odious a maner , as it is ordinarilie with vs euerie where , in scorning the lord to his face , and sacrificing to satan . our cloakes of ciuility wil proue but adams figleaues . inquire of your own hearts , whether this be not the generall verdict of all whom god hath touched , or who retaine any of their ancient feeling ; yea whether the very blind may not grope it ; that there was neuer such a declining to all loosenes , opē prophanenes & euen atheisme heard or read of in any age , where the gospell was professed , nor that sinne was practised with so high a hand . and then answere plainly , whether the lord may not iustly get himselfe glory of vs , in the declaration of his iustice , and the power of his wrath against our sins ; seeing the riches of his mercies in sparing and deliuering vs , haue made vs so far to exceede , as to deny the tokens of his wrath , and despise him to the face ; scorning and hating nothing so much as a holy care to serue him according to his wil. or what followes amongst men ( euē the most equal & merciful ) after the third admonitiō at most , but the due execution & final expulsiō ? and whether we haue not iust cause to feare and seeke to pacifie his wrath ? or whether hee may not most righteouslie cause his owne children to crie in feeling the miseries which haue not cried out in seeing the abominatiōs , & seeking to pacifie him : and also whether hee may not iustly pluck the world frō vs , which hath so bewitched & plucked vs frō him . and to conclude , whether it be not much better that we each awake and meet him in time with intreaty of peace , because he is so merciful , thē to be awaked of him and crie day and night ( as his people in the captiuitie ) when it is too late , and he will shew no mercy vntill his work be accōplished vpō vs. thus hauing presumed this second time , to testifie my heart to al , and my earnest desire of a heauēly vnion , and all happines to gods church , & this our nation , i take my leaue ; with my instant praiers that al gods seruants may haue their eies open , to see the necessitie of this work aboue al other , & their harts prepared to set thēselues forthwith hereunto , ( which hath made me the longer in perswading vnto it . ) the whole successe i leaue to his heauenly maiestie , whose this work is , & who hath long called vs al vnto the practise of it , looking & wondring that so few haue come to help , and whose only arme hath helped vs hitherto & wil for euer , if we but only cry to him . three principall points to be first learned and felt of euery poore christian , that intends to helpe in this worke of prayer ; the summe where of being in our hearts , will bee as a continuall spurre and preparatiue to prayer , and as the life and soule thereof . 1. the necessitie of prayer . 2. the speciall properties of them that can pray . 3. the power of prayer rightly performed . the necessitie of prayer . 1 we can neuer come to any assurance that we are in the fauour of god , or his children , before wee make conscience to practise this dutie daily : for the spirit of prayer , ( which makes vs to pray with sighes & grones ) is the earnest and seale of our adoption ; and is giuen vnto vs so soone as euer christ is made ours by faith ; and therefore in the meane time we stand in state of damnation , and are theeues and vsurpers of that which we haue . 2 we can haue no comfort , that the things which we enioy shal be to our saluation ; but to increase and seale vp our condemnation ; seeing they are only sanctified by the word and prayer ; and for that we receiue them without giuing the lord his due glory . 3 we cannot looke to obtaine any one thing as a blessing , of al those things which our sauiour hath taught vs to pray for , nor to turne away any one euil but by prayer : for god hath ordained this to be the onely hand hereunto , saying , aske and ye shall haue . 4 seeing euery worldling can speake to his friend , for worldly things ; and euery child can and vseth to run to his louing father making his mone & requests for whatsoeuer he would haue ; how can we imagin that god is our heauenly and tēder father , or we any thing but merely earth-wormes and worldlings , vntill wee vse to run vnto him daily to beg of him heauenly things , which wee continually and principally stand in need of . 5 if we will be saued we must pray , seeing our lord and sauiour , ( who will saue only those that obey him , and destroy all the rest , ) hath so oft charged vs to pray , and to pray continually , as the importunate widow ; teaching vs also , so plainly how to pray ; leading vs by the hand , if we will be guided by him ; and made vs such gracious promises if we wil pray ; and contrarily describing the accursed atheists to be such as call not vpon his name . 6 lastly , the lord our merciful god , at this time especially cals vs all that are in any fauour with his maiestie , to steppe vp into the breach to stay his hand for being auenged , for the generall ouerflow of iniquitie in all estates ; concerning which all naturall men could say long agoe , that god must needes bring some terrible plague vpon our nation , without speedie repentance ; which indeed hee had done sundrie times since , ( but * thrice aboue all other , neuer to be forgotten ) had not his hand been wonderfully stayed : and we notwithstanding since insteed of repenting , haue growne much worse in euery kind of iniquitie , being now become not only secure , but also hardned in all our euill courses , to make but a sport of sin , and a scorne of al those who make any conscience to walk in the waies of the lord ; so that hereby our sin must needs be increased to the vttermost , and much more considering the lords most miraculous deliuerances of vs ; his continuall threatnings and admonitions by his seruants proclayming his wrath ; warnings from heauen and earth ; a continued pestilence for so many yeeres together , visiting euery corner of our land ; the raging of the winds and waters , to such a terror and desolation : the sword set to our very hearts ; the graue prepared for vs by our enemies , yet wee deliuered , and sundrie of them throwne in as our ransome . now after al this , and that in the cleare light of the gospell , with innumerable mercies besides , & sundry promises of our amendment wee waxing still worse and worse , and now without all hope of recouerie ; how can it be but the lord must needes waxe wearie with forbearing ; or what comfort can bee left vs but onely the instant prayers of gods faithfull seruants , either to stay his hand still , or to secure vs to bee hid in the euill day ? if all this cannot awake vs , yet this one thing well considered , will vndoubtedly rouse vs , as the certainest euidence of vengeance approching , that those enemies by whō he hath so oft threatned vs to auenge his quarrell , and whom we al know by long experience to thirst most greedily after our blood , are againe increased in number , pride and malice , after the time that we had thought them quashed for euer rising , or once daring to shew their faces againe : that knowing their holie father , the bloodie positions , machiauellian plots and practises of their cursed religion in all countries , we must needes see our selues in imminent danger of vtter destruction euerie houre , more then that mightie arme shal still protect vs , which wee see to bee iustly stretched out against vs for our sinnes , and the power of praier which hitherto hath staied it , to be fearfully abated . the speciall properties of them that can pray : ( for as iosuah told the people they could not serue the lord , so euery one cannot pray ) and these euidently grounded out of the lords prayer . 1 we must bee the children of god , borne anew by his word and spirit , hauing some assurance of his fauour , and a desire to grow therein ; carrying alwaies childlike affections to his maiestie : for we must come to him as to our deare father , and be able by the spirit of adoption to call him abba , oh father . 2 wee must euer come vnto our father only through his beloued sonne , by whom we are reconciled , made his children , and kept in his fauour ; and withall in a true sense of our vnworthines to bee called his children , or make any request vnto him : and so we must make our petitions only in the name of this our lord and sauiour , in whom alone our father is well pleased : begging in faith ( that is ) in full assurance to be heard for christs merit , in whatsoeuer wee request of our tender father . 3 we must come in all humilitie before his heauenly maiestie , remembring we are but dust and ashes ; yet full of heauenly affections ; able to lift vp our harts vnto him , and to bee onely conuersant with him in the heauens for the time of prayer principally ; hauing all our thoughts separated from the earth , and all earthly cogitations ; because we speak to our father which is in heauen . 4 we must be brethren of brotherly and tender hearts towards all the children of our heauenly father , ( that is , all those who soundly professe the gospell of christ in word and conuersation ) because our heauenly father will haue vs hereby both to declare and increase our loue ; praying all one for another , and in the name of all , as deare brethren and feeling members ; crying earnestly for all : our father . 5 we must be such as are zealous for the glory of our heauenly father ; desirous both to behold his glory , shining brightly in all his workes , and chiefely in his heauenly word ; and labouring to draw all others to a like reuerend admiration thereof ; making this the end of all our indeuours , that our heauenly father may bee honoured ; and casting all our thoughts which way we may gaine him any glorie ; more afraid of dishonoring him any way , or offending him , but euen in our thoughts , then any euill that can befall vs in the world ; and such as vse to mourne for all the dishonors done vnto god his heauenly maiestie ; that we may euer both truly begin and end our prayers with this feruent desire ; that his great name may be glorified , because all kingdome , power and glorie are only his for euer . 6 such as first seek his kingdome and the righteousnes of it ; that is , the inlargemēt of the church wherin christ raignes and is magnified , and so the spreading of his true religion , and of all the meanes belonging to the conuersion and sauing of his elect ; with the vtter ouerthrow of all false religion and vngodlines , whereby satan and antichrist do raigne , vsing all diligence for sauing ourselues and others : ) that being heere partakers of his kingdome of grace , wee may euer after raigne with him in glorie : and also such as long and waite for the comming of our lord and sauiour iesus christ. otherwise how can wee pray in truth : let thy kingdome come ? 7 we must bee of an holy conuersation , as the loyal subiects of this heauenly kingdome ; striuing to know the will of our heauēly father , in al things which concerne vs ; and such as make conscience of euery tittle of his word , as noah and moses : who in all things as the lord bad them , so did they : able to say as dauid , i am heere lord to do thy will , i am desirous to do it as cheerefully as the angels in heauen ; readie with abraham to leaue all at the lords commandement , and offer vp whatsoeuer is dearest vnto vs in the world ; and to receiue any triall with patience and thankfulnes , and with paul , not onely ready to bee bound , but to die at ierusalem for the name of iesus . or else we can neuer pray in sinceritie , thy will be done in earth as it is in heauen . 8 such also as labor to depend whollie vpon the lords fatherly prouidence , and watchfull protection , for this life , and all the comforts of it ; in a feeling of our owne naturall frailtie , that if hee but take away our breath wee are gone , and cannot of our selues continue one minute ; and withall , that wee are neither worthie of , nor able of our selues to get the least crumme of bread , much lesse to cause it to do vs any good ; and therfore such as vse to beg it euery day from our heauenly father , and that as well for the poore as for our selues , being liuely touched with their miseries ; desirous to imploy that which he bestowes vpon vs , to his glory and the good of his children ; labouring ( as iacob and paul ) if we haue but bread to be therewith content : such as neither trust in the abundance of meanes , nor faint in the want of them ; but onely vse all meanes appointed to serue his diuine and fatherly prouidence , casting all the care for the successe vpon him alone , being assured that he cannot faile vs , nor forsake vs of that that shall be best for vs ; ( so far as may stand with his owne glorie and the good of vs his people ) at least so long as we endeuour to honor him , walking as his obedient children : without this we can neuer pray aright ; giue vs this day our daily bread . 9 we must bee such as vse to trauell vnder the burden of all our sins , especially presumptuous and scandalous ; in the sense both of the multitude & haynousnes of them , & also our misery by them , vntill we be throughly washed from thē in the blood of iesus christ ; as hauing no other meanes of deliuery or satisfaction : feeling with paul the corruption of our nature , and our daily infirmities to be as a death vnto vs ; and hereupon vsing to crie instantly in the eares of the lord : forgiue vs our trespasses ; neuer giuing him ouer vntil we obtaine this assurance . 10 we must be voide of malice , and such as vse to pray for our very enemies ; and are readie to doe them any kindnes , wherby to gaine them to christ , or leaue them more without excuse ; because then wee haue this assurance to bee forgiuen , and not else ; neither can we say in truth forgiue vs our trespasses , as wee forgiue them that trespasse against vs : but pray for a curse vpon our selues . 11 hauing a continuall sense of the danger we stand in , of falling into some sinne euery houre , to the dishonor of our heauenly father , and prouoking his displeasure , with innumerable euils following thereupon ; through the deadly malice and subtiltie of satan , who hath the aduantage of our corrupt nature , and all things in the world to beguile vs : fearing alwaies lest for our sinnes the lord should leaue vs in his hand ; and thereupon such as are carefull to keepe our rankes , and the watch of the lord. that wee may continually pray in feeling , leade vs not into temptation , but deliuer vs from euill . 12 carrying alwaies a reuerent and thankfull acknowledgement of his absolute kingdome , power and soueraigntie ouer all creatures , that hee ouerrules both the rage of men and diuels , and all other things in heauen and earth , disposing all to his owne glorie , and the saluation of his obedient subiects and children ; that we may be euer able to sound forth with thankfulnes , for thine is the kingdome , power and glory for euer and euer . 13 lastly wee must bee such true beleeuers , as being assured that hee will graunt all that we beg , as shall bee most for his own glory , and the greatest good of his elect , do rest our selues wholly vpon his fatherly loue , being able in thankfulnesse euer to say : amen ; lord let it be so as we doe assure our hearts it shal bee . the power of true prayer . 1 when we are such sound christians , and vse to pray in this manner , wee shall haue a certaine assurance that we are gods children , and in his fauour , and such as shall be saued vndoubtedly : for this is the lords seale and the earnest of our inheritance . 2 we shall haue a comfortable and sanctified vse of all things wee enioy . 1. tim. 4. 5. 3 we shall bee sure to obtaine whatsoeuer he hath taught vs to pray for ; so far as shal be for his owne glory and our good ; for the very forme of prayer containes a most gratious promise ; that so asking we shall obtaine : otherwise our sauiour would neuer haue taught vs to pray so ; assuring vs that if wee aske in faith we shall haue , and that according to our faith , it shall bee done vnto vs. 4 the seruent prayers of a few of vs , being such as are described , shall doe more for turning away any iudgement from the church ; discouering and ouerthrowing the deepest plots of gods enemies , or for procuring any blessing to our land , then many of our valiantest souldiers and wisest polititians ; or then many thousands of our enemies , & hundred thousands of the wicked ioyning with them to prouoke the lord by their sins , can doe to bring a iudgement vpon vs. for wee know how many times that one moses staied the lords hand , that he could not destroy his people ; and also that eliah was the chariots and horsemen of israel ; yet were they men subiect to like passions that we are : for our god is still the same of infinite compassion ; and therefore looke what gods seruants haue been formerly able to doe by their praiers , the same shall wee doe still , so farre as shall be necessarie , if we striue to walke in their steps . so that we haue no cause to feare , sith one of them alone could so farre preuaile with the lord , but that many of vs ioyning as an a mie to compasse the lord about with our prayers and teares , may much more ouercome his heauenly maiestie , if our hearts and hands be steadie with moses ; especially he hauing shewed such tokens of his compassion and loue towards his chosen flocke amongst vs , as neuer in any age more : and now calling vs also to stand vp in the breach , hauing assured vs that the innocent shall deliuer the iland . therefore all of vs that feare the lord , must cheerfully each incourage one another to this dutie , confirming the wea●●e hands and wearie knees ; being certainly assured of this at least , that though the lords decree should bee gone forth against vs for all our exceeding prouocations , and that hee would not spare the whole at our prayers , ( whereof notwithstanding we may haue gratious hope to the contrarie , if we can but find our harts feruently set to this dutie of prayer ) yet we shall saue our owne soules , and the lord will bee vnto vs as a sanctuarie , whereas otherwise , if such a iudgement come vpon vs , as hath been so oft almost fully executed , ( which the lord in mercie still saue vs from ) we are all accessary to it , who haue not sought in time to turne it away , and accursed with meroz , because we came not to helpe the lord against the mightie : and so shall find nothing but feare and an euill conscience to chase vs : whereas on the contrarie wee shall be strong and couragious as lions whatsoeuer come to passe ; knowing that euen in the midst of the fire there he will bee with vs , that the flame shall not so much as kindle on vs ( more then he wil dispose to his own exceeding glorie and our endlesse comfort ) and also in the flouds that they do not ouerwhelme vs. a most heavenlie and sure rule according to the whole lords prayer in order : whereby wee may grow to strong assurance and much power in prayer . liue alwaies as an obediēt child , in the eye of thy heauenly father ; humbled in the reuerence of his most holy and glorious maiestie , and in the sense of thine owne vilenesse and vnworthines to be called his childe ; longing vntill he take thee vnto himselfe into the heauens ; studying what way thou mayest * honor him most in the meane time : and that first by yeelding all obedience to the lawes of his kingdome , and gayning moe thereunto : attending continually what his diuine will and pleasure is concerning thee , chiefely in thy particular calling , and the charge committed vnto thee : and then thou shalt surely find him god all-sufficient vnto thee , more tender ouer thee then euer was father or mother , performing vnto thee all his promises according to all thy petitions , for this and for the better life ; and sealing vnto thee a plentifull assurance of the free pardon of all thy sinnes in the blood of his sonne iesus christ ; and that he will saue thee from the tempter , and all euill that they shall not hurt thee : that thou shall be able with all ioy and thankfulnes to acknowledge vpon happie experience , his absolute kingdome and power , and so to giue him continually with all his holy angels , all glory , praise and dominion , resting thy selfe most fully satisfied in his onely loue and fauour for euer and euer . the svmme of all in other words , most plainly ; for the vnderstanding of the simplest . obserue diligently the watch of the lord ; growing daily in the practise of euery commādement , and faith in all his promises : and keepe in thy heart a catalogue or short summe of thine owne chiefe sins , wants and infirmities , together with the maine sins and wants of the land , and tokens of the lords wrath due therunto ( gathered by wise obseruation according to the rule of the watch ) and withall set before thee the infinitnesse of the lords loue and compassion towards his , with his speciall fauours towards thy selfe : and then pray feruently in faith to thy heauenly father , looking stedfastlie at iesus christ thy sauiour ; crying onely in zeale for his glorie and kingdome ; and thou shalt bee able to pierce the heauens ; to preuaile with god as iacob , and much more with men ; and finde by good experience the truth of that promise , that before thou callest god will answere ; and whilest thou speakest hee will heare . the perfect rvle and svmme of prayer . our father ] oh lord most holy and glorious , terrible to all the wicked , but most gratious and ful of compassion towards all that desire to obey al thy commaundements : we that are but dust and ashes , children of wrath by nature , and most rebellious of all thy creaturs , dare not of our selues once lift vp our eies to heauen . father . ] yet neuerthelesse seeing it hath pleased thee to receiue vs for thine own children by grace , thorow thy son iesus christ , by whō thou hast purchased & ordained vs to eternal glory , and giuē him to be our mediatour ; wee come before thee , ( oh father ) in his name ; magnifying thee for this fauour , beeing the greatest happines that euer could befall vs. increase in vs daily this assurāce , by making vs to grow in repētance & faith ; & framing vs to the image of thy son , in al knowledge ▪ loue & obedience ; wholly changing and renewing vs , that wee may bee no longer strāgers from thee , but may delight to be euer in thy presēce , hearing thy voice or speaking to thee in prayer , crying , oh father . our ] and that it may bee more euident that thou art our father indeede , giue vs grace to loue thy childrē aboue all other for thy sake : and each so much more , as they more excell in vertue , and are more deare vnto thee , that we may daily remember them in al our prayers , saying ; our father : and delight in their companies onely , as those with whom we shal liue for euer . knit our harts in brotherlie loue , that wee may tenderlie comfort & edifie one another , afraide of grieuing or hindering , & much more of turning anie one out of the way of life . let our holie agreemēt in al the substance of thy truth , with our ioint profession to walk together in the path of life , bee of more force to vnite vs , then all the trash of the world , or cunning of satan to diuide vs. are we not all that so walke , thine owne children , and coheires of thy kingdom ; notwithstanding all our imperfections and some lesse diuersities which must accōpanie vs while wee are in the earth . cōfoūd therfore all deuices working this diuision , to thy dishonor & reioycing to our enemies , who thus conspire to worke our shame & ruin , if it were possible . let vs neuer rest vntill wee finde these hartie affections towards al thy childrē , that heereby we may know certainly that we are trāslated frō death to life , whē we can pray , our father . vvhich art in heauen ▪ ] and whereas thou raignest in the heauens where thou hast prouided throns for vs , humble vs stil more , in the sense of thy greatnes ; seeing we are but poore wormes crawling in sin . and yet so lift vp our hearts vnto thee , y t wee may bee with thee , esspecially in all our prayers ; lōging to behold thee face to face : & let our cōuersation be so heauēly , that the world may see that wee are thy heauenlie children trauelling towards thee , & our selues may grow vp to a full assurance that heauē is ours , reserued by our lord & sauiour for vs , & all creatures euer to do vs good . hallowed ] and seeing thou hast vouchsafed vs onelie this honor , to be the heires of thy kingdom , whereas thou mightest iustlie haue lefte vs with the wicked to euerlasting perdition . giue vs grace euer to testifie our thankfulnesse , seeking in and aboue al things to honor thee . opē our eyes to behold thy power , wisedom & goodnes shining in all thy works , & much more in thy heauēly word chieflie in all thy iudgmēts vpon thine enemies , & mercies towards thy children , still shewed euery day . make vs able to cōsider of , and set forth the prayses belonging to thee therein , both in word & deed ; y t by vs thy great name may be knowne in all the world . aboue all in that wherein thou hast bin magnified before our eyes , in shewing thy fatherly care for vs , & wrath against our enemies : how for dishonoring thee in abusing thy gospel , and al thy blessings bestowed on vs aboue all people ; thou hast not onely corrected vs tenderly with thy milder rods , but hast also sundrie times raysed vp most cruell enemies , threatning not onely to take away the gospell , but our vtter destruction also , and brought them to the very executiō of it , because we would not hearken and turne vnto thee according to thy mercies : yet euer when we haue cried vnto thee , thou hast plucked thē backe in the instant , and taken vēgeance for vs : so as we haue oft thought y t they durst neuer haue attēpted the like againe : & so , as if the most barbarous nations had receiued but the least of our deliuerances with our meanes they would haue repēted long agoe , as wee haue oft promised . oh gracious father make vs euer to acknowledge this , & to see that thy anger is againe more fearfully kindled , for that these our enemies , ( as our sinnes ) do stil increase in number and malice , without hope of leauing off their practises , vntil they haue wrought either ours or their owne endlesse ruin . good father , let this token of thy wrath , ( together with the arming of the dumbe creatures , both windes and waters so oft threatning our destruction , for the ouerflow of all iniquitie in euerie place ) preuaile so mightily with vs , that wee may all presently seek to appease thine anger . diddest thou not before y e bloodie and fiery conspiracie warne vs all from heauen ( as thou didst ierusalem ) inclosing vs in a fiery tent with pillers of darknesse , of fire & blood ( foreshewing vs as by y t which followed we may iustlie deeme ) y t bloodie destructiō which was towards vs ? did not many of our hearts trēble at that sight , causing vs to seeke more earnestly to turne away the future euils ? and feared wee without cause ? had it not bin effected indeed , and we all inclosed in the most dark , fiery and bloody tent that euer y e world heard of ; if y u hadst not heard the prayers of thy poore children , in the verie instant , and remembred vs in mercie ? and shall wee remain senselesse still in the middest of the tokens of thy wrath , making the whole land to trēble at the report of thē ? saue vs from that the heauiest iudgmēt that euer fell vpon the hart of man , wherby not onely the egyptiās , but also thine owne people were prepared for their final desolatiō , so oft threatned by our sauiour , that by seeing wee should see & not perceiue , but haue our harts more ful ( by al y e means vsed for our repentance ) lest we should conuert & be spared . opē our eyes to see our fearful estate , and how farre this iudgemēt hath seased on vs already . conuert vs & we shal be cōuerted , & not harden our selues against the tokens of thy wrath , thy word and seruants . oh leaue vs not vnto thē whose mercies are crueltie , to cause them to blaspheme , but let vs still fall into thy hāds who pitiest vs whē thou smitest vs , and in wrath remembrest mercie . though our sinnes be haynous to anger thee , yet let the cry of thy seruants still preuaile . hast thou not saide it , that the innocent shall deliuer the iland ? and dost thou not cal vs to stand vp in y e breach , because thou wouldest not destroy vs ? hast thou not beene wont to pardon whole natiōs at the prayers of a few of thy seruants ? therefore we thy remembrācers ( knowing that thou art still the same , as to thy seruāts in former time , and wee as deare vnto thee ; and that thou cāst denie vs nothing which we beg in thy sonnes name , according to thy will , for our good ) doe humblie intreate thee , to glorifie thy mercie in pardoning our sin , and turning vs speedilie vnto thee ; but make thine enemies to feele thy hand , & those chiefely , who haue as balaam caused vs to prouoke thee so grieuously , that we haue been so oft in so fearefull danger , by our backslidings and rebelliōs . get thy selfe glory vpō thē as vpon pharaoh , that whē thou hast deliuered vs and ouerthrowne thē , as fundrie times thou hast begun , wee may sing praises , and euer keep a remembrāce of thy mercie . let vs bee afraid of obscuring any part of thy glorie ; and much more of seeking our own honour , or taking any part of thine honour to our selues , being proud of thy gifts . but aboue all , keep vs from dishonoring thee , by our sinfull liues amongst the wicked , to cause them to blaspheme . let this bee our honor to honour thee , and contrarily our greatest dishonor . strēgthen vs to walk so vprightly , that others seeing our good workes , may glorifie thee , and wee may weare the reproch of the wicked as a crowne . so kindle the zeale of thy glorie in our harts , that we may bee grieued continually for all the dishonors done vnto thee . and that insteede of being ashamed of thee , or any part of thy truth , we may euer professe it with all holie wisedome , and boldnesse as our chiefest glory ; that our sauiour may acknowledge vs before thee in the presēce of men & angels , to be the heires of thy kingdom ; whē he will denie all other , as those whom hee neuer knew , to their endlesse confusion . thy kingdome come ] and whereas thou ( oh father ) art chiefly glorified in the increase of thine owne people which obey thy word , amongst whom onelie thou raignest , and especiallie when thou causest thy religion & people to prosper against all the power of hell : grant thy gospell whereby thou conquerest & rulest , to be sincerelie preached euery where , and make it so powerful that it may destroy the kingdome of satā & antichrist ; & gather all thine vnto thee , that so thou mayest hasten thy glorious kingdome . and to this end , raise vp kings and queenes to nourish vs with the word of life , & preserue vs from the rage of all our cruel enemies , especially that bloody antichrist : and for those that are such already , make thē ten times more , accounting this their greatest dignitie to haue the bringing vp of y e heires of thy kingdome committed vnto them . and as it hath pleased thee to settle this kingdome in so great peace amongst vs , deliuering vs frō that blood thirstie whore of babylon , & to cōtinue the same beyond all former expectation vnder our dread soueraigne , so indue him with such an abūdant portiō of thy spirit , according to that high dignitie laide vpon him ; and with such tender affections towards thy children , that in token of true thankfulnes for all his dominions , & chiefelie the wōderfull deliuerances of his maiestie & his , ( and of all vs thy people principally by him ) hee may set himselfe with iehosaphat and ezechiah , & other worthie kings of iuda , to inlarge thy king dome , & promote thy pure religion , destroying al vngodlines ; and to procure each way the good of vs thy poor childrē cōmitted to him ; that al we being still more loyallie affected , as toward our most happie nursing father vnder thee , & as al the good people were towards dauid , may euer sound foorth thy praises for him , and pray earnestlie for his preseruation , & of our queene with all their royal progenie , that his kingdome may bee established vntill christ shall come , to resigne vp this earthly scepter and raigne with thee eternally . giue all our rulers y e same heart , y t they may be as the hāds of thine annointed in euery place , for this purpose . and as thou hast ordained chiefely to finish thy kingdome by the preaching of thy gospell , which thou did dest first spread by thy holy apostles subduing the world therby , so wee pray thee to send foorth such powerful preachers into euerie congregation , which may not cease to admonish euerie one with teares : framing thēselues by all holy meanes to win all ; afraid of the least offence , which might hinder the saluation of anie one . awaken at length all sorts of vncōscionable ministers , drūkē with y e blood of their people ; that remēbring the crie of abels blood , they may be thinke themselues in time what to answere when christ shall come : and either giue thē repentance & care for their peoples saluation , or free them frō thē , and cōmit thē to such by whō they may bee brought into obediēce to the lawes of thy kingdome ; that thou alone maiest raigne as lord amongst them , antichrist being cast out vtterly , with al things whereby hee hath kept any of thy people vnder his slauerie , or seekes to pull them into babylon . deface ( oh lord ) all the prints of his idolatrie , and cut off all hopes of euer building vp babel againe . and seeing the chiefe glorie and safetie of thy kingdom , is in the vnity of thy subiects ; take away , good lord , all causes of contentions . confound all the plots of cursed balaam , who knowing that no kingdome diuided can stād , seeks to rend thy church in peeces , the easier to preuaile against it , when thou art also departed from it ; as euer satan hath beene wont . graunt y t we may buy this peace , with the losse of all , except thy fauor , that al sorts seeing our holie agreemēt , may ioyne themselues vnto vs , and come into the bosome of thy church . and moreouer , sith thou wilt haue euery one to helpe to build vp thy kingdome , and to saue others by bringing them therunto , graunt vs more care , not onely for our charges committed to vs ; but for euerie one tied vnto vs by any special bond that wee may take euery first occasion for gaining them vnto thee , by all holy meanes . let vs not rest before they be safe . and that wee may preuaile the more , giue vs ( oh lord ) a sweet feeling what a blessed thing it is to be of thy kingdome , & partakers of thy glorie : euen to be kings & priests vnto thee ; and what happines there is in liuing such a holy conuersation , & how wretched the state of all other people is , being bōdslaues of saran , and reserued for hell . graunt vs to liue in all things , as thy obedient subiects , that wee may passe frō this kingdom of grace into thy glorious kingdome . make vs to feare the occasiōs of backsliding , that wee neuer so much as once look back vnto the world , but hie fast towards heauē where our sauiour keeps possession for vs. destroy in vs all our corruption , wherby satan preuailes against vs. hastē that day when the differēce shall appeare between vs and thē that feare thee not , whē we shal raigne with thee for euer . and because wee now liue by faith , and not by sight , the wicked oft flourishing whē thy children are afflicted : oh lord increase our faith in all thy sweete promises , y t through the comfort of it , & power of godlinesse , we may grow vp to a full assurance , that wee are the true heires of thy kingdome and ouercome all hinderances , that being faithful to the death , we may haue the crown of life . fill our hearts with such peace & ioy , with all the fruits of righteousnes , that all may see to what kingdome wee belong , and wee feeling y e beginning of it here , may enter into thy heauenly ioy . thy wil be &c. ] and that our childlike affectiōs , with our zeale & thākfulnesse , may more appeare to all y e world ; quicken vs to do thy heauēly will , chiefelie wherein thou hast shewed vs how thou wilt haue vs walk , that wee may do it cheerefullie , as the angels . accept our will for the deede . let it be our chiefe desire to stād in thy presence , to enquire by all holy meanes what thy diuine pleasure is : and euer so soone as thou hast made it knowne vnto vs , giue vs dauids eccho , to say i am heere lord to doe thy will , thy law is within my heart . and whereas it is thy decree , that thorow many troubles wee must enter into thy kingdome ; ( good father ) subdue our corrupt wils to thy holy will , that hūbling our selues vnder thy hand , we may trie & reforme our waies immediately , without once whispering against thee : knowing y t in loue thou so workest our good in all our trials , and wilt giue vs a happy issue in thy due time . and if it shall bee thy good pleasure to cal vs to suffer for thy name ; keepe vs that we may suffer as thine owne children for righteousnes , and then to take vp our crosses with thankfulnes , reioicing that thou countest vs worthy that honour , looking stedfastly at our lord & sauiour , who hauing ▪ first troden y t way before vs , sits for euer in glorie at thy right hand . but keepe vs that we neuer do any thing against thy reuealed will , to procure therby neuer so great a good ; seeing thou canst and wilt effect whatsoeuer is best without our sin . that wee may euer truly pray ; thy will bee done in earth , as it is in heauen . giue vs this day &c. ] and thou ( oh deare father ) when wee are such ; that y e world may see thy tēder care ouer vs , and how thou fulfillest thy promises vnto vs , & that wee may the better attend the seeking of thy glorie and good pleasure ; vouchsafe vs the cōforts of this present life . shew vs thy loue in prouiding for vs in due time . direct vs to vse all painfulnes and holy wisdom , chiefely in our particular calling , with all the meanes to serue thy prouidence : auoiding whatsoeuer may hinder our comfort , or hurt our estate . graunt vs to hide our selus vnder thy watchful protection , knowing that our times are in thy hand , to continue as pleaseth thee ; and to consider that of our selues , we cannot prolong our liues one minute , nor haue any power to get one morsell of bread , vnlesse thou both shew vs the meanes , assist vs to vse thē , & giue a blessing to them . hūble vs here in , that wee are not worthie the least crumme of bread , which we are taught to beg daily : and that wee are but vsurpers of it , and of whatsoeuer else we haue , vnlesse we be in christ ; because wee hauing lost all , can haue no right to anie thing vntill it bee restored vnto vs in him who is lord of all . increase our assurance that thou hast giuen him vnto vs , y t we may haue a true title to whatsoeuer wee enioy . blesse thy good creaturs to nourish & comfort vs. giue vs contented hearts though wee haue but bread , acknowledging thy fatherlie prouidēce as wel in want as plentie , and that thou wilt make euen bread sufficient when other means faile . and if we shal come to haue no more but for the present day , nor any meanes of succour ; then strengthen vs to cast our selues vpon thee without fainting , and to shew that we liue not by bread onelie , but by thy power & tender care and blessing certifie our consciences , that though wicked men may bee hunger-starued , yet thou wilt neuer let any of vs that serue thee , being heires of thy kingdome , to wāt any thing that is good for vs , but wilt work extraordinarilie causing our enemies to feede vs , or the fouls to bring vs meate , rather then we shall want . keep vs therfore from carking cares aforehand , for prouision for vs or ours , & much more from murmuring , whereby thou art dishonored & prouoked . make vs able to sanctifie thee , vsing only the means for thy protection & prouidēce , cōmending our selues wholly vnto thee , being certainlie assured that thou canst not faile vs. and whē thou dost bestow thy gifts vpon vs , make vs to behold thy good nesse in them , vsing thē holily , & neuer abusing them to satisfie our lustes , or to puffe vs vp , or set our confidence & loue vpon thē ; but that wee may imploy them to maintaine thy worship & seruice , and performe all holie duties , especially for the reliefe of thy children , for whom we are to praie daily , and to whom thou hast giuen an interest in the vse of them ; that so we may shew our thākfulnesse to thy heauenly maiestie , loue to thy childrē and chiefelie the most excellent , and therein the true practise of the communion of saints , wayting for the ioyfull sentence , come ye blessed of my father , receiue the kingdome prepared for you &c. forgiue vs our trespasses . ] and whereas our sins onely doe hinder , & turne from vs all these blessings which we haue begged ▪ and bring innumerable euils vpon vs , insteede of thē , & so make vs most vnhappie , wherupō thou hast taught vs to crie euerie day , forgiue vs our sinnes ; pardon ( good lord ) and remoue all our sinnes out of thy sight . and to y e end that we may neuer giue thee rest vntill we haue gotten this assurance ; teach vs that herein is all true happines , and without it we are most miserable , & without all hope of comfort . shew vs also the haynousnesse of sinne , declared in the fearefull punishment of thy most glorious angels , the excellentest of all thy works , whom for one sinne thou diddest throw downe vnto hel to be reserued in chaines of darkenesse to the iudgemēt of the great day . and after wards in our first parents cast out of their happie estate accursed in themselues and all their posteritie , euen al vs , vntill wee obtaine deliuerance by laying hold of our lord and sauiour . make vs able yet more plainely to behold the same , not only in the generall destruction of the olde world ; turning sodom into ashes ; preparing hell for an euerlasting punishment to all vnbeleeuers and impenitent sinners ; but also in thy seueritie against thine owne children , as in cutting off moses ( onelie for that hee did not sanctifie thee at the waters of strif ) that he could not enter into canaan , after hee had led thy people forty yeers and now brought them to the borders of it . and besides the heauy punishmēt of dauid and his house all his life long , and the fearefull iudgemēts on many of thine owne faithful seruāts . teach vs to cōceiue aright of the vilenesse and danger of sin hereby , that the least sinne of thine elect could neuer haue bin ransomed , but by the sacrifice of thine owne deare sonne ; and how thou diddest powre out vpon him the ful viols of thy wrath , to cause him to crie , my god vvhy hast thou forsaken mee . giue vs a continuall meditation hereof , and of the innumerable euils which euerie sinne brings on thine owne children , vnlesse they bee preuented by speedy repentance , especially depriuing vs of all true comfort and power in praier , so long as wee remaine therein without repētāce , besides y e losse of many extraordinary fauours . shew vs withal how our sinnes increased , being committed not onely against thy glorious maiestie , but also against our high calling , and all thine abūdant mercies with so strong means to restrain vs , besides so many vowes and promises of amendment , & that after pardon formerly obtained and sealed vnto vs. grants vs some sight also of the multitude of our sins , not onely in breaking thy commandements , in thought , word or deed , but euen in omitting anie part therof , or doing it without all our heart ; besides the sin of our first parents whereof wee are all guiltie ; and the corruption of our sinful natures whereby wee are so infected with sin , that wee are inclined vnto euil cōtinaully ; & vnable to thinke anie thing but that which is sinfull ; so little moued by thy iudgemēts or mercies , to make anie right vse therof . giue vs such a liuelie sense hereof , & of our daily frailties , in●rmities & noysome lustes , flowing from this lothsome sinke , that in the feeling of this bondage of our corruption , wee may euer sigh , desiring to be deliuered therefrom . set before our faces also the grieuous sins of our youth , & much more those which we haue committed since our high calling , contrarie to our consciences , and whereby wee haue dishonored thee to the reproach of thy gospel , griefe of thy seruants , or hindering the saluation of any soule : that by al these we beholding the infinitenes of our debt , and our great misery therby , that we may runne continually to the fountaine of thy sonnes blood , which is open to all the house of israel for sin & vncleannesse , crying , wash me thorowlie from my sin , purge and purifie me . and yet that the vgelie view of them may not vtterly dismay vs , as though we could not be purged frō them ; comfort vs in the infinite worth & merit of thy sonnes blood which is al-sufficient to cleanse vs thorowly , although wee had al the sins of the world vpon vs , so long as wee can crie to be washed therin . but yet seing thou admittest none to this fountaine , but only them that come in true fainth , and vnfaied repentance for all their sins , resoluing to liue a new life , and crying after this fountain : make vs able in the sense of our vilenes by nature , and our particular sins , to mourn bitterly when wee looke at thy son whō we haue pearced thereby , and so to hate sinne , that we may be afraid of euer defiling our selues againe , sinning against that precious blood . helpe vs to trie our repētance & faith to bee such as are sound , & haue beene wrought in vs by the preaching of the gospel , & do cōtinually increase , which are the certaine euidences thereof . grāt vs grace to iudge our selues daily , y t we may not be iudged of thee . remember vs also , we intreate thee againe , for our sinfull land ; though euen the earth bee corrupt , & the crie of the sinnes exceeding great , yet let the cry of vs thy childrē in euery corner preuaile against y e crie of the sinnes , that thy mercie may bee magnified in all the world . as vvee for giue &c. ] and as thou hast taught vs to pray onely so to be forgiuē , as we forgiue others ; assuring vs that if we do forgiue wee shall bee forgiuen , and otherwise we shall neuer bee forgiuen . change our malicious and proud hearts , that although we hate y e sins and company of the wicked , and reioice in the execution of thy righteous iudgmēts , and pray daily for the confounding of al the wicked practises and deuises of the enemies of thy church ; that yet wee may seeke the saluation of al sorts : and for them that are our enemies but vpon priuate respects , giue vs grace to pray earnestly for thē that they may repent & obtaine mercie . and that wee may seeke to pacifie them , by offering them full satisfaction , and doing them any good , so far as may stād with their saluation , & the credit of the gospell , to heape coales vpon their heads , either to gaine them or leaue them more without excuse ; and to seale vp to our selues a ful remission of all our sins therby . leade vs not into temptation . ] and seing our deadly enemy seekes hourely to tempt vs to sin to dishonour thee , and become his vassals , y t thou mightest leaue vs in his hand to execute his malice vpon vs , and bring vpon vs al the euils which follow sinne , wherupon our sauiour hath taught vs to pray , leade vs not into temptation : open our eies ( good father ) to see our continual danger ; and first for the multitude of damned spirits ranging vp and downe as roaring lions to deuour vs. teach vs to know that they are able to bring vs to as fearful sins as euer were committed , & to destroy vs vtterlie in a moment with all that wee haue , if thou giue them leaue . acquaint vs with their subt●lties in fitting their temptations to our particular estates and dispositiōs which they know , by dogging vs euer , & taking their aduantages to solicite vs to those sinnes , whereby they haue most preuailed against vs formerly or against other thy seruants ; and how they are wont also to draw vs on by degrees , as first to yeelde to some smaller matters which are accounted no sinnes ; or to thrust our selues carelessely or with our warrant into the danger and occasions of temptation , neglecting the calling laid vpon vs , as dauid to lie on his bed in the afternoones insteede of looking to the affaires of his kingdome . make vs able to consider how they haue all the baites of the world , both the credit , riches & pleasures thereof , which they euer hold forth vnto vs , if wee will follow their counsel ; and otherwise threaten not only the losse of all these , but also of all comforts , with hatred , disgrace and many other euils which wee must suffer frō malicious mē , if we wil make such a strict conscience of all our waies , to the verie least duty that thou hast cōmanded . and whereas wee are ordinarilie secure in ouerweening of our own strength ; shew vs ( oh lord ) the vilenesse of our corrupt natures , which are euer readie to conspire with satan to our vtter perdition , & to swallow euery baite which he layeth for vs , without anie feare of danger ; so that wee haue no strēgth , more then thou reachest forth thine hand to helpe vs. reueale vnto vs also the danger wee stand in frō thy glorious maiesty , lest y u shouldest leaue vs vp vnto the power of the tempter , and our owne corruption ; to awake vs from our security , for our neglect of thy watch , & carelesse vsing the meanes of grace , or at least for tēpting thee , in not auoiding each occasion of temptatiō . and seing the tempter in all his temptations , hideth the danger & vglines of sin , shewing only the faire side of it , that is , the go●d that wee shall get thereby , and chuseth the subtillest and fittest instrumēts to serue his purpose , as the counsel or example of men of chiefest reputatiō , somtimes chāging himselfe into an angel of light , neuer comming like himself ; wherby hee deceiues all the world , and oft preuailes with vs thine owne children , at least to presume to sinne , because thou art so mercifull ; good father set before vs a cōtinual view hereof , and of the sundry euils which by euery sin wee ha●e vpō our heads ; especially the woūd of conscience which wil certainely come on vs vnlesse it be preuented , & which none can beare . make vs to know that howsoeuer reprobats may wallow in their filth , and scape vnpunished here , being reserued for hell , and fatted for destruction : yet thou wilt not suffer any of vs thy childrē , who haue begunne to make a profession of thee according to thy word , to commit the very least sin , but wilt make vs feele the smart of it , vnlesse wee preuēt thee speedily by repentance , because thou wilt not bee dishonored by vs , nor haue vs condemned with the world ; & that the wicked may see thy hatred against sin , and what plagues remaine for thēselues for euermore . yea ( oh holie father ) let vs feare alwaies lest thou shouldest leaue vs neuer so little , & suspect all our waies , in as much as satan more maliceth vs , thē any other of the world , and therefore seeks hourely to prouoke thee to leaue vs in his hand , and for that our sins will cause moto blaspheme , hardening thē to perdition , than the sins of any other : wherupon verie few of thy worthiest seruants haue escaped to the end ; without some grieuous wounds , the scarres wherof they haue carried to their graues , to the blemishing their professiō , the griefe of thēselues and all the godlie . and therfore as thou hast giuen vs this only remedie to watch and pray that wee enter not into temptation , so make vs able to keepe this thy watch , and by it to bee better acquainted with our selues , & our particular infirmities , that wee may alwaies weare the compleat armour , chieflie the shield of faith , & thy word euer in readinesse against each temptation , which w●l put satā to flight ; that being strēgthned by thy spirit , we may stand fast in the euill day , & get the cōquest without anie grieuous wounds ; to thy greater glorie , & our owne greater honor in the heauens : wee do not pray against temptations altogether , knowing the profit that wee reape thereby ; but that wee may indure fighting valiantly and conquering , vntill thou set the crowne vpon our heads . for thine is the &c. ] we haue been bold to beg all these things of thee ( oh holy father ▪ ) because all kingdome , power & glorie are onelie thine ; acknowledging that we haue receiued all from thy heauenly bounty ; and being assured th thou wilt grāt vs all these things for thy sonnes sake , and whatsoeuer else is good for vs , so far as shall bee for thine owne glorie , seeing thou art absolute lord & king in heauē and in earth , and doest dispose , guide and ouerrule all things , as shal make most for thine owne glorie , and the greatest good of vs thine obedient subiects and children ; that we may set foorth the glorie of thy dominiō , and happinesse of thy kingdom , liuing as thy loyal subiects ; to which wee hereby binde our selues for euer ; and so returne all possible thāks and praise to thy heauenly maiestie , saying euer , amē . be it so ( oh lord holy & true ) as wee fully beleeue it shall bee . euen so amen : come lord iesus , come quicklie . ovr father which art in heauen ] oh lord most holy and most glorious , whose brightnes the angels are not able to behold , so terrible to all the vngodly , as they shall wish the mountaines to couer them , that they may neuer appeare in thy presence ; and yet a most gratious and tender father to all thy children that desire to obey all thy cōmandements : we that are but dust and ashes , and by nature through the fal of our first parents , children of wrath in state of damnatiō , bond-slaues of satan , and most rebellious of all thy creatures , dare not presume of our selues , once to lift vp our eies to heauen ; yet neuertheles seeing it hath pleased thee of thy free mercie to adopt vs to be thy childrē by grace , through thy son iesus christ , and hast chosen vs hereunto , bought vs with his precious blood , called vs by thy gospel , sealed vs with thy spirit , and giuen him to bee our perpetuall mediator at thy right hand , bidden vs to come to thee as to our tēder father , and call thee father through him ; oh deare father wee present our selues before thy diuine maiestie onely in his name , magnifying thy mercie that thou hast vouchsafed vs this blessed estate to be thy children , and to haue thy fauor , being the greatest happines that euer can befal mortal creatures . giue vs hearts ( most gratious father ) to seek daily to increase this assurance , by growing in repentance for all our sins and faith in thy sweet promises ; frame vs euery day more & more to the image of thy sonne , in all knowledge of thy heauēly maiesty ; being affectioned to reuerence , loue and obey thee as our most deare father , wholly chāged in all the parts & qualities both of our soules and bodies ; that we may be no longer strangers frō thee , as all the wicked are , who bidde thee to depart from them ; but may take our chiefest delight to be euer in thy presence , to heare thee to speak to vs in thy heauēly word , & to vtter all our wants and our whole heart to thee in our praiers , crying , oh father . our ] and that it may be more euident , not only to our selues , but to all the world , that wee are thine own children indeed , giue vs hearts to loue all thy children , being our brethren and sisters , aboue all other for thy sake alone : and euery one so much the more , as they more liuely carry thy image in all holines excelling in vertue , and so are more deare vnto thy heauenly maiestie ; that we may euery day in all our prayers remember them as our selues , begging alike for them all , saying , our father : and that wee may delight in their companies onely , as those with whom we shall cōuerse together for euer in the heauens . knit all our hearts in this firme bond of brotherly loue , that we may tenderly exhort , releeue , helpe , comfort & support the weakenesses one of another , seeking by all meanes the edifying of others , afraid of giuing the least offence to grieue , and much more to hinder the saluation or turne any one out of the way of life . let this happie brotherhood and holy agreemēt in all the substance of thy truth , which is able vndoubtedlie to saue our soules , together with our ioynt profession to walke hand in hand , in all the narrow way of life , haue more power firmely to vnite vs , then all the trash , pompe or pleasure of the world , with all the cunning of satan or antichrist can haue to diuide vs. are wee not all that so walke , thine owne children , hauing thy son our sauiour , thy spirit our cōforter and earnest for our ioint inheritance and glorie ; notwithstanding all our infirmitie and imperfections , with some lesse diuersities in iudgement , which must accompanie vs vntill we bee perfect in the heauens ? confound therefore all the deuices of thine enemies , that worke this euill among thine owne children , to so great dishonor to thy heauenly maiestie , whereby our enemies insult ouer vs , who haue conspired thus to worke our shame , and to prouoke thee against vs , to leaue vs into their hāds to our vtter ruin , if it were possible . deare father , let vs neuer thinke our state to be good , vntill vve carrie these hartie affections to al thy children , studying to knit this bond of loue , being able truly thus to pray , our father . for hereby we know that wee are translated from death vnto life , because we loue the brethren , and vntill this time we abide still in death . which art in heauē and whereas thou our father art highly exalted in the heauen of heauens , and there also hast prouided thrones for vs thy childrē after wee haue suffered a little ; humble vs euermore in the sense of thy greatnesse , together with our owne basenes and vnworthinesse , beeing but poore wormes crawling vpon the earth , & loaden with innumerable sinnes . and yet withall lift vp our hearts alwaies vnto the heauens , there to be conuersant with thee our heauēly father , minding heauenly things ▪ especially in all our prayers ; longing there to behold thee face to face : and that in the meane time while wee abide heere below , we may be of such heauenly conuersatiōs , so vsing y e world , as if wee vsed it not , that the world may see that wee are not of it , but pilgrims and strangers here , and thy heauenly childrē : and that our selues also may hereby grow vp to a strong assurance that heauen is ours , & all the ioyes thereof reserued for vs by our lord & sauiour , and all the creatures in heauen and earth at a league with vs to do vs good , so far as shall stand with thine honor and our saluation , euer readie to helpe in time of need . hallowed be thy name ] and seeing thou ( oh tender father ) hast vouchsafed vs this honour aboue the greatest part of the word , to bee thine ▪ owne children and heires of thy glorious kingdom , wheras thou mightest iustlie haue left vs in our sinnes with all the wicked to euerlasting shame and perditiō . giue vs grace ( good father ) to testifie our loue and thankfulnesse all the dayes of our life , in studying in and aboue al things which way to honor thee . open our blinde eyes to this end , to behold the glory of thy wisedome , power , goodnes and righteousnes shining in al thy workes , euen in the basest creature in heauē or earth ; and much more in thy heauenly word ; chiefely in all thy terrible iudgements executed vpon the enemies of thy church therin reueiled , with mercies towards thy children , and which thou still shewest euery day , especiallie towards our selues . make vs ab●e to take euery occasion to consider of aright , and set foorth the praises belonging to thee therein , and haue a holie vse of them both in word & deed , y t by vs thy great name may be knowne & magnified in al the world . aboue all , set euer before our faces ( good lord ) that wonderfull glory wherein thou hast been magnified in these our daies , and before our daies , in the euident declaration both of thy displeasure against vs of this sinfull nation ; and withall of thy mercy and tender care for vs , and wrath against our enemies ; how for dishonoring thee , by abusing thy gospell which thou hast giuen vs with such peace and prosperitie , as neuer nation knowne before , thou hast not only corrected our grieuous transgressions and securitie , as a tender father with thy milder rods of dearth , pestilence & sundrie the like , to bring vs to amendmēt , and cause vs with more cheerefulnes to embrace thy gospell , and bring foorth the fruits of it : but also raised vp against vs sundrie times , most cruell enemies , threatning not only the taking away thy gospell , but our vtter destruction also , & brought the enemies to the verie execution thereof , because we would not serue thee with good hearts , according to all thy mercies bestowed vpon vs : and yet euer when we haue cried vnto thee , thou hast heard vs , as thou diddest thy people israel , and as thou diddest heare iehosaphat against the moabits , and ezechiah and esay against the proud assyrian ; and plucking them back in the instant , hast taken vengeance for vs : that we haue oft thought that they durst neuer haue risen against vs any more : so as if the most barbarous nations of the earth , had receiued but the least of our deliuerances , with our meanes , they vndoubtedly had repented long ago in sack-cloath and ashes ; as we for the present haue promised vnto thee . oh gratious father , inable vs alwaies to remember and acknowledge this , and to see moreouer that thine anger is not yet turned away , but more fearefully kindled against vs , for that as our sins and prouocations are multiplied , so these our bloody enemies insteede of decreasing , or ioyning themselues vnto vs , do still increase daily ; and their malice is become much more deadly against vs thy poore children , without hope of leauing off , vntill they haue wrought either ours , or at least their own vtter ruine , which in time they must needs effect . good father cause this principal token of thy displeasure , together with all other signes therof shewed from heauen and earth , ( as the arming of the dumbe creatures against vs , both winds and waters so strangely and furiously in so many places , threatning vtterly to sweepe vs away in our deadly securitie , for the great ouerflow of all iniquitie euerie where ) cause this to work so mightilie , that we may all bee presently awaked out of our deepest securitie , and seek by al meanes to appease thy wrath . oh lord , diddest thou not before that most secret , bloodie and fierie conspiracie , warne vs all frō heauen , ( as thou diddest ierusalem before her last destruction ) by a fierie tent directly ouer our heads , inclosing vs all , with pillers of most horrible darknes , pillers of fire , and pillers of blood , foreshewing vs ( as by that which followed wee may iustlie deeme ) that bloody darknesse and fiery destruction that was towards vs ? did not the hearts of many of vs tremble in the beholding thereof , and in fearing some grieuous iudgment that was to come , causing vs to flie to thee , to seeke to hide our selues vnder thy wings ? and did wee feare without iust cause ? had it not been effected indeed , and we all , chiefely our dread soueraigne with all our heads and rulers , inclosed in the most darke , fiery & bloodie tent , that euer the world heard of ; in that most vnnatural and accursed massacre , if thou our gracious and most tender father haddest not heard the prayers of thy poore children , which both before and at that very instant were humbled before thee , and so thought on vs in mercy ? and shall we now be senselesse still in these signes , & tokens still entring in vpon vs , as fearefully as euer any of the ten plagues vpon the egyptians , making the whole land to tremble , at the very report of them ? saue and deliuer vs from that iudgement , of all other the heauiest that euer fall vpō the heart of man : and whereby not onely the egytians were prepared for their finall ouerthrow in the sea , but also thine owne people israel , both before the great captiuitie , and also before the last and vtter desolation of that natiō , so oft threatned by our sauiour : ( that by hearing we should heare , & not vnderstand , and seeing we should see , & not perceiue ; but haue our hearts made more fat and senselesse ( by all the meanes sent to call vs to repentance ) lest wee should be conuerted , and thou shouldest spare vs. oh open our eies that we may see in what state we stand , and how farre this iudgement hath seased vpon vs already . conuert vs & we shall be conuerted ; and neuer let vs , ( as those whom thou hast vtterly destroyed ) harden our selues against the euident tokens of thy wrath , denying or making light of them , much lesse to oppose our selues against thee , thy word , and seruants . preserue vs from the outragious ouerflowings of the multitude , which thou mayest iustly arme against vs in their ignorance , like the furious waues of the raging seas , for lack of our care & cōscience to see thē taught , to knowe thee and thine ordinances , and to feare thy great and mighty name . let not the flouds of iniquity swallow vs vp . aboue all , neuer leaue vs in their hands whose very mercies are cruelties , that they should blaspheme thy great name , to say where is now their god ; but let vs still fall into thy hands , and deale with vs as it pleaseth thee , for with thee is mercy , and when thou smitest vs , yet thou pitiest vs , euer in wrath remembring mercie . though our prouocations be more hainous , then we are able to expresse , yet lord heare the crie of thy seruants , and let them stil preuaile with thee to stay thy hand . hast thou not sayd it , and manie a time made it good , euen vnto this very day , that the innocent should deliuer the iland ? & doest thou not call for vs thy poore seruants , to stand vp with moses in the breach to stay thy fierce wrath , because thou art a god of mercie , and wouldest not destroy thy people ? most declaring the riches of thy grace , in pardoning and sauing whole nations at the praiers of a few of thy poore seruants , and giuing the wicked for their ransome ? therfore ( oh good lord ) we whom thou doest call to be thy remembrancers ( knowing that thou art still the same good god to thine , as thou wast to moses , abraham , and samuel ; and being assured that through thy son we are as deare vnto thee , as the apple of thine owne eie , that thou canst denie vs nothing which we beg in his name , which may make for thine owne glorie and good of thy people ) do humbly intreate thee to glorifie thy mercy , that it may shine to all the world , in pardoning the sinne of our land , turning the harts of all sorts speedily vnto thee , to meete thee with an intreatie of peace : but make all the vnplacable enemies of thy church to feele thy hand ; and those chiefly who haue as balaam and the midianites , caused vs with their wiles to prouoke thee to so fierce a wrath , wherein we haue bin so oft and so lately almost vtterly consumed , through our backslidings and rebellions against thee . get thy selfe glory vpon them as vpon pharo , in the heart of the sea , that when thou hast deliuered vs , & ouerthrowne them ( as sundry times thou hast begunne , and promised to accomplish ) we may sing the song of moses thy seruant : and all ages keepe a remembrāce of thine endlesse mercy . let euery one of vs be afraide of defacing or obscuring any part of thy glory , and much more of seeking vainly our owne glory , especially of robbing thy maiestie , by taking any part of thine honour to our selues as herod ; being proud of thy gifts , whereunto our sinfull natures are strongly inclined . but aboue all , keepe vs frō dishonoring thee by our euil example , amongst the wicked and vngodly , to cause them to blaspheme that glorious truth which we professe . make vs to account it our greatest honour to honor thee , and the greatest dishonour and euill that euer can befall vs , so much as in shewe to dishonour thee . strengthen vs to walke so vprightly , that others seeing our good workes , may glorifie thee our heauenly father ; and that we may stop the mouthes of all the wicked , bearing their reproch as a crowne vpon our heads . so inflame our harts with a zeale of thy glory , that our righteous soules may be vexed from day to day , for all the abominations , whereby thou art dishonored by atheists , papists , and all sorts of godlesse men . and let vs be so farre off from dishonoring thee , by being ashamed with peter of thee and thy religion , or any part thereof , where we ought to professe it , that in all places we may shewe it forth , with all wisdome and boldnesse , as that which is our chiefest glory , gracing it with a holy conuersation : that our lord & sauiour may acknowledge vs before thee our heauenly father , in the presēce of thy glorious angels , and of the whole world , to be thine owne children , and heires of thy kingdome ; when he will most iustly deny all the fearefull and vnbeleuers , as those whom he neuer knew , to their endlesse horror and confusion . thy kingdome come . ] and whereas thou ( oh father ) art chiefely glorified when thy kingdome commeth , and thy will is done ; that is , in the increase of thine owne church & people , which obey thy word , amongst whom alone thou raignest as lord and king , & especially when thou doest inlarge thy dominions against al the subtlety and power of hell , causing thy religion and people to prosper & increase : good father giue thy gospell ( which is the scepter of thy kingdome ) whereby thou conquerest and rulest , a free course to be sincerely preached in all the world , all impediments being vtterly remoued ; and make it so powerfull in all places that it may vtterly throw downe the kingdome of satan , and antichrist ; conuerting & speedily gathering all thine elect vnto thee , that so thou maiest hasten thy kingdome of glory . and to this end , wheras thou hast ordained kings and queenes , to be nursing fathers and mothers to thy poore church , to nourish vs thy children with the word of life , and to preserue vs frō the rage of that bloody antichrist , and of all other cruell enemies ; oh almighty and deare father , raise vp such for vs in all the countries of the world , and those which are such already make thē ten times more , that they may account this their greatest dignity , to haue the bringing vp of thine own children & heires of thy kingdom , cōmitted to their care & faithfulnes . more specially as thou hast setled this thy kingdome among vs , of this nation in much peace and prosperity , vnder our late tender nursing mother , deliuering vs from the tyranny of that bloodthirsty whore of babylon , and continued the same still most miraculously , and beyond all former expectation vnder our gracious soueraigne , whom thou hast raised vp for a foster father in her place ; so we beseech thee to inlarge the hart of thine anoynted seruant , with such an abundant portion of thy spirit , both of wisdome and zeale for thy glory & kingdome , and tender affections towards thy children , according to that high dignity layd vpon him ; and the charge committed vnto him , that in token of true thankfulnes for all his dominions and great honour , and much more for the admirable deliuerances giuen vnto him and his , ( and aboue all that thou hast made him twice , cheifely so wōderfully in our eies , thy principal instrument , in sauing vs thy poore church ) he may set himselfe much more earnestly then euer did cyrus , or darius , euen worthy iehosaphat , and ezekiah , to aduance thy glory , in inlarging and furthering this kingdome of thy sonne , and in promoting thy pure religion with all his power , destroying whatsoeuer is against it , and discountenancing all vngodinesse ; and to procure each way both by godly lawes , and all other holy meanes , the good of vs thy poore people committed vnto his trust , repressing all the wicked ; that we may liue a quiet life in all godlinesse and honesty , fearing none but onely thy heauenly maiestie : that all we thy children being affected towards him , thine anoynted , more and more , as towards our happy nursing father vnder thee , and as all the good people were towards thy seruant dauid , may euermore accordingly sound forth thy praises for him , and cry continually vnto thee , for the preseruation of his maiestie , with our noble queene , and all their royall progenie , that the throne of his kingdome may be establihed vntill christ , the king of kings shall come : then to resigne vp the scepter into his hands , and to be taken vp into his throne to raigne with thee for euermore . good lord giue all our magistrats and rulers vnder him the same heart , that they may be as the hands of thine anoynted in euery place , for the accomplishment of this worke . and withall as thou hast appointed to build vp thy kingdome , chiefely by the sincere preaching of thy sacred gospell , whereby thou didst first spread it so speedily , subduing all the world by the ministrie of thy holy apostles ; so we pray thee send forth such faithfull preachers , into euery congregation , which being furnished with gifts , and tenderly affected with the care of euery soule , committed vnto their charge , may not cease with paul , to admonish euery one both publickly and priuately , day & night with teares ; going before them in all holy conuersation , and framing themselues to all , to win all ; afraid of giuing the least offence , either to harden , or any way to hinder the saluation of any one of them . awakē at length ( oh lord ) all our blind guids , and all sorts of vnconscionable ministers , who are drunke with the blood of soules , that they may but remember , how the blood of one abel did crie for vengance from the earth , and thinke where they wil appeare , when christ shall come to take an account for euery soule : and either giue them repentance for that bloody sinne , that they may saue thēselues , and those committed to them ; or else vtterly free thy people from this heauie iudgement , and set such in their places , by whose faithfull ministrie thy people may bee brought euery where , into a holy obedience to thy heauenly gospell , to their euerlasting saluation ; that thou alone mayest raigne as lorde and king , and antichrist cast out vtterly , with all that appertaines to his bloody religion , and whereby he hath vpholden his throne and tyrannie , & kept any of thy people vnder his flauery , or at least seekes to bewitch them , to pull them into babylon againe . good lord destroy all the very prints of that cursed idolatrie , & whatsoeuer may put his fauorits in hope of euer repayring the ruines of their babel . and seeing ( oh lord ) y t this is the glory & safetie of thy kingdome , whē all the subiects of it , especially the leaders of thy people , liue in a holy vnitie vnder thy laws : take away we beseech thee , all contentions frō amongst vs , with the causes therof . confound we pray thee , all the plots of that cursed balaam of rome ; who knowing that not thine owne kingdome , if it be diuided , can stand , seekes day and night by all his agents , to rend thy church in peeces , the easier to preuaile against it when it is diuided , and thou departed from it : as satan hath euer preuailed by his instruments in all countries . grant we may buy this peace with godly abraham , with the losse of all things , except thy fauour ; that all sorts seeing our holy agreement may come forth of poperie , & profanenes vnto vs ; & our brethren departed , may turne into the bosome of thy church againe . and wheras thou hast appointed that euery one of vs should labour to build vp thy kingdome , by bringing others thereunto , that they may be saued ; giue vs harts to haue a speciall regard , not only of all those committed to our charge , to bring them in obedience to the lawes of thy kingdome , but euen all who are tyed vnto vs by any speciall bond , that we may take euery first occasion which thou offerest for procuring , or furthering their saluation , and so gayning them vnto thee , by all good admonitions , exhortations and examples . let vs be as the angels vnto lot , neuer resting before we haue gotten them safe into zoar. and that we may be able to perswade others more effectually , lord giue euery one of vs a sweete feeling , what a blessed thing it is to bee the subiects of this thy kingdome ; to haue all the priuiledges thereof , and to be partakers of thy glory , euen kings , and priests vnto thee ; and what reward and happines , there is in liuing such a holy conuersation ; and how wretched & vnhappie , the state of all other people is , seeme they neuer so happy in this world , being but bondslaues of sathan , reserued for the chaines of eternall darknesse . oh heauenly king , grant vs to liue in all things , as the subiects of thy kingdome , that so we may passe from this kingdome of grace , into that thy kingdome of glory . make vs to feare the causes of backsliding , that we may neuer so much as looke backe with lots wife , towards this euill world ; but euer hie fast towards thine heauenly kingdome , hauing our eie at our lord and sauiour , who fitteth at thy right hand , keeping there possession for vs. destroy in vs euery corruption , whereby satan keepes vs any way in his slauerie , or at any time gets the dominion ouer vs. hasten that glorious day , when the difference shall appeare betwene vs thy subiects , and those who serue thee not ; when we shall wholly raigne in glory with thee , free from al our enemies , and from euer offending thee any more . and because in the meane time , we thy subiects liue by faith , and not by sight in this world , where all things vsually seeme to go out of order ; the wicked florishing in their vngodlinesse , when wee oft weepe and mourne : oh lord increase our faith , in all thy gracious promises , that through the comfort and power of godlinesse wrought in vs thereby , we may grow vp to such a ful assurance , that we are the true heires of thy kingdome , that we may easily ouercome al the hindrances of the world , and hauing the patiēce of saints , we may be faithfull to the death , vntill thou set the crowne vpon our heads . fill our harts with such peace of conscience , and ioy in thee , with all the fruits of righteousnesse , incoraged by thy sweete promises , that all others may see to what kingdome we belong , and we our selues may feele daily , the beginning of it in our selues , so entring into thy heauenly ioy . thy wil be done in earth , as it is in heauē . and that our childlike affections towards thy heauenly maiestie , our zeale for thy glory , and thankfulnes for thy kingdome , may bee more manifest to all the world ; quicken vs to doe thy heauenly will , & commandements , chiefely those with which thou hast fully acquainted vs , how thou wilt haue vs to walke , and keepe thy watch ; and that with as much readinesse as thy angels in heauen : and wherein we are too short accept ( good father ) our will for the deede . let it be our delight to stand euer in thy presence , to inquire thy diuine pleasure , both by reading and hearing thy heauenly word , and asking of others ; and euer so soone as thou hast by any meanes made knowne vnto vs , what thy good wil is , giue vs forthwith dauids eccho , that without consulting with flesh and blood we may say forthwith , i am heere lord , to doe thy will , yea thy law is within my hart : that so all our seruice may be freevvill offrings vnto thee . and whereas it is thy decree , that thorowe many troubles wee must enter into thy heauenly kingdome ; ( good father ) frame our corrupt wils vnto thy heauenly will , & giue vs grace both to look for them , & euer to humble our selues vnder thy hand as thy obedient children , seeking alwaies to pacifie thee , searching immediately , and amending whatsoeuer is amiste , without once whispering against thy diuine maiestie : being assured that thou still louest vs , euen when thou correctest vs most sharply , and art working our good ; & wilt in thy due time giue a happy end to all our troubles , and cause thy louing countenance to shine on vs againe . and if it shall be thy good pleasure to call vs to suffer for thy name , keepe vs that we may not suffer as euill doers , or busie bodies for medling in things without our calling , so to bring crosses on our selus , but as thine owne childrē for righteousnesse ; and then make vs to take vp our crosses , with al ioyfulnesse and thankfulnesse , that thou accountest vs worthy that honor , looking stedfastly at the great reward holden forth vnto vs , in y e hand of our lord & sauior , who hauing troden that way before vs , is there highly exalted to raigne for euer . but keepe vs that we neuer goe against thy reuealed will , whereby thou hast conuinced our consciences , vnder pretence either to honour thee , or doe any seruice vnto thy church , or for neuer so great a good : seeing thou canst and wilt maintaine thine owne honour , & saue thy church , effecting whatsoeuer is best without our sinne . that we may euer truly pray , thy will be done in earth , as it is in heauen . giue vs this day our daily bread . ] and then ( oh deare father , when thou hast giuen vs such harts thus to seeke thy will ; that the world may see the tender care that thou hast for vs , and how thou dost fulfill vnto vs all thy promises , and that we likewise may wholy attend the seeking of thy glory , in the inlargement of thy kingdome , and doing thy will ; vouchsafe vs gratiouslie all things meete for the comfort of this present life : shew vs thy fatherly loue , prouiding sufficiently for all our necessities in thy due time : direct vs to vse all the holy means , which thou hast appointed to serue thy diuine prouidence , both painfulnesse , thrift and godly wisdome , chiefely in our particular calling ; auoyding as warily whatsoeuer may any way indanger vs , make our liues vncomfortable , or hurt our estate . grant vs grace also euermore , in all humility to commit our selues vnto thy fatherly protection , not fearing what man can do vnto vs ; remembring that our times are in thy hāds , to continue so long as it pleaseth thee ; & that likwise vnlesse thou who hast giuen vs our liues do preserue them , wee cannot continue one moment . make vs to know that of our selues wee haue no power to get one morsell of bread , vnlesse thou both shew vs the meanes , and after inable vs to vse the same , and giue a blessing to them . humble vs in the sense of our vilenesse , that wee are so farre off from deseruing eternal life , that we are not worthy of the least crumme of bread , which thou hast taught vs to beg daily : and grant vs grace to knowe , that when we haue it , wee are but theeues and vsurpers of it , and of whatsoeuer else we possesse , & to make a dreadful account for it , vnlesse thou giue it vs in iesus christ ; because we hauing lost al through adams transgression , can haue no right vnto it againe , vntill it be restored vnto vs , in our lord and sauiour . vouchsafe therefore to increase our assurance that thou hast giuen vs thy sonne who is lord of all , that in him we may be certaine , that we haue a true title to whatsoeuer we inioy . giue withall both power and strength , to thy good creatures , to norish and comfort vs. bread. ] bestow vpon vs contented harts , with the estate wherein thou settest vs , though we haue but bread ; & grace to see , and acknowledge thy wise and tender prouidence , aswell in want as plē●y , being vndoubtedly assured that thou canst , & wilt make bread alone to satisfie vs abundantly , when other meanes faile . this day . ] and if thou shalt euer bring vs into that strait , that we shall haue no more but for the presēt day , nor any means of succor in the world ; thē strengthen vs to giue thee glory , by casting our selus wholy vpon thee , without impatience or fainting ; that we may be able euen then , to shewe our confidence in thee , & how we liue not by bread onely , but by euery word proceeding out of thy mouth . certifie our consciences aforehand , that howsoeuer wicked men , be they neuer so rich , may starue with hunger before they die , yet thou wilt neuer let vs thine owne obedient children , and heires of thy kingdome , to want any thing that shall be good for vs ; but that thou wilt rather worke extraordinarily , when ordinarie meanes faile , causing our enemies to feede vs , if our bretheren forget vs , the very foules to bring vs bread , and the heauens to poure vs downe a blessing . and therefore ( good father ) let vs alwaies bee reuerētly afraid of dishonoring , or grieuing thee by carcking cares aforehand , for prouision for vs or ours : and much more of murmuring , or impatience in any such trials , whereunto our sinfull natures are extreamly inclined . make vs able to sanctifie thy great name , in vsing onely the meanes for thy protection and prouidence , referring the worke & whole successe vnto thy heauenly maiestie alone , being certaine that thou wilt doe that , that shall be best , and that thou canst not faile vs nor forsake vs. and when thou doest bestowe thy gifts vpon vs , giue vs a holy vse of them ; that both they may further our saluation ; and that wee may see thy goodnes in them ; and neuer abuse them to satisfie our sinfull desires ; or puffe vp our proud harts ; or make thē our gods , putting our confidence or felicitie in them ; but that wee may imploy them to the maintenance of thy religion , with all the holy ends which thou hast ordained them for : and especially for the reliefe & comfort of our poore brethren , for whō thou hast taught vs to pray daily as for our selues ; and to whom thou hast giuen an interest in the vse of our goods . giue vs bowels of compassion towards the poore and needy , that we may take off euery heauie burden , relieue the oppressed , deale our breade to the hungry soules , that their backes and bellies may blesse vs , and that thou mayest remember vs in the day of our aduersitie , and we lay vp a sure foundation against the time to come : that therin also we may shewe forth our homage to thy diuine maiestie , that we hold all of thy goodnesse ; and declare the loue we beare to thy children for thy sake , and chiefely to them that most excell in thy graces , and so the true practise of the cōmunion of saints , waiting for that ioyfull sentence , come yee blessed of my father , receiue the kingdome prepared for you , for when i was hungry , you gaue me meate . forgiue vs our trespasses . ] and wheras our sinnes onely do hinder our assurance , that we are thy children , and cause vs that we can neither behold thy glory , nor feele the power and happinesse of thy kingdome ; neither yet haue that full securitie for thy fatherly prouidence , and protection from all euill , which otherwise we should find , and do moreouer bring all contrary euils vpon vs , and therefore thou hast taught vs to cry euery day , forgiue vs our trespasses : pardon ( good lord ) and remoue all our sinnes , that keepe away these good things from vs. and that we may cry more earnestly for forgiuenesse , neuer giuing thee rest , vntill wee haue attained it ; teach vs that heerein alone stands all true peace and blessednes , when we haue this full assurance sealed in our harts , that our sinnes are pardoned ; and that all they whose sinnes are not remitted , are most accursed and vnhappy . and to this end shewe vs ( good father ) first the hainousnesse of sinne , by making vs to consider aright thy wrath , declared against it from heauen , in the fearefull punishment of thy most excellent creatures the angels , whom for that one sinne , euen because they were not cōtent with their estate , thou hast cast down into hel , to be reserued in chaines of darknes , vnto the iudgemēt of the great day ; then to be damned to endlesse torments : & afterwards in our first parents , cast frō their happy estate , for eating y e forbidden fruit , & for whose sin alone , all the curses of this life & that to come , fel not only vpō thēselues but also all their posterity , euen all of vs , being wrapped vnder the same condemnatiō , vntill we be deliuered by iesus christ. open our eies to see this thy wrath against sinne yet more fully , not only vpon the wicked in the generall destruction of the old world , and in turning the filthy cities of sodome & gomorrah into ashes , to remaine as eternal monuments to all posteritie ; & in preparing the lake burning with fire and brimstone , for an euerlasting punishment to all vnbeleeuers , and impenitent persons ; but euen against the sinnes of thine owne dearest childrē , as in y ● heauy punishmēt vpon thine own faithful seruant moses , for so smal a sin in our account ( as not honoring thee before the people , in beleeuing and auouching thy power and truth ) that thou didst cut him off for entring into canaan , which of al earthly things he must needes most desire , being the land of promise , the type of heauen , and also after that he had led the people , fortie yeares towards it . and besides the punishment of dauid , and his house for that one sinne , that thy hand did so pursue him and his , all his life long ; & so thy sharpe corrections , laid vpon all other thy dearest seruants , registred in thy booke ; lord teach vs yet more rightly to cōceaue the vilenesse of sin by this one thing chiefely , that the least sinne of thine elect , could neuer haue bin ransommed , but by the vnspeakeable torments of thine owne beloued sonne , the lord of glory , taking our nature to become a sacrifice to appease thy wrath , and to satisfie thy iustice : & how thou didst poure out vpon him , the full viols of thy wrath , to cause him to sweate drops of blood , & to cry out ; my god my god , why hast thou forsaken me . giue vs thy children some true sense heereof , and withal this grace to keepe a cōtinuall remembrance of the innumerable euils , which euery sinne brings euen vpon vs , thine owne children in our soules or bodies , goods , name or friends , vnlesse wee preuent them by speedy and vnfained repētance ; especially how thereby we are left wholly destitute of thy protection & prouidence , and depriued of all comfort and power in prayer , so long as we remaine therein ; and also of many extraordinary experiments of thy bounty , which otherwise wee should find . make vs able in some sort to comprehend the greatnesse of sin , by the infinitnesse of thy glorious maiestie , against whom each sinne is committed : & how our sinnes are increased heereby also , that they are committed against our high calling to be christians , and heires of thy kingdome : with such abundant mercies , both ordinarie and extraordinarie ; and so many and strong meanes to restraine vs ; besides sundry vowes and couenants renewed , and that after mercy obtained , and pardon formerly sealed , vpon our promise of amendment . open our blind eies to haue some sight also of the multitude of our sinnes , how they are more in number , then the starres of heauen , seeing they are euery breach of thy diuine will , reuealed vnto vs in thy law and gospell , and that not only in thought , word or deede , but euen in omitting of any part thereof , or doing it without all our hart , and all our strength ; besides the sinne of our first parents , whereby we are all the children of wrath , and vnder thy curse ; and also besides the corruption of our sinfull natures receiued from thence ; whereupon wee are so wholy inclined vnto euill , that all the thoughts of our harts , are onely euill continually ; so as we cannot of our selues so much as thinke , much lesse will any thing but that which is sinfull ; and hence also the hardnesse of our harts , that we are so little moued , either at the hearing of so many iudgements , or the inioying of so many mercies , to make any right vse of them . vouchsafe vs such a liuely , and continuall sense heereof , together with a feeling of our daily slips , wants , frailties , infirmities , imperfections & noisome lustes , issuing from this filthy puddle of originall corruption in vs , that we may bee wearie of this body of sinne , groning vnder the bondage of this our corruption , & sighing to bee deliuered from it . shewe vs also our most grieuous sinnes , not onely of our youth and ignorāce , but those much more which we haue committed , since thou hast called vs by thy grace vnto so high a dignitie , & conuinced our consciences ; chiefely our open and scandalous sinnes , whereby wee haue most dishonored thee , causing thy gospell to bee euill spoken of ; grieued thy children , or any way hindred the saluation of others ; that by all these we may see vvhat debters we are , & how vnable to pay the least part , but to lie in hell for euermore ; that we may crie continually with dauid , lord forgiue vs our sinnes , and blot out all our offences ; wash vs thorowly , purge and clense vs ; thus running euery moment , to the fountaine of thy sons blood , which is open to all the house of israel , for all sinnes & vncleannesse . and yet withal that we may not be vtterly ouerwhelmed , by the vgly view of the multitud or lothsomenesse of our sinnes , as though they could not bee pardoned , nor we purged from thē ; comfort vs in this that thy sonnes blood is of infinite merit , and all sufficient to wash vs from all our sinnes ( though they were the most haynous sinnes , that euer were cōmitted ; yea although we had all the sinnes of the world vpon vs ) so long as in a true feeling of them , we cā desire to be washed therein . but because wee are all very ready to deceiue our selues , imagining that we are washen , when we remaine still in our filthines ; seeing thou neither callest , nor admitst of any to this fountaine , but them that come in true repentance for all their sinnes , fully purposing amendment ; and in a liuely faith in thy sweete promises , desiring to grow therein ; oh grant vs grace , truely to see our particular sinnes , and the vilenesse of them , and make vs able in the sight of them , and the sense of our estate and danger by them , to mourne bitterly for them , looking at thy sonne , whom wee haue pierced thereby ; and so to hate and abhorre them , that being once purged in this lauer , we may bee euer afraid of defiling our selues againe , or of sinning against that pretious blood . helpe vs to trie both our repentance and faith , by the holy rule which thou hast giuen vs in thy law and gospell , that we may know them to be such , as will abide the triall , and not hypocriticall ; and which also haue bin first wrought in vs , by the powerfull preaching of thy gospell , and doe continually increase and grow : which are the infallible euidences , y t they are sound and sincere . giue vs harts to be daily examining , and iudging our selues that we may escape thy iudgement . we intreate thee also againe for our sinfull realmes , to pardon all the fearefull prouocations thereof , and to be pacified at the instant prayers of thy faithfull seruants , crying vnto thee in all places by the blood of thy sonne , which speakes better things then the blood of abel ; let that cry still preuaile against the cry of the sinnes , that thy mercie may bee magnified in all the world . as we forgiue them that trespasse against vs. ] and whereas thou ( oh holy and gratious father ) hast taught vs euer to pray to be forgiuen , as we forgiue them that trespasse against vs , telling vs plainely that if wee forgiue others for thy cause , thou wilt also forgiue vs ; and contrarily that if we will not forgiue others , we shall neuer bee forgiuen : change ( good lord ) the wickednesse of our sinfull hearts , which are most strongly bent to malice and reuenge , that howsoeuer wee hate the sins and company of the wicked , and whatsoeuer else is in them , whereby they dishonour thee , or shew themselues to bee thine enemies : and although we also reioyce in the execution of thy righteous iudgements , whereby thou gettest thy selfe glory vpon the proud enemies of thy church ; and do also pray daily for the confounding of all their wicked practises and deuises ; yet lord graunt vs hearts to seeke the saluation of all sorts , because we know not whether they belong to thine eternall election ; and for them that are but our enemies vpō priuate respects , giue vs grace that insteede of seeking reuenge , we may pray earnestly for them , that they may see their sins , and haue their hearts changed , and so obtaine pardon for it : and moreouer that we may seeke to pacifie them , by offering them reconciliation or ful satisfaction , doing them good or gratifying them by any kindnesse , so far as may stand with their saluation and credit of thy gospell , euen when they hunger to feed them , and when they thirst to giue them drinke , to heape coales vpon their heads as thou hast commanded ; either to gaine them by our christian kindnesse , or to leaue them more without excuse ; and to seale vp to our selues a most plentiful assurance of a full remission of all our sins thereby . leade vs not into temptation , but deliuer vs from euill . ] and seeing ( oh tender father ) that our deadly enemie seekes hourely by his temptations to draw vs to sin against thy heauenly maiestie to dishonor thee , making vs his vassals to do his will , so to strippe vs vtterly both of thy protection and prouidence , and to cause thee to leaue vs in his hand , to bring vpō vs thy wrath with all the euils following vpon sin ; whereupon our sauiour hath taught vs to pray alwaies , leade vs not into temptation , but deliuer vs from euill : good lord open our eies to see the danger wherein wee stand continually , & first for the multitude of those damned spirits that range vp and downe day and night with a deadly malice seeking to deuour vs. teach vs to know ( oh holy father ) what their power is against vs , if thou do not restraine it ; that they are able to bring vs to as fearefull sins , as euer they brought any of thy seruants vnto , and to destroy vs vtterly in a moment both soules and bodies , with al y ● euer thou hast giuē vnto vs , if thou preserue vs not . acquaint vs with their deep subtilties , both in fitting their temptations to our particular natures and dispositions , to our conditions , callings and occasions which they know perfectly ; alwaies dogging vs at the heeles , and watching vs , & their meetest opportunities ; whereby they take their fittest aduantage to ouercome vs , as against eue and dauid , chiefely by soliciting vs to those sinnes , wherein we haue bin formerly ouertaken , or wherby they haue most preuailed against thy dearest seruants : & that also in drawing vs on by degrees , as first either to yeelde to some smaller matters which the world accounts no sins , but trifles , or too much precisenes ; as eue to eie the forbidden fruit , and to reason with the serpent about the temptation : or else not to auoid the danger and occasions of the temptations , but thrust our selues into them carelessely without any warrant , neglecting the calling laid vpon vs ; as dauid to lie idlely on his bed in the afternoones insteede of looking to the great affaires of his kingdome . make vs able yet more fully to conceiue of our perpetuall danger , through their innumerable allurements and baits to deceiue vs both of the credit and estimation of the world , with the riches and pleasures thereof ; which they euer hold forth & proffer vnto vs , if we will follow their perswasions ; and otherwise threatning not onely the losse , or at least the hazarding of all these , but more also the hatred , disgrace and reproch of the world , with depriuing vs of all comforts , the losse of our goods , with many other euils , which we must bee sure to looke for daily at the hands of malicious men ; if we will be so strict as to make conscience of euery one of thy commādements , so as we wil not do the least thing forbidden , nor omit the least dutie commanded vs. and whereas we are ordinarily secure in an ouerweening of our owne strength and abilitie to resist satan ; shew vs ( oh lord ) euen in our hearts , the vilenesse of our corrupt nature , which is euer ready as a bond slaue of satans , and a traitor against our soules to conspire with him presently to our vtter perdition , and as readie to run after & swallow euery one of his deadly temptatiōs , as euer fish the baite : so as we haue no strength in the world to help our selues , but all against our selues , more then that thou gratiously reachest foorth thine hand vnto vs , strengthening & deliuering vs. and heerein we pray thee also to reueale vnto vs that great danger which wee stand in continually from thy glorious maiestie , seeing wee haue no warrant of protection , or any aide from thee ( but rathe iust cause of feare that thou shouldest giue vs vp wholly into the power of the tempter , and our own corruption ) longer then that we make cōscience to obserue thy watch , walking carefully in euery one of thy commandements ; vsing diligently euery meanes of grace , & auoiding as warilie each least occasion of temptation . and moreouer seeing the subtill tēpter in all his temptations , vseth all his cunning to hide all this danger with the vglines of sin , and the misery that he knoweth it will bring vpon vs ; shewing onely the faire side of it , as the safetie , credit , pleasure or gaine which we shall get by it , and also vseth the fittest instrumēts to perswade vs hereunto ; as the counsell or example of the wisest , learnedst , or wealthiest & of chiefest reputation , & sometimes of those who haue a name for godlines , so changing himselfe into an angel of light , and neuer comming like himselfe , ( vnlesse to driue poore soules into vtter dispaire ) whereby he not onely deceiues the world , but euen vs thy children , either to make vs to thinke sin to bee no sin , or at least to presume to sin , because thou art so mercifull , or for that thou doest not punish presently . cause vs ( good father ) to keepe a continuall and fresh remembrance hereof , and withal of that fearfull misery which we hale vpon our heads by euerie sin ; especially the wound of conscience , which no creature was euer able to beare , and which will certainly come vpon vs , vnlesse it bee preuented by speedie repentance . and howsoeuer the reprobate and the vngodly may wallow in their filthines , and yet seeme to be more free from punishment thē any other , because thou reseruest them for hel , and therefore fattest them for the day of slaughter : yet make vs to know that thou wilt not let any of vs thy children ( who haue specially giuen vp our names to thee , to make a more sincere profession of thy gospell ) to commit the very least sin , but that thou wilt surely make vs feel the smart of it , vnlesse we preuent it presently by vnfained repentance : and that thou wilt doe openly when our sins are hainous or to the offēce of others ; because thou wilt neither be dishonored by vs , nor let vs be condemned with the world ; but wilt surely correct vs to let all the wicked see with what a perfect hatred thou hatest all sinne , when thou doest punish it so seuerely in thine owne children , and what plagues remaine for them eternally . yea ( oh gratious father ) make vs to feare alway , lest thou shouldest leaue vs neuer so little ; and to suspect al our waies , in as much as satan carries a more deadly hatred against vs , who are escaped from his tyrannie , then against any other people of the world ; and therfore seekes euery houre to prouoke thee against vs , to leaue vs in his hand , and also because he knowes that our sinnes will more cause thy glorious name to bee blasphemed , and harden moe to vtter perdition , than the sins of any other ; wherupon very few of thy worthiest seruants through his continuall dogging them , haue escaped to the end of their liues without some grieuous foiles and wounds , the scarres wherof they haue carried with them to their graues , to the blemishing their profession , & wounding their consciences , with the griefe and shame of the godly , and insulting of the wicked . and therefore as thou hast taught vs this as the remedie against euery assault of the enemie , to watch and pray that we enter not into temptation ; so make vs alwaies able to obserue this thy watch which thou hast set before vs , and to learne to bee better acquainted with our owne selues and our estates , knowing our particular infirmities , and wherein we are weak , that we may put on daily the compleate armour , chiefelie the shield of faith , and brestplate of righteousnes to saue vs from his fierie darts , and withall to haue thy holy word euer in readinesse against euery temptation , which is the sword of thy spirit , able vtterly to vanquish him , and put him to flight , that being strēgthened by thy holy spirit , obtained by cōtinuing in instant prayer , wee may bee able to stand fast in the euill day , and so finish our course , vntill we haue gotten the finall conquest , without any grieuous wounds or foile ; to thine euerlasting glorie , & our own greater triumph and honor in the heauens . we do not pray that wee should not bee tempted at all ; for thou hast taught vs to account it exceeding ioy , when we fall into diuers temptations , knowing the good that comes thereby ; but that we may indure temptation , fighting valiantly and ouercomming , that when we are tried we may haue the crowne of glorie set vpon our heads . for thine is the kingdom , power and glorie , for euer and euer : amen . ] we haue been bold ( oh gratious father ) to beg all these things from they heauenly maiestie , because all kingdome , power and glorie belong onely to thee ; acknowledging that whatsoeuer good things wee enioy , wee haue receiued them all from thy rich and fatherly bountie ; and being certainely assured that as thou hast bidden vs to pray thus , so thou wilt graunt vs all these things which wee haue begged in thy sonnes name , and whatsoeuer else is good for vs , euen aboue all that wee are able to aske ; so farre as shall be for thine owne glorie ( seeing thou art absolute lord and king in heauen and in earth , and doest by thy mightie power and wisedome dispose and guide all things , ouerruling the verie counsels and rage of all wicked men and diuels , as shall make most for thine owne glorie and the greatest good of vs thine owne obedient subiects and children ) and hast assured vs that asking thus in faith , wee shall receiue ; that wee may set foorth by good experience the glorie of thy dominion and power , with the happinesse of thy kingdome , to all succeeding ages ; to which wee doe hereby binde our selues all the dayes of our life , and to liue as the loyall subiects of this thy kingdome , to thine euerlasting glorie ; and so returne all possible thankes , praise and dominion to thy heauenlie maiestie , saying euer , amen , bee it so ( oh lord holie and true ) as wee doe fullie beleeue that it shall bee . euen so amen . amen , come lord iesus , come quicklie . finis . notes, typically marginal, from the original text notes for div a16881-e120 mark. 13. 33. and 14. 38. luk. 21. 36. mat. 7. 7. 8 and 21. 22. psal. 135. 18. iames 4. 8. esay 65. 24 gen. 32. 28. and 1. 2. hebr. 1. 14. iames 47. ephes. 6. 18. iob 22. 27. 28. 29. rom. 8. 15. 16. luke 18. 1. esay 65. 13. 14. notes for div a16881-e360 harken you that pray not at all . you that pray man vnknowne tongue . you that desire to pray . you that faint in your troubles . iob 22. 21. 26. 28. 29. rom. 13. 2. you that are afraid to vse the lords praier . you that are fallen asleepe . * i desire to awake you by oft beating vpon this point . ier. 7. 9. 10. ezec. 18. 11. prou. 28. 9. prou. 1. 24. 25. 26. you that still continue with our sauiour . deut. 20. 1. 2. 3 ▪ 2. chr. 25 ▪ 2. three things wished at the hands of all fearing god. each to know and amend our speciall faults . esay 5. 8. 9. psal. 12. 5. exod. 22. 22. 23. deut. 9. 7. 8. 9. 10. 11. ezek. 14. 14. to learne of our sauiour to pray . my hope of the simplest . learne but the chiefe heads of the margents and trie , making them your morning meditation . to pray according to the two first petitions chiefelie . the fruit hereof . a further pressing the exhortation to prayer . to them that liue in pleasures . dan. 4. 24. esay 1. 16. 17. 18. 19. 20. ierem. 22. 18. 19. to the worldling . to all that cānot pray of themselues , nor regard to learne . to all that acknowledge the truth and necessitie hereof . ephes. 6. 13. 14. 18. to them that are not perswaded of such present necessitie of praier , but thinke me ouer fearefull . esay 6. 3. 5. ezek. 22. 30 ▪ iudg. 5. 23. notes for div a16881-e1550 without this cōstāt practise , we can neither be assured that we are gods children , nor that wee haue right to any creature . rom. 8. 15. 16. gal. 4. 6. but haue all things work to our damnation . 1. tim. 4. 5. prou. 16. 4. we cannot looke to obtaine any thing as a blessing , nor turne away any euill . mat. 7. 7. iam. 4. 2. 3. nor be any thing but meere worldlings , feeling no want , nor able to speake of any thing else . rom. 8. 5. otherwise we cannot be saued . luke 18. 1. matth. 6. 9. psal. 14. 4. ier. 10. 25. the lord cals vs al to step into the breach with moses . ezec. 22. 30 * at the intended inuasion . the death of q. elizabeth . the gunpowder plot . reade with reuerence the prophet ieremie , with the rest who liued hard before the captiuitie euen in iosiahs daies , and compare times with times , and it will make vs crie instātly to god , day and night . notes for div a16881-e1870 ios. 24. 19. prou. 28. 9. wee must be children of childlike affections towards our heauēly father , and able to cal him father . rom. 8. 15. comming in faith only in christ & in a true sense of our owne vnworthines . in all humilitie , being but dust and ashes ; yet with our hearts lift vp to heauen . wee must be brethrē tenderly affected towards all the childrē of our heauenly father . zealous of our fathers glorie aboue all things in the wo●ld . seeking first the kingdome of heauen , and the righteousnes therof . making cōscience of euery tittle of the will & word of the lord. labouring to depend wholly vpō the lords prouidēce and protection . trauelling vnder the burden of our sinnes . voide of malice , vsing to pray for our enemies . fearing alwaies , and watching , lest wee should fall into temptation , so suspecting all our waies . acknowledging euer his soueraigntie , and how he disposeth al for his own glorie , and the good of his elect . able in true faith with thākfulnes to say amen . notes for div a16881-e2270 to giue vs assurance of gods fauour . rom. 10. 12. rom. 8. 15. 16. 26. 2 cor. 1. 22. to haue all things sanctified vnto vs. to obtaine whatsoeuer we so pray for . for the turning away any iudgement from our land , or procuring any blessing . ezech. 22. 30. iob 22. 30. deut. 20. 1. 3. 4. heb. 12. 12. ezek. 14. 14. iudg. 5. 23. prou. 28. 1. esay 43. 1. 2. 3. notes for div a16881-e2540 * let the desire of the two first petitions be euer in thy hart , & beg al other things for them only as being the end of all , then shalt thou bee each way most blessed , and aske what thou wilt so , & thou shall receiue it . notes for div a16881-e2580 esay 65. 24. notes for div a16881-e2630 1. we must come trembling , because of gods glorious maiesty : and our ovvne vilenesse by nature . 2. yet in cōfident boldnes , as to our father in christ. 3. onely in the name of christ our mediator . 4. with thankfulnes for our happiestate in him . watch. ed. 2. p. 1. l. 1. 2. 5. begging an increase of our assurance . by more conformitie to christ in knowledge . watch. pag. 88 lin . 6. and al child-like affections . delighting in the presence of our father . 6. and an increase of our loue to al gods children : chiefely as they more excell in vertue : by praying for them as for our selues , and delighting in their companies . begging most instantly our heauenly vnion to bee shevved in al duties : confirmed by all bonds of agreement : and common interest . and all contrarie deuices of our enemies confounded . which by our di●isio● seeke our ruine : that we may neuer thinke our state good . vntill vve loue the brethren . 1. iohn 3. 14. 7. to grow in reuerence to our heauenly father . 8. and in heauenly affections : and conuersations : to declare our selues his children . watch. pag. 90. lin . 9. and heauē ours , and all creatures at a league vvith vs for our good . for this honour that god hath vouchsafed to vs to be his children . 1. to seeke his honor in and aboue al things . vvatch. p. 78. lin . 17. 2. to haue our eies open to behold his glory , shining in all his workes , as his creatures : vvord : iudgement : mercie : watch. pag. 31. lin . 17. 3. to be able to set foorth his praises belonging to him therein , and haue a holy vse of them . 4. chiefely his glory manifested in our daies , for vs and against our enemies . first for vs , in ab●ndant mercies . and then correcting vs fa●herly for abusing his mercies to his dishonor : so to bring vs to amendment : after threatning vs by cruell enemies , to take avvay all : bringing them to the execution : yet euer deliuering and auenging vs , vvhen vve haue cried vnto him : so as it had been enough to haue conuerted the most barbarous nation . 5. to pray for grace euer to remember and acknowledge this . and to see moreouer his anger kindled againe , by increase of our sins , with these bloodie enemies , and their malice . without hope of leauing off ; vntill they haue their vvils . and also witnessed by many fearefull signes : arming windes and vvaters against vs : threatning to sweepe vs avvay : for our ouerflovv of iniquitie , that we may be awaked , and seeke to appease his wrath in in time . that remembring our former vvarnings from heauē , and vvhat follovved the fierie tent spred ouer our heads . vvee may not be senselesse in these tokens of his wrath , seazing vpon vs as fearefully as any of the piagues of egypt . chiefely to be saued frō that heauiest iudgement : vvhereby both egypt and israel vvere prepared for ●estruction . that we should be worse for all the meanes sent to call vs to repentance , vntill the iudgement come , that we may s●e our estate and turne : and not harden our selues against the lord. that vvee may neuer fall into the bloody enemies hands : but still into the lords . because hee pitieth vs vvhen hee smiteth vs. 6. to pray instantly that the crie of his seruants may preuaile : as hitherto according to his promise : sith he cals vs novv to stand in the breach , as moses to stay his hād : to declare the riches of his mercie : sauing vs still at the prayers of a fevv . and seeing he is still the same to vs , as to moses and abraham : and vve so deare to him that he can deny vs nothing : which may make for his glorie , and our good : to intreate him to magnify his mercie in pardoning and turning our hearts to meete him : but to make his enemies to feele his hand , who haue bin the causes of our sinne by their wiles : to get himselfe glory vpon them , as vpon pharaoh . as he hath begunne & promised to accomplish to his euerlasting praise . 7. that we may be afraid of obscuring his glory : seeking our owne glory , or taking his honour to our selues . 8. that we may not dishonour him by our sins : but account it our greatest honour to honour him ; and contrarily . 9. to honour him by our holy ensample . to stop the mouthes of the wicked . 10. to haue the zeale of lot against the abominations of our age . 11. vvith a bold acknowledgement of the lord , and euery part of his truth : as being our glory : that vvee may be acknowledged of him before all the vvorld : to our ovvne euerlasting honor : seeing gods glorie is in the inlarging his kingdome , and doing his vvill . 1. to pray for a free course to the gospell , which is the scepter of his kingdome , and that it may be powerfull euery where . 2. for kings and queens , to be nursing fathers and mothers to the church : chiefely to preserue is against the rage of all cruell enemies , and to account this their chiefest dignitie . 3. especially to pray for our soueraigne , raised vp for vs , in place of our tender mother . that hee may haue an abundant portion of gods spirit : according to his high dignitie and charge : and the deliuerances of the church by him , he may set himselfe to aduance christs kingdome and gospell : watch. pag. 43. lin . 2. procure the good of gods seruants , repressing the vvicked : that vve may liue in al peace and godlinesse without feare , affected towards him as the good people were towards dauid : sound forth his praises : and pray for him and his , to raigne for euermore . 4. for our magistrates to haue the same harts . 5. for our ministers to tread in the steps of the holy apostles . watch. p. 45. l. 11. 12. seeking to saue euery soule . by vvord , and conuersation . to awaken all our vnconscionable ministers : they may remember the crie of abels blood : and christ appearing . and either to repent & become profitable , or the people may be committed to such , as by whom christ may raigne , and they saued : antichrist cast forth : and whatsoeuer belongeth to him , or whereby he hath deceiued the people of the lord : and the very prints of his idolatire vtterly destroyed . 6. to pray for a holy vnitie in the church , chiefely amongst the leaders : and to take away all causes of contention , confounding all balaams deuices . who seekes by our diuisions , to preuaile against vs. and that we may buy this peace with the losse of all . that all sorts may ioyne themselues vnto vs. 7. that euery one of vs may haue a care to saue others . wat. p. 57. l. 14. 15. especially all committed to our charge : with all knit vnto vs by any special bond : taking all occasions to saue them by al means , being as the angels for lot. 8. that vve may haue a feeling of the happines of this kingdome . vvatch. p. 11. lin . 2. p. 114. 115. and of the revvard of holines : and hovv vvretched the state of all other is . vvatch. p. 56. 7. 8. 9. 9. that vve may liue as the subiects of this kingdome : fearing the causes of backsliding . watch. pag. 122. lin . 8. hying fast tovvards heauen , looking at our sauiour . 10. to destroy all our corruption . 11. to hasten the day of the appearing of our glorie and triumph . 12. and in the meane time seeing vve liue by faith . to increase our faith : that vve grovving to ful assurāce , may ouercome the vvorld . vvat. 116. lin . 20. 117. lin . 7. and remaine faithfull to the death . 13. to be filled vvith peace , ioy and righteousnesse : that al may see of vvhat kingdome vve are : and we feele the beginning of it in our selues , so entring into our ioy . 1. to pray that vvee may declare our childlike effections , zeale and thankfulnes , ●y doing his heauenly vvill : as cheerefully as the angels . 2. that hee vvill accept our will for the deed . 3. that vve may delight to stand in his presence , to inquire his vvill by all meanes : hauing dauids eccho , i am heere lord : that all our seruice may be freewill offerings . 4. to prepare for troubles , and humble our selues vnder them , as his obedient children ▪ making right vse of them : vvithout whispering : assured that god doth all of loue for our good , and vvill giue a happy issue . 5. to take vp our crosses , not suffering as euill doers , but onely for righteousnesse : vvith ioy and thankfulnesse . looking at our sauiour . 6. that vve may neuer do any thing against his reuealed wil , to obtaine neuer so great a good , which we imagine . to the end that all may see the lords tender care for vs , and that we may attend the doing of his vvill . 1. to pray for the comforts of this life . watch. pag. 51. lin . 6. 2. that hee would shew his f●therly prouidence for necessaries , and to direct vs to the means to serue his prouidence . watch. pag. 65. lin . 15. chiefely in our particular calling , auoiding the contrarie . 3. to cōmit ourselues wholly to his protection , depending on him without feare . 4. to know our ovvne frailtie , and vnabilitie to get a crumme of bread , or to see or vse the meanes . to be humbled in the sense of our vnworthines of bread : and that we are vsurpers of it ▪ & of all other things , vntill they be giuen vs in christ , hauing lost al in adam . 5. to get more assurance of our title in christ. 6. for power to the creature to nourish vs. 7. for contentation vvith our estate . vvatch. p. 66 lin . 12. and to see the lords prouidence in bread alone . and vvhen we haue but for the day , nor any meanes . to be able to cast our selues wholly on the lord vvithout fainting . vvatch. p. 21. lin . 7. 8. to pray for assurance that the lord will neuer let vs want that is good : but worke extraordinarily : when ordinary meanes faile . 9. to be afraid of dishonoring the lord , by carcking cares aforehand , or impatience in trials . 10. vvhen we vsed only the means to referre the blessing to the lord. 11. to haue a holy vse of all gods gifts to our saluation : neuer abusing them : but imploying them to the ends appointed , as first and chiefely , to maintaine gods religion , and relieue his seruants : esay 58. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10. 11. &c. so to shew our homage to god : and the communion of saints : wayting for the ioyfull sentence . and seeing our sinnes onely do hinder all these things which we haue begged : 1. to pray for pardon of all our sinnes : because heerein alone stands all true happinesse . 2. to this end to see the haynousnes of sinne : in the fearefull punishment of the angels : our first parents : the old world . sodome . hell prepared for the wicked : and in the punishment of gods dearest seruāts : as moses : and dauid . and chiefely that vpon our sauiour himselfe . 3. to haue some sense of the innumerable euils , which each sinne brings p. 5. l. 22 23. p. 6. 7. vpon gods owne children : vnlesse they be preuented , especially depriuings vs of gods protection and prouidence , and al power in prayer . 4. to bee able to comprehend in some sort the greatnes of our sin , how it is increased by circumstances , being ●om●mitted ●gainst the infinit god : our high calling : all mercies : meanes : vovves : after pardon obtained . 5. to haue some sight of the multitude of our sinnes . being euerie breach of gods commandement , in thought : or in omitting the very least dutie : besides adams sin . the corruption of our nature : being wholly carried to euill : and the hardnes of our hearts . 6. for a continuall feeling of ourdaily fraulties : trauelling vnder them , desiring to be deliuered . 7. that vve may see our most grieuous sinnes , both before our calling and since . chiefely our scandalous sinnes . 8. that by all these wee may see what debters vvee are : and may be driuen to cry for forgiuenes , and to runne to the fountaine of chrisis blood . and yet that we may find comfort in the al-sufficiencie thereof . 9. to the end that we may not bee deceiued in the forgiunes of our sinnes . to pray for true repentance and faith , which are the vnseparable companions of forgiuenes . and to trie them both by the word , to be sincere . wat. pag. 2. lin . 8. and such as haue been vvrought in vs , by the gospell , and do increase and grovv . 10. that vvee may continually examine & iudge our selues . 11. to pray againe for pardon of the sins of our land . as the instant prayers of gods seruants by the blood of christ. whereas we must pray to be forgiuen as we forgiue . 1. to pray against all maliciousnes and desire of reuenge : that though we hate the sinnes of the wicked and reioyce in the execution of gods righteous iudgments on them : and pray for confounding their euill practises : yet that we may pray for and seek their saluation . 2. for them that are our enemies on priuate respects , to pray their sinne may be pardoned : and that vve may seeke to pacifie them and gaine their loue : to heape coales on their heades : and get full assurance of forgiuenesse to our selues . seeing satan seekes continuallie by temptations to draw vs to sinne to prouoke the lord against vs & bring some euill vpon vs. 1. to pray we may see the danger we stand in each houre . for the multitude of damned spirits ▪ 2. for their power to tempt and destroy vs in a moment . 3. because of their subtilties : whereby they knowing our dispositions : marke and take all aduantages : to solicite vs to those sinnes wherin they are most like to preuaile , drawing vs on by degrees , to yeeld first to smaller matters which the world accounts no sinne : or not to auoid the occasions of temptation or neglect our calling . 4. for their innumerable allurements and baytes of this world : vvhich they proffer . 5. for their threatnings if we wil be so precise as to make conscience of each of gods commaundements . 6. for the vilenesse of our nature readie to conspire with them : and to swallow euerie baite : without all strength to resist . 7. for gods displeasure , to leaue vs in their power for our security . 8. for sathans cunning in hiding all this danger , and the vglinesse of sinne : shewing onely the faireside of it what we shal get by it , and vsing the fittest instruments to effect his purpose : neuer cō●ing like him selfe to tempt , whereby he deceiues all the world : and oft times gods owne children , making sinne to seeme no sin . 2. to pray we may haue a continuall remembrance of the seuerall miseries of each sinne , watch. p. 5. 6. 7. chiefely the wounds of conscience which none can beare : and vvill come vnlesse it bee speedilie preuented : that although wicked men escape here , vvho are reserued for hell , the lord yet vvill not suffer vs so : especially vvhen our sinnes are scandalous : because he vvill not be dishonored by vs , nor let vs be damned : and that the wicked may see his hatred against sinne , and vvhat remaines for thē for euer . 3. to pray we may feare alvvay lest god should leaue vs neuer so little , because of satans most deadlie malice against vs who dreescaped frō him : to prouoke the lord against vs : and for that our sinnes vvill more dishonour him , and harden moe to perdition then of anie other : whence so few haue escaped to the end , vvithout some grieuous foiles . 4. to learne to vvatch and pray as the remidie against all temptations : and to be better acquainted vvithout selues : and weaknesses : to put on the compleat armour , chieflie the shield of faith : and to haue the vvord euer in readinesse : that strēgthned by the spirit and continuing in prayer vve may stand fast : and preserue our selues without any grieuous woūds , vntill vvee haue gotten the finall conquest . 5. that we pray not against all temptation : but onelie that in them vve may ouercome : so to receiue the crovvne of glorie in the ende . vve haue begged all from the lord : 1. because all kingdom , povver and glorie are his , and vve haue receiued all from him . 2. because hee vvill grant vs all good things , aboue all that vvee can aske : so farre as shall bee for his glory and our good : seeing hee guideth and ouerruleth all things to serue hereunto : and hath assured vs that asking in faith , vve shall haue : that vvee may set foorth the glorie and happines of his kingdom : whereunto vvee binde our selues , and to liue as his subiects all our daies : and so returne all praise and thanks , saying , amen . euen so lord iesus . eight cases of conscience occasionally determined by the late reverend father in god, robert sanderson, lord bishop of lincoln. sanderson, robert, 1587-1663. 1674 approx. 201 kb of xml-encoded text transcribed from 80 1-bit group-iv tiff page images. text creation partnership, ann arbor, mi ; oxford (uk) : 2004-08 (eebo-tcp phase 1). a61830 wing s598 estc r37202 16268146 ocm 16268146 105198 this keyboarded and encoded edition of the work described above is co-owned by the institutions providing financial support to the early english books online text creation partnership. this phase i text is available for reuse, according to the terms of creative commons 0 1.0 universal . the text can be copied, modified, distributed and performed, even for commercial purposes, all without asking permission. early english books online. (eebo-tcp ; phase 1, no. a61830) transcribed from: (early english books online ; image set 105198) images scanned from microfilm: (early english books, 1641-1700 ; 1156:20) eight cases of conscience occasionally determined by the late reverend father in god, robert sanderson, lord bishop of lincoln. sanderson, robert, 1587-1663. [6], 154 p., [1] leaf of plates : ill. printed for henry brome, james collins, and christopher wilkinson ..., london : 1674. contains added engraved t.p., with imprint date 1673. errata: preliminary p. [6] reproduction of original in the huntington library. created by converting tcp files to tei p5 using tcp2tei.xsl, tei @ oxford. re-processed by university of nebraska-lincoln and northwestern, with changes to facilitate morpho-syntactic tagging. gap elements of known extent have been transformed into placeholder characters or elements to simplify the filling in of gaps by user contributors. eebo-tcp is a partnership between the universities of michigan and oxford and the publisher proquest to create accurately transcribed and encoded texts based on the image sets published by proquest via their early english books online (eebo) database (http://eebo.chadwyck.com). the general aim of eebo-tcp is to encode one copy (usually the first edition) of every monographic english-language title published between 1473 and 1700 available in eebo. eebo-tcp aimed to produce large quantities of textual data within the usual project restraints of time and funding, and therefore chose to create diplomatic transcriptions (as opposed to critical editions) with light-touch, mainly structural encoding based on the text encoding initiative (http://www.tei-c.org). the eebo-tcp project was divided into two phases. the 25,363 texts created during phase 1 of the project have been released into the public domain as of 1 january 2015. anyone can now take and use these texts for their own purposes, but we respectfully request that due credit and attribution is given to their original source. users should be aware of the process of creating the tcp texts, and therefore of any assumptions that can be made about the data. text selection was based on the new cambridge bibliography of english literature (ncbel). if an author (or for an anonymous work, the title) appears in ncbel, then their works are eligible for inclusion. selection was intended to range over a wide variety of subject areas, to reflect the true nature of the print record of the period. in general, first editions of a works in english were prioritized, although there are a number of works in other languages, notably latin and welsh, included and sometimes a second or later edition of a work was chosen if there was a compelling reason to do so. image sets were sent to external keying companies for transcription and basic encoding. quality assurance was then carried out by editorial teams in oxford and michigan. 5% (or 5 pages, whichever is the greater) of each text was proofread for accuracy and those which did not meet qa standards were returned to the keyers to be redone. after proofreading, the encoding was enhanced and/or corrected and characters marked as illegible were corrected where possible up to a limit of 100 instances per text. any remaining illegibles were encoded as <gap>s. understanding these processes should make clear that, while the overall quality of tcp data is very good, some errors will remain and some readable characters will be marked as illegible. users should bear in mind that in all likelihood such instances will never have been looked at by a tcp editor. the texts were encoded and linked to page images in accordance with level 4 of the tei in libraries guidelines. copies of the texts have been issued variously as sgml (tcp schema; ascii text with mnemonic sdata character entities); displayable xml (tcp schema; characters represented either as utf-8 unicode or text strings within braces); or lossless xml (tei p5, characters represented either as utf-8 unicode or tei g elements). keying and markup guidelines are available at the text creation partnership web site . eng conscience. 2004-02 tcp assigned for keying and markup 2004-03 spi global keyed and coded from proquest page images 2004-04 judith siefring sampled and proofread 2004-04 judith siefring text and markup reviewed and edited 2004-07 pfs batch review (qc) and xml conversion eight cases of conscience occasionally determined by the late reverend father in god , robert sanderson , lord bishop of lincoln . heb. xi 4. he being dead , yet speaketh . london printed for henry brome at the gun in s t paul's church yard 1673 eight cases of conscience : occasionally determined by the late reverend father in god , robert sanderson , lord bishop of lincoln . heb. xi . 4. he being dead , yet speaketh . london : printed for henry brome , iames collins and christopher wilkinson . 1674. a letter from a friend concerning the ensuing cases . sir , having perused the papers you sent me , i can safely vouch them for genuine , and not in the least spurious , by that resemblance they wear of their reverend author ; and therefore you need not fear to bring them to the publick test , and let them look the sun in the face . 't is true , their first commission was but short , and long since expired , they being designed only to visit and respectively satisfie some private friends ; yet i cannot see what injury you will offer to his sacred ashes , if , by renewing that , you send them on a little farther embassie for the common good . indeed the least remains of so matchless a champion , so invincible an advocate in foro theologico , like the filings and fragments of gold , ought not to be lost ; and pity the world was not worthy many more of his learned labours . but — praestat de carthagine tacere quàm pauca dicere , far be it from me to ●pinion the wings of his fame , with any rude letters of commendation ; or , by way of precarious pedantry , to court any man into a belief of his worth , since that were to attempt iliads after homer , and spoil a piece done already to the life by his own pencil , the works whereof do sufficiently praise him in the gates all i aim at is , to commend and promote your pious intention , to give the world security , by making these papers publick , that they shall never hereafter stand in need of any other hand to snatch them out of the fire , a doom ( you say ) once written upon them . i have no farther trouble to give you , but to thank you for those excellent pieces of the same hand and stamp ( as every intelligent reader will easily discern ) with which as an accession to this edition , your care and piety hath obliged the publick : only again let me bespeak your vigilance over the press , which by her daily teeming and expertness , or ( at least ) negligence of the midwife , is wont of late to spoil good births with monstrous deformities , and unpardonable errata ; so you will avoid a double guilt contracted by some without fear or wit , of abusing your critical reader on the one hand , and your most judiciously exact writer on the other ; and ( if that may contribute any thing more ) very much gratifie the most unworthy of his admirers . the eight cases determined . i. of the sabbath 1 ii. of marrying with a recusant 20 iii. of unlawful love 30 iv. of a military life 59 v. of scandal 94 vi. of a bond taken in the king's name 101 vii . of the engagement 107 viii . of a rash vow 134 imprimatur , iohn hall , r.p.d. episc. lond. à sac. domestic . may 30. 1665. errata . page 5. line 7. read not at all , p. 6. l. penult . dele so long as , p. 15. l. 12. r. change , p. 2. l. ult . r. with , p. 23. l. 16. r. she , ibid. l. 22. r. it is , p. 32 , l. 4. r. unto , p. 42. l. 24. dele of , p. 43. l. 10. r. married , p. 45. l. 21. r. sayings , ibid. l. 24. r. muta , p. 51. l. 7. r. premisses . p. 52. l. 9. r. to whom , ibid. l. 25. r. should , p. 53. l. 23. r. with all , p. 56. l. 12. r. haply , p. 57. l. 23. r. herself . ibid. l. ult . r. he , p. 67. l. 3. r. doth but , p. 72. l. 12. r. artis , ibid. l. 17. r. nearer , p. 84. l. 19. r. mediations , p. 86. l. 11. r. a prince , ibid. l. 26. after right ; add belongeth to him ; and another to assume a power that of right , p. 96. l. 23. r. or what means , p. 99. l. 5. for to r. do , p. 106. l. 7. r. whereunto , p. 107. l. ult . dele in , p. 119. l. 13. dele to , p. 120. l. 23. dele the , p. 136. l. 19. r. maketh , p. 137. l. 4. r. parts , p. 141. l. 21. r. voideth , p. 142. l. 6. r. place . the case of the sabbath . to my very loving friend mr. tho. sa. at s. b. nottingh . march 28. 1634. sir , when by your former letter , you desired my present resolution in two questions therein proposed concerning the sabbath : although i might not then satisfie your whole desire ( being loath to give in my opinion before i had well weighed it ) yet that i might not seem altogether to decline the task imposed on me by you , i engaged my self by promise , within short time , to send you what upon further consideration i should conceive thereof . which promise , so far as my many distractions and occasions would permit , i endeavoured to perform by perusing the books you sent me , ( in the one whereof , i found written on the spare paper with your hand , a note moving a third question , about the name of the sabbath also ; ) and by looking up , and reviewing such scattered notes as i had touching that subject . but then i met with difficulties so many and great ( whereof the more i considered , the more still i found them to encrease ) that i saw it would be a long work , and take up far more time then i could spare , to digest and enlarge what seemed needful to be said in the three questions in such sort as was requisite , to give any tollerable satisfaction either to my self or others . wherefore i was eftsoons minded to have excused my self by letter to you , from farther medling with these questions , and to have remitted you over for better satisfaction to those men , that have both better leisure to go about such a business , and better abilities to go through with it than i have ; for to questions of importance , better nothing be said , than not enough : and the rather was i minded so to do , when i perceived there were rumors spread in these parts , ( occasioned , as i verily suppose , by some speeches of your good friend mr. tho. a. ) as if i were writing a treatise of the morality of the sabbath . which besides that , it might raise an expectation of some great matters which i could in no wise answer ; it might also expose that little i should have done to the mis-censures of men wedded to their own opinions , if after i had laid mine open , it should have happened in any thing ( as in some things like enough it would ) to have disagreed from theirs . yet , because by your late kind letter , ( wherein , whilst i was slack in making it , you have prevented mine excuse , ) i perceive the continuance of your former desire ; i have therefore since resolved to do somewhat , though not so much as i first intended , hoping that you will in friendly manner interpret my purpose therein . i have therefore now sent you but a naked summary of my thoughts concerning the three questions , abstracted from all those explanations , reasons , testimonies of authors , removals of objections , and other such enlargements as might have given further both lustre and strength thereunto . howsoever , by what i presently send , you may sufficiently see what my opinion is ; which i shall be ready to clear , so far as my understanding will serve , in any particular wherein you shall remain doubtful ; and as ready to alter when any man shall instruct me better , if he bring good evidence either of reason , or of scripture-text for what he affirmeth : the questions are , 1. which is the fittest name whereby to call the day of our christian weekly-rest ? whether the sabbath , the lord's-day , or sunday ? 2. what is the meaning of that prayer appointed to be used in our church ; [ lord have mercy upon us , and encline , &c. ] as it is repeated after , and applied to the words of the fourth commandment ? 3. whether it be lawful to use any bodily recreation upon the lord's-day ? and if so , then what kind of recreations may be used ? i. concerning the name sabbatum , or sabbath , i thus conceive ; 1. that in scripture , antiquity , and all ecclesiastical writers , it is constantly appropriated to the day of the jews sabbath , or saturday ; and not at all ( till of late years ) used to signifie our lord's-day , or sunday . 2. that to call sunday , by the name of the sabbath-day , ( rebus sic stantibus ) may for sundry respects be allowed in the christian church without any great inconveniency : and that therefore men ( otherwise sober and moderate ) ought not to be censured with too much severity , neither charged with judaism , if sometimes they so speak . 3. that yet for sundry other respects it were perhaps much more expedient , if the word sabbath ( in that notion ) were either not all , or else more sparingly used . ii. concerning the name dominica , or the lord's-day : 1. that it was taken up in memory of our lord christ's resurrection , and the great work of our redemption accomplished therein . 2. that it hath warrant from the scripture , ( apoc. 1.10 . ) and hath been of long continued use in the christian church , to signifie the first day of the week , or sunday . iii. concerning the name dies solis , or sunday . 1. that it is taken from the courses of the planets , as the names of the other daies are : the reason whereof is to be learned from astronomers . 2. that it hath been used generally , and of long time , in most parts of the world. 3. that it is not justly chargeable with heathenism ; and that it proceedeth from much weakness at the least , ( if not rather superstition ) that some men condemn the use of it , as prophane , heathenish , or unlawful . iv. of the fitness of the aforesaid three names compared one with another . 1. that according to the several matter or occasions of speech , each of the three may be fitter in some respect , and more proper to be used than either of the other two ; as , viz. 1. the name sabbath : when we speak of a time of rest indeterminatè , and in general , without reference to any particular day : and the other two , when we speak determinately of that day which is observed in the christian church . of which two again . 2. that of the lord's-day is fitter , in the theological and ecclesiastical ; and , 3. that of sunday , in the civil , popular , and common use . 2. yet so as that none of the three be condemned as utterly unlawful , whatsoever the matter or occasion be , but that every man be left to his christian liberty herein , so long as so long as superior authority doth not restrain it . provided ever , that what he doth herein , he do it without vanity or affectation in himself , or without uncharitably judging or despising his brother that doth otherwise than himself doth . to the second question . v. the words of that prayer , [ lord have mercy , &c. ] repeated after the fourth commandment , do evidently import , as they do in each of the other ten . 1. an acknowledgment of three things , viz. 1. that the words of that particular commandment contain in them a law , whereunto we are subject . 2. that it is our bounden duty to endeavour with our uttermost power to keep the said law. 3. that our naughty hearts have ( of themselves ) no inclination to keep it , until god , by the work of his grace , shall encline them thereunto . 2. a double supplication , viz. 1. for mercy , in respect of the time past , because we have failed of our bounden duty heretofore . 2. for grace , in respect of the time to come , that we may perform our duties better hereafter . vi. but how far forth the words of the fourth commandment are to be taken as a law binding christians , and by what authority they have that binding power , is the main difficulty . for the resolution whereof , it may suffice every sober minded christian , to understand the prayer appointed by the church , in that meaning which the words do immediately import , and without over-curious inquiry into those things that are more disputable , to believe these few points following , which ought to be taken as certain and granted amongst christians ; viz. 1. that no part of the law delivered by moses to the jews , doth bind christians under the gospel , as by vertue of that delivery ; no , not the ten commandments thems●lves , but least of all the fourth , which all confess to be ( at least ) in some part ceremonial . 2. that the particular determination of the time to the seventh day of the week , was ceremonial . and so the obligation of the fourth commandment in that respect , ( although it were iuris divini positivi to the jew , yet ) is ceased together with other legal ceremonies since the publishing of the gospel , and bindeth not christian consciences . 3. that the substance of the fourth commandment in the general , ( viz. that some certain time should be set apart from secular imployments , to be sanctified to an holy rest , for the better attending upon god's publick and solemn worship ) is moral and perpetual , and of divine right , as a branch of the law of nature , whereunto christians under the gospel are still bound . 4. that de facto , the lord's-day , or sunday , is the time appointed to us for that purpose by such sufficient authority , as we stand bound in conscience to obey : absque hoc , whether that authority be immediately divine , or but mediately through the power of the church . this is sufficient to regulate the judgment and conscience of every ordinary christian ; yet is it not unlawful for scholars ( soberly and fairly ) to argue and debate a little farther matte●s which are questionable , for the better finding out of the truth . and the points in this argument that are most in controversy , are these two , viz. 1. concerning the observation of a weekly sabbath ; whether it be of necessity to keep one day of every seven ? and by what right we are tied so to do ? 2. concerning the change of the jewish sabbath into the lord's-day ; and by what authority it was done . vii . as touching the observation of a weekly sabbath ; there are these three different opinions , viz. 1. that it is de jure naturali , as a branch properly of the law of nature . 2. that it is properly and directly de jure divino positivo ; established by god's express positive ordinance in his word . 3. that it is meerly de jure humano & ecclesiastico ; introduced by authority , and established by the custom and consent of the catholick church . touching which three opinions , i leave it to the judicious to consider . 1. whether the last of them might not hap to be of evil consequence , by leaving i● in the power of the church , at her pleasure to change the old proportion of one in seven , ( which hath continued ever since the daies of moses ) into any other greater o● lesser proportion of time ? 2. whether the two former opinions ( though they do indeed avoid that inconvenience ) do not yet stand upon such weak grounds otherwise , that they are by many degrees more improbable than the third ? 3. whether a fourth opinion going in a middle way , might not be proposed with greater probability , and entertained with better safety than any of the former three ? viz. that the keeping holy of one day in seven , is of divine positive right , taking jus divinum in a large signification : not for that only which is primarily , properly , and directly such , according to the tenor of the second opinion ; but including withal that which is secondarily , consequently , and analogically such . viii . for the better understanding whereof , we are to consider ; 1. that those things are de jure divino in the first and strict sense : which either , 1. are enjoyned by the express ordinance and commandment of god in his holy word ; or else , 2. may be deduced there-from by necessary , evident , and demonstrative illation . in which sense , there are not many things de jure divino under the new testament . 2. that for a thing to be de jure divino in the latter and larger sense , it sufficeth that it may be by humane discourse upon reasons of congruity probably deduced from the word of god , as a thing most convenient to be observed by all such as desire unfeignedly to order their waies according to god's holy will. 3. that this kind of ius divinum may be reasonably discerned by the concurrence of all , or the chiefest of these four things following , viz. 1. a foundation of equity for the thing in general , either in the law of nature , or by vertue of divine institution . 2. an analogie held for the particular determination , with such laws and directions as were given to the jewish people in the old testament , so far as the reason of equity holdeth alike . 3. some probable insinuations thereof in the scriptures of the new testament . 4. the continued practise of the christian church , so far as the condition of the times in the several ages thereof would permit . for , lex currit cum praxi . 4. that all these do in some measure concur for the observation of a weekly sabbath ; as upon the examination of the several particulars will easily appear . ix . this distinction of ius divinum is to be observed the rather , because it may be of very good use , ( if rightly understood and applied . ) 1. for cutting off the most material instances , which are usually brought by the romish party for the maintenance of their unwritten traditions . 2. for the clearing of some , and the silencing of other some controversies in the church , which are disputed pro and con with much heat ; as , viz. concerning , 1. the government of the church by bishops . 2. the distinction of bishops , priests and deacons . 3. the exercise of ecclesiastical censures , as suspension , excommunication , &c. 4. the building and consecrating of churches for the service of god. 5. the assembling of synods upon needful occasions , for the maintenance of the truth , and for the setling of church affairs . 6. the forbidding of marriages to be made within certain degrees of consanguinity and a●finity . 7. the baptizing of infants born of christian parents . 8. the maintenance of the clergy by the tithes of the people , and sundry other things : none of all which ( to my understanding ) seem to be de jure divino in that first and proper sense ; but yet all ( or most ) of them to be de jure divino in this latter and larger signification . 3. for the right bounding of the churches power , that she be neither denied her lawful liberty in some things , nor yet assume to her self a greater power than of right belongeth unto her in other some . for , 1. in things that are meerly de jure humano ; every particular church hath power in her self from time to time , to order , and alter them at her pleasure , and may exercise that power when she thinketh fit . 2. things that are de jure divino in that first sense , the universal church may not ( and much less then may any particular ) at all take upon her to alter , but must observe them inviolably , whatsoever necessities or distresses she be put unto . 3. things that are de jure divino in this latter sense ; every particular church ( but much more the universal ) hath a power to alter in a case of necessity : but the exercise of that power is so limited to extraordinary cases , that it may not be safe for her at all to exercise it ; unless it be for the avoiding of mighty inconveniences , not otherwise to be avoided . x. as for the other controversed point , touching the change of the day , from the last day of the week , or saturday , ( which was the jews sabbath ) to the first day of the week , or sunday , which is our lord's-day : my opinion is , that the observation of the lord's-day among christians instead of the jewish sabbath , 1. is not grounded upon any commandment given by christ to his apostles . 2. nor yet upon any apostolical constitution given by the apostles unto the churches in that behalf . but , 3. that it was taken up by the succeeding church ; partly in imitation of some of the apostles , who used ( especially in the churches of the gentiles ; for in the churches of iudea the old sabbath was still observed ) to celebrate their holy assemblies upon the first day of the week , in the honour of christ and his resurrection ; and partly for the avoiding of judaism , wherewith false teachers in those first times were ever and anon attempting to enthral the christian church . 4. that the observation of the lord's-day , having been confirmed by so many constitutions both ecclesiastical and imperial , and having withal continued with such uniform consent throughout the whole christian world , for so many ages ever since the apostles times ; the church ( not to dispute what she may or may not do in plenitudine potestatis , yet ) ought not to attempt the altering of it to any other day of the week . to the third question . xi . in this matter touching recreations to be used on the lords-day , much need not be said , there being little difficulty in it , and his majesties last declaration in that behalf having put it past disputation . i say then , 1. for the thing . that no man can reasonably condemn the moderate use of lawful recreations upon the lord's-day , as simply , and de toto genere unlawful . 2. for the kind . albeit there can be no certain rules given herein , ( as in most indifferent things it cometh to pass ) by reason of the infinite variety of ●●rcumstances , to fit with all particular cases , but that still much must be left to private discretion : yet for some directions in this matter , respect would be had in the choice of our recreations . 1. to the publick laws of the state. such games or sports as are by law prohibited , ( though in themselves otherwise lawful ) being unlawful to them that are under the obedience of the law. 2. to the condition of the person . vvalking and discoursing with men of liberal education , is a pleasant recreation ; it is no way delightsom to the ruder sort of people , who scarce account any thing a sport which is not loud and boysterous . 3. to the effects of the recreations themselves . those being the me●test to be used , which give the best refreshing to the body , and leave the least impression in the mind . in which respect , shooting , leaping , pitching the bar , stool-ball , &c. are rather to be chosen than dicing , carding , &c. 3. for the vse . that men would be exhorted to use their recreations and pastimes upon the lord's-day in godly and commendable sort . for which purpose , amongst others , these cautions following would be remembred . 1. that they be used with great moderation ( as at all other times , so especially , and much more ) upon the lord's-day . 2. that they be used at seasonable times , not in time of divine service , nor at such hours as are appointed by the master of the house whereunto they belong , for private devotions within his own house . his majesties declaration limiteth mens liberty this way , till after even-song be ended . 3. that they be so used , as that they may rather make men the fitter for god's service the rest of the day , and for the works of their vocations the rest of the week , than any way hinder or disable them thereunto , by over-wearying the body , or immoderately affecting the mind . 4. that they use them not doubtingly , for whatsoever is not of faith , is sin . he therefore that is not satisfied in his own judgment , that he may lawfully , and without sin , use bodily recreations on the lord's-day , ought by all means to forbear the use thereof , lest he should sin against his own conscience . 5. that they be severer towards themselves than towards other men in the use of their christian liberty herein , not making their own opinion or practise a rule to their brethren . in this , as in all indifferent things , a wise and charitable man will in godly wisdom deny himself many times the use of that liberty , which in godly charity he dare not deny to his brother . the case of marrying with a recusant . sir , yours of iuly the 2d . i yesterday iuly the 6th . received . in answer to the contents whereof ( desi●ing that my services may withal be most humbly presented to my very much honoured lord ) i return you what my pr●sent thoughts are concerning the particulars therein proposed . first , for marrying a daughter to a professed papist ( considered in thesi , and as to the point of lawfulness only ) i am so far from thinking the thing in it self to be simply , and tot● genere , unlawful ; that i dare not condemn the marriage of a christian with a pagan ( much less with any other christian , of how different perswasion soever ) as simply evil and unlawful , inasmuch as there be causes imaginable , wherein it may seem not only lawful , but expedient also , and ( as the exigence of circumstances may be supposed ) little less than necessary so to inter-marry but since things lawful in the general , and in thesi , may become ( by reason of their inexpediency ) unl●wful pro hic & nu●c , and in hypothe●i to particular persons ; and that the expediency or inexpediency of any action to be done , is to be measured by the worthiness of the end , the conjuncture of present circumstances , and the probability of good or evil consequents and effects , prudentially laid together , and weighed one against another ; i conceive it altogether unsafe for a conscienc●ous person ( especially in a business of so great concernment , as the marrying of a child ) to proceed upon the general lawfulness of the thing , without due consideration of circumstances , and other requisites for the warranting of particular actions . now , as for the marriage of a daughter with one of so different perswasion ( in point of religion ) as , that they cannot joyn together in the same way of god's worship , which is the case of a protestant and a papist , it is very rare to find such a concurrence of circumstances , as that a man can thence be clearly satisfied in his judgment ( without just cause of doubting the contrary ) that it can be expedient to conclude upon such a marriage ; and how dangerous a thing it is to do any thing without a doubting conscience , we may learn from rom. 14.13 .. for the evil consequents probably to ensue upon such marriages , are so many and great , that the conveniences which men may promise to themselves from the same ( if they should answer expectation , as seldom they do to the full ) laid in an equal ballance there-against , would not turn the scale ; and in one respect the danger is greater to marry with a papist , than with one of a worse religion ; for that the main principle of his religion , ( as a papist ) is more destructive of the comfort of a conjugal society , than are the principles of most hereticks ; yea , than those of pagans , or atheists ; for holding that there is no salvability but in the church ; and that none is in the church , but such as acknowledg subjection to the see of rome ; it is not possible , but that the husband must needs conclude his wife to be in the state of damnation , so long as she continueth protestant : whence one of these two great inconveniences will unavoidably follow ; that either he will use all endeavors , engins , and artifices , to draw her to the church of rome , ( as indeed who can blame him to bring his wife into a capacity of everlasting salvation ? ) the restless importunity whereof ( together with the ill advantages they of that party can make from the sad confusions that are amongst us in these times ) it will be very hard for one of the weaker ●ex perpetually to resist ; or else in case she stand firm in her religion against all assaults and attempts to the contrary , whatsoever he may be towards her in outward carriage , he cannot but in his inmost thoughts , pass judgment upon her , as an obstinate and desperate heretick , and ( so living and dying ) an accursed and damned creature . these are sad things both ; and it is not conceivable how a woman so matched should live with any comfort , or ever hope to see a good day , wherein ●he shall not either be tempted from her religion , or censured for it ; what assurance can she have of his good affections towards her , who is bound not to permit any better opinion of her , than of a reprobate and cast-a-way ? is it possible there may be so much good nature in the husband , as to take off somewhat from that rigidness , which otherwise the principles of his religion would bind him to , or so much discretion , sweetness , and obligingness in the wives demeanor towards him , as to preserve a good measure of conjugal affection between them , notwithstanding their different perswasions : this i say , is possible ; and where it happeneth so to be , it rendereth the condition of the parties so much the less uncomfortable ; and that is the utmost of the happiness that is to be hoped for from such marriages : and i think there cannot be produced ma●y examples thereof ; yet even there , there cannot be that cordial affection , and fulness of complacency ( wherein yet the chiefest happiness of conjugal society consisteth ) that would be , if the same parties ( supposed to be of the same qualifications otherwise ) were also of the same religion . i omit other oeconomical differences , that may , and very frequently do ( occasionally ) arise , betwixt husband and wife from this difference in religion , as concerning the entertainment of friends , the choice of servants the education of children ( very considerable things all ) besides sundry others perhaps of less moment ; yet such as are apt to breed discontents and jealousies , and sometimes break out into great distempers in the family : such marriages therefore i should utterly disswade ; especially in the nobility , gentry , and commonalty , where there is choise enough otherwise to be had of persons of equal degree , estate , and education of the same religion to match withal : kings and princes for reasons of state , and because there is little choice of persons of equal dignity with themselves , are therefore ofte●times by a kind of necessity , put upon such marriages ; yet even there , where they are certainly the most excusable , it hath been observed , that such marriages have proved for the most part unfortunate . the other particular proposed in your letter , is concerning the mariage of a daughter to one that profe●●eth the protestant religion , but having had popish parents , may be suspected ( though he deny it ) to be that way inclined . the resolution whereof ( as of most other cases , and practical questions ) will depend very much upon the consideration of circumstances , whereunto being altogether a stranger , i am less able to give judgment in the case with any certainty ; only in order to the resolution of the question , these ( to my understanding ) seem to be the most proper and important enquiries . first , whether the parents of the young person be living or no , one or both ? if both be dead , the temptations from them ( which in such cases are wont to prevail very much ) are by their death clearly superseded ; and then the danger is by so much less : but if either be living , there can be little security of the sons continuance in the protestants belief , ( notwithstanding his present profession thereof ) when he shall be assaulted with the whole authority of them , to whom he oweth reverence . secondly , with what degree of confidence , and with what kind of asseverations he professeth the one , and denieth the other religion ; for although they out of design put on a counterfeit vizor , use all the art they can to dissemble it ; yet very seldom can it be done so cunningly , warily , and constantly , but that at some time or other , the dissimulation will unawares bewray it self to the eye of a curious observer . thirdly , what measure of understanding the young person ( who is , you say , of great abilities for his age ) hath in the fundamental articles of the christian religion ; those i mean , wherein the english and romish churches are at agreement , for in those the substance of christianity consisteth ; he that rightly understands those catholick truths taught in the catechisms of both churches , and concerning which all christendom ( in a manner ) are at a perfect accord ; and then will but suffer himself to consider , that the church of england doth not impose upon the judgments and consciences of her members , any thing to be believed , or received , as of necessity to salvation , than what is truly catholick , and by her adversaries confessed so to be ; and consequently , that the difference betwixt her and the romish party , is wholly about those additionals or superstructures , which they of the roman faith require to be believed , and received with like necessity as the former ; but appear to us of this church respectively , either evidently false , or of doubtful truth , or not of absolute necessity to be believed : i say , whosoever well considereth this , may rest satisfied in his judgment and conscience , that the faith taught and professed in the church of england , is a plain and safe way to lead a christian believer to eternal salvation , if he withal lead his life and conversation answerable thereunto . to the last particular in your letter , all the return i have to make , is no more but an humble acknowledgment and sense of his lordships noble favors towards me , in entertaining an opinion of me more suitable to his own goodness and ingenuity , than to my merit : i know not , nor desire to know of any occasions likely to draw me into those parts so distant from me ( being grown into years , and infirmities , that render me very unfit for long journeys ) unless the business of my sons marriage , which occasion'd my late journey to london , require a second thither in michaelmas term. but i am so sensible both of the trouble and charge of such journeys ( besides some inconveniences to my affairs at home , whilst i am long absent ) that i will avoid it , unless there be no other remedy : i shall not willingly decline any employment ( within my low and narrow sphere , both of outward condition and parts ) wherein my service may be any waies useful , or but acceptable , to that noble and excellent person : but truly sir , i conceive there will be little need of my further endeavors , as to that particular expressed in yours , whether what i have written now , give satisfaction , or not ; there are persons nearer hand , whom i know to be much fitter for an employment of that nature , than my self , who have ever studied peace more than controversies ; and namely , one at the next door to hatton-house , whose sufficiency and readiness in that kind is well known to mr. geoffery palmer . sir , i wish you happiness , desire your prayers , and rest , your faithful and humble servant , iuly , 7. 1656. the case of unlawful love . two gentlemen who were very good friends , and both of them married , used to converse together familiarly ; one of these took a special liking in the company and conversation of the others wife , and she answerably in his ; which afterwards proceeded to some degree of love ; which , though ever restrained , and preserved without any violation of chastity , grew yet in the end to this issue , that they mutually vowed either to other ; that if happily either of them should at any time be freed from the bond of matrimony ( either he by the death of his wife , or she by the death of her husband ) that party so freed should continue afterwards unmarried , and stay for the other , till the other should be freed also , though it were during life : now so it is , that this gentlewomans husband died , and her affections and resolution so altered , that gladly she would marry , if she might be released of the engagement of that vow ; or perswaded of the unlawfulness or nullity thereof . concerning the present case , as it is propounded , sundry points are needful to be resolved , that so we give a right judgment de praeterito , of what is already done for the time past , in respect of the gentlewomans former promise , and found direction also de futuro , which is further to be done for the time to come , in respect of her present distresses . point i. sect. 1. first of all , it is considerable , whether the promise made by the gentlewoman and her friend , were properly a vow or no ? so it is called in the proposal of the present case , and that agreeable to the common use of speech with us here in england , who extend the word [ vow ] very far ; neither shall i make scruple in the ensuing discourse , sometimes to call it so ; for loquendum ut vulgus . but to speak properly , a vow is a word of a narrower extent than a promise , every vow being indeed a promise , but not every promise necessarily a vow ; (a) promises may be made indifferently , either to god , or men ; but promises made to men are no vows : wherefore it is usually inserted into the definition of a vow , as a condition (b) essentially requisite thereunto , that it be made un●o god alone , insomuch as to make a vow to any creature , is interpretative to exalt the creature into the place of god , and so to make it an idol , which is clear , not only from the (c) express precept of god , and the constant (d) examples of godly men , and the usual (e) phrases of the holy ghost in the scriptures ; but also from the universal consent of all learned men , both divines and others , and even of (f) heathens also : this gentlewomans promise then being made to the gentleman her friend alone , as was his also to her , and neither of both to god , is therefore to be taken for a meer promise , but no vow . sect. 2. if for more confirmation thereof , she bound her self also by oath , as it is not unlike , yet it is no more for all that but a meer promise still , and not a vow ; for albeit the very using of an oath be a calling in of god into a business , and the person that taketh an oath doth thereby set himself in the presence of god ; yet an oath calleth him in only to be (a) a witness , without any intent to make him a party to the business , whereas in a vow he is made a party , and not only a witness ; whereunto agree those forms so frequent in holy scripture , in oaths both assertory , and stipulatory ; (b) the lord be witness between us : (c) god is my witness : (d) i take god to record , and the like : for even as when a promise is made unto god , whereunto for the more solemnity , the presence of some men is required as witnesses , such a promise is to be held for a vow , because it is made to god alone , although in the presence of men : so on the other side , when a promise is made unto some man , whereunto for the more assurance , the presence of god is required as a witness , such a promise is not to be held for a vow , because it is made unto man alone , although in the presence of god. sect. 3. nay further , if the gentlewoman when she thus engaged her self , did use these very words [ i vow to god ] or words to that effect , as we know is often done in solemn promises between man and man ; yet neither is that sufficient to make it properly a vow ; for to judg rightly when question is made concerning any particular promise , whether it be a vow yea or no ; we are not to be guided so much by the forms of speech , ( which are subject to change , impropriety , and many defects ) as by the true intention and purpose of the parties , especially the promiser . now , what was the whole intent and purpose of these parties , when they mutually bound themselves in such sort , as in the case propounded is laid down , no rea●onable man can be ignorant ; even this and no other , to give as good assurance as they could devise , either to other , and to receive the like assurance again , that the thing by them agreed on , and promised , should be faithfully performed ; and if either oaths or protestations were also used by way of confirmation , they are all in common intendment to be taken as tending to the self-same purpose , without looking at any further thing ; & clearly where the promiser hath no intention to bind himself to god , but to man only , the promise so made is no vow , whatsoever formality of words may be used in the making of it . sect. 4. neither is the examination of this point a curiosity either in it self fruitless , or impertinent to the case in hand ; for albeit , in that which seemeth to be the very main point of all , viz. the power of binding the conscience , there be no material difference between a vow , and an ordinary promise ; a lawful promise no less binding unto performance , than a lawful vow ; and an unlawful vow no more binding than an unlawful promise : yet there is some difference between them , and that of some importance too , in respect of the relaxation of that bond ; for since it belongeth to him to whom a bond is made , to grant a release thereof : it belongeth therefore to god alone to release the obligation of a vow ; and no man hath power so to do , because the vower by his vow , bindeth himself to god , not to man ; whereas the obligation of a meer promise , wherein the promiser bindeth himself but to some man , may be released by that man ; and a release from him is to the conscience of the promiser a sufficient discharge from the said obligation : which consideration of what use it will be in the present case , will in the due place further appear . in the mean time we have evidentl● proved , that this gentlewoman bound he● self by promise only , and not by vow . point ii. sect. 5. we are next to enquire concerning the validity thereof whether or no the gentlewoman (a) having an husband at that time , were so disabled in that respect from making such a promise , that the promise then made by her , without the husbands consent , was utterly void from the very beginning : for the wife is under (b) the law , and (c) under the power of her husband , and so is not sui juris , nor can bind he● self by vow , oath , promise , or otherwise without the privity and consent of her husband ; which consent we may presume this gentlewoman never had , the promise being of that nature , that it had been not only immodesty , but even madness , at all to have sought it . and it is certain● from the (d) law of god , by moses ( to the equity whereof christians are still bound , because it 's founded upon right reason , and the light of nature ) that every vow and promise made by a person that of right hath not power to make it , is de jure nullum , altogether void from the first instant , and bindeth the party no more than if it never had been made . sect. 6. if any scruple shall arise from this consideration , that albeit the promise made by the wife in her husbands life-time , bind her , not without his consent , so long as he liveth , because she is all that while under his power ; yet after that she is loosed from the law of her husband , by his death , it shall thenceforth bind her , because she then becometh sui juris : i say , this maketh no difference at all in the case ; for this is a general rule , that what (b) act soever had a nullity in it at the first , when it was done , cannot by any succeeding tract of time grow to be of force . as if a young scholar shall be instituted to a benefice , being not of lawful years ; or a young heir make a sale of his lands during minority , the institution and the sale , as they were both void at the beginning , so they shall continue void , as well after the clerk is of lawful years , and the heir at full age , as before ; so that to judg of the validity of any vow , promise , or covenant , respect must be had to (c) that very time wherein it was made , and to the present condition of the person at that time , and not to any time or condition before or after : if then there were indeed a nullity in this gentlewomans vow , at the time when she made it , there is a nullity in it still ; and if it were indeed of no force to bind her then , neither is it of any force to bind her now . sect. 7. but after due pondering of the matter , i rather think , that there was not a nullity in the promise at the first , neither ( supposing it had been rightly qualified in other , respects ) was it void upon this ground ; because although she were not sui juris absolutè , it is sufficient yet , that she was so quantum ad hoc . for a person that is under the power of another , hath yet power of himself , ( and so is sui juris ) to dispose of all such things , as by the free disposal whereof , the proper right of him , under whose power he is , is no way prejudiced ; but in whatsoever may be prejudicial to the other in any of his rights , he is juris alieni : neither may dispose thereof without the others consent ; and if such a person shall make a vow , or other promise concerning any of those things wherein he is sui juris , such vow or promise shall stand good , and is not void ( though possibly it may be vitious in other respects ) from the inability of the person that maketh it : as for example , if a servant shall promise to his own father , to work with him a day or two in harvest , this promise , unless his master consent thereunto , shall be void , because the master hath a right in the servants wo●k , to which right it would be prejudicial , if the servant should dispose thereof after his own pleasure ; but if such a servant shall promise unto his needy father to relieve him from time to time with a third or fourth part of all such wages as he shall receive for his service , this promise shall be good of it self ; neither shall the masters consent be requisite to make it so , because the master hath no right at all in the servants wages ; wherein to be prejudiced by the servants disposing thereof according to his own mind : now , forasmuch as the husbands right and power over the wife ceaseth together with his life , ( as the apostle (a) expresly teacheth ) and so cannot be prejudiced by any act of the wife done after his decease ; it is manifest that the wife is sui juris to make a vow or promise during her husbands life-time , concerning something to be done after his decease , in case she over-live him , because his right will be expired before the performance of the said vow or promise be due ; as to give instance in a case not much unlike to this in question : a wife estated upon her marriage in a ioynture or annuity for her life of an 100 l. per annum , maketh a promise in her husbands life-time to one of her younger brothers , that hath but short means to allow him thence forward out of the said estate , 10 l. yearly toward his better maintenance ; this promise is void unless the husband consent , because the performance thereof would prejudice him in that right which he hath during his own life in the revenue of all the lands and annuities estated upon the wife in reversion ; but if such a wife shall promise to her said brother to allow him the said yearly sum of 10 l. after the decease of her husband , in case she survive him , this promise is good , though made by the wife in her husbands life-time , and without his consent , because the husbands right , ( being to cease before the promise is to be performed ) cannot be prejudiced by the performance thereof : and this i find agreeable to the best casuists , whose peremptory opinion it is , that (b) husbands and masters cannot disannul such vows as their wives and servants make concerning things to be performed at such times as they shall be from under their power . which position , if it be true ( and i yet see no reason why it should not ) then doubtless this gentlewomans vow made to her friend , though in the life-time , and without the consent of her husband , was not originally void from the inability to make it , upon this respect , that she was not sui juris so to do . point iii. sect. 8. but though i dare not say , neither do i think that there was a nullity in it , in respect of the person , to make it void that way ; yet it cannot be denied , but there was much obliquity in it , in respect of the matter , to make it otherwise utterly unlawful : in which point much need not be said , because the truth thereof will soon appear ; for there was in it manifestly a threefold obliquity , and thereby also a breach of three several commandments . the first obliquity was in respect of the unlawful affection from which it proceeded ; which being placed upon another than the husband , and that in such an high degree , as to produce a promise of this kind , must needs be vitious , both for the object , and for the measure , and such inordinate affection by the analogy of our saviours (a) expression of the law , is a violation of the chastity of the heart , and so a breach of the seventh commandment . the second obliquity was , the want of that true conjugal love which ought to be between husband and wife , who ought to have a mutual (b) complacency and delight the one in the other , and to be (c) satisfied at all times with the love , . comfort , and society of the one of the other ; which love , if it had been so throughly rooted and seated in the gentlewomans heart , as it ought to have been , would have crushed all motions of unlawful affection towards a stranger in the shell , long before they could grow to such strong resolutions , as by the making of this vow it appeareth they did ; for it is not to be imagined that such a vow as this could be made , and really intended to be performed , but we must needs suppose in the parties so vowing , a kind of weariness at the least , if not rather some inward loathing of the present yoak ; which being contrary to that honour that martyred persons owe to their yoak-fellows , is so a breach of the fifth commandment : a third obliquity there was also as a breach of the tenth commandment , against those express words [ thou shalt not covet thy neighbours wife ] every man and woman being to content themselves with that lot , which , by gods providence hath befallen them , as in all other things , so especially in that which is of the greatest weight , the lot of marriage , without coveting or lusting after that which it hath pleased the wisdom of god already to dispose upon another ; this gentlewomans promise then being such , as ( if it should be brought to an impartial trial before that tribunal which god hath erected in every ones conscience , and according to the tenor of that divine law , whereof no christian should be ignorant ) could not be reasonably acquitted from any one of these sinful obliquities , but not possibly from them all , we may conclude to have been an act utterly unlawful . point iv. sect. 9. but because a man may contract an obligation by an act not free from obliquit● , as the saying in such cases is , [ fieri non debet , factum valet , ] and we have a ruled case for it in the covenant , which the princes of israel made with the gibeonites , which though (b) sinfully made at the first , was (c) necessarily to be kept afterwards : we are therefore to enquire into a fourth point , whether the gentlewoman having de facto bound her self by such an unlawful promise , be still , by virtue of the said promise , bound in conscience to the performance thereof , or not ? to answer directly to the point , i take it , she is not bound thereunto ; for that saying [ fieri non debet , factum valet ] hath place only there , where the obliquity that maketh the act unlawful , may be severed from the substance of the matter , about which the act is conversant ; as when a man voweth to do something , which is not in it self , and for the substance of the matter simply unlawful to be done ; but yet voweth it , either rashly , and without due advertisement , or for some indirect and unwarrantable end , or upon slight and insufficient inducements , or the like , any of these obliquities are enough to make the vow unlawful , in respect of the act of vowing ; yet because these obliquities do not necessarily pass upon the matter it self , or the thing vowed , but may be severed from it ; therefore , though the act of vowing were sinful , the vow it self for all that may stand good , and bind the party to performance ; but where the sinful obliquity passeth upon the substance of the matter , or adhereth inseparably thereunto ; there not only the act of vowing is sinful , but the performance also becometh unlawful : in which cases those other saying ought rather to have place , iuramentum non debet esse vinculum iniquitatis , in malis promissis rescinde fidem , in turpi voto ma●a decretum , &c. sect. 10. if it shall be said , that this difference being admitted , will nothing avail the gentlewoman in our present case , to free her from the obligation of her said promise ; because here the matter of promise seemeth not to be in it self unlawful , especially on her part ; for if the gentleman her friend , were presently free from the bond of matrimony by the death of his wife , as the gentlewoman now is by the death of her husband , they might perform what they had promised either to other , by joyning themselves in matrimony , and that without sin , which is an argument that the sinful obliquity was only in the act of promising ; which therefore they ought to repent of : but doth not cleave to the matter of the promise , which therefore they ought not to violate . to this i answer , what in my opinion is true , that if both the parties were now actually free from the marriage bond , they not only lawfully might , but were in conscience bound ( unless some other lawful impediment should hinder ) to joyn themselves together in matrimony , because none of the fore-mentioned obliquities , which made the former act of promising unlawful , would fall upon the after act of marriage to make it unlawful . but that allegation is not direct to the point in hand , nor to the case as it is propounded ; for it may be observed from the very form of the proposal , that the matter of the promise , wherein the parties interchangeably bound themselves , was not to marry together , when they should be both free ; upon which false ground the objection runneth ; that was indeed the thing they aimed at therein ; but the end is one thing , and the matter another : but the very matter of the promise was , the continuance of their mutual affection either to other , with a resolution to stay the one for the other , when either party should happen to be free from the bond of the present matrimony , till the other should be also free . the continuance of which affection and resolution , will upon examination be found subject to all , or some of the three obliquities aforesaid ; and therefore as such an affection and resolution , could not be entertained at the first without sin ; so neither can they be now continued in without sin ; for so long as they continue , the first of the said obliquities remaineth still , both on his part and hers ; the second indeed by the death of the husband is ceased on her part , but remaineth still on his , and the third contrarily being on his part ceased , remaineth still on hers , as will evidently appear to the understanding of any man that shall take the pains to examine it . sect. 11. yea , and it is further to be considered , that the continuance of such an affection and resolution may be likely to expose a well the one as the other to the assault ●f more strong and dangerous temptatio●s , now since the husbands death , than bef●re . the danger on the gentlemans pa●● , this , lest by how much he is now by the hu●bands death , put into a nearer possibility of enjoying his unlawful hopes , he should grow into so much the deeper loathing of hi● own bed , and so much the earnester longing that , that which is now the only obstacle to the fruition of his desires were removed ; of which thoughts , who can tell how fearful the issues might be ? the sly enemy being most ready at all times to practise upon the corruption that is in the naughty heart of man ; but especially having a mighty advantage against him , when he hath got his conscience as it were in a snare , by the engagement of some vow , promise , or setled resolution . and then on the gentlewomans part , the danger this , lest having by her own voluntary act debarr'd her self of that which is the only allowed remedy , namely marriage ; she should by the just judgment of god , be left to the rage of the disease of burning lusts : for upon what sound warrant can she be confident , or with what reason expect , that god should either preserve her from , or assist her against temptations in that kind , though she should seek it of him with fasting , and prayers , and tears , so long as she tempteth him by persisting in a wilful obstinacy against that means of remedy which he hath appointed ? indeed , where the hand of god himself hath prevented the use of the remedy , ( as if the husband should be long detained in a forein land , or held in close prison , or taken with a dead palsie , or some other bodily impotence , or the like ) there the wife might comfortably implore god's assistance to preserve her from being overcome by carnal temptations , and assuredly rest upon it by faith , if she be not wanting to her self , in putting to her own utmost endeavors , because she hath a promise to rest upon for that purpose ; and god who is faithful in all his promises , is also faithful in this , of not suffering his servants to be tempted beyond their strength : but for the wife , by some inconsiderate act of her own , wherein she wilfully and obstinately persisteth to refuse the appointed means , and yet to expect god's assistance nevertheless , for which she hath no promise , is a fearful tempting of god ; and it is but a just thing with god , and she suffereth it worthily for her presumption , if she be left to her self , and so wrestle with the temptation by her own strength , and so be overcome thereby : for god , who hath after a sort tied himself by his free and gracious promise , to protect us in via regia , so long as we walk in the ordinary known way that he hath appointed for us , hath no where bound himself to vouchsafe us the like powerful protection ex●ra viam regiam , if we refuse that high-way , to walk in by-paths of our own choosing ; which present dangers on both sides , and the former reasons laid together , do suffici●ntly prove , that the gentlewoman is not at all bound to perform her ●aid unlaw●ul promise . point v. sect. 12. hitherto we have proceeded in genere judiciali , by considering of the nature and validity , lawfulness and obligation of the p●omise for the time past : now we are to deal in genere deliberativo , and to consider what in christian wisdom is meetest to be farther done , for the better both quieting and regulating of the conscience for the time to come ; wherein , submitting to men of better judgments , and experience , i give my advice as followeth , viz. first , that the gentlewoman out of the serious consideration of the promises , be brought to a through feeling of the grievousness of those sins which she hath committed against god , and wherein she hath so long continued , that so she may not only be humbled in his sight with true contrition of heart , and remorse for the same , proportionably to the greatness thereof ; but also be provoked to a proportionable measure of thankfulness unto him , for his gracious goodness in restraining her unlawful affections from breaking out into actual uncleanness , and preserving her when she had run out so far in an evil way , from rushing into more desperate extremities ; for erranti nullus terminus : as a stone that tumbleth down a steep hill , so mans corruption , when it is once set on going , hath no stay of it self till it come to the bottom of hell , unless the lord lay a stop in the way : and it is to be acknowledged a blessed act of god's merciful providence , when we have let loose the reins to our own lusts in any kind , if they be bridled from running headlong into all excess of wickedness ; great sins require more than ordinary repentance , and great mercies more than ordinary thankfulness . sect. 13. secondly , that having thus humbled her self before god by inward contrition , she also make an outward free confession of her said sins , to him whom god hath delegated a ministerial power to remit sins , that she may receive comfort and absolution from his mouth ; i mean the priest : and this i think meetest to be done to the bishop of the diocess , with one or more of his presbytery , such as he shall think good to take to him to assist him ; or else to some other by his appointment ; because the bishop is the chief pastor , to whom the care of souls most immediately belongeth , within his own diocess : besides that , both the quality of the person , ( if she be of eminent plac● , and rank ) and the weightiness of the case , make it so much the more proper for his cognisance : but howsoever it would be done to a man of approved wisdom , and such an one as will be both compassionate , and secret , wherein the more freely she shall make confession of her said sins , and the more chearfully she shall subject her self to perform such further acts , whether of humiliation or charity , as the bishop or priest shall advise to be done , in testimony of her unfeigned repentance , the more sound comfort undoubtedly will the sentence of absolution bring unto the soul. sect. 14. this done , then thirdly , that she endeavor by all fair means , that the gentleman also her friend and partner , in the aforesaid promise , may be brought to the like sight and acknowledgment of the great sins that were enwrapped in that act , and to a true perswasion withal , that so long as he continueth in the former unlawful affection and resolution , he is not only still under the guilt of those sins , but also in near danger ( without god's great mercy preventing it ) of falling into other and greater sins , for which purpose it will be expedient , that he be truly and effectually dealt withal , ( yet with as much lenity as the state of his soul will suffer , and withall possible secresie ) and that by some such person especially as he holdeth a reverend opinion of both for learning and piety ; and to procure that this be done , the gentlewoman ought to take it into her own especial care ; which it will concern her to do , not only in christian charity for the good of his soul , but in christian wisdom also for her own future benefit and security . sect. 15. for when he shall be once throughly convinced in his judgment and conscience , of the unlawfulness of the promise made between them , and of the sinful inconveniences that attend the continued purpose of fulfilling it , there is a fair way open for that which is next & fourthly to be done , viz. that he be then earnestly moved for his relaxation of the said promise to the gentlewoman , which ( being it was but a meer promise , and no vow , as in the first point hath already been shewed ) he hath in himself a full power to make , and this also to be done in the presence of such persons , as they shall make choice of betwixt themselves to be witnesses of the said release ; for although the promise being utterly unlawful , hath no power to bind , and so there needeth no release , as of absolute necessity , in reward of the thing it self ; yet such release may be very behoveful in regard of the gentlewomans person , and for the quieting of her conscience , in case there should remain any fears or scruples behind , lest perhaps her promise should still bind her ; for as satan laboureth to benum the conscience with security , to make men bold to commit sins without scruple , till he has drawn them into the snare ; so when he seeth them offer to get out of the snare again by repentance , he is very cunning to inject needless scruples and fears , if possibly he can , to hold them in by means thereof ; wherefore i hold it very expedient , that such a release , if it may be obtained , be not neglected ; for thereby the binding power of the promise , though we should suppose it lawful , should be quite taken away , so as there need no scruple to remain : abundans cautela non nocet , is a safe aphorism ; as wary men when they pay moneys , besides seeing the book crost , will crave to have an acquittance : so it may be some satisfaction to the gentlewomans mind , to have a solemn release before witness , which say it should be more than needeth , yet can do no harm howsoever . sect. 16. fifthly , that the gentlewoman all the while before , and so ever after ( that time only excepted , when the relaxation should be made , for then it is requisite she should be personally present ) carefully avoid the company of that gentleman , and he likewise hers , so far as conveniently may be ; but at leastwise , by no means converse together with any familiarity , especially in private ; lest the former unlawful affection should rekindle in either party , and so the disease after some measure of cure grow to a relaps , which many times proves more dangerous than the first malady ; for commonly when the unclean spirit is ejected by repentance , if once he make himself master of the heart again ( as he will attempt it , and without a good watch happily effect it ) he will be sure at the re-entry , to come with a new strength , and that seven-fold to what he had before , and needs must the end of that man be worse than the beginning : she must therefore resolve to shun all likely occasions of falling again into the same snare , so far as the quality of her person and condition , and the common affairs of life will permit : and she had need also to use her best care and diligence ( praying to god daily for grace to strengthen her thereunto ) to withstand all wicked temptations of the flesh , that she be no more foiled thereby , neither entangled again in such sinful inconveniences , as by god's mercy she shall be now freed from . sect. 17. if in these directions , i be thought to deal with too much rigour and strictness , it would be considered : first , that it 's much better to put the patient to a little more pain at the first , than by skinning the wound over , to heal it deceitfully ; and to suffer it to rankle inward ; which will breed a great deal more grief at last . secondly , that since all men ( through corrupt self-love , and privy hypocrisie , cleaving to our depraved nature ) are partial towards themselves , and apt to deal more favourably with their own sins than they ought ; it is therefore safest for them ( in their own cases especially ) to encline to severity rather than indulgence . thirdly , that there may be a mitigation used of the present directions , according as the state of the patient ( in the several variations thereof ) shall require ; but that ( for the avoiding of partiality ) not to be permitted to the sole liberty of the party himself , but rather to be done by the advice of a ghostly physitian , who if he be a man of such wisdom and moderation as is meet , will i doubt not allow a greater indulgence in case she see it expedient , than it could be safe for the party her self to take of her own head . fourthly , that in all this discourse , i take not upon me to write edicts , but to give my advice , that is to say , not to prescribe to the judgment of others , if any shall see cause to dissent , but to deliver my own opinion ( being requested thereunto by a reverend friend ) with such a faithfulness and freedom as becometh me to do ; and truly those parties whom it most concerneth , ought not to blame me for it howsoever ; inasmuch as there can be no cause to suspect that i should be carried with any personal respects to be partial either for or against either of them ; so god is my witness , whom i desire to serve , i had not any intimation at all given me , neither yet have so much as the least conjecture in the world , who either of them both might be . the case of a military life . sir , in referring over your friend to me , you have pitched upon one of the unfittest persons in the world , to be consulted in cases of that nature , who am altogether a stranger to the publick affairs of christendom , and understand nothing at all of the mutual interests , relations , or transactions of forein princes or states ; yea , so little curious have i been to inform my self , so much as where the stages lay of the chiefest actions of these latter times abroad , or what persons were engaged therein ; that i have something pleased my self ( perhaps too much ) with my own ignorance in our home affairs , accounting it among the happinesses of my privacy and retiredness , in these unhappy times ; that amidst so much fury and bloodshed on every side , it was never my hap to be within the view of any battle or skirmish ; nor did i ever see so much as a pistol discharged , or a sword drawn against any single person , since the beginning of the war. i could have wished therefore , since my opinion herein is desired , that i had had the opportunity to have advised with some more knowing men , and of greater experience and judgment than my self in these matters ; or at lest , that you had sent me , together with the two enclosed letters , a transcript of your answer ( whose judgment i do with great reason very much value ) unto the former of them ; for there i assure my self , i should have met with such materials as would have served me for a good foundation to work upon ; yet to satisfie your desire , so far as in me lieth , and the rather for the gentlemans sake your friend , ( who though unknown to me by face , or till the receipt of your letter , so much as by name ; yet by his letters appeareth to be a person of piety and ingenuity , and a great master both of reason and language ) i have endeavoured ( with reservation of place for second thoughts , and submission to other judgments ) to declare what my present apprehensions are concerning the whole business ; wherein the resolution of such doubts , as in point of conscience may arise , or of the most and chiefest of them , will ( as i conceive ) very much depend upon the consideration and right application of th●se four things , viz. i. the different sorts of mens imployments in general . ii. the nature of the souldiers imployments in particular . iii. the end that men may prop●se to themselves in following the war ; or what it is that chiefly induceth them thereunto . iv. the condition of the person so imployed , or to be imployed . i. considerations of mens imployments in general . 1. mens imployments are of two sorts . the one of such as any man may ( without blame from others , or scruple within himself ) follow , meerly upon his own score , if he find himself in some measureable for it , and have a mind thereunto ; he hath a power in himself ( and that jure proprio , by a primitive and original right , without any necessary derivation from others ) to dispose of himself , his time and industry in that way ; for the exercise of which power , there needeth no special or positive warrant from any other person , but it is presumed he is , ( as in relation to others ) sufficiently warranted thereunto in this , in that he is not by any superior authority , divine or humane , forbidden so to do ; and upon this account it is , that men betake themselves , upon their own choice and liking , to husbandry , merchandize , manual occupations , the study of the law , &c. 2. but another sort of imployments there are , whereunto a man hath not a just right primitively , and of himself , neither may he lawfully exercise the same meerly upon his own choice , but it is necessary , that that power should be derived upon him from some such person or persons , as have sufficient authority to warrant him for so doing : such is the imployment of a iudge , a constable , an a●bitrator , &c. which are therefore said to be juris delegati , because the right that a●y man hath to such imployments , accrueth unto him by virtue of that authority which he receiveth by delegation of deputation from some other that hath a right by command , election , nomination , or otherwise to impower him thereunto , whence are those usual forms , quo jure , quo warranto ? who made thee a iudge ? by what authority dost thou those things ? or , who gave thee this authority ? a man may betake himself to the study , and so to the practice of the laws , of his own accord , but he may not take upon him to be a iudge , without commission from his sovereign ; so he may follow husbandry , and merchandry , upon his own choice , but he may not do the office of a constable , unless he be chosen by the neighbours ; or of an arbitrator , unless chosen by the parties thereunto . 3. now , although as well the one sort as the other , after a man hath addicted himself to the one , or is deputed to the other , may not unfitly be termed his particular calling , and the latter perhaps with better propriety than the former , ( for the word calling properly importeth the action of some other person ) yet according to the common notion , which by custom of speech among us , we have of these terms [ the general and the particular calling ] the imployments of the former sort , are usually taken to be the particular calling of men , and those of the latter sort , will be found ( if well considered ) to fall rather under the general calling , as branches or parts thereof , inasmuch as the exercise of such imployments , is a part of that moral duty , which all men ( according to their several respective relations ) ought to perform to others , being by them impowred thereunto , upon the tie of obedience , contract , friendship , &c. but for distinction sake , as the latins make a difference between vitae institutum and munus , we may call those of the former sort , mans profession , and those of the latter sort his office ; so a man is by profession a lawyer , by office a iudge ; by profession an husbandman ; by office a constable . 4. to bring this discourse home to the present business , we are next to enquire , to whether sort of the two , the imployment of a souldier doth more properly appertain ; that is , whether we are to conceive of it as a profession which a man may at his own choice fix upon , as his particular vocation ; or rather as an office of duty and service , which he is to undergo , when by the command of his prince , he shall be thereto appointed , and so to come rather under the notion of a general calling ? to me it seemeth clearly to be of the latter sort . for , ( 1. ) in the passage of st. paul , 2 tim. 2.4 . no man that warreth , entangleth himself in the affairs of this life , that he may please him that hath chosen him to be a souldier ; the word is 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 , applied to him that warreth with the note of vniversality ( 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 ) annexed , seemeth to imply , as if he supposed that no man might go to war , unless he were chosen for that service by some other person that might command it . nor do i see ( 2. ) what good construction can be otherwise made of that speech of our saviour , matt. 29.57 . all they that take the sword , shall perish with the sword ; or what should be the crime there intended to be signified , by this phrase of taking the sword , if it be not this , for a man to take the sword into his hand by his own authority , before it be put into his hand by that supream power , whom god hath immediately trusted with the bearing and managing of it . now , ( 3. ) can that be said to be a mans profession , or particular calling , which men of all professions are ( in obedience to their governors , and for the service of their countrey ) bound to perform whensoever they shall be by lawful authority , called and appointed thereunto . 5. if these premises will be granted , it will soon appear , that the answer to the question proposed , in the beginning of the former letter ( as it standeth there in terminis , and in thesi , abstractly from the consideration of the person in the said letter charactered , and those other circumstances which may vary the case ) must be in the negative ; viz. that it is not lawful to be a souldier , upon the same account that men apply themselves to trades , to the practice of the laws , and to other ( like ) civil imployments . ii. consideration of the souldiers imployment in particular . 1. the care that ought to be in every man that taketh upon him the exe●cise of any office , to be well assured that he hath a sufficient right and warrant for so doing , is no less requisite in a souldier , than i● any other officer ; yea rather by so muc● more requisite in him , than in most of them by how much the matter he is conversa●● about , ( viz. the life of man ) is of greate● consequence , than are the matters in whic● most of them are imployed ; for the souldier ●very time he draweth his sword i● the field , is by the very nature of his imployment supposed to do it either with a resolution to lose his own , or to take away his enemies life ; else he doth it but prevaricate , and is unfaithful in the service he has undertaken : in which service , if it be his fortune either to kill , or to be killed , he is actually and deeply guilty ; but if neither , yet that very resolution maketh him intentionally guilty of the transgression of the sixth commandment , thou shalt not kill ; in case he have no good right , so far to dispose either of his own , or the others life . it concerneth him therefore to look well to that ; both what power belongeth to him , as a souldier , and by what authority he claimeth the exercise of such a pow●r . 2. most certain it is , that properly and originally the power to dispose of mans life ( ius vitae & necis ) belongeth to god alone , who is , dominus vitae & necis , as the sole author of life , so the sole lord and master of life and death : some part of which power , since it hath pleased him for the good of humane society , ( in the preservation of peace and iustice , and the punishment of such as are enemies to either ) to communicate unto men , ( which power so communicated , is that which we use to call ius gladii , or the power of the sword ) it may therefore be lawfully exercised by men ; but within that latitude , and in order , as god hath communicated it to them , but not farther nor otherwise . 3. now god hath not given to any man , either sovereign or subject , power over his own life , to destroy it by his own voluntary act in any case ; no , nor yet power to expose it to the certain hazzard of being destroyed by another in fight , saving in the one only case of just and necessary defence : under which notion is to be comprehended also the hazzarding of the princes life , in a just and necessary war ; out of which case , whosoever shall expose his life to hazzard , by fight , of his own accord ; if he perish in it , cannot be excused from being guilty of his own death , nor from usurping a power over his own life , which god hath not allowed . 4. add hereunto the injustice , that he thereby doth to his sovereign and countrey ▪ god hath given to his vicegerents here on earth , a right in , and a power over the persons of all their subjects , within their several respective dominions , even to the spending of their lives in their countreys service , whensoever they shall be by their authority required thereunto , which they cannot therefore prodigally spend at their own pleasure , without apparent wrong done to their governors interest ; for as he that shall kill a private person , is not only an offender against god , and against that person , in depriving him of life ; but is also by the interpretation of the laws , ( according to the importance of the ancient form of enditing ) an offender against the crown and dignity of his sovereign , in depriving him of a subject , and consequently of the interest he had in his person , and of the use he might have had of his service : so he that is so prodigal of his own life , as to hazzard it upon the sword in fight , without his sovereigns authority , if he perish , is not only guilty of his being accessary to his own destruction ; but doth also an act injurious and prejudicial to his sovereign , at whose service and disposal ( under god ) his life and person ought to be . 5. and as his presumption cannot be excused , if he be slain upon that account ; so neither can he justifie the killing of another ( though an enemy ) in battle , if he have no other warrant for taking of arms , than from himself ; for war is a kind of judicature , wherein the prince that wageth the war , is as the judge that giveth sentence of death against the enemy , as a disturber of the peace of his countrey , and all that engage in the war under him , are but as so many execution●rs of the sentence pronounced by him ; and he that executeth the sentence of death upon another , must do it by some lawful authority , as well as he that pronounceth the sentence ; or else he is a murtherer as well as this. now the souldier that by fighting on the one side , doth ipso facto declare against those of the other side , as enemies ; if he so engage of his own mind only , he doth indeed , upon the point , take upon him the office of a iudge , being none , and so runneth before he be sent : or if it shall be said in his behalf , that he doth it not as a judge , but as the executioner of the sentence pronounced by that prince , into whose service he hath put himself , and who by the accepti●g of his service hath sufficiently authorized him to do such execution : your letter hath suggested to me this ready answer , that the sentence pronounced by one that is not his lawful sovereign , and by consequence , whose judgment he is not warranted to follow , is of no more validity ( as in relation to him ) than sententia lata a non judice , and therefore can be no warrant to him to execute it . true it is , that with licence from his sovereign , he may serve under another prince , and consequently do such execution as we now speak of ; because the sovereign by so licensing him , doth really refer him over from himself to anothers judgment , and consequently warrant him to follow the same , and so render him capable ( upon the others acceptance ) to execute it . all this is true , but nothing to our purpose , because it doth destruere suppositum ; for we now suppose the case of a souldier putting himself into service , under a foreiner of his own mind , and where himself thinketh good , without the knowledg or licence of his own lawful sovereign . iii. consideration of the end to be proposed by the souldier . 1. sith the goodness or badness of mens actions and undertakings dependeth very much upon the end which they propose to themselves therein ; he that would desire to lead a souldiers life , must narrowly examine his own heart , what it is , bona fide , and in very deed , that first and chiefly induced him to that desire , and what affinity there is between that end , which he proposeth to himself , as the main scope of his intentions , and that which is or ought to be the true end of the thing it self ; the true end of the war , which only can warrant it lawful , we all know is the necessary preservation of a common-wealth in peace , by repressing ( or preventing ) all seditions , or hostile attempts to the contrary ; but as in other things it often happeneth , according to that saying , [ finis non idem est a●tis & artificis ] so here many times the warrior hath another end to himself far distant from that of war , and the more distant ever the worse ; as on the contrary , the action is ever by so much the better , by how much the intention of the person hath a neare● affinity with , or a directer tendency unto , that for which the thing it self was ordained . 2. now , the ends which men , desirous to follow the wars , do usually propose to themselves in so doing , are especially one of these three , lucre , honour , or to do their countrey service ; concerning which , we are to enquire severally , whether or no , and how far forth any of these may be a sufficient inducement to a christian , or but moral man , to follow the wars , as his particular calling or profes●ion . 3. for lucre first : he that hath a warrant otherwise to imploy himself as a souldier , may doubtless lawfully both receive pay , and require it ; iohn the baptist allowed the souldiers 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 , luke 3.14 . and st. paul thought it not reasonable , that any man should go to warfare at his own charges , 1 cor. 9.7 . not so only , but he may also , in putting himself upon that imployment , ( being called thereunto ) have an eye to his profit , and an actual intention ( if moderate , and otherwise rightly qualified ) of getting himself a livelihood , yea , and of raising himself a fortune ( as we call it ) by his service therein ; even as men in the choice of other professions , or undertaking offices usually do , and may do without sin ? but to propose to himself lucre , as the main end and scope of following the wars ( as it is evident by their actions , that very many of our common souldiers do ) is one of the most hateful and unrighteous things in the world : so far is it from being a sufficient inducement to any man to make that his profession . how can it be imagined to be consistent with that charity , iustice , and moderation , that should be in every christian to set up a trade of killing of men for money ? the meer mercenary souldier therefore , or a souldier of fortune ( as we call him ) i find every where inveigh'd against as one of the greatest scourges or plagues of mankind ; for such men never look at the cause they engage for , whether it be right or wrong ; but at the pay and prey ; and therefore they take their best markets , and care not whom they undo , kill , and oppress , by v●olence , rapine , mur●her , and plunder , so that they may but enrich themselves thereby , and can do it with safety : nor will they stick , if there be an advantage to be made of it ; and that they can spy a fit opportunity for it , either to betray th●ir own party , or to revolt to the other side , or to do any other act , though never so base and dishonest , nulla fides pietasque viris qui castra sequuntur . 4. next the i●tuition of honour and glory to be acquired by worthy actions in the wars , may be not only lawful , but commendable also and useful in a souldier ; and truly this of glory is a more noble end , of a higher pitch , and more befitting a generous spirit by much than that of lucre is ; both because men of eminent birth , and place , and parts , are aptest to be affected with it ; whereas gain worketh most upon the lower sort of men , and also because it putteth men upon more worthy enterprizes , and such as may win honor and reputation ; and restraineth them from those baser acts of injustice , cruelty , and rapine , to which the desire of gain usually prompteth the me●cenary man ; but yet as to the warranting of the souldier for making that his profession , ( which is the point now in hand ) this of glory is of no more importance than was that of gain ; for the right end of war , being a safe and honourable peace , there is something common to both ( consequential to the desire of glory as well as of gain ) : so inconsistent with that end , that it setteth them at an equal , or not much unequal distance therefrom : for as he that aim●th to gain by the wars , cannot but desire the continuance of war , that so his hopes of gain may continue ; so he that aimeth to get himself glory by the wars , cannot but desire the continuance of war , that so the opportunities of encreasing his glory may continue ; for there is a dropsie of vain-glory in the ambitious , as well as of avarice in the covetous , as thirsty and unsatiable in the one , as in the other ; whence it cometh to pass , that both the one and the other use their utmost wits and endeavours to find occasions to lengthen the wars , and to obstruct and retard ( so much as lieth in them ) the advices of peace : nay , let me add moreover , that in this respect at least ( viz. as to the effectual hindring of peace ) that of honour and glory , is much the more dangerous end of the two ; because this humour is aptest to seize upon the greatest persons , and such as by privil●dge of their birth , eminency of their places , activeness of their spirits , glory of their former actions , or other like advantages bear a great sway in councils , and are of some authority in the armies : whereas the peasantry , in whom most of the other humour ( that of base lucre ) aboundeth , have neither the wit nor the power ordinarily to do much harm . it hath therefore been a constant observation in all times and places , that the embroyling most common-wealths in wars , in the mean time , and working their ruin in the end , hath grown from the restlesness of some ambitious spirits , and their immoderate thirst after honor & glory . — patriam tamen obruit olim gloria paucorum , & laudis titulique cupido : juvenal sat. 10. 5. so that if there be any possibility of finding a person capable to take upon him the imployment of a souldier , as his proper profession , it must be among those that propose to themselves the same end therein , that is , or ought to be the end of war ; that is to say , those that after an impartial search of their own hearts , can truly say ( and not pretend it only ) that their chiefest aim in applying themselves to the wars , is to do their king and country service , in procuring or preserving the peace thereof : which no man can truly say , but he that prefereth the publick good , and the peace of his country , before all private in●erests . the tryal whereof is , if he take up armes with this resolution , and by his after carriage make it good , not to do any act , or enterprize any thing for his own benefit , glory , or safety that may hinder , nor to refuse any service or hazzard that may probably promote the obtaining of that end ; which qualification supposed , i deny not but that a man may find warrant to go on in the way of a souldier as his proper profession , and that in two cases . 6. first , that which ( in the nature of the imployment it self ) is rather an office than a profession ( such as we have already shown the souldiers imployment to be ) may yet become to the person so imployed , as his proper profession , if he shall be appointed thereunto by lawful authority ; especially if it be done with a declared intention ( whether expresly or interpretatively declared ) of continuing him for life , or for any long space in the same ; and that the said imployment , during such his continuance therein , shall require his personal attendance , either constantly or for the most part : as for example , a lawyer by profession and practice , is by his sovereign called to be a iudge of either bench , or a baron of the exchequer , the office of a iudge is now become his profession , or particular vocation , because it is supposed that he is to continue in that office ; and the execution of that office will require his attendance thereupon , in the yearly terms and circuits : but ●f the king shall appoint a serjeant or counsellor at the law , by his particular commission to ride this summers circuit , into such and such countries , and there to execute the office of a iudge , the party so constituted and appointed , hath by virtue of that cmmission , full power to do the office of iudge in that circuit , and is to be received and honoured with the title of lord , and all other testimonies of honour and respect , in as much ample manner as other iudges in their circuits are ; y●t doth he not thereby come to be denominated a iudge , as if that were his proper profession , or ordinary calling , as in the former case ; because he is impowred to execute the office of a iudge , but during the time of that circuit only : nor is his attendance upon that office any longer required , or so much as allowed him . in like manner , if the king of england shall make choice of some p●rson of quality to be gover●or of dover castle , or of barwick , that o●fice then is as his pr●fession , or particular calling ; because it is to be supposed , he is to continue in that imploymen● , and to attend the same until the kings pleasure be further known therein : but if the king upon some sudden i s●rrection and invasion should raise an army , and make choice of some person of like quality to have the conduct thereof , for the s●p●●essing or repelling such insurrection or invasio● , his imployment in that service being but temporary , and to determine as soon as the business were ended , should not otherwise than in courtesie denominate him a general ; or at least not be esteemed as his permanent profession , but only as a transient office ; this is one case . the other case ( which is more pertinent to the business of these letters ) is of such as desire to imploy themselves in the exercise of arms in forein service , that they may attain to such knowledg or experience in the art military , as might the better enable them to do their king and countrey service , whensoever there should be need thereof ; for since the managery of war is long since grown into an art , and that not to be learned from books , or from private study ; but to be acquired by much practice and experience , and diligent observation : and the rather for that the particular rules of that art , do not stand at such a certain stay as those of most other arts do , but are daily altered and improved by new inventions : it is very necessary for every state to be well provided of a good number of such persons of their own nation , as should be expert and skilful in that art ; lest they should be forced , if an unexpected war should happen , to call in foreiners for assistance , which is both dishonourable and dangerous : the necessity hereof too well appeareth by the evil consequents of the neglect of it in this nation in these latter times , especially in the reigns of the two last kings , by reason of the long peace ; and ( which commonly breedeth out of it as the rust and canker thereof ) tenderness of education and voluptuous living . the nobility and gentry of england , in the generality of them , had so much degenerated from the martial prowess of their ancestors renowned in all histories , than in the beginning of these unnatural wars , there were very f●w to be found of our own no●ility and gentry , fit to have command in an army , or that knew any thing belonging to the art of war ; insomuch as use was made on both sides of mercenary men , and most of them scots , who being for the most part bred up abroad ( in france especially , a place of much action ) had learned experience more than our english had in such matters , by which advan●age they had so wound themselves in●o the chief places of command , and had such an influence into the coun●ils of both sides , ●●at the war was in a manner wholly ordered ●y their directions , witness the great power ●hat ruthen , v●rey , king , meldram , &c. ●ad in the armies on either side . 8. the weightiness then of princes af●airs , upon all emergent occasions , rendring it necessary for them , not only to have power to command their subjects of whatsoever rank or profession to serve as souldiers in their wars ; but also to provide aforehand for a supply of able men , both for places of command , and to execute other parts of that service , which cannot be done , unless a considerable number of persons be trained up in the exercise of armes , and bred souldiers : it is consequently necessary , that some persons be , either by their authority appointed , or at least by their permission allowed to addict themselves to a military course of life , as their proper profession and calling , which authority or permission from their so●ereign , will sufficiently warrant to their conscience the choice of that profession ; supposing ( as now we do ) that the intention be right , the person meetly qualified , and all other cautions in respect of the matter , manner , circumstances , and otherwise , duly observed . 9. the necessity of learning this art granted , there may sometimes follow a further necessity , viz. of learning it abroad ; and after it is learned , of exercising it abroad ; and in foreign service , and that in these two cases : first , when the souldiers own country , whereunto his service is principally , and in the first place due , hath either the happiness to be in a setled peace and freedom , under the government of a lawful sovereign ; or the unhappiness to be in such servitude , through the prevalency of an vsurping power , that no resistance can be made there against ; for in the former case , there is no exercise at all of the souldiers faculty in earnest ; and of what little avail to the attaining of any solid knowledg , or experience in the art military , such superficial trainings , as were used ( and those but very seldom neither ) by the lieutenants of the several counties here in england , with the countrey captains and muster-masters are ( besides that , our own reason will tell us ) the rawness and vnserviceableness of our trained-bands in the beginning of the late wars did abundantly manifest : and in the latter case , the souldier , if he will have imployment at home , must either engage on the b●half of an unjust power , or else run upon his own certain destruction to no purpose . iv. consideration of the condition of the person . 1. this must be considered too ; for the different conditions of persons , may make a great difference in the lawfulness or unlawfulness of their actions , according to the old saying , which holdeth true in this sense also , no less than in that other , in which it is commonly used ( relating to mens corrupt partialities , duo cum faciunt idem , non est idem . in your friends second letter , i find a demand made ( as in the way of reply to some passage of your answer to his first letter ) to this purpose ; suppose two great princes ( as france and spain , for instance ) have had long wars together , and the justice of the cause appear neither more nor less , on the one side , than the other ; if in case a third prince , or state , out of a sincere desire to establish the peace of christendom , after other offers and meditations for that purpose made in vain , might lawfully joyn in arms with the one party to force the other to peace , why a private person might not as lawfully ( having the same intention ) enter into arms for the same purpose ; and the reason of demand thereof is , because every prince or state is ( in relation to other princes and states ) but as one private man to another ; for being called to the regiment of his own people only , he is but as a private man in aliena republica . 2. but that there is a great difference between a sovereign prince and a private person in this affair , it cannot be denied ; insomuch that i find in the very same passage ( put in as it were by way of o●jection ) three very considerable differences . first , that princes may , and sometimes are obliged by articles and covenants , for the defence of their allies , to take up arms , which cannot be the case of private men. secondly , that princes may see cause to set in for their own safety and interest , lest the prevailing party might grow too potent , and so themselves might be oppressed by him . thirdly , there is a greater probability in a prince of compa●sing that noble and glorious end , the peace of christendom , than can be in a private man. all these differences are allowed there as true ; but yet excepted against , as not contributing any thing to the justice of the cause , which is here the question . if these do not , yet a fourth difference there is , that will ( as i conceive ) manifestly contribute thereunto , to wit , that ius belli , is penes principem solum : in the business of war , princes have a judicial , private men an executive power only ; and he that hath no power but to execute the sentence of a judge , is bound to wait the iudges sentence before he offer to act ; otherwise he shall act beyond his lawful power , which is unjust : not but that prince , if he raise a war where he ought not , is unjust too ; even as a judge is unjust , which pronounceth a wrong sentence : but herein is the difference between them ●or taking up of arms. the prince having jus agendi in that behalf , may do it justly , and he may do it unjustly ; yet where he doth it unjustly , he doth but abuti jure suo : but the private person , not having jus agendi , in that respect cannot ( without the authority of the sovereign ) do it otherwise than unjustly ; because in so doing , he doth without leave uti jure alieno , which is alwaies unjust . it is one thing for a man to use ( whether well or ill ) a power that of right belongeth not to him ; the one is not unjust , unless he abuse his power , the other is , if he use it at all . 4. neither perhaps will the reason alledged to the contrary ( viz. that a prince in point of justice and power , is in aliena republica , but as a private person ) bear so much weight as is laid upon it , if one point be well considered , which i think will prove a truth , though it be very tenderly handled ; otherwise it may prove very dangerous , both because it may seem a paradox to those that have been little conversant in publick affairs ; as also , and especially , because it may , by racking it too high , be easily wrested to a mischievous construction , for the patronage of any tyrannical action ; the point is this , that justitia politica , and iustitia privata , have not in all the same adequate measure . princes are bound to be just , as well as the meanest private men are , and obliged to keep faith both with friends and enemies , every whit as exactly and punctually , without equivocation , reservation , or other eluding devices , as they ; of all this no man doubteth : but it is not therefore necessary , that the rules of iustice , whereby the councils and actions of princes and states , in their mutual relations are to be measured , should be precisely the same with those which measure the dealings of private men one with another . 5. and the reason of the difference is evident : private mens controversies may be decided , and their injuries repressed or punished , by the positive laws of the state , whereof they are members ; and consequently subject to be ordered in all their dealings by those laws ; which positive laws ( together with the law of nature , and the divine law , which are common to all men ) are the adequate rule , whereby the iustice of private persons , and of their actions , is to be measured ; but since princes and states are not subject to any such positive laws common to them both , as may determine their differences and controversies : the great necessity of humane affairs , hath ( for the good of mankind in the pr●serv●tion of peace ) introduced by the common consent of nations , another law of larger extent , that which we p●culiarly call iu● gentium , or the law of nations ( whereof that which we call the law of armes , is one special part ) by which the law of nations ( together with the law of nature , and the divine law , as aforesaid ) the iustice of princes and states , and of their actions , is as by the proper adequate rule thereof to be measured . whence it cometh to pass , that sundry things are by the rules of politique iustice allowed as lawful and just between princes , which between private men , would by the rules of meer moral iustice , be condemned ( and that deservedly too ) as unjust and unlawful : there are sundry arcana imperii , some arts and simulations for maintaining intelligence abroad for concealing and disguising councils at home , in the instructions of embassadors and managing of embassies , in making alliances and confederacies , but especially in the pursuance and effects of war , which seem much to swerve from the ordinary precepts of moral iustice ; which yet side integrâ & circa dolum malum ) are by the consent of nations allowed to be used , and so must be , or else there could be no secure living in the world in any society , that saying of his a●que ipsa utilitas justi prope ma●er & aequi , had somewhat of truth and reason in it . 6. the truth and reasonableness of what hath been said will appear ( omitting many other ) in these few instances . first , when a town is taken by the enemy , by the law of nations , the spoil thereof falleth to the conqueror , which if he give to the souldiery to plunder ( as usually is done ) every souldier thereby acquireth a just right and dominion in that which he can lay his hand on first , and take into his possession . secondly , it may sometimes concern a prince or state in point of honour or safety to vindicate himself by war , for some wrong offered to his merchants , or for some rudeness or incivilities done to his embassador ( for even these , in case reparation be demanded and denyed , have been ever held just causes of war ; ( as amphitruo in plautus rendereth that as a sufficient reason of his war , nimis ferociter legatos nostros increpant ) in this case it is by the law of nations allowed him , not only to fight against the prince himself , who yet on●y did the wrong , but to waste his country , fire his towns and villages , and spoil thousands of his innocent subjects of their fortunes and lives in pursuance of his just revenge ; but if a private gentleman w●onged by his neighbour should in like manner , in revenge of that wrong , beat his servants , vex his tenants , and seek his or their undoing , the act were palpably most unchristian and unjust . thirdly , since potent princes , have for the most part , great ambitions , ( and ambition is a boundless lust ) it behoveth a prince for his own safety , to have a watchful eye over the motions and desi●ns of a potent neighbour , almost as much as of a declared enemy ; and therefore wise princes have ever been careful by all just means to ballance their neighbour princes and states as near as they could ; in such a proportion as might hinder the over-growth of any one above the rest : in order whereunto it hath been held lawful for a prince , laying aside the consideration of the cause , to joyn in armes with the weaker , for his assistance against his potent adversary , who else were likely in a short time to swallow him up , whereby he should become formidable and dangerous , as well to himself as to the other his neighbour p●inces and states ; upon which account alon● , were there no other reason besides , it would be as just for all christian princes to compose their own quarrels , and to aid the venetian , and hungarian , persian , or tartar , against the turk , as it is expedient and honourable for them so to do : but what is thus allowed just in the waging of war between princes ; if in a wager of law a private person should attempt the like , viz. to assist with his purse and pains a poor man against a rich without considering the equity of the cause , the act were ( as in the former instance ) palpably unjust and unchristian : instances might be produced many more to the same effect were it needful , but these i think sufficiently ●vidence the truth of what i undertook to shew in this particular . 7. there are also sundry other circumstances considerable concerning the condition of the person , which may render the same undertaking unlawful to one , which yet may be lawful for another , or more or less expedient or inexpedient for one than for another , supposing both private persons and subjects ; as namely , whether he be a person of honour and estate , or a man of ordinary rank and fortune ; whether a single man , or married ? if married , whether he have the consent of his vvife or no ? and whether such consent were a free and rational consent in the wif● , arising from a judgment convinced of the fitness of the undertaking , or rather w●ung from her by the importunity of the husband , and her facility in yielding to the potency of his desires therein ? whether the necessity of his domestical affairs , and oeconomical relations will brook his absence for so long a time as must be spent in that imployment ; or will not rather require his presence and care for the ma●ager● thereof in the mean time ? and an hundred other like doubts and difficulties meet to be taken into deliberation , and unprejudicately weighed against those other probabilities and inducements which at first kindled , and after fomented his desires , before he imbarque himself in that imployment : and yet when all is done , it were safer for him ( in my opinion ) to forbear than to proceed in his intentions , unless he shall be assured , that he hath the free allowance of his sovereign , thereunto either expressed ( which would be the clearest warrant for his conscience ) or at leastwise upon very pregnant grounds of probability presumed . the case of scandal . 1. in judging of cases of scandal , we are not so much to look at the event , what that is , or may be ; as at the cause whence it cometh ; for sometimes there is given just cause of scandal , and yet no scandal followeth , because it is not taken : sometimes scandal is taken , and yet no just cause given ; and sometimes there is both cause of scandal given , and scandal thereat taken : but no man is concerned in any scandal that happeneth to another , by occasion of any thing done by him ; neither is chargeable with it , farther than he is guilty of having given it : if then we give scandal to others , and they take it not , we are to bear a share in the blame as well as they , and that a deeper sha●e too , ( vae homini , wo to the man by whom the offence cometh , matth. 8.7 . ) but if they take offence when we give none , it is a thing we cannot help , therefore the whole blame must lie upon them ; wherefore if at any time any doubt shall arise in the case of scandal , how far forth the danger thereof may , or may not oblige us to the doing or not doing any thing proposed , the resolution will come on much the easier ; if we shall but rightly understand , what it is to give scandal , or how many waies a man may become guilty of scandalizing another by his example . the waies ( as i conceive ) are but these four . 2. the first is , when a man doth something before another man , which is in it self evil , unlawful , and sinful ; in which case , neither the intention of him that doth it , nor the event , as to him that seeth it done , is of any consideration ; for it mattereth not whether the doer had an intention to draw the other into sin thereby , or not : neither doth it matter whether the other were thereby induced to commit sin or not : the matter or substance of the action being evil , and done before others , is sufficient to tender the doer guilty of having given scandal , though he had neither any intention himself so to do ; nor were any person actually scandalized thereby ; because whatsoever is in it self , and in its own nature evil , is also of it self , and in its own nature scandalous , and of evil example . thus did hophni and phineas the sons of eli , give scandal by ●heir wretched profaneness and greediness about the sacrifices of the lord , and their vile and shameless abusing the women , 1 sam. 2.17.22 . and so did david also give great scandal in the matter of vriah , 2 sam. 12.14 . here the rule is , do nothing that is evil , for fear of giving scandal . 3. the second way is , when a man doth something before another , with a direct intention and formal purpose of drawing him thereby to commit sin ; in which case , neither the matter of the action , nor the event is of any consideration , for it maketh no difference ( as to the sin of giving scandal ) whether any man be effectually enticed thereby to commit sin , or not ; neither doth it make any difference , whether the thing done were in it self unlawful or nor , so as it had but an appearance of evil ; and from thence an aptitude to draw another to do that ( by imitation ) which should be really and intri●secally evil , the wicked intention alone , ( whatsoever the effect should be , or means soever should be used to promote it ) sufficeth to induce the guilt of giving sca●dal upon the doer : this was ieroboam's ●in , in setting up the calves with a formal purpose and intention thereby ( for his own secular and ambitious ends ) to corrupt the purity of religion , and to draw the people to an idolatrous worship , for which cause he is so often stigmatized with it , as with a note of infamy , to stick by him whilst the world lasteth , being scarce ever mentioned but with this addition , ieroboam the son of nebat that made israel to sin . here the rule is , do nothing ( good or evil ) with an intention to give scandal . 4. the third way is , when a man doth something before another , which in it self is not evil , but indifferent , and so according to the rule of christian liberty , lawful for him to do , or not to do , as he shall see cause ( yea , and perhaps otherwise commodious and convenien : for him to do ) yet whereat he probably foreseeth the other will take scandal , and be occasioned thereby to do evil . in such case , if the thing to be done , be not in some degree ( at least prudentially ) necessary for him to do ; but that he might , without great inconvenience and prejudice to him●elf , and any third person , leave it undone , he ●s bound in charity and compassion to his brothers soul , ( for whom christ died ) ●nd for the avoiding of scandal to abridge ●imself in the exercise of his christian liberty for that time so far , as rather to suffer some inconvenience himself by the not doing of it , than by doing of it to cause his brother to offend ; the very case which is so often , and so largely , and so earnestly insisted upon by st. paul , rom. 14.13 , 21. and 15.1 , 3. 1 cor. 8.7 , 13. and 9.12 , 22. and 10.23 , 33. here the rule is , do nothing that ma● be reasonably forborn , whereat it is like scandal will be taken . 5. the last way is , when a man doth something before another , which is not only lawful , but ( according to the exegencies of present circumstances pro hic & nunc ) very behoveful , and in some sort ( prudentially ) necessary for him to do ; but foreseeth in the beholder a propension to make an ill use of it and to take encouragement thereby to commit sin ; if there be not withal a great car● had to prevent , as much as is possible , th● scandal that might be taken thereat : for qui non prohibet peccare , cum potest jubet . i● such case the bare neglect of his brother , an● not using his utmost endeavour to pr●ve●● the evil that might ensue , making him guilty upon which consideration standeth th● equity of the iudicial law given to the iew● exod. 21.33 , 34. which ordereth , that i● case a man dig a pit or well for the use of his family , and ( looking no farther than his own conveniency ) put no cover on it , but leave it open , whereby it happeneth his neighbours beast to fall therein , and perish , the owner of the pit is to make it good , inasmuch as he was the occasioner of that loss unto his neighbour , which he might and ought to have prevented : in this last case the thing is not ( for the danger of the scandal ) to be left undone , supposing it ( as we now do ) otherwise behoveful to be done ; but the action is to be ordered , and carried on by us , for the manner of doing , and in all respects and circumstances thereunto belonging , with so much clearness , tenderness , and moderation , and wisdom , that so many as are willing to take notice of it , may be satisfied that there was on our part a reason of just necessity that the thing should be done ; and that such persons as would be willing to make use of our example , without the like necessity , may do it upon their own score , and not be able to vouch our practice for their excuse ; even as the jew that stood in need to sink a pit for the service of his house and grounds , was not ( for fear his neighbours beasts should fall into it , and be drowned ) bound by the law , to forbear the making of it , but only to provide a sufficient cover for it , when he had made it . here the rule is , order the doing of that which may not well be left undone , in such sort , that no scandal may , through your default , be taken thereat . 6. i do not readily remember any doubt that can occur about the reason of scandal , which may not be brought within the compass of these four rules ; and then the right applying some or other of these rules , will give some furtherance towards the resolution of these doubts . the case of a bond taken in the kings name : proposed iuly 1658. r. c. was seized in fee of certain houses of small value , with the appurtenances ; and in the year 1635. whiles owner of the said houses , he entreated a. b. to be his surety for one hundred pounds ; and continued the same at interest till 1639. at which time he requested a. b. to discharge that bond , and in consideration thereof , selleth the said houses to a. b. and his heirs for ever ; the said r. c. also buyeth of a merchant a parcel of goods ; the merchant being a receiver of some part of the late kings revenue , and under pretence of a priviledge thereby , taketh a bond of the said r. c. for the payment of two hundred pounds to himself , but in the name of the late king , as if indebted to the king ; and under that pretence , procureth an extent upon the houses sold to a. b. and maketh seizure thereof : was r. c. seized of the same , when he entred into that bond. the said king , 1640. published a proclamation , wherein he declared , that the taking of such bonds was contrary to his intention , and an abuse of his prerogative , and prohibited all such crafty courses , as tending to the oppression of his subjects ; and it is to be noted , that the said proclamation was published two years before the extent was executed upon the houses , which nevertheless have been held under that extent , about fourteen years , which is beyond the value of the houses . the said r. c. died poor , the merchant is dead also , without any child , leaving an estate behinde him of twenty thousand pounds , as is supposed ; a great part visible in lands , as appeareth by his last vvill upon record . advice of council at law being taken , how the said a. b. may be most readily relieved ; he is directed to petition the present supreme power to pardon the debt , because taken only in the kings name , when there is no debt due to him from r. c. as to the case proposed . 1. i am clearly of opinion , that the taking of bonds in the kings name , to the meer behoof , and for the advantage of private persons , when there was such debt really due to the king , was a fraudulent and unjust act from the beginning ; for though it were not actually forbidden , and so might perhaps be valid enough in foro externo , till the issuing out of the kings proclamation in that behalf ; yet was it in point of conscience unlawful before , as being a crafty course : so refused by the king himself , and guilty of a double injustice , the one to the king , as an abuse to his prerogative ; the other to the subject , as tending to their oppression , as by the proclamation is recited , and that therefore . 2. neither might the merchant , whiles he lived , nor ought his executors , now he is dead , to make advantage of the kings name used in that bond ; nor might he then , nor may they now , by virtue of the kings prerogative , or under the colour thereof , for the recovery of the said debt , use any way to the prejudice or damage of the obligee , or of any purchaser from him , other than such , as he or they might have used , in case the bond had been taken in the obligee's own name , and not in the kings . 3. if any proceedings have been made already in pursuit of the debt , due upon the said bond , upon no other ground or colour , than the prerogative aforesaid , whereby the said a. b. cometh to be endamaged or prejudiced more than otherwise he should have been ; that the execu●ors ought to make him some considerable satisfaction for the same , although perhaps not to the full of what he hath suffered or would demand ; yet in such a proportion , as to the judgment of indifferent persons ( in a case wherein both parties , if they must do what is fitting and just , are sure to be losers ) shall seem reasonable , in case the parties cannot accord it between themselves . 4. whereof , although through the corrupt partiality that is in most , i may truly say , all men more or less ; i do not apprehend any great likelihood ( for neither part would , and yet both must be losers ) yet i should advise that tryal were made thereof in the first place , as the most kindly christian way of growing to peace , if parties will be perswaded to meet about it , and can be made masters of their own passions when they are met ; and surely matters might be easily brought to a handsome conclusion , if both parties , but especially the executors , who seem to have the advantage in law , would not stand too much upon whatsoever advantage they may seem to have , but ( as in conscience they ought ) submit both that , and all other circumstances appertaining to the business , and indeed their whole mutual demands ; to the final determination of that transcendent law , which christ hath established as the only royal standard , whereby to measure the equity of our actions , in all our dealings towards others , viz. to do as we would be done unto ; or which cometh to one , not to do that to another , which if he should do to us ( supposing his case was ours ) we should think our selves scarce justly and fairly dealt withal . 5. but lastly , in case no such accord can be made , either by agreement of parties , or mediation of friends , and that through the only default and stiffness of the executors ; a. b. having by all fair ways faithfully sought and endeavoured the same , i see not but the said a. b. may ( but not to be done , but as his last refuge ) seek to relieve himself according to the advice of his council , by making his addresses to such person or personage , as for the time being shall be in actual possession of the supreme power , and so in a capacity to over-rule the law in a case of that nature , by forgiving that debt whereupon the king was colourably and fraudulently entituled for private advantage , to the prejudice of a third person , but was not at all a debt owing to him from the obligee . p. p. 17. iuly , 1658. the case of the engagement . sir , i have hitherto been very sparing in delivering my opinion concerning the point now most in agitation , viz. of the lawfulness or unlawfulness of subscribing the engagement : considering the mischiefs that must needs have followed , if it should be once noised abroad , that i had given forth any determination in so tickle a point . i could not but foresee on the one side , if i should condemn it as utterly unlawful , how i should be looked upon by those that have all power in their hands , not as a refuser only , but a disswader also of what they have thought fit to require : and on the other side , if i should allow it in any case lawful , what ill use would certainly be made thereof by multitudes of people , apt to be so far scandalized thereby , as either to swallow it whole without chewing , ( that is , resting themselves upon the general determination of the lawfulness to take it in hand over head , without due consideration , either of the true meaning of it , or of other requisite cautions and circumstances ) or else to conceive themselves by so engaging , to be for ever discharged from the bond of their former allegiance . yet since by your letter , and by sending your servant therewith on purpose so many daies journey , through unknown waies , and at this season of the year ( especially as the weather hath proved since his coming forth ) scarce passable , you have shewn your earnest desire to understand what my opinion is in this point ; so great , both for difficulty and concernment ; i could not think it fit , nor consistent with that civility which is to be used , especially towards strangers , to send back your messenger without the return of some kind of answer : wherein , albeit i shall not come up to the full , of what your letter declareth to be your desire , viz. in giving a particular iudgment and estimate of the eight several arguments therein proposed , and the additional quaere in the postscript : yet you shall find something tending towards your satisfaction therein , by touching upon those points ( so far as the straits of time would suffer ) wherein the difficulty of the whole business seemeth chiefly to consist . first then , it is to be considered , that allegiance is a duty that every subject , under what form of government soever , by the law of nature , oweth to his countrey , and consequently to the sovereign power thereof . for the very same law ( which we may call the law of nature , at least in a large acceptation ) which inclineth particular men to grow into one civil body of a common-wealth , must necessarily withal , imprint a sense , and tacite acknowledgment of such a duty of allegiance in every inferior member of the body , unto the caput communitatis , or sovereign power , by which that common-wealth is governed , as is necessary for the preservation of the whole body . so that the bond of allegiance doth not arise originally from the oath of allegiance ; as if those that had not taken the oath , had a greater liberty to act contrary to the allegiance specified in the oath , than those that have taken it , have : or as if , in case the oath should be quite laid aside , there should be no allegiance due . but it is so intrinsecal , proper , and essential a duty , and ( as it were ) fundamental , to the relation of a subject , quâ talis , as that the very name of a subject doth , after a sort , import it ; insomuch , that it hath thereupon gained , in common usage of speech , the stile of natural allegiance : whence all these inferences will follow . 1. that the bond of allegiance , ( whether sworn or not sworn ) is in the nature of it perpetual and indispensable . 2. that it is so inseparable , from the relation of a subject , that although the exercise of it , may be suspended by reason of a prevailing force , whilest the subject is under such force , ( viz. where it cannot be imagined , how the endeavour of exercising it can be effectually serviceable to restore the sovereign power to the right owner , for the establishment of that publick justice and peace wherein the happiness of common-wealths consisteth ) yet no outward force can so absolutely take it away , or remove it , but that still it remaineth vertually in the subject , and obligeth to an endeavour ( so soon as the force that hindered it is over ) of actually exercising of it , for the advantage of the party , to whom of right it is due , and the advancement of the common good thereby , upon all fit occasions . 3. that no subject of england , that either hath , by taking the oaths of supremacy , or allegiance , acknowledged ; or that not having taken either oath , yet otherwise knoweth , or believeth , that the sovereign power in england , to whom his natural allegiance is due , is the king , his heirs , and lawful successors , can without sinning against his conscience , enter into any covenant , promise , or engagement , or do any other act or acts whatsoever , whereby either to transfer his allegiance to any other party , to whom it is not of right due , or to put himself into an incapacity of performing the duties of his bounden allegiance to his lawful sovereign , when it may appear to be useful and serviceable to him . 4. that therefore the taking of the late solemn league and covenant , by any subject of england ( notwithstanding the protestation in the preface , that therein he had the honour of the king before his eyes ; and that express clause in one of the articles of it , wherein he swore , the preservation of the kings person and honour ) was an act as clear contrary to the oath of allegiance , and the natural duty of every subject of england ; as the assisting of the king to the utmost of ones power ( which is a branch of the oaths ) and the assisting against any person whatsoever , with his utmost power , those that were actually in arms against the king ( which was the very end for which that covenant was set on foot ) are contrary the one unto the other . 5. and that also for the same reason , no subject of england , that hath taken the oaths , and understandeth them , or is perswaded that the sovereignty of this realm doth of right belong to the king , his heirs , and lawful successors , can without sinning in like manner against his conscience , take the engagement now offered : if he so understand the words , wherein it is expressed , as if they did contain in them , and require of the promiser , an acknowledgment that the supream power of this realm , whereunto the subjects owe their bounden allegiance , is rightly vested in those persons that now exercise it ; or as if they did import an utter abjuration , or renouncing of that allegiance which was formerly held due to the king. ii. this being cleared , the next enquiry must be , whether or no the words of the engagement will reasonably bear such a construction , as to the understanding of a rational and conscientious man , may seem consistent with his bounden duty and allegiance to his lawful sovereign ? whereof ( i think ) there need be no great question made , if it be well considered . 1. that all expressions by words , are subject to such ambiguities , that scarce any thing can be said or exp●essed in any words , how cautelously soever chosen , which will not render the whole speech capable of more constructions than one . 2. that very many men , known to be well affected to the king and his party , and reputed otherwaies both learned and conscientious ( not to mention the presbyterians , most of whom , truly for my own part , when we speak of learning and conscience , i hold to be very little considerable ) have subscribed the engagement ; who in the judgment of charity , we are to presume , would not so have done , if they had not been perswaded the words might be understood in some such qualified sense , as might stand with the duty of allegiance to the king. 3. that ( as you write ) it is strong●y reported and believed , that the king hath given way to the tak●ng of the engagement , rather than that his good subjects should lose their estates for re●using the same . which , as it is a clear evidence , that the king , and they who are about him , to advise him , do not so conceive of the words of this engagement , as if they did necessarily import an abandoning of the allegiance due to him : so 't is ( if true ) a matter of great consideration towards the satisfaction of so many , as out of that fear only , have scrupled the taking of it . for the doing of that cannot be reasonably thought to destroy the subjects allegiance ; which the king , who expecteth allegiance from all his subjects , advisedly , and upon mature deliberation alloweth them to do . iii. but all this being granted , that the words of the engagement are capable of such construction ; yet is not the conscience thereby sufficiently secured , from justly scrupling at the taking thereof , unless it may yet further appear , that the subject hath the liberty to make use of such a construction ; which is in effect the qu●re contained in your postscript , viz. whether upon supposition , that the words of the engagement will bear more constructions than one , the subscriber may take it in his own sense , or is bound to take it in the imposers sense ? or , whether it be necessary or expedient before he subscribe , to ask those that require his subscription , in what sense they require him to subscribe it ? upon the resolution of which quaere , since ( as i conceive ) the last resolution of the judgment , wherein the conscience is to acquiesce , doth principally depend ; i shall endeavour to give you my thoughts therein , ( wherein i acknowledg to have received much light and satisfaction from a discourse written by a learned , judicious , and pious friend , whereof i lately had the perusal , but for some reasons , not thought fit to be published ) as distinctly , and clearly , as the time i have to do it in , will suffer . 1. first then , for a man that is required of another to give faith by some oath , promise , or other engagement , to take it in a sense of his own , manifestly different ( even in his own apprehension ) from the others meaning , sufficiently expressed by words , according to the common custome of speech , and the nature of the business which it concerneth , is so gross a conceit , that had not the impudence of the j●suits , in maintaining the lawfulness of their equivocations , and the sad experience of these late times , ( wherein thousands have cheated themselves in perjury , by thinking to avoid it ) evidenced the contrary , it might well have been thought a thing incredible , that any man of common understanding , should suffer his reason to be so infatuated by his affections , as to be deceived thereby . for if such latitude of construction should be admitted in promises , and other obligations of that nature , intended for the preservation of faith amongst mankind , there would not remain any possible means , whereby for men to have assurance of one anothers meanings . wherefore i take that for a clear truth , that all promises , and assurances , wherein faith is required to be given to another , ought to be understood , ad mentem imponentis , according to the mind and meaning of him to whom the faith is to be given ; so far forth as the meaning may reasonably appear , by the nature of the matter about which it is conversant , and such signification of the words , whereby it is expressed , as according to the ordinary use of speech amongst men , agreeth best thereunto . the reason whereof is , because the faith so required to be given , is intended to the b●hoof , and for the interest of him that requireth it ; namely , to the end he may have the better assurance from him that giveth the faith , that what is promised shall be accordingly performed : which assurance he cannot have , if after his meaning , sufficiently declared by the words , it should yet be at the liberty of the promiser to reserve another secret meaning in his own breast , differing there-from . 2. but secondly , what if the intention of the imposer be not so fully declared by the words and the nature of the business ; but that the same words may in fair construction be still capable of a double meaning , so as taken in one sense , they shall bind to more , and in another to less ? i conceive in such case it is not necessary , nor always expedient ( but rather for the most part otherwise ) for the promiser , before he give faith , to demand of the imposer , whether of the two is his meaning . but he may by the rule of prudence , and that ( for ought i see ) without the violation of any law of conscience , make his just advantage of that ambiguity , and take it in the same sense which shall bind to the less . and this i ground upon the very same reason as before ; for sith the faith to be given , is intended to the behoof of him , to whom it is given , it concerneth him to take care that his meaning be expressed in ●uch words as will sufficiently manifest the same to the understanding of a reasonable man. which if he neglect to do , no law of equity or prudence bindeth the promiser by an over-scrupulous diligence to make it out , whereby to lay a greater obligation upon himself than he need to do . 3. but then thirdly , if it shall happen ( as often it cometh to pass , when we have to deal with cunning men , and may possibly be the case now , and undoub●edly was so in the business of the p●otestation , when the time was ) that he ●hat requireth the faith to be given , do of purpose so contrive the words , that there may be l●ft an ambiguity and latitude of sense therein ; yea , and that it be very probable , and in a manner apparent , ( upon the consideration of the point of interest , or other strong presumptions arising from circumstances or otherwise ) even to the apprehension of the promiser himself , that he hath some farther reach in requiring that promise from him , some more remote and secret intention then he is willing to discover . in that case what is to be done ? i answer , that the promiser in such case is no ways obliged in giving his faith , to take notice of any secret intention , but is at liberty to make use of that latitude of sense , which the other did rather chuse to leave undetermined , than to restrain , and so to turn the others cunning dealing to his own best advantage , by taking it in the more favourable construction ; and that which bindeth to less . for it is the declared intention only , ( viz. that which the words , according to the common use of speech , do in relation to the nature of the subject , most naturally and properly represent to the understanding of reasonable men , when they hear them ) and not 〈◊〉 the remote , secret , and reserved intent , which the promiser is obliged unto . the reason whereof is manifest ; because he that requireth faith to be given from another , by words of his own contriving , is ever presumed so to have determined the sense thereof , in the contrivance of the words , as may sufficiently declare what he intendeth the promiser should assure him to perform . if therefore he have not so determined the words , as to signifie the more ; it is in all reason to be presumed , that he intended to oblige him but to the less . for being at liberty to make his own choice of words , whereby to express his own meaning ; who can think otherwise , but that he would make the choice with respect to his own interest ? and therefore , though he might have a secret desire , which he is lo●h to discover , that the promiser should be bound to the more , and would be marvellously well pleased , that he should so understand the words , as if they intended to bind him to the more : yet since it had been so easie a matter for him , by adding or altering a few words , to have declared that intent , if he had thought it conducible to his own ends ; it will be presumed also , that it was out of respect of self-interest , that he forbare so to do , and chose rather to leave his meaning , in such general words , as will not exclude the sense , which bindeth but to the less ; and consequently that his declared intent obligeth to no more but to the less only . iv. to bring the matter yet closer , and to put it up to the present cases , there are yet two things more to be done . first , to shew what the different constructions ( the highest , i mean , and the lowest ) the words of the engagement are fairly capabl● of . and secondly , to find as well as we can , whether of the two is more probably the meaning intended by the imposers , to be declared by the words . the words are these : i do promise to be true and faithful to the common-wealth of england , as it is now established without king or lords . wherein there are sundry ambiguities . 1. first , in the words true and fai●hf●l ; by which may be intended , either the promise of that fidelity and allegiance ( which was formerly acknowledged to be due to the king , &c. ) to be now performed to those that are presently possessed of the supream power , as their right and due . or else that promise of such a kind of fidelity , as captives taken in the war , promise to their enemies , when they fall under their power ; viz. to remain true prisoners of war , and so long as they are in their power , not to attempt any thing to their destruction . 2. secondly , in the word common-wealth , by which may either be meant , those persons who are the prevalent party in this kingdom , and now are possessed of , and do exercise the supreme power therein , as if the right of soveraignty were vested in them : or else , the whole entire body of the english nation , as it is a civil society or state within it self , distinguished from all other foreign estates . taken in the former sense , the fidelity promised to the common-wealth , relateth directly to the upholding of that party who are the present governors de facto , and imports subjection to them as de jure : but taken in the latter , it relateth to the safety of the nation , and importeth no more as to the present governors , but to live peaceably under them de facto , and to yield obedience to them in things absolutely necessary for the upholding civil society within the realm ; such as are the defence of the nation against foraigners , the furtherance of publick justice , and the maintenance of trade . 3. in the words as it is now established , &c. which may be understood either by way of approbation of what hath been done by way of abolishing kingly government , and the house of peers , and placing all authority and power within the realm , in the house of commons . or else 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 only , as a clause simply and barely reciting what manner of government it is that this nation de facto , is now under ; viz. a government by the commons only , without either king or house of lords . which ambiguities considered , the highest construction that can be reasonably made of the words , is to this effect . i acknowledge the sovereign power of this nation , where unto i owe allegiance and subjection to be rightly stated in the house of commons , wherein neither king nor lords ( as such ) have , or henceforth ought to have any share ; and i promise that i will perform all allegiance and subjection thereunto , and maintain the same with my fortunes and life to the utmost of my power . and the lowest construction that can be reasonably made of the same words , is to this effect : whereas for the present , the supreme power in england , under which power i now am , is actually possessed and exercised by the house of commons , without either king or lords ; i promise that so long as i live under that power and protection , i will not contrive or attempt any act of hostility against them : but living quietly and peaceably under them , will endeavor my self faithfully in my place and calling , to do what every good member of a common-wealth ought to do for the safety of my country , and preservation of civil society therein . v. now cometh in to be considered in the last place the great question , whether of the two constructions it is , ( that which bindeth to the most , or this which obligeth to the least , the words can well bear ) that the formers of the engagement did rather intend to declare by these words . they that think the former , want not probability of reason to ground their perswasions upon . for they consider , that those who are presently possessed of the supreme power , are not minded to part with it if they can hold it . and that the likeliest way to hold it is , if they can possibly bring the whole people of england , or at least the far greatest part thereof , to acknowledge that they are rightly possessed of it , and to promise subjection and allegiance to them as such . and that therefore the engagement , being purposely devised and set on foot , as the fittest engine to expedite that work , must in all reason intend to oblige so far . which being so contrary to their judgment and perswasion , concerning the duty and oath of allegiance , i cannot blame those that so understand the words of the engagement , if they abominate the very thought of taking it . but there wanteth not great probability of reason on the other side , to induce us to believe that the latter and lower sense is rather to be deemed the immediate , and declared intent of the imposers , whatsoever cause of suspition there may be , that the former meaning may be more agreeable to their secret , reserved , and ultimate intent ; between which two , if there be any difference ( as it is not impossible but there may be ) the engager is not concerned in it , or not yet : the equivocation , if there be any in that , must be put upon the imposers , not on the promisers score . for thus believing , there are amongst others these probabilities . 1. that many prudent and consciencious men of the royal party , as well divines and lawyers , as others , have thus understood it , who we presume would not for any outward resp●ct in the world have taken it , if they had conceived any more to have been intended in it . 2. that it hath often been affirmed , both publickly and privately in several parts of the kingdom ( if we may believe either common fame , or the reports of sundry credible particular persons ) by those that have perswaded or pressed others to subscribe ; that the same is the very true intent and meaning of it , and no other . 3. that if the imposers had been minded to have declared an intent of binding to more , they might easily have framed the words so as not to be capable of a construction binding to less . 4. that ( as is also credibly reported ) whilst the form of words was under debate , the opinion of those that would have had it set higher , was not followed , as held unseasonable ; and the vote carried , for the more moderate expression wherein it now standeth . 5. that the imposers , intending by the engagement to secure themselves , especially against the designs and attempts of those men , who they knew ( well enough ) held them for no other than usurpers , must be in reason supposed to require no more assurance of them by the engagement , than such as may and is usually given to usurpers ; which is , not an acknowledgment of their title , and a promise of allegiance , but meerly a promise of living quietly , so long as they are under their power , and enjoy their protection . 6. that it is a received maxim of political prudence , for all new governors , ( especially those that either introduce a new form of government , or come in upon a questionable title ) to abstain from all harsh proceedings , even against those whom they know to be evil affected to their power , and not so much as to exasperate them ( though it be in the power of their hands to destroy them ) especially in the beginning of their government ; but rather to sweeten them into a better opinion of their persons , and to win upon them by acts of grace and oblivion ( for remissiùs imperanti meliùs paretur . ) so as they may have but any tolerable kind of as●urance from them in the mean time , of living quietly and peaceably under them . we have no reason therefore to believe that the imposers of this engagement , who have acted the parts of the greatest politicians , ●o perfectly and succesfully hitherto , as to possess themselves so fully of the supream power of so great and flourishing a kingdom , in so few years ▪ would be so impolitick as not to proceed by the same ●ules , that all wise and succesful persons have ever practised in the managing , and for the establishing of an acquired power . vi. out of all these premises together ( weighing my positive conclusion , either affirmative or negative , touching the lawfulness or unlawfulness of subscribing in universali ) i shall declare my opinion only in these few following particulars . 1. that it is not lawful for any man to take the engagement with a resolution to break it . 2. that therefore , whosoever thinketh the words of the engagement do contain a promise of any thing which it is not law●ul for him to perform , cannot take it with a good conscience . 3. that whosoever so understandeth the words of the engagement , as if they did oblige him to any thing contrary to his allegiance , or render him unable to act according thereunto , upon any seasonable emerging occasion , cannot with a good conscience take it . 4. that if any man for any temporal benefit , or avoiding any temporal damage , shall take the engagement with a doubting conscience ( that is , before he be perswaded in his judgment , upon some probable ground of reason , that it is lawful for him so to do ) he sinneth therein . 5. that if any man after a serious desire of informing himself as rightly as he can , what are the duties of his allegiance on the one side , and what is most probably the meaning intended by the words of the engagement on the other side , shall find himself well satisfied in this perswasion , that the performance in the mean time of what is required by the engagement so understood , is no way contrary ( for any thing he can discern for the present ) to his bounden allegiance , so long as he is under such a force , as that he cannot exercise it ; and likewise , that whensoever that force is so removed from him , or he from under it , as that he hath power to act according to his allegiance , the obligation of the engagement of it self determineth and expireth : and out of these considerations , rather than suffer extreme prejudice in his person , estate , or necessary relations , shall subscribe the engagement ; since his own heart condemn●th him not , neither will i. sir , i have now two requests to you , which i doubt not but you will think reasonable . the one , that whatsoever use you shall please to make of these papers , or any thing therein contained , for your own , or any frien●s satisfaction ; yet you would not deliver any copies abroad , lest they should come to be printed , as some other papers of mine , written in this manner , have been without my knowledg . this i desire , both in respect of the danger i might incur from the displeasure of the potent party , if any such thing should come abroad ; as also lest upon the consideration of some things here hinted , they might think the words of the engagement too light , and might thence take occasion to lay some heavier obligation upon us , in words that should oblige to more . the other request is , that since i have not any other perfect copy of what i now send you , you would procure it to be transcribed for me ; and either the copy so transcribed , or these very papers rather , when you have transcribed them , transmit enclosed in a letter , or by some friend that will be sure to deliver them safe , with his own hands , to my son — in london , to whom i shall write shortly , that he may expect them , sir , i desire that my best respects may be presented , &c. — god endue us all with grace and wisdom fit for these evil times ; to whose mercy and blessing commend us all , i rest , your loving friend and servant . b.p. dec. 20. 1650. the case of a rash vovv deliberately iterated . the case . a gentleman of good estate , hath issue one only daughter , who placing her affections upon a person much below her rank , intendeth marriage with him : the father hearing of it , in great displeasure voweth , and confirmeth it with an oath , that if she marry him , he will never give her a farthing of his estate . the daughter notwithstanding marryeth him : after which the father sundry times iterateth and reneweth his said former vow , and that in a serious and deliberate manner ; adding further , that he would never give her or any of her● any part of his estate . quaere : whether the fathers vow so made , and so confirmed and iterated as abovesaid , be obligatory or not ? the resolution . my opinion is , that the vow was rash , and is not at all obligatory . 1. the question here proposed is concerning the obligation only ; yet i deem it expedient to declare my opinion concerning the rashness also : and that for two reasons . first , because there seemeth in the propo●al of the case , to be some weight laid upon the after iterations , which were more deliberate , as if they added to the obligation . and secondly , because i think it needful that the vower should as well be convinced of the greatness of his sin in making such a vow , for the time past , as satisfied concerning the present and future invalidity of it . 2. it is easie to believe , that the gentleman , when he first made the vow , was possessed with a very great indignation against his daughter for her high and inexcusable disobedience to him in so very weighty a business . and truly it must be confessed , he had need to be a man of a very rare command over his own spirit , and such as are scarce to be found one of a thousand , that could so contain himself within the bounds of reason , upon so just a provocation from an only child , ( possibly some other aggravating circumstances concurring ) as not to be transported with the violence of that passion , into some thoughts and resolutions , not exactly agreeable with the dictates of right reason . it can therefore be little doubted , but the vow made whilst the reason was held under the force of so strange a perturbation , was a rash and irrational vow . 3. nor will these after-acts in confirmation of the first vow , though having more of deliberation in them , be sufficient to redeem either it or themselves from the imputation of rashness : understanding rashness in that latitude as the casuists do , when they treat de voto temerario , under the notion whereof they comprehend all such vows as happen per defectum plenae & discussae deliberationis , as they express it ; for it is to be considered , that when an injury , disobedience , or other affront is strongly resented , it many times ●aketh a very deep impression in the soul , which though after the first impetus have a little spent it self , it begin somewhat to abate , yet it doth so by such slow and insensible degrees , that the same perturbation , which first discomposed the mind , may have a strong influence into all succeeding deliberations for a long time after . even as after an acute feaver , when the sharpest paroxysmes are over , and the malignity of the disease well spent , although the party begin to recover some degrees of strength ; yet there may remain for a good while after such a debility in the parti●s , as that they cannot exercise their proper functions , but with some weakness more or less , till the party be perfectly recovered . sith therefore the after-iterations on the first vow in the present case , did proceed apparently from the rancor and malignity remaining in the mind , as the dregs and reliques of the same perturbation , from which the first vow also proceeded : they must upon the same account ( to wit , per defectum plenae deliberationis ) undergo the same censure of rashness with the first . the same i say for the kind ; some difference i grant there is for the degree : but magis & minus non variant speciem , we know . and the consideration of that difference is only thus far useful in the present case , that the more deliberate those after-acts were , the more culpable they are , and the le●s capable either of excuse or extenuation ; and consequently do oblige the party to so much the more serious , solemn , and lasting repentance . 4. but concerning rash vowes ( in as much as the knot of the question lyeth not there ) it shall suffice to note these few points . first , that every rash vow is a sin ; and that upon its own score , and precisely as it is rash , although it should not be any other way peccant . all acts of religious worship ( by the importance of the third commandment ) are to be performed with all due sobriety , attention , and advisedness : how much more than a vow ? which is one of the highest acts of worship , as being a sacred contract , where unto god himself is a party . see eccl. 5.1 . &c. secondly , that rash vows are for the most part , ( besides the rashness ) peccant in their matter also ; for they are commonly made in passion , and all passions are evil counsellors , and anger as bad as the first . the wrath of man seldom worketh the righteousness of god. thirdly , that a rash vow , ( though to be repented of for the rashness ) may yet in some cases bind . as for example , a man finding himself ill used by a shop-keeper , of whom he had formerly been accustomed to buy , voweth in a rage that he will never buy of him again : this is a rash vow , yet it bindeth , because if the party had never made any such vow at all , it had neither been unjust or uncharitable , ( nor so much as imprudent ) in him for to have done the same thing , which by his vow he hath now bound himself to do . so if a man impatient of his ill luck at cards , should vow in a heat never to play at cards any more ; he were in this case also bound to keep his vow : because there neither is any sin in keeping it , nor can be any great necessity why he should break it . that therefore fourthly , if at any time a rash vow bind not ; the invalidity thereof proceedeth not meerly ( nor indeed at all ) from the rashness ( which yet is a very common error amongst men ) but from the faultiness of it otherwise , in respect of the matter , or thing vowed to be done ; when that which is so vowed , is either so evil in it self , or by reason of circumstances , becometh so evil , that it cannot be performed without sin . 5. that therefore concerning the vow in the present case , i declared my opinion that it is not at all obligatory ; it is done upon this ground ( which is a most certain truth , and consented to by all ) that rei illicitae nulla obligatio . if a man shall vow any thing that is contrary to piety ; as if having taken offence at some indiscreet passage in a sermon of his own minister , he should vow that he would never come to the church , or hear him preach again , : or that is contrary to iustice , as to take away the life of an innocent person , as those 40 persons that had vowed they would neither eat nor drink till they had slain paul : or never to make restitution to one whom he knew he had wronged : or contrary to charity ; as to be revenged of , or never to be friends with one that had done him wrong : or that is contrary to mercy ; as if having lost some money by lending to his friend , or having smarted by suretiship , he should vow never to lend any man money , or become surety for any man again . let such a vow , i say , as any of these , or any of the like nature , be made either rashly , or deliberately , and strengthened with oaths and imprecations , in the most direful and solemn manner that can be devised to tie it on the faster ; yet it is altogether null and invalid as to the eff●ct of obligation . whence those common sayings , in male promissis rescinde fidem ; ne sit juramentum vinculum iniquitatis , &c. and we have a good president for it in david , after he had in a rage vowed the destruction of nabal , and all that belonged to him ; which vow , upon better consideration , he not only did not perform , but he blessed god also , for so providentially preventing the performance of it , by the discreet demeanor and intervention of abigail . 6. now the reason why such vows are not binding , is very cogent and clear ; even because the party at such time as he is supposed to have made such vow as aforesaid , lay under another ( a former , and therefore a stronger ) obligation to the contrary . and it is agreeable to all the reason in the world , that he who either by his own voluntary act , hath bound himself ( where lawfully he might so do ) or by the command of his lawful superior ( that hath a right to his service , and may exact obedience from him ) is already bound to do , or not to do this or that ; should not have power to disoblige himself therefrom , at his own pleasure , or to superinduce upon himself a new obligation contrary thereunto : obligatio prior praejudicat posteriori . as in the case of marriage , a precontract with one party , avoideth all after-contracts with any other : and if a man convey lands to several persons , by deeds of several date , the first conv●yance standeth good , and all the rest are void ; and so in all cases of like nature . the obligatory power thereof that is in vows , oaths , promises , &c. is rightly said by some , to be a constructive , not a destructive power . the meaning is , that such acts may create a new obligation where was none before , or confirm an old one ; but it cannot destroy an old one , or substitute another contrary thereunto , in the place● thereof . 7. and the reason of this reason also is yet farther evident ; for that quisquis obligatur , alteri obligatur . when a man is obliged by any act , it is also supposed , that the obligation is made to some other party ; to whom also it is supposed some right to accrue , by vertue of the said act obligatory ; and that that other party is by the said act sufficiently vested in that said right , of which right he cannot be again devested and deprived by the meer act of him who instated him therein , and is obliged to perform it to him ( unless himself give consent thereunto ) without the greatest injustice in the world. now god having a perfect right to our obedience , by his own obliging precept , both for the not doing hurt to any man , and for the doing good to every man upon all fit opportunities : and this right also confirmed , and ratified by our own obligatory act in a solemn manner , before many witnesses at our baptism , when we vowed to keep all god's commandments : it were unreasonable to think that it should be in our power , by any after-act of ours to disoblige our selves from both , or either of those obligations . for then we might by the same reason free our selves from the obligation , of that latter act also ( suppose an oath , or vow ) by another subsequent oath , or vow ; and from that again by another : and so play fast and loose , make vows , and break them in infinitum . evident it is therefore , that every vow requiring any thing to be done , which is repugnant to any office of piety , iustice , charity , or mercy , which we owe either to god or man , is void , and bindeth not , because it findeth us under the power of a former contrary obligation , and hath not it self power sufficient to free or discharge us from the same . 8. the general rule thus cleared , it remaineth to examine concerning the particular vow now in question , whether it be void upon this account or no ? it will befound hard i believe to free this vow from being repugnant to the rules of iustice , but impossible , i am sure , to reconcile it with the perfect evangelical law of charity and mercy . first , civil and political iustice , requireth that every man should obey the wholsome laws of his countrey , and submit himself to be ordered thereby . now , put the case ( which is possible enough ) that the daughters husband should for lack of support from his father-in-law , or otherwise , live and die in great want , leaving his wife , and many small children behind him , destitute of all means for their necessary sustenance . the law would ( as i suppose ) in that case , upon complaint of the parish , and for their case , send the daughter and her children to the father , and compel him to maintain them out of his estate . which order he ought to obey , nor can refuse so to do , without the high contempt of publick authority , and manifest violation of the civil justice , notwithstanding his vow to the contrary : the law must be obeyed whatsoever becometh of the vow ; in that case therefore it is evident the vow bindeth not . 9. but say that should not happen to be the case ( which yet is more than any man can positively say before-hand ) the parent is nevertheless in moral iustice bound to provide due maintenance for his children and grand-children if he be able . saint paul saith that fathers ought to lay up for the children . true it is , he speaketh it but upon the by , and by way of illustration , in the handling of another argument , very distant from this business : but ●hat doth not at all lessen the importance of it , such illustrations being ever taken à notiori , and from such common notions as are granted , and consented unto by all reasonable men . the same apostle having amongst other sins of the gentiles , mentioned disobedience to parents in one verse , in the very next verse , mentioneth also want of natural affection in parents . and the disobedience in the child can no more discharge the parent from the obligation of that duty he oweth to the child , of affection , and maintenance , then the unnaturalness of the parent , can the child from the duty he oweth to the parent , of honour and obedience . for the several duties , that by gods ordinance , are to be performed by persons that stand in mutual relation either to other , are not pactional and conditional ; as are the leagues and agreements made between princes ( where the breach in one part dissolveth the obligation on the other ) but are absolute and independent ; wherein each person is to look to himself , and the performance of the duty that lyeth upon him , though the other party should fail in the performance of his . 10. something i foresee may be objected in this point , concerning the lawfulness of the parents withdrawing maintenance from the child ( either in whole , or at least in part ) in the case of disobedience . which how far forth it may , or may not be done ; as it would be too long to examine , so it would be of little avail to the present business . for it is one thing to with-hold maintenance from a disobedient child for the present , and to resolve so to continue till he shall see cause to the contrary . and another thing to bind himself by vow or oath , never to allow him any for the future , whatsoever should happen . let be granted whatsoever can be supposed pleadable on the fathers behalf in the present case ; yet there will still remain two particulars in this vow , not easily to be cleared from being unjust . first , let the daughters disobedience deserve all this uttermost of punishment f●om the offended father ; yet how can it be just , that for the mothers fault , the pour in●ocent ( perhaps yet unborn ) children , should be utterly , and irrecoverably excluded from all possibility of relief from their grandfather ? secondly , it is ( if not unjust , yet what differeth very little there-from ) the extremity of rigid justice ; that any offender ( much less a son or daughter ) should for any offence , not deserving death , be by a kind of fatal peremptory decree , put into an incapacity of receiving relief from such persons , as otherwise ought to have relieved the said offender , without any reservation either of the case of extreme necessity , or of the case of serious repentance . 11. however it be for the point of iustice ; yet so apparent is the repugnancy of the matter of this vow , with the precepts of christian charity and mercy ; that if all i have hitherto said were of no force , this repugnancy alone were enough ( without other evidence ) to prove the unlawfulness , and consequently the invalidity , or inobligability thereof . it is ( not an evangelical counsel , but ) the express peremptory precept of christ , that we should be merciful , even as our heavenly father is merciful . and inasmuch as , not in that passage only , but for the most part wheresoever else the duty of mercy is pressed upon us in the gospel from the example of god : god is represented to us by the name , and under the notion of a father , although i may not lay much weight upon it , as a demonstrative proof ; yet i conceive i may commend it as a rational topick , for all that are fathers to consider of , whether it do not import , that mercy is to be expected from a father as much as ( if not rather much more then ) from any other man ; and that the want of mercy in a father , is more unkindly , more unseemly , more unnatural then in another man : but ●his by the way , from that precept of christ , we learn that as there is in god a two-fold mercy , ( a giving mercy , in doing us good , though we deserve it not , & a forgiving mercy , in pardoning us when we have done amiss : ) so there ought to be in every good christian man a readiness ( after the example of god ) to shew forth the fruits of mercy to others , in both kinds , upon all proper and meet occasions . so that if any person , of what quality or condition soever , shall upon any provocat●on whatsoever vow that he will never do any thing for such or such a man ; or that he will never forgive such or such a man : every such vow , being contra bonos more 's , and contra officium hominis christiani , is unlawful , and bindeth not . 12. the offices of mercy in the former of those two branches , viz. of doing good , and affording relief to those that are in necessity , are themselves of so great necessity ( as the case may be ) that common humanity would exact the performance of them from the hand , not of a stranger only , but even of an enemy . if a stranger or an enemies beast lie weltering in a ditch , a helping hand must be lent to draw it out . the samaritans compassion to the wounded traveller in the parable , luk. 10. ( there being a feud , and that grounded upon religion , which commonly of all others , is the most deadly feud between the two nations ) is commended to our example , to the great reproach of the priest and levite , for their want of bowels to their poor brother of the same natio● and religion with themselves ; for the nearer the relation is between the parties , the stronger is the obligation of shewing mercy either to other . and there is scarce any relation nearer , and more obliging , then that of parents and children . our saviour , who in matth. 15. sharply reproved such vows , ( though made with an intention to advance the service of god , by inriching his treasury ( as hindred children from relieving their parents , will not certainly approve of such vows ( made without any other intention then to gratifie rage , and impatience ) as hinder parents from relieving their children . 13. if to avoid the force of this argument , it shall be alledged , that the daughters disobedience , in a business of so high concernment , might justly deserve to be thus severely punished , and that it were but equal that she , who had so little regard to her father , when the time was , should be as little regarded by him afterwards . all this granted , cometh not yet up to the point of shewing mercy according to the example of god. no childs disobedience can be so great to an earthly parent , as ours is to our heavenly father : yet doth he notwithstanding all our ill deservings continually do us good , communicating ▪ to our necessities , and causing his sun to shine , and his rain to fall , and infinite benefits in all kinds to descend upon mankind , not excluding the most thankless , and disobedient , and rebellious , from having a share therein . 14. and as for that other branch of mercy in pardoning offences , god giveth a rich example to all men , of their duty in that kind , ( and to fathers particularly ( by his great readiness to pardon the greatest offenders , if they sincerely seek to him for it . if the father in the parable , luke 15. had proceeded with such severity against his riotous son , as to have vowed never to have received him again ; he had been a very improper ●xemplar , whereby to shadow out the mercy of god to repentant sinners . concernin● the great importance of this duty , which is so frequently inculcated by christ and his apostles , and so peremptorily enjoyned , as not any other duty more . see matt. 6.4 , 15. matt. 18.21 . — 35. eph. 4.32 . col. 3.13 . iames 2.13 . see also sirac . 28.1 , &c. ] i shall not need to say much ; only as to the present case , it would be considered , how perverse a course it is , and contradictory to it self , for a man to think himself obliged by one inconsiderate act , never to forgive his daughter ; when as yet he cannot beg pardon of his own sins , at the hands of god , ( as he ought in his daily prayer to do ) without an express condition of forgiving every body , and an implicit imprecation upon himself , if he do not . 15. but shall the daughter that hath thus grieved the spirit of her father , thus escape unpunished , and be in as good a condition as if she had never offended ? and will not others be incouraged by her impunity , to despise their parents after her example ? there is much reason in this objection ; and therefore what i have hitherto written , ought not to be understood , as if thereby were intended such a plenary indulgence for the daughter , as should restore her in integrum , but only that she should be made capable of receiving such relief from her father , from time to time , as in relation to her necessities , and after-carriage , from time to time , should seem reasonable ; and that his vow ought not to hinder him from affording her such relief . but by what degrees , and in what proportion , the father should thus receive his daughter into his fatherly affection , and relieve her , must be left to discretion , and the exigence of circumstances . only i should advise ( in order to the objection , viz. for examples sake , and that the daughter might be made , even to her dying day , and kept , sensible of her great and sinful disobedience to her fath●r ) that the father should cut off from his daughter , and her posterity , some meet portion of his estate , ( as perhaps a fifth part at the least ; or if a fourth , or a whole third part , i should like it the better ; ) and by a solemn deliberate vow , dedicate the same to be yearly imployed in some pious and charitable uses . these times will afford him choice of objects , if god shall move his heart so to do ; and by so doing , he may , first , in some sort redeem , and make a kind of satisfaction for his former rashness , ( not popishly understood , and in regard of the iustice of god , but ) in a moral sense , and in regard of the world , and his own conscience . secondly , it may be a good means to keep the daughter in a continual fresh remembrance of her fault , that she may not , after a short and slight repentance ( as in such cases too often it happeneth ) forget the same ; whereof she ought to have some remorse all the daies of her life . thirdly , he shall thereby after a sort , perform his first vow ; i mean according to the general inte●tion thereof , and the rational part , ( which was to make his daug●ter repent her folly , and to smart for it : ) the over-plus more tha●●his , being but the fruit of rancor and pertu●bation . lastly , he shall in so doing , doubly imitate god , our heavenly father . first , when a rash or sinful act is made an occasion of a pious or charitable work , it beareth some resemblance of , or rather is indeed it self a gracious effect of that goodness and wisdom in god , whereby he bringeth light out of darkness , and good out of evil . secondly , god himself when he graciously pardoneth an high presumptuous sin , as he did davids great sin , in the matter of vriah , commonly layeth some lasting affliction upon the offender , as he did upon david , who after the sealing his pardon for that sin by nathan , scarce ever had a quiet day all his life long . the reason whereof seemeth to be double , partly for admonition to others , that none presume to provo●e god in like manner , lest they smart for it also in like manner ; and partly for the good of the offender , that he may by the smart be brought to the deeper sense of his error , and be eftsoons reminded of it , lest he should too soon forget it . thus have i with very much ado , ( in that weak condition i have been in , ever since the question came to my hands , and wherein i yet continue ) declared my opinion fully concerning the whole business as far as i understand it . more largly i confess than i intended , or perhaps was needful ; and with greater severity than ( it may be ) the parties will well like of . but truly i desired to do the part of a faithful confessor , and the sores on both parts seemed to be such as were not to be touched with too gentle a hand : in the daughter , an act of high disobedience , transported by the passion of inordinate love ; and in the father an act of great rashnes● , transported by the passion of inordinate anger : both beyond the bounds of right reason , a●d religion ; and both to be deeply repented of . howsoever , i cannot be suspected to have written any thing , either out of favour for , or prejudice against either party ; not having the least conjecture who the persons are that are concerned in the business ; nor so much as in what part of the nation they live . i shall pray that god would direct them both , to do that which may best serve to his glory , and bring the soundest comfort to their own souls . amen . finis . notes, typically marginal, from the original text notes for div a61830-e4210 (a) votum soli deo fit , sed promissio potest fieri etiam homini . aquit . 2.2 . q. 88.5 . ad . 3. (b) promissio deo facta est essentia voti , ibid. (c) psal. 76.11 . (d) numb . 21.2 . judg. 11.30 . 1 sam. 11.25 . (e) judg. 11.36 . psal. 56.11 . (f) sponsio quâ obligamur deo. cic. 2. leg. (a) iurare nihil est aliud quàm deum testem invocare . aq. 2.2 . qu. 89.1 . ex aug. de ver . apost . serm. r. 28. quod affirmas , si deo teste promiseris , id tenendum est , cic. 3. de offic. (b) gen. 31.50 . judges 11.10 . mal. 2.14 . (c) rom. 1.9 . 1 thes. 1.5 . (d) 1 cor. 1.23 . phil. 1.28 . 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 . (a) rom. 7.2 . (b) rom. 7 2. (c) 1 cor. 7.4 . (d) numb . 30.3 . (b) quod initio vitiosum est , non potest tractu temporis convalescere , l. 29. f. de div. reg. ju . (c) in stipulationibus id tempus spectatur quo contrahimus . l. 18 , f. eodem . (a) rom. 7.23 . (b) vota uxorum vel serv●rum exequenda illo tempore quo fuerint sui juris , mariti vel domini non possunt irritare . nav. man. num. 65. & alios . (a) mat. 5.28 . (b) prov. 5.18 . eccles. 9.9 . (c) prov. 5.19 . (b) josh. 9.14 , &c. (c) ibid. ver . 19. 2 sam. 21.1 , 2. notes for div a61830-e24260 senec. 1. de clem. 24. an hue and cry after conscience, or, the pilgrims progress by candle-light in search after honesty and plain-dealing represented under the similitude of a dream ... / written by john dunton ... dunton, john, 1627 or 8-1676. 1685 approx. 218 kb of xml-encoded text transcribed from 85 1-bit group-iv tiff page images. text creation partnership, ann arbor, mi ; oxford (uk) : 2003-11 (eebo-tcp phase 1). a36902 wing d2628 estc r15712 12036920 ocm 12036920 52891 this keyboarded and encoded edition of the work described above is co-owned by the institutions providing financial support to the early english books online text creation partnership. this phase i text is available for reuse, according to the terms of creative commons 0 1.0 universal . the text can be copied, modified, distributed and performed, even for commercial purposes, all without asking permission. early english books online. (eebo-tcp ; phase 1, no. a36902) transcribed from: (early english books online ; image set 52891) images scanned from microfilm: (early english books, 1641-1700 ; 65:4) an hue and cry after conscience, or, the pilgrims progress by candle-light in search after honesty and plain-dealing represented under the similitude of a dream ... / written by john dunton ... dunton, john, 1627 or 8-1676. [6], 160 p. printed for john dunton ..., london : 1685. advertisements: p. [4]-[6] at end. reproduction of original in british library. created by converting tcp files to tei p5 using tcp2tei.xsl, tei @ oxford. re-processed by university of nebraska-lincoln and northwestern, with changes to facilitate morpho-syntactic tagging. gap elements of known extent have been transformed into placeholder characters or elements to simplify the filling in of gaps by user contributors. eebo-tcp is a partnership between the universities of michigan and oxford and the publisher proquest to create accurately transcribed and encoded texts based on the image sets published by proquest via their early english books online (eebo) database (http://eebo.chadwyck.com). the general aim of eebo-tcp is to encode one copy (usually the first edition) of every monographic english-language title published between 1473 and 1700 available in eebo. eebo-tcp aimed to produce large quantities of textual data within the usual project restraints of time and funding, and therefore chose to create diplomatic transcriptions (as opposed to critical editions) with light-touch, mainly structural encoding based on the text encoding initiative (http://www.tei-c.org). the eebo-tcp project was divided into two phases. the 25,363 texts created during phase 1 of the project have been released into the public domain as of 1 january 2015. anyone can now take and use these texts for their own purposes, but we respectfully request that due credit and attribution is given to their original source. users should be aware of the process of creating the tcp texts, and therefore of any assumptions that can be made about the data. text selection was based on the new cambridge bibliography of english literature (ncbel). if an author (or for an anonymous work, the title) appears in ncbel, then their works are eligible for inclusion. selection was intended to range over a wide variety of subject areas, to reflect the true nature of the print record of the period. in general, first editions of a works in english were prioritized, although there are a number of works in other languages, notably latin and welsh, included and sometimes a second or later edition of a work was chosen if there was a compelling reason to do so. image sets were sent to external keying companies for transcription and basic encoding. quality assurance was then carried out by editorial teams in oxford and michigan. 5% (or 5 pages, whichever is the greater) of each text was proofread for accuracy and those which did not meet qa standards were returned to the keyers to be redone. after proofreading, the encoding was enhanced and/or corrected and characters marked as illegible were corrected where possible up to a limit of 100 instances per text. any remaining illegibles were encoded as <gap>s. understanding these processes should make clear that, while the overall quality of tcp data is very good, some errors will remain and some readable characters will be marked as illegible. users should bear in mind that in all likelihood such instances will never have been looked at by a tcp editor. the texts were encoded and linked to page images in accordance with level 4 of the tei in libraries guidelines. copies of the texts have been issued variously as sgml (tcp schema; ascii text with mnemonic sdata character entities); displayable xml (tcp schema; characters represented either as utf-8 unicode or text strings within braces); or lossless xml (tei p5, characters represented either as utf-8 unicode or tei g elements). keying and markup guidelines are available at the text creation partnership web site . eng conscience -religious aspects. conduct of life -early works to 1800. 2003-03 tcp assigned for keying and markup 2003-04 aptara keyed and coded from proquest page images 2003-05 rina kor sampled and proofread 2003-07 aptara rekeyed and resubmitted 2003-09 rina kor sampled and proofread 2003-09 rina kor text and markup reviewed and edited 2003-10 pfs batch review (qc) and xml conversion an hue and cry after conscience : or the pilgrims progress by candle-light , in search after honesty and plain-dealing . represented under the similitude of a dream . wherein is discovered the pritty manner of his setting out . his pleasant humours on his journey . the disappointment he met with after all his search . together , with his flight at last into another country , where he is ●●ill on his rambles . written by john dunton , author of the pilgrims guide , from the cradle to his death-bed . london , printed for iohn dunton , 〈◊〉 the black r●ven , at the corner of princes-street ▪ near the royal exchange , in cornhill , 1685. the bookseller to the reader . courteous reader , as the author of this new and pleasant dream , was considering with himself what he had written ( in a late allegory ) concerning the pilgrims guide from the cradle to his death-bed , and of his triumphant passage from thence to a better world , &c. and how it had been acceptable to thousands in these three nations of england , scotland , and ireland , but more especially to the famous city of london . it happily came into his mind to write , as then , of those that were iournying to an heavenly country . so now of all sorts of wicked pilgrims of either sex , that are either posting directly to hell , or madly dancing and frollicking upon the brink of destruction . and here under the similitude of a certain pilgrim ( christ'ned discovery ) progressing by candle-light , diogenes like , in search after honesty and plain-dealing : all manner of vice and roguery is first p●inted to the life , in it's proper colours , and then brought to light 〈◊〉 a fatal spectacle to the thinking and gazing part of man-kind , together with the most eminent cheats of all trades and professions and therefore now that this book ( bearing my father duntons name ) may be 〈◊〉 vniversally acceptable to all man-kind , 〈◊〉 those four books have been , entituled , th●● house of weeping , dying pastors last●● legacy , heavenly pastime , and the sick man's passing-bell shall be the earnest endeavor and hearty wish of your most humble servant , iohn dunton . to the ingenious dreamer . 't is well when others with their wakeing wit , won't see what 's vice , that dreams discover it : servile applauses to no man i owe , yet on your dream my verdict i 'le bestow , more truth nor better sence , noe dreamer spake , but sir you dream as if you were awake . your cordial friend , william true-love . note , that the general sale of this authors works , hath encouraged the book-seller to the transcribing several more pleasant treatises , bearing his fathers name , which will speedily go to the press , but that which will first see the light , will be the pilgrims rambles , since his flight from the author into another country . farewell . advertisement of two books , newly printed for john dunton , at the black raven , at the corner of princes-street , near the royal exchange in cornhill . a very delightful treatise entituled , pastime , or pleasant observations newly alegoriz'd , in several pleasant , dialogues , poems , similitudes , and divine fancies : to which is added , ( 1 ) the miraculous manner of the production of our old grandmother eve , with the supposed manner of adams first nuptial addresses to her , and the pleasant circumstances of their marriage . ( 2 ) you have an account of eves first addresses to adam , and her industry in making a garment for her husband . ( 3 ) you have a pleasant account of adam and eve's winter suits , their lodging and first building , with an account in what pretty manner they first invented a fire to warm them . ( 4 ) you have abundance of supposed dialogues , very full of delightful reading : the first is between adam and eve , and eve and the serpent : the second dialogue is between cain and abel , monster sin and conscience : 3. between abraham and sarah , upon her laughing at the thoughts of her bearing children in her old age . 4. between iacob and rachel , upon his being willing to serve fourteen years to obtain her love. ( 5 ) a dialogue between grim death , and the flying minutes . ( 6 ) between balaam and his ass. ( 7 ) the triumps of chastity , or a dialogue between ioseph and his mistress , upon her tempting of him to uncleanness . ( 8 ) between ruth and naomi , upon these words , nothing but death shall part thee and me . ( 9 ) between ionathan and david , including all the sweets of an intire friendship . ( 10 ) a choice dialogue fancy'd between king solomon , and the queen of sheba , about the wonderful works of god throughout the whole creation ; to which is added , the glory and spendour of king solomon's court , together with the queen of sheba's glorious progress to it . ( 11 ) between adonibezeck and one of the sixty kings he tormented under his table , supposed to be in the other world. ( 12 ) a dialogue between iob and his wife . ( 13 ) a fancy'd dialogue between rich dives , and poor lazarus . ( 14 ) a very affectionate dialogue between the returning prodigal and his loving father , together with choice meditations upon our saviours great compassion to the converted thief upon the cross. ( 15 ) a choice dialogue between iairus and his daughter after being raised from the dead , representing what ravishing sighs probably her soul might behold during all the time her body lay dead in the grave . ( 16 ) useful meditations upon eutichus falling down dead sleeping at a sermon . with about fifty extraordinary pleasant dialogues and poems besides . price bound 2s . 6d . the progress of sin , or , the travels of vngodliness : wherein the pedigree , rise or original , antiquity , subtility , evil nature , and prevailing power of sin is fully discovered , in an apt and pleasant allegory : together with the great victories he hath obtained , and abominable evils he hath done to mankind , by the help of the devil , in all his travels from the beginning of the world , to this present day . as also the manner of his appehension , arraignment , tryal , condemnation and execution . the second edition : to which is now added , vngodliness's voyage to sea , with many pleasant additions besides . by b. keach . illustrated with five lively cuts . price bound 1s . an hue and cry after conscience : or , the pilgrims search after honesty and plain-dealing . musing with my self one day , how unprosperous vertue and her attendants were in the world , and how vice triumphed every where ; the thought possessed me with a melancholy damp that sat heavy on my mind ; to divert which , i could imagine no better expedient , than to wander in solitary places , and condole the unhappy estate of erring mortals . when travelling towards the private recess of nature , i was somewhat refreshed with the fragancy of the fields and groves , who breathed sweet odors , whilst the winged choirestors from every bough and blooming shrub , warbled tribute praises to their maker , and all the fleecy flocks that spread the flowry plains expressed their bleating joy , cheared with the morning sun , whose thristy beams drunk up the pearly dew , the consideration of which incited me to contemplate the harmony and order of the creation ; how from the worlds original all creatures ( man excepted ) have made good the ends to which they were created : and that he alone , who is so proud of being rational , should suffer himself to sink beneath the meanest animal , in dissenting from the will of his creator . whilst these imaginations run strongly in my mind , a sudden drowsiness sat heavy on my-eyes , and as it were compelled me to repose on a grassy bed , inameld with natures sweets , and far removed from noise and clamour , that still reign in places populous , where giving way to the soft charmer , soon i fell a sleep , and sleeping dreamed a dream . i dreamed , and behold a man stood by me , whose eyes seemed brighter than the morning star , more piercing than the sight of eagles , on his brows sat gravity and wisdom , and in his front in mistick characters understanding ●eep ingraven , and as he stood he lifted up his voice , and cryed , the secreis of the 〈◊〉 are before me , he that will discover 〈…〉 follow the light of vnderstanding . and when he had cryed , i saw in my dream a light spring up , as of a burning tapor , whose brightness dazled my eyes , which he taking in his hand , moved a softly pace towards a spacious city , whose glittering piramides reflected the sun beams , and as he moved by a strang● sympathy , methought he drew me after him , nor was i displeased , as being much desirous to see the end , or what the apparition ( for so i conceived it at first ) could make out of wonder or unusual mystery . when coming to the gates , i heard a doleful wailing , and looking up beheld a woman cloath'd in raggs , meager as famine , for her eyes were sunk , her withered breasts hung down , and on her faded cheecks want and necessity impressed their seals , and after her cry'd many infants for their dayly food , but all in vain , for i perceived she had nought to feed them with but tears , which flowed in rivolets . she had it seems been round the world to ease her mysery , but found no relief , for every where the door was shut against her , by reason avarice her mortal enemy , had incenced mankind to cast her off , vowing her destruction , for opposing his incroachments in the days of old . she passed us , and i looking after her , as grieved at such a sight , saw● charity in hebrew characters , inwove● on her tattered garments , whereat i sighed and thus expressed my self . hard fate said i , that she who was admir'd in days of old , and decently attir'd , wellcom'd in every place , made the delight , and darling of man-kind thus put to flight , shou'd feed on air , and dwell in shades of night . i would have proceeded , but was put be●sides my intention upon the approach of a female form half naked , who with ex●tended arms endeavoured to grasp th● flying air , she came not on the groun● as the former , but rod on empty clouds which she had long expected the eart● would fill with its ascending moisture though in vain , for still the vapours fle●● ascance flag'd their wings , or rising hig●● were drunk up by the sun beams , whic● made her sigh and utter frequent lamenta●tions , that intimated she had a long tim● been deceived by flattery , who had give● her a prospect of many desireable things with a promise that she should posse● them , but after all left her upon the borders of the land of doubting , where she had yet some glimering of light , and imagined she saw things at a distance , which she was hasting towards , as eagerly de●iring to possess them . now in my dream i perceived she had not passed above a furlong , but she entered a dark region , called , the province of despair , and there continued wandring in the air , till the dissolved to nothing , but as she glided along on her garments , which were made of the skins of cammelions , her name was written in the colour of an evening mist , by which i understood she was hope , and pondering with my self , i imagined i had once been familiar with her , but seeing how she lost her self , in vainly placing her mind on things below , i thus discanted . when hope on worldly things her mind does place , she feeds on air , and only shades does chace ; yet flatt'ry leads her on , till she at last doubting , her self upon despair does cast , who makes her nothing , or does chain her fast . by this time methought we had passed the gate , and the prespect represented many stately buildings , replenished with inhabitants of all crafts and occupations , with every thing desireable for the support of life , and to gratifie the expectations of those that worldly pomp and pajentry delight , more than sollid joys , when methought i was very desirous to know who it was that like a load-stone drew me after him , which the man perceiving by the earnestness of my countenance , pulled out a scrole , and opening it , i read therein many wonderful things , and conceived them to be true , because they were delivered under the seal of wisdom , chief secretary to vnderstanding , and upon the back-side was written in letters of gold discovery , which he told me was his name , and that wisdom whose servant he was , had sent him from the land of knowledge , to discover the ways of vice and folly , who have of late made many inroads into the region of vertue and understanding ; where assisted by flattery and dissimulation , they have alinated divers from ways of honesty and plain-dealing , paths now allmost unfrequented and over-grown with moss , which in the days of old were wont to be fill'd with iustling crouds , who frequently contended for the way . being thus far satisfied , i was about to give my opinion concerning his undertaking , and to inform him what little satisfaction such a discovery would give the world , as now it stands , but had not time before in my dream ; i beheld an image pale as death , with trembling steps and fluttering wings , advancing towards us , deeply sighing and complaining of the hard usage it had met with from ingratitude , avarice , and extortion , with divers others , who for the good offices it attemped to do them , had often put it to torture by ●earing it with hot irons , scosing and laughing it to scorn ; nay made an invasion upon it's life , by indeavoring to smother and stifle it ; which it had a long time born in hopes to prevaile by mild perswasions and meekness , against such rash proceeding ; but in the end being used worse and worse , and beginning to complain of such out rages to the maker of the world , whose steward she is . a pestilent fellow called atheism , who has lately invaded sion , councelled those with whom i lived to turn me out of doors , whose council they gladly embraced , hardning their hearts to that degree , that they became stones , which i perceiving and finding i could not live on such diet , i as willingly consented to leave e'm , and am now going to the celestial city , to give an account of my steward-ship , where i doubt not but i shall find better reception . now whilst i was wondering who this should be discovery whispers me in the ear and told me it was conscience ; how conscience said i , and with that i cryed out , o ingrateful world , and art thou treated so , who oughtest to be the square and ballance of good men , and ●egulator of the actions of the just , thou true essential good ! thou soul of virtue ! and thou ray divine ! now in my dream methought i was about to embrace her , but like a shade she flew from my extended arms , and vanished in a mist : yet in token of her kindness , left a strong ●●pression of her tenderness upon my soul , which made me break into this rapture : wilt thou blest guider of our ways be gone , like heaven's swift flame , no sooner blaze but done ; return , return , thou comfort of mankind , l●t some at least so great a blessing find , let some have light , though half the world be blind . scarce had i ended , when in my dream i beheld two men coming towards us laughing as loud as possible , whose unseasonable mirth , discovery noteing , and knowing they trod the paths of unrighteousness , cryed out , woe be to you that laugh now , for you shall weep hereafter . this put me upon the inquiry , when i was quickly informed they were vsery and extortion , who had been the chief agents in starving out charity , deluding of hope , and banishing of conscience . by this time having a full view of 'em , methought they so much resembled a taleyman and a broker , that i could fitly compare them to no other , and as it fell out i was not mistaken in my aime , for as they approached , i perceived they fell into the following discourse : usery . a iew say you was he that first invented the taleys , and brought 'em acquainted with usery and extortion ? extortion . yess , so our father covetousness informed me , and that he learned 〈◊〉 of a turk . use. no matter where since by that means money 's rais'd from six , to sixty in the hundred , these are prosperous days with us brother , now we may inlarge our thoughts . ext. mine are inlarg'd already , desire has no wider room than i afford to court the glittering oar. o mammon , mammon ! how much i admire thee , while with bounteous hand thou showrest on me what most delights my soul. use. yess he is a good benefactor to us , and wee 'l prove as true to him , since we have gotten such acquaintance with him ; he loves i see to have all our service and friendship to himself , for as long as we conversed with charity , he was shy and cautious . ext. ay , and kept aloft for fear we should convert what he gave us to any other use than what he intended . use. right , but now you talk of charity , prethee what 's become on her , since we gave her such sharp answers as made her despair of doing any good with us ? ext. why i believe she may be dead by this time , she has been very sick and crazy this many years . use. i heard a country fellow say about a twelve month agoe she was gotten amongst the villagers , who lodged her for a while on a pease-straw bed , and fed her on mouldy cheese and skin milk , but at that rate they soon grew weary of her , and sent her away with a pass signed by iustice curmudgeon . ext. a wood man , now you put me in mind on 't , told me he saw her since in a great forrest , and that she was gnawing the bark of the trees . use. good lack , well past doubt she 's pined to death by this time ; but it 's no matter whether so or not , since she 's like to trouble us no more . ext. ay , ay , you say very right : but can you think it ? the other day hope came to my house and told me she hop'd i would lend her some money upon her own band , that she hop'd for great preferment , and that she hop'd she should grow rich and keep a good house , that she hop'd to see prosperous and flourishing times , beyond what she had done : that she hop'd she had many friends , and many the like expressions . use. this was a very pritty fancy , i hope quoth they . ay , ay , she may hope and yet be deceived for all that , but let me tell you , though by the way she was mighty silly to hope for money of any of our profession , upon those grounds , we hop'd and hop'd again , but all would not do till we took other courses . but prethee what answer did you make her ? ext. why first i ask'd her if she had nothing but hopes to live upon , for if you han't said i , you must take up with the chammelions who ●ed on the aire . use. she told me she hop'd better , and she hop'd i would lend her some money . ext. ay said i , if you have any land to mortgage , plate or jewels to pawn or so . use. she hop'd , she said , she should have both . then said i , i hope you 'l be gone and trouble me no more , till that day comes for no penny no paternoster , and with that she went sighing out of my shop : and i believe by this time she finds that her hopes are vain . ext. ay doubtless , but she that troubled us most in the dawn of our undertakings . was conscience sawcy ? conscience , who wou'd ever be rebelling against our inclynations . use. ay indeed , i for my part found her very troublesome , although i had her in a kerb-bridle ; for when she saw me in a thriving way , by lending money upon bond and iudgement , and within a day or two , or so , sease upon all my chapmen had , and clap him into the bilboes to make him sell or mortgage his land. she would tell me of grinding the face of the poor , and begin to check me at a strange rate , for which unseasonable sa●cyness i have knock'd her down twenty times in a day , yet she would still be rebelling . ext. and i think i used her severely enough before i could be rid on her ; never were bees smoaked with brimstone , as i smoaked her with the fuel of obstinacy , by stopping my ears to her clamour , and contradicting her in all her motions . use. she was no fit companion for us , for she would often be talking of heaven and hell , and urging scripture to us , as if we minded that . ext. and presenting us with widdows and orpheans tears , the crys of the oppressed , and the distress of those we have genteely out witted and gulled of their estates , with twenty the like trivial matters ; but since we are rid of her no more on 't . now i saw in my dream that discovery came near and interrupted their discourse , &c. discovery . gentlemen are you of this city — if you are — ext. if we are ! why what if we are , or what if we are not ? but to be plain with you sir , we have lodgings every where ; but our mansion houses are in the land of covetousness , a fruitful place i 'le assure you . disc. very fine sir , but are you acquainted with plain-dealing and his brother honesty ? vse . no indeed sir , they are none of our acquaintance , nor do we desire they should ; they were our neighbours once , but proved so unprofitable and troublesome , that none of our profession cared for living by 'em : so we together with our brethren of the faculty , got a decree to banish 'em out of all places where we were concerned ; and now i believe it will be a hard matter to find 'em in these parts , for as i take it , they talk'd of iourneying to america , to take up with the native indians , when we washed our hands of ' em . disc. pray gentlemen of what profession are you , that plain dealing and honesty should be so offensive to you , i 'le assure you , i have heard a very good character of 'em in the days of old. ext. ay friend it may be so , but those days are past , and we know better things for all that , than to have any thing to do with 'em , — a couple of sneaking fellows as they are ; i am sure i am five hundred pounds the worse for the little society i had with 'em , and i believe my brother here is little less , for we are trades-men if it please you sir. disc. how trades-men , and stand at defiance with honesty and plain dealing ? vs● yess truly , and live better by far since we routed 'em , than ever before . disc. but know you not that the way of the wicked shall not prosper , and that every work shall be brought into judgment , whether it be good or evil . ext. ha! what dos he talk scripture to us ? — stay let us see , — who can this be ? — uds-lid 't is the ghost of conscience in disguise , with a candle in her hand , fly , fly i say , least she again possess us , and trouble us worse than ever . now i beheld in my dream , that they hasted to a gloomy coverture loving darkness , rather then light , because their deeds were evil . and we passed on to another path of the city , which by the many indentures that stuck up in the windows , i conceited to be sheep-skin row , where i beheld a man coming out of a dark place with a libel in his mouth , and on it was written in a mixture of letters , forgery , being habited like a scribe , for his coat was laced with the defrauded orphans sighs , and spangled with widdows tears ; wherefore i conceived it vain to inquire for hones●y or plain dealing in that place , and would have passed him , but discovery would needs discourse him : now i perceived when he addressed himself , the man started to meet a person at noon day with a light in his hand , as doubting it might be diogenes in search of an honest man , and would have turned out of the way , but that he imagined conscience lay sculking on the other side in a dark celler , whose greeting he dreaded more than an army with banners ; and therefore altering his resolves , he came blundering on , when thus i fancy'd i heard 'em dialogue . disc. well met sir , pray why in so much hast ? forgery . because i am going sir about business of consequence , delays you know sir often breeds danger . disc. are you acquainted in these parts ? forg . yess verily , i think i am , all these houses call me master , i layed their foundation upon the peoples ignorance , and made spendthrift and prodigality build the rest upon their own ruine . disc. policy indeed goes a great way , but sir , can you direct me how i may find one goodman honesty in these parts ? forg . truly i have heard something of him in my time , pray what should he be , a house-keeper or an inn-mate , or what country man is he ? disco . directly sir i can't inform yo● but this i have heard , he seldome stays long in a place , because few delight in his company , he has a brother too they call him plain-dealing . forg . a couple of plain country fellows i 'll warrant you — well unless you find either of them at my neighbour simplicities at the sign of the fools cap , a little before you , i know not where you 'l light on 'em , and so fare you well , for i must hast to make my neighbour sickleys will , least he shou'd be return'd mortus est before i come ; but if he be , it matters not much , i can put his hand to it , i have put many dead-mens-hands to wills before now , and wip'd the noses of such as gap'd for his inheritance . disc. where was your conscience then , was it asleep . forg . alass sir , i had sent her packing many a day before that , upon her checking me , for counterfeiting corporation seals , and mortgaging their lands without their knowledge . dis. and how came you off in that case ? it must certainly be known in the end . forg . o never sir ! for i repayed the money , and took up my mortgage after i had used it as long as my occasions requi●●d . but now i think further sir i must bid you adieu . oh dear ! i had almost forgot , i should have been at mr. knaveries two hours since , to affix a hand and seal to a band of 1000 l. by way of imitation — your servant sir. now in my dream i beheld he hasted towards the castle of deceit , whereupon we inquired at mr. simplicities as we were directed ; but instead of honesty and plain-dealing , we found folly and ignorance , sitting in two wicker chairs , in great state , and about them many attendance who waited by turns , but having no business with them , we hasted to papers-tree , a place for many letters famed through the world , and there we found a grave person sitting in a volumnious place , incompassed with the labours of 5000 mortals , antient and modern , here or no where thought i we may be informed , and by the information cease our further search , but my expectation failed , for i found soon after that the mans head was wonderous airey , being made up for the most part of romance and strange imagination , yet discovery would inquire , though i had before informed him , he would loose his labour . now at his approach i perceived the man was not a little affrighted , for 〈…〉 ground , he imagined 〈◊〉 might be the ghost of some deceased author whom he had hackneyd to death ; but finding his mistake , and recollecting himself , he pull'd of his hat , and made a crindging congie , which gave me opportunity to discern self-interest , in large characters on his forehead , but discovery not presently perceiving it , fell to asking him many questions , as thus . discovery . sir does this place call you master , know you all your neighbours here about ? self-interest . to both i answer in the affirmative , but pray sir why inquire you ? disc. 't is some thing i want that makes me so inquisitive . self-int . if wares you want of this kind i can furnish you with all sorts , i have what you please , you see not half my store , will it please you to walk further . now i perceived discovery had a mind to enter his cabinet of rarities as he term'd it , to make some observations , which willingness he perceiving , he lead us into a dark entery , crouded on either side with leather and past-board , where by the light discovery brought , i beheld rebellious principles peep out at one corner , sedition at an other , false doctrine stood there triumphant , and the italian art of poisoning barefaced , mahomet was rank'd with the prophets , and old hobbs with the evangelists , mugletons sermons lurked in private , and the rank weeds of atheism reached the ceeling , debauchery the baen of youth , took up a shelf for her own conveniency , and arian heresy was rampant , on the other side were musty legends , beautified with the conveniency of a new title , promising wonderous things , though not one word in the following pages , and next them stood incroachments upon the proprieties of his breathren in iniquity , and an additional impression in partner-ship , seal'd with the ignorance of his coleague . and for all this was he taken for a saint and a hero , but when as you may perceive the light of vnderstanding came to scrutenize him , all prov'd otherwise . now i dreamed that discovery began to ask him other questions , but especially if he was acquainted with honesty and plain-dealing , or knew the place of their aboad , but he protested he was altogither ignorant of them , only had read that they were many years since familiar companions with divers of the philosophers , and some few of the hermites , as for himself , he said he managed his trade well enough and needed not their assistance , and finding we were not chapmen for his turn , he whistled for a drudg in petty-coats , and telling us his dinner cool'd by this delay , dismis'd us with , your humble servant gentlemen . thus far travelling in vain , me thought i began to be weary , and intreating discovery to stay a while , sat me down on a pair of stairs to rest my self , where i had not been long , but i heard a noise above accompany'd with divers imperfect murmours , which at first i took for a leet , or court of pypouder ; but hearing at the same time a knocking , and the noise renewed of two pence , three pence , who bids more . i verily believe they were exposing honesty to sale by inch of candle , by reason of the lowness of the rate : desirous to be informed i intreated discovery to accompany me into this place of clamour who consenting , we no sooner came to the top of the ascent , but we beheld a deminitive fellow , with staring eyes , hair tuckt up , and his mouth drawn from ear to ear , standing in a kind of a tubb or quakers pulpit , with a book in his hand , as if he intended to edifie the people that were grumbling out their sentiments , when all on a sudden opening as loud as mugleton in the height of his damning dayes , and whilst the auditory stood with their mouths at half cock , expecting the issue of a long preamble , comes to the text and cryes , here gentlemen you have the true art of phoenix catching , and infalliable receipts for the philosophers stone , here are directions how to make pearls of dew drops , and how a man by easily stopping all the rivers that run into the ocean , may drain it , and catch whales dry shod , without the tediousness of a greenland voyage . by this an old woman of fourscore may be directed to restore her self to fifteen , and young gentlemen who have made over their estates by conveyance , find means to wrest them out of the hands of a griple vserer . he that has a generous flame for learning , let him buy this , and he 's made for ever . but if any of you have good money in your pockets and yet will starve your brains , you deserve to be posted for sots and blockheads to posterity . — six pence once , seven pence once , eight pence once , nine pence once , twelve pence once , twelve pence twice , thrice . 't is yours sir. now in my dream i beheld they all crowded about the party that had bought this supposed piece of rarety , and what shou'd it be but t●m thumb in folio with marginal notes , whereat the buyer perceiving his mountain expectations , had brought forth a mouse sneak'd away like a cur that had lost his tail , here i further observed that when any book of value through defect of bidding was likely to go under rate , the supervizor of these fallacies had one at hand to save it by bidding higher , or inflaming the bidders in emulation to each other , advancing it at it's double value , and if inquiry be made for whom he purchases , he has a name at his tongues end , pretending a commission , but all is false , for in the end the books return'd from whence it came : now in one corner of the room , i perceived deceit lay lurking close , but folly flew about on wings of ignorance , and self-conceit prompting the eager multitude to purchase books at a third part dearer than their neighbours would afford the very same books ; for but that that sets 'em agoing , is the rumour of some eminent mans choice , library books , which the ignorant imagine are no where to be found but there , when in plain english , this eminent mans library is the bookseller himself , and no body else : wherefore dispairing to find honesty and plain dealing in this place , we never so much as made inquiry , but en'e trudged down the same way we came up , but scarce had time to take the aire . when in my dream i beheld a man coming out of a dirty place , rubing his nose with a pair of dark colourd hands , his visage was grim , and looking this way and that way , as if he feared some danger , clap'd down a trap-door after him , and so came towards us , giving us a full but before he was aware , which made him retreat six or seven paces , and there making a full stop , stood peering at us , for having been so long in the dark , or at least by candle-light , i perceived he was grown mope eyed : but discovery desirous to unravel him , began to sift him in this manner : discovery . pray you sir what make you stand at this distance ? why so agast , do you take us for goblins ? dissention . i know not but you may , or if you are not , i take you to be little better than mad men to burn candle at this time o' th day . disc. friend it behoves us so to do , for we are upon the search , and have many dark places to discover . diss. how ! upon the search ! alas then i am undone , for if they find out ● private gimcracks , i 'm ruined for ever : nay , i believe they see me come out . what a dull rogue was i , that i did not take better observations through my peep-hole , before i ventured to open the trap. disc. why are you thus disturbed friend , is our presence so offensive ? diss. no no , no disturbance at all , nothing but a little qualm came over my stomach , 't is usual . disc. are you of this world , or that beneath us , that you came crawling out of the ground like an insect ? diss. ha! am i discovered then ! what shall i do ? but gentlemen , did you see me creep out of my cave ? disc. yess we think we did , and are desirous to know your profession ? now in my dream i beheld the man tremble and shake , looking this way and that way , as if he considered which way to run . but discovery assuring him , that if he would answer him plainly , to such questions as he demanded , no harm should befall him : he was a little comforted , and promised to do this . disc. sir your profession , that 's the first particular . diss. why sir , i 'm a terrestial incendiary , an imbroyler of friends , a mear beautifew : i have engins that cast forth granadoes , which have set citys and towns in a blaze of discention . disc. how ! what 's all this you run upon ? diss. night and day sir i have often laboured to promote mischief in that dark celler . i have a gimerack that has groand frequent with other mens propertys ; as also sedition , and little less than treason many a fair fortnight : o i have done many things for some great men of the paper professors , that have procured 'em a vension pasty on a holy day , or so ; though when they came to the touch stone , they had the face to disown 'em , and made me iack hold their staff : many a time have i heard a. hog in armour grunting about my trap-door , but was not able to turn it up with his snout : ay many a fair business have i done for my self , for when i saw my patrons in partnership for supernumerarys , unknown to each other i was upon the same lay , and supernumerated 'em both , and that i think was but one knaves trick for another . disc. and where was your conscience all this while ? diss. o sir that dropt into the lie pan , as i was straining one day upon a surfeite taken by feeding upon the fruits of honesty , and a lad that i kept call'd intrest , pist out her eyes , so that she could never find the way back again . disc. the fruits of honesty ! why 't is honesty himself that we are in search of : can you direct us where we may find him ? diss. no truly sir can't i , nor know i now where to help you to one apple of the tree of his planting , nor will it suit with my business to be concerned in such an undertaking . disc. has plain-dealing nothing neither to do in your profession ? diss. no i think not , for should he once come amongst us , all of our trade have such an antipathy against him , that he 'd either be knockt o' th head with the barr , or goarg'd with ink till he scowr'd his guts out . disc. then your's is a kind of a dangerous profession . diss. o yess , a very dang'rous one ; why it has in times of old been formidable to the nation . o had you heard what roaring bulls flew from the press , between forty and forty eight ; ay , and at divers other times you would have trembled . disc. were they so dreadful then ? diss. dreadful ! ay , i 'le warrant you it appeared they were dreadful , for they then shook the islands : but i can stay no longer , yonder comes one whose sight i must avoid , least he correct and revise me before i am ready for him . now in my dream i beheld the man left us and slunk into a dark entery , which it seems was a thorowfare , leading to the land of blackness , so that we saw him no more : but as discovery conversed with him , i saw the word imprinted pined on his sleeve , from whence i conceited him a typographer , and from that time forward , named him the engin of dissention . but we had not gone far er'e we came into feigning street , and this i perceived was chiefly inhabited by hypocricy , who had a world of votarys , and a train of green approv'd sinners to wait on her when ever she had a mind to take the aire , for you must know this is represented as a female iniquity , though too frequently incident to either sex ; she 's a great enemy to faith , and the only sister to dissimulation ; she was dressed in the habit of a nun , pretending to the greatest strictness imaginable , her cheeks were furrow'd with ●asting spittle , which many took for tears , sighs she had ever at command , and every now and then would strain a gentle groan , and would be still reproving vice in those that were most vertuous and sincere , talk much of watching , fasting , prayer and alms ; but all this talk was but in publique to gain applause or interest for in private , and with those she durst trust with the secret , she would revel it all day , and in adulterous arms spend many a night , counting religion than a ceremony , a meer shade : she 's much in fashion w●th our modern strumpets , who having so far mortified themselves that actual sin decays in them , who then , and not till then wou'd seem religious : but having quite forgot the notions embrace hypocrisie , who is ever ready to receive 'em with her open arms , and she serves well enough , if nature ne'r restores their vigor ; but if she do , off goes that shadow of a cloak , and to the trade they fall again . whilst these representations were before me , i perceived in my dream that two in female form approach'd us , talking as they came : their habit was grave and countenance composed demure , their eyes fix'd on the ground , their gaite steady and even , when within hearing me thought i heard 'em argue thus . 1 woman . how this stratagem deceives the world , and takes the easier sort in the net of crudulity . 2 woman . right it does so , 't is the securest cloak for vice to ●●roud it from the eyes of men that ever was deviz'd . 1 wom. i act it so to the life , that many veryly believe me really honest . o had you seen me the other day what set faces i made , what forced sighs i fetch'd whilst tears which i command at will flow'd down my cheeks , you would have been concerned to see how the unthinking people pitty'd me , and at the self same time expressed a joy , that they had gained a proselite so truly penetential . 2 wom. knew they that you were 〈…〉 the streets , and tread the paths of wickedness ? 1 wom. they did , and so much the more re●oyced that they had drawn me from wickedness . 2 wom. and what is it you further intend in this new undertaking ? 1 wom. why , to keep 'em still in ignorance , till i have made my day get what i can , and cured the scars received in honour of venus , who is still my loadstar , though i seem to steer an o●her course . 2 wom. hypocrisie's a misterious thin● , ● thing to dark for mortal eye to penetrate , 〈…〉 wisely managed . 1 wom. it is — ha — my heart misgives me we are overheard . — see — see how close you lurcher stands . 2 wom. if so your interest will be ruined . but see they come up nearer , set a good face on 't , and perhaps they 'll not believe their ears . 1 wom. ay — ay — i 'll warrant ye . — ha what art thou man with the burning tapor in thy hand . disc. why so shy , and why this garb of hipocrisie still , think you we are ignorant who and what you are , and that we overheard not your discourse . 2 wom. i say thou art satan yea the great deceiver who hast broken thy chain , and art come to vex , yea to fret , yea to torment us , therefore avoid , avoid i say . disc. come pull of this garb of hypocrisy and deceive the world no longer . upon which i further beheld in my dream , that they left us in hast , but had not been gone many paces , before they went into a little brandy-shop , to refresh themselves with a cup of the creature , whereupon we passed on but were not got out of feigning-street before we met a man in homely attire , wonderous grave , and of a seeming honest countenance , who without any scruple came up with us , and demanded our business in that place ? we told him we were in search of honesty and plain-dealing : why than said he , as for plain-dealing you need not search any further , for i am the very man. now i thought to my self our journey would be at an end , for if we found one , he could easily direct us to the other , and thereupon was about to express the satisfaction i conceived , but discovery wink'd at me to be silent ; and thus began to dialogue with him . discovery . sir if you are the party read this credential : it contains business of moment , tending to your happiness and future prosperity . counterfeit . credential me no credentials friend , for i am the man i tell you without reading your credential . disc. these are to let you know that i am sent to you from wisdom the queen of vertues , to import many things to you ; know you her seal sir ? count. it may be i do , or it may be i do not : but what is your business with me now i am found ? disc. i must first be satisfied whether i am not mistaken before i can impart any secret to you . count. sir if you are so shy i care for none of your secrets , yet i tell you i am plain-dealing . disc. where is your brother ? how faires the darling of virtue ? count. sir i have no brother , i have a sister indeed . disc. how sir , is not honesty your brother ? count. no sir , nor none of my acquaintance neither i 'le assure ye . disc. than you are an impostor sir , that have assumed a name that ne're will be your due , and if i mistake not , you are counterfeit , brother to dissimulation , false as empty clouds and wandering fire . count. and what then sir , may not i be a plain-dealer for all that ? disc. no sir you never can : 't is such as you who putting on a garb of seeming virtue , under that disguise act such villanys , as make the truly virtuous be dispis'd . count. nay friend , if you are angry , turn the buckle of your girdle behind you , and so farewell . now i saw in my dream he flung away in a great rage , and we kept on our course ; but stumbling upon sloath that lay in the middle of the street , i started , and in startling awake & beh●ld i● was a 〈◊〉 ; so lifting up my eyes and finding my self in a spacious meadow , i was fully convinced that all that had passed was but a dream . the birth of imagination midwif'd by fancy , proceeding from the ramblings of the soul , which in its eternal wake makes strange discoveries ; but long these thoughts had not travers'd my more capacious understanding , e're sleep that emblem of death courted my eye-lids afresh , and in his carresses grasped them so hard that my sences melted in the arms of sweet repose . when i dreamed and beheld in my dream that sundry phantasius were triping round me , representing , folly , iealouzie , self-conceit , pride , ambition , and a thousand such like airey vanities ; but whilst i was making observations on their many antick shapes and studdied postures , the curtain was drawn before the queen of faryland , whose pallace is called the castle of delusion , a strong place , to which many give themselves up voluntary prisoners , where they wander from room to room ; lead continually by the spirit of vncertainty , till they fall into the quagmire of dispaire , and there they are lost for ever . but this sceen being over , and it clearing up again , ● on a suddain found my self in the place were before i left of the search , and fancyed it to be the town of vanity by the many representations that tended to no other effect ; scarcely had these thoughts took place , but looking over my shoulder i beheld my old companion discovery , and was not a little glad i had so luckely stumbled on him ; yet had not time to vaile my bonnet and pay my respects , e're clapping me on the cheeks , he whispered in a soft tone , why have you thus unkindly absented your self in the dawn of my progress , seeing there are many wonders in the mist of deceit ( a gloomy region ) that are yet to be discovered by the light of vnderstanding . i blushed at this methought , and would have replyed , but was hindered by the unexpected approach of a fellow laden with mutton-taffata , and calves-skin ; at first i supposed him a knight arrant with shield in his hand , but afterwards found him a past-board bearer ; his pockets ratled with gimcracks of divers devices , and at his arse hung dangling a glew-pot , and a pipkin of mouldy past , many cording quires with much thread ; and on the skirt of his doublet stuck a hafted bodkin , with long eyed needles . now in my dream i wondered who this should be , once i thought it might be time , but perceiving neither hour-glass nor seith , i took him to be an actor in some farce , who thus had dressed himself in redicule to move a laughter ; but had not guest , long before discovery obliged him to make a full stop , though e're he could be steady , he started like a huffing hector at the salute of a serjeant . yet recollecting himself , cryed sir your business with me ; whereupon i perceived they began to dialogue as followeth . discovery . my business is to find out honesty and plain-dealing : can you direct me to their house friend ? book-b . their house sir , why do you imagine then that they are house-keepers : no no , never conceit it , for i remember twenty years agone they were but lodgers in our row , and then could scarcely pay their chamber rent , their gettings were so small ; and would you have 'em house-keepers in these dayes , when no body will give 'em porridge for their labour . disc. that 's hard , but time informed me , he once knew 'em in a flourishing condition and high esteem . book-b . ay he might perhaps in the first age of the world , but these days are past , and now they are held in such contempt , that i who am but a book-binder , scorn to keep 'em company . disc. then it seems friend , that you can give me no directions . book-b . no verily not i , they were hankering about my door a while agone , but my wife lead me such a weary life , till i had sham'd 'em off , with sham turkey , sheep-skin for calf , scabards instead of past-board , glew without sowing , and the like , you would not think it . as for knavery , if you have any business with him , he 's a very thriving gentleman that lives hard by , and one that i have got many a fair pound by . disc. i know friend as well as you how to find the man you mention , but our business is not with him , and so good by to you . now in my dream i beheld we passed this insiped thing , but had scarce turned the corner , before a brisk fellow bolted out of a dark alley , was upon us e're we was aware on him , and was hung round with quires of white and brown , and so covered with parchment , you would have took him to been in armour ; round his neck hung wax and wafers ; and on his crown quills brustled up in bundles , and in his hands were ●onds , indentures , releases , tickets , warrants , and a world of such like businesses ; whilst his pockets strutted with sand and ink-bottles . this thought i must be a scribe , and we had past inquirey there before to little purpose , wherefore i was for joging on ; but discovery catching me by the little finger , pull'd me back , and thus made his address . disc. sir. there are a pair of honest fellows we would fain find out , but hitherto have been successless in our search . stationer . and may be so till this time fortnight for ought i know ; but pray who are they ? disc. honesty and plain-dealing , there 's an estate fallen to 'em , and i am sent to give 'em notice , that they may return and take possession . stat. an estate ! no no , i can't believe it , unless it be in t'other world , for miracles are ceased in this : but howsoever be it as it will , i can't direct you , stationers have no business for ' em . disc. have you not heard of him of late ? stat. heard of them , yess , but 't is a pretty while a gone . i remember when i first set up , plain-dealing came sneaking to my shop in a thread-bare coat , and was for roosting amongst my stacks ; but , taking him for a spye , i bundled him up and sent him to the papermill , where they held his nose so hard to the grinstone , that they quickly obliged him to pack up his awls and be gone . disc. have you not heard of his brother the other party i mentioned , if we could find one he would direct us to the other . stat. when i lived with my master , i remember i heard him talk much of him , but do not remember he ever gave him a visit , though it seems he had been there formerly , as one more bold than welcom , which i gathered from his discourse , for he often railed against him , and called him names for the pretended injury he had done him . disc. that was unkind , for i am certain he is so just , that he would not offer the least injury to any body . stat. i know not all the particulars , but certain i am that thus he would rate him , though absent . a rascal , a villain , says he , for hindring me from gelding the quires , and pretending they shrunk in wetting if they happened to be missed , a thousand sheets cleverly gained in a morning will buy a man a good breakfast , when those that take his advice shall be obliged to keep lent all the year . nay , when i over reach'd as my manner is , and made felse numbers do with a little protestation , this sawcy iack would be whispring the lye in my ear , for which impertinency i have often snap'd him , says he , as if i would a bit his head off , and cryed , what then you slave , can a trades-man live without the faculty . disc. this was very lately sure for he was not used to be so served in the days of our forefathers . stat. not so late sir as you think , for it could not be less than forty years agone , since i heard him tell this story : nay further told me he was the very eves droper to fortune , and would as times go now make a hole in a mans stock as insensibly as the driping rain eats into the bowels of a flint , and bid me have a care of him . disc. and you took the hint i perceive . stat. ay i 'll warrant you , and so has many younger than my self . alas sir ! i have a family to maintain out of hard wax and other tackling , and therefore let people talk what they will , i know what i could write with a pint of ink , but won't give my self the trouble , and so fare ye well . now i perceived he had not gone far before he slunk into his officina like a snail into a shell , and we past on to an other quarter : and looking in at the mouth of an entery , beheld a firey-faced fellow surrounded with glass-bottles , and this put me in mind it might be him , who ( as the old wives tale has it ) girting himself round with dew bottles , was drawn up by the sun into the world in the moon , but found my self within a while after mistaken , for he proved to be a son of bacchus , and was too much delighted with his own terce , then to make such a perilous expedition , for a cup of nectar , which notwithstanding the man in the moon drinks claret , for ought he knew might prove a cup of small beer , when he came to tast it , yet discovery would enter this place , upon no other account than the german proverb , viz. in vino veritas , here says he , or no where we may stumble upon directions , but no sooner were we entered , but our ears were saluted with the noise of : wellcom , wellcom sir. boy , boy , show up stairs , and the confused tinckling of a bell , with the ratling of quart pots . i would have been gone , as imagining our inquiry here would be fruitless , but discovery over-perswaded me , and i stayed . now in my dream i beheld we were shewed into a large room , hung round with divers fancies , wherein the painter had been very exact in hitting the humour , for here sat one a spewing , there another bleeding with his pate broke , this had his face batterd with a quart pot , an other his eye struck out with a tobacco pipe , an other lay decently run through the lungs , on this side two at logger-heads , on that bottles and pots flying like hail-stones , here one tearing the cards , there another damming the dice , and shaking his empty purse , was ready to tear his own flesh for madness : the cieling blushed with volleys of oaths of a crimson dye , that spangled it like primroses , and on the floor lay scattred like sedg in meadow ditch , bundles of horrid imprecations . these things confirmed my first opinion and put me out of all hopes of intelligence in this place , but these thoughts had scarce taken air , when up comes firefacies and discovery , as loath to loose any time , thus entered into dialogue . discovery . sir have you not a down right man in your house called honesty . firefacies . not as i know off sir — but stay i have a great many guest in my house , i 'll bid the boy inquire , though i do not remember any such person has been here since i became major domo — no gentlemen he is not here the boy tells me he has asked in every room , and no body knows him . disc. that 's much , pray what company frequents your house that they are strangers to him . firef. o very good company , as my neighbour luxury , my young master spendthrift , tom gamster , and now and than old mr. vsury on the backside yonder ; especially when he has got a young heir in his clutches , that will not sell nor mortgage without the elevation of bacchus . — as for this honesty if i mistake not i have heard something on him , but they say he cannot abide to be seen in a tavern , and besides not a man that comes to my house , if the characters i have heard ( for excuse me gentlemen i know him not ) be true , but would avoid his company . discovery . is plain-dealing none of your guest neither ? firefacies . how sir , plain-dealing — ●o i think not ; why he 's a stoick philosopher , and deserves to be confined to a cave in some large wilderness , as matters are carried in this age. disc. are you acquainted with him , is he your neighbour ? firef. no sir , neither though i heard mr. self-ends say , he once lived in poverty street : yet i believe the catchpoles have been so busie about beating up his quarters , that he either lies concealed in some odd nook , or else is removed to ierico , till his beard is grown , that he him return in disguise . i must confess i had once some small acquaintance with him , which he relying on , would not suffer me to mix water with my wine , use stum or lime-juice , no nor to dash my white-wine with sider , he would be finding fault with under filling , & little bottles , double scoreing , and putting ale into my burnt claret ; when at any time i furnished a christning or a funeral , which made me shake my ears when casting up my accoumpts at the years end . i sat down by the labour in vain , nor coul'd i tell what to do till mr. knavery came one morning with his brother deceit , and counciled me to forbid him my house , or i should never be worth a groat . disc. and you took his advice i 'le 〈…〉 . firef. ay marry did i , and since i have crept up amain ; but what is 't you drink gentlemen , i hope you don't come to trouble my house for nothing ? disc. we are plain-dealings friends , our business is with him if he had been here , but seeing he is not , we must be going . firef. are you so , plain-dealings friends say you : then you are no company for me . welcome , welcome gentlemen : boy shew the way out here . now as we were going out , methought i heard him say , fare●●ell plain-dealings friends , i 'm glad yo'r gone , if he had follow'd you , i 'de been undone : if he in fashion comes , farewell our trade , by knav'ry 't is we only can be made . by this time i perceived in my dream we were got into the street , but had not leisure to consider of what had passed , e're we met with a matron decently set out , and as grave as penelope ; this thought i is a lucky hit , here past doubt we may be informed , and discovery at the first blush was of the same mind ; wherefore he proceeded to put the question to her , when turning up her head , and stareing him wishfully in the face . she demanded what time of the moon it was , which odd kind of question made him smile , as likewise desirous to know the reason of such a demand . why said she , i suppos●d you are a little crack-braind , which once a moon puts you upon extravagancies , or else you would never have undertaken such a business . honesty and plain-dealing saith she — no friend i know them not , and so goodby to ye . she scarce had left us , when being very inquisitive to know who she was , discovery informed me she was a dealer in humane flesh , and that for the better colouring the matter , she stiled her self a mid-wife , but her real business was to betray the honour of silly wenches to the lust of bully ruffians , to supply the city dames with what they wanted at home , to furnish business for love , intreagues to trapan young heirs into a wedlock noose with her over ridden bona roba's , and to put off the effects of the ladies great bellies , who have been tasting the forbidden fruit before hand , or dispence with the masters familiarity with his chamber-maid . nay , said i then , 't is no wonder she gave you such an answer . now in my dream i beheld that by this time we were come into a little croo●●ed place , and looking about , i beheld a 〈◊〉 incompassed with pots and glasses ●owring upon an old legend . thought 〈◊〉 to my self this must needs be one of the ●●ons of hipocrat●s , and therefore should be ●●ise : but whilst i was thus pondering ●ith my self , the question was asked by ●y companion , and the discourse began 〈◊〉 the following dialect . medicine . sir for what reason do you ask ●e for honesty and plain-dealing , but let 〈◊〉 be what it will , i can assure you , you are ●ome to the wrong place , for they dwell not in 〈◊〉 street , though i have cause to remember ●●em , for about 20 years since , i lay by the heels allmost a whole winter , for harbouring ●●em in my house , though indeed it was my ●ives doings , for i was ever averse to it . disc. then you had sir some acquain●●nce with them formerly . med. ay sir , sore against my will , my ●ife as i told you before would needs per●ade me to it , and i could not say her nay , 〈◊〉 as soon as she poor soul march'd off , i ●●on got shut on 'em , she indeed would make 〈◊〉 be giving medicines to the poor , regulate 〈◊〉 bill from the conscionable gain of eleven 〈◊〉 in the shilling , to three pence or there ●●ou●s . disc. and was not that well done — i hope you take the same measures still . med. no sir i know better things i'd● have you to know ; pish ! sir i 'd have you to understand sir , i 'm now my own man , and those sneaking fellows shall never have any thing to do in my house . album greeckum●● shall be album greeckum now i 'le warrant ye ; every dunghill shall affoard me matter● of support . disc. you promise advice for nothing still sir. med. ay to blind the simple : no no , my learning that little i have cost me some money , and a world of labour ; and i thin●● it is but reason i should inch it out to the best advantage , that promise is only to decoy ' em . disc. yet you 'l perform your promise : suppose a miserable wretch lies in distress , perhaps his life in danger , and each ditch side affoards the remedy you knowing , would you not let him know it too ? med. how sir , what to spoile the faculty ; no , no , by no means : and to be plain sir , poor as they were , i 've screwed out many ● pound , for herbs i gathered in the garden of my patient : now had they known the remedy , all that had gone beside my pocket , nay some times i have ( especially where i found the guilt come ●lush ) made 'em sick and well as i have found occasion , keeping 'em on the rack for my advantage , by perpetual physick , till nature weakned , and the powrs of life decay'd , they en'e kick'd up their heels , and bid good night to ye . disc. and did your conscience sleep the while ? med. ha , ha , ha , conscience quotha ! why i had purged her guts out long before . disc. but this is a transcendant wickedness . med. 't is nothing sir , with some of our profession : wickedness ! that 's a good one : why would you debar us trying practices ? disc. at such a rate , and reason too . med. nay , nay , reason me no reason , practice is practice : but why do i thus spend my breath without a fee ? ego medicus , some and so your servant sir. now in my dream i perceived he withdrew himself into a back closet , furnished with more poisonous druggs than the e●onian● fields ; wherefore not thinking it safe to stay any longer within the wind of him , away we trudged , and ●hus i murmured to my self . art is indeed to be admir'd by all , but who are they the sons of art we call ? why those that make a conscience of a crime , who know and use that knowledge made sublime by virtue , but if she be absent then , art is not art , nor those that use it men . and so we passed on till we came to a high street , where we beheld many people passing , but could not see any favourers of our friends amongst the crowd , that we thought convenient to put the question to , as knowing it would be lost labour , by reason we saw envy , pride , hipocricy , dissimulation , and fraud walk jig by jole with the greatest part of them ; whereupon we struck off to the left hand , and there in an alley found a man a kneading , who by his whiteness , much resembled innocency at first blush ; but it seems , every like is not the same , though here we resolved to make inquiry . now in my dream i perceived he looked about him , and espi●d us , whom he supposed to be a couple of sharp set fellows that were coming to leap at a crust . but this consideration was scarcely midwif'd into his fancy , ●s the issue of his crazy brain , ere we asked for those we so much long'd to find ; viz. h●nesty and plain-dealing ▪ and we put the question hard , but the man who went as ● perceived , under the nomination of pinch-poor , after a little stamering , made ●s the subsequent reply . pinch-poor . gentlemen , i suppose you mistake the place , no such fellows as you mention can live amongst plenty of bread , there is no corn in egypt for them at this time a day . discovery . did you know them friend ? have you had any acquaintance with either of them ? pinch-p . no , by my oven lidd sir not ● : i acquainted with them ! sure sir you must be very weak to put such a question to a bread-moulder . disc. why is it any harm friend to know them ? nay to have conversation with them ? as for my part i should not think it . pinch-p . think you sir what you will , i know what i think , and beg your leave to think on . disc. do you think any harm on them ? pinch-p . yess by my maukin do i ; harm quotha ! ay , ay , harm enough i 'le assure 〈◊〉 . the battery of 500 rotten eggs at 〈◊〉 celeberation of a triple exaultation would be more welcome than their com●any , for they handle a man ten times worse ; how many have suffered for having but the least to do with them , and sung lacrime on the wrong side , a iron or a wooden grate for many a frosty winter , whilst their wives and children were obliged to take up in the extreamities of the region of necessity , a place whether neither bakers nor mealman cares for coming ; for there is neither corn nor wind-mills , all the inhabitants are miserable poor . disc. and ought to be relieved , ought they not ? pinch-p . no sir i think not , but that they are e'ne well enough served for disdaigning to follow the fashion of the world ; they might have taken notice by my false ballances puffing and pinching , that the region of defraud was a very prosperous place . disc. ay , but those that associate with honesty and plain-dealing , ever love to be where conscience dwells , and she it seems is a stranger there . pinch-p . ay , and we are mightily pleased with her absence , for did not we set knavery on the frontires , strongly to guard the pass between the mountains of self-interest and deceit , she would be breaking in and raising a huracane to over●●●● our great diana , the very foundation of our profit . disc. but how came you at first to divorce her ? pinch-p . ha , ha , ha , what ignorance you express , by putting that question to a baker : why that which others call the popes eye , we call the eye of conscience , and seeing she was troublesome , we blinded her with mouldy meal , and stuff of twice grown corn , and then before she had leisure to clear her eye sight , gave her the slip , and stept into the other quarter , and to prevent her following , dam'd up the passage with great lumps of dough , pinch'd from the good wives loaves , which kept her back till i had time to raise the fences higher . as for the gyant i have named , he is maintained ●y my industry , to watch and ward , and is so diligent therein , that i live more and more in security . disc. but think you that security will always last ? know you not there is a tophet hot as eternal wrath can make it ? pinch-p . unless you mean my oven sir , i understand you not , a tophet said he , that 's a ●ramp word ; what of that , is it a place to bake loaves in ? disc. 't was made for such as you , that triumph in your frauds , who being bundled up , shall there be turn'd into everlasting flames . pinch-p . o grievous ! bundled up said he : why sir i hope you don't take me for a faggot : but it matters not whether you do or not , for let me tell you , d' ye hear sir , i have been so much used to poak in the fire , that the flame you mention will hardly fright me from clubbing with deceit for a fine livelyhood . but now i think on 't , while i stand prating here to no purpose , my batch will be spoiled ; therefore gentlemen , you 'd do well to be going . now in my dream i perceived he hasted to a dark place clouded with smoak , whereupon we took him to be a fellow capable to leven the whole lump of his fraternity , 〈…〉 left him to be corrected by the wooden gimcracks . but we had not gone far , but we met a fin●cal fellow with a bundle under his arm , and perceived his pockets ratled with needles , thimbles , bodkins , and sheers , so that at first i took him for a morice-dancer with bells , but he proved a meer hocuspocus , a moth that had fretted away many a yard of back furniture , and by a certain slight of hand , deceived the very sight of men ; here thought i 't is in vain to make any inquiry , wherefore i stepped over the channel to be marching on the other side , but was pul'd back by discovery , who was not willing to let this ninth part of mortality , anglice a taylor pass unquestioned , but stopped him with the following demand . disc. friend know you honesty and plain-dealing , have you made any garments for 'em of late ? taylor . sir i neither know them nor do i desire to have any dealing with them , few of my profession have occasion for such customers , if they are so hard to be pleased as is reported . disc. the report friend has cast you into an error , for they are placable , mild , gentle and easie , dealing uprightly with all men , not defrauding any , but rendering to every man what is justly his due . tayl. why there 's it now , and would you have a taylor have any thing to do with them ? why the trade would be undone then , for we must ●n'e give over planting cabbidges in hell , no slip of value must be gentily filched , nor yet a remnant saved . the report cast me into an error said he , no , no , that 's a mistake , this is just as i heard it ; besides , although i am but a younger brother of the craft , yet upon what i have heard , i have bidden honesty and plain-dealing defiance , and vowed to make perpetual war with them , and if they dare attempt my quarters , no louse was ever mauled as i 'le maule them . disc. you talk like a person with a sick fancy , is your braines crazed friend ? tayl. no i think not , mr. will with t●e whisp , but it would make a man mad of our profession , especially to be buz'd in the ears with your honesty or plain-dealing , as if you were turned their advocate , and went about to perswade us to give them house room . no , no , it will never do , we 'l have no spies upon our ways and actions . disc. friend ●re search after them for other reasons , our chief design is to find them . tayl. ay , and search you may till dooms day for ought i know , for i can give you no directions : no sir by my goos would not if i could , for ●ear if you should find them asleep ( for i believe they have little else to do ) that under pretence of returning me thanks , they should pay me a visit , and imbroyle my affairs , by curtailing my bills , sealing up the door of my cabbidg room , and ' twitting me in the teeth for cutting out two for one , putting in brown-paper instead of buckerum , and many such pretty devices incident to men of our profession . disc. if conscience had any rule in you , you would not speak so hardly of her dear companions . tayl. ha , ha , ha , that 's very pritty ! conscience say you , that 's fine indeed . why who ever heard of a taylo●s conscience prethee ? disc. say you so , then our farther inquiry as to any directions we can hope for from you , may be spared . tayl. ay , ay , very well , for it won't availe you the shread of a garment ; and so i leave you to consider on 't . upon this he step'd into a blind ale-house , tip'd off his penny pot , snatch'd his goose out of the fire , spit upon 't , whip'd out again threaded through the company , and jump'd upon his shop-board , where we left him cross-leg'd , and suddainly turning the corner , met divers married females , who had taken leave of their husbands under pretence of visiting a sick friend , seeing their children at nurse , taking their farewell of some pretended aunt or she couzen , who was coaching it into the country or so ; when indeed their business was nothing less ; for looking back , we saw 'em dive into a tavern , where their gallants attended their arrival to entertain them with love possest . but we scarce had passed them , when we stumbled upon a drove of painters and journeymen shoo-makers , who came reeling at a rate that had like to overset us , but bearing up briskly , they recoild and jostling together , decently fell , making the channel for that time their dormitorie ; so taking them for little better than rubbish , we left them to fill up the holes , and passed through a little wicket , where in my dream i perceived that envy met us , and stood in the way to hinder our progress through the region of truth , but the light of understanding struck her blind for a time , which gave us opportunity to pass by her , which we did with as much speed as possible , to avoid the hissing of her feeble snakes . now i further perceived that the way growing wider , we met a grave fellow , who resembled a philosopher , his beard was as long as cato's , and his head hoary for want of moisture ; and on his forehead was ingraven flattery . bless me thought i , sure this man must be wrong named , and may be honesty thus branded by envy , on purpose to deceive us , and render our inquiry fruitless . discovery at the first was of the same opinion , and resolved to learn it from himself , when coming up and clapping him on the shoulder , he cryed halo grandsir , at which rough salute he seemed to be offended , although he could not well perceive who we were , for age had made him dim sighted . when thus discovery began . disc. father you seem to be a grave , wise , and iudicious man , a man of elder dayes , which gives me hopes you can inform me whether honesty and plain-dealing took their iourney when they left these parts , or are they ye● remaining hereabout ? upon this , methought he put on his spectacles , and peering in our faces for a while , replyed . flattery . who are you sir , that ask me such a question ? disc. one that fain would be satisfied in this demand . flatt . you might as well asked me for the philosophers stone or a phoenix egg. disc. are they so hard to be found then ? flatt . ay exceeding difficult amongst men of my profession ! disc. what may your profession be father ? flatt . why friend , some call me a merchant , some a planter ; but indeed i am neither , yet i am a well wisher to both , and have help'd them to many a hopeful bargain . disc. a bargain father : of what , pray let us understand a little ? flatt . why in plain terms under the rose , some call me a canibal , or devourer of humane liberty , others a soul-seller , and others a plain downright kidnapper , though most imagine me a merchant . disc. a very fine trade , and is this your profession ? flatt . yess , yess , many a father have i 〈◊〉 of his children , many a master of his servant , many a bribe have i had of the wife to ship away her husband , that she might freely revel it with him she liked better ; as often has been my gain from the husband to rid him off a scolding or troublesome wife ; nay unckles have ●aum'd my fist with gold to send away their nephews , that they might injoy their estates , of which they were lest gaurdians . o many a master has sent for me at midnight , to help him off with his chamber-maid when her belly began to ris● in rebellion ; ten guineys have i had of an apprentice in a morning for the like service , when the cook-wenches belly grumbled . and all this was done under the umbrage of their straying through discontent , or their being gone into the country to visit their relations . disc. and did this satisfie their relations ? was no further inquiry made after them when missing ? flatt . yess , perhaps they might ; but then if they were husbands , wives , servants , or the like , we had got a trick to make the first inquiry , by publick crying them , but never till they were surely shop'd in the b●lboes . disc. but how came you to the fingering on them ? how contrived you to get them so safely into your clutches ? flatt . oh , many wayes : as when i saw a young lad stand discontented , i 'de make up to him , and ask him his name , place of aboad , and imployment ; in which being readily satisfied , i 'd raile against the cruelty of his father or master , telling him it was a shame , and that they were punishable for using such rigor to so hopeful a youth : then would i underfeel his resolves , by telling him of much pleasure and plenty , and by what means he might possess it , or that i would help him to a master , whose kindness should appear beyond expression ; which wrought upon him to that degree , that he went contentedly , as an ox to the slaughter , &c. disc. but met you with none that were rough and untractable ? flatt . yes many , and some came now and then to put a trick upon me , but i shew'd them a trick for their learning ; for getting them to the brims of the element , where i had a little tipling house for the purpose , i used to put opium in their liquor , which charming their senses into a slumber , under the favour of that opportunity , and the dusk of the evening , i clapt them aboard my badger , and then good by gaffer , they saw no more daylight till they found themselves out of their own country , and then though all to late , they began to ban their folly that had prompted them to leap out of the frying-pan , into the fire . disc. but some perhaps would not swallow this bait ? flatt . those i made larger offers , telling them i was indeed a merchant , and had whole islands of my own , to confirm which i had ever a voucher at my elbow . then would i send them aboard with a fine key a token to secure them , though they kn●w no other then that it belong'd to a rich cabbin , for so i told them , furnished with all that was pleasant and delightful , as also that my self would be with them in the evening , and accompany them in all hazards , which made them on their arrival , begin to command like emperours , but their courages were soon cool'd , for the purser or boatswain under pretence of conducting them to their cabbin , pulls up a trap and thrust them head and shoulders into dark durance , where they found a covey of fools lamenting their folly , and the key is returned to bait for other wood-cocks . as for the married cattle , they for the most part trappan one another under the coaksing flatterys of renewed affection , having always one of us at hand , to invite the party to a splendid entertainment near the river , when occasionally , though it seemd as if it happened by chance , we meet a person who invites us aboard , and with many perswasions , are urged to induce a complyance , which is no sooner done , but they are left under the hatches to lament their too much cr●dulity . as for the wenches , they are troled thether by such as getting some small acquaintance , pretend love and good will , feigning themselves to be officers of trust and command , and by that means they work upon the weakness of such females as are rampant for husbands ; and thus have i gulled and been instrumental in gulling a thousand : nay i have a trick of binding them , if we fear a search will be made , and by that means i have the value of them for the most part before they are released . now in my dream i perceived he would a gon on , ad infinitum : but discovery finding him a very knave in grain , & loath to spend any more time to no purpose , we left him in a fit of coughing , that had just seized him , and struck off to the left ; yet had not gone far , but up comes a fellow in whiskers , grim as the first begotten of belzebub , with eyes stareing , hair flareing about his eare , bloated cheeks , and a nose resembling a beacon , his belly strutted , and his legs were of the largest size ; at his wast hung keys ratling in chaines , and behind him hand-screws , double-da●bys , cross-bitts , and the like , which made me at first conceit him to be one of the spanish inquisitors , for on his forehead in large capitals i perceived oppression , and fan●yed that that was his name , and though i was unwilling to have any discourse with him ; yet discovery would needs inquire something , if but to unravel the monster , who bore up like a ship under sail : and thus i fancyed they began their discourse . disc. have you a habitation in these parts , or are you of some remoater part of the world ? oppression . the reason before i give my answer , why you ask i would gladly know . disc. truely friend , the cause of this inquiry proceeds from no other reason , than that we are desirous to be informed where a couple of persons ( whom i am injoyed to find out , and in whose search we have been hitherto unsuccessful ) reside , or have abiding place . oppress . perhaps i may inform you , for i have many under lock and key of divers sorts and sizes . disc. two downright men they are ; one of 'em especially , whom i hear to be gone into garments of 〈◊〉 kersey of late . oppress . but their names sir , have you not their names ? and then i can better inform you . disc. honesty and plain-dealing men were wont to call 'em , and 't is by those names i inquire after ' em . oppress . how honesty and plain-dealing say you . — no sir they are not in my custody , neither do i remember i had ev●● any thing to do with ' em . nor is it the best way to fall into my clutches , for they do , i 'll so hamper them , they ne●● was so hamperd in their lives . disc. would your conscience serve you misuse men who are vertues friends ? oppress . vertues friends , say you ; 〈◊〉 ay , to chuse , for i am her mortal foe● ▪ and as for conscience now you name he● take notice that she 's lockt up in a 〈◊〉 dungeon , shackled with extortion , han●●cuff'd with bribery , thumb-screw'd wit● oppression , and bound neck and hee with the chains of cruel usage , too sa●● to trouble me , though , till i fo●nd th● way to curb her , she would be medlin● in my affairs , and pittying those i unmer●cifully beat , and fed with bread an● water of affliction , to extort money 〈◊〉 of them , those i kept in for fees till the perished , and those i shipp'd off at mid●night for slaves . and if you should chan●● as i doubt it , to meet with the parti●● you inquire after , have me recommende● to them in this dialect , and warn the● to have a care how they fall into m● quarters . now in my dream i perceived tha● this dreadful story put discovery beside his further inquiry for not being longer able to hear such a cruelty mentioned , he stopped his ears , and made hast away , leaving this monster of a man , who could not be less than a mahometan to trudge about his business , yet looking behind me , i perceived him enter a strong place , made of the bones of mother earth , and fortified with iron ribs , through which distressed mortals breath'd their lamentations , whose sad condition whilst i was condoling , my ears were saluted with the shrieks and cryes of a female , when entring the next street called the way of all fles● , i beheld a mournful spectacle which sadded my heart ; and what should it be , but the manes of a deceased gentleman , whom they were carrying to his long home , followed by a number of mourners , who in a manner covered their faces , and breath'd out many sighs to wound the air , and groans like peals of thunder : but above all the beautyful widdow , whom tears made lovely , was most outragious . nor as i then perceived would she be comforted , but still exclaimed of her hard fortune , to be thus deprived as she said by cruel death , and her ill fated stars of all her happiness on earth , just in the spring-tide of her joys . o! said she , had i but dyed to follow thee my love , how should i have been blest you cruel powers ▪ why did you thus divide us ? but since you will not take my life , i 'll wast my days in tears and groans , i 'll banish slumber from my eyes , and sigh away my soul , no food shall ever refresh me , no● the melody of musique wound my ear , farewel all joys , all comforts all delights since he is gone to whom i owe my boundless love , never , for thy sake , more will 〈◊〉 renew my marriage bed , or see with pleasantness the face of man , but retire from all the gawdy vanities ▪ till death prove● kind , and snatch me to my lord. this stream of grief , from one so fair much afflicted me , and methought i was about to step and comfort her , and had done it , but that i beheld one very officious in that undertaking . by this time we came to the repository of the dead , and there she a fresh renew'd her sorrow , and seem'd to give it scope , to that excess , that her friends had no small trouble to keep her from rushing head-long on him in the grave . o part us not ? said she , but let me here embrace him , ever cling to his cold stiff limbs , and with my tears imbalm his senseless clay , preserve him from the injury of time , and drive away those vermin that would prey upon my love , and sport with helpless him , in whom my heart is center'd . by this time i beheld in my dream , that the torrent of grief ( which i afterward found to be all but fained ) abated , and she returned to her house , whether ●e followed , as hoping from this tra●eck sceen of woe , some instructions might be gathered : but we no sooner entered , but the sceen was changed , for standing unseen , i perceived all had left her , but him that supported her to and from the gloomy cave of death , and he it seems 〈◊〉 undertaken to comfort her , not without her own desire , when turning up her ●ail , the clouds of grief that like a win●er night , so late or'espread her face , ●ere vanished , smiles assembled in their ●audy troops to take possession , and ro●●e blushes put chill pailness to the flight , ●hen after some wanton toying , they ●hus began to dialogue . insinuation . o how i love thee ! my ●dmired , my adored mistriss . nay , my ●appyness and sole delight , how much ●m i indebted to thee for this days per●ormance — come let me imbrace my joy . dissimulation . nay sir , what is 't you ●ean ? — o ●ie . — nay , nay , this must not be , i have vow'd continency . insin . it must , my happyness , for you i stayed and sigh'd , and thought death long delay'd thus to befriend me : but since he has proved kind , come be not nice , you know i have loved you long , your virgin beauties when unsullyed were by right my due , though your too hasty parents snatched you from my armes , as charmed by gold to give you to an other . but now since fate has been propitious and removed the obstacle , i court afresh and hope to find you plyant . diss. ay sir , but what will people say , when they perceive the storm of grief i raised so soon blown over ? pray think of that . ins. nothing thou wonder of thy sex , but that the minds of woman varey , and are subject to change , and so they do of all thy sex. diss. but by that means i shall incur reproach and infamy . — could i but avoid that . ins. infamy and reproach , never fear it , i 'll protect you from the malice of blasting tongues , those tongues that blot the brightest vertue , shall not have power to fix a stain on you . your grief was acted to the life . diss. and do you think it was but acted , 〈◊〉 not real ; can you be so impartial ? ins. come thoughts are free my love , 〈◊〉 more of that , but set the day . live 〈◊〉 the living , let the dead rest silent in 〈◊〉 grave . diss. the day for what — pray what day , 〈◊〉 day is it you 'd have me set ? ins. the day to celebrate our happy ●●tials . the day to crown my wishes ●●th their highest aime . come blush 〈◊〉 thus , nor turn away your lovely face ; 〈◊〉 , shall it be the next ? diss. i know not what to say : he was my ●●sband , and methinks i should not so soon ●●●get him ; besides i 've vow'd continency . ins. o! look not back on thoughts of sad●●●s , 't will grieve his shade to see you sad , ●●en he is happy ; it looks like envying felicitie . continency no more of that ●●●ethee . diss. were 〈…〉 a little too soon methinks ●●uld love you . well i have a strugling in breast ? ins. come loose no time my lovely fair●●●●● , to morrow night shall make 〈◊〉 for all the faults and censures of 〈◊〉 day ; when in my arms safe as in 〈◊〉 of brass , you are stretched at ease , 〈◊〉 find those transports from a vigorous 〈◊〉 , that will charm you into extasie melt you into joys unspeakable , transport your soul in raptures , near resembling those above ; such as age and impotency never could bestow : no ghost no● frightful shade shall terrify my love. diss. alas sir , you talk of strange matters : what are there any ghost ? indeed i must confess i have heard of such things ; and i vow now you put me in mind on 'em , i sha●● be afraid . ins. that there are ghost that wande● round the tombs , when church-yard● yaun , and visit by the midnight gloo●● their frighted and amazed friends 〈◊〉 learned authors in all ages do affirm . diss. o lamentable ! if it be so , pardon my blushes , i must intreat you as a friend to stay all night and watch me , and to morrow 〈◊〉 cast my self into your arms ; for indeed now you have put this into my head , i dare not ly● alone ; but i hope you 'l use me kindly , and never twit me in the teeth hereafter for my suddain yielding , ●or believe me , had it no● been for fear of lying alone and seeing the ghost , i would not have married , or at least not this fortnight . ins. fear nothing my delight , i 'le eve● be obedient to your will. ha! ha ! she● won already : o! the fickle state of 〈◊〉 man kind ; but no more on 't , least 〈◊〉 the sport . to her . death has been kind , and you as kind as he , let 's hence my lovely widdow , but that name no longer than the morning dawn shall be , then it shall vanish in loves lambent flame . now in my dream i perceived they retired into a chamber richly hung , where stood a stately alcove imbroidered with gold , the soft recumbancy of love , and there we le●t them , as not imagining , where so much dissimulation and wickedness dwelt ; our inquiry would be available . we were no sooner in the street , but we stumbled upon a plain country fellow in a gray ho●●espun coat , a girdle near as big as a horse-collar about his wast , and a steepled crownd hat , much in fashion in the days of queen dick , his shooes were clouted , and his stockings you wou'd have taken for roman buskins . at sight of this man my heart began to leap , for thought i , this must be plain-dealing , or ●he devil's in 't : which discovery perceiving , smild , and nodded his head , when ●●●rching up towards him , and running his candle almost into his beard , which made him start ; he cryed , wot won you● bren a mon : and with that pulling hi● hat out of his eyes , i perceived ignoranc● on his forehead , wherefore i found i was mistaken ; yet discovery tipping him on the elbow urged him to discourse . discovery . friend whether are you travelling ? i●norance . whay waud whoo knaw ? if whoo won tall a body , that whoo will tall whoo whare whoo dwall . disc. i suppose in the country friend , but it matters not where , so be it you can inform us where honesty and plain-dealing have taken up their quarters . ign. what won you say haunestay and pla●●-daulin , thoat's whaint ? no marry dant oy . disc. we thought you might . but again have you not heard of ' em ? ign. oy marry han oy , but oy cou'd n'are zee aum . disc. that 's hard , i thought they might be taking the air in the country , seeing they have absented themselves from the town of late . ign. deer zer dy , oys knaw nauthing on aum , aw oys can zay to the mauter oys heard , oys vather zay oance they ●aume doan an liggd in whoo 's hause . disc. and pray did you hear how he entertained them ? ign. yeas varily , whoo zay whoo at virst waus varey loffing to ' aum , but whoo perceving whoo waud now let whoo remave the land-maurks , naw ne mawe a zwath of whoo 's naughbers grass , or remave his zhocks a caun an haw to whoo 's awn gront , naw ner pauster whoo 's houses in his naubours gront , when whoo waus a sleap ne anter the meausur of whoo 's caun , and manny zuch mauters , whoo won ha naw mawr to done with whoo , but zent whoo a pauking , and then whoo done aw this , and a graut dale mawr as well as whoo 's naubour's . disc. and since that time you have not heard of ' em . ign. naw ne oy , moyn vather chaurg oy , on whoo 's bleasing that oy's ha nauthing to done wiw whoo ne mawr oy's ha naw . now in r●y dream i perceived discovery grew weary of discoursing with this lump of mortality , and therefore desired him since he could give no better account to be jogging on , when after three or four scrapes , and twice bussing of his hand he left us . but as if fortune had on purpose cast blockheads in our way , we were no● sixteen paces , before we perceived a slovenly fellow come toward us , gnawing a custard , and this we took to be a pastrey man that was wont to deal in cat-peys , but it proved to be gluttony , whom it seems went up and down from morning to night , devouring all that came to his fingering , and so we let him pass , not thinking it convenient to trouble our heads with him , as knowing him to live upon the spoil of other mens tables , and the decay of their purses , drunkenness followed him in a wretched condition , spewing and staggering all the way , twice or thrice had he been in the kennel , and after him wallowed a number of fatt hostesses , calling to those that were before to stop him , but he still staggered on till he came to a prison-gate , where giving a great reel , he burst open the wicket with his head , when his body following , it closed upon him , and there i left him to bethink himself when he was sober . now in my dream i perceived vertue hasting towards us half naked , ●lying amain ; for vice with whom she had a long time contended for the mastry , had it seems gotten the victory , and was in pursuit of her , she looked me thoughts lovely and gay as the rosie morn , when auro●a's gates give way to the swift courser of the sun , who gilds the eastern clouds with purple and with gold , and as she flew towards the clouds , i heard a voice from the earth cry after her , return , return : but it seems she had been so badly used that she took no notice on 't , but kept on her way till she was out of sight . whereupon i began to consider with my self , that although vice had much inlarged his borders , yet i could not conceive but vertue had many fair territories , and made some thousands happy with her smiles , doing every where much good , though her reward was for the most part slender , which urged me to believe she might be gone for new instructions . but whilst these meandering imaginations made me heavy and dumpi●h , me thoughts fornication came on with a troop of sinners at his heels , of all ages and sexes , whereat bless me , quoth i , am i in sodom , and thereupon starting i awaked , and found it but a dream . the precedent imaginations , or wonderous fancys making a deep impression in my mind . i lay some time amazed at what had past ; but perceiving the sun was mounted high , and in his burning course & smoat on me , rousing my self an● rubbing hard my drowsie eyes , after a yaun or two & stretched my self , i got upon my feet , when looking round me , i perceived a neighbouring grove , which at a distance seemed so pleasant , that having much of the day to spend , theither i bent my steps ; and entering , was delighted with the spreading shade , which canopied me from the scorching eye of day . but as if fate had doom'd me to dull drousiness , my legs denyed support again , & a dissolveing quickly slew through every part , each sinnew , artery , and ligument grew lank ; when finding i must yield , down i cast my self on a mossey banck , beneath a flowrey shade , whose sweets defused help'd leaden handed so●●us boughs , which were of ●orce before , to make the boldest mortal own his charms . sleeping i dreamed , and in my dream beheld my self just in the state i was before , i at last awake , and discovery was at my right hand , and began to chide me for deserting him ; but had not time to utter his resentments , e're a grave old fellow briskly bore upon us , wrapt up in furrs and velvet , imbroidered and imbossed , his countenance was oft eclipsed with ●rowns on his forehead , in black characters sat ingratitude , one hand was open and the other clinch'd . this man thought i can never help us to our wish , and therefore i 'de a let him pass , but discovery before i was aware , began the following dialogue . discovery . sir you appear to be a person of no small authority in these parts , i 'de ask you a few questions . ingratitude . 't is in your power to do it , but be speedy . disc. in the first place , sir what street do you call this , for i 'm a stranger in this place ? ing. men call it self-love street , which leads you 〈◊〉 misers row. disc. i fear i 'm then out of my way , i am upon inquiry for a brace of men , and fear i have mistook the street . ing. you know their names i hope ? disc. ay , honesty and plain-dealing , do you know them sir ? ing. no sir , 't is not fit i should : i never so much as heard of them . disc. that 's strange in one arrived at your maturity : what may your business be it 'h world , that you should be so ignorant ? ing. my name 's ingratitude , i kept a shop the other day , but now i live upon my means . disc. ingratitude , why that 's a hateful name , a name that the very heathens spit at . ing. i am sorry for your ignorance sir , if you knew how i am courted , you 'd be of another opinion . disc. how courted when so old and withered : but pray sir by which sex is it ye are courted ? ing. o! by both sir , my antichambers are each morning crouded with such as come to make me presents , and congratulate my welfare . disc. 't is much it should be so : but what is 't they expect ? ing. why there 's the business , they seek by such means to ingratiate themselver into my favour , that i may do them some good turn 〈◊〉 other . disc. and you 'l do 't , if it be in your power ? ing. i flatter them with such gaudy hopes , till i inrich me by their spoils , and then good night to them . disc. and is this fair ? can you dispench with this ? ing. ay very well , i 've got a fair estate by 't , and wedded many a woodcock to my intrest . who for the good turns they did me , hoped to be preferred , or made at least amends at vsance ▪ but when i found they could do no more , but press'd me hard for some retaliation , i laugh'd them into madness , and sent them railing from my door . disc. and does not one good turn deserve another ? ing. not with me sir , 't is a thing i understand not , i 've seen those starve at my very door , that often have relieved me . disc. conscience would direct you better . ing. conscience ! ay , ay , that 's a good one ; let me alone till i take her directions . nay , i 'le warrant you she 'l never trouble her head to prescribe me rules and methods . disc. you have her sir i hope . ing. no sir i han't , i 'le tell you that , for if i had , she 'd ne'r so tamely a suffered me to hold so many persons in the chain of vain-hope to be my heirs , whose noses i intend to wipe when i have drained them dry . no , no sir , i have stifled conscience long e're this . disc. as how : pray by what means could it be done ? ing. by turning my aged father out of doors , when out of paternal love and kindness to promote my marriage , he had made o're to me what ever was his , and seeing him without a sence of pitty beg his bread , and break his heart with grief , by using artifices to prove a whore of her that bore me decently , to bar her of her dowrey , by swearing him out of his life , who was my faithful friend , and once had saved mine , because i knew that he had layed so deep an obligation on me that whilst he lived i must ever have made acknowledgements , and therefore at one bold stroak i rid my self of such an ill conveniency , and if from these you gather that either honesty , plain-dealing , or the puny thing called conscience be of my acquaintance , i 'll leave you to your dear mistake . disc. i am confirmed they are not , nor ever dare they dwell with such impiety ; and least your breath infect , or putrify the air to shed contagion on me , i 'll avoid you as a bazilisk . now in my dream i beheld that discovery hasted on with all speed , and drew me after him , leaving this piece of inhumanity to travel to the regions of destruction , and had not gone far , but a fellow crost the way with lofty looks , and often stumbled as i perceived , because his eyes w●re ever elevated , his feet were ever in a dancing motion , touching but lightly the detested soil . as for his gaudy accou●raments , he seemed a walking mercers shop , set out with the advantages of every other trade , that usually contributes to promote our ages vanity . in his face sat youth and age , his countenance was feminine , though i perceived him to partake of either sex , his pockets struted with perriwigs powders , patches , paints , washes , pomades , and a thousand such impertinencies ; his eyes were upward , and therefore he stumbled upon us before he was awar , when pride ( for so was his name ) somewhat declining from his stiffer state , he cast a disdainful look , and asked us in a haughty manner , how we durst oppose his way , but little minding his frowns discovery began to sift him . disc. sir , who are you that are thus made up of redicule ? pride . who are you sirrah , that dare be so sawcy to demand such a question ? disc. one that knows you perhaps better then you know your self . pride . that 's very brave indeed that such a sneaking fellow as you should have gained such knowledge . what you are some mope eyed light-monger , that knows not the difference between ●oon day and owl-light , and are going a lowbelling for wood-cocks i 'll warrant ye . disc. if so sir , i doubt not but i have found an overgrown one in meeting you . pride . how dare you say this to me , fly my anger , or you are dead . disc. hold , hold sir , put up your indig●ation , and let us parley a little . pride . dare you be thus impertinent to me ? i 'll make you know your distance sirrah . disc. if your anger is over sir , i would ask you a question . thus low i beg such a fa●our . pride . o do you so ! well you may go on , though i hope you will learn more manners for the future . disc. may it please you sir , to inform me where i may find honesty and plain-dealing . pride . impertinent coxcomb to ask me such a question . no sirrah i have no knowledge of any such beggarly fellows , my conversation is with those of a higher 〈◊〉 . disc. ay sir , i know you have confidence enough to exault your self above your betters . yet pride will have a fall , you are he that tramples upon humility , and dispise vertue : nay you are the eldest born of satan , that has troubled the world in all ages , one that threw your father down headlong into regions of eternal gloom , and have plung'd many millions after him , and damn'd more souls than atheism and ignorance . pride . sir stop there , i 'll not indure this ralery . know your distance . disc. a little longer you must . your anger will be bootless . you i say are the causes of division , emulation , treasons , wars and rebellion : wherefore there 's no hopes to be imbet●er●d by you , so i 'll keep my way . in my dream i perceived this tart discourse so thorrowly netled pride , that swelling with indignation till he well nigh burst , he was about to revenge the affront as he termed it , but discovery cast the mist of self-conceit before his eyes , which so dozed his little understanding , that before he could find his senses , we were out of reach . but fate soon crost us by casting ambi●ion in our way , a thing that walks on piramides , whom we found to be more turbulent than the former , for his discourse was of nothing but aspiring greatness , blood and reve●ge , grasping at crowns , scepters , and such like insignes of royalty : though as i perceived he was made up of nothing but airy imaginations , corded together with insatiable desire and thirst of glory , but so loosly that they often slipt , and indangered his falling in pieces , and therefore not finding a solid substance , we let him pass , when close at his heels followed ruine and disgrace : being almost out of hopes of finding any person of whom we might inquire , we left this street , and struck off into humility-lane , where we had yet some hopes of retriving our lost labour , but found our selves deceived , for pride and ambition it seems had been there and taken hostages of the inhabitants to be at their devotion , which did not a little trouble me , for i had flattered my self , that here our search might end ; but whilst i was musing on many things , up comes a fellow whom i afterward understood to be self-conceit , and it seems he had been a great romancer , and understood something of logick , he appeared very airy , and was as brisk as bottled ale ; thought i to my self this is a rambler , and may perhaps inform us of more then we are awar on , and therefore i urged discovery to give him the meeting , who taking the hint , readyly complyed and fell to questioning him . discovery . friend how far are you travelling this way ? self-conceit . but to the next street , called vanity buildings , a very noted pile i 'le assure ye , and a place much frequented . disc. are you known in these parts sir ? self-c. good lack a day ! what a question there is : known , yess sir , my name is self-conceit , i am the eldest son of mr. folley , descended of a very antient family ; there is hardly a house in these parts but i have some relation or other lives in it . disc. your kindred it seems then are many , and have spread themselves wide ? self-c. in truth you are in the right on 't , for i cant number them , though when i see any of them , i know them by a mark peculiar to our tribe ; that is , their fine way of speaking in their own praise . disc. but sir , to let that pass , do you know one goodman honesty and his brother plain-dealing in these parts , are they any of your tribe pray ? self-c. o hoyty toyty ! goodman honesty , and so forth . no sir , we are all masters , or at least all good men : why i hope you don't take this for a country village ? no , no , you see we are all fine folks , we have neitheir goodman's , gaffer's , nor gammer's amongst us , i thank ye sir. disc. perhaps they may sojourn here about for a night or two ? self-c. no , no , i can assure you there 's no entertainment here about for such homespun fellows , all the lodgings are taken up by great folk i 'le assure you : though i am a great shollar , and a man of prodigious parts , if i was a stranger , unless i went very gay , i should not be entertained . disc. that 's much : but a great shollar say you ! are you a great shollar ? self-c. ay marry am i : pray sir do you question it ? disc. no sir not now , but i am glad to hear it , for it may prove advantagious to my present inquiry . self-c. o me ! will it indeed and in very good earnest ? disc. ay doubtless : i think you say you are a gentleman and a great schollar ? self-c. ay , ay , you are in the right on 't , for although i must confess my father was but a weaver , yet i think my self by improvement as good as the best ; for you must know a man of parts is a gentleman , take him at which end you will. disc. ha! then you are the son of a weaver it seems , but only you are refined into gentility , by learning and the like ? self-c. yes , yes , you are in the right on 't . disc. you have read many books i suppose , and are a great linguist ? self-c. very good , you hit me to a hair , i wonder how you came to have such knowledge on me : o fy , how i under value my self with that thought , for who can imagine that a man of my prodigious parts and i earning should not be known every where ; why 't is such as i that find fame imployment , her wings would grow rough , and render her incapable of flight , did we not find her business . i dont know any think to the contrary , but my name may be known in the indies by this time , for i have sent many a piece of paper abroad in writing . disc. a letter or so perhaps about mer●handize ? self-c. no , no , i 'le assure you i have writ love-letters and madrigals , the finest pieces of wit i think this age can ●oast off : nay i have been in print in fo●●o too , and many other fine things i 'le as●●re you . disc. and by this some would guess you really 〈…〉 you pretend , a great schollar . self-c. ay , ah , how can they do otherwise ? disc. well sir , to grant that you are so , 〈◊〉 you tell me the mens names i inquire for in latin , an odd request , yet you may do me a ●indness in it , for who knows but they may have strained them to that pitch , the better to 〈◊〉 themselves , for they have many enem●es i can assure ye . self-c. in latin say you , let me see honesty and plain-dealing . — hum , — in latin say you ? — why alas ! i have left my dictionary at home . honesty and plain-dealing say you ? why i 'le vow 't is a very strange thing i should be so dull a sot , as not to have it in my mind : pish it makes ▪ me scratch . — well i have it at my tongues end , yet truly sir i must beg your pardon , i can't inform you at present , but i 'le go and inquire if you 'l stay a little . disc. no sir it needs not ; i only asked to underfeel your schollarship . self-c. underfeel me sir ! and what of that ? now you have underfelt me , i hope you take me for a schollar don't you ? disc. no indeed sir i don't , you 'd laug● 〈◊〉 if i should : a pretender perhaps 〈…〉 self-c. how sir , how ! why i have read abundance of hard words i 'le assure 〈◊〉 , as manus and domus , and the like . disc. manus and domus , pray sir what 〈◊〉 they signifie ? self-c. how silly you are , what do they signifie : why they signifie manus and domus , what would you have them signifie else ? disc. this is very pretty : but have they 〈◊〉 construction ? self-c. ay , ay , manus and domus , that 's their construction ; what construction would you have them have ? disc. ha , ha , ha. self-c. what do you laugh sir ? well , well , i perceive by my great learning you are a silly fellow , and don 't understand emphatical pronountiation ; there are two other hard words for ye , but i do ill to spend my great parts upon one of such little sence , but i 'le keep you company no longer . now in my dream i perceived that this piece of impertinence put us into a ●it of laughter , for almost a quarter of an hour , and scarcely had we recovered our ●elves , but we saw at a little distance chirst of vain glory , sister to ambition , ●nd round about her danced many airy 〈…〉 as fancy , imagination shades ▪ representing chimerars and abundance of seeming nothings , though delusion had set them out with imaginary guilding and painting to the best advantage , all her garments were filled with aire , which made 'em strut like a ships sailes , swell'd with southern blasts ; but we had seen too much vanity before , and so we let her pass with these remarks . vain-glory's an inchantress seeming fair , whose guilded baits , fond mortals do insnare ; but strip her once of her delusive charms , she 'l prove a hagg , and fright you from her arms. no blossom of success as yet appearing , we began to be in a doubt , whether we should pass further , or put in and rest us ; but before we perceive him , prodigality was upon us , now thought i with my self , this is a fair opportunity to be informed what kind of people dwell in extravagant 〈◊〉 , which we were next to enter ; but 〈◊〉 i could make observations upon his 〈◊〉 habillaments , he was making 〈◊〉 and drakes with indian ingots , 〈…〉 pleased to see them scram●led for ; though as it was strongly guest , 〈◊〉 dadd bequeathed himself to lucifer 〈◊〉 help him to 'em ; but whilst he was ●●andering away the old mans restless ●●bour , i perceived divers flatterers and ●arasites , were buzing stories in his ears , 〈◊〉 whom he gave the greatest heed imaginable , as being much delighted with the ●ound of his own praise , nor did he deny ●em any thing they asked , though to trill him on , they feigned a modesty in taking 〈◊〉 ; now vsery stood close behind a tree , ●auping for his estate in morgage , as soon as all the ready cash was melted by the ●eat of folly , or alembeck'd into the vola●●le quintisence of non est inventus , by dr. extravagance , but whilst my thoughts grew big with expectation of some rare discourse . i perceived he charged into a tavern with a train of spungers at his ●eels , where a fresh bit of live mutton was ready to wellcome him , who by her ●●rtifices , angled so deep in the fish-pond of his estate , that she cleared it of the pre●ent fry , and obliged him to call moun●ieur vsery to recruit him with ready ●own , when straight goes his fist to the ●heeps-skins ; here i perceived he re●ealed it so long , that after a second re●ruit , he was in the hight of jolitry taken captive by a band of moabites , and lead into the land of misfortune , wher● he set the organ-pipe of his past folly to the tune of fortune my foe , which mad● me run upon him in a little discant to this effect . crush't by his folly as his fate deserv'd : behold too late repentance allmost starv'd a grand destroyer , who in one years space consum'd the labour of his dads whole race , by which he 's brought to an unpity'd case . but evil got is mostly evil spent . mammon exacts again what'er he lent , to gull the souls that were on lucre bent . i would have proceeded but was disturbed by a troop of deceivers packed up in blankets , as if they had been prohibited goods , they cackled strangely , and therefore might have been taken for wild gees● but that they were deficient in wings ▪ and therefore alltogether uncapable o● flight . these thought i have been in many countries , and although they be bu● refuse , yet they may be capable of givin● us some intelligence , but methought th●● clacks going alltogether , were so c●amourous , that a beavy of oster-wenche● was but an ass to 'em ; wherefore i contriv'd how i might single one out to speak the whole sense of the rest : nor was it long ' er i found the opportunity , for the remainder staggering into a tippling can as they call it , i catcht one by the plad , which discovery perceiving , gives him a full turn , and desired his better acquaintance . the fellow stared with his mouth at half cock , and at first seem'd wonderous shy . halo , said discovery , why so agast prethee ? turn up thy foretop and know me better , for indeed his hair hung much in his eyes , when stroaking back his whiskers , he whose name was the deceiver demanded our business , and at the same time holding out his fist , fell to pauming it , emblematically expressing he wanted a fee ; but discovery as if he understood him not , told him , his business was to inquire after a couple of persons that he supposed were travelling a pilgrimage , or hid in some secret place , by reason he could no where find them . deceiver . are they coves of the crackmans , cloyers of the cackelers or queer coves , are they strumel morts rum morts or coves of the bouzin-can ▪ discovery . hey day friend ! what are you gotten into the galley-mausery of abumazer . be intelligable or adieu to ye . deceiv . be intelligable ; ay , ay , and what is it you 'd have me intelligence about ? disc. speak friend , i mean as you may be understood . dec. ay , ay , let me see your fist cross 〈◊〉 ●ond with won piece of silver , and 〈◊〉 tell you very good fortune . disc. a rush for your fortune-telling , is 〈◊〉 there ●bout with ye ; a fortune-teller say 〈◊〉 ▪ dec. ay , ay , me be very good fort●ne-teller , in very good deed and earnest ▪ disc. can you conjure friend ? dec. no , no , me no conjure , though me am not altogither unacquainted with the devil . disc. i believe so , for you somewhat resemble him : but pray what is your business in this world ? dec. ay , ay , my business be very much 〈◊〉 ye , me be called the fortune 〈◊〉 , the king of the gipzies . disc. ha , the very same i took you for : but wethee give us a little insight into your 〈◊〉 , it may be worth hearing , and 〈◊〉 advantage our design . have you 〈…〉 progress honesty and plain 〈…〉 after ? dec. that be a very fine question , ve●y you be surely mad to ask me dat , 〈◊〉 who am the veryest cheat in crea●●on . disc. notwithstanding you may have ●ard of 'em , though they are no company for 〈◊〉 . dec. ay , ay , and me have cheated 'em of 〈◊〉 great part of the little they had , many ● time . disc. that was unkindly done , but prethee 〈◊〉 did'st compass it ? dec. o very fine ! for me having tried ●any experiences , undergon the scourge ●●llory and huzza in the left sist , narrow●● escaping the gibbet ; and being too ●ublickly known to carry on any further ●esign without a vizor or the like . disc. what then , pray how managed you 〈◊〉 after game ? dec. why me was rambling abroad 〈◊〉 security one day , and getting my self ●retty weary when night had made the ●ields black , me being destitute and sad , 〈◊〉 crept into an old barn amongst the ●itter , where me sat a while pensive : ●ut 〈◊〉 long before me was besieged by won ●eat troop of gablers , black as you see 〈◊〉 , whom at the blush me took for queen ●abb and her fary elves , when me leap up , as being afraid of pinching , for me had heard to much of that before , & cry'd , haloo morblew willoboo aboo aboo ▪ when presently they thinking me the devil , thro down their pots , pipkins , bouzing-cans , and all their furniture , and betake themselves to run so fast , that the coves stumble over the morts and the morts overturn the doxies , that in the end they lay hecelde peckelde on a heap ▪ and the more they strive to run the more fear doth stop their flight . disc. and what succeeded this disorder ? dec. why when me perceived what they were , me call after them , and cry● me was a man , me was no devil . disc. and they returned upon this , di● they not ? dec. ay , ay , and finding their mistake we all retire to our thatched pallace where striking a light , me perceived th● way bestrowed with the spoils of the las● days gathering ; as mecelines of mamock and streams of strong liquors , whic● made them all lament their foolish fear . disc. but what insued ? dec. much friendship , and an invitation to accompany them , when i had tol● them of a thousand pranks i had play'd ▪ no man so fit ( they gabled all at once ) 〈◊〉 be superiour of order . disc. and did you take it on you ? dec. yes , and to make my self more lovely in their eyes , and seem a true egiptian rubbed my face and hands with a pomander made of soot and bacongrease , for the green husks of wal●ut were not then in season , and then was i installed with great applause , and many a vain song sung to confirm it , and young rum mort , or damzel delivered me to use as i thought fit . when morning gave a prospect to the villages , out i sent my troop of forragers , who soon returned laden with provision , nay with sheets , shirts , hens , pigs , geese , or what else came to hand , and all that day we reveld it , and all the night we spent in soft dalliance . disc. and are the villagers kind to such a strooling tribe ? dec. ay , and deny us no provision , least with horrid mutterings we should bewitch their cattle , or raise tempests to overturn their barns and houses , or with lightning flashes set them in a blaze . disc. and is this in your power ? dec. no i think not , but a foolish fear perswades the ignorant to such credulity . nay more , they fondly dream what ever we participate a part of , all the rest must consequently follow . disc. and is it nothing so ? dec. not in the least , for whilst we doze 'em with strange things , we have our divers , our filers of the cly , our tripers of the dancers , anglers , and the like , who rob their houses or their persons , which they believe to be by power of inchantation . disc. and they believe all what you tell 'em i 'll warrant you . dec. yes every syllable , for if we tell but true once in a hundred guesses , and that perhaps we gather from their own discourse , all is held as gospel , not a syllable is disbelieved , but if it be past they think they remember something like it , or perhaps flatter themselves 't is true but they have forgot it . disc. very good , and this folly is predominant ? dec. ay exceedingly . but to let that slip , over other wayes we have , for when we find a large credulity , then we perswade 'em they are born to exceeding fortune , and if we find 'em rich , pretend ●here's treasure hid in the house , that was by fate designed them near a hundred years since ; this sets them agog and have it conjured , they will , and we must be the people , then we ask them for a pledg , what jewels , plate , or linnen , &c. they most esteem , which we tell them is to be given in hostage to the powers of darkness to assist us in our discovery , and in the end they shall have that and all the treasure . disc. and this i suppose ●akes 〈◊〉 . dec , what can it do less ? it ●ickles to the life , and flatters them with mountains that scarcely come to mole-hills . disc. then you deceive ' em ? dec. ay what more , for when the day perfixed is near , away w● trudge with what we have , to far for them to find us , which makes 'em oft sit down by we●ping cross , whilst we are laughing loud . disc. a●d have you 〈…〉 randevous ? dec. yes , once a year we generally meet , and share our riches , equally relieve those that are scanty , and then seperating we leave tokens 〈◊〉 the way , that two companies should not take the self-same road , and now consider whether honesty or plain-dealing be of our acquaintance , though we often gull ' em . disc. then you know where they dwell . dec. no sir , i keep no register , but find 'em for the most part loytering on the road , or sitting over two sticks a cross in some poor cot or hovel . disc. and no where else ? dec. not as i remember , for i hate their company , though some times it proves advantagious . disc. if so friend , we must leave you , for we are their friends , and would not hear them evil spoken of . dec. in truth sir i shall e'ne be glad on 't , for my coves and morts will think me long . therefore adue . now in my dream i perceived he followed his comrades , and i was glad he left us , as being tired with his tedious harangue : but it was not long before a fellow meets us laden with globs , and astrolobles , gimcracks , mathe-matical , and divers other baubles , and had a quaint device upon his forehead , representing a triangle , and in it he had writ , the secretary of the stars . this thought i must be a ptolome , an agrippa , or a ticobrahe , but it proved none of these , but a certain quack pretender , a more imposture then the former , yet as great as ignorance will let him be , his name 's deluder . this fellow , though to the little furtherance of our design , i had a great mind to have sifted , and discovery was no less zealous to be satisfied , whereupon he thus began . disc. friend , how comes it that you travel with such a burthen ? deluder . to me it is light , who am the atlas of the world , on whom the powers above have given an understanding to ●nderprop all sciences . disc. and is so great a wisdom your's ? del. ay , and a greater than you yet have named . disc. as how , pray let me understand ? del. a secret access , to read the dark decrees of fate , unravel the volums of futurity . disc. 't is strange that mortal man should be indow'd with such a talent . del. it is indeed , few mortals e're could boast the like : why man , the stars are all at my divotion . disc. how the sta●s ! why sure you an 't in earnest ? del. that is sir , to tell me secret things , and give inlargement to my knowledge . disc. then you are the man that only can acquant us perhaps of wonders strange and new , for i suppose few things are hidden from you , if you have such bright acquaintance . del. you are in the right on 't , few things indeed ; all natures , secrets , are layed open to my view , each thing is represented as it is : the universe is strip'd before my eys , and no disguise can cover● her from my impartial view . disc. 't is rare what you express , were i● but true . del. true , why what can be more true than what we who have her inteligence from the superiour world relate . disc. you call the celestial intelligences by their names i suppose ? del. yess , and am acquainted with the smallest spark that spangled the blew arch. disc. this still increases my wonder ? del. nay more things that vulgar eys see not , i with my tube do , nightly visit : why sir i make alminacks , consider that , and then you 'l think i 'm wiser far then haly or old da●us . disc. make almanacks , that 's pritty : but pray what is 't you infer from thence ? del. o many things sir , in●erences without number . disc. as how , let us hear a little ? del. as first , sir , my large understanding is thereby manifested to the world ; each city applauds me , and each country swain admires me ; there 's not a woman but takes me for a conjurer . disc. very fine ; and you admire your self 〈◊〉 i suppose ? del. ay , and reason good , how can i do less , that hold such lofty corespondence . disc. and you undertake to discover misteries , things dark and secret . del. ay marry do i , things as dark as any dungeon . disc. and by the light of that knowledge you have obtained , by scraping acquaintance with the stars , you pretended 〈◊〉 do it . del. very right , 't is much you should hit so pat . disc. then pray sir ●ell me the names of the party 's i 'm searching after , and whether i shall find them or not ? del. are they men or women , married . or unmarried , old or young ? disc. i hope you know sir by your wonderful skill in devination . del. ay , ay , i was weak to ask such a question , but i must erect a scheem first ; as thus , so now sir , these that you take to be only cringle , crongles , are houses , and caelestial ones to i 'le asure you , and are known by the sign of the ram , bull , and many the like pritty devices ; but to let that pass , well the names of the partys i must tell you , and whether you must find them or not , and all this for a shilling , 't is as cheap as neck beef . but stay now i think on 't , i ha●'t my fee yet . disc. that you shall have sir , if your performance answer our expectation . del. well , well , let me see , iupiter is combust in aires , and venus is rampant in taurus two horned signs , well , and mercury is gotten into gemenine and threatens a rape upon virgo ; from all which i gather that the partys names are dorothy and mary , but as for finding of them at present , i think it will be no ways convenient , least you become wittals , for from the two horned signs , i devine they are just about this time in gemeni , a sporting with their gallants . disc. ha , ha , ha , — ha , ha , ha . del. how do you laugh gentlemen ? nay , nay , 't is no laughing matter , for i can assure you , you 'l be cuckolds within this half hour . ay , ay , the stars make it out as plain as the nose in your face . disc. how cuckolds and never married , well that 's very pritty i must confess . del. pish , not married , alas ! then the stars have misinformed me , for by them i gathered , you were in search of your wives ; but i must confess it is a bad day to resolve questions in , because it rained in the morning , which denotes the stars to be sullen and self will'd . disc. it rather sir denotes your ignorance , who pretend to things above your reach , deluding silly people with false stories , and if you hit upon a truth it is by guess , or else you gather it from their own discourse , and tell it them again in other words , to the same effect ; and to let you further understand your error , 't is honesty and plain-dealing we are in search for . del. say you so : well , well , i could have told you if i had cast but another scheem . disc. and can you tell us where to find them , now you know their names ? del. what kind of cloaths do they ware , have they beards , or are they close shaven . disc. if you know nothing of that , how can you inform us where to find them ? del. well sir , i find by my scheem , if they are not in the north or the south , you may chance to find them in the west or the east , either above , or under the ground ; and this is all i can tell you at present , for you see sir , it 's a cloudy day , which much impairs my understanding , but if you 'l call again to morrow — disc. no friend , we shall not give our selves the trouble , we have found you to be a very understanding cox●omb in your own conceit , and so we take our leaves . del. well , well , do as you please , and i 'le do as i think fit , for i 'le warrant you , i shall pass for an astrologer for all this , and make almanacks in spight of honesty and plain-dealings teeth . now in my dream i beheld he went g●zing upwards , till he fell into the quagmire of his own folly , and there became the laughing-stock to the whole town , which put me upon the merry pin of discanting after this manner . impostors swarm pretenders to arts rules , who build their nest upon believing fools , and pass with ignorance for men of sence , their stock 's delusion , mixt with impudence . by this time we were boarded by an animal of a large size , whom at first i took for a mountebanck , but afterward found him to be a pretended repairer of natures decays , or a cementer of casualtys and disorders , called by some , the torments . of whom discovery proceeded to make inquiry , but i had no sooner named h●nesty and plain-dealing , but the man started as if a snake had bit him by the toe , and exprest himself , as if he 〈◊〉 taken us for mad men , to make such 〈…〉 yet discovery proceeded to manage him in the following dialect . disc. be not offended sir at such an inquiry . tormento . i think friend it is a very simple question to put to one of my profession . i would have you to know that i am altogether a stranger to those you mentioned , and would not be otherways for the queen of sheba's present . disc. more 's the pitty . tormento . pitty , no , no , pitty me no pitties , i know not what belongs to that neither , for if i was conversant with any of 'em , it would spoil my trade , i could not keep people upon the rack for my advantage , and make a half years cure of a cut finger , which if i was minded i could perfect in two days . nay , sometimes by incision and impoysoning i render it incureable but by death . disc. that 's very unconscio●able i 'll tell you that . torm. ay , ay , no matter so it turns to my advantage . unconscio●able quotha , why you don't imagine that men who ●rade in blood and wounds , and get their ●ivelyhood by the misery an● affliction of ●he people , have any consci●nc do you ? disc. they ought to have more then others . torm. no they ought not , i 'le tell you that , for if they had , they could not have the heart to manage the rich , and kill the poor for experience sake . disc. o intolerable ! is the world bewitch'd so to be used , and pay for such disasters ? torm. ay , and fortifie themselves with mighty patience , whilst we slash , burn , and saw them at a rate you 'd wonder , cutting them in pieces whilst they live , and burying one part forty years some times before the other follows to the grave , in this case still the rich fare worse , for them we keep upon the tentures long , considering the old proverb , that something has some savour , but the poor , where little 's to be had , is either rejected , or quickly cured by us o● death . disc. if so , our farther inquiry may be spared . torm. yes , yes , as to my particular i● may , and now i think on 't , i can stay no longer , but must hast to get a thorn ou● of a ladies finger , gotten by too hasty gathering of roses , which i intend to make a fortnights cure at least : te● guinys worth of business , but i 'le abou● it , least another intercept me . this said , methought he left us , and was not grieved at his departure , yet pittied those that should come to his handling ; yet scarce had time to breath , when a company of makebates came josteling each other , ever ●avelling and quarrelling at trifles , spreading false rumours , jealozies , and fears , deviding families , and setting neighbours against neighbours ; and these i perceived had tongues as black as hell , being all the off spring of discord , begot●en on hisdear beloved spouse dame envy ; wherefore finding them to be a pestilential tribe , we past them , and suffered patiently their ralery , as being below our anger or our notice . this rout thus shun'd , we fell upon detraction , a megar fellow , who just turned the corner of ingratitude street , and with him discovery would needs be arguing . disc. you look friend as if you were in heaviness , pray what afflicts you ? detraction . nothing sir , but that i am a little concerned that such and such men should pretend to sence and learning , when they have no more then a horse . disc. then most men are mistaken , that repute them men of wit and vnderstanding . det. ay , ay , let me tell you , they are mistaken , for in my opinion , who should know ; they have no more sence then a corn-cutter . disc. it looks too much like malice , to say so . det. not at all sir , and there 's another , such a one , you know who i mean , a pretender to musick , and limning , and many other arts and sciences , the mearest coxcomb pretender that ever was , a very ass at fancy and design . disc. and yet he 's held to be the best our age can boast of . det. no , no , hang him , he 's a meer dunce , a booby , one that has nothing in him . disc. pray sir who are you that would spot those names that shine bright in the sphere of fame , and are inroled in capitals of gold. det. who am i sir ? why my name 's detraction sir. disc. detraction , black detraction , the eldest son of malice . nay then it is no wonder if you envy them , the honour their deserts have meritted , since your tongues more poisonous to virtue , and well deserving deeds , than acconite . det. beware sir what you say , surely you ought to use me better . disc. no , but rather worse , thou mortal foe to all good , thou stain of reputation , and conceited piece of ignorance , who fain would be thought some thing , by lessening the fame of others ; when indeed your spight is heavy wing'd , and cannot reach them , all sciences are strange to your a velling , reason scarcely ever harboured there ; and will you undertake to judge of those whom others hold the most acelebra●e . honesty and plain-dealing would fare no better at your hands , though clad in all their native innocence . det. it may be so , but you are something rough methinks , more then becomes you . disc. o never too much with such a one as you , who are the very 〈◊〉 of the age , a thing that all good men hate , a thing that fools will scarcely listen to . det. you might be softer in your expressions one would think . disc. in this case i never can , but 't is time lost to argue further with the bane of goodness and humane society , and therefore ●rudg on . now i dreamed that his inward rage ●lacked his face like the egyptian darkness , but his spleen being suppressed at ●hat time , on he passed to the region of infamy , where i perceived he had a mansion ; but we were hardly shut of him , e're disorder eyed us at a distance , having two tongues as sharp as swords , which are continually imployed in spreading the venom of mischief , and disturbing peace , raising discontents and fears , setting unsetled brains a madding , and unhindging the quiet of humane life ; therefore we thought not fit to meddle with such a pestilence , but to get rid on it . we crossed the way into pretenders street , and there methoughts we met a fellow very demure , his eyes still fixd upon the ground , whilst care was deep ingraven on his face . this is humility thought i , and was about to salute him by that name , but discovery told me it was only a pretender , whom i should hear my self to be better satisfied . disc. friend , how goes preferment in the world ? how is honesty put to sale ? pretention . verily i know not , i am of a lowly mind , and never concern my self with those affairs . disc. why is not this pretenders street , have you no mansion here ? pret. you have spoke right to both , but i came out of veritie lane when i came heither . disc. it may be so , because you had no credit there . pret. credit sir ! what mean you by it ? i fear he knows me . disc. you could not pretend to preferments , never to be reached amongst the ●umbler fry , and tell of estates lost , that was never in the possession of you nor your ancesters , boasting of honesty , loyalty , and uprightness , which you never practised . pret. hey day , and what do you infer from all this ? disc. why that you are a meer buble , a troublesome sound , the romantick part of mortality , and no more . pret. 't is uncivil i 'le tell you , to use a stranger thus . disc. no stranger i 'le assure you , for i have known you a troubler of humane society these many years , with ●ictitious stories , fond imaginations , chimacas , and fancies that were not , nor never will be . pret. i suppose sir you are mistaken in the person ; for although some call me the pretender , yet truth was my mother , and honesty begot me . disc. and where was you born , remember you the place of your nativity ? pret. i was born upon the mount of 〈◊〉 rightness , in the land of plain-dealing . disc. and this amongst the rest 〈◊〉 pretend to . pret. ay , what less : and i am con●dent you are of the same opinion , though 〈◊〉 are minded in ralery to try my patience , which i have an invinsible brigade . disc. very good , but to come a litt●● nearer to the purpose ; the land 〈◊〉 plain-dealing you say : pray what quart●● of the earth is it in , what manner 〈◊〉 country is it ? pret. why then it seems you question 〈◊〉 truth of what i have told you ? disc. perhaps not , yet would willing●ly be satisfied in this particular . pret. well , 't is a very bad thing to be de●fident . this i have pretended to a thousan● who never so much as scrupled it . disc. then you only pretended it , and no more . pret. perhaps i may not be willing to sa●tisfie you in that point . disc. you may spare your labour then and i shall take it for granted . pret. it won't much afflict me for refusing to satisfie you . disc. then you are only a pretender ▪ you express your self to be no more 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 parents , especially those you nam● ; but on my conscience they ne● owned you . pret. you know not whether they did , or ●ether they did not , nor matter● it whether 〈◊〉 do or no. disc. o! but it does , for it 's one of 〈◊〉 we are in search of , and stand great● in need of directions to find out . pret. and what 's your business with him 〈◊〉 ? disc. we have some letters of recom●endation to him from his friends , there ● an estate asigned him . pret. an estate , say you so , this is it i 〈◊〉 looked for . why i am his son and heir , 〈◊〉 ten thousand to one whether you 'l find him ● not ; and therefore you had as good com●nicate the matter to me , and come in for a 〈◊〉 your self , for he 's such an easie man , a 〈◊〉 so soon perswaded to any thing , that 〈◊〉 he possess it , he 'd be rook●d out of it knavery and deceit , before it would 〈◊〉 to my fingering . disc. very good , but we must perform ● at we have undertaken , if possible . pret. i think it will be alltogether impossi● to find him , for now i recollect my self , i ●eve he is dead , for i ha●'t ●ad a letter 〈◊〉 him this twenty years ; therefore you 'd do well to take my advice . as for bearin● you harmless , if you fear any danger in th●● case , my brother self-will and my own 〈◊〉 shall be your counter security . disc. well , but how shall i be satisfie● that honesty was your father , and tru● your mother . pret. why sir you may believe me , as m●ny has done before you . disc. and must i rest upon that : 〈◊〉 if i can't believe you ? pret. come , come , let me whisper you the ear : you shall go half snacks with me the business , that i hope will please you ? disc. but what if such a thing should 〈◊〉 discovered , for she in whose hands it is ● wonderful discerning . pret. come , come , mr. forgery's 〈◊〉 neighbour , and he shall make a will , exac●●ly counterfeiting the plain stile and hand honesty , and i 'le get perjury to swear ● his lawful begotten son , and then who 〈◊〉 hinder me on 't ? disc. ha , this is very fine ; but let 〈◊〉 tell you sir , it 's a great way off , and it 〈◊〉 cost you a world of pains e're you can a●rive where it is . pret. pish , for an estate , who would 〈◊〉 take pains ? disc. but it 's in a country perhaps 〈◊〉 know not the way to . pret. it may be so , but can't i inquire ? disc. there are very few people upon that road that know the right way , though many are travelling theitherward to take possession of inheritance ; most of which lose themselves in the wilderness through which they pass , and never arrive at the place they imagine to reach . pret. why are there a great many possessions vacant ? if so , i had best make hast , perhaps a couple may fall to my s●are , for want of whom to occupie them . disc. you must first have directions about the way , written upon the table of your heart . pret. how , upon my heart : why how can i come at them to read them then ? disc. why with the eys of your understanding . pret. the eys of my vnderstanding say you : why i thought i h●d had but two eys in all . but tell me , for i am almost mad to know in what country it is , that i may lose no time , but be setting forward as fast is i can . disc. you must first provide your self with the wings of faith. pret. how wings ! why must i fly then ? disc. o yess , an immesurable hight . pret. why then perhaps i may chance to break my neck , or tumble into the sea , and be drownd , as fared the son of dedalus . disc. you must likewise put on you the garments of charity . pret. how , the garments of charity ; why she has gone naked this many a day : and how then should i come by her garments , pray tell me that ? disc. and must be armed with the spirit of prayer , and the shield of stedfast , belief to oppose the enemies you will meet with in the way . pret. ha , you begin to make me afraid : but i beseech you be not so tedious in coming to a conclusson . disc. these and many more things must furnish you out for such a journey : but to be brief , as for the estate or possession , it is called the reward of virtue , lying in the celestial city , and reserved by wisdom for those that love honesty and uprightness . disc. i thought it was some such business , that made you make all this adoo about it . well , well , if it be in the celestial city ( for i have heard of such a place ) y●u may travel on , and find out honesty if you can ; for now i think on 't , it would be unnatural to bereave him of what 's his due , if he be alive ▪ though i am something doubtful ; besides i am not at leasure to take such a iourney yet a while . if it had been in the city , much might have been . disc. then you are not the son of honesty , but a meer pretender , the same i took you for at first ? pret. it may be so : but seeing there is ●othing to be got by you , i shall make no further pretentions to your company , but keep on my way to vanity fair. now i dreamed that i saw him enter , a great mist arrising from the lake of self-deceiving , where we left him at the gate of error , and kept on our way , till we came into the discontented quarter . and what should first salute our ears , but the sighs and murmours of a beauteous lady in a careless and neglected dress , who in my dream i beheld to be in the greatest agonie imaginable , complaining of her hard fortune , which i soon understood to be occasioned by her being matched contrary to her inclynation , to age and gray haires . o! said she , that ever i was born to be so much unhappy , thus in the prime of all my youth and beauty to be violently cast into the arms of age , to have the roses and the lillys scarcely blown in the spring-tide of my age , sullyed with the blast of winter , with a breath to me more nauceous , than the pestilential damp that rises from the lernian lake , to have a withered lump , an emblem of death , cold in the midst o● iune , as sharp december frost , grasp me in his icey arms , and with a thousand foolings , urge me into madness ; whilst i fancy to my self the honest and happy nuptial joys of others , less beautiful , and less deserving than my self ; to think how they with vigorous lovers , who meet their egar joys with equal ardor , sweetly twine like grasping ivie , and amidst a thousand transports that possess the ravished soul , breath out sweet murmurs ▪ whilst their sences are in extasies ; and then with soon revived flame , after a panting space and happy gaze , a second time melt in each others arms , and try the utmost pleasure chast loves elezium ca● affoard , whilst rosie blushes spread their cheeks , and hummied firedarts from their sparkling modest eyas . o! wretched maid that i am , how can i think upon such happinesses , and not conclude my self unfortunate . cruel parents ! that you are to rob me of the family bliss your selve●●●joyed , by ingrafting me into a wither●d tree , a living store-house of infirmities , full of rhumatisms , dropsie , gout , seasless coughs , and everlasting ca●ta●rahs , so he breaks my rest , and disappoints me of my joys . o that i had been wedded to my grave , when base poluting gold tainted the souls of my indulgent parents , to give their darling up a sacrifice to avarice . but let me stand a sea mark to all virgins , warning them to shun the rock on which the blooming gayness of my youth is shipwrackt , on which my joys are split , those joys which many a sober youth sighed for , sought , and as his life desired . now i beheld in my dream , that after this stream of discontent had flowed in words and tears , she fell again to sighing , and wrung her hands , in which melencholy posture , she passed into procurers street , where meeting with a grave matron , who went amongst her neighbours for a sober woman , though indeed her imploy was to satisfie young ladies modest longings , and help brisk gallants to a piece of soul-ruening recreation at a dead lift . this madam , the precurator , for so is her name , soon hushed my young mistrises lamentation , and invegled her to the palice of dishonest love , where she had prepared a collation of delight , which proved so much to her satisfaction , that i afterwards understood , when ever she had occasion for love-posse● , she gave her dotard the slip , and came heither on pilgramage . the consideration of which made me discant a little to the following tune . you parents in whom age has quenth'd the fire of youthful thoughts , and eagar joys desire , consider not what tyranny you use toward those you love , when age for youth you chuse : forceing poor ladys upon impotence , who look for joys , that n'er can flow from thence , which makes 'em stray , but who 's is the offence ? 't is you's , who damn your children for a sum , and sink the dotard into cuckolddom . as love is free , so shou'd the choice be still , no ●●uelty's like forceing a free will. i would have proceeded , but was interrupted by a fellow , who met us with a fire in his mouth , vomitting smoak like mount etna . i took him at first to be one of those juglers , that by false devices gull the simple of their coine ; but soon after i found him to be a dealer in indian weed , and the pernicious liquor , invented for destruction of humane kind , and therefore would have passed him ; but discovery knowing him to be villany , alyed to knavery , he would not be so satisfied , but bearing up , cry'd , disc. hal● , friend , what 's the reason you march up and down poisoning the ai●e at this ra●e with your fogo , are you preparing your self against you come to plutos mansion ? villany . no sir you are mistaken , this smoak serves instead of brimstone and wet hay , to keep out the swarms of caterpillers . disc. then you should apply it amongst the catchpoles , here 's no need of it in this place . vill. they have so well fortified themselves by a continual usage , that , although i must confess they are of the largest sort of catterpillers , that they take it in like a bribe ; for letting a prisoner slip through their clutches , and winking at his escarpe , that they may be pay'd for a second attaque . dis. ●ut to wave this way of fooling prethee friend can you tell me where a man may find honesty and plain-dealing ? vill. are they men or women ? disc. no matter which if you know them : do you know them ? if not say so , and there 's an end on 't . vill. why you are mighty hasty sir , let me consider a little : honesty and plain-dealing ! well i can but wonder who these should be , i remember there were a couple of fellows as plain as a pike staff at my shop this morning , ten to one but they might be the same you inquire for , though i believe they 'l hardly come again , for whilst i stept down stairs to serve them a trick , by putting a cooler into their liquor , they shew'd me a trick for my tas●er , i would i could catch them : disc. these were not they friend i 'le asure you , ●or they wrong ●o man. vill. then be satisfied i have no knowledge of them , nor do i desire it . disc. that 's strange : why friend , are you not of the opinion that such good men are not worthy your acquaintance . vill. no indeed , for then i could not put a pi●● of element into each gallon of tickle ye ●o death , not cut stalks , and beating them flat in a mortar , sell them sor currant fume to the ignorant bumkins , to blacken their throats like a chimney . no nor drink a man dead , and then dive into the stoage of his breeches , and so forth . but i shall make too large a discovery to the perjudice of my business , if i should proceed , and therefore i beg your pardon sir. disc. then you know not the men we inquire for , you are not acquainted with them ? vill. your understanding , after such a relation , might inform you they are none of my acquaintance , though i have heard of them as well as my neighbours . but if you will go to my shop sir — disc. no by no means , 't is a dangerous place i perceive , and therefore you may be ●oveing , our business lys this way . vill. ay , ay , i think you are not worth my stay , i shan't have a customer on you , and so i leave you as not for my turn . now in my dream i found my self quite tired with this theam of villany , but could scarcely-fetch breath , but we heard an out-cry of stop him , stop him , and many threats of revenge . now i imagined it might be a parcel of people in persuit of some pick-pocket or shop-lifter . but casting up my eys , i perceived my self in cuckolds-row , but could not take a serious view of the many various devices that were every where portrayed , but a fat fellow with a fire-fork in his hand , came runing towards us , puffing and blowing like a po●pus , ielozic and revenge were rampant in his face , when , without giving us a word , he struck at us with main force . but discovery advancing his light , the man whose name was ielozie recoiled , but soon recovering , he thus began . ielozie . villain , rogue , or what other name shall i give you : have i found you out at last . o sir , i thought i should catch you , and now i 'le be revenged for all the dishonour you have put upon me . ●a find youth . ha , do you grin , have at you then . no , no , heathen , i shan't fear the singing of my beard this bout . now by this discourse , i perceived in my dream that he had catched the gallant upon the high ropes , yet nor dareing to venture on him unarmed , whilst he went to provide himself with a weapon , he had given him the slip , and that by an unlucky mistake , he took discovery to be the man , who as the dreadful blow was 〈◊〉 from the hand of cornutus , again interposed his tapor , which drove him to a distance , and then began to reason with him . disc. friend why are you thus inraged , what have i done , thus to incurr your anger ? iel. dare you ask me , you spawn of a spider , know you not well enough you have wronged me sufficiently , for which , i 'le thus be revenged . disc. hold , hold , friend , and let us parly a little , i know not in what i have offended , therefore pray make me sensible of it . iel. yes , yes , sirrah , i 'le make you sensible of it i 'le warrant you ; i 'le batter your coxcomb for you in return of your kindness , in making me wear antlers , i will , i will , you varlet you . disc. certainly friend you are mad or drunk , and know not what you say ; why here 's no body has injured you . iel. have they not , you insupportable rakeshame ! but by this you shall know you have . ha , you are mighty nimble ; well i shall hit you a ma●l by and by , 't is twenty to one else . disc. but won't you hear reason ? iel. no marry won't i : ud●lid sirrah , reason me no reason , nothing but braining you will serve my turn . disc. but for what pray , what is the m●aning of all this bluster ? iel. o! thou viper , can'st thou ask 〈◊〉 did not i catch you on cockhorse , was you not . ( ogrant me patience ) mounted in my saddle , ploughing with my hef●er , and dare you , have you so impudent a face as to reason the cause of this mighty indignation , that like a torrent shall overflow you , and wash you into the red sea of destruction . disc. you are mistaken friend , your rage has blinded you , i am not concious of the injury you charge me with . iel. ay , ay , so you have protested many a time , which was confirmed by my dissembling wife ; till i believed a couple of sinners before my own eys ; but i 'le do so no more i thank you . o! rage , rage , keep up i say , least i should grow tame , and lose my revenge . disc. friend your revenge is misapply'd , i never saw you till this hour . iel. how , till this hour ! let me see a little : no verily i am mistaken , you are not the man , i beg your pardon sweet sented sir. disc. see how rage makes men mistake , by captivating their sences . iel. ay , ay , ' ●is very true , for i might have been guilty of a mischief , i should have been sorry for ; but i can stay no longer to parly , least my anger cool before i find the rascal that offered me the injury , and of a lyon , i become a mutton . now i perceived in my dream he began again to stretch his legs , till being persue and overtaken by his dear do●ie , she with feigned sighs , forced tears , and soft intreats , prevailed with him to think himself mistaken , and brought back this man of indignation to his house in peace , where with deluding kisses , she attoand for her gallant , and all partys were restored to the like freedom as before , which put me on this merry pint . what madding fools , does ielozie make men ? who must in spight of all be tame again , and prove a lyon couchant in their den. leaving this place , we passed into a wide street , call'd theiving ramble , where we met a sharp fighted fellow , with abundance of implements about him , which expressed him a practitioner of standing , in the many slights and quaint devices of living upon other mens labour . this piece of deceit known by the name of the diver . discovery would needs have a little . discourse with , for who knows says he , but a man may edefie even by a lecture of wickedness , so as to avoid the snare when layed for himself , and thereupon he advanced to meet him . when in my dream i perceived the dialogue begin in the following manner . disc. ●rethee fellow what 's the reason you are so shie , why shun you us at this rate ? diver . sir i am not used to mind every body i meet , unless i have a private reason for it . disc. yet methinks you might not sneak as if you feared 〈◊〉 , we are not so dreadful . div. no not unless you had had a painted staff , or a coat with a yellow lining . disc. and suppose i had both , what then ? div. why then sir i would have shew'd you a fair pair of heels for your deverson . disc. would you so : why then it seems a●thority is dreadful to you . pray what 〈◊〉 ●our business be in the world ? div. sir i am of a trade , or as some will have it , a craft or faculty , that devides it self into many branches . disc. as how , i suppose you are your crafts master , and can inform me . div. ay if i li●t i can , though if i should , it would prove but little to your advantage . disc. howsoever you may do a kindness in giving the satisfaction demanded , and lose nothing by it . div. it may be so , but whilst i 'm discousing you , i may fortune to give you a lift for your cargo , by insensibly diving into your stoage . disc. speak plain friend , that i may the better understand you . div. ay , ay , i 'le be plain with you because i think you won't discover me , which if i did , but to wave that : well sir , if i must be plain , my pricipal profession , is the acelibrated mistery of diveing . disc. diveing , for what ? div. o! for pretious things , the indians have ten times the labour for less . disc. in what manner dive you , as plundging into the water , or so ? div. no sir , but in the stoage of gazing mortals , who are careless in watching their cargo . disc. now i understand you , you are a pocket diver , &c. div. right sir right , and therefore 't is best for you to look out sharp . disc. i had need , when i am in 〈◊〉 company . but really i have been a long time desirous to know by what insensible slight you so cleaverly gull people . div. perhaps i may rectifie your sences in that matter , a matter never atchived without much labour and industry ; and thus i begin to apply it to your understanding . in this case , when pupils come to be educated , drawn away from their parents or masters by some of our superious , as desirous of an easie , though profli●●te life ▪ there is a school as we term it , for their infant instructions , where a tutor , very expert in the business , attends on certain days to read them lectures , for the propagation of this so much practiced science , when being a little perfected at the theorick , he brings them to the practick , for hanging a pair of breeches upon a line fastned cross the room , a little bell is lightly placed by the pocket , and the young fry commanded to take what they find in the latter , without so much as tinkling the former , which if they do successfully , they have applause , and a small piece for encouragement ; but if they prove auckward , then the strapado as a momento , for the 〈◊〉 , falls to their share : but after many essays , being perfect at this , they 'l give any person the insensible bite , let them be never so carefull , unless like the mayor of queen-borough , they keep their hands in their pockets , yet if so , they have an art to remove them , by blowing tobacco dust into their eys , instead of pretending to snuff it themselves ; or sprinkling with a little small brush a little scattering of aquafortis upon that part of your hand or wrist that appears bare , if any do , and for defect of that , upon your neck or face , nay sometimes in your shoos , or as opportunity gives occasion ; which burning or smarting , puts the party into suddain confusion , till they have done their business , and seldom it is , but we go two together , by the name of budg and file , which latter is the same with the diver , who 's properly called the filer of the cly ; and then the budg by jostling or some other affront , creates a quarrel , gathers a croud , and oft is beaten to some purpose , to give his comrade opportunity to dive or nip the bung ; which latter is to cut the coat , as commonly in women , when an upper garment obstructs the ready passage ; nay having set a prize , whose stoage by the gentle jostle's , understood the budg passes on , and at a convenient place drops farthings , or some single pieces , and carefully begins to gather them just as the prize bears up , who strait crys halves , or at least stands gauping till the file has opportunity to do his business and file off ; nay in a narrow place , but especially in the dark , the budg will tumble down before you , and with miserable crys implore your aide , protesting he has broke a leg or arm , and whilst you in compassion give him your assistance towards rearing him an end , himself will give you the flam for all your guilt , and then his leg or arm 's as sound as any roach , for strait away he trudges to the next coverture . these and a cattalogue of such like slights and dexterities the divers use . disc. but are they not often intercepted in the course of such deceiving ? div. ay , and often lay'd up in the whit , a place call'd the stone doblet vulgarly ; but we have as many shapes as proteous , to prevent our being known again , suiting our habit to the place and business ; sometimes we go like country farmers , sometimes like plough-men , then like faulconer or forrester , again 〈◊〉 modish sparks , some times demure as quakers , and again like down right citizens , but all will be too long to tell . and now i think on 't , i must to the thief-catcher , from whom i have my licence , and pay my monthly contribution , least he intercept me in my ramble . now in my dream i perceived he gave the nimble trip to the next road , call'd the way of durance , where being hotly persued , he was run down in the fastnesses of stony-stay-him-there , and thence taken , sometime after was put aboard an upland frigget , which wanting a rudder , drove violently upon the rock call'd triple-tree , and shipwracked all his fortunes at a cast , which put me into a rhyming humour , as you l read. the ways of sin are ever dangerous found , for wickedness ne'r stands upon firm ground ; although the sinners way at first seems sweet , yet death and danger in the end he 'l meet . thus far having ransacked many streets in vain , methought we came into a large square place , stored with swift footed animals , exposed to sail where men of every shire assembled , to expose or purchase , here thought i , we may be satisfied how matters go in every part . but discovery perceiving i was big with such imaginations , singles me out a man that should as to the present business give me the sence ef the rest ; and who should this be , but mounsier le iockey , a big set fellow , with cheeks bloated and stretched with oaths , much like an northern bagpiper ; but i had not time to observe his other excellencies , e're discovery thus began . disc. friend you travel much i know from town to town , haunting each faire , and wake , each horse-race and all inns of note . pray have you heard of late where honesty and plain-dealing have taken up their quarters ? iockey . no not a word on 't , for you must know , few places i frequent , will entertain them . disc. but perhaps you might find them travelling on the road or so ? iock. not as i remember , or if i did , i took no notice on them , they dealing not as i suppose in horse-flesh , and i don't take notice of people upon the road , unless i have business with them . disc. then you have no business with those 〈…〉 ? iock. not in the least , none of our profession ever had . disc. that 's strange : but pray will you give a body an insight into this business , that has nothing to do with honesty and plain-dealing ? iock. if i thought you had any dealing with them , i 'de deny you your request for their sakes . disc. well , waveing that , i hope you 'l be complyant , it may much advantage us . iock. ay , ay , it may so , therefore give attention . disc. i shall , and think my self obliged for the narration . iock. it may perhaps be longer then my business may permit . disc. therefore be as concise as you can . iock. i shall . as first , he that pretends to a iockey ship , must be well stocked with impudence , and oaths , or he can never arrive at the hight of that business . he must in the next place be furnished with false mains , false tales , false ears , and false eys , if such be required to beautifie an old defective or diseased horse , or to disguise one that is stolen , or has been often blown upon ; he must likewise be skilled at making artificial snips stars and blases , for the reason before said ; he must have saddles with sharp-wires in them , which as he presses forward , passing through divers holes for that purpose , may prick the horse , and make him dance or caper , as if it proceeded from his mettlesome temper . then must he be dexterous at logging a foundered hose with lead , and by slitting the flank and pits of the eyes , blow them up with a quill as butchers do veal , to hide the defects of age or bad keeping ; he must likewise use to baffet a blind horse , whose blindness is not presently discernable ; as likewise to blow ginger and pepper into his eys , that when he comes to swear him sure sighted , he may with the least wind of his hand , hat , or noise of his switch , vantle and toss up his head , as if he was as sharp sighted as argus . he must have balls of dough , eggs , malmsey and lickerish together , with oats boyled in new wort , to make a horse that is doomed to the dogs , appear fat on a suddain , though it being but spungy , will lose faster then it is gotten , which makes many foolishly imagine such horses to be bewitched , when it is only the knavery of the iockey . he must likewise have the art of pricking a dull 〈◊〉 in the spurting place , and rub beaten glass into the holes , to make the horses winch upon the least touch , that it may be thought to proceed from his mettlesome temper . he must have the art of taking up the fetlock vein with a needle and a piece of silk , so to lame his neighbours horse , that the cure being dispaired of , he may purchase him at an easie rate ; as likewise to have a large stone ready to thrust into the fundament of any horse he likes , to make him seem by the trimbling and sweating posture it will put him into , that he is just a dying ; nor can the farrier in this cause tell what to do to him , unless he knew the cause of his grief . these and a thousand other dexterities calculated according to the meridian of knavery , are ingredients that must goe to the making of a perfect iockey ; but for this time let this suffice , because i see a chapman striking my voucher luck , i must be gone and manage him , least he fly off , and recant his bargain . therefore if you seek for honesty and plail-dealing friend , you must inquire some where else , for here 's no room for them in these parts . now i perceived in my dream , that at the racital of so much knavery , discovery shook his head , and made no answer , but left this place as dispairing to be furthered in his search , in the very tents of wickedness , and so we passed into mercyless street , where we met a fellow with sharp teeth , and long paws , monkey eyed , and hawk nosed , with the spoils of a crab-tree in his hand , and this i understood to be a catch-pole , the very catterpiller of the nation ; and although we knew we should not better our selves by his communication , yet perceiving mischief in his face , methought we were somewhat desirous of discoursing him , if but to divert him from evil purposes ; and therefore discovery put the usual question , when at the name of honesty and plain-dealing , he gave a leap , which canted him quite cross the way , crying out , i defie ye , i defie ye . which at first made me imagine he took us for fallen angels , but after many intreats , we brought him to a little more moderation ▪ when i fancyed in my dream , that thus the talk went on . disc. friend , are you acquainted in these parts ? catch-pole . ay , i think i am : but what 〈◊〉 that pray ? disc. do you know the men i ask'd you for , 〈…〉 me if you do . catch-p . pray sir what e're you are , forbear to ask me such a question , for i vow i take it as no small affront . disc. affront ! as how : pray what is offered , that may reasonably give offence ? catch-p . those you have named , call to mind past actions . disc. do you remember them ? then have you had formerly any acquaintance with them ? catch-p . yes i remember them , and put my hand to that , that ruin'd them . disc. how are they ruin'd then ? why sure it cannot be : but if it be so , pray tell us by what means it was effected ? catch-p . friend , though i hate to hear their names , yet something i 'le declare to give you an insight into the manner of it , that you may the better guess the rest . disc. it will be wondefully to our purpose , pray let 's lose no time . catch-p . no none to speak off , but to the purpose ; having run through many a mass of villanys , and been injurious too much to tell , i studied what undertaking yet not put in practice , could further me in being mischevious to man-kind ; and in conclusion , pitched upon the high preferment of being dubb'd knight of the triple tree , but upon second thought , i found in such a case , i should be instrumental , only in dispatching vice out of the world , by the assistance of hatchet or hemp. disc. and this pleased you not ? catch-p . no indeed , for i was ever such a friend to it , that i wish'd it prosperous . disc. but to what resolution came you next ? catch-p . the very business i officiate now . disc. a catch-pole ? catch-p . yes , a blood-sucking catch-pole . disc. how ! you are not sure so desperate ? catch-p . no less sir , for being fleshed to cruelty before , i now had opportunity to put it in practice . disc. as how , let 's hear a little ? catch-p . why to pass over the bribing business , putting the slip upon the creditor , taking fees extravagant on either side , and sending notice of a danger near , that i might live upon the spoyl the longer , and be ever treated with the best ; for that which i call'd civility , which in the plain sence was knavery . i took at higher games . disc. games , was you for gameing too ? catth-p . ay , a very rook at gameing , honesty and plain-dealing if you find them , knows it well enough . disc. it may be so , but more 's the pitty , ●ut howsoever out with it . catch-p . a volum scarely will contain particulars , therefore expect not i should stay to tell you all . disc. no , but the most material passages . catch-p . ay , ay , the most material passages , as thus , when any youngster had more land then wit , i had my vserer at hand to daub him in the fist with a supply of cash , which not being paid at the time perfixed , my business was to sease him , which put him into a peck of troubles , as not having wherewith in present coin to satisfie them , then would he ask me what he must do ; why truly said i , there is but one way , give me bond and judgment , and i 'le lay the cole down . this he joyfully consents to , without defesance or any other consideration , glad at his heart that he has met with such a friend , for which i had ten guineys in hand ; but this joy 's soon turned to mourning , for presently after , pretending some mistrust , i seize upon my gentleman and his substance , keep him close from those few friends he has , till i have rook'd him of that little patrimony he had left , at half the value , so that within a while , being turned out of all ; he 's forced to wander in the land of poverty , when not being capable of any business to support himself , he falls into such ways , as bring him frequently to a disgraceful end : nor is this practiced on the young , but those of elder years , the labour of an agel thus have swept away , made some hundreds miserable , and gained a plentiful subsistance on their ruine ; whilst they , their wives and children sigh'd in vain , and sought a restitution with their tears . disc. this was something barbarous ? catch-p . the more the better , such cruelty suits with my nature best ; the musick of oppression sounds the sweetest in my ears . disc. and was you never call'd to give account for this , was no notice taken on 't ? catch-p . yes , and severely handled : but i got by it though , for quickly after i found a means to ruine the complainants , by presentments , indictments , sobb actions , outlawrys , obtained without their privity and the like , when for atto●●m●nt , bills of sale insued ; which swept away the small remainder of substance . disc. but did not conscience check you ●eitterating those inhumane practices ? catch-p . conscience , i think you say : why friend , i 'm sorry you should be so ●ar out of the way , as to mention conscience to me , when i have told you thus much . disc. then you have none it seems ? catch-p . you hit me to a hair : for if i had , i had not been such a mortal enemy to honesty and plain-dealing ; but my business calls me hence , therefore be satisfied with what you have heard , and so i take my leave . now in my dream i perceived he had left us , and we e'ne was glad he had done so for i could never hear of any one that cared for his society after they heard his name for this man came of the race of him , queved● found the devil in possession , of which made me recollect a thousand more of his disorders . the burden of which , methought so sorely pinch'd the shoulders of the poor , that their lamentable crys awoke me , and beheld it was a dream . so rising from my recumbancy , and perceiving the sun had made his western throne in clouds of dust ; i was much thoughtful , and intent on what had passed , but the day being far spent , home i returned , and entered my closet to meditate of various things , but most of all of what had happened , or occured to my past fancy ; but as if sleep had gained this day , intire against my will , my noding front began to droop , and a dissolving seized my every part , when fancy or imagination soon became as active as before ; the wandering soul , that never yields to slumber , sported with various idea's , fancying my self to be in a gloomy place . i dreamed , and in my dream beheld a light much like an exhaulation rise before me , which glimering a while , preed sent my old friend discovery , at whose sight i was somewhat refreshed , though my thoughts was tired with former imaginations ; but before i could ask him any question , he told me he had been taking a view of many misterious things , and in his search met with a man in shining raiments , who had given him a prospect of deaths empire , and the course of time , telling him , the day was at hand in which they should be no more , and that we were they , on whom the ends of the world is come ; wherefore he admo●●●ed , all men every where to repent , and ●ut away the evil of their doings , for the ●our would suddainly come , in which no secret should be hid , and therefore advised them to walk honestly , &c. and that leading him to an exceeding high place , he had given him a prospect of eternity , judgement , and many glorious things . but hefore he had time to mention the particulars , we were arrived at a fair village , called the village of self-deceiving , yet he had so much time as to tell me the mans name was evangelist e're we entered it . now in my dream i perceived this village , though but a village in name , might have passed for a populous city , it being every where pestered with thro●ghing crouds of all nations ; and here it was that we rosolved to prosecu●e our inquiry , but found the inhabitants so self-conceited , that we began to dispair of gaining instructions , for every where i perceived , they were for putting far away the evil day , and flattered themselves , that if in the december of their age they cast off vice , and open their arms to virtue , she would then infallibly conduct them to the celestial city , for theither i perceived they hopped to arrive in the end , though they went the contrary road , and put off all inquiry , as to their being right 〈◊〉 wrong , till they came to the end of thei●●ace ; though as i understood , ther● were inns and stages where guides resid●●ed , on purpose to direct travellers , bu● although they offered their service without reward , yet would it not be accepted , because these guides would not suffer them to cast their eys upon the gaudy vanities , flattery and delusion had cast in the way , nor to harbour wandering thoughts , and lustful imaginations , which as i perceived , were their darling companions , and if they were check'd for entertaining them , they would presently be angry , and cry out , what a doo do you make , the way is exceeding long , and would be tiresome without these our dear companions , whom we intend to leave when we come near the celestial gate ; ay , shake them off , e're we come into the presence of the lord of that city . and thus i understood they put it off from time to time , till in the end there was no time longer , or at least so little , that grace having left 'em , they had not the power to shake off their worly companions , who had accompanied them in the whole course of their lives , but they would along with them into the regions of eternity , whether they would or no ; and there iudgement finding them wandering in an infinite labrinth of unmesurable spaces , ( for into the celestial city they were not suffered to enter ) he plundged them into everlasting confusion , appointing them their portion with hippocrites and vnbelievers , to bewail their past folly , to ages without number , considering too late , that it had been better for them to have taken the council of the wise-man , viz. remember thy creator , in the days of thy youth , &c. then by giving themselves up to covetousness , extortion , fraud , oppression , and the like , to gain a plentiful estate for those that should come after them , who perhaps by the in●oyment , were overwhelmed in pride , luxurie , vncleanness , drunkenness , and the like , to the hazard of their salvation or a death-bed repentance , which is seldome sinceir ; and wonderfully questionable whether acceptable when the party is brought to a period , and in no longer a capacity of sinning . these considerations made me sad , and i verely perswaded my self , did men but rightly understand the excellency of virtue , or were not willfully blind to the ugliness of vice , this world would prove as happy a paradice to us , as eden did to our first parents in their state of innocence . but whilst these things carryed me away , perceived in my dream , that discovery was making observations on many antick figures , and monuments with inscriptions , which represented in hirogliphics , vprightness , truth , honesty , conversation , and the like , to which some of the inhabitants had great regard ; but for the major part , i perceived they minded none of 〈◊〉 , except one richly guilded . statue inscribed self-ends , and to him they payed their dayly offerings , because as i understood , they imagined he chiefly promoted their intrest in worldly matters ; here we found likewise the foot-steps of plain-dealing , which we traced till we quite lost sight of the village of self-deceiving , and arrived at the foot of a high mountain , called , fond-imagination , on which stood the town of vain-hope , and up this mountain , divers persons were clambering , with might and main , some made such hast , that not taking good footing , when near the top , they tumbled down again unto the valley , where falling into the torrent of distrust , they were violently hurried into the lake of dispair , and there for ever lost . now in my dream , i perceived a person , whom i conceited i had formerly known , puffing and sweating to gain the ascent , which i hinting to discovery , he told me , if i would give him the hearing , he would enter into a discourse with him . ay , gladly said i , and thereupon we soon over took him , whose name was indifferency , and thus i perceived they began . disc. friend , how far came you , that you are thus disordered with heat ? it should denote you have travelled much . indifferency . no , no sir , not very much , i came but from the village of self-deceiving . that place i must confess i have lided in a long time , but it lys so low , that it gives a man no full prospect of things at a distance . disc. and therefore you are going to inhabit the mountain of fond-imagination ? ind. ay , ay , the town you see so finely scituate , was built by flattery , and thether i am bent , my materials i have sent before to be in readiness againg my arrival . disc. your materials : as what ? ind. why sir , wherewithal to subsist whilst i stay here , which i don't intend shall be long . disc. but what are they pray ? ind. why desire , and fancy , with a considerable quantity of deserts , made of alms , and good turns , and indifferency in opinion . disc. and to what purpose serve these ? ind. why to support me in the way to the celestial city , whether i am travelling . disc. alas friend , you mistake the road , this is not the way , the town before you●s call'd vain-hope , you should have struck off to the right hand , where the ways part , and for your further instructions , have read the superscriptions on the piramid of truth ▪ and that would have informed you what would have brought you thether . as thus , be faithful unto death , and i will give you a crown of life . ind. well , well , you may say what you will , but i know what i have to do i 'le warr●●● you . disc. it 's well if you are not deceived in the end : you say the town before us was built by self-flattery . ind. yes , i do so , and yet there may lye a way through it for all that . disc. 't is very unlikely , and almost impossible . this self-flattery's the world , and he bult this town of vain-hope , to delude travellers , by inticeing them out of the way , that in it they might be induc●●● 〈◊〉 rest themselves satisfied , upon the fouddation of a bare-belief , or at most a deviding the heart ( which should be wholly offered to the king of the celestial city ) between him and mammon . ind. and may not that be safely done ? disc. by no means , if ever you expect to have admition into the realms of light. ind. well , you may believe as you will , and i 'le do as i think fit , i hope i have many years to travel in yet , and in the end , if i find that this is not the right way , i can leave it , a●d strike into another . disc. it may not perhaps be in your power , a suddain tempest may overwhelm you , you may meet with diffidence , dispair , or delusion , who will hinder it . nor can you tell what time you have to travel in , for perhaps when you imagine it to be noon , the sun may be setting , and so being left in the region of death , all things returning , will be cut off , and you 'l too late find your self out of the way . therefore be sober and vigilent , least you are surprized before you expect it . ind. well , well , this shan't fright me from passing to the town before me , i find your drift , you 'd fain put me out of conceit with my business in the world , but that won't take i 'le asure you . disc. more is the pitty : but now you talk of business in the world , have you ever met with honesty and plain-dealing in your travels ? ind. do they use to ●requent this road ? disc. no verily , i believe not : but have you been in no other road than this ? ind. yes divers , as overreaching-lane , which leads to the town of deceiving , cou●ening road , and a great part of the way towards the city of extortion . disc. i suppose you found them not in any of these : but do you pretend to the celestial city , and have been a● wanderer in the crooked paths that lead to the gates of pe●dition ? ind. well , well , 't is no matter what i prete●d to : well sir , you may e'ne mind your own business , for now i 'm arrived where i would be , i shan't give you any further hearing , for every tubb must stand upon 〈◊〉 own bottom . now in my dream , i perceived we arrived at the town of vain-hope , where we fo●nd a great number of people 〈◊〉 as if they were in the greatest 〈◊〉 imaginable , every one being 〈◊〉 of his own opinion , to which they were wretchedly wedded , by error , flattery , and delusion , to whom they gave the greatest credit imaginable , and the rather because they deceived them with false glasses , called the glasses of vain-hope , which gave them a prospect of heaven and earth at once , promising them all the pleasures and delights of this world , and a full fruition of the next , which made them chose the broad way , that was spread with roses , and overshaded with gessamie , the way that leads to the land of perdition , and refuseth the thorney way of life as too tedious and troublesome ; when as they fondly imagined they lead to one and the same place , and so they supinely trifled out their days in a secure sloath and ease . till in my dream i beheld a dark cloud arrising from the land of obstinacy , overspread them , whereupon they layed them down to sleep , whilst the bride-groom passed by ; but being a little startled at the noise , they got up on their feet , and attempted to follow , but being still in a thick fog , they stumbled at every three or four steps , and in the end , fell altogether in the lake of fear and amazment , where they again found those consciences they had stifled , which now upbraided them with their neglect and folly , their slighting the golden opportunities of grace , wisdorn , for trifling vanities , spending those pretious moments wherein they should have trod the paths of righteousness , at the end of which is eternal life , in studying to overeach their neighbours circumvent , their dearest friends , meditate revenge , and hoard up ill gotten gain , which cannot avail in the day of death , nor the hour of judgement ; which repremands , and severe reflections , tormented them to that degree , that instead of looking back for succor , they rushed forward altogether , and getting out of that lake , entred another call'd hardness of heart , in which they wilfully peri●hed . at which whilst i was grieving , i beheld at a little distance , the town of presumption , to which we made with all conveniant speed , and upon our entering , observed the structures were exceeding losty , but built upon such sandy foundations , that they were threatned by every blast of fate , to be sunk in their own ruines . this place self-conceit had built . as for the inhabitants , they were so wedded to their own oppinions , that they would hearken to no instructions , yet they pretended to a right in the celestial city , and would discourse as if they were very well acquainted with it . but i soon perceived all was but conceit , they had it seems dreamed something on , and read the promises made by the celestial king , but were so confident in their own strength , that they imagined they had no need of over-shaddowing grace , and the ●reat●ing of the favorit of heaven , which made them neglect to cast away every weighty sin : that did so easily beset them , that they might be the abler to run the race . wherefore having s●ent their days allowed , to runin a fond relyance upon their own foundations ; when the storm of tryal beat upon them , they altogether sunk into ●uine and confusion , the noise of whose fall eccho'd to the remotest part of the universe . and now methought the day being spent , and our search ! heitherto fruitless ; discovery being tired , and loath to wast his light any further at this time in vain , bid me adue , and taking wing , glided like a metor through the gloomy night , till my eys could follow him no further ; but whilst i was wondering to what region he was ●●ed , methought i heard a voice as the voice of a man , sayingin , he that reads , and rightly considers these things , will be a friend to virtue , and a foe to vice. at which starting , i awoke , and found what had passed was but a dream , yet was confirmed it might not be a little useful and advantagious to mankind . finis . nine cases of conscience occasionally determined by robert sanderson. sanderson, robert, 1587-1663. 1678 approx. 242 kb of xml-encoded text transcribed from 100 1-bit group-iv tiff page images. text creation partnership, ann arbor, mi ; oxford (uk) : 2004-08 (eebo-tcp phase 1). a61980 wing s618 estc r25114 08762223 ocm 08762223 41759 this keyboarded and encoded edition of the work described above is co-owned by the institutions providing financial support to the early english books online text creation partnership. this phase i text is available for reuse, according to the terms of creative commons 0 1.0 universal . the text can be copied, modified, distributed and performed, even for commercial purposes, all without asking permission. early english books online. (eebo-tcp ; phase 1, no. a61980) transcribed from: (early english books online ; image set 41759) images scanned from microfilm: (early english books, 1641-1700 ; 1268:19) nine cases of conscience occasionally determined by robert sanderson. sanderson, robert, 1587-1663. [3], 192 p. printed for h. brome, j. wright, and c. wilkinson, london : 1678. reproduction of original in the union theological seminary library, new york. created by converting tcp files to tei p5 using tcp2tei.xsl, tei @ oxford. re-processed by university of nebraska-lincoln and northwestern, with changes to facilitate morpho-syntactic tagging. gap elements of known extent have been transformed into placeholder characters or elements to simplify the filling in of gaps by user contributors. eebo-tcp is a partnership between the universities of michigan and oxford and the publisher proquest to create accurately transcribed and encoded texts based on the image sets published by proquest via their early english books online (eebo) database (http://eebo.chadwyck.com). the general aim of eebo-tcp is to encode one copy (usually the first edition) of every monographic english-language title published between 1473 and 1700 available in eebo. eebo-tcp aimed to produce large quantities of textual data within the usual project restraints of time and funding, and therefore chose to create diplomatic transcriptions (as opposed to critical editions) with light-touch, mainly structural encoding based on the text encoding initiative (http://www.tei-c.org). the eebo-tcp project was divided into two phases. the 25,363 texts created during phase 1 of the project have been released into the public domain as of 1 january 2015. anyone can now take and use these texts for their own purposes, but we respectfully request that due credit and attribution is given to their original source. users should be aware of the process of creating the tcp texts, and therefore of any assumptions that can be made about the data. text selection was based on the new cambridge bibliography of english literature (ncbel). if an author (or for an anonymous work, the title) appears in ncbel, then their works are eligible for inclusion. selection was intended to range over a wide variety of subject areas, to reflect the true nature of the print record of the period. in general, first editions of a works in english were prioritized, although there are a number of works in other languages, notably latin and welsh, included and sometimes a second or later edition of a work was chosen if there was a compelling reason to do so. image sets were sent to external keying companies for transcription and basic encoding. quality assurance was then carried out by editorial teams in oxford and michigan. 5% (or 5 pages, whichever is the greater) of each text was proofread for accuracy and those which did not meet qa standards were returned to the keyers to be redone. after proofreading, the encoding was enhanced and/or corrected and characters marked as illegible were corrected where possible up to a limit of 100 instances per text. any remaining illegibles were encoded as <gap>s. understanding these processes should make clear that, while the overall quality of tcp data is very good, some errors will remain and some readable characters will be marked as illegible. users should bear in mind that in all likelihood such instances will never have been looked at by a tcp editor. the texts were encoded and linked to page images in accordance with level 4 of the tei in libraries guidelines. copies of the texts have been issued variously as sgml (tcp schema; ascii text with mnemonic sdata character entities); displayable xml (tcp schema; characters represented either as utf-8 unicode or text strings within braces); or lossless xml (tei p5, characters represented either as utf-8 unicode or tei g elements). keying and markup guidelines are available at the text creation partnership web site . eng conscience. christian ethics. 2004-02 tcp assigned for keying and markup 2004-03 apex covantage keyed and coded from proquest page images 2004-04 judith siefring sampled and proofread 2004-04 judith siefring text and markup reviewed and edited 2004-07 pfs batch review (qc) and xml conversion nine cases of conscience : occasionally determined by the late reverend father in god , robert sanderson lord bishop of lincoln . heb. xi . 4. he being dead , yet speaketh . london printed for henry brome at the gun in s t paul's church yard 1679. nine cases of conscience : occasionally determined by the late reverend father in god , robert sanderson lord bishop of lincoln . heb. xi . 4. he being dead , yet speaketh . london : printed for h. brome , j. wright , and c. wilkinson , and are to be sold at the gun at the west-end of s. pauls , the crown upon ludgate-hill , and the black-boy in fleet-street . 1678. a letter from a friend concerning the ensuing cases . sir , having perused the papers you sent me , i can safely vouch them for genuine , and not in the least spurious , by that resemblance they wear of their reverend author ; and therefore you need not fear to bring them to the public test , and let them look the sun in the face . 't is true , their first commission was but short , and long since expired , they being designed only to visit and respectively satisfie some private friends ; yet i cannot see what injury you will offer to his sacred ashes , if , by renewing that , you send them on a little farther embassie for the common good . indeed the least remains of so matchless a champion , so invincible an advocate in foro theologico , like the filings and fragments of gold , ought not to be lost ; and pity the world was not worthy many more of his learned labours . but — praestat de carthagine tacere quam pauca dicere , far be it from me to pinion the wings of his fame , with any rude letters of commendation ; or , by way of precarious pedantry , to court any man into a belief of his worth , since that were to attempt iliads after homer , and spoil a piece done already to the life by his own pencil , the works whereof do sufficiently praise him in the gates . all i aim at is , to commend and promote your pious intention , to give the world security , by making these papers public , that they shall never hereafter stand in need of any other hand to snatch them out of the first , a doom ( you say ) once written upon them . i have no farther trouble to give you , but to thank you for these excellent pieces of the same hand and stamp ( as every intelligent reader will easily discern ) with which as an accession to this edition , yourcare and piety hath obliged the publick : only again let me be speak your vigilance over the press ; which by her dayly teeming and expertness , or ( at least ) negligence of the midwife , is wont of late to spoil good births with monstrous deformities , and unpardonable errata ; so you will avoid a double guilt contracted by some without fear or wit , of abusing your critical reader on the one hand , and your most judiciously exact writer on the other ; and ( if that may contribute any thing more ) very much gratifie the most unworthy of his admirers . the eight cases determined . i. of marrying with a recusant 1 ii. of unlawful love 11 iii. of a military life 40 iv. of scandal 75 v. of a bond taken in the king's name 82 vi. of the engagement 88 vii . of a rash vow 114 viii . of the sabbath 137 ix . of the liturgy 157 imprimatur . john hall , r. p. d. episc. lond. à sac. domestic . may 30. 1665. the case of marrying with a recusant . sir , yours of july 2. i yesterday july the 6. received . in answer to the contents whereof ( desiring that my services may withal be most humbly presented to my very much honoured lord ) i return you what my present thoughts are concerning the particulars therein proposed . first , for marrying a daughter to a professed papist ( considered in thesi , and as to the point of lawfulness only ) i am so far from thinking the thing in it self to be simply , and toto genere , unlawful ; that i dare not condemn the marriage of a christian with a pagan ( much less with any other christian , of how different persuasion soever ) as simply evil and unlawful , in as much as there be causes imaginable , wherein it may seem not only lawful , but expedient also , and ( as the exigence of circumstances may be supposed ) little less then necessary so to inter-marry . but since things lawful in the general , and in thesi , may become ( by reason of their inexpediency ) unlawful pro hic & nunc , and in hypothesi to particular persons ; and that the expediency or inexpediency of any action to be done , is to measured by the worthiness of the end , the conjuncture of present circumstances , and the probability of good or evil consequents and effects , prudentially laid together , and weighed one against another . i conceive it altogether unsafe for a conscientious person ( especially in a business of so great concernment , as the marrying of a child ) to proceed upon the general lawfulness of the thing , without due consideration of circumstances , and other requisites for the warranting of particular actions . now , as for the marriage of a daughter with one of so different persuasion ( in point of religion ) as that they cannot joyn together in the same way of god's worship , which is the case of a protestant and a papist , it is very rare to find such a concurrence of circumstances , as that a man can thence be clearly satisfied in his judgment ( without just cause of doubting the contrary ) that it can be expedient to conclude upon such a marriage ; and how dangerous a thing it is to do any thing with a doubting conscience , we may learn from rom. 14. 13. for the evil consequents probably to ensue upon such marriages , are so many and great , that the conveniences which men may promise to themselves from the same ( if they should answer expectation , as seldom they do to the full ) laid in an equal ballance there-against , would not turn the scale ; and in one respect the danger is greater to marry with a papist , than with one of a worse religion ; for that the main principle of his religion , ( as a papist ) is more destructive of the comfort of a conjugal society , than are the principles of most hereticks ; yea , than those of pagans , or atheists ; for holding that there is no salvability but in the church ; and that none is in the church , but such as acknowledge subjection to the see of rome ; it is not possible , but that the husband must needs conclude his wife to be in the state of damnation , so long as she continueth protestant : whence one of these two great inconveniences will unavoidably follow ; that either he will use all endeavours , engins , and artifices , to draw her to the church of rome , ( as indeed who can blame him to bring his wife into a capacity of everlasting salvation ? ) the restless importunity whereof ( together with the ill advantages they of that party can make from the sad confusions that are amongst us in these times ) it will be very hard for one of the weaker sex perpetually to resist ; or else in case she stand firm in her religion against all assaults and attempts to the contrary , whatsoever he may be towards her in outward carriage , he cannot but in his inmost thoughts , pass judgment upon her , as an obstinate and desperate heretick , and ( so living and dying ) an accursed and damned creature . these are sad things both ; and it is not conceivable how a woman so matched should live with any comfort , or ever hope to see a good day , wherein she shall not either be tempted from her religion , or censured for it ; what assurance can she have of his good affections towards her , who is bound not to permit any better opinion of her , than of a reprobate and cast-away ? is it possible there may be so much good nature in the husband , as to take off somewhat from that rigidness , which otherwise the principles of his religion would bind him to , or so much discretion , sweetness , and obligingness in the wives demeanor towards him , as to preserve a good measure of conjugal affection between them , notwithstanding their different persuasions : this i say , is possible ; and where it happeneth so to be , it rendreth the condition of the parties so much the less uncomfortable ; and that is the utmost of the happiness that is to be hoped for from such marriages : and i think there cannot be produced many examples thereof ; yet even there , there cannot be that cordial affection , and fulness of complacency ( wherein yet the chiefest happiness of conjugal society consisteth ) that would be , if the same parties ( supposed to be of the same qualifications otherwise ) were also of the same religion . i omit other oeconomical differences , that may , and very frequently do ( occasionally ) arise , betwixt husband and wife from this difference in religion , as concerning the entertainment of friends , the choice of servants , the education of children ( very considerable things all ) besides sundry other perhaps of less moment ; yet such as are apt to breed discontents and jealousies , and sometimes break out into great distempers in the family : such marriages thereof i should utterly dissuade ; especially in the nobility , gentry , and commonalty , where there is choice enough otherwise to be had of persons of equal degree , estate , and education of the same religion to match withal : kings and prices for reasons of state , and because there is little choice of persons of equal dignity with themselves , are therefore oftentimes by a kind of necessity , put upon such marriages ; yet even there , where they are certainly the most excusable , it hath been observed , that such marriages have proved for the most part unfortunate . the other particular proposed in your letter , is concerning the marriage of a daughter to one that professeth the protestant religion , but having had popish parents , may be suspected ( though he deny it ) to be that way inclined . the resolution whereof ( as of most other cases , and practical questions ) will depend very much upon the consideration of circumstances , whereunto being altogether a stranger , i am less able to give judgment in the case with any certainty ; only in order to the resolution of the question , these ( to my understanding ) seem to be the most proper and important enquiries . first , whether the parents of the young person be living or no , one or both ? if both be dead , the temptations from them ( which in such cases are wont to prevail very much ) are by their death clearly superseded ; and then the danger is by so much less : but if either be living , there can be little security of the sons continuance in the protestants belief , ( notwithstanding his present profession thereof ) when he shall be assaulted with the whole authority of them , to whom he oweth reverence . secondly , with what degree of confidence , and with what kind of asseverations he professeth the one , and denieth the other religion ; for although they out of design put on a counterfeit vizor , use all the art they can to dissemble it ; yet very seldom can it be done so cunningly , warily , and constantly , but that at some time or other , the dissimulation will unawares bewray it self to the eye of a curious observer . thirdly , what measure of understanding the young person ( who is , you say , of great abilities for his age ) hath in the fundamental articles of the christian religion ; those i mean , wherein the english and romish churches are at agreement , for in those the substance of christianity consisteth ; he that rightly understands those catholick truths taught in the catechisms of both churches , and concerning which all christendom ( in a manner ) are at perfect accord ; and then will but suffer himself to consider , that the church of england doth not impose upon the judgments and consciences of her members , any thing to be believed , or received , as of necessity to salvation , than what is truly catholick , and by her adversaries confessed so to be ; and consequently , that the difference betwixt her and the romish party , is wholly about those additionals or superstructures , which they of the roman faith require to be believed , and received with like necessity as the former ; but appear to us of this church respectively , either evidently false , or of doubtful truth , or not of absolute necessity to be believed : i say , whosoever well considereth this , may rest satisfied in his judgment and conscience , that the faith taught and professed in the church of england , is a plain and safe way to lead a christian believer to eternal salvation , if he withal lend his life and conversation answerable thereunto . to the last particular in your letter , all the return i have to make , is no more but an humble acknowledgement and sense of his lordships noble favors towards me , in entertaining an opinion of me more suitable to his own goodness and ingenuity , than to my merit : i know not , nor desire to know of any occasions likely to draw me into those parts so distant from me ( being grown into years , and infirmities , that render me very unfit for long journeys ) unless the business of my sons marriage , which occasion'd my late journey to london , require a second thither in michaelmas term. but i am so sensible both of the trouble and charge of such journeys ( besides some inconveniences to my affairs at home , whilst i am long absent ) that i will avoid it , unless there be no other remedy . i shall not willingly decline any employment ( within my low and narrow sphere , both of outward condition and parts ) wherein my service may be any ways useful , or but acceptable , to that noble and excellent person : but truly sir , i conceive there will be little need of my further endeavours , as to that particular expressed in yours , whether what i have written now , give satisfaction , or not ; there are persons nearer hand , whom i know to be much fitter for an employment of that nature , than my self , who have ever studied peace more than controversies ; and namely , one at the next door to hatton-house , whose sufficiecny and readiness in that kind is well known to mr. geoffery palmer . sir , i wish you happiness , desire your prayers , and rest , july , 7. 1656. your faithful and humble servant , the case of unlawful love . two gentlemen who were very good friends , and both of them married , used ●o converse together familiarly ; one of these ●ook a special liking in the company and conver●ation of the others wife , and she answerably in is ; which afterwards proceeded to some degree ●f love , which , though ever restrained , and reserved without any violation of chastity , ●rew yet in the end to this issue , that they mu●ually vowed either to other ; that if happily ●ther of them should at any time be freed from ●he bond of matrimony ( either be by the death ●f his wife , or she by the death of her husband ) ●at party so freed should continue afterwards ●nmarried , and stay for the other , till the other ●ould be freed also , though it were during life : ●ow so it is , that the gentlewomans husband ●ed , and her affections and resolution so alter●d , that gladly she would marry , if she might released of the engagement of that vow ; or ●●rsuaded of the unlawfulness or nullity there concerning the present case , as it is propounded , sundry points are needful to be resolved , that so we give a right judgment de praeterito , of what is already done for the time past , in respect of the gentlewoman former promise , and sound direction also d● suturo , what is further to be done for the time to come , in respect of her present distresses . point i. sect. 1. first of all , it is considerable whether the promise made by the gentle woman and her friend , were properly a vo● or no ? so it is called in the proposal of th● present case , and that agreeable to the common use of speech with us here in england who extend the word [ vow ] very far ; neither shall i make scruple in the ensuing discourse , sometimes to call it so ; for loquendum ut vulgus . but to speak properly , a vo● is a word of a narrower extent than a pr●mise , every vow being indeed a promise , bu● not every promise necessaril● a vow . a promises may b● made indifferently , either t● god , or men ; but promise made to men are no vow● wherefore it is usually inserted into the definition of a vow , as a condition b essentially requisite thereunto , that it be made unto god alone , insomuch as to make a vow to any creature , is interpretative to exalt the creature into the place of god , and so to make it an idol , which is clear , not only from the c express precept of god , and the constant d examples of godly men , and the usual e phrases of the holy ghost in the scriptures ; but also from the universal consent of all learned men , both divines and others , and even of f heathens also : this gentlewomans promise then being made to the gentleman her friend alone , as was his also to her , and neither of both to god , is therefore to be taken for a meer promise , but no vow . sect. 2. if for more consirmation thereof , she bound her self also by oath , as it is not unlike , yet it is no more for all that but a meer promise still , and not a vow ; for albeit the very using of an oath be a calling in of god into a business , and the person that taketh an oath doth thereby set himself in the presence of god ; yet an oath calleth him in only to be a a witness , without any intent to make him a party to the business , whereas in a vow he is made a party , and not only a witness ; whereunto agree those forms so frequent in holy scripture , in oaths both assertory , and stipulatory ; b the lord be witness between us : c god is my witness : d i take god to record , and the like : for even as when a promise is made unto god , whereunto for the more solemnity , the presence of some men is required as witnesses , such a promise is to be held for a vow , because it is made to god alone , although in the presence of men : so on the other side , when a promise is made unto some man , whereunto for the more assurance , the presence of god is required as a witness , such a promise is not to be held for a vow , because it is made unto man alone , although in the presence of god. sect. 3. nay further , if the gentlewoman when she thus engaged her self , did use these very words [ i vow to god ] or words to that effect , as we know is often done in solemn promises between man and man ; yet neither is that sufficient to make it properly a vow ; for to judge rightly when question is made concerning any particular promise , whether it be a vow yea or no ; we are not to be guided so much by the forms of speech , ( which are subject to change , impropriety , and many defects ) as by the true intention and purpose of the parties , especially the promiser . now what was the whole intent and purpose of these parties , when they mutually bound themselves in such sort , as in the case propounded is laid down , no reasonable man can be ignorant ; even this and no other , to give as good assurance as they could devise , either to other , and to receive the like assurance again , that the thing by them agreed on , and promised , should be faithfully performed ; and if either oaths or protestations were also used by way of confirmation , they are all in common intendment to be taken as tending to the self-same purpose , without looking at any further thing ; and clearly where the promiser hath no intentention to bind himself to god , but to man only , the promise so made is no vow , whatsoever formality of words may be used in the making of it . sect. 4. neither is the examination of this point a curiosity either in it self fruitless , or impertinent to the case in hand ; for albeit , in that which seemeth to be the very main point of all , viz. the power of binding the conscience , there be no material difference between a vow , and an ordinary promise ; a lawful promise no less binding unto performance , than a lawful vow ; and an unlawful vow no more binding than an unlawful promise : yet there is some difference between them , and that of some importance too , in respect of the relaxation of that bond ; for since it belongeth to him to whom a bond is made to grant a release thereof : it belongeth therefore to god alone to release the obligation of a vow ; and no man hath power so to do , because the vower by his vow , bindeth himself to god , not to man ; whereas the obligation of a meer promise , wherein the promiser bindeth himself but to some man , may be released by that man ; and a release from him is to the conscience of the promiser a sufficient discharge from the said obligation : which consideration of what use it will be in the present case , will in the due place further appear . in the mean time we have evidently proved , that this gentlewoman bound her self by promise only , and not by vow . point ii. sect. 5. we are next to enquire concerning the validity thereof , whether or no the gentlewoman a having an husband at that time , were so disabled in that respect from making such a promise , that the promise then made by her , without the husbands consent , was utterly void from the very beginning : for the wife is under b the law , and c under the power of her husband , and so is not sui juris , nor can bind her self by vow , oath , promise , or otherwise , without the privity and consent of her husband ; which consent we may presume this gentlewoman never had , the promise being of that nature , that it had been not only immodesty , but even madness at all to have sought it . and it is certain from the. d law of god , by moses ( to the equity whereof christians are still bound , be cause it 's founded upon right reason , and the light of nature ) that every vow and promise made by a person that of right hath not power to make it , is de jure nullum , altogether void from the first instant , and bindeth the party no more than if it never had been made . sect. 6. if any scruple shall arise from this consideration , that albeit the promise made by the wife in her husbands life-time , bind her , not without his consent , so long as he liveth , because she is all that while under his power ; yet after that she is loosed from the law of her husband , by his death , it shall thenceforth bind her , because she then becometh sui juris : i say , this maketh no difference at all in the case ; for this is a general rule , that what b act soever had a nullity in it at the first , when it was done , cannot by any succeeding tract of time grow to be of force . as if a young scholar shall be instituted to a benefice , being not of lawful years ; or a young heir make a sale of his lands during minority , the institution and the sale , as they were both void at the beginning , so they shall continue void , as well after the clark is of lawful years , and the heir at full age , as before ; so that to judge of the validity of any vow , promise , or covenant , respect must be had to c that very time wherein it was made , and to the present condition of the person at that time , and not to any time or condition before or after : if then there were indeed a nullity in this gentlewomans vom , at the time when she made it , there is a nullity in it still ; and if it were indeed of no force to bind her then , neither is it of any force to bind her now . sect. 7. but after due pondring of the matter , i rather think , that there was not a nullity in the promise at the first , neither ( supposing it had been rightly qualified in other respects ) was it void upon this ground ; because although she were not sui juris absolute , it is sufficient yet , that she was so quantum ad hoc . for a person that is under the power of snother , hath yet power of himself ( and so is sui juris ) to dispose of all such things , as by the free disposal whereof , the proper right of him , under whose power he is , is no way prejudiced ; but in whatsoever may be prejudicial to the other in any of his rights , he is juris alieni : neither may dispose thereof without the others consent ; and if such a person shall make a vow , or other promise concerning any of those things wherein he is sui juris , such vow or promise shall stand good , and is not void ( though possibly it may be vitious in other respects ) from the inability of the person that maketh it : as for example , if a servant shall promise to his own father , to work with him a day or two in harvest , this promise , unless his master consent thereunto , shall be void , because the master hath a right in the servants work , to which right it would be prejudicial , if the servant should dispose thereof after his own pleasure ; but if such a servant shall promise unto his needy father to relieve him from time to time with a third or fourth part of all such wages as he shall receive for his service , this promise shall be good of it self ; neither shall the masters consent be requisite to make it so , because the master hath no right at all in the servants wages ; wherein to be prejudiced by the servants disposing thereof according to his own mind : now , forasmuch as the husbands right and power over the wife ceaseth together with his life , ( as the apostle a expresly teacheth ) and so cannot be prejudiced by any act of the wife done after his decease ; it is manifest that the wife is sui juris to make a vow or promise during her husbands life-time , concerning something to be done after his decease , in case she over-live him , because his right will be expired before the performance of the said vow or promise be due ; as to give instance in a case not much unlike to this in question : a wife estated upon her marriage in a joynture or annuity for her life of an 100 l. per annum , maketh a promise in her husbands life-time to one of her younger brothers , that hath but short means to allow him thence , forward out of the said estate , 10 l. yearly toward his better maintenance ; this promise is void unless the husband consent , because the performance thereof would prejudice him in that right which he hath during his own life in the revenue of all the lands and annuities estated upon the wife in reversion ; but if such a wife shall promise to her said brother to allow him the said yearly sum of 10 l. after the decease of her husband in case she survive him , this promise is good , though made by the wife in her husbands life-time , and without his consent , because the husbands right , ( being to cease before the promise is to be performed ) cannot be prejudiced by the performance thereof : and this i find agreeable to the best casuists , whose peremptory opinion it is , that b husbands and masters cannot disannul such vows as their wives and servants make concerning things to be performed at such times as they shall be from under their power . which position , if it be true ( and i yet see no reason why it should not ) then doubtless this gentlewomans vow made to her friend , though in the life-time , and without the consent of her husband , was not originally void from the inability to make it , upon this respect , that she was not sui juris so to do . point iii. sect. 8. but though i dare not say , neither do i think that there was a nullity in it , in respect of the person , to make it void that way ; yet it cannot be denied , but there was much obliquity in it , in respect of the matter , to make it otherwise utterly unlawful : in which point much need not be said , because the truth thereof will soon appear ; for there was in it manifestly a threefold obliquity , and thereby also a breach of three several commandments . the first obliquity was in respect of the unlawful affection from which it proceeded ; which being placed upon another than the husband , and that in such an high degree , as to produce a promise of this kind , must needs be vitious , both for the object , and for the measure , and such inordinate affection by the analogy of our saviours a expression of the law , is a violalation of the chastity of the heart , and so a breach of the seventh commandment . the second obliquity was , the want of that true conjugal love which ought to be between husband and wife , who ought to have a mutual b complacency and delight the one in the other , and to be c satisfied at all times with the love , comfort , and society the one of the other ; which love , if it had been so throughly rooted and seated in the gentlewomans heart , as it ought have been , would have crushed all motions of unlawful affection towards a stranger , in the shell , long before they could grow to such strong resolutions , as by the making of this vow it appeareth they did ; for it is not to be imagined that such a vow as this could be made , and really intended to be performed , but we must needs suppose in the parties so vowing , a kind of weariness at the least , if not rather some in ward loathing of the present yoak ; which being contrary to that honour that married persons owe to their yoak-fellows , is so a breach of the fifth commandment : a third obliquity there was also as a breach of the tenth commandment , against those express words [ thou shalt not covet thy neighbours wife ] every man and woman being to content themselves with that lot , which , by gods providence hath befallen them , as in all other things , so especially in that which is of the greatest weight , the lot of marriage , without coveting or lusting after that which it hath pleased the wisdom of god already to dispose upon another ; this gentlewomans promise then being such , as ( if it should be brought to an impartial trial before that tribunal which god hath erected in every ones conscience , and according to the tenor of that divine law , whereof no christian should be ignorant ) could not be reasonably acquitted from any one of these sinful obliquities , but not possibly from them all , we may conclude to have been an act utterly unlawful . point iv. sect. 9. but because a man may contract an obligation by an act not free from obliquity , as the saying in such cases is [ fieri non debet , factum valet , ] and we have a ruled case for it in the covenant , which the princes of israel made with the gibeonites , which though b sinfully made at the first , was c necessarily to be kept afterwards : we are therefore to enquire into a fourth point , whether the gentlewoman having de facto bound her self by such an unlawful promise , be still by virtue of the said promise , bound in conscience to the performance thereof , or not ? to answer directly to the point , i take it , she is not bound thereunto ; for that saying [ fieri non debet , factum valet ] hath place only there , where the obliquity that maketh the act unlawful , may be severed from the substance of the matter , about which the act is conversant ; as when a man voweth to do something , which is not in it self , and for the substance of the matter simply unlawful to be done ; but yet voweth it , either rashly , and with due advertisement , or for some indirect and unwarrantable end , or upon slight and insufficient inducements , or the like , any of these obliquities are enough to make the vow unlawful , in respect of the act of vowing : yet because these obliquities do not necessarily pass upon the matter it self , or the thing vowed , but may be severed from it ; therefore , though the act of vowing were sinful , the vow it self for all that may stand good , and bind the party to performance ; but where the sinful obliquity passeth upon the substance of the matter , or adhereth inseparably thereunto ; there not only the act of vowing is sinful , but the performance also becometh unlawful : in which cases those other sayings ought rather to have place , juramentum non debet esse vinculum iniquitatis , in malis promissis rescinde fidem , in turpi voto muta decretum , &c. sect. 10. if it shall be said , that this difference being admitted , will nothing avail the gentlewoman in our present case , to free her from the obligation of her said promise ; because here the matter of promise seemeth not to be in it self unlawful , especially on her part ; for if the gentleman her friend , were presently free from the bond of matrimony by the death of his wife , as the gentlewoman now is by the death of her husband , they might perform what they had promised either to other , by joyning themselves in matrimony , and that without sin , which is an argument that the sinful obliquity was only in the act of promising ; which therefore they ought to repent of : but doth not cleave to the matter of the promise , which therefore they ought not to violate . to this i answer , what in my opinion is true , that if both the parties were now actually free from the marriage bond , they not only lawfully might , but were in conscience bound ( unless some other lawful impediment should hinder ) to joyn themselves together in matrimony , because none of the fore-mentioned obliquities , which made the former act of promising unlawful , would fall upon the after act of marriage to make it unlawful . but that allegation is not direct to the point in hand , nor to the case as it is propounded ; for it may be observed from the very form of the proposal , that the matter of the promise , wherein the parties interchangeably bound themselves , was not to marry together , when they should be both free ; upon which false ground the objection runneth ; that was indeed the thing they aimed at therein ; but the end is one thing , and the matter another : but the very matter of the promise was , the continuance of their mutual affection either to other , with a resolution to stay the one for the other , when either party should happen to be free from the bond of the present matrimony , till the other should be also free . the continuance of which affection and resolution , will upon examination be found subject to all , or some of the three obliquities aforesaid ; and therefore as such an affection and resolution , could not be entertained at the first without sin ; so neither can they be now continued in without sin ; for so long as they continue , the first of the said obliquities remaineth still , both on his part and hers ; the second indeed by the death of the husband is ceased on her part , but remaineth still on his , and the third contrarily being on his part ceased , remaineth still on hers , as will evidently appear to the understanding of any man that shall take the pains to examine it . sect. 11. yea , and it is further to be considered , that the continuance of such an affection and resolution may be likely to expose as well the one as the other to the assault of more strong and dangerous temptations , now since the husbands death , than before . the danger on the gentlemans part , this , lest by how much he is now by the husbands death , put into a nearer possibility of enjoying his unlawful hopes , he should grow into so much the deeper loathing of his own bed , and so much the earnester longing that , that which is now the only obstacle to the fruition of his desires were removed ; of which thoughts , who can tell how fearful the issues might be ? the sly enemy being most ready at all times to practise upon the corruption that is in the naughty heart of man ; but especially having a mighty advantage against him , when he hath got his conscien●e as it were in a snare , by the engagement of some vow , promise or settled resolution . and then on the gentlewomans part , the danger this , lest having by her own voluntary act debarr'd her self of that which is the only allowed remedy , namely marriage ; she should by the just judgment of god , be left to the rage of the disease of burning lusts : for upon what sound warrant can she be consident , or with what reason expect , that god should either preserve her from , or assist her against temptations in that kind , though she should seek it of him with fasting , and prayers , and tears , so long as she tempteth him by persisting in a wilful obstinacy against that means of remedy which he hath appointed ? indeed , where the hand of god himself hath prevented the use of the remedy , ( as if the husband should be long detained in a forein land , or held in close prison , or taken with a dead palsie , or some other bodily impotence , or the like ) there the wise might comfortably implore god's assistance to preserve her from being overcome by carnal temptations , and assuredy rest upon it by faith , if she be not wanting to her self , in putting to her own utmost endeavours , because she hath a promise to rest upon for that purpose ; and god who is faithful in all his promises , is also faithful in this , of not suffering his servants to be tempted beyond their strength : but for the wise , by some inconsiderate act of her own , wherein she wilfnlly and obstinately persisteth to refuse the appointed means , and yet to expect god's assistance nevertheless , for which she hath no promise , is a fearful tempting of god ; and it is but a just thing with god , and she suffereth it worthily for her presamption , if she be left to her self , and so wrestle with the temptation by her own strength , and so be overcome thereby : for god , who hath aftera sort tied himself by his free and gracious promise , to protect us in via regia , so long as we walk in the ordinary known way that he hath appointed for us , hath no where bound himself to vouchsafe us the like powerful protection extra via regiam , if we refuse that high-way , to walk in by-paths of our own choosing ; which present dangers on both sides , and the former reasons laid together , do sufficiently prove , the gentlewoman is not at all bound to perform her said unlawful promise . point v. sect. 12. hitherto we have proceeded in genere judiciali , by considering of the nature and validity , lawfulness and obligation of the promise for the time past . now we are to deal in genere deliberativo , and to consider what in christian wisdom is meetest to be farther done , for the better both quieting and regulating of the conscience for the time to come ; wherein submitting to men of better judgments , and experience , i give my advice as followeth , viz. first , that the gentlewoman out of the serious consideration of the premises , be brought to a through feeling of the grievousness of those sins which she hath committed against god , and wherein she hath so long continued , that so she may not only be humbled in his sight with true contrition of heart , and remorse for the same , proportionably to the greatness thereof ; but also be provoked to a proportionable measure of thankfulness unto him , for his gracious goodness in restraining her unlawful affections from breaking out into actual uncleanness , and preserving her when she had run out so far in an evil way , from rushing into more desperate extremities ; for erranti nullus terminus : as a stone that tumbleth down a steep hill , so mans corruption , when it is once set on going , hath no stay of it self till it come to the bottom of hell , unless the lord lay a stop in the way : and it is to be acknowledged a blessed act of god's merciful providence , when we have let loose the reins to our own lusts in any kind , if they be bridled from running headlong into all excess of wickedness ; great sins require more than ordinary repentance , and great mercies more than ordinary thankfulness . sect. 13. secondly , that having thus humbled her self before god by inward contrition , she also make an outward free confession of her said sins , to him to whom god hath delegated a ministerial power to remit sins , that she may receive comfort and absolution from his mouth ; i mean the priest : and this i think meetest to be done to the bishop of the diocess , with one or more of his presbytery , such as he shall think good to take to him to assist him ; or else to some other by his appointment ; because the bishop is the chief pastor , to whom the care of souls most immediately belongeth , within his own diocess : besides that both the quality the of person , ( if she be of eminent place , and rank ) and the weightiness of the case , make it so much the more proper for his cognisance : but howsoever it should be done to a man of approved wisdom , and such an one as will be both compassionate and secret , wherein the more freely she shall make confession of her said sins , and the more chearfully she shall subject her self to perform such further acts , whether of humiliation or charity , as the bishop or priest shall advise to be done , in testimony of her unfeigned repentance , the more sound comfort undoubtedly will the sentence of absolution bring unto the soul. sect. 14. this done , then thirdly , that she endeavour by all fair means , that the gentleman also her friend and partner , in the aforesaid promise , may be brought to the like sight and acknowledgment of the great sins that were enwrapped in that act , and to a true persuasion withal , that so long as he continueth in the former unlawful affection and resolution , he is not only still under the guilt of those sins , but also in near danger ( without god's great mercy preventing it ) of falling into other and greater sins , for which purpose it will be expedient , that he be truly and effectually dealt withal , ( yet with as much lenity as the state of his soul will suffer , and with all possible secresie ) and that by some such person especially as he holdeth a reverend opinion of both for learning and piety ; and to procure that this be done , the gentlewoman ought to take it into her own special care ; which it will concern her to do , not only in christian charity for the good of his soul , but in christian wisdom also for her own future benesit and security . sect. 15. for when he shall be once throughly convinced in his judgment and conscience of the unlawfulness of the promise made between them , and of the sinful inconveniences that attend the continued purpose of fulfilling it , there is a fair way open for that which is next and fourthly to be done , viz that he be then earnestly moved for his relaxation of the said promise to the gentlewoman , which ( being it was but a meer promise , and no vow , as in the first point hath already been shewed ) he hath in himself a full power to make , and this also to be done in the presence of such persons , as they shall make choice of betwixt themselves to be witnesses of the said release ; for although the promise being utterly unlawful , hath no power to bind , and so there needeth no release , as of absolute necessity , in regard of the thing it self ; yet such release may be very behoveful in regard of the gentlewomans person , and for the quieting of her conscience , in case there should remain any fears or scruples behind , lest perhaps her promise should still bind her ; for as satan laboureth to benum the conscience with security , to make men bold to commit sins without scruple , till he hath drawn them into the snare ; so when he seeth them offer to get out of the snare again by repentance , he is very cunning to inject needless soruples and fears , if possibly he can , to hold them in by means thereof ; wherefore i hold it very expedient , that such a release , if it may be obtained , be not neglected ; for thereby the binding power of the promise , though we should suppose it lawful , should be quite taken away , so as there need no scruple to remain : abundans cautela non nocet , is a safe aphorism ; as wary men when they pay moneys , besides seeing the book crost , will crave to have an acquittance : so it may be some satisfaction to the gentlewomans mind , to have a solemn release before witness , which say it should be more than needeth , yet can do no harm howsoever . sect. 16. fifthly , that the gentlewoman all the while before , and so ever after ( that time only excepted , when the relaxation should be made , for then it is requisite she should be personally present ) carefully avoid the company of that gentleman , and he like wise hers , so far as conveniently may be ; but at leastwise , by no means converse together with any familiarity , especially in private ; lest the former unlawful affection should rekindle in either party , and so the disease after some measure of cure grow to a relaps , which many times proves more dangerous than the first malady ; for commonly when the unclean spirit is ejected by repentance , if once he make himself master of the heart again ( as he will attempt it , and without a good watch haply effect it ) he will be sure at the re-entry , to come with a new strength , and that seven-fold to what he had before , and needs must the end of that man be worse then the beginning : she must therefore resolve to shun all likely occasions of falling again into the same snare , so far as the quality of her person and condition , and the common affairs of life will permit : and she had need also to use her best care and diligence ( praying to god daily for grace to strengthen her thereunto ) to withstand all wicked temptations of the flesh , that she be no more foiled thereby , neither entangled again in such sinful inconveniences , as by god's mercy she shall be now freed from . sect. 17. if in these directions , i be thought to deal with too much rigour and strictness , it would be considered : first , that it 's much better to put the patient to a little more pain at the first , than by skinning the wound over , to heal it deceitfully ; and to suffer it to rankle inward ; which will breed a great deal more grief at last . secondly , that since all men ( through corrupt self love , and privy hypocrisie , cleaving to our depraved nature ) are partial towards themselves , and apt to deal more favourably with their own sins , than they ought ; it is therefore safest for them ( in their own cases especially ) to incline to severity rather than indulgence . thirdly , that there may be a mitigation used of the present directions , according as the state of the patient ( in the several variations thereof ) shall require ; but that ( for the avoiding of partiality ) not to be permitted to the sole liberty of the party herself , but rather to be done by the advice of a ghostly physician , who , if he be a man of such wisdom and moderation as is meet , will i doubt not allow a greater indulgence in case he see it expedient , than it could be safe for the party her self to take of her own head . fourthly , that in all this discourse , i take not upon me to write edicts , but to give my advice , that is to say , not to prescribe to the judgment of others , if any shall see cause to dissent , but to deliver my own opinion ( being requested thereunto by a reverend friend ) with such a faithfulness and freedom as becometh me to do ; and truly those parties whom it most concerneth , ought not to blame me for it how soever ; inasmuch as there can be no cause to suspect that i should be carried with any personal respects to be partial either for or against either of them ; so god is my witness , whom i desire to serve , i had not any intimation at all given me , neither yet have so much as the least conjecture in the world , who either of them both might be . the case of a military life . sir , in referring over your friend to me , you have pitched upon one of the unfittest persons in the world , to be consulted in cases of that nature , who am altogether a stranger to the publick affairs of christendom , and understand nothing at all of the mutual interests , relations , or transactions of forein princes or states ; yea , so little curious have i been to inform my self , so much as where the stages lay of the chiefest actions of these latter times abroad , or what persons were engaged therein ; that i have something pleased my self ( perhaps too much ) with my own ignorance in our home affairs , accounting it among the happinesses of my privacy and retiredness , in these unhappy times ; that amidst so much fury and bloodshed on every side , it was never my hap to be within the view of any battle or skirmish ; nor did i ever see so much as a pistol discharged , or a sword drawn against any single person , since the beginning of the war. i could have wished therefore , since my opinion herein is desired , that i had had the opportunity to have advised with some more knowing men , & of greater experience and judgment than my self in these matters ; or at least , that you had sent me , together with the two inclosed letters , a transcript of your answer ( whose judgment i do with great reason very much value ) unto the former of them ; for there i assure my self , i should have met with such materials as would have served me for a good foundation to work upon ; yet to satisfie your desire , so far as in me lieth , and the rather for the gentlemans sake your friend , ( who though unknown to me by face , or till the receipt of your letter , so much as by name ; yet by his letters appeareth to be a person of piety and ingenuity , and a great master both of reason and language ) i have endeavoured ( with reservation of place for second thoughts , and submission to other judgments ) to declare what my present apprehensions are concerning the whole business ; wherein the resolution of such doubts , as in point of conscience may arise , or of the most and chiefest of them , will ( as i conceive ) very much depend upon the consideration and right application of these four things , viz. i. the different sorts of mens imployments in general . ii. the nature of the souldiers imployments in particular . iii. the end that men may propose to themselves in following the war ; or what it is that chiefly induceth them thereto . iv. the condition of the person so imployed , or to be imployed . i. considerations of mens imployments in general . 1. mens imployments are of two sorts . the one of such as any man may ( without blame from others , or scruple within himself ) follow , meerly upon his own score , if he find himself in some measure able for it , and have a mind there unto ; he hath a power in himself ( and that jure proprio , by a primitive and original right , without any necessary derivation from others ) to dispose of himself , his time and industry in that way ; for the exercise of which power , there needeth no special or positive warrant from any other person , but it is presumed he is , ( as in relation to others ) sufficiently warranted thereunto in this , in that he is not by any superiour authority , divine or humane , forbidden so to do ; and upon this account it is , that men betake themselves , upon their own choice and liking , to husbandry , merchandize , manual occupations , the study of the law , &c. 2. but another sort of imployments there are , whereunto a man hath not a just right primitively , and of himself , neither may he lawfully exercise the same meerly upon his own choice , but it is necessary , that that power should be derived upon him from some such person or persons , as have sufficient authority to warrant him for so doing : such is the imployment of a judge , a constable , an arbitrator , &c. which are therefore said to be juris delegati , because the right that any man hath to such imployments , accrueth unto him by virtue of that authority which he receiveth by delegation or deputation from some other that hath a right by command , election , nomination , or otherwise to impower him thereunto , whence are those usual forms , quo jure , quo warranto ? who made thee a judge ? by what authority dost thou those things ? or who gave thee this authority ? a man may be take himself to the study , and so to the practice of the laws , of his own accord , but he may not take upon him to be a judge , without commission from his soveraign ; so he may follow husbandry , and merchandry , upon his own choice , but he may not do the office of a constable , unless he be chosen by the neighbours ; or of an arbitrator , unless chosen by the parties thereunto . 3. now , although as well the one sort as the other , after a man hath addicted himself to the one , or is deputed to the other , may not unfitly be termed his particular calling , and the latter perhaps with better propriety than the former , ( for the word calling properly importeth the action of some other person ) yet according to the common notion , which by custom of speech among us , we have of these terms [ the general and the particular calling ] the imployments of the former sort , are usually taken to be the particular calling of men , and those of the latter sort , will be found ( if well considered ) to fall rather under the general calling , as branches or parts thereof , inasmuch as the exercise of such imployments , is a part of that moral duty , which all men ( according to their several respective relations ) ought to perform to others , being by them impowered thereunto , upon the tie of obedience , contract , friendship , &c. but for distinction sake , as the latines make a difference between vitae institutum and munus , we may call those of the former sort , mans profession and those of the latter sort his office ; so a man is by profession a lawyer , by office a judge ; by profession an husbandman , by office a constable . 4. to bring this discourse home to the present business , we are next to enquire , to whether sort of the two , the imployment of a souldier doth more properly appertain ; that is , whether we are to conceive of it as a profession which a man may at his own choice fix upon , as his particular vocation ; or rather as an office of duty and service , which he is to undergo , when by the command of his prince , he shall be thereto appointed , and so to come rather under the notion of a general calling ? to me it seemeth clearly to be of the latter sort . for , ( 1. ) in the passage of st. paul , 2 tim. 2. 4. no man that warreth , entangleth himself in the affairs of this life , that he may please him that hath chosen him to be a souldier ; the word is 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 , applied to him that warreth with the note of universality ( 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 ) annexed , seemeth to imply , as if he supposed that no man might go to war , unless he were chosen for that service by some other person that might command it . nor do i see ( 2. ) what good construction can be otherwise made of that speech of our saviour , matth. 29. 57. all they that take the sword , shall perish with the sword ; or what should be the crime there intended to be signified , by this phrase of taking the sword , if it be not this , for a man to take the sword into his hand by his own authority , before it be put into his hand by that supream power , whom god hath immediately trusted with the bearing and managing of it . nor , ( 3. ) can that be said to be a mans profession , or particular calling , which men of all professions are ( in obedience to their governors , and for the service of their country ) bound to perform whensoever they shall be by lawful authority , called and appointed thereunto . 5. if these premises will be granted , it will soon appear , that the answer to the question proposed , in the beginning of the former letter ( as it standeth there in terminis , and in thesi , abstracted from the consideration of the person in the said letter charactered , and those other circumstances which may vary the case ) must be in the negative ; viz. that it is not lawful to be a souldier , upon the same account that men apply themselves to trades , and the practice of the laws , and to other ( like ) civil imployments . ii. consideration of the souldiers imployment in particular . 1. the care that ought to be in every man that taketh upon him the exercise of any office , to be well assured that he hath a sufficient right and warrant for so doing , is no less requisite in a souldier , than any other officer ; yea rather by so much more requisite in him , than in most of them , by how much the matter he is conversant about , ( viz. the life of man ) is of greater consequence , than are the matters in which most of them are imployed ; for the souldier every time he draweth his sword in the field , is by the very nature of his imployment supposed to do it either with a resolution to lose his own , or to take away his enemies life , else he doth but prevaricate , and is unfaithful in the service he has undertaken : in which service , if it be his fortune either to kill , or to be killed , he is actually and deeply guilty ; but if neither , yet that very resolution maketh him intentionally guilty of the transgression of the sixth commandment , thou shalt not kill ; in case he have no good right , so far to dispose either of his own , or the others life . it concerneth him therefore to look well to that ; both , what power belongeth to him , as a souldier , and by what authority he claimeth the exercise of such a power . 2. most certain it is , that properly and originally the power to dispose of mans life ( jus vitae & necis ) belongeth to god alone , who is , dominus vitae & necis , as the sole author of life , so the sole lord and master of life and death : some part of which power , since it hath pleased him for the good of humane society ( in the preservation of peace and justice , and the punishment of such as are enemies to either ) to communicate unto men , ( which power so communicated , is that which we use to call jus gladii , or the power of the sword ) it may therefore be lawfully exercised by men ; but within that latitude , and in order , as god hath communicated it to them , but not farther nor otherwise . 3. now god hath not given to any man , either soveraign or subject , power over his own life , to destroy it by his own voluntary act in any case ; no , nor yet power to expose it to the certain hazard of being destroyed by another in fight , saving in the one only case of just and necessary defence : under which notion is to be comprehended also the hazarding of the princes life , in a just and necessary war ; out of which case , whosoever shall expose his life to hazard , by fight , of his own accord ; if he perish in it , cannot be excused from being guilty of his own death , nor from usurping a power over his own life , which god hath not allowed . 4. add hereunto the injustice , that he thereby doth to his soveraign and country . god hath given to his vicegerents here on earth , a right in , and a power over the persons of all their subjects , within their several respective dominions , even to the spending of their lives in their countrys service , whensoever they shall be by their authority required thereunto , which they cannot therefore prodigally spend at their own pleasure , without apparent wrong done to their governors interest ; for as he that shall kill a private person , is not only an offender against god , and against that person , in depriving him of life ; but is also by the interpretation of the laws , ( according to the importance of the ancient form of enditing ) an offender against the crown and dignity of his soveraign , in depriving him of a subject , and consequently of the interest he had in his person , and of the use he might have had of his service : so he that is so prodigal of his own life , as to hazard it upon the sword in fight , without his soveraigns authority , if he perish , is not only guilty of his being accessary to his own destruction ; but doth also an act injurious and prejudicial to his soveraign , at whose service and disposal ( under god ) his life and person ought to be . 5. and as his presumption cannot be excused , if he be slain upon that account ; so neither can he justifie the killing of another ( though an enemy ) in battle , if we have no other warrant for taking of arms , than from himself ; for war is kind of judicature , wherein the prince that wageth the war , is as the judge that giveth sentence of death against the enemy , as a disturber of the peace of his country , & all that ingage in the war under him , are but as so many executioners of the sentence pronounced by him ; and he that executeth the sentence of death upon another , must do it by some lawful authority , as well as he that pronounceth the sentence ; or else he is a murtherer as well as this. now the souldier that by fighting on the one side , doth ipso facto declare against those of the other side , as enemies ; if he so engage of his own mind only , he doth indeed , upon the point , take upon him the office of a judge , being none , and so runneth before he be sent : or if it shall be said in his behalf , that he doth it not as a judge , but as the executioner of the sentence pronounced by that prince , into whose service he hath put himself , and who by the accepting of his service hath sufficiently authorized him to such execution : your letter hath suggested to me this ready answer , that the sentence pronounced by one that is not his lawful soveraign , and by consequence , whose judgment he is not warranted to follow , is of no more validity ( as in relation to him ) than sententia lata à non judice , and therefore can be no warrant to him to execute it . true it is , that with licence from his sovereign , he may serve under another prince , and consequently do such execution as we now speak of ; because the sovereign by so licensing him , doth really refer him over from himself to anothers judgment , and consequently warrant him to follow the same , and so render him capable ( upon the others acceptance ) to execute it . all this is true , but nothing to our purpose , because it doth destruere suppositum ; for we now suppose the case of a souldier putting himself into service , under a foreiner of his own mind , and where himself thinketh good , without the knowledge or licence of his own lawful sovereign . iii. consideration of the end to be proposed by the souldier . 1. sith the goodness or badness of mens actions and undertakings dependeth very much upon the end which they propose to themselves therein ; he that would desire to lead a souldiers life , must narrowly examine his own heart , what it is , bona fide , and in very deed , that first and chiefly induced him to that desire , and what affinity there is between that end , which he proposeth to himself , as the main scope of his intentions , and that which is or ought to be the true end of the thing it self ; the true end of the war , which only can warrant it lawful , we all know is the necessary preservation of a common-wealth in peace , by repressing ( or preventing ) all seditions , or hostile attempts to the contrary ; but as in other things it often happeneth , according to that saying , [ finis non idem est artis & artificis ] so here many times the warrior hath another end to himself far distant from that of war , and the more distant ever the worse ; as on the contrary , the action is ever by so much the better , by how much the intention of the person hath a nearer affinity with , or a directer tendency unto , that for which the thing it self was ordained . 2. now the ends which men , desirous to follow the wars , do usually propose to themselves in so doing , are especially one of these three , lucre , honour , or to do their country service ; concerning which , we are to enquire severally , whether or no and how far forth any of these may be a sufficient inducement to a christian , or but moral man , to follow the wars , as his particular calling or profession . 3. for lucre first : he that hath a warrant otherwise to imploy himself as a souldier , may doubtless lawfully both receive pay , and require it ; john the baptist allowed the souldiers 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 , luke 3. 14. and st. paul thought it not reasonable , that any man should go to warfare at his own charges ; 1 cor. 9. 7. not so only , but he may also , in putting himself upon that imployment , ( being called thereunto ) have an eye to his profit , and an actual intention ( if moderate , and otherwise rightly qualified ) of getting himself a liveli-hood , yea , and of raising himself a fortune ( as we call it ) by his service therein ; even as men in the choice of other professions , or undertaking offices usually do , and may do without sin ; but to propose to himself lucre , as the main end and scope of following the wars ( as it is evident by their actions , that very many of our common souldiers do ) is one of the most hateful and unrighteous things in the world : so far is it from being a sufficient inducement to any man to make that his profession . how can it be imagined to be consistent with that charity , justice , and moderation , that should be in every christian to set up a trade of killing of men for mony ? the meer mercenary souldier therefore , or a souldier of fortune ( as we call him ) i find every where inveigh'd against as one of the greatest scourges or plagues of mankind ; for such men never look at the cause they engage for , whether it be right or wrong ; but at the pay and prey ; and therefore they take their best markets , and care not whom they undo , kill , and oppress , by violence , rapine , murther , and plunder , so that they may but enrich themselves thereby , and can do it with safety : nor will they stick , if there be an advantage to be made of it ; and that they can spy a fit opportunity for it , either to betray their own party , or to revolt to the other side , or to do any other act , though never so base and dishonest , nulla fides pietasque viris qui castra sequuntur . 4. next the intuition of honour and glory to be acquired by worthy actions in the wars , may be not only lawful , but commendable also and useful in a souldier ; and truly this of glory is a more noble end , of a higher pitch , and more befitting a generous spirit by much than that of lucre is ; both because men of eminent birth , and place , and parts , are aptest to be affected with it ; whereas gain worketh most upon the lower sort of men , and also because it putteth men upon more worthy enterprizes , and such as may win honour and reputation ; and restraineth them from those baser acts of injustice , cruelty , and rapine , to which the desire of gain usually prompteth the mercenary man ; but yet as to the warranting of the souldier for making that his profession , ( which is the point now in hand ) this of glory is of no more importance than was that of gain ; for the right end of war , being a safe and honorable peace , there is something common to both ( consequential to the desire of glory as well as of gain ) so inconsistent with that end , that it setteth them at an equal , or not much unequal distance therefrom : for as he that aimeth to gain by the wars , cannot but desire the continuance of war , that so his hopes of gain may continue ; so he that aimeth to get himself glory by the wars , cannot but desire the continuance of war , that so the opportunities of increasing his glory may continue ; for there is a d●opsie of vain-glory in the ambitious , as well as of avarice in the covetous , as thirsty and unsatiable in the one , as in the other ; whence it cometh to pass , that both the one and the other use their utmost wits and endeavours to find occasions to lengthen the wars , and to obstruct and retard ( so much as lieth in them ) the advices of peace : nay , let me add moreover , that in this respect at least ( viz. as to the effectual hindring of peace ) that of honour and glory , is much the more dangerous end of the two ; because his humour is aptest to seize upon the greatest persons , and such as by privilege of their birth , eminency of their places , activeness of their spirits , glory of their former actions , or other like advantages bear a great sway in councils , and are of some authority in the armies : whereas the peasantry , in whom most of the other humour ( that of base lucre ) aboundeth , have neither the wit nor the power ordinarily to do much harm . it hath therefore been a constant observation in all times and places , that the embroyling most common-wealths in wars , in the mean time , and working their ruine in the end , hath grown from the restlesness of some ambitious spirits , and their immoderate thirst after honour and glory . — patriam tamen obruit olim gloria pancorum , & laudis titulique cupido . juvenal sat. 10. 5. so that if there be any possibility of finding a person capable to take upon him the imployment of a souldier , as his proper profession , it must be among those that propose to themselves the same end therein , that is , or ought to be the end of war ; that is to say , those that after an impartial search of their own hearts , can truly say ( and not pretend it only ) that their chiefest aim in applying themselves to the wars , is to do their king and country service , in procuring or preserving the peace thereof , which no man can truly say , but he that preferreth the publick good , and the peace of his country , before all private interests . the tryal whereof is , if he take up arms with this resolution , and by his after-carriage make it good , not to do any act , or enterprize any thing for his own benefit , glory or safety that may hinder , nor to refuse any service or hazard that may probably promote the obtaining that end ; which qualification supposed , i deny not but that a man may find warrant to go on in the way of a souldier as his proper profession , and that in two cases . 6. first , that which ( in the nature of the imployment it self ) is rather an office than a profession ( such as we have already shown the souldiers imployment to be ) may yet become to the person so imployed , as his proper profession , if he shall be appointed thereunto by the lawful authority ; especially if it be done with a declared intention ( whether expresly or interpretatively declared ) of continuing him for life , or for any long space in the same ; and that the said imployment during such his continuance therein , shall require his personal attendance , either constantly or for the most part : as for example , a lawyer by profession and practice , is by his sovereign called to be a judge of either bench , or a baron of the exchequer , the office of a judge is now become his profession , or particular vocation , because it is supposed that he is to continue in that office ; and the execution of that office will require his attendance thereupon , in the yearly terms and circuits : but if the king shall appoint a serjeant or counsellor at the law , by his particular commission to ride this summers circuit , into such and such countries , and there to execute the office of a judge , the party so constituted and appointed , hath by virtue of that commission , full power to do the office of judge in that circuit , and is to be received and honoured with the title of lord and all other testimonies of honour and respect , in as much ample manner as other judges in their circuits are ; yet doth he not thereby come to be denominated a judge , as if that were his proper profession , or ordinary calling , as in the former case ; because he is impowered to execute the office of a judge , but during the time of that circuit only : nor is his attendance upon that office any longer required , or so much as allowed him . in like manner , if the king of england shall make choice of some person of quality to be governor of dover castle , or of barwick , that office then is as his profession , or particular calling ; because it is to be supposed , he is to continue in that imployment , and to attend the same until the kings pleasure be further known therein : but if the king upon some sudden insurrection and invasion should raise an army , and make choice of some person of like quality to have the conduct thereof , for the suppressing or repelling such insurrection or invasion , his imployment in that service being but temporary , and to determine as soon as the business were ended , should not otherwise than in courtesie denominate him a general , or at least not to be esteemed as his permanent profession , but only as a transient office. this is one case . the other case ( which is more pertinent to the business of these letters ) is of such as desire to imploy themselves in the exercise of arms in forein service , that they may attain to such knowledge or experience in the art military , as might the better enable them to do their king and countrey service , whensoever there should be need thereof ; for since the managery of war is long since grown into an art , and that not to be learned from books , or from private study ; but to be acquired by much practice and experience , and diligent observation : and the rather for that the particular rules of that art , do not stand at such a certain stay as those of most other arts do , but are daily altered and improved by new inventions : it is very necessary for every state to be well provided of a good number of such persons of their own nation , as should be expert and skilful in that art ; left they should be forced , if an unexpected war should happen , to call in foreiners for assistance , which is both dishonourable and dangerous : the necessity hereof too well appeareth by the evil consequents of the neglect of it in this nation in these latter times , especially in the reigns of the two last kings , by reason of the long peace ; and ( which commonly breedeth out of it as the rust and canker thereof ) tenderness of education and voluptuous living . the nobility and gentry of england , in the generality of them , had so much degenerated from the martial prowess of their ancestors renowned in all histories , than in the beginning of these unnatural wars , there were very few to be found of our own nobility and gentry , fit to have command in an army , or that knew any thing belonging to the art of war ; in somuch that use was made on both sides of mercenary men , and most of them scots , who being for the most part bred up abroad ( in france especially , a place of much action ) had learned experience more than-our english had in such matters , by which advantage they had so wound themselves into the chief places of command , and had such an influence into the councils of both sides , that the war was in a manner wholly ordered by their directions , witness the great power that ruthen , urrey , king , meldram , &c. had in the armies on either side . 8. the weightiness then of princes affairs , upon all emergent occasions , rendring it necessary for them , not only to have power to command their subjects of whatsoever rank or profession to serve as souldiers in their wars ; but also to provide aforehand for a supply of able men , both for places of command , and to execute other parts of that service , which cannot be done , unless a considerable number of persons be trained up in the exercise of arms , and bred souldiers : it is consequently necessary , that some persons be , either by their authority appointed , or at least by their permission allowed to addict themselves to a military course of life , as their proper profession and calling , which authority or permission from their soveraign , will sufficiently warrant to their conscience the choice of that profession ; supposing ( as now we do ) that the intention be right , the person meetly qualified , and all other cautions in respect of the matter , manner , circumstances , and otherwise , duly observed . 9. the necessity of learning this art granted , there may sometimes follow a further necessity , viz. of learning it abroad , and after it is learned , of exercising it abroad ; and in forein service , and that in these two cases : first , when the souldiers own country , whereunto his service is principally , and in the first place due , hath either the happiness to be in a setled peace and freedom , under the government of a lawful soveraign ; or the unhappiness to be in such servitude , through the prevalency of an usurping power , that no resistance can be made there-against ; for in the former case , there is no exercise at all of the souldiers faculty in earnest ; and of what little a vail to the attaining of any solid knowledge , or experience in the art military , such superficial trainings , as were used ( and those but very seldom neither ) by the lieutenants of the several counties here in england , with the country captains and muster-masters are , ( beside that our own reason will tell us ) the rawness and unserviceableness of our trained-bands in the beginning of the late wars did abundantly manifest : and in the latter case , the souldier , if he will have imployment at home , must either engage on the behalf of an unjust power , or else run upon his own certain destruction to no purpose . iv. consideration of the condition of the person . 1. this must be considered too ; for the different conditions of persons may make a great difference in the lawfulness or unlawfulness of their actions , according to the old saying , which holdeth true in this sense also , no less than in that other , in which it is commonly used ( relating to mens corrupt partialities , duo cum faciunt idem , non est idem . in your friends second letter , i find a demand made ( as in the way of reply to some passage of your answer to his first letter ) to this purpose ; suppose two great princes ( as france and spain , for instance ) have had long wars together , and the justice of the cause appear neither more nor less , on the one side , than the other ; if in case a third prince , or state , out of a sincere desire to establish the peace of christendom , after other offers and mediations for that purpose made in vain , might lawfully joyn in arms with the one party to force the other to peace , why a private person might not as lawfully ( having the same intention ) enter into arms for the same purpose ; and the reason of demand thereof is , because every prince or state is ( in relation to other princes and states ) but as one private man to another ; for being called to the regiment of his own people only , he is but as a private man in aliena republica . 2. but that there is a great difference between a soveraign prince and a private person in this affair , it cannot be denied ; insomuch that i find in the very same passage ( put in as it were by way of objection ) three very considerable differences . first , that princes may , and sometimes are obliged by articles and covenants , for the defence of their allies , to take up arms , which cannot be the case of private men. secondly , that princes may see cause to set in for their own safety and interest , lest the prevailing party might grow too potent , and so themselves might be oppressed by him . thirdly , there is a greater probability in a prince of compassing that noble and glorious end , the peace of christendom , then can be in a private man. all these differences are allowed there as true ; but yet excepted against , as not contributing any thing to the justice of the cause , which is here the question . 3. if these do not , yet a fourth difference there is , that will ( as i conceive ) manifestly contribute thereunto , to wit , that jus belli , is penes principem solum : in the business of war , princes have judicial , private men an executive power only ; and he that hath no power but to execute the sentence of a judge , is bound to wait the judges sentence before he offer to act ; otherwise he shall act beyond his lawful power , which is unjust : not but that a prince , if he raise a war where he ought not , is unjust too ; even as a judge is unjust , which pronounceth a wrong sentence : but here in is the difference between them for taking up of arms. the prince having jus agendi in that behalf , may do it justly , and he may do it unjustly ; yet where he doth it unjustly , he doth but abuti jure suo : but the private person , not having jus agendi , in that respect cannot ( without the authority of the soveraign ) do it otherwise than unjusily ; because in so doing , he doth without leave uti jure alieno , which is always unjust . it is one thing for a man to use ( whether well or ill ) a power that of right belongeth to him ; and another to assume a power that of right , belongeth not to him ; the one is not unjust , unless he abuse his power , the other is , if he use it at all . 4. neither perhaps will the reason alledged to the contrary ( viz. that a prince in point of justice and power , is in aliena republica , but as a private person ) bear so much weight as is laid upon it , if one point be well considered , which i think will prove a truth , though it be very tenderly handled ; otherwise it may prove very dangerous , both because it may seem a paradox to those that have been little conversant in publick affairs ; as also , and especially , because it may , by racking it too high , be easily wrested to a mischievous construction , for the patronage of any tyrannical action ; the point is this , that justitia politica , and justitia privata , have not in all the same adequate measure . princes are bound to be just , as well as the meanest private men are , and obliged to keep faith both with friends and enemies , every whit as exactly and punctually , without equivocation , reservation , or other eluding devices , as they ; of all this no man doubteth : but it is not therefore necessary , that the rules of justice , whereby the counsels and actions of princes and states , in their mutual relations are to be measured , should be precisely the same with those which measure the dealings of private men one with another . 5. and the reason of the difference is evident : private mens controversies may be decided , and their injuries repressed or punished , by the positive laws of the state , whereof they are members ; and consequently subject to be ordered in all their dealings by those laws ; which positive laws ( together with the law of nature , and the divine law , which are common to all men ) are the adequate rule , whereby the justice of private persons , and of their actions , is to be measured ; but since princes and states are not subject to any such positive laws common to them both , as may determine their differences and controversies : the great necessity of humane affairs , hath ( for the good of mankind in the preservation of peace ) introduced by the common consent of nations , another law of larger extent , that which we peculiarly call jus gentium , or the law of nations ( whereof that which we call the law of arms , is one special part ) by which law of nations ( together with the law of nature , and the divine law , as aforesaid ) the justice of princes and states , and of their actions , is as by the proper adequate rule thereof to be measured . whence it cometh to pass , that sundry things are by the rules of politique justice allowed as lawful and just between princes , which between private men , would by the rules of meer moral justice , be condemned ( and that deservedly too ) as unjust and unlawful : there are sundry arcana imperii , some arts and simulations for maintaining intelligenceabroad for concealing and disguising counsels at home , in the instructions of embassadors and managing of embassies , in making alliances and confederacies , but especially in the pursuance and effects of war , which seem much to swerve from the ordinary precepts of moral justice ; which yet ( fide integrâ & citra dolum malum ) are by the consent of nations allowed to be used , and so must be , or else there could be no secure living in the world in any society , that saying of his atque ipsa utilitas justi prope mater & aequi , had somewhat of truth and reason in it . 6. the truth and reasonableness of what hath been said will appear ( omitting many other ) in these few instances . first , when a town is taken by the enemy , by the law of nations , the spoil thereof falleth to the conqueror , which if he give to the souldiery to plunder ( as usually is done ) every souldier thereby acquireth a just right and dominion in that which he can lay his hand on first , and take into his possession . secondly , it may sometimes concern a prince or state in point of honour or safety to vindicate himself by war , for some wrong offered to his merchants , or for some rudeness or incivilities done to his embassador ( for even these , in case reparation be demanded and denied , have been ever held just canses of war ; ( as amphitruo in plautus rendreth that as a sufficient reason of his war , nimis ferociter legatos nostros increpant ) in this case it is by the law of nations allowed him , not only to fight against the prince himself , who yet only did the wrong , but to waste his country , fire his towns and villages , and spoil thousands of his innocent subjects of their fortunes and lives in pursuance of his just revenge ; but if a private gentleman wronged by his neighbour should in like manner , in revenge of that wrong , beat his servants , vex his tenants , and seek his or their undoing , the act were palpably most unchristian and unjust . thirdly , since potent princes , have for the most part , great ambitions , ( and ambition is a boundless lust ) it behoveth a prince for his own safely , to have a watchful eye over the motions and designs of a potent neighbour , almost as much as of a declared enemy ; and therefore wise princes have ever been careful by all just means to balance their neighbour princes and states as near as they could ; in such a proportion as might hinder the over growth of any one above the rest : in order whereunto it hath been held lawful for a prince , laying a side the consideration of the cause , to joyn in arms with the weaker , for his assistance against his potent adversary , who else were likely in a short time to swallow him up , whereby he should become formidable and dangerous , as well to himself as to the other his neighbour princes and states ; upon which account alone , were there no other reason besides , it would be as just for all christian princes to compose their own quarrels , and to aid the venetian , and hungarian , persian , or tartar , against the turk , as it is expedient and honourable for them so to do : but what is thus allowed just in the waging of war between princes ; if in a wager of law a private pers●n should attempt the like , viz. to assist with his purse and pains a poor man against a rich , without considering the equity of the cause , the act were ( as in the former instance ) palpably unjust and unchristian : instances might be produced many more to the same effect were i● needful , but these i think sufficiently evidence the truth of what i undertook to shew in this particular . 7. there are also sundry other circumstances considerable concerning the condition of the person , which may render the same undertaking unlawful to one , which yet may be lawful for another , or more or less expedient or inexpedient for one than for another , supposing both private persons and subjects ; as namely , whether he be a person of honour and estate , or a man of ordinary rank and fortune ; whether a single-man , or married ? if married , whether he have the consent of his wife or no ? and whether such consent were a free and rational consent in the wife arising from a judgment convinced of the fitness of the undertaking , or rather wrung from her by the importunity of the husband , and her facility in yielding to the potency of his desires therein ? whether the necessity of his domestical affairs , and oeconomical relations will brook his absence for so long a time as must be spent in that imployment ; or will not rather require his presence and care for the managery thereof in the mean time ? and an hundred other like doubts and difficulties meet to be taken into deliberation , and unprejudicately weighed against those other probabilities and inducements which at first kindled , and after fomented his desires , before he imbarque himself in that imployment : and yet when all is done , it were safer for him ( in my opinion ) to forbear than to proceed in his intentions , unless he shall be assured , that he hath the free allowance of his sovereign , thereunto either expressed ( which would be the clearest warrant for his conscience ) or at leastwise upon very pregnant grounds of probability presumed . the case of scandal . 1. in judging of cases of scandal , we are not so much to look at the event , what that is , or may be ; as at the cause whence it cometh ; for sometimes there is given just cause of scandal , and yet no scandal followeth , because it is not taken : sometimes scandal is taken , and yet no just cause given ; and sometimes there is both cause of scandalgiven , and scandal thereat taken ; but no man is concerned in any scandal that happeneth to another , by occasion of any thing done by him ; neither is chargeable with it , farther than he is guilty of having given it , if then we give scandal to others , and they take it not , we are to bear a share in the blame as well as they , and that a deeper share too , ( vae homini , wo to the man by whom the offence cometh , matth. 8. 7. ) but if they take offence when we give none , it is a thing we cannot help , therefore the whole blame must lie upon them ; wherefore if at any time any doubt shall arise in the case of scandal , how far forth the danger thereof may , or may not oblige us to the doing or not doing any thing proposed , the resolution will come on much the easier ; if we shall but rightly understand , what it is to give scandal , or how many ways a man may become guilty of scandalizing another by his example . the ways ( as i conceive ) are but these four . 2. the first is , when a man doth something before another man , which is in it self evil , unlawful , and sinful , in which case , neither the intention of him that doth it , nor the event , as to him that seeth it done , is of any consideration ; for it mattereth not whether the doer had an intention to draw the other into sin thereby , or not : neither doth it matter whether the other were thereby induced to commit sin or not : the matter or substance of the action being evil , and done before others , is sufficient to render the doer guilty of having given scandal , though he had neither any intention himself so to do ; nor were any person actually scandalized thereby ; because wha tsoever is in it self , and in its own nature evil , is also of it self , and in its own nature scandalous , and of evil example . thus did hophni and phineas the sons of eli , give scandal by their wretched prophaness and greediness about the sacrifices of the lord , and their vile and shameless abusing the women , 1 sam. 2. 17. 22. and so did david also give great scandal in the matter of uriah , 2 sam. 12. 14. here the rule is , do nothing that is evil , for fear of giving scandal . 3. the second way , when a man doth something before another with a direct intention and formal purpose of drawing him thereby to commit sin ; in which case , neither the matter of the action , nor the event is of any consideration , for it maketh no difference ( as to the sin of giving scandal ) whether any man be effectually enticed thereby to commit sin , or not ; neither doth it make any difference , whether the thing done were in it self unlawful or not , so as it had but an appearance of evil ; and from thence an aptitude to draw another to do that ( by imitation ) which should be really & intrinsecally evil , the wicked intention alone , ( whatsoever the effect should be , or what means soever should be used to promote it ) sufficeth to induce the guilt of giving scandal upon the doer : this was jeroboam's sin , in setting up the calves with a formal purpose and intention thereby ( for his own secular and ambitious ends ) to corrupt the purity of religion , and to draw the people to an idolatrous worship , for which cause he is so often stigmatized with it , as with a note of infamy , to stick by him whilst the world lasteth , being scarce ever mentioned but with this addition , jeroboam the son of nebat that made israel to sin . here the rule is , do nothing ( good or evil ) with an intention to give scandal . 4. the third way is , when a man doth something before another , which in it self is not evil , but indifferent , and so according to the rule of christian liberty , lawful for him to do , or not to do , as he shall see cause ( yea , and perhaps otherwise commodious and convenient for him to do ) yet whereat he probably foreseeth the other will take scandal , and be occasioned thereby to do evil . in such case , if the thing to be done , be not in some degree ( at least prudentially ) necessary for him to do ; but that he might , without great inconvenience and prejudice to himself , and any third person , leave it undone , he is bound in charity and compassion to his brothers soul , ( for whom christ died ) and for the avoiding of scandal to abridge himself in the exercise of his christian liberty for that time so far , as rather to suffer some inconvenience himself by the not doing of it , than by doing of it to cause his brother to offend ; the very case which is so often , and so largely , and so earnestly insisted upon by st. paul , rom. 14. 13 , 21. and 15. 1 , 3. 1 cor. 8. 7 , 13. and 9. 12 , 22. and 10. 23 , 33. here the rule is , do nothing that may be reasonably forborn , whereat it is like scandal will be taken . 5. the last way is , when a man doth something before another , which is not only lawful , but ( according to the exigencies of present circumstances pro hic & nunc ) very behoveful , and in some sort ( prudentially ) necessary for him to do ; but foreseeth in the beholder a propension to make an ill use of it , and to take encouragement thereby to commit sin ; if there be not withal a great care had to prevent , as much as is possible , the scandal that might be taken thereat : for , qui non prohibet peccare cum potest , jubet . in such case the bare neglect of his brother , and not using his utmost endeavour to prevent the evil that might ensue , making him guilty , upon which consideration standeth the equity of the judicial law given to the jews , exod. 21. 33 , 34. which ordereth , that in case a man dig a pit or well for the use of his family , and ( looking no farther than his own conveniency ) put no cover on it , but leave it open , whereby it happeneth his neighbours beast do fall therein , and perish , the owner of the pit is to make it good , inasmuch as he was the occasioner of that loss unto his neighbour , which he might and ought to have prevented : in this last case the thing is not ( for the danger of the scandal ) to be left undone , supposing it ( as we now do ) otherwise behoveful to be done ; but the action is to be ordered , and carried , on by us , for the manner of doing , and in all respects and circumstances thereunto belonging , with so much clearness , tenderness , and moderation , and wisdom , that so many as are willing to take notice of it may be satisfied that there was on our part a reason of just necessity that the thing should be done ; and that such persons as would be willing to make use of our example , without the like necessity , may do it upon their own score , and not be able to vouch our practice for their excuse ; even as the jew that stood in need to sink a pit for the service of his house and grounds , was not ( for fear his neighbours beasts should fall into it , and be drowned ) bound by the law , to forbear the making of it , but only to provide a sufficient cover for it , when he had made it . here the rule is , order the doing of that which may not well be left undone , in such sort , that no scandal may , through your default , be taken thereat . 6. i do not readily remember any doubt that can occur about the reason of scandal , which may not be brought within the compass of these four rules ; and then the right applying some or other of these rules , will give some furtherance towards the resolution of these doubts . the case of a bond taken in the kings name : proposed july 1658. r. c. was seized in fee of certain houses of small value , with the appurtenances ; and in the year 1635. whiles owner of the said houses he intreated a. b. to be his surety for one hundred pounds ; and continued the same at interest till 1639. at which time he requested a. b. to discharge that bond , and in consideration thereof , selleth the said houses to a. b. and his heirs for ever ; the said r. c. also buyeth of a merchant a parcel of goods ; the merchant being a receiver of some part of the late kings revenue , and under pretence of a priviledge thereby , taketh a bond of the said r. c. for the payment of two hundred pounds to himself , but in the name of the late king , as if indebted to the king ; and under that pretence , procureth an extent upon the houses sold to a. b. and make seizure thereof : was r. c. seized of the same , when he entred into that bond. the said king , 1640. published a proclamation , wherein he declared , that the taking of such bonds was contrary to his intention , and an abuse of his prerogative , and prohibited all such crafty courses , as tending to the oppression of his subjects ; and it is to be noted , that the said proclamation was published two years before the extent was executed upon the houses , which nevertheless have been held under that extent about fourteen years , which is beyond the value of the houses . the said r. c. died poor , the merchant is dead also , without any child , leaving as estate behind him of twenty thousand pounds , as is supposed ; a great part visible in lands , as appeareth by his last will upon record . advice of counsel at law being taken , have the said a. b. may be most readily relieved ; he is directed to petition the present supreme power to pardon the debt , because taken only in the kings name , when there is no debt due to him from r. c. as to the case proposed . 1. iam clearly of opinion , that the taking of bonds in the kings name , to the meer behoof , and for the advantage of private persons , when there was such debt really due to the king , was a fraudulent and unjust act from the beginning ; for though it were not actually forbidden , and so might perhaps be valid enough in foro externo , till the issuing out of the kings proclamation in that behalf ; yet was it in point of conscience unlawful before , as being a crafty course : so refused by the king himself , and guilty of a double injustice , the one to the king , as an abuse to his prerogative ; the other to the subject , as tending to their oppression , as by the proclamation is recited , and that therefore , 2. neither might the merchant , whiles he lived , nor ought his executors , now he is dead , to make advantage of the kings name used in that bond ; nor might he then , nor may they now , by virtue of the kings prerogative , or under the colour thereof , for the recovery of the said debt , use any way to the prejudice or damage of the obligee , or of any purchaser from him , other than such , as he or they might have used , in case the bond had been taken in the obligee's own name , and not in the kings . 3. if any proceedings have been made already in pursuit of the debt , due upon the said bond , upon no other ground or colour , than the prerogative aforesaid , whereby the said a. b. cometh to be endamaged or prejudiced more than otherwise he should have been ; that the executors ought to make him some considerable satisfaction for the same , although perhaps not to the full of what he hath suffered or would demand ; yet in such a proportion , as to the judgment of indifferent persons ( in a case wherein both parties , if they must do what is fitting and just , are sure to be losers ) shall seem reasonable , in case the parties cannot accord it between themselve . 4. whereof , although through the corrupt partiality that is in most , i may truly say , all men more or less ; i do not apprehend any great likelihood ( for neither part would , and yet both must be losers ) yet i should advise that tryal were made thereof in the first place , as the most kindly christian way of growing to peace , if parties will be persuaded to meet about it , and can be made masters of their own passions when they are met ; and surely matters might be easily brought to a handsome conclusion , if both parties , but especially the executors , who seem to have the advantage in law , would not stand too much upon what soever advantage they may seem to have , but ( as in conscience they ought ) submit both that , and all other circumstances appertaining to the business , and indeed their whole mutual demands ; to the final determination of that transcendent law , which christ hath established as the only royal standard , whereby to measure the equity of our actions , in all our dealings towards others , viz. to do as we would be done unto ; or which cometh to one , not to do that to another , which if he should do to us ( supposing his case was ours ) we should think our selves scarce justly and fairly dealt withal . 5. but lastly , in case no such accord can be made , either by agreement of parties , or mediation of friends , and that through the only default and stiffness of the executors ; a. b. having by all fair ways faithfully sought and endeavoured the same , i see not but the said a. b. may ( but not to be done , but as his last refuge ) seek to relieve himself according to the advice of his counsel , by making his addresses to such person or personage , as for the time being shall be in actual possession of the supreme power , and so in a capacity to over-rule the law in a case of that nature , by forgiving that debt whereunto the king was colourably and fraudulently entituled for private advantage , to the prejudice of a third person , but was not at all a debt owing to him from the obligee . p. p. 17. july , 1658. the case of the engagement . sir , i have hitherto been very sparing in delivering my opinion concerning the point now most in agitation , viz. of the lafwulness or unlawfulness of subscribing the engagement : considering the mischiefs that must needs have followed , if it should be once noised abroad , that i had given forth any determination in so tickle a point . i could not but foresee on the one side , if i should condemn it as utterly unlawful , how i should be looked upon by those that have all power in their hands , not as a refuser only , but a dissuader also of what they have thought fit to require : and on the other side , if i should allow it in any case lawful , what ill use would certainly be made thereof by multitudes of people , apt to be so far scandalized thereby , as either to swallow it whole without chewing , ( that is , resting themselves upon the general determination of the lawfulness to take it hand over head , without due consideration , either of the true meaning of it , or of other requisite cautions and circumstances ) or else to conceive themselves by so engaging , to be for ever discharged from the bond of their former allegiance . yet since by your letter , and by sending your servant therewith on purpose so many days journey , through unknown ways , and at this season of the year ( especially as the weather hath proved since his coming forth ) scarce passable , you have shewn your earnest desire to understand what my opinion is in this point ; so great , both for difficulty and concernment ; i could not think it fit , nor consistent with that civility which is to be used , especially towards strangers , to send back your messenger without the return of some kind of answer : wherein , albeit i shall not come up to the full , of what your letter declareth to be your desire , viz. in giving a particular judgment and estimate of the eight several arguments therein proposed , and the additional quaere in the postscript : yet you shall find something tending towards your satisfaction therein , by touching upon those points ( so far as the straits of time would suffer ) wherein the difficulty of the whole business seemeth chiefly to consist . first , then , it is to be considered , that allegiance is a duty that every subject , under what form of government soever , by the law of nature , oweth to his country , and consequently to the sovereign power thereof . for the very same law ( which we may call the law of nature , at least in a large acceptation ) which inclineth particular men to grow into one civil body of a common-wealth , must necessarily withal , imprint a sense , and tacite acknowledgment of such a duty of allegiance in every inferior member of the body , unto the caput communitatis , or sovereign power , by which that common-wealth is governed , as is necessary for the preservation of the whole body . so that the bond of allegiance doth not arise originally from the oath of allegiance ; as if those that had not taken the oath , had a greater liberty to act contrary to the allegiance specified in the oath , than those that have taken it , have : or as if , in case the oath should be quite laid aside , there should be no allegiance due . but it is so intrinsecal proper , and essential a duty , and ( as it were ) fundamental , to the relation of a subject , quâ talis , as that the very name of a subject doth , after a sort , import it ; insomuch , that it hath thereupon gained , in common usage of speech , the stile of natural allegiance : whence all these inferences will follow . 1. that the bond of allegiance , ( whether sworn or not sworn ) is in the nature of it it perpetual and indispensable . 2. that it is so inseparable from the relation of a subject , that although the exercise of it may be suspended by reason of a prevailing force , whilest the subject is under such force , ( viz. where it cannot be imagined , how the endeavour of exercising it can be effectually serviceable to restore the sovereign power to the right owner , for the establishment of that publick justice and peace wherein the happiness of common-wealths consisteth ) yet no outward force can so absolutely take it away , or remove it , but that still it remaineth virtually in the subject , and obligeth to an endeavour ( so soon as the force that hindred it is over ) of actually exercising of it , for the advantage of the party , to whom of right it is due , and the advancement of the common good thereby , upon all fit occasions . 3. that no subject of england , that either hath , by taking the oaths of supremacy , or allegiance , acknowledged ; or that not having taken either oath , yet otherwise knoweth , or believeth , that the soveraign power in england , to whom his natural allegiance is due , is the king , his heirs , and lawful successors , can without sinning against his conscience , enter into any covenant , promise , or engagement , or do any other act or acts whatsoever , whereby either to transfer his allegiance to any other party , to whom it is not of right due , or to put himself into an incapacity of performing the duties of his bounden allegiance to his lawful sovereign , when it may appear to be useful and serviceable to him . 4. that therefore the taking of the late solemn league and covenant , by any subject of england ( notwithstanding the protestation in the preface , that therein he had the honour of the king before his eyes ; and that express clause in one of the articles of it , wherein he swore , the preservation of the kings person and honour ) was an act as clear contrary to the oath of allegiance , and the natural duty of every subject of england ; as the assisting of the king to the utmost of ones power ( which is a branch of the oaths ) and the assisting against any person whatsoever , with his utmost power , those that were actually in arms against the king ( which was the very end for which that covenant was set on foot ) are contrary the one unto the other . 5. and that also for the same reason , no subject of england , that hath taken the oaths , and understandeth them , or is persuaded that the sovereignty of this realm doth of right belong to the king , his heirs , and lawful successors , can without sinning in like manner against his conscence , take the engagement now offered : if he so understand the words , wherein it is expressed , as if they did contain in them , and require of the promiser , an acknowledgment that the supream power of this realm , whereunto the subjects owe their bounden allegiance , is rightly vested in those persons that now exercise it ; or as if they did import an utter abjuration , or renouncing of that allegiance which was formerly held due to the king. ii. this being cleared , the next enquiry must be , whether or no the words of the engagement will reasonably bear such a construction , as to the understanding of a rational and conscientious man , may seem consistent with his bounden duty and allegiance to his lawful soveraign ? whereof ( i think ) there need be no great question made , if it be well considered , 1. that all expressions by words , are subject to such ambiguities , that scarce any thing can be said or expressed in any words , how cautelously soever chosen , which will not render the whole speech capable of more constructions than one . 2. that very many men , known to be well affected to the king and his party , and reputed otherways both learned and conscientious ( not to mention the presbyterians , most of whom , truly for my own part , when we speak of learning and conscience , i hold to be very little considerable ) have subscribed the engagement ; who in the judgment of charity , we are to prefume , would not so have done , if they had not been persuaded the words might be understood in some such qualified sense , as might stand with the duty of allegiance to the king. 3. that ( as you write ) it is strongly reported and believed , that the king hath given way to the taking of the engagement , rather than that his good subjects should lose their estates for refusing the same . which , as it is a clear evidence , that the king , and they who are about him , to advise him , do not so conceive of the words of this engagement , as if they did necessarily import an abandoning of the allegiance due to him : so 't is ( if true ) a matter of great consideration towards the satisfaction of so many , as out of that fear only , have scrupled the taking of it . for the doing of that cannot be reasonably thought to destroy the subjects allegiance ; which the king , who expecteth allegiance from all his subjects , advisedly , and upon mature deliberation alloweth them to do . iii. but all this being granted , that the words of the engagement are capable of such construction ; yet is not the conscience thereby sufficiently secured , from justly scrupling at the taking thereof , unless it may yet further appear , that the subject hath the liberty to make use of such a construction ; which is in effect the quaere contained in your postscript , viz. whether upon supposition , that the words of the engagement will bear more constructions than one , the subscriber may take it in his own sense , or is bound to take it in the imposers sense ? or , whether it be necessary or expedient before he subscribe , to ask those that require his subscription , in what sense they require him to subscribe it ? upon the resolution of which quaere , since ( as i conceive ) the last resolution of the judgment , wherein the conscience is to acquiesce , doth principally depend ; i shall endeavour to give you my thoughts therein , ( wherein i acknowledge to have received much light and satisfaction from a discourse written by a learned , judicious , and pious friend , whereof i lately had the perusal , but for some reasons , not thought fit to be published ) as distinctly , and clearly , as the time i have to do it in , will suffer . 1. first , then , for a man that is required of another to give faith by some oath , promise , or other engagement , to take it in a sense of his own , manifestly different ( even in his own apprehension ) from the others meaning , sufficiently expressed by words , according to the common custom of speech , and the nature of the business which it concerneth , is so gross a conceit , that had not the impudence of the jesuits , in maintaining the lawfulness of their equivocations , and the sad experience of these late times , ( wherein thousands have cheated themselves into perjury , by thinking to avoid it ) evidenced the contrary , it might well have been thought a thing incredible , that any man of common understanding , should suffer his reason to be so infatuated by his affections , as to be deceived thereby . for if such latitude of construction should be admitted in promises , and other obligations of that nature , intended for the preservation of faith amongst mankind , there would not remain any possible means , whereby for men to have assurance of one anothers meanings . wherefore i take that for a clear truth , that all promises , and assurances , wherein faith is required to be given to another , ought to be understood , ad mentem imponentis , according to the mind and meaning of him to whom the faith is to be given ; so far forth as the meaning may reasonably appear , by the nature of the matter about which it is conversant , and such signification of the words , whereby it is expressed , as according to the ordinary use of speech amongst men , agreeth best thereunto . the reason whereof is , because the faith so required to be given , is intended to the behoof , and for the interest of him that requireth it ; namely , to the end he may have the better assurance from him that giveth the faith , that what is promised shall be accordingly performed : which assurance he cannot have , if after his meaning , sufficiently declared by the words , it should yet be at the liberty of the promiser to reserve another secret meaning in his own breast , differing therefrom . 2. but secondly , what if the intention of the imposer be not so fully declared by the words and the nature of the business ; but that the same words may in fair construction be still capable of a double meaning , so as taken in one sense , they shall bind to more , and in another to less . i conceive in such case it is not necessary , nor always expedient , ( but rather for the most part otherwise ) for the promiser , before he give faith , to demand of the imposer , whether of the two is his meaning . but he may by the rule of prudence , and that ( for ought i see ) without the violation of any law of conscience , make his just advantage of that ambiguity , and take it in the same sense which shall bind to the less . and this i ground upon the very same reason as before ; for sith the faith to be given , is intended to the behoof of him , to whom it is given , it concerneth him to take care that his meaning be expressed in such words as will sufficiently manifest the same to the understanding of a reasonable man. which if he neglect to do , no law of equity or prudence bindeth the promiser by an over-scrupulous diligence to make it out , whereby to lay a greater obligation upon himself than he need to do . 3. but then thirdly , if it shall happen ( as often it cometh to pass , when we have to deal with cunning men , and may possibly be the case now , and undoubtedly was so in the business of the protestation , when the time was ) that he that requireth the faith to be given , do of purpose so contrive words , that there may be left an ambiguity and latitude of sense therein ; yea , and that it be very probable , and in a manner apparent , ( upon the consideration of the point of interest , or other strong presumptions arising from circumstances or otherwise ) even to the apprehension of the promiser himself , that he hath some farther reach in requiring that promise from him , some more remote and secret intention than he is willing to discover . in that case what is to be done ? i answer , that the promiser in such case is no ways obliged in giving his faith , to take notice of any such secret intention , but is at liberty to make use of that latitude of sense , which the other did rather chuse to leave undetermined , than to restrain , and so to turn the others cunning dealing to his own best advantage , by taking it in the more favourable construction ; and that which bindeth to less . for it is the declared intention only , ( viz. that which the words , according to the common use of speech , do in relation to the nature of the subject , most naturally and properly represent to the understanding of reasonable men , when they hear them ) and not to the remote , secret , and reserved intent , which the promiser is obliged unto . the reason whereof is manifest ; because he that requireth faith to be given from another , by words of his own contriving , is ever presumed so to have determined the sense thereof , in the contrivance of the words , as may sufficiently declare what he intendeth the promiser should assure him to perform . if therefore he have not so determined the words , as to signifie the more ; it is in all reason to be presumed , that he intended to oblige him but to the less . for being at liberty to make his own choice of words , whereby to express his own meaning ; who can think otherwise , but that he would make the choice with respect to his own interest ? and therefore , though he might have a secret desire , which he is loth to discover , that the promiser should be bound to the more , and would be marvellously well pleased , that he should so understand the words , as if they intendded to bind him to the more : yet since it had been so easie a matter for him , by adding or altering a few words , to have declared that intent , if he had thought it conducible to his own ends ; it will be presumed also , that it was out of respect of self-interest , that he forbare so to do , and chose rather to leave his meaning , in such general words , as will not exclude the sense , which bindeth but to the less ; and consequently that his declared intent obligeth to no more but to the less only . iv. to bring the matter yet closer , and to put it up to the present cases , there are yet two things more to be done . first , to shew what different constructions ( the highest , i mean , and the lowest ) the words of the engagement are fairly capable of . and secondly , to find as well as we can , whether of two is more probably the meaning intended by the imposers , to be declared by the words . the words are these : i do promise to be true and faithful to the common-wealth of england , as it is now established without king or lords . wherein there are sundry ambiguities . 1. first , in the words true and faithful ; by which may be intended , either the promise of that fidelity and allegiance ( which was formerly acknowledged to be due to the king , &c. ) to be now performed to those that are presently possessed of the supream power , as their right and due . or else that promise of such a kind of fidelity , as captives taken in the war , promise to their enemies , when they fall under their power ; viz. to remain true prisoners of war , and so long as they are in their power , not to attempt any thing to their destruction . 2. secondly , in the word common-wealth , by which may either be meant , those persons who are the prevalent party in this kingdom , and now are possessed of , and do exercise the supreme power therein , as if the right of soveraignity were vested in them : or else , the whole entire body of the english nation , as it is a civil society or state within it self , distinguished from all other foreign estates . taken in the former sense , the fidelity promised to the common-wealth , relateth directly to the upholding of that party who are the present governors de facto , and imports subjection to them as de jure : but taken in the latter , it relateth the safety of the nation , and importeth no more as to the present governours , but to live peaceably under them de facto , and to yield obedience to them in things absolutely necessary for the upholding civil society within the realm ; such as are the defence of the nation against forainers , the furtherance of publick justice , and the maintenance of trade . 3. in the words as it is now established , &c. which may be understood either by way of approbation of what hath been done by way of abolishing kingly government , and the house of peers , and placing all authority and power within this realm , in the house of commons . or else 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 only , as a clause simply and barely reciting what manner of government it is that this nation de facto , is now under ; viz. a government by the commons only , without either king or house of lords . which ambiguities considered , the highest construction that can be reasonably made of the words , is to this effect . i acknowledge the soveraign power of this nation , whereunto i owe allegiance and subjection to be rightly stated in the house of commons , wherein neither king nor lords ( as such ) have , or henceforth ought to have any share ; and i promise that i will perform all allegiance and subjection thereunto , and maintain the same with my fortunes and life to the utmost of my power . and the lowest construction that can be reasonably made of the same words , is to this effect : whereas for the present , the supreme power in england , under which power i now am , is actually possessed and exercised by the house of commons , without either king or lords ; i promise that so long as i live under that power and protection , i will not contrive or attempt any act of hostility against them : but living quietly and peaceably under them , will endeavor my self faithfully in my place and calling , to do what every good member of a common-wealth ought to do for the safety of my country , and preservation of civil society therein . v. now cometh in to be considered in the last place the great question , whether of the two constructions it is , ( that which bindeth to the most , or this which obligeth to the least , the words can well bear ) that the formers of the engagement did rather intend to declare by these words . they that think the former , want not probability of reason to ground their persuasions upon . for they consider , that those who are presently possessed of the supreme power , are not minded to part with it if they can hold it . and that the likeliest way to hold it is , if they can possibly bring the whole people of england , or at least the far greatest part thereof , to acknowledge that they are rightly possessed of it , and to promise subjection and allegiance to them as such . and that therefore the engagement , being purposely devised and set on foot , as the fittest engine to expedite that work , must in all reason intend to oblige so far . which being so contrary to their judgement and persuasion , concerning the duty and oath of allegiance , i cannot blame those that so understand the words of the engagement , if they abominate the very thought of taking it . but there wanteth not great probability of reason on the other side , to induce us to believe that the latter and lower sense is rather to be deemed the immediate , and declared intent of the imposers , whatsoever cause of suspition there may be , that the former meaning may be more agreeable to their secret , reserved , and ultimate intent ; between which two , if there be any difference ( as it is not impossible but there may be ) the engager is not concerned in it , or not yet : the equivocation , if there be any in that , must be put upon the imposers , not on the promisers score . for thus believing there are amongst others these probabilities . 1. that many prudent and consciencious men of the royal party , as well divines and lawyers , as others , have thus understood it , who we presume would not for any outward respect in the world have taken it , if they conceived any more to have been intended in it . 2. that it hath often been affirmed , both publickly and privately in several parts of the kingdom ( if we may believe either common fame , or the reports of sundry credible particular persons ) by those that have persuaded or pressed others to subscribe ; that the same is the very true intent and meaning of it , and no other . 3. that if the imposers had been minded to have declared an intent of binding to more they might easily have framed the words so as not to be capable of a construction binding to less . 4. that ( as is also credibly reported ) whilst the form of the words was under debate , the opinion of those that would have had it set higher , was not followed , as held unseasonable ; and the vote carried , for the more moderate expression wherein it now standeth . 5. that the imposers , intending by the engagement to secure themselves , especially against the designs and attempts of those men , who they knew ( well enough ) held them for no other than usurpers , must be in reason supposed to require no more assurance of them by the engagement , than such as may and is usually given to usurpers ; which is , not an acknowledgment of their title , and a promise of allegiance , but meerly a promise of living quietly , so long as they are under their power , and enjoy their protection . 6. that it is a received maxim of political prudence , for all new governours , ( especially those that either introduce a new form of government , or come in upon a questionable title ) to abstain from all harsh proceedings , even against those whom they know to be evil affected to their power , and not so much as to exasperate them ( though it be in the power of their hands to destry them ) especially in the beginning of their government ; but rather to sweeten them into a better opinion of their persons , and to win upon them by acts of grace and oblivion ( for remissiùs imperanti meliús paretur . ) so as they may have but any tolerable kind of assurance from them in the mean time , of living quietly and peaceably under them . we have no reason therefore to believe that the imposers of this engagement , who have acted the parts of the greatest politicians , so perfectly and successfully hitherto , as to possess themseves so fully of the supreme power of so great and flourishing a kingdom , in so few years , would be so impolitick as not to proceed by the same rules , that all wise and successful persons have ever practised in the managing , and for the establishing of an acquired power . vi. out of all these premises together ( weighing my positive conclusion , either affirmative or negative , touching the lawfulness or unlawfulness of subscribing in universali ) i shall declare my opinion only in these few following particulars . 1. that it is not lawful for any man to take the engagement with a resolution to break it . 2. that therefore , whosoever thinketh the words of the engagement do contain a promise of any thing which is not lawful for him to perform , cannot take it with a good conscience . 3. that whosoever so understandeth the words of the engagement , as if they did oblige him to any thing contrary to his allegiance , or render him unable to act according thereunto , upon any seasonable emerging occasion , cannot with a good conscience take it . 4. that if any man for any temporal benefit , or avoiding any temporal damage , shall take the engagement with a doubting conscience ( that is , before he be persuaded in his judgement , upon some probable ground of reason , that it is lawful for him so to do ) he sinneth therein . 5. that if any man after a serious desire of informing himself as rightly as he can , what are the duties of his allegiance on the one side , and what is most probably the meaning intended by the words of the engagement on the other side , shall find himself well satisfied in this persuasion , that the performance in the mean time of what is required by the engagement so understood , is no way contrary ( for any thing he can discern for the present ) to his bounden allegiance , so long as he is under such a force , as that he cannot exercise it ; and likewise , that whensoever that force is so removed from him , or he from under it , as that he hath power to act according to his allegiance , the obligation of the engagement of it self determineth and expireth : and out of these considerations , rather than suffer extreme prejudice in his person , estate , or necessary relations , shall subscribe the engagement , since his own heart condemneth him not , neither will i. sir , i have now two requests to you , which i doubt not but you will think reasonable . the one , that whatsoever use you shall please to make of these papers , or any thing therein contained , for your own , or any friends satisfaction ; yet you would not deliver any copies abroad , lest they should come to be printed , as some other papers of mine , written in this manner , have been without my knowledg . this i desire , both in respect of the danger i might incur from the displeasure of the potent party , if any such thing should come abroad ; as also lest upon the consideration of some things here hinted , they might think the words of the engagement too light , and might thence take occasion to lay some heavier obligation upon us , in words that should oblige to more . the other request is , that since i have not any other perfect copy of what now i send you , you would procure it to be transcribed for me ; and either the copy so transcribed , or these very papers rather , when you have transcribed them , transmit inclosed in a letter , or by some friend that will be sure to deliver them safe , with his own hands , to my son — in london , to whom i shall write shortly , that he may expect them . sir , i desire that my best respects may be presented , &c. — god endue us all with grace and wisdom fit for these evil times ; to whose mercy and blessing commend us all , i rest , b. p. dec. 20. 1650. your loving friend and servant . the case of a rash vow deliberately iterated . the case . a gentleman of good estate , hath issue one only daughter , who placing her affections upon a person much below her rank , intendeth marriage with him : the father hearing of it in great displeasure voweth , and confirms it with an oath , that if she marry him , he will never give her a farthing of estate . the daughter notwithstanding marryeth him : after which the father sundry times iterateth and reneweth his said former vow , and that in a serious and deliberate manner ; adding further , that he would never give her or any of hers any part of his estate . quaere : whether the fathers vow so made , and so confirmed and iterated as abovesaid , be obligatory or not ? the resolution . my opinion is , that the vow was rash and is not at all obligatory . 1. the question here proposed is concerning the obligation only ; yet i deem it expedient to declare my opinion concerning the rashness also : and that for two reasons . first , because there seemeth in the proposal of the case , to be some weight laid upon the after-iterations , which were more deliberate , as if they added to the obligation . and secondly , because i think it needful that the vower should as well be convinced of the greatness of his sin in making such a vow , for the time past , as satisfied concerning the present and future invalidity of it . 2. it is easie to believe , that the gentleman , when he first made the vow , was possessed with a very great indignation against his daughter for her high and inexcusable disobedience to him in so very weighty a business . and truly it must be confessed , he had need to be a man of a very rare command over his own spirit , and such as are scarce to be found one of a thousand , that could contain himself within the bounds of reason , upon so just a provocation from an only child , ( possibly some other aggravating circumstances concurring ) as not to be transported with the violence of that passion , into some thoughts and resolutions , not exactly agreeable with the dictates of right reason . it can therefore be little doubted , but the vow made whilst the reason was held under the force of so strange a perturbation , was a rash and irrational vow . 3. nor will these after-acts in confirmation of the first vow , though having more of deliberation in them , be sufficient to redeem either it or themselves from the imputation of rashness : understanding rashness in that latitude as the casuists do , when they treat de voto temerario , under the notion whereof they comprehend all such vows as happen per defectum plenae & discussae deliberationis , as they express it ; for it is to be considered , that when an injury , disobedience , or other affront is strongly resented , it many times maketh a very deep impression in the soul , which though after the first impetus have a little spent it self , it begin somewhat to abate , yet it doth so by such slow and insensible degrees , that the same perturbation , which first discomposed the mind , may have a strong influence into all succeeding deliberations for a long time after . even as after an acute fever , when the sharpest paroxysms are over , and the malignity of the disease well spent , although the party begin to recover some degrees of strength ; yet there may remain for a good while after such a debility in the parts , as that they cannot exercise their proper functions , but with some weakness more or less , till the party be perfectly recovered . sith therefore the after-iterations on the first vow in the present case , did proceed apparently from the rancor and malignity remaining in the mind , as the dregs and reliques of the same perturbation , from which the first vow also proceeded : they must upon the same account ( to wit , per defectum plenae deliberationis ) undergo the same censure of rashness with the first . the same i say for the kind ; some difference i grant there is for the degree : but majus & minus non variant speciem , we know . and the consideration of that difference is only thus far useful in the present case , that the more deliberate those after-acts were , the more culpable they are , and the less capable either of excuse or extenuation ; and consequently do oblige the party to so much the more serious , solemn , and lasting rpentance . 4. but concerning rash vows ( in as much as the knot of the question lyeth not there ) it shall suffice to note these few points . first , that every rash vow is a sin ; and that upon its own score , and precisely as it is rash , although it should not be any other way peccant . all acts of religious worship ( by the importance of the third commandment ) are to be performed with all due sobriety , and attention , and advisedness : how much more then a vow ? which is one of the highest acts of worship , as being a sacred contract , where unto god himself is a party . see eccl. 5. 1. &c. secondly , that rash vows are for the most part , ( besides the rashness ) peccant in their matter also ; for they are commonly made in passion , and all passions are evil counsellors , and anger as bad as the first . the wrath of man seldom worketh the righteousness of god. thirdly , that a rash vow , ( though to be repented of for the rashness ) may yet in some cases bind . as for example , a man finding himself ill used by a shop-keeper , of whom he had formerly been accustomed to buy , voweth in a rage that he will never buy of him again : this is a rash vow , yet it bindeth , because if the party had never made any such vow at all , it had never been unjust or uncharitable , ( nor so much as imprudent ) in him for to have done the same thing , which by his vow he hath now bound himself to do . so if a man impatient of his ill luck at cards , should vow in a heat never to play at cards any more ; he were in this case also bound to keep his vow : because there neither is any sin in keeping it , nor can be any great necessity why he should break it . that therefore fourthly , if at any time a rash vow bind not ; the invalidity thereof proceedeth not meerly ( nor indeed at all ) from the rashness ( which yet is a very common error amongst men ) but from the faultiness of it otherwise , in respect of the matter , or thing vowed to be done ; when that which is so vowed , is either so evil in it self , or by reason of circumstances , becometh so evil , that it cannot be performed without sin . 5. that therefore concerning the vow in the present case , i declared my opinion that it is not at all obligatory ; it is done upon this ground ( which is a most certain truth , and consented to by all ) that rei illicilae nulla obligatio . if a man shall vow any thing that is contrary to piety ; as if having taken offence at some indiscreet passage in a sermon of his own minister , he should vow that he would never come to church , or hear him preach again : or that is contrary to justice , as to take away the life of an innocent person , as those forty persons that had vowed they would neither eat nor drink till they had slain paul : or never to make restitution to own whom he knew he had wronged : or contrary to charity ; as to be revenged of , or never to be friends with one that had done him wrong : or that is contrary to mercy ; as if having lost some mony by lending to his friend , or having smarted by suretiship , he should vow never to lend any man mony , or become surety for any man again . let such a vow , i say , as any of these , or any of the like nature , be made either rashly , or deliberately , and strengthened with oaths and imprecations , in the most direful and solemn manner that can be devised to tie it on the faster ; yet it is altogether null and invalid as to the effect of obligation . whence those common sayings , in malè promissis rescinde fidem ; ne sit juramentum vinculum iniquitatis , &c. and we have a good president for it in david , after he had in a rage vowed the destruction of nabal , and all that belonged to him ; which vow , upon better consideration , he not only did not perform , but he blessed god also , for so providentially preventing the performance of it , by the discreet demeanor and intervention of abigal . 6. now the reason why such vows are not binding , is very cogent and clear ; even because the party at such time as he is supposed to have made such vow as aforesaid , lay under another ( a former , and therefore a stronger ) obligation to the contrary . and it is agreeable to all the reason in the world , that he who either by his own voluntary act , hath bound himself ( where lawfully he might so do ) or by the command of his lawful superior ( that hath a right to his service , and may exact obedience from him ) is already bound to do , or not to do this or that ; should not have power to disoblige himself therefrom , at his own pleasure , or to superinduce upon himself a new obligation contrary thereunto : obligatio prior praejudicat posteriori . as in the case of marriage , a precontract with one party , voideth all after-contracts with any other : and if a man convey lands to several persons , by deeds of several date , the first conveyance standeth good , and all the rest are void ; and so in all cases of like nature . the obligatory power thereof that is in vows , oaths , promises , &c. is rightly said by some , to be a constructive , not a destructive power . the meaning is , that such acts may create a new obligation where was none before , or confirm an old one ; but it cannot destroy an old one , or substitute another contrary thereunto , in the place thereof . 7. and the reason of this reason also is yet farther evident ; for that quisquis obligatur , alteri obligatur . when a man is obliged by any act , it is also supposed that the obligation is made to some other party ; to whom also it is supposed some right to accrue , by vertue of the said act obligatory ; and that that other party is by the said act sufficiently vested in that said right , of which right he cannot be again devested and deprived by the meer act of him who instated him therein , and is obliged to perform it to him ( unless himself give consent thereunto ) without the greatest injustice in the world. now god having a perfect right to our obedience , by his own obliging precept , both for the not doing hurt to any man , and for the doing good to every man upon all fit opportunities : and this right also confirmed , and ratified by our own obligatory act in a solemn manner , before many witnesses at our baptism , when we vowed to keep all god's commandments : it were unreasonable to think that it should be in our power , by any after-act of ours to disoblige our selves from both , or either of those obligations . for then we might by the same reason free our selves from the obligation of that latter act also ( suppose an oath , or vow ) by another subsequent oath , or vow ; and from that again by another : and so play fast and loose , make vows , and break them in infinitum . evident it is therefore , that every vow requiring any thing to be done , which is repugnant to any office of piety , justice , charty , or mercy , which we owe either to god or man , is void , and bindeth not , because it findeth us under the power of a former contrary obligation , and hath not it self power sufficient to free or discharge us from the same . 8. the general rule thus cleared , it remaineth to examine concerning the particular vow now in question , whether it be void upon this account or no ? it will be found hard i believe to free this vow from being repugnant to the rules of justice , but impossible , i am sure , to reconcile it with the perfect evangelical law of charity and mercy . first , civil and political justice , requireth that every man should obey the wholsome laws of his countrey , and submit himself to be ordered thereby . now , put the case ( which is possible enough ) that the daughters husband should for lack of support from his father-in-law , or otherwise , live and die in great want , leaving his wife and many small children behind him , destitute of all means for their necessary sustenance . the law would ( as i suppose ) in that case , upon complaint of the parish , and for their ease , send the daughter and her children to the father , and compel him to maintain them out of his estate . which order he ought to obey , nor can refuse so to do , without the high contempt of publick authority , and manifest violation of the civil justice , notwithstanding his vow to the contrary : the law must be obeyed whatsoever becometh of the vow ; in that case therefore it is evident the vow bindeth not . 9. but say that should not happen to be the case ( which yet is more than any man can positively say before-hand ) the parent is nevertheless in moral justice bound to provide due maintenance for his children and grand-children if he be able . saint paul saith that fathers ought to lay up for the children . true it is , he speaketh it but upon the by , and by way of illustration , in the handling of another argument , very distant from this business : but that doth not at all lessen the importance of it , such illustrations being ever taken à notiori , and from such common notions as are granted , and consented unto by all reasonable men . the same apostle having amongst other sins of the gentiles , mentioned disobedience to parents in one verse , in the very next verse , mentioneth also want of natural affection in parents . and the disobedience in the child can no more discharge the parent from the obligation of that duty he oweth to the child , and of affection and maintenance , then the unnaturalness of the parent , can the child from the duty he oweth to the parent , of honour and obedience . for the several duties , that by gods ordinance , are to be performed by persons that stand in mutual relation either to other , are not pactional and conditional ; as are the leagues and agreements made between princes ( where the breach in one part dissolveth the obligation on the other ) but are absolute and independent ; wherein each person is to look to himself , and the performance of the duty that lyeth upon him , though the other party should fail in the performance of his . 10. something i foresee may be objected in this point , concerning the lawfulness of the parents withdrawing maintenance from the child ( either in whole , or at least in part ) in the case of disobedience . which how far forth it may , or may not be done ; as it would be too long to examine , so it would be of little avail to the present business . for it is one thing to with hold maintenance from a disobedient child for the present , and to resolve so to continue till he shall see cause to the contrary . and another thing to bind himself by vow or oath , never to allow him any for the future , whatsoever should happen . let be granted whatsoever can be supposed pleadable on the fathers behalf in the present case ; yet there will still remain two particulars in this vow , not easily to be cleared from being unjust . first , let the daughters disobedience deserve all this uttermost of punishment from the offended fathers ; yet how can it be just , that for the mothers fault , the poor innocent ( perhaps yet unborn ) children , should be utterly , and irrecoverably excluded from all possibility of relief from their grand-father ? secondly , it is ( if not unjust , yet what differeth very little there-from ) the extremity of rigid justice ; that any offender ( much less a son or daughter ) should for any offence , not deserving death , be by a kind of fatal peremptory decree , put into an incapacity of receiving relief from such persons , as otherwise ought to have relieved the said offender , without any reservation either of the case of extreme necessity , or of the case of serious repentance . 11. however it be for the point of justice : yet so apparent is the repugnancy of the matter of this vow , with the precepts of christian charity and mercy ; that if all i have hitherto said were of no force , this repugnancy alone were enough ( without other evidence ) to prove the unlawfulness , and consequently the invalidity , or inobligality thereof . it is ( not an evangelical counsel , but ) the express peremptory precept of christ , that we should be merciful , even as our heavenly father is merciful . and inasmuch as , not in that passage only , but for the most part wheresoever else the duty of mercy is pressed upon us in the gospel from the example of god : god is represented to us by the name , and under the notion of a father , although i may not lay much weight upon it , as a demonstrative proof ; yet i conceive i may commend it as a rational topick , for all that are fathers to consider of , whether it do not import , that mercy is to be expected from a father as much as ( if not rather much more than ) from any other man ; and that the want of mercy in a father , is more unkindly , more unseemly , more unnatural than in another man : but this by the way , from the precept of christ , we learn , that as there is in god a two-fold mercy , ( a giving mercy , in doing us good , though we deserve it not , and a forgiving mercy , in pardoning us when we have done amiss : ) so there ought to be in every good christian man a readiness ( after the example of god ) to shew forth the fruits of mercy to others , in both kinds , upon all proper and meet occasions . so that if any person , of what quality or condition soever , shall upon any provocation whatsoever vow that he will never do any thing for such or such a man ; or that he will never forgive such or such a man : every such vow , being contra bonos more 's , and contra officium hominis christiani , is unlawful , and bindeth not . 12. the offices of mercy in the former of those two branches , viz. of doing good , and affording relief to those that are in necessity , are themselves of so great necessity ( as the case may be ) that common humanity would exact the performance of them from the hand , not of a strangeronly , but even of an enemy . if a stranger or an enemies beast lie weltring in a ditch , a helping hand must be lent to draw it out . the samaritans compassion to the wounded traveller in the parable , luke 10. ( there being a feud , and that grounded upon religion , which commonly of all others , is the most deadly feud between the two nations ) is commended to our example , to the great reproach of the priest and levite , for their want of bowels to their poor brother of the same nation and religion with themselves : for the nearer the relation is between the parties , the stronger is the obligation of shewing mercy either to other . and there is scarce any relation nearer , and more obliging , than that of parents and children . our saviour , who in matth. 15. sharply reproved such vows , ( though made with an intention to advance the service of god , by inriching his treasury ) as hindred children from relieving their parents , will not certainly approve of such vows ( made without any other intenion then to gratifie rage , and impatience ) as hinder parents from relieving their children . 13. if to avoid the force of this argument , it shall be alledged , that the daughters disobedience , in a business of so high concernment , might justly deserve to be thus severely punished , and that it were but equal that she , who had so little regard to her father , when the time was , should be as little regarded by him afterwards . all this granted , cometh not yet up to the point of shewing mercy according to the example of god. no childs disobedience can be so great to an earthly parent , as ours is to our heavenly father : yet doth he notwithstanding all our ill deservings continually do us good , communicating to our necessities , and causing his sun to shine , and his rain to fall , and infinite benefits in all kinds to descend upon mankind , not excluding the most thankless , and disobedient , and rebellious , from having a share therein . 14. and as for that other branch of mercy in pardoning offences , god giveth a rich example to all men , of their duty in that kind , ( and to fathers particularly ) by his great readiness to pardon the greatest offenders , if they sincerely seek to him for it . if the father in the parable , luke 15. had proceeded with such severity against his riotousson , as to have vowed never to have received him again ; he had been a very improper exemplar , whereby to shadow out the mercy of god to repentant sinners . concerning the grreat importance of this duty , which is so frequently inculcated by christ and his apostles , and so peremptorily enjoyned , as not any other duty more . see matt. 6. 4 , 15. matt. 18. 21. — 35. eph. 4. 32. col. 3. 13. james 2. 13. see also sirac . 28 , 1 , &c. ] i shall not need to say much ; only as to the present case , it would be considered , how perverse a course it is , and contradictory to it self , for a man to think himself obliged by one inconsiderate act , never to forgive his daughter ; when as yet he cannot beg pardon of his own sins , at the hands of god , ( as he ought in his daily prayer to do ) without an express condition of forgiving every body , and an implicit imprecation upon himself , if he do not . 15. but shall the daughter that hath thus grieved the spirit of her father , thus escape unpunished , and be in as good a condition as if she had never offended ? and will not others be incouraged by her impunity , to despise their parents after her example ? there is much reason in this objection ; and therefore what i have hitherto written , ought not to be understood , as if thereby were intended such a plenary indulgence for the daughter as should restore her in integrum , but only that she should be made capable of receiving such relief from her father , from time to time , as in relation to her necessities , and after-carriage , from time to time should seem reasonable ; and that his vow ought not to hinder him from affording her such relief . but by what degrees , and in what proportion , the father should thus receive his daughter into his fatherly affection , and relieve her , must be left to discretion , and the exigence of circumstances . only i should advise ( in order to the objection , viz. for examples sake , and that the daughter might be made , even to her dying day , and kept , sensible of her great and sinful disobedience to her father ) that the father should cut off from his daughter , and her posterity , some meet portion of his estate , ( as perhaps a fifth part at the least ; or if a fourth , or a whole third part , i should like it the better ; ) and by a solemn deliberate vow , dedicate the same to be yearly imployed in some pious and charitable uses . these times will afford him choice of objects , if god shall move his heart so to do ; and by so doing , he may , first ▪ in some sort redeem , and make a kind of satisfaction for his former rashness , ( not popishly understood , and in regard of the justice of god , but ) in a moral sense , and in regard of the world , and his own conscience . secondly , it may be a good means to keep the daughter in a continual fresh remembrance of her fault , that she may not , after a short and slight repentance ( as in such cases too often it happeneth ) forget the same ; whereof she ought to have some remorse all the days of her life . thirdly , he shall thereby after a sort , perform his first vow ; i mean according to the general intention thereof , and the rational part , ( which was to make his daughter repent her folly , and to smart for it : ) the over-plus more than this , being but the fruit of rancor and perturbation . lastly , he shall in so doing , doubly , imitate god our heavenly father . first , when a rash or sinful act is made an occasion of a pious or charitable work , it beareth some resemblance of , or rather is indeed it self a gracious effect of that goodness and wisedom in god , whereby he bringeth light out of darkness , and good out of evil . secondly , god himself when he graciously pardoneth an high presumptuous sin , as he did davids great sin , in the matter of uriah , commonly layeth some lasting affliction upon the offender , as he did upon david , who after the sealing his pardon for that sin by nathan , scarce ever had a quiet day all his life long . the reason whereof seemeth to be double , partly for admonition to others , that none presume to provoke god in like manner , l●st they smart for it also in like manner ; and partly for the good of the offender , that he may by the smart be brought to the deeper sense of his error , and be eft-soons reminded of it , lest he should too soon forget it . thus have i with very much ado , ( in that weak condition i have been in , ever since the question came to my hands and wherein i yet contitinue ) declared my opinion fully concerning the whole business as far as i understand it . more largely i confess than i intended , or perhaps was needful ; and with greater severity than ( it may be ) the parties will well like of . but truly i desired to do the part of a faithful confessor , and the sores on both parts seemed to be such as were not to be touched with too gentle a hand : in the daughter an act of high disobedience , transported by the passion of inordinate love ; and in the father an act of great rashness , transported by the passion of inordinate anger : both beyond the bounds of right reason , and religion ; and both to be deeply repented of . howsoever , i cannot be suspected to have written any thing , either out of favour for , or prejudice against either party ; not having the least conjecture who the persons are that are concerned in the business ; nor so much as in what part of the nation they live . i shall pray that god would direct them both , to do that which may best serve to his glory , and bring the soundest comfort to their own souls . amen . the case of the sabbath . to my very loving friend mr. tho. sa , at s. b. nottingh . march 28. 1634. sir , when by your former letter , you desired my present resolution in two questions therein proposed concerning the sabbath , although i might not then satisfie your whole desire ( being loth to give in my opinion before i had well weighed it ) yet that i might not seem altogether to decline the task imposed on me by you , i engaged my self by promise , within short time , to send you what upon further consideration , i should conceive thereof . which promise , so far as my many distractions and occasions would permit , i endeavoured to perform by perusing the books you sent me , ( in the one whereof , i found written on the spare paper with your hand , a note moving a third question , about , the name of the sabbath also ; ) and by looking up and reviewing such scattered notes as i had touching that subject . but then i met with difficulties so many and great ( whereof the more i considered , the more still i found them to increase ) that i saw it would be a long work , and take up far more time than i could spare , to digest and enlarge what seemed needful to be said in the three questions in such sort as was requisite , to give any tolerable satisfaction either to my self or others . wherefore i was estsoons minded to have excused my self by letter to you , and farther medling with these questions , and to have remitted you over for better satisfaction to those men , that have both better leisure to go about such a business , and better abilities to go through with i● than i have ; for to questions of importance , better nothing be said , than not enough : and the rather was i mided so to do , when i perceived there were rumors spread in these parts , ( occasioned , as i verily suppose , by some speeches of your good friend mr. tho. a. ) as if i were writing a treatise of the morality of the sabbath . which besides that , it might raise an expectation of some great matters which i could in no wise answer ; it might also expose that little i should have done to the mis-censures of men wedded to their own opinions , if after i had laid mine open , it should have happened in any thing ( as in some things like enough it would ) to have disagreed from theirs . yet because by your late kind letters , ( wherein , whilst i was slack in making it , you have prevented mine excuse , ) i perceive the continuance of your former desire ; i have therefore since resolved to do somewhat , though not so much as i first intended , hoping that you will in friendly manner interpret my purpose therein . i have therefore now sent you but a naked summary of my thoughts concerning the three questions , abstracted from all those explanations , reasons , testimonies of authors , removals of objections , and other such enlargements as have might have given further both lustre and strength thereunto . howsoever , by what i presently send , you may sufficiently see what my opinion is ; which i shall be ready to clear , so far as my understanding will serve , in any particular wherein you shall remain doubtful ; and as ready to alter when any man shall instruct me better , if he bring good evidence either of reason or of scripture-text for what he affirmeth : the questions are , 1. which is the fittest name whereby to call the day of our christian weekly-rest ? whether the sabbath , the lord's-day , or sunday ? 2. what is the meaning of that prayer appointed to be used in our church ; [ lord have mercy upon us , and intline , &c ] as it is repeated after , and applied to the words of the fourth commandment ? 3. whether it be lawful to use any bodily recreation upon the lord's-day ? and if so , then what kind of recreations may be used ? i. concerning the name sabbatum , or sabbath , i thus conceive ; 1. that in scripture , antiquity , and all ecclesiastical writers , it is constantly appropriated to the day of the jews sabbath , or saturday ; and not at all ( till of late years ) used to signifie our lord's-day , or sunday . 2. that to call sunday , by the name of the sabboth-day , ( rebus sic slantibus ) may for sundry respects be allowed in the christian church without any great inconveniency : and that therefore men ( otherwise sober and moderate ) ought not to be censured with too much severity , neither charged with judaism , if sometimes they so speak . 3. that yet for sundry other respects it were perhaps much more expedient , if the word sabbath ( in that motion ) were either not at all , or else more sparingly used . ii. concerning the name dominica , or the lord's-day : 1. that it was taken up in memory of our lord christ's resurrection , and the great work of our redemption accomplished therein . 2. that it hath warrant from the scripture , ( apoc. 1. 10 ) and hath been of long continued use in the christian church , to signifie the first day of the week , or sunday . iii. concerning the name dies solis , or sunday . 1. that it is taken from the courses of the planets , as the names of the other days are : the reason whereof is to be learned from astronomers . 2. that it hath been used generally , and of long time , in most parts of the world. 3. that it is not justly chargeable with heathenism ; and that it proceedeth from much weakness at the least , ( if not rather superstition ) that some men condemn the use of it , as prophane , heathenish or unlawful , iv. of the fitness of the aforesaid three names compared one with another . 1. that according to the several matter or occasions of speech , each of the three may be fitter in some respect , and more proper to be used than either of the other two ; as , viz. 1. the name sabbath : when we speak of a time of rest indeterminate , and in general , without reference to any particular day : and the other two , when we speak determinately of that day which is observed in the christian church . of which two again . 2. that of the lord's-day is fitter , in in the theological and ecclesiastical ; and , 3. that of sunday , in the civil , popular , and common use . 2. yet so as that none of the three be condemned as utterly unlawful , whatsoever the matter or occasion be , but that every man be left to his christian liberty herein , so long as superior authority doth not restrain it . provided ever , that what he doth herein , he do it without vanity or affectation in himself , or without uncharitable judging or despising his brother that doth otherwise than himself doth . to the second question . v. the words of that prayer , [ lord have mercy , &c. ] repeated after the fourth commandment , do evidently import , as they do in each of the other ten . 1. an acknowledgment of three things , viz. 1. that the words of that particular commandment contain in them a law , whereunto we are subject . 2. that it is our bounden duty to endeavour with our utmost power to keep the said law. 3. that our naughty hearts have ( of themselves ) no inclination to keep it , until god , by the work of his grace , shall incline them thereunto . 2. a double supplication , viz. 1. for mercy , in respect of the time past , because we have failed of bounden duty heretofore . 2. for grace , in respect of the time to come , that we may perform our duties better hereafter . vi. but how far forth the words of the fourth commandment are to be taken as a law binding christians , and by what authority they have that binding power , is the main difficulty . for the resolution whereof , it may suffice every sober minded christian , to understand the prayer appointed by the church , in that meaning which the words do immediately import ; and without over-curious inquiry into those things that are more disputable , to believe these few points following , which ought to be taken as certain and granted amongst christians ; viz. 1. that no part of the law delivered by moses to the jews , doth bind christians under the gospel , as by virtue of that delivery ; no , not the ten commandments themselves , but least of all the fourth , which all confess to be ( at least ) in some part ceremonial . 2. that the particular determination of the time to the seventh day of the week , was ceremonial : and so the obligation of the fourth commandment in that respect , ( although it were juris divini positivi to the jew , yet ) is ceased together with other legal ceremonies since the publishing of the gospel , and bindeth not christian consciences . 3. that the substance of the fourth commandment in the general , ( viz. that some certain time should be set apart from secular imployments , and to be sanctified to an holy rest , for the better attending upon gods's publick and solemn worship ) is moral and perpetual , and of divine right , as a branch of the law of nature , whereunto christians under the gospel are still bound . 4. that de facto , the lord's-day , or sunday , is the time appointed to us for that purpose by such sufficient authority , as we stand bound in conscience to obey : absque hoc , whether that authority be immediately divine , or but mediately through the power of the church . this is sufficient to regulate the judgment and conscience of every ordinary christian ; yet is it not unlawful for scholars ( soberly and fairly ) to argue and debate a little farther matters which are questionable , for the better finding out of the truth . and the points in this argument that are most in controversie , are these two , viz. 1. concerning the observation of a weekly sabbath ; whether it be of necessity to keep one day of every seven ? and by what right we ate tied so to do ? 2. concerning the change of the jewish sabbath into the lord's day ; and by what authority it was done . vii . as touching the observation of a weekly sabbath , there are these three different opinions , viz. 1. that it is de jure naturali , as a branch properly of the law of nature . 2. that it is properly and directly de jure divino positivo , established by god's express positive ordinance in his word . 3. that it is merely de jure humano & ecclesiastico ; introduced by authority , and established by the custom and consent of the catholick church . touching which three opinions , i leave it to the judicious to consider . 1. whether the last of them might not hap to be of evil consequence , by leaving it in the power of the church , at her pleasure to change the old proportion of one in seven , ( which hath continued ever since the days of moses ) into any other greater or lesser proportion of time ? 2. whether the two former opinions ( though they do indeed avoid that inconvenience ) do not yet stand upon such weak grounds , otherwise that they are by many degrees more improbable than the third . 3. whether a fourth opinion going in a middle way , might not be proposed with greater probability , and entertained with better safety than any of the former three ? viz. that the keeping holy of one day in seven , is of divine positive right , taking jus divinum in a large signification : not for that only which is primarily , properly , and directly such , according to the tenor of the second opinion ; but including withal that which is secondarily , consequently , and analogically such . viii . for the better understanding whereof , we are to consider ; 1. that those things are de jure divino in the first and strict sense : which either , 1. are enjoyned by the express ordinance and commandment of god in his holy word ; or else , 2. may be deduced there-from by necessary , evident , and demonstrative illation . in which sense , there are not many things de jure divino under the new testament . 2. that for a thing to be de jure divino in the latter and larger sense , it sufficeth that it may be by humane discourse upon reasons of congruity probably deduced from the word of god , as a thing most convenient to be observed by all such as desire unfeignedly to order their ways according to god's holy will. 3. that this kind of jus divinum may be reasonably discerned by the concurrence of all , or the chiefest of these four things following , viz. 1. a foundation of equity for the thing in general , either in the law of nature , or by vertue of divine institution . 2. an analogie held for the particular determination , with such laws and directions as were given to the jewish people in the old testament , so far as the reason of equity holdeth alike . 3. some probable insinuations thereof in the scriptures of the new testament . 4. the continued practice of the christian church , so far as the condition of the times in the several ages thereof would permit . for , lex currit cum praxi . 4. that all these do in some measure concur for the observation of a weekly sabbath ; as upon the examination of the several particulars will easily appear . ix . this distinction of jus divinum is to be observed the rather . because it may be of very good use , ( if rightly understood and applied . ) 1. for cutting off the most material instances , which are usually brought by the romish party for the maintenance of their unwritten traditions . 2. for the clearing of some , and the silencing of other some controversies in the church , which are disputaed pro and con with much heat ; as , viz. concerning , 1. the government of the church by bishops . 2. the distinction of bishops , priests and deacons . 3. the exercise of ecclesiastical censures , as suspension , excommunication , &c. 4. the building and consecrating of churches for the service of god. 5. the assembling of synods upon needful occasions , for the maintenance of the truth , and for the settling of church affairs . 6. the forbidding of marriages to be made within certain degrees of consanguinity and affinity . 7. the baptizing of infants born of christian parents . 8. the maintenance of the clergy by the tithes of the people , and sundry other things : none of all which ( to my understanding ) seem to be de jure divino in that first and proper sense ; but yet all ( or most ) of them to be de jure divino in this latter end larger signification . 3. for the right bounding of the churches power , that she be neither denied her lawful liberty in some things , nor yet assume to her self a greater power than of right belongeth unto her in other some . for , 1. in things that are meerly de jure humano ; every particular church hath power in her self from time to time , to order , and alter them at her pleasure , and may exercise that power when she thinketh fit . 2. things that are de jure divino in that first sense , the universal church may not ( and much less then may any particular ) at all take upon her to alter , but must observe them inviolably , whatsoeever necessities or distresses she be put unto . 3. things that are de jure divino in this latter sense ; every particular church ( but much more the universal ) hath a power to alter in a case of necessity : but the exercise of that power is so limited to extraordinary cases , that it may not be safe for her at all to exercise it ; unless it be for the avoiding of mighty inconveniences , not otherwise to be avoided . x. as for the other controversed point , touching the change the day , from the last day of the week , or saturday , ( which was the jews sabbath ) to the first day of the week , or sunday , which is our lord's-day : my opinion is , that the observation of the lord's-day among christians instead of the jewish sabbath , 1. is not grounded upon any comamndment given by christ to his apostles . 2. nor yet upon any apostolical constitution given by the apostles unto the churches in that behalf . but. 3. that it was taken up by the succeeding church ; partly in imitation of some of the apostles , who used ( especially in the churches of the gentiles ; for in the churches of judea the old sabbath was still observed ) to celebrate their holy assemblies upon the first day of the week , in the honour of christ and his resurrection ; and partly for the avoiding of judaism , wherewith falser teachers in those first times were eve and anon attempting to enthral the christian church . 4. that the observation of the lord's-day , having been confirmed by so many constitutions both eccleasiastical and imperial , and having withall continued with such uniform consent throughout the christian world , for so many ages ever since the apostles times ; the church ( not to dispute what she may or may not do in plenitudine potestatis , yet ) ought not to attempt the altering of it to any other day of the week . to the third question . xi . in this matter touching recreations to be used on the lord's-day , much need not be said , there being little difficulty in it , and his majesties last declaration in that behalf having put it past disputation . i say then , 1. for the thing . that no man can reasonably condemn the moderate use of lawful recreations upon the lord's-day , as simply , and de toto genere unlawful . 2. for the kind . albeit there can be no certain rules given herein , ( as in most indifferent things it cometh to pass ) by reason of the infinite variety of circumstances , to fit with all particular cases , but that still much must be left to private discretion : yet for some directions in this matter , respect would be had in the choice of our recreations , 1. to the publick laws of the state. such games or sports as are by law prohibited , ( though in themselves otherwise lawful ) being unlawful to them that are under the obedience of the law. 2. to the condition of the person . walking and discoursing with men of liberal education , is a pleasant recreation ; it is no way delightsom to the ruder sort of people , who scarce account any thing a sport which is not loud and boysterous . 3. to the effects of the recreations themselves . those being the meetest to be used , which give the best refreshing to the body . and leave the least impression in the mind . in which respect , shooting , leaping , pitching the bar , stool-ball , &c. are rather to be chosen than dicing , carding , &c. 3. for the use. that men would be exhorted to use their recreation , and pastimes upon the lord's-day in godly and commendable sort . for which purpose , amongst others these cautions following would be remembred . 1. that they be used with great moderation ( as at all other times , so especially , and much more ) upon the lord's-day . 2. that they be used at seasonable times , not in time of divine service , nor at such hours as are appointed by the master of the house whereunto they belong , for private devotions within his own house . his majesties declaration limiteth mens liberty this way , till after even-song be ended . 3. that they be so used , as that they may rather make men the fitter for god's service the rest of the day , and for the works of their vocations the rest of the week , than any way hinder or disable them thereunto , by over-wearying the body , or immoderately affecting the mind . 4. that they use them not doubtingly , for whatsoever is not of faith , is sin . he therefore that is not satisfied in his own judgement , that he may lawfully , and without sin , use bodily recreations on the lord's-day , ought by all means to forbear the use thereof , lest he should sin against his own conscience . 5. that they be severer towards themselves than towards other men in the use of their christian liberty herein , not making their own opinion or practice a rule to their brethren . in this , as in all indifferent things , a wise and charitable man will in godly wisdom deny himself many times the use of that liberty , which in a godly charity he dare not deny to his brother . the case of the use of the liturgy , stated in the late times . sir , whereas you are desirous to know what my judgment and practice is concerning the using or forbearing of the established liturgy , ( either in whole or in part ) in the public service of god , and offices of the church , if that may be any satisfaction to your self or friend : i shall fully acquaint you with my practice , is ( whereunto if my judgment be not conform'd i am without all escape mine own condemner ) and upon what consideration , i have according to the variation of times , varied my self therein . so long as my congregation continued unmixt with souldiers , ( as well after as before the promulgation of the ordinance of the two houses , for the abolishing of common prayer ) i continued the use of it , as i had ever formerly done in the most peaceable and orderly times , not omitting those very prayers , the silencing whereof i could not but know to have been chiefly aimed in the ordinance , viz. those for the king , the queen , and the bishops . and so i did also , though some souldiers were casually present , till such time as a troop coming to quarter in the town ( who on purpose to continue a kind of garrison among us or head quarter ) were so enraged at my reading of it the first sunday after they came , that immediately after morning service , they seized on the book and tore it all to pieces . thence forward , during their continuance here for full six months and upwards , ( viz. from the beginning of november , till they were called away to naseby-fight in may following , ) besides that for want of a book , of necessity i must ; i saw it also behoved me , for the preventing farther outrage , to wave the use of the book for the time , at least in the ordinary service ; only i read the confession , the lords prayer , with the versicles and the psalms for the day ; then after the first lesson in the forenoon , benedictus or iubilate , and in the afternoon cantate . after the second lesson also in the forenoon , sometimes the creed , and sometimes the ten commandments , and sometimes neither , but only sang a psalm , and so to sermon : but all that while in the administration of the sacraments , the solemnization of matrimony , burial of the dead , and churching of women , i constantly used the ancient forms and rites to every of them respectively belonging , according to the appointment in the book . only i was careful in all the rest to make choice of such times and opportunities , as i might do them with most secresie and without disturbance of the souldiers ; but at the celebration of the eucharist i was the more secure to do it publickly , because i was assured none of the souldiers would be present . after their departure i took the liberty to use the whole liturgy , or but some part of it , omitting sometimes more , sometimes less upon occasion , as i judged it most expedient , in reference to the auditory , especially if any souldiers or other unknown persons happened to be present . but all the while the substance of what i omitted i contrived into my prayer before sermon , the phrase and order only varied ; which , yet i endeavoured to temper in such sort , as that any person of ordinary capacity might easily perceive what my meaning was , and yet the words left as little liable to exception or cavil as might be . about nigh two years ago , i was advertised ( but in a very friendly manner ) by a parliament-man of note in these parts , that at a public meeting in grantham , great complaint was made by some ministers ( of the presbyterian-gang , as i afterwards found ) of my refractoriness to obey the parliaments order in that behalf : the gentleman told me withal , that although they knew long before what my judgment and practice was , yet they were not forward to take notice of it before complaint made , which being now done in so public manner , if they should not take knowledge of it , the blame would lie upon them ; he also advised me to consider well what i had to do ; for i must resolve either to adventure the loss of my living , or to lay aside common-prayer , which if i should continue , ( after complaint and admonition ) it would not be in his power , nor in the power of any friend i had to preserve me . the effect of my then answer was , that if the case was so , the deliberation was not hard : i having long ago considered the case , and resolved what i might with a good conscience do , and what were fittest for me in prudence to do , if i should ever be put to it , viz. to forbear the use of the common prayer-book , so far as might satisfie the letter of the ordinance rather than forsake my station . my next business then was , to bethink my self of such a course to be thenceforward held in the public worship in my own parish , as might be likeliest neither to bring danger to my self by the use , nor to bring scandal to my brethren by the disuse of the established liturgy . and the course was this , to which i have held me ever since . i begin the service with a preface of scripture , and an exhortation inferred thence to make confession of sins ; which exhortation i have framed out of the exhortation , and absolution in the book contracted and put together , and expressed for the most part in the very same words and phrases , but purposely here and there transplaced , that it might appear not to be , and yet be the same . then followeth the confession it self in the same order it was inlarged , only with the addition of some words , whereby it is rather explained than altered ; the whole form whereof both for your fuller satisfaction in that particular , and that you may partly conjecture what manner of addition or change i have made proportionably hereunto , ( yet none so large ) in other parts of the holy office , i have here under-written . o almighty god and merciful father , we thy unworthy servants do with shame and sorrow confess , that we have all our life long gone astray out of thy ways like lost sheep , and that by following too much the devices and desires of our own hearts . we have grievously offended against thy holy laws , both in thought , word , and deed . we have many times left undone those good things which we might and ought to have done ; and we have many times done those evils when we might have avoided them , which we ought not to have done : we confess , o lord , that there is no health at all in us , nor help in any creature to relieve us ; but all our hope is in thy mercy , whose justice we have by our sins so far provoked . have mercy upon us therefore , o lord , have mercy upon us miserable offenders : spare us , good lord , which confess our faults that we perish not : but according to thy gracious promises declared unto mankind in christ jesus our lord ; restore us , upon our true repentance , to thy grace and favour . and grant , o most merciful father for his sake , that we may henceforth study to serve and please thee , by leading a godly , righteous , and sober life , to the glory of thy holy name and the eternal comfort of our own souls , through jesus christ our lord , amen . after this confession , the lords prayer , with the versicles , and gloria patri , and then the psalms for the day and the first lesson ; after which in the afternoon sometimes te deum ( but then only when i think the auditory will bear it ) and sometimes an hymn of my own composing , gathered out of the psalms and the church collects , as a general form of thanks-giving ( which i did the rather , because some have noted the want of such a form as the only thing wherein our liturgy seemed to be defective ) and in the afternoon , after the first lesson , the 98 or the 67 psalm ; then the second lesson with benedictus or jubilate , after it in the forenoon , and in the afternoon a singing psalm ; then followeth the creed with dominus vobiscum , and sometimes the versicles in the end of the litany , ( from our enemies defend us , &c. ) if i like my auditory , otherwise i omit these versicles . after the creed , &c. instead of the letany and the other prayers appointed in the book , i have taken the substance of the prayer i was wont to use before sermon , and disposed it into several collects or prayers , some longer , and some shorter , but new modelled into the language of the common-prayer-book , much more than it was before : and in the pulpit before sermon , i use only a short prayer in reference to the hearing of the word and no more , so that upon the matter in these prayers , i do but the same thing i did before , save that what before i spake without book , and in a continued form and in the pulpit , i now read out of a written book broken into parcels , and in the reading desk or pew . between which prayers and the singing psalm before the sermon , i do also daily use one other collect , of which sort i have for the purpose composed sundry made up as the former for the most part out of the church collects , with some little inlargement or variation , as namely collects , adventual , quadragesimal , paschal , and pentecostal for their proper seasons , and at other times collects of a more general nature , as for pardon , repentance , grace , &c. and after one or more of them in the forenoon i usually repeat the ten commandments with a short collect after for grace to enable us to keep them . this hath been my practice , and is like still to be , unless some happy change of affairs restore us the liberty of using the old way again ; or it be made appear to my understanding by some able charitable friend , that i have therein done otherwise than i ought to have done ; for i may say truly , i have not yet met with any thing in discourse either with my own reason or with others of sufficient strength to convince me , that i have herein done any thing but what may stand with the principles as well of christian simplicity as prudence . there are but three things that i know of , that are of consideration opposed , viz. 1. the obligation of the laws . 2. the scandal of the example . 3. an unseemly symbolizing ( at least ) with schismaticks , if not partaking with them in the schism . 1. law. object . i. the first and strongest objection , which i shall therefore propose to the most advantage of the objector , is , that which is grounded upon the laws and the obligation ; for it may be objected , that every humane law rightly established , so long as it continueth a law , obligeth the subject , ( and that for conscience sake ) to the observation thereof , in such manner and form as in the said law is prescribed , and according to the true intention and meaning of the law-giver therein . that a law is then understood to be rightly established , when it containeth nothing but what is honest , and lawful , and is enacted by such person or persons as have full and sufficient authority to make laws . that a law so established continueth a law and is in force , till it be either repealed by as good and full authority as that by which it was made , or else antiquated , by a long continued ( uninforced ) disuse , with the tacite or presumed consent of the law-giver . that the act printed before the common prayer-book and entituled , an act for the uniformity , &c. was such a law , being it was established in a full and free parliament , and in peaceable times , and ratified by the royal assent . that it still continueth in force , being not yet repealed , but by such persons as ( at least in the opinion of those who maintain the dispute ) for want of the royal assent have not a sufficient right or authority to do such an act ; nor disused but of late times , and that by inforcement , and ( as is presumed ) much against the mind and will of the law-giver . that therefore it still retaineth the power of obliging in point of conscience ; that power being so essential and intrinsecal to every law , quatenus a law , that it can in no wise be severed from it . and that no minister publicly officiating in the church can with a good conscience either omit any part of that which is commanded by the aforesaid law , or use any other form than what is contained in the aforesaid book ; but must either use the form prescribed in the book , or else to forbear to officiate . the answer to this objection , ( granting all the premises besides ) dependeth upon the right understanding of that which is affirmed concerning the obligation of laws , according to the intention of the law-giver ; which , if it should be understood precisely of that particular , actual , and immediate intention of the law-giver had in the making of any particular law ; and it is sufficiently declared by the words of the law ( in which sense only the objection proceedeth ) will not hold true in all cases . but there is supposed besides that in the law-giver a more general , habituate , and ultimate intention , of a more excellent and transcendent nature than the former , which is to have an influence into and an over-ruling power over all laws , viz. an intention by the laws to procure and promote the public good : the former intention bindeth where it is subservient to the latter , or consistent with it , and consequently bindeth in ordinary cases and in orderly times , or else the law is not an wholsom law. but where the observation of the law , by reason of the conjuncture of circumstances or the iniquity of the times ( contingencies which no law-giver could either certainly foresee , or if foreseen could sufficiently provide against ) would rather be prejudicial than advantageous to the public , or is manifestly attended with more inconveniences , and sad consequents to the observers , as all the imaginable good that can redound to the public thereby cannot in any reasonable measure countervail . in such case the law obligeth not , but according to the latter and more general intention only . even as in the operations of nature , particular agents do move ordinarily according to the proper and particular inclinations , yet upon some occasions , and to serve the ends and intentions of universal nature ( for the avoiding of some thing which nature abhorreth ) they are sometimes carried with motions quite contrary to their particular natures , as the air to descend , and the water to ascend , for the avoiding of vacuity , &c. the common received maxim , which hath been sufficiently misapplied and that sometimes to very evil purposes ( since the beginning of these unhappy divisions ) in the true meaning of it looketh this way , salus populi suprema lex ; the equity of which maxim , as it leaveth in the law-giver a power of dispensing the law ( which is a suspending of the obligation thereof for a time , in respect of the proper and particular intention ) as he shall see it expedient in order to the public good , so it leaveth in the subject a liberty upon just occasions , as in cases of great exigencies , and for the preventing of such hazards and inconveniencies as might prove of noisom consequence to the public , to do otherwise than the law requireth : and neither is the exercise of that power in the law-giver to be thought an unreasonable prerogative ; nor the use of this liberty in the subject an unreasonable presumption , inasmuch as the power of dispensing with particular laws is such a prerogative , as without which no common-wealth can be well governed , but justice would be turned into gall and wormwood : nor can the supreme governor with forfeiture of that faithfulness , which he oweth to the public weal divest himself thereof ; and he that presumeth of the law-givers consent to dispense with him for the observing of the law in such needful cases , where he hath not the opportunity to consult his pleasure therein , presumeth no more than he hath reason to do ; for it may well be presumed , that the law-giver who is bound in all his laws , to intend the safety of the public , and of every member thereof in his due proportion , hath no intention by the observation of any particular law to oblige any person , who is a member of the public to his destruction or ruine , when the common good is not answerably promoted thereby ; upon which ground it is generally resolved by casuists , that no consultation ( meerly humane ) can lay such obligation upon the conscience of the subject , but that he may , according to exigency of circumstances , do otherwise than the constitution requireth : provided it be done extra casum scandali & contemptus , that is to say , without either bewraying in himself any contempt of the authority of the law-giver by his carriage , or giving any just occasion of scandal to others by his example in so doing . i have been somewhat the larger in explaining this point , not only for the better clearing of the said doubt , but also in respect of the usefulness of this consideration , for the preventing and removing of many scruples that may happen to conscientious men in such times as these , wherein so many things are ( and are like to be ) commanded and forbidden , contrary to the established laws , and those ( as they are persuaded ) yet standing in force . the best rule that i know to guide men in their deliberations and actions in such emergent cases , is advisedly and unpartially to weigh the benefits and inconveniencies , as well on the one side as the other , and then compare them one with the other , as they stand in relation to the public good . and if after such examination and comparison made , it shall then evidently ( or but in the judgment of probability ) appear , that the observation of the law , according to the proper intention of the law-giver therein , though with hazard of estate , liberty , or even life it self with a great tendency to the public good , and in the preservation of church or common-weath in safety , peace , and order , then the preventing of the aforesaid hazards , or other evil consequents , by doing otherwise then the law requireth , can have , or ( which cometh to one ) if the violating of the law shall then appear to be more prejudicial to the public good then preservation of the subjects estates , liberty , or life , can be beneficial thereunto ; in such case the subject is bound to hazard all he hath , and to undergo whatsoever inconveniencies or calamities can ensue thereupon , rather than violate the law with contempt of that authority , to which he oweth subjection . but if it shall after such comparison be made , evidently ( or , but more probably then the contrary ) appear , that the preservation of such a persons life , liberty , or estate , would more benefit the church or common-wealth , than the punctual observation of the law at that time , and with those circumstances , would do , it were an unreasonable and pernicious scrupulosity for such a person to think himself in that case obliged for the observing of the law , perhaps but once or twice , with little or no benefit to the public , to ruine himself , thereby to render himself unuseful and unserviceable to the public for ever after . to bring this discourse home , and to apply it to the business under dispute , suppose , ten , twenty , or an hundred godly ministers well affected to the established liturgy , and actually possessed of benefices , with the charge of souls thereto belonging , should think themselves in conscience obliged to use the whole form of the book , as it is by the act appointed , without any addition , omission , or alteration whatsoever , ( and should notwithstanding the present conjuncture of affairs ) resolve to use the same accordingly . it would be well considered , what the effects and consequents thereof would be . besides other evils , these three are visible , which must all unavoidably follow one another ; if any body shall be found ( as doubtless within short time there will be found one or other ) to inform and prosecute against them : 1. the undoing of so many worthy persons fit to do god and the church service , together with all the other persons that depend upon them for livelihood , by putting the fruits of their benefices , wherewith they should buy themselves bread , under sequestration . 2. the depriving those persons of the opportunities of discharging the duties that belong unto them in their ministerial callings , in not permitting them after sequestration to teach or instruct the people belonging to their charge , or to exercise any thing of their function publickly in the church . 3. the delivering over the sheep of christ , that lately were under the hands of faithful shephards , into the custody of ravening wolves , when such guides shall be set over their several congregations , as will be sure to mis-teach them one way or other , viz. either by instilling into them puritanical and superstitious principles , that they may the more securely exercise their presbyterian tyranny over their judgments , consciences , persons and estates ; or else by setting up new lights before them , to lead them into a maze of anabaptistical confusion and frenzy . these consequences are so heavy to the sufferers , so certain to insue upon the use of common prayer , and so much without the power of the law-giver ( in this state of affairs ) either to remedy or prevent , that it is beyond the wit of man to imagine , what benefit to the public can accrue by the strict observation of the act , can in any proportion countervail these mischiefs . in which case that man must needs suppose a strange austerity in the law-giver , that dare not presume of his consent to disoblige him for the time from observing the same . it would be also well considered , whether he that by his over nice scrupulosity runsall these hazards be notin some measure guilty of his own undoing , of deserting his station and betraying his slock , and do not thereby lose much of his comfort which a christian confessor may take in his sufferings , when they are laid upon him by the hand of god , not pulled upon himself by his own hands . and more i shall not need to say as to the first objection . scandal . object . ii. the next thing objected is the danger of the scandal , that others might be ready to take at the example , who seeing the law so little regarded by such men , ( men that have care of souls , and perhaps also of some eminency and esteem in the church , and whose example will be much looked upon , ) will be easily encouraged by their example to set light by all authority , and to take liberty to obey and disobey the laws of their sovereign at their pleasure . but this objection after we are satisfied well concerning the former , need not much trouble us : for , 1. it seemeth a very reasonable thing in cases of great exigency ( such as we now suppose that the fear of scandalizing our weak brethren ( which is but debitum charitatis only ) would lay upon us a peremptory necessity of serving the law punctually , whatsoever inconveniencies or mischiefs may ensue thereupon ; whereas the duty of obedience to our known governors ( which is debitum justitiae also , and therefore more obligatory than the other ) doth not impose upon us that necessity , as hath been already shewn . 2. besides arguments drawn from scandal in things neither unlawful , nor ( setting the reason of scandal aside ) inexpedient , as they are subject to sundry frailties otherwise , so are they manifestly of no weight at all when they are counterpoised with the apparent danger of evil consequents on the other side : for in such cases there is commonly equal danger ( if not rather sometimes more ) of scandal to be taken from the example the quite contrary way . we may see it in the debating the point now in hand : it is alledged on the one side , that by laying aside the use of common prayer , men , who are not over scrupulous will be incourag'd to take a greater liberty in dispensing with the laws ( to the despising both of laws and governors ) than they ought . and why may it not be by the same reason alledged on the other side , that by holding up a necessity of using common prayer , men , who have tender consciences , may be induced to entertain scruples ( to their own undoing and the destruction of their people ) when they need not ? 3. but then in the third place , which cometh up home to the business in hand , and taketh off the objection clearly , is this , that in judging cases of scandal we are not to look so much after the event , what it is , or may be , as at the cause whence it cometh ; for sometimes there is given just cause of scandal , and yet no scandal followeth , because it is not taken ; sometimes scandal is taken , and yet no just cause given ; and sometimes there is both cause of scandal given , and scandal thereat taken . but no man is concerned in any scandal that happeneth to another by occasion of any thing done by him , neither is chargeable with it farther , then he is guilty of having given it . if then we give scandal to others and they take it not , the whole guilt is ours , and they are faultless ; if we give it , and they take it , we are to bear a share in the blame as well as they , and that a deeper share too ( va homini , wo to the man by whom the offence cometh , matth. 18. 7. ) but if they take offence , when we give none , it is a thing we cannot help , and therefore the whole blame must lie upon them . wherefore if at any time the doubt shall arise in the case of scandal , how far forth the danger may , or may not oblige us to the doing or not doing of any thing proposed , the resolution will come on much the easier , if we shall but rightly understand what it is to give scandal , or how many ways a man may become guilty of scandalizing another by his example . the ways , as i conceive , are but these four . 1. the first is when a man doth something before another man , which is in it self evil , unlawful and sinful . in which case neither the intention of him that doth it , nor the event as to him that seeth it done , is of any consideration , for it mattereth not , whether the doer hath an intention to draw the other unto sin thereby or not ; neither doth it matter , whether the other were thereby induced to commit sin or not : the very matter and substance of the action , being evil and done before others is sufficient to render the doer guilty of having given scandal , though neither he had any intention himself so to do , nor was any other person actually scandalized thereby : because whatsoever is in it self and in its own nature evil , is also of it self and in its own nature scandalous , and of ill example . thus did hophni and phineas the sons of eli give scandal by their wicked prophaness , and greediness about the sacrifices of the lord , and their vile and shameless abusing the women , 1 sam. 2. 17 , 22. and so did david also give great scandal in the matter of uriah , 2 sam. 12. 14. here the rule is , do nothing that is evil for fear of giving scandal . 2. the second way is , when a man doth something before another with a direct intention and formal purpose of drawing him thereby to commit sin ; in which case neither the matter of the action , nor the event is of any consideration ; for it maketh no difference ( as to the sin of giving scandal ) whether any man be effectually enticed thereby to commit sin or not ; neither doth it make any difference whether the thing done were in it self unlawful or not , so as it had but an appearance of evil and from thence an aptitude to draw another to the doing of that ( by imitation ) which should be really and intrinsecally evil : the wicked intention alone , whatsoever the effect should be , or what means soever should be used to promote it , sufficeth to induce the guilt of giving scandal upon the doer ; this was jeroboam's sin in setting up the calves with a formal purpose and intention thereby ( for his own secular and ambitious ends ) to corrupt the purity of religion , and to draw the people to an idolatrous worship ; for which cause he is so often stigmatized with it as with a note of infamy , to stick by him whilst the world lasteth , being scarce ever mentioned in the scripture , but with this addition , jeroboam the son of nebat , which made israel to sin . here the rule is , do nothing , good or evil , with an intention to give scandal . 3. the third way is , when a man doth something before another , which in it self is not evil , but indifferent , and so according to the rule of christian liberty lawful for him to do or not do , as he shall see cause ( yea , and perhaps otherwise commodious and convenient for him to do ) yet whereat he probably foreseeth the other will take scandal , and be occasioned thereby to do evil . in such case if the thing to be done be not in some degree ( prudentially ) necessary for him to do ; but that he might without very great inconvenience or prejudice to himself , or any third person leave it undone , he is bound in charity and compassion to his brother's soul ( for whom christ died ) and for the avoiding of scandal to abridge himself in the exercise of his christian liberty for that time , so far , as rather to suffer some inconvenience himself by the not doing of it , than by the doing of it to cause his brother to offend . the very case which is so often , so largely , and so earnestly insisted upon by st. paul , see rom. 14. 13 , 21. rom. 15. 1. 3. 1 cor. 8. 17 , 13. 1 cor. 9. 12 , 15 , 19 , 22. 1 cor. 10. 23 , 33. here the rule is , do nothing that may easily be forborn , whereat scandal will be taken . 4. the last way is , when a man doth something before another , which is not only lawful , but ( according to the exigencies of present circumstances , pro hic & nunc ) very behoveful and even ( prudentially ) necessary for him to do ; but foreseeth , that the other will be very like to make ill use of it , and take incouragement thereby to commit sin , if he be not withal exceeding careful , as much as possibly in him lieth , to prevent that scandal that might be taken thereat . for , qui non prohibet peccare cum potest , jubet . in such case the bare neglect of his brother , and not using his uttermost indeavour to prevent the evil that might ensue maketh him guilty . upon which consideration standeth the equity of that judicial law given to the jews , exod. 21 ▪ 33 , 34. which ordereth ; that in case a man dig a pit or well for the use of his family , and looking no further than his own conveniency , puts no cover upon it , but leaves it open , whereby it happeneth his neighbours beast to fall thereinto and perish , the owner of the pit is to make it good , inasmuch as he was the occasioner of that loss to his neighbour , which he might and ought to have prevented . here the rule is , order the doing of that which may not well be left undone , in such sort , that no scandal ( so far as you can help it ) may be taken thereat . to apply this . the thing now under debate ( viz. the action proposed to present enquiry ) is the laying aside the common-prayer book enjoyned by law , and using instead thereof some other form of church-service of our own devising ; and the enquiry concerning it is , whether it may be done with a good conscience in regard of the scandal , that was given , or ( at least ) may be taken thereat . yea , or no ? now forasmuch as in this enquiry we take it for granted , that the thing to be done is not in its own nature and simply evil , but rather ( in this state of affairs ) prudentially necessary , and that they who make scruple at it upon the point of scandal have not the least intention of drawing either the laws into contempt , or the brethren into sin by their example . it is manifest that three of the now mentioned cases , with the several rules to each of them appending , are not pertinent to the present enquiry . but since the last of the four only proveth to be our case , we have no more to do , for the setling our judgments , the quieting our consciences ▪ and the regulating our practice in this affair , than to consider well , what the rule in that case given obligeth us unto : which is , not to leave the action undone for the danger of scandal , which , besides the inconveniences formerly mentioned , would but start new questions , and those beget more to the multiplying of unnecessary scruples in infinitum : but to order the doing of it so , that ( if it were possible ) no scandal might at all ensue thereupon , or at least not by our default , through our careless or indiscreet managery thereof ; even as the jew that stood in need to sink a pit for the service of his house or grounds , was not ( for fear his neighbours beast should fall into it and be drowned ) bound by the law to forbear the making of it , but only to provide a sufficient cover for it when he had made it . the thing then in this case is not to be left undone , when it so much behoveth us to do it , but the action to be carried on ( for the manner of doing , and in all respects and circumstances threunto belonging ) with so much clearness , tenderness , moderation , and wisdom ( to our best understanding ) that the necessity of so doing , with the true cause thereof , may appear to the world , to the satisfaction of those who are willing to take notice of it , and that such persons as would be willing to make use of our example to do the same thing , where there is not the like cause of necessity , may do it upon their own score , and not be able to vouch our practice for their excuse : which how it may best be done for particular directions , every charitable and conscientious man must ask his own discretion ; some general hints , tending thereunto , i shall lay down in answering the next objection ( where they will fall in again not improperly ) and so stop two gaps with one bush. schism . object . iii. the last objection is that of schism . the objectors hold all such persons , as have opposed either against liturgy or church government , as they were by law established , within the realm for no better than schismaticks : and truely i shall not much gainsay it . but then they argue , that for them to do the same thing in the public worship of god , that schismaticks do , and for the doing whereof especially it is that they justly account them schismaticks , would ( as they conceive ) involve them in the schism also , as partakers thereof in some degree with the other : and their consciences also would from rom. 14. 22. condemn them , either of hypocrisie in allowing that in themselves and in their own practice which they condemn in others , or of uncharitableness in judging others for schismaticks for doing but the same thing which they can allow themselves to practise ; for all that such persons , as they call schismaticks , do in this matter of the church service , is but to leave out the churches prayers , and to put in their own : or , say this should not make them really guilty of the schism they detest , yet would such their symbolizing with them seem ( at least ) a kind of an unworthy compliance with them more than could well become the simplicity of a christian , much less of a minister of the gospel , whose duty it is to shun even the least appearance of evil , i thes. 5. besides , that by so doing they should but confirm these men in their schismatical principles and practice . this objection hath three branches ; to the first whereof i oppose the old saying , duo cùm faciunt idem non est idem : which although spoken quite to another purpose , yet is capable of such a sense as will very well fit our present purpose also . i answer therefore in short ; that to do the same thing that schismaticks do ( especially in times of confusion , and until things can be reduced into better order , and when we are necessitated thereunto to prevent greater mischiefs ) doth not necessarily infer a partaking with them in schism ; no , nor so much as probably , unless it may appear upon probable presumptions otherwise , that it is done out of the same schismatical spirit , and upon such schismatical principles as theirs are . the other two branches , viz. that of seeming compliance with schismaticks , and that of the ill use they make of it to confirm them in their schism , do upon the matter fall in upon the aforesaid point of scandal , and are in effect but the same objection only put into a new dress , and so have received their answer already . and the only remedy against these fears ( as well that of scandal , as this of schism ) is the same which is there prescribed , even to give assurance to all men by our carriage and behaviour therein , that we do not lay aside common-prayer of our own accord , or out of any dislike thereof , neither in contempt of lawful governors , or of the laws , nor out of any base compliance with the times , or other unworthy secular self ends , nor out of any schismatical principle , seditious design , or innovating humour ; but meerly inforced thereunto , by such necessity as we cannot otherwise avoid , in order to the glory of god and the public good , for the preservation of our families , our flocks , and our functions , and that with the good leave and allowance ( as we have great reason to believe ) of such as have power to dispense with us and the laws in that behalf . this if we shall do , bona fide , and with our utmost indeavours , in singleness of heart , and with godly intention , perhaps it will not be enough to prevent either the censures of inconsiderate and inconsiderable persons , or the ill use may be made of our example through ignorance of some , scandalum pusill rum ; or through the perversness and malice of other some , scandalum pharisaeorum , as the schools term them . but assuredly it will be sufficient in the sight of god , and in the witness of our own hearts , and to the consciences of considering and charitable men , to acquit us clearly of all guilt , either of scandal or schism in the least degree . which we may probably do by observing these ensuing , and such other like , general directions , ( the liberty of using such meet accommodations , as the circumstances and in particular cases shall require evermore allowed and reserved ) viz. 1. if we shall decline the company and society of known schismaticks , not conversing frequently and familiarly with them , or more than the necessary affairs of life , and the rules of neighbourhood and common civility will require ; especially not to give countenance to the church-assemblies , by our presence among them , if we can avoid it . 2. if we shall retain as well in our common discourse , as in our sermons , and the holy offices of the church , the old theological and ecclesiastical terms and forms of speech , which have been generally received , and used in the churches of christ , which our people are well acquainted with , and are wholsom and significant : and not follow our new masters in that uncouth affected garb of speech or canting language rather ( if i may so call it ) which they have of late time taken up , as the signal , distinctive , and characteristical note of that which in their own language they call the godly party or communion of saints . 3. if in officiating we repeat not only the lords prayer , the creed , the ten commandments , and such other passages in the common-prayer-book , as ( being the very words of scripture ) no man can except against , but so much also of the old liturgy besides , in the very words and syllables in the book , as we think , the ministers of state in those parts where we live will suffer , and the auditory before whom we officiate will bear ; sith the officers in all parts of the land are not alike strict ▪ nor the people in all parishes not alike disaffected in this respect . 4. if where we must of necessity vary from the words , we yet follow the order of the book in the main parts of the holy offices , retaining the substance of the prayers , and imbellishing those of our own making , which we substitute into the place of those we leave out , with phrases and passages taken out of the book in other places . 5. if where we cannot safely mention the particulars expressed in the book , as namely , in praying for the king , the queen , the royal progeny , and the bishops , we shall yet use in our prayers some such general terms , and other intimations devised for the purpose , as may sufficiently convey to the understandings of the people , what our intentions are therein , and yet not be sufficient to fetch us within the compass of the ordinance . 6. if we shall in our sermons take occasion now and then , where it may be pertinent , either to discover the weakness of the puritan principles and tenents , to the people ; or to shew out of some passages and expressions in the common-prayer-book , the consonancy of those observations we have raised from the text , with the judgment of the church of england , or to justifie such particular passages , in the letany , collects and other parts of our liturgy , as have been unjustly quarrelled at , by presbyterians , independents , anabaptists , or other ( by what name or title soever they be called ) puritan sectaries . thus have i freely acquainted you both with my practice and judgment in the point proposed in your friends letter ; how i shall be able to satisfie his or your judgment in what i have written , i know not : however , i have satisfied both your desire and his in writing and shall rest , your brother and servant in the lord , novemb. 2. 1652. finis . notes, typically marginal, from the original text notes for div a61980-e2290 a votum soli deo fit , sed promissio potest fieri etiam homini . aquit , 2. 2. q. 88. 5. ad 3. b promissio deo facta est essentia voti . ibid. c psal. 76. 11. d num. 21. 2. judg. 11. 30. 1 sam. 11. 25. e judg. 11. 36. psal. 56. 11. f sponsio quâ obligamur deo. cic. 2. leg. a jurare nihll est aliud quàm deum testem invocare . aq. 2. 2. qu. 89. 1. ex aug. de ver . apost . serm. r. 28. quod affirmas , si deo teste promiseris , id tenendum est , cic. 3. de offic . b gen. 31. 50. judges 11. 10. mal. 2. 14. c rom. 1. 9. 1 thes. 1. 5. d 1 cor. 1. 23. phil. 1. 28. 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 . a rom. 7. 2. b rom. 7. 2. c 1 cor. 7. 4. d num. 30. 3. b quod initio vitiosum est , non potest tractu temporis convalescere , l. 29. f. de reg. ju . div. c in stipulationibus id tempus spectatur quo contrahi●us . i. , 18. f. eodem . a rom. 7. 23. b vota uxorum vel servorum exequenda illo tempore quo fuerint sui juris , mariti vel domini non possunt irritare . nav. man. num. 65. & alios . a mat. 5. 28. b prov. 5. 18. eccles. 9. 9. c prov. 5. 19. b josh 9. 14 , &c. c ibid. ver . 19. 2 sam. 21. 1 , ● . notes for div a61980-e22470 senec. 1. d● clem. 24. the first part of the cases of conscience wherein specially, three maine questions concerning man, simply considered in himselfe, are propounded and resolued, according to the word of god. taught and deliuered, by m. william perkins in his holy-day lectures, by himselfe revised before his death, and now published for the benefit of the church. cases of conscience. part 1 perkins, william, 1558-1602. 1604 approx. 281 kb of xml-encoded text transcribed from 100 1-bit group-iv tiff page images. text creation partnership, ann arbor, mi ; oxford (uk) : 2004-11 (eebo-tcp phase 1). a09364 stc 19668 estc s114413 99849638 99849638 14798 this keyboarded and encoded edition of the work described above is co-owned by the institutions providing financial support to the early english books online text creation partnership. this phase i text is available for reuse, according to the terms of creative commons 0 1.0 universal . the text can be copied, modified, distributed and performed, even for commercial purposes, all without asking permission. early english books online. (eebo-tcp ; phase 1, no. a09364) transcribed from: (early english books online ; image set 14798) images scanned from microfilm: (early english books, 1475-1640 ; 1327:2) the first part of the cases of conscience wherein specially, three maine questions concerning man, simply considered in himselfe, are propounded and resolued, according to the word of god. taught and deliuered, by m. william perkins in his holy-day lectures, by himselfe revised before his death, and now published for the benefit of the church. cases of conscience. part 1 perkins, william, 1558-1602. pickering, thomas, d. 1625. [16], 183, [1] p. printed by iohn legat, printer to the vniversitie of cambridge. 1604. and are to be sold in pauls church-yard at the signe of the crowne by simon waterson, [cambridge] : [1604] editor's dedication signed: tho. pickering. reproduction of the original in cambridge university library. created by converting tcp files to tei p5 using tcp2tei.xsl, tei @ oxford. re-processed by university of nebraska-lincoln and northwestern, with changes to facilitate morpho-syntactic tagging. gap elements of known extent have been transformed into placeholder characters or elements to simplify the filling in of gaps by user contributors. eebo-tcp is a partnership between the universities of michigan and oxford and the publisher proquest to create accurately transcribed and encoded texts based on the image sets published by proquest via their early english books online (eebo) database (http://eebo.chadwyck.com). the general aim of eebo-tcp is to encode one copy (usually the first edition) 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page images 2004-08 judith siefring sampled and proofread 2004-08 judith siefring text and markup reviewed and edited 2004-10 pfs batch review (qc) and xml conversion the first part of the cases of conscience . wherein specially , three maine questions concerning man , simply considered in himselfe , are propounded and resolued , according to the word of god. taught and deliuered , by m. william perkins in his holy-day lectures , by himselfe revised before his death , and now published for the benefit of the church . printed by iohn legat , printer to the vniversitie of cambridge . 1604 and are to be sold in pauls church-yard at the signe of the crowne by simon waterson . to the right worshipfull sir edward denny , knight . there is no one doctrine reuealed in the word of god , or dispensed by the prophets and apostles , of greater vse and consequence in the life of man , then is that , which prescribeth a forme of releeuing and rectifying the conscience . the benefit , which from hence issueth vnto the church of god , is vnspeakable . for first , it serueth to discouer the cure of the dangerousest sore that can be , the wound of the spirit . which how great a crosse it is , the wise man reporteth out of true experience , when he saith , that the spirit of a man will sustaine his infirmitie , but a wounded spirit who can beare it ? and his meaning is , that no outward griefe , can fall into the nature of man , which will not be with patience indured , to the vtmost , so long as the minde is not troubled , or dismayed . but when once the spirit is touched , and the heart , ( which , beeing well apa●ed , is the very foūtaine of peace to the whole man , ) smitten with feare of the wrath of god for sinne ; the griefe is so great , the burden intolerable , that it will not by any outward meanes , be eased or asswaged . secondly , it giueth for all particular cases , special and sound direction ; whether man be to walke with god , in the immediate performance of the duties of his seruice , or to conuerse with man according to the state and condition of his life , in the familie , in the church , or in the common-wealth . the want of which direction , of what force it is , to turne the actions of men , which are good in themselues , to sinnes in regard of the agents , s. paul affirmeth in that generall conclusion , whatsoeuer is not of faith , is sinne . wherein he would teach vs , that whatsoeuer is done , or vndertaken by men in this life , whether it concerne the knowledge and worship of god , or any particular dutie to be performed , by vertue of their callings , for the common good ; whereof they haue not sufficient warrant , and assurance in conscience , grounded vpon the word , that it is to be don , or not to be done ; to them it is a sinne . thirdly , it is of all other doctrines , ( if it be rightly vsed ) the most comfortable . for it is not founded in the opinions , & variable conceits of men , neither doth it consist , of conclusions and positions , that are onely probable and coniecturall : ( for the conscience of the doubting or distressed partie , cannot be established and rectified by them : ) but it resteth vpon most sufficient and certaine grounds , collected & drawne out of the very word of god , which , as it is mightie in operation , ●earcing the heart , and discerning the thoughts and intents thereof , so is it alone auaileable and effectuall to pacific the minde , and to giue full satisfaction to the conscience . and as the benefit is great ; so the want of this doctrine , together with the true manner of applying the same , is , and hath beene the cause , of many and great inconueniences . for euen of those that feare god , and haue receiued to beleeue , there be many , who in the time of their distresses , when they haue considered , the waight and desert of their sinnes , and withall apprehended the wrath of god , due vnto them ; haue beene brought vnto hard exigents , mourning , and wayling , and crying out , as if god had forsaken them , vntill they haue beene releeued by the spirit of christ , in the meditation of the word , and promise of god. but those especially , who haue not beene instructed in the knowledge of the truth , nor beene acquainted with the course of gods dealing , with his distressed children , by reason of ignorance and blindnes , in matters of religion and pietie , when the lord hath let loose the cord of their consciences , and set before their eyes , both the number of their sinnes committed , and the iust anger of god purchased thereby , what haue they done ? surely despairing of their owne estates , and of the mercie of god , they haue either growne to phrensie , and madnes , or els sorted vnto themselues fearefull ends , some by hanging , some by drowning , others by murthering their owne selues . and if not in regard of griefe and trouble of minde ; yet for want of better resolution in particular cases , within the compasse of their generall or personall callings , though otherwise , men indued with some measure of knowledge and obedience , herein they haue failed , that they haue either abused , or els quite relinquished & forsaken their callings , and thereby haue become scandalous , & offēsiue vnto others . now as this is a matter of great waight & importance , so is it most meete , that the best and fittest course should be taken , in the teaching and inforcing of the same . in which regard we haue iust cause , to challenge the popish church , who in their case-writings haue erred , both in the substance and circumstances of this doctrine , as shall appeare in the sequele . first , because the dutie of releeuing the conscience , is by them commended to the sacrificing priest , which , though according to their owne canons a he should be a man of knowledge , and free from imputation of wickednes , yet oft times it falls out that he is either vnlearned , or els wicked and leud of conuersation , and consequently vnfit for such a purpose . secondly , they teach that their priests appointed to be comforters & releeuers of the distressed , are made by christ himselfe b iudges of the cases of conscience , hauing in their owne hands a iudiciarie power and authoritie , truly and properly to binde or to loose , to remit or to retaine sinnes , to open or to shut the kingdome of heauen . a blasphemous doctrine . considering that christ onely hath the keyes of dauid , which properly and truly openeth , and no man shutteth , and properly and truly shutteth , & no man openeth . and the ministers of god , are not called to be absolute iudges of the cōscience , but only messēgers & embassadors of recōciliatiō ; wherupon it followeth , that they cānot be c the authors and giuers of remission of sinnes , but onely the ministers and dispensers of i●●e same . thirdly , the papists in their writings haue scattered here and there , sundrie false and erronious grounds of doctrine , much preiudiciall to the direction or resolution of the conscience in time of neede , as namely , i. that a man in the course of his life , may build himselfe vpon the faith of his teachers , and for his saluation rest contented with an implicite & vn-expressed faith . which doctrine , as it is an onely meane , to keepe men in perpetuall blindnes and ignorance , so it serueth to no other purpose in the time of temptation , but to plunge the heart of man into the pitte of despaire , it being vncapable of comfort , for want of knowledge and vnderstanding of the word and promise of god. ii. that euery man ought to stand in feare and doubt of the pardon of his sinnes , and that no man can be assured by the certentie of faith , either of the present fauour of god , or of his owne saluation . true it is , that in respect of our owne vnworthines and indisposition , we haue iust cause , not onely to doubt and feare , but to despaire and be confounded before the iudgement seat of god. yet that a man should not be certainely resolued by faith of the mercie of god , in and for the merit of christ , is a comfortlesse doctrine to a distressed soule , and contrarie vnto the sauing a word of the gospel , which teacheth , that certentie floweth from the nature of faith , and not doubting . iii. that every man is bound in conscience vpon paine of damnation , to make speciall confession of his mortall sinnes , with all the particular circumstances thereof , once euery yeare to his priest. this doctrine and practise , besides that it hath no warrant of sacred writte , nor yet any ground of orthodoxe antiquitie , for 800 yeares more or lesse after christ i● maketh notably to the disturbing of the peace of conscience ▪ in time of extremitie , considering that it is impossible either to vnderstand or remember all , many beeing vnknowne , and hidden and the minde beeing informed that forgiuenesse dependeth vpon such an enumeration ▪ may thus be brought into doubt and distrust , and will not be able to rest by faith in the sole mercie of god , the onely soueraigne medicine of the soule . againe , the griefe of the minde , doth not alwaies arise from all the sinnes that a man hath committed , neither doth the lord se● before the sinners eies , whatsoeuer euill hath bin done by him ▪ but some one or more particulars ; and these are they , that doe lie heauie vpon the heart and to be eased of them , will be worke enough ▪ though ●e doth not exhibite vnto the confessour ▪ a catalogue of all the rest . iv. that some sinnes are veniall , because they are only besides the lawe of god not against it and because a they ●in●●●uer the sinner onely to temporal , and not to eternall punishments . this conclusion , first is false ; for though it be graunted that some offences are greater , some lesser some in an higher degree , others in a lower : againe , that sinnes in regard of the euent , beeing repented of , or in respect of the person sinning , beeing in christ , and therfore accounted iust , are pardonable , because they are not imputed to condemnation ; yet there is no sin of what degree soeuer , which is not simply , and of it selfe mortall , whether we respect the nature of the sinne , or the measure & proportion of diuine iustice . for in nature it is an anomie , that is to say , an aberration from the perfect rule of righteousnesse , and therefore is subiect to the curse , both of temporary and eternall death . it is an offence against the highest maiestie , and consequently , man standeth by it ingaged to euerlasting torment . secondly , it is a weake and insufficient ground of resolution , vnto a troubled conscience . for whereas true and sauing ioy is the daughter of sorrowe , and the heart of man cannot be lifted vp , in assurance of gods fauour , to the apprehension and conceipt of heauenly comforts , vnlesse it be first abased , & by true humiliatiō , brought to nothing in it self . the remembrance of this , that the offence committed is veniall , may in some cases too much inlarge the heart , and giue occasion to presume , when haply there will be reason to the contrary . and if not that yet in the case of falling by infirmitie , after grace receiued , the mind beeing forestalled with this erronious conceipt , that the sin is lesse , then it is indeede , because veniall , may in the issue be lesse quieted , and more perplexed . v. that a man may satisfie the iustice of the god , for the temporall punishment of his sinnes committed . to omit the vntrueth of this position , howe it maketh to the easing of the heart , or the asswaging of the griefe of minde in temptation , i appeale to common experience . for when a man , beeing assured of the pardon of his sinnes , shall yet cōsider , that there is something more behind to be done on his part , how can he in probabilitie , rely himselfe wholly vpon christs satisfaction ? how can he reape vnto himselfe frō thence any assurance of reconciliation to god , whome he formerly offended ? if we may and must doe something in our own persons , whereby to appease the wrath of god , why hath our sauiour taught vs for our hearts releife , wholly and onely to make the plea of pardon for our sinnes ? true it is indeede , that popish confessors doe teach their penitents , when they feele the wrath of god vpon them for sin , to stop the mouth of conscience , by performance of a formall humiliation and repentance , yea to offer vnto god some ceremoniall duties in way of satisfaction . but when sorrow seazeth vpon the soule , and the man falls into temptation , then it will appeare that these directions were not currant ; for notwithstanding them , he may want sound comfort in gods mercy , and run into despaire without recouerie . and for this cause , vpon experience it hath bin prooued , that euen papists themselues , in the houre of death , haue bin content to renounce their owne workes , yea the whole body of humane satifactions , and to cleaue onely to the mercie of god in christ for their saluation . by these instances , and many more that might be alleadged to this purpose , it is apparent , vpon how weake and vnstable grounds the case-diuinitie of the popish church standeth ; and how indirect a course they take , for the resolution and direction of the troubled conscience . now by the benefit & abuse of this doctrine , we see how necessary it is , that in churches which professe christian religion , it should be more taught , & further inlarged then it is . and to this purpose it were to be wished , that men of knowledge in the ministerie , that haue by the grace of god attained vnto the tongue of the learned , would imploy their paines this way : not onely in searching into the depth of such points as stand in bare speculation , but in annexing thereunto the grounds and conclusions of practise , whereby they might both informe the iudgement , and rectifie the conscience of the hearers . by this meanes it would come to passe , that the poore distressed soule might be releeued , pietie and deuotion more practized , the kingdome of sinne , satan , and antichrist weakened , & impayred , & the contrarie kingdome of christ iesus more & more established . what the author & cōtriuer of the discourse ensuing hath done in this behalfe , it is euident by the whole course of his writings , that he hath left behinde him : all which , as they doe openly shew vnto the world , howe great a measure of knowledge & vnderstanding , with other endowmēts both of nature and grace , the lord had inriched him withall , so doe they carrie with thē the sweet sauour of pietie and sanctification , wherewith he approued his heart vnto god , & his life vnto mē . wherin also vpō occasion he hath propounded , and explained sundrie notable rules of directiō & resolution of the conscience , as wil appeare to the view of the learned and well-aduised reader . to let passe all the rest : this present worke doth affoard very sufficient testimonie , of his knowledge and dexteritie in that kind , attained vnto , not without great paines , much obseruation , and long experience . a labour which commendeth it selfe vnto the church of god in two respects principally . one , because his grounds and principles , whereupon he giues direction , are drawne either directly , or by iust consequēce out of the writtē word , & so are of greater force , to giue satisfaction to the mind , either doubting , or distressed . the other , for that it is deliuered with such perspicuitie , and disposed in such order and methode , as fitteth best for the vnderstanding and memorie , of him that shall peruse it . now this whole treatise of the questions , i haue made bold to present vnto your worship , and to publish abroad vnder your patronage and protection , as one to whome they doe iustly belōg . first , because god , who honoureth those that honour him , hath adorned you , not onely with ciuill authoritie and dignitie in the commonwealth , but with the honourable name of a friend to the church of god ; a thing directly confirmed by your vnfained loue of the truth , and your continuall fauours to the teachers of the same , the ministers and dispensers of the gospel . secondly , because as the author of these cases , was himself in many respects , bound vnto you , while he liued ; so his wife and children for his sake , haue receiued much kindnes at your hands , since his death ; a manifest proofe of the truth and sinceritie of your affection towardes him in the lord. and in the last place , it was my desire , by setting forth this and the other two parts that shall follow , vnder your name , to giue some testimonie of dutie to your worship , presuming that as you loued the author , so you wil be pleased to patronize the worke , and fauourably to interpret , of the paines and good intention of the publisher . and so ceasing your further trouble , i humbly take my leaue , and commend your worship to the grace and fauour of god in christ. from emanuel colledge in cambridge . iun. 28. 1604. your w. in all dutie to command , tho. pickering . to the godly and well affected reader whosoeuer . it was not my purpose , ( christian reader ) at the first to haue sent abroad onely one part of the cases of conscience , without the rest ; but that i was mooued thereunto , partly vpon the importunitie of some of the authors friends , and partly because i desired to satisfie thy expectation in a thing , which i perswade my selfe hath beene long expected . upon which two motiues , i haue now commended vnto thee this first part , promising by the grace of god , ere it be long , to adde the second , and the third , so farre as the author proceeded in this treatise before his death . and although i could haue wished , this labour had beene vndertaken by others , better able to performe it then my selfe ; yet beeing well acquainted with the copie , which is mine owne , and knowing it to haue bin perused by the author himselfe , before his death , i was the more incouraged , to bestow my paines for thy good in that behalfe . if in reading thereof thou finde , either any thing amisse , or thy selfe not fully satisfied in the particulars ; then remember that the author himselfe is gone , who might haue brought the worke to perfection , if god had pleased to prolong his daies vpon the earth . and withall consider , that it were better for thee , to accept of these his labours , as they are now imparted to thee , then by the suppressing of them to be depriued of so great a benefit . and thus hoping of thy kinde acceptance of my paines for thy behoofe , i commend thee to god , and to the word of his grace . iune 28. 1604. t. p. faults escaped in the printing . after page 38. read for 27 , 29. places false quoted correct thus : read , pag. 60. for iam. 2. 20. iam. 2. 10. p. 70. for col. 3. 26 , col. 3. 3 , 4. read pag. 8. lin . 24. for actonis , actions . p. 12. 25. for ptesent , present , p. 29. for yets o , yet so . p. 37. 22. for it a , it is a. p. 38 , 4. for bonds , bos●ds . p. 49. 9. come to the answer . p. 74. 5. for of sence , offence . p. 92. 3. for conforting , comforting . p. 80. pe●ult . for vaine , veine . p. 82. 1. for finn● . sinne . p. 105. 1. for print , present . p. ●ad . 10. thorgh but once . p. 108. 6. which shall be laid , &c. p. 152. 17. for yncleate , vncleate . p. 154. 19. marke the words . p. 157. 1. for mighe , might . p. 160. 12. for apprenhendeth , apprehendeth . p. 161. 22. for consceence , conscience . p. 162. 1. for diuihe , diuine . p. 165. 17. for decre , deare . p. 169. 24. for faults , falles . the contents of the booke . i. the grounds or preambles ▪ foure . 1. priuate confession . pag . 5. 2. the degrees of goodnesse in things and actions . 6. 3. the nature and differences of sinne. 9. 4. the subiection and power of conscience . 43. ii. the questions of conscience , touching man simply considered in himselfe : three . i. what man must doe that ●e may come into gods fauour and be saued ? answer is , by performance of foure duties . 1. humiliation before god. 50. 2. faith in christ. 55. 3. repentance . 57. 4. newe-obedience . 59. ii. how a man may be in conscience assured of his owne saluation ? 65. answered by 5. te●●s of scripture . 1. rom. 8. 16. 65. 2. psal. 15. 66. 3. the 1. epist. of iohn . 68. 4. 2. tim. 2. 19. 74. 5. 2. pet. 1. 10. 75. iii. how a man beeing in distresse of mind● , may be comforted & releeued ? 76. here. generally ●o●ching all distresses is shewed , 1. what is distresse of minde ? ●7 . 2. the originall and kinds of distresses . 77 , 78. 3. the generall remedie of the● all . 79. specially , the distresses are fiue . i. the distresse arising of the diuine tentation : with the examples , occasions effects , and remedies . 95. &c. ii. the distresses arising of outward afflictions . 106. these are three . 1. deferring of deliuerance . 117. 2. bodily and temporall death . 126. 3. satanicall molestation of persons and places of ●bode . 140. iii. the distresse of minde arising of the tentation of blasphemies : with the meanes , danger , and cure thereof . 148. iv. the distresse of minde arising from a mans owne sinnes , with the degrees and remedie thereof . 158. v. the distresse of minde arising from a mans owne bodie : partly by melancholie , partly by strange alterations in the bodie : with the degrees , effects , and remedies . 173 , &c. finis . isaiah , 50. 4. the lord god hath giuen me a tongue of the learned , that i should knowe , to minister a word in due time , to him that is wearie . in that part of the prophecie which goes before , the holy ghost setteth downe & foretelleth the calling of the gentiles , which was to begin at the death of christ , and from thence to continue vnto this day , and so consequently to the ende of the world . in the former verses of this chapter , there is mention made of the rejection of the iewes ; i meane not a generall , but a particular rejection , namely then , when they were in affliction in the daies of isaiah . now in this , and so in all other prophecies of the like kind , which intreat of this point ; christ himselfe is brought in , speaking in his owne person ; and the words of this chapter from the beginning , to this present verse and the rest that follow , are the words of christ the mediatour . in the verses going before , he disputes the case of their reiection , and the summe of the whole disputation is : that either he or they themselues were the causes thereof ; but he was not the cause , and therefore they themselues by their sinnes . the reason , whereby he prooues that they themselues were the cause , is framed in this sort . you iewes cannot bring any writing or bill of diuorce , to shew that i reiected you : therefore i appeale euen to your owne consciences , whether you haue not brought this iudgement vpon your selues , by your iniquities . vers . 1. on the other side , the reason why god was not the cause is : because he for his part called them in great mercie and loue : but when he called they would not obey . ver . 2. now in the ende of the second verse , is contained an answer to a secret reply , that some obstinate iewe might make after this manner : god hath no● nowe the like power in sauing and deliuering vs , as he hath had in former times : therefore we cannot hope or expect any deliuerance from him , and howe then shall we doe in the meane while ? to this the lord himselfe makes answere , ver . 2 , 3 , 4. that his hand is not shortned , not his power lessened in regard of greater workes , much lesse in respect of their deliuerance ; and though the present affliction which they indured , was great and tedious , yet they were not to be ouermuch dismaied in themselues , but rather to be comforted : because god had giuen him the tongue of the learned , to minister a word in season to the wearie and distressed , and consequently , that he had power to ease & refresh that their wearines and affliction . in this text then , there is set downe one principall dutie of christs propheticall office , by allusion to the practises of the prophets in the olde testament , especially those which belonged to the schooles of elias and elizeus , who are here tearmed , the learned . and out of the words thereof , one speciall point of instruction may be gathered , namely , that there is a certaine knowledge or doctrine reuealed in the word of god , whereby the consciences of the weake may be rectified and pacified . i gather it thus . it was one speciall dutie of christs propheticall office , to giue comfort to the consciences of those that were distressed , as the prophet here recordeth . now as christ had this power to execute and performe such a dutie , so he hath committed the dispensation thereof to the ministers of the gospell . for we may not thinke that christ in his owne person , ministred and spake words of comfort to the wearie , in the times of the prophets , because he was not then exhibited in our nature ; and yet he did then speake , but how ? in the persons of the prophets . so likewise , because christ nowe in the new testament , speaks not vnto the afflicted in his owne proper person , it remaineth therefore , that he performes this great work in the ministerie of pastours and teachers vpon earth , to whome he hath giuen knowledge and other gifts to this ende and purpose . there must needs therefore be a certaine and infallible doctrine , propounded & taught in the scriptures , whereby the consciences of men distressed , may be quieted and releeued . and this doctrine is not attained vnto by extraordinarie reuelation , but must be drawne out of the written word of god. the point therefore to be handled is , what this doctrine should be ? it is not a matter easie and at hand , but full of labour and difficultie : yea very large , like vnto the maine sea : i will onely ( as it were ) walke by the bankes of it , and propound the heads of doctrine , that thereby i may at least occasion others , to consider and handle the same more at large . that i may proceede in order ; first , i am to lay downe certaine grounds or preambles , which may giue light & direction to the things that followe : and in the next place , i will propound and answer the maine & principall questions of conscience . the grounds or preambles are especially foure . the first touching confession . the second touching the degrees of goodnesse in things and actions . the third touching the degrees of sinne. the fourth and last concerning the subiection and power of conscience . of these in order . the first ground is , that in the troubles of conscience , it is meete and conuenient , there should alwaies be vsed a priuate confession . for iames saith , confesse your faults one to another , and pray one for another , thereby signifying that confession in this case , is to be vsed as a thing most requisite . for in all reason , the physitian must first knowe the disease , before he can apply the remedie : and the griefe of the heart will not be discerned , vnlesse it be manifested by the confession of the partie diseased ; and for this cause also in the griefe of conscience , the scruple , that is , the thing that troubleth the conscience must be knowne . neuerthelesse in priuate confession , these caueats must be obserued . first , priuate confession must not be vrged , as a thing simply or absolutely necessarie , without which there can be no saluation . againe , it is not fit that confession should be of all sinnes , but onely of the scruple it selfe , that is , of that or those sinnes alone , which doe trouble and molest the conscience . thirdly , though confession may be made to any kinde of man , ( confesse one to another , saith iames , ) yet is it especially to be made to the prophets and ministers of the gospel . for they in likelyhood of all other men , in respect of their places and gifts , are the fittest and best able to instruct , correct , comfort , and enforme the weake and the wounded conscience . lastly , the person to whome it is made , must be a man of trust and fidelitie , able & willing to keepe secret things that are reueiled , yea to bu●ie them ( as it were ) in the graue of obliuion , for loue couereth amultitude of sinnes . the next ground is touching the degrees of goodnes in humane things and actions . goodnesse in things is twofold ; vncreated , and created . vncreated is god himselfe , who neuer had beginning , and who is goodnesse it selfe , because his nature is absolutely and perfectly good , and because he is the author and worker thereof in all things created . created goodnes is that whereby the creature is made good ; and it is nothing else , but the fruit of that goodnesse that is essentially in god. now the degrees therof are these . there is a generall or naturall goodnesse in creatures , and a more speciall or morall goodnesse . generall goodnesse is that , whereby all creatures are accepted and approoued of god , by whome they were both created and ordained . thus euery creature is good , partly by creation , and partly by ordination . by creation it is , that the substance of each creature , as of the sunne , the moone , the earth , water , meate , drinke , &c. is good , hauing the beeing thereof frō god. hence also the essentiall properties , quantities , qualities , motions , actions and inclinations of the creatures , in themselues considered , with all their euents , are good . by the same generall goodnesse also , euen the deuill himself and his actions , as he is a substance , and as they are actions , hauing their beeing from god , are good . things againe doe take vnto them the condition of goodnesse , not onely by creation , but also by gods ordination , whereby they are directed and appointed , to some certen vses and endes . thus the euil conscience , hel , & death are good , because they are ordained of god , for the execution of his iustice , howsoeuer in themselues and to vs they be euill . besides this generall and naturall goodnesse , there is also a speciall or morall goodnesse properly so called : and it is that , which is agreeable to the eternall and vnchangeable wisdome of god , reuealed in the morall lawe , wherein it is commaunded ; and things as they are therein commanded to be done by god , are good morally . nowe of actions morally good , there be two degrees ; for they are either good in themselues alone , or good both in thēselues and in the doer . in themselues alone some things be morally good ; for example , when a wicked man giues almes , it is a good worke onely in it selfe , but not good in the doer , because it is not done in saith , and from a good conscience ; and so are all the vertues of the heathen , morally good in themselues , but they are not good in heathen mē : for in them they are but o beautifull sinnes . the next degree of goodnesse is , whereby things and actions are both good in thēselues , and in the doer also . of this sort were the praiers & almes of cornelius good in themselues , & in him also , because he was a beleeuer . now opposite to things and actonis morally good or euill , are actions and things of a middle nature , commonly tearmed indifferent , which in themselues beeing neither good nor euill may be done or not done without sinne ; in themselues i say , for in their circumstances , they are and may be made either euill or good . and here we must remember , to put a difference betweene conueniencie , and inconuenience , which ariseth from the nature of indifferent things . conueniencie is , when a thing or action is so fitted to the circumstances , and the circumstances fitted to it that thereby it becomes a thing conuenient . on the otherside , inconuenience is , when the thing or action is done in vnmeete circumstances , which bring some hurt or losse to the outward man , or stand not with decencie : and therefore doe make it to be inconuenient . and by this that hath beene said , we may discerne , when an action is good , euill , indifferent , conuenient , or inconuenient . the third ground , is touching the degrees or differences of sinne. and here we must first of all search , what is sinne properly , and what is properly a sinner . sinne in his proper nature ( as s. iohn saith ) is an anomie , that is , a want of conformitie to the law of god. for the better vnderstanding whereof , we must know , that there were in adam before his fall , three things not to be seuered one from the other : the substance of his bodie and of his soule : the faculties and powers of his bodie and soule : and the image of god consisting in a straightnes , and conformitie of all the affections , and powers of man to gods will. nowe when adam falls , and sinnes against god , what is his sinne ? not the want of the two former , ( for they both remained , ) but the very want , and absence of the third thing , namely , of conformitie to gods will. i make it plaine by this resemblance ; in a musicall instrument , there is to be considered , not onely the instrument it selfe , and the sound of the instrument , but also the harmonie in the sound . nowe the contrarie to harmonie , or the disorder in musicke , is none of the two former , but the third , namely the discord , which is the want or absence of harmonie , which we call disharmonie . in the same manner , the sinne of adam , is not the absence either of the substance , or of the faculties of the soule and the bodie , but the want of the third thing before named , & that is , conformitie , or correspondencie to the will of god , in regard of obedience . but some may say : the want of conformitie in the powers of the soule , is not sinne properly : because in sinne , there must be not onely an absence of goodnesse , but an habite or presence of euill . i answer , that this very want of conformitie , is not onely the absence of goodnesse , but also the habite or presence of euill . for as this want enters in , and is receiued into mans nature , it is properly a want or absence of goodnesse : againe , after it is receiued into the nature of man , it continues and abides in the powers and faculties thereof , and so it caries the name of an habit . it may be said againe , that lust and concupiscence , that is , originall sinne , drawes the heart away from the seruice of god , and entises it to euill . now to entise or drawe away , is an action , and this action cannot proceede of a meere priuation or want . ans. we must consider sinne two waies : first ioyntly with the thing or subiect , in which it is ; secondly by it selfe in his owne nature . if we consider it with his subiect , it is an euill inclination or action , but if we consider it in it owne nature , it is no inclination , or action , but a want . for example : in a murther we must consider two things : one is , the action of moouing the bodie , and of holding vp the weapon , &c. which is no sinne properly , if it be considered as an action : because euery action comes from god , who is the first cause of all things and actions . againe , in murther there is a second thing , namely the killing or slaying of the man , which is the disorder or aberration in the action , whereby it is disposed to a wrong vse and end ; and thus the action is a sinne , namely in respect it wants conformitie to the will of god. the nature then of the sinne lies not in the action , but in the manner of doing the action : and sinne properly is nothing formally subsisting , or existing ( for then god should be the author of it , in as much as he is the creatour and ordainer of euery thing and action , ) but it is an ataxie , or absence of goodnes and vprightnes , in the thing that subsisteth : therefore it is well and truly said in schooles , in sinne there is nothing positiue : but it is a want of that which ought to be , or subsist , partly in the nature of man , and partly in the actions of nature . thus we see what sinne is . the second thing to be considered is , what is a sinner properly ? for the knowledge hereof , we must consider in euery sinne foure things : first , the fault whereby god is offended : then , the guilt which bindeth ouer the conscience vnto punishment : thirdly , the punishment it selfe , which is eternall death . of these three , not the guilt or punishment , but the fault or offence , makes a man a sinner . but here is a further difficultie . whē a man hath committed some offence , and the saide offence is done and past , it may be some twentie or thirtie yeares : yet the partie offending , doth not therefore cease to be a sinner . now then i demaund , what is the very thing , for which he is named and rearmed still a sinner in the time present , the offence beeing past ? the answer is , that euery actuall sinne , beside the three former , must be considered with a fourth thing , to wit , a certaine staine , or blotte , which it imprints and leaues in the offender as a fruite , and that is an inclination , or euill disposition of the heart , whereby it becomes apter or pronener to the offence done , or to any other sinne . for looke as the dropsie man , the more he drinks , the drier he is , and the more he still desires to drinke : euen so a sinner , the more he sinnes , the apter is he to sinne , and more desirous to keepe still a course in wickednesse . and as a man that lookes vpon the sunne , if he turne his face away , remaines turned vntill he turne himselfe againe : so he that turnes from god by any sinne , makes himselfe a sinner , and so remaines , vntill he turne himselfe againe by repentance . thus dauid was a sinner , not onely in the very acte of his adulterie and murther : but euen when the acte was done and past , he remained still a murtherer and an adulterer ; because a newe , or rather a renewed pronenesse to these , and all other sinnes , tooke place in his heart by his fall , and got strength , till he turned to god by repentance , vpon the admonition of the prophet . the thing then , whereby a sinner is tearmed a sinner , is the fault together with the fruit thereof , namely , the blotte imprinted in the soule , so oft as men doe actually offend . the vse of this doctrine touching sinne , is two fold . first , by it we learne and see what is originall sinne , whereby an infant in the first conception and birth is indeed a sinner . euery infant must be considered as a part of adam , proceeding of him and partaking of his nature : and thereby it is made a sinner , not onely by imputation of adams offence , but also by propagation of an aptnesse , & pronenesse vnto euery euil , receiued together with nature from adam . and thus ought we to conceiue originall sinne , not to be the corruption of nature alone , but adams first offence imputed , with the fruit thereof the corruption of nature , which is an inclination vnto euery euill , deriued together with nature from our first parents . secondly , by this we are taught , to take heed of all and euery sinne , whether it be in thought , word , or deed : because the committing therof , though in respect of the act it passeth away in the doing , yet it breedeth and increaseth a wicked disposition in the heart , ( as hath beene said ) to the offence done , or any other sinne . men deceiue thēselues , that thinke all the euill of sinne , to be only in the act of sinning & to go no further ; wheras indeed euery offence hath a certen blot going with it , that corrupteth the heart , and causeth man to delight and lie in his offence , which lying in sinne is a greater cause of damnation , then the very sinne it selfe . this therefore must admonish vs , to take heed least we continue in any sinne , and if it fall out , that through infirmitie we be ouertaken by any tentation , wee must labour to rise againe , and turne from our sinne to god , by new and speedy repentance . thus much of sinne it selfe . now follow the differences thereof , which are manifold . the first sort are to be gathered from the causes and beginnings of sinne in man , which are threefold , reason , will , and affection . the differences of sinne in respect of reason are these . first , some are sinnes of knowledge , some of ignorance . a sinne of knowledge is , when a man offends against his knowledge , doing euill when he knoweth it to be euill : and this is greater then a sinne of ignorance , for he that knoweth his masters will , and doth it not , shall be beaten with many stripes . a sinne of ignorance is when a man doth euill , not knowing it to be euill . thus paul was a blasphemer , an oppressour , and persecuted the church of christ ignorantly , and in a blind zeale , not knowing that which he did to be euill . nowe by ignorance here i meane , an ignorance of those things which ought to be knowne , and this is twofold : simple , or affected . simple ignorance is , when a man after diligence and good paines taking , still remaines ignorant ; this ignorance will not excuse any man , if it be of such things as he is bound to know : for it is faide , he that doth not his masters will , by reason he knew it not , shall be beaten with stripes , though fewer . and in this regard , euen the heathen which knew not god , are inexcusable , because they were bound to haue knowne him : for adam had the perfect knowledge of god imprinted in his nature , and lost the same through his own default , for himselfe and his posteritie . and it is the commandement of god , whereunto euery man is bound to performe obedience , that man should know him , that is , his will and word . but some may demand , how any man can be saued , seeing euery man is ignorant of many things which he ought to know ? ans. if we know the grounds of religion , and be carefull to obey god according to our knowledge , hauing withal a care and desire , to increase in the knowledge of god and his will , god will hold vs excused : for our desire and indeauour to obey , is accepted for obedience it selfe . and the greater this simple ignorance is , the lesser is the sinne : and hereupon peter lesseneth , & ( in some sort ) excuseth the sinne of the iewes , in crucifying christ , because they did it through ignorāce : and so doth paul his sin in persecuting the church , when he alleadgeth , that it was done ignorantly in vnbeleefe . but howsoeuer this sinne by such meanes may be lessened , yet remaines it still a sinne worthie condemnation . affected ignorance is , whē a man takes delight in his ignorāce , and will of purpose be ignorant : not vsing , but contemning the meanes , whereby to get and increase knowledge . and that carelessely and negligently , because he wil not leaue sinne which he loueth , nor forsake the euill trade of life , wherein he delighteth this is the sinne of those , whereof iob speaketh , who say vnto god , depart from vs : for we desire not the knowledge of thy waies . and of whome dauid complaineth , that they flatter them selues in their owne eyes , and haue left off to vnderstand , and to doe good . this ignorance is damnable and deuillish : it excuseth no man , but doth rather aggrauate and increase his sinne : yea it is the mother of many grieuous enormities . againe , ignorance is twofold : of the a law , or of the thing the law requireth . ignorance of the law is , when a man knowes not the law of god written , nor the law of nature . this ignorance may somewhat lessen the sinne , but it excuseth no man : because it is naturall , and euery man is bound to know the law. ignorance of the thing the law requireth , is the ignorance of the b fact : and that is either with the fault of the doer , or without the fault . faultie ignorance , is the ignorance of a fact , which he might haue preuented . as whē a man in his drunkennes killeth another : in this fact , not knowing what he doth , he also knoweth not that he hath offended : and yet because he might haue preuented his drunkennes , therefore he is faultie , and sinneth . faultlesse ignorance is , when a fact is done , which could not be either knowne , or auoided before hand . for example : if a man be lopping a tree , and his axe head fall from the helue , out of his hand , and kills another passing by ; here is indeede manslaughter , but no voluntarie murther : because it was a thing that could not be auoided , and did not fall out through his default . and this ignorance is excusable . the second fountaine of sinne , is the will , from whence arise these three differences of sinnes : some are from the will immediatly , some besides the will , and some are mixt , partly with the will , and partly against the will. sinnes proceeding from the will , are properly tearmed voluntarie ; such as the doer mooued by his owne will commits , though he know them to be euill . and here , the more free the will is , the greater is the sinne : for wil added to knowledge , makes the sinne the greater . vnder voluntarie sinnes , are comprehended all such , as proceede from stirred affections ; as when a man tells a lie for feare , or striketh another in anger : and the reason is , because these offences , though they are not done vpon deliberation , but arise from the violence of affection , yet they doe not exclude consent . hither also we may referre , sinnes cōmitted by compulsion : as when a man is forced to denie his religion , his offence in deede and in truth is voluntarie , ( though some otherwise thinke it to be a mixt action . ) for compulsion doth not reach to the will , but to the outward man , and serues to draw forth a consent : and when consent is yeelded , he denies his religion voluntarily : for the will cannot be constrained . in the next place , sinnes beside the will are such , as are neither directly from the will , nor against it . of this sort are the first sudden motions vnto sinne , conceiued in the heart with some inward pleasure and delight : and these are truly sinnes , though in respect little sinnes , condemned in the last commandement . and they are not from the will , because they go without and before consent : neither yet are they against the will , because then the heart would not take delight in them . here by the way , we are to note , against the doctrine of the papists , that all sinnes are not voluntarie : for whatsoeuer wanteth conformitie to the law of god , it is sinne , whether it be with consent of will or no. but many such desires and delights , arise suddenly in the heart of man , which are not according to the law of god , and haue no consent or approbation of will. in like manner , when one man kills another , thinking that he killeth a wild beast : if the same man remembreth after wards what he hath done , and is not grieued for the fact : in this case he hath sinned , because his not grieuing , is offensiue vnto god , though the fact were meerely besides his will. mixt sinnes are partly from the will , partly against it . of this sort are the workes of the man regenerate , which are done partly with his will , and partly against his will , beeing partly good , and partly euill . the reason hereof is this . there are in man after regeneration , two contrarie grounds or beginnings of actions , to wit , naturall corruption , or the inclination of the minde , will , and affections , to that which is against the law , called the flesh ▪ and a created qualitie of holines , wrought in the said faculties by the holy ghost , tearmed the spirit . and these two are not seuered , but ioyned and mingled together , in all the faculties and powers of the soule . now betweene these , there is a continuall combate , corruption fighting against grace , & grace against corruption hence it is , that there beeing euē in one & the same will , cōtrarie inclinations , there must necessarily flow from the man regenerate , contrary actions ; the flesh in euery action , willing that which is euill , and the spirit on the otherside , that which is good . this paul confessed and acknowledged , vpon his owne experience , after his conuersion , when he said , to will is present with me , but i find no meanes [ perfectly to doe ] that which is good . again , i delight in the law of god , concerning the inner man , but i see another law in my members , rebelling against the law of my minde , and leading me captiue to the law of sinne , which is in my members . the third ground or fountaine of sinne in man , is affection , frō whence doe proceede two kinds , namely , sinnes of infirmitie , and sinnes of presumption . sinnes of infirmitie are such , as proceede from the sudden passions of the mind , and the strong affections of the heart : as from hatred , griefe , anger , sorrow , and such like . these sinnes are cōmonly thought to be in all men : but the truth is , they are properly incident to the regenerate . for infirmitie cannot be said properly to be in them , in whome sinne hath firmitie or strength , and where is no power of grace at all . againe , the man that is regenerate , sinneth not either when he would , because he is restrained by the grace of god that is in him : or in what manner he would , partly because he sinneth not with all his heart , the strength of his flesh beeing abated by the spirit ; and partly , for that beeing fallen , he lies not stil , but recouers himselfe by speedy repentāce . an euident argument , that the sins whereinto he falleth , are not presumptuous , but arise ordinarily of weaknes and infirmitie . sinnes of presumption are such , as proceede frō pride , arrogancy , wilfulnes , and hau●nes of mans heart . against these dauid praieth , saying , let not presumptuous sinnes haue dominion ouer me . and of them there be three degrees . the first is , when a man wilfully goeth on in his sinnes , vpon an erronious perswasion of gods mercie , and of his owne future repentance ; this is the sinne of most men . the second is , when a man sinneth wilfully , in contempt of the law of god ▪ this is called by moses , a sinne with a high hand , & the punishment thereof was , by present death to be cut off from among the people . the third , when a man sinneth , not onely wilfully and contemptuously , but of set malice & spight against god himselfe , and christ iesus . and by this we may conceiue what is the sinne against the holy ghost : which is not euery sinne of presumption , or against knowledge and conscience : but such a kind of presumptuous offence in which true religion is renounced : and that of set purpose and resolued malice , against the very maiestie of god himselfe and christ. heb. 10. 29. now follow other differences of sinne in regard of the obiect thereof , which is the law. in respect of the law , sinne is twofold : either of commission , or of omission . i say , in respect of the law , because god hath reuealed in his law two sorts of precepts : the one wherein some good thing is commanded to be done , as to loue god with all our hearts , and our neighbour as our selues : the other wherein some euill is forbidden to be done , as the making of a grauen image , the taking of the name of god in vaine , &c. now a sinne of commission is , when a man doth any thing , that is flatly forbidden in the law and word of god : as when one man kills another contrarie to the law , which saith , thou shalt not kill . a sinne of omission is , when a man leaueth vnperformed , some dutie which the law requireth : as for example , the preseruing of his neighbours life , or good estate , when it lieth in his power so to doe . these also are truly sinnes , and by them as well as by the other , men shall be tried in the last iudgement . sinnes of omission haue three degrees . first , when a man doth nothing at all , but omits the dutie commanded , both in whole and in part ; as when hauing opportunitie and abilitie , he doth not mooue so much as one finger , for the sauing of his neighbours life . secondly , when a man performes the dutie inioyned , but failes both in the manner and measure thereof . thus the heathen men failed in doing good workes , in that the things which they did , for substance and matter , were good and commendable , beeing done vpon ciuill and honest respects , and referred to common good ; yet in truth their actions were no better then sinnes of omission , in as much as they issued from corrupted fountaines , hearts void of faith : and aimed not at the maine end , and scope of all humane actions ; the honour and glorie of god. thirdly , when a man doth things in a right manner , but faileth in the measure thereof . and thus the children of god doe sinne , in all the duties of the law . for they doe the good things the law commandeth , as loue god and their neighbour : but they cannot attaine to that measure of loue , which the law requireth . and thus the best men liuing , doe sinne in euery good worke they doe , so as if god should enter into iudgement , deale with them in the rigour of his iustice , and examine them by the strict rule of the law , he might iustly condemne them , euen for their best actions ▪ and in this regard , when we pray daily for the pardon of our sinnes , the best workes we doe , must come in the number of them : because we faile , if not in substance and manner , yet at the least in the measure of goodnes , that ought to be in the doing of them . we must also haue care to repent vs , euen of these our sinnes of omission , as well as of the other of commission : because by leauing vndone our dutie , we doe ofter offend , then by sinnes committed : and the least omission is enough to condemne vs , i● it should be exacted at our hands . the next differēce of sinnes may be this . some are crying sinnes , some are sinnes of toleration . crying sinnes i call those , which are so hainous , and in their kind so grieuous , that they hasten gods iudgements , and call downe for speedie vēgeance vpon the sinner . of this kind there are sundrie exāples in the scriptures , principally foure . first , cains sinne in murthering his innocent brother abel ; whereof it was saide , the voice of thy brothers blood crieth vnto me from the earth . the next is , the sinne of sodome and gomorrha , which was pride , fulnes of bread , abundance of idlenesse , vnmercifull dealing with the poore , and all manner of vncleannesse , ezech . 16. and of this , the lord said , that the crie of sodome and gomorrha was great , and their sinnes exceeding grieuous . the third , is the sinne of oppressiō , indured by the israelites in egypt , at the hand of pharao , and his task-masters . the fourth , is mercilesse iniustice in wrongful withholding , and detaining the labourers hire . now they are called crying sinnes , for these causes . first , because they are now come to their full measure & height , beyond which , god will not suffer them to passe , without due punishment . againe , the lord takes more notice , and inquires further into them , thē into others , by reason that they exceede , and are most eminent where they be committed . thirdly , they call for present helpe to the afflicted and wronged , and consequently , for speedie exequution of vengeance , vpon the authors and committers of them . and lastly , because god is wont to giue eare vn to the cries of those , that endure so heauie measure at the hands of others , and accordingly to helpe them , and reward the other with deserued punishment . next vnto these are sinnes of toleration , lesser then the former : which though in themselues they deserue death , yet god in his mercie shewes his patience and long sufferance , vpon the committers thereof , either deferring the temporall punishment , or pardoning both temporall and eternall to his elect. such a sinne was the ignorance of the gentiles before christs comming : which god deferred to punnish , and ( as we may say ) o winked at it . more especially there be three sorts of sinnes of toleration : the first is originall sinne , or concupiscence , in the regenerate after regeneration : for it is not in our conuersion quite abolished , but remaines more or lesse molesting and tempting vs till death . and yet if we carrie a constant purpose not to sinne , and indeauour our selues to resist all tentations : this concupiscence of ours , shall not be imputed vnto vs , nor we condemned for it . and to this purpose the holy apostle saith , there is no condemnation to them that are in christ. yet saith he not , there is nothing worthie condemnation in them : for originall sinne remaines till death , truly deseruing damnation , though it be not imputed . the second kind of sinnes of toleration , are vnknowne and hidden sinnes in the regenerate . for who can tell how of the offendeth ? saith dauid . when a man that is the child of god , shall examine his heart , and humble himselfe euen for all his particular sinnes , which he knoweth by himselfe : there shall yet remaine some vnknowne sinnes , of which he cannot haue a particular repentance : and yet they are not imputed but pardoned , whē there is repentance for knowne sinnes . as for example , dauid repents of his murther and adulterie , and yet afterwards ( erring in iudgement , by reason of the corruption of the times , ) he liued to his death , in the sinne of polygamie , without any particular repentāce , that we heare of . in like manner did the patriarks , who may not altogether be excused : yet they were not condemned therefore : neither were they saued without repentance for this sinne , but god in mercie , accepted a generall repentance for the same . and the like is the case of all the elect , in regard of their secret and hidden faults : for vnlesse god should accept of a generall repentance for vnknowne sinnes , few or none at all should be saued . and herein doth the endlesse mercie of god notably appeare , that he vouchsafeth to accept of our repentāce whē we repent , though not in particular as we ought to doe . neuertheles , this must not incorage , or imboldē any mā to liue in his sinnes , without turning vnto god. for vnles we repent in particular , of all the sinnes we know , not only our knowne offences , but euen our secret sinnes shall condemne vs. many sinnes are cōmitted by men , which afterwards in processe of time be quite forgotten . others are cōmitted , which notwithstanding are not known , whether they be sins or no. and in doing the best duties we can , we offend often , & yet when we offend , we perceiue it not : and all these in the regenerate , through the mercie of god , are sinnes of toleration , in respect of particular repētance . the third kind of sinnes of toleration , are certain particular facts of men reprooued in scripture , and yet neuer punished . such was the fact of zipporah , in circūcising her child , in the presence of her husband , he beeing able to haue done it himselfe , and shee hauing no calling , to doe that which shee did . for though the hād of god was against him , yet was he not sick , ( as some would excuse the matter ) neither is there any such thing in the text : but it is rather to be thought , that she her selfe circūcised her sonne in hast , to preuent her husband : for the deede was done in some indignation , and shee cast the foreskin at his feete . and yet , because this fact was some manner of obedience , in that the thing was done which god required , ( though not in that manner that he required , ) god accepted the same , & staied his hād from killing moses . thus god accepted of achabs humilitie , though it were in hypocrisie , because it was a shew of obedience : and for that deferred a temporall punishment , till the daies of his posteritie . god sent lyons to destroy the assyrians , that dwelt in samatia , for their idolatry : yet 〈◊〉 soone as they had learned to feare the lord , after the manner of the god of israel , though they mingled the same with their own idolatrie , god for that halfe obedience , suffered them to dwell in peace . the sixt distinction of sinnes may be this . some are sinnes against god , some against men . this distinction is grounded vpon a place in samuel : if one man sinne against another , the iudge shall iudge it : but if a man sinne against the lord , who shall plead for him ? sinnes against god are such , as are directly and immediately committed against the maiestie of god. such are atheisme , idolatrie , blasphemie , petiurie , profanation of the sabbaoth , and all the breaches of the first table . sinnes against men , are iniuries , hurts , losses , and damages ; whereby our neighbour is , in his dignitie , life , chastitie , wealth , good name , or any other way iustly offended , or by vs hindred . and such actions must be considered two waies . first , as they are iniuries & hurts done vnto our neighbour : and secondly , as they are breaches of gods law , forbidding vs so to doe : and in this second respect they are called sinnes , because sinne is properly against god : and therefore by sinnes against men , we are to vnderstand , iniuries , losses , or damages done vnto them . in this sense , must that place in matthew be expounded : if thy brother sinne against thee , &c. the seauenth difference of sinnes , is noted by s. paul , where he saith , euery sinne that a man doth , is without the bodie : but he that commits fornication , sinneth against his owne bodie . in which place , sinnes are distinguished into those that are without the bodie , and those that are against a mans owne bodie . sinnes without the bodie , are such sinnes as a man committeth , his bodie being the instrument of the sinne , but not the thing abused . such are murther , theft , & drunkennesse : for in the committing of these sinnes , the bodie is but a helper , and onely a remote instrumentall cause , and the thing abused is without the bodie . for example : in drunkennes , the thing abused by the drunkard , is wine or strong drinke : in theft , another mans goods : in murther , the instrument whereby the fact is committed . the bodie indeede conferres his helpe to these things , but the iniurie is directed to the creatures of god , to the bodie and goods of our neighbour . and such are all sinnes , adulterie onely excepted . sinnes against the bodie are , those in which it selfe is , not onely the instrument , but the thing abused too . such a sinne is adulterie only , and those that are of that kind , properly against the bodie : first , because the bodie of the sinner , is both a furthering cause of the sinne , and also that thing which he abuseth against his owne selfe . secondly , by this offence , he doth not onely hinder , but loose the right , power , and proprietie of his bodie , in that he makes it the member of an harlot . and lastly , though other sinnes in their kind , doe bring a shame and dishonour vpon the bodie , yet there is none that sitteth so nigh , or leaueth a blot so deepely imprinted in it , as doth the sinne of vncleannes . the eight distinction of sinnes , is grounded vpon pauls exhortation to timothie : communicate not with other mens sinnes . sinnes are either other mens sinnes , or cōmunication with other mens sinnes . this distinction is the rather to be knowne and remembred , because it serues to extenuate or aggrauate sinnes committed . communication with sinne is done sundrie waies : first , by counsell : thus caiphas sinned when he gaue counsell to put christ to death : secondly , by commandement : so dauid sinned in the mu●tner of vrias . thirdly , by consent , or assistāce , rom. 1. 31. thus saul sinned in keeeping the garments of them that stoned steuen . act. 22. 20. fourthly , by prouocation : thus they sinne that prouoke others to sinne , and hereof paul speaketh when he saith , fathers must not prouoke their children to wrath . eph. 6. 4. fiftly , by negligence , when men are called to reprooue sinne , and doe not . sixtly , by flatterie , when men sooth vp others in sinne . seauenthly , by winking at sinnes , or passing them ouer by slight reproofe , eph. 5. 11. thus eli sinned in rebuking his sonnes , and thereby brought a temporall iudgement vpon himselfe , and his familie . 1. sam. 2. chap. and 4. eightly , by participation , eph. 5. 7. & thus they do sin , that are receiuers of theeues . ninthly , by defending another man in his sinne : for he that iustifieth the wicked , and condemneth the iust , euen they both are an abomination to the lord. the ninth distinction followeth . some mens sinnes ( saith paul ) are open before hand , some follow after . which place by some is expounded thus : some mens sinnes are kept secret , till the last iudgement , and some are reuealed in this life , before that day . this i thinke is a truth , but not the meaning of the text . for in the 23. verse the apostle spake of ordination , giuing charge to timothie , that he should not suddenly admit any into ecclesiasticall offices , least he did partake with their sinnes . now in this 24. verse , he rendereth a reason thereof , saying , some mens sinnes are open before hand : that is , some mens faults and wants are knowne , before their ordination to ecclesiasticall offices , and of such the church may know what to iudge and say . but some againe follow after , that is , they are not reuealed till after their ordination : and thus iudas his wickednes , did not appeare at the first , but was reuealed after he was called to be an apostle . and thus we see what be the differences of sinnes : touching all which , this must be held and remembred for a ground , that euery sinne , in what degree so euer it be , is mortall of it selfe : and no sinne is veniall in it owne nature . for the ●ages of euery sinne is death . rom. 6. 23. and , cursed is euery one , that continueth not in all things , that are written in the booke of the law , to doe them . gal. 3. 10. this ground must be holden against the church of rome : who in her case-diuinitie , vseth to pacifie the conscience , by teaching men , that sundrie of their sins be veniall . and though euery sinne of it selfe be mortall , yet all are not equally mortall : but some more , some lesse : because in sinne there be sundrie degrees , as hath beene in part shewed . againe , the same sinne may be encreased , or lessened , and consequently made more or lesse hainous , sundrie waies . first , by the circumstances , which are principally seauen . the first is , the subject or person sinning . thus the sin of a publike person , is more beinous , yea more mortall , then the sinne of a priuate man : because he is in eminent place , and his actions are more exemplarie and scandalous , then are the actions of inferiour men . the seruant , that knowes his masters will , if he doth it not , is the greater sinner , and shall endure a greater punishment , then he that neglectes the same vpon simple ignorance . matth. 10. 15. the minister and dispenser of the word , if he be vnfaithfull and vnprofitable , his offence , and consequently his punishment , is farre greater then other mens . matth. 5. 13. the second is , the obiect or partie which is offended : thus the iewes did more heinously sinne in crucifying christ the sonne of god , the lord of glorie , then did their fathers which persequuted and killed the prophets . the iniurie that is done vnto those whome god tenderly loueth , is farre more displeasing vnto him , thē if it were done to others . he that toucheth you ( saies the prophet , meaning the iewes his chosen & beloued people ) toucheth the apple of his eie . zach. 28. the man that deniseth mischiefe against his harmelesse brother that dwelleth peaceably by him , committeth a sinne most odious vnto god and man. prov. 3 29. psal. 7. 4. he that is called and conuerted vnto god and christ , and maketh not honest prouision for his owne , which are of his familie , is so notorious an offendour , that s. paul holds him a denier of the faith , and worse then an infidell . 1. tim. 5. 8. the person that shall raile vpon the iudge , or speake euill of the ruler of his people , is a greater transgressour of gods commandement , then he that reuileth , or abuseth an ordinarie man. exod. 22. 28. the third is the thing done in which the offence is committed . thus , to falsifie the word of god , and to prophane his worshippe and seruice , is much more abominable in his sight , then is the falsifying of the word of a man , or the abuse of humane lawes and ordinances . the hurting and indamaging of the person and life of our neighbour , is a more odious offence , then is the diminishing of his goods and outward estate : and the hurt that redoundeth by our default vnto his soule , is more offensiue euery way , then the wrong that is offered vnto his bodie . the fourth , is the place where it is done . according to this circumstance , if a man shall either speake or doe any thing , that comes vnder the name of a breach of pietie or iustice , in publike place , as in the congregation , in open court , or generall assembly , and that with publike and generall scandall : he is a greater offendour , then if he spake or did the same at home , in his house or closet . the fist is the end , in respect whereof , he that stealeth from another , that whereby he may satisfie his hunger , and saue his life , beeing driuen to extreame necessitie : offendeth in a lower and lesser degree , then the theefe that robbeth by the high way side , for this ende , to enrich himselfe by the losses of other men . the sixt is the manner how ? thus he that committeth vncleannesse in the outward act , doeth more grieuously sinne , and with greater scandall , then if he onely entertained an vncleane thought into his heart . and he that sinneth of set purpose and presumption , or of obstinate and resolued malice against god , hath proceeded vnto a higher degree of iniquitie , then if he had fallen vpon ignorance , infirmitie , or disordered and distempered affection . in like manner , the sinne of the iewes , in forcing pilate by their threatning tearmes , ( as that he was an enemie to caesar , &c. ) to the vniust condemnatiō of christ iesus , was in a higher degree , then the sinne of pilate himselfe , who yeilding vnto their importunitie , pronounced sentence against him , ioh. 19. 11. the last is the time , which also serues to aggrauate the sinne . for ordinarie disobedience in the time of grace , and wilfull neglect of gods calling , in the aboundance of meanes , is a great deale more damnable , then the cōmission of sin , in the daies of ignorāce and blindnesse , whē the like means are wanting . now from this doctrine of the increasing and lessening of sin in these respects , we may gather , that all sins are not alike or equall , as the stoicks of ancient times , and their followers haue falsely imagined . for it hath bin prooued at large , by induction of sundrie particulars , that there are degrees of sinnes , some lesser , some greater : some more offensiue and odious to god & man , some lesse . and that the circūstances of time , place , person , and manner of doing , doe serue to enlarge or extenuate the sinne committed . if it be here alleadged , that sin is nothing but the doing of that , which is vnlawfull to be done , and that this is equall in all men that sinne : and therfore by consequent , offences are equall . i answer , that in euery sinne , men must not consider the vnlawfulnesse thereof onely , but the reason why it should be vnlawfull : and that is properly , because it a breach of gods law , and repugnant to his will reuealed in his word . nowe there is no breach of a diuine law , but it is more or lesse repugnant vnto the will of the lawgiuer , god himselfe . and many transgressions , are more repugnant thereunto then fewer : for the more sin is increased , the more is the wrath of god inflamed against the sinner vpon his due desert ▪ if it be said again , that the nature of sinne stands onely in this , that the sinner makes an aberration from the scope , or marke that is set before him , and doth no more then passe the bondes of duty prescribed by god , and that all are alike in this respect ; the answer is , that it is a falshood to affirme , that he which makes the lesse aberration from the dutie commanded , is equall in offence to him that makes the greater . for the same sinne for substance , hath sundrie steppes and degrees , in respect whereof , one man becommeth a more heinous offender then another ; for example , in the seauenth commandement when god forbiddes the committing of adulterie , he forbiddeth three degrees of the same sinne ; to wit , adulterie of the heart , consisting of inordinate and vncleane affections ; adulterie of the tongue in corrupt , dishonest , and vnseemely speeches ; and the very act of vncleannesse and filthinesse committed by the bodie . nowe it cannot be said , that he which breakes this commandement onely in the first degree , is as great a transgressour , as he that hath proceeded to the second , and so to the third . and therefore it remaines for an vndoubred trueth , that sinnes committed against the law of god are not equall , but some lesser , some greater . the second way to aggrauate sinne , is by addition of sinne to sinne : and that is done sundry waies : first , by committing one sinne in the necke of another ; as dauid sinned , when he added murther to adulterie . secondly , by doubling and multiplying of sinne , that is , by falling often into the same sinne . thirdly , by lying in sinne without repentance . and here it must be remembred , that men of yeares liuing in the church , are not simply condemned for their particular sinnes ; but for their continuance and residence in them . sinnes committed make men worthie of damnation ; but liuing and abiding in them without repentance , is the thing that brings damnation . for as in the militant church , men are excommunicate , not so much for their offence , as for their obstinacie ; so shall it be in the church triumphant ; the kingdome of heauen shall be barred against men , not so much for their sinne committed , as for their lying therein without repentance . and this is the manner of gods dealing with those that haue liued within the precincts of the church ; they shall be condemned for the very want of true faith and repentance . this should admonish euery one of vs , to take heed , least we lie in any sin● and that beeing any way ouertaken , we should speedily repent , least we aggrauate our sinne by continuance therein , and so bring vpon our selues swift damnation . thirdly , the same sinne is made greater or lesser , 4. waies : according to the number of degrees in the committing of a sinne , noted by s. iames , temptation conception , birth , and perfection . actuall sinne in the first degree of tentation is , when the minde vpon some sudden motion , is drawne away to thinke euill , and withall is tick led with some delight therein . for a bad motiō cast into the minde , by the flesh and the deuill , is like vnto the baite cast into the water , that allureth and delighteth the fish , and causeth it to bite . sinne in conception is , when with the delight of the minde , there goes consent of will to doe the euill thought on . sinne in birth is , when it comes forth into action or execution . sinne in perfection , when men are growne to a custome and habit in sinne , vpon long practise . for the often committing of one and the same sinne , leaues an euill impression in the heart , that is , a strong or violent inclination , to that or any other euill , as hath bin taught before . and sinne thus made perfect , brings forth death : for custome in sinning , brings hardnes of heart : hardnes of heart , impenitencie : and impenitencie , cōdemnation . now of these degrees , the first is the least , and the last is the greatest . one and the same sinne is lesser in tentation , then in conception : and les●e in conception , then in birth : and greater in perfection , then in all the former . sundry other distinctions there are of sinnes as namely , that the maine sinnes of the first table , are greater then the maine sinnes of the second table . and yet the maine sinnes of the second , are greater then the breach of ceremoniall duties , against the first table . but this which hath beene said shall suffice . the vse of this doctrine is manifold . first , by it we learne , what the heart of man is by nature : namely , a corrupt and vncleane fountaine , out of which issueth in the course of this life , the streams of corruptions infinite in number , noysome in qualities , hainous in degrees , dāgerous in effects . for from thence doe flow , all the differences of sins before named , with their seuerall branches , and infinit many more , that cannot be rehearsed . this must mooue vs humbly to sue vnto god , & earnestly to intreat him , to wash vs throughly from our wickednes , & clense vs frō our sins : yea to purge and to rinse the fountaine thereof , our vncleane and polluted hearts . and when by gods mercy in christ , apprehēded by faith , our hearts shal be purified , then to set watch & ward ouer them ▪ and to keep them with all diligence . secondly it teacheth vs , that miserable mortall man , is not guiltie of one or more sins , but of many & sundrie corruptions , both of heart and life . who can vnderstād his faults ? saith dauid . now the alowāce of sin being death by gods ordināce , & god being iustice it selfe : answerably to the number of our offences , must we needs be lyable to many punishments , yea to death it selfe , both of the bodie and of the soule . this beeing our wofull estate , litle cause is there , that any man should thinke himselfe to be in good case , or presume of gods mercie in regard of the small number of his sinnes . and much lesse cause hath he , falsely to imagine with the popish sort , that he can merit the fauour of god by any worke done by him , aboue that which the law requireth ; considering that it is impossible for him to knowe either the number , or the nature , or the measure of his sinnes . lastly , the consideration of this point , must be a barre to keepe vs in , that we be not too secure or presumptuous of our owne estate : for as much as we learne out of the word of god , that in respect of the multitude of our corruptions , this our life is full of much euill , and many difficulties , that we haue whole armies of enemies to encounter withall , not only out of vs in the world abroad , but within vs , lurking euen in our owne flesh . and vpon this consideration , that we should be at continuall defiance with them , vsing all holy meanes to get the victorie ouer them , by the daily exercises of inuocation and repentance , and by a continuall practise of new obedience , vnto all the lawes and commandements of god , according to the measure of grace receiued . and so much of the third ground . the fourth and last ground , is touching the subiection & power of conscience . conscience is a knowledge ioyned with a knowledge . for by conscience we knowe what we know ; and by it we knowe that thing of our selues which god knoweth of vs. the naturall condition of euery mans conscience is this ; that it is placed in the middle betweene man and god , vnder god and aboue man. and this naturall condition hath two parts : the one is the subiection of conscience to god and his word ; the second is a power whereby the conscience is ouer the man to vrge and binde him . of the first , we haue this rule , that god alone by his word doeth onely binde conscience properly : for he is the onely lord of the conscience , which created it , and gouerns it . he againe is the onely lawe-giuer , that hath power to saue or destroy the soule , for the keeping and breaking of his lawes . iam. 4. 12. againe , mans conscience is knowne to none but to god , and it is he onely that giues libertie to the conscience , in regard of his owne lawes . vpon this it followeth , that no mans commandement or lawe can of it selfe , and by it owne soueraigne power binde conscience , but doeth it onely by the authoritie and vertue of the written word of god , or some part thereof . nowe the power of conscience appeares in pauls rule : whatsoeuer is not of faith , that is , whatsoeuer man doeth , whereof he is not certainly perswaded in iudgement and conscience , out of gods word , it is sinne . more plainely : a thing may be said , not to be done of faith two waies . first , when it is done , with a doubting and vnresolued conscience , as in those that are weake in knowledg . of which sort were some in the primitiue church , who notwithstanding they heard of the doct●ine of christian libertie , yet they were of opinion , that after christs ascension , there was a difference to be made of meats , and therevpon thought , they might not eat of some kind of meats . suppose now , that these persons ( by accident ) should haue bin drawne to eate swines flesh , which themselues had holden a thing forbidden ▪ these men vpon this very fact haue sinned , because that which they did , was vpon an vnresolued conscience . secondly , when a thing is done vpon an erronious conscience , it is done not of faith , and therefore a sinne . the reason is , because the conscience , though it erre and be deceiued , yet it bindeth so sarre forth , as that if a man iudge a thing to be euill , either simply or in some respect , ( though falsely ) and yet afterward doeth it , he hath sinned and offended the maiestie of god , as much as in him lie●h . thus much touching the preambles , or groundes of this doctrine . nowe it remaineth that we come to the questions of conscience . these questions may be fitly deuided , according to the matter or subiect of them , which is man. now as man is considered diuers waies , that is to say , either apart by himselfe , or as he standes in relation to another , and is a member of a societie : so the questions of conscience are to be distinguished , some concerning man simply considered by himselfe : some againe , as he stands in relation to another . mā stādeth in a twofold relatiō : to god , or to mā . as he stāds in relatiō to man , he is a part of a bodie , and a member of some societie . nowe the questions that concerne him , as a member of a societie , are of three sorts , according to the three distinct kinds of societies . for euery mā is either a member of a family , or of the church , or of the cōmonwealth ▪ and answerably , some questiōs concerne man as a member of a family : some as he is a mēber of the church : some as he is a member of the commonwealth . in a word therfore , all questiōs touching mā , may be reduced to 3. generall heads . the first wherof is , concerning man simply considered as he is a man. the secōd , touching man as he stāds in relatiō to god. the third , concerning him as he is a member of one of the three societies , that is , either of the family , or of the church , or of the commonwealth . qvestions of the first sort , as man is a christian , are especially three . the first : what a man must doe , that he may come into the fauour of god and be saued ? the second , howe he may be assured in conscience of his owne saluation ? the third , howe he may recouer himselfe , when he is distressed or fallen ? i. question . what must a man doe , that he may come into gods fauour , and be saued ? for answer to this question , some ground must be laid down before hand . for it is to be considered , and remembred in the first place , how and by what meanes , god that saueth brings a man to saluation . in the working and effecting of our saluation , there are two speciall works of god : the giuing of the first grace , and after that the giuing of the second . the former of these two workes , hath x. seuerall actions . i. god giues man the outward meanes of saluation , specially the ministerie of the word : and with it , he sends some outward crosse , to breake and subdue the stubbernnesse of our nature , that it may be made plyeable to the will of god. ii. this done , god brings the minde of man to a consideration of the lawe , and therein generally to see what is good , and what is euill , what is sinne , and what is not sinne . iii. vpon a serious consideration of the law , he makes a man particularly to see and know , his own peculiar and proper sinnes . iv. vpon the sight of sinne , he smites the heart with the spirit of feare , whereby when man seeth his sinnes , he makes him to feare punishment and hell , and to dispaire of saluation , in regard of any thing in himselfe . now these foure actions , are indeed no fruits of grace , but are onely workes of preparation going before grace ; the other actions which follow , are effects of grace . v. the fift action of grace therefore is , to stirre vp the minde to a serious consideration , of the promise of saluation propounded and published in the gospel . vi. after this , the sixt is , to kindle in the heart some seeds ot sparkes of faith , that is , a will and desire to beleeue , and grace to striue against doubting and dispaire . nowe at the same instant , when god beginnes to kindle in the heart , any sparkes of faith , then also he iustifies the sinner , and withall beginnes the worke of sanctification . vii . then , so soone as faith is put into the heart , there is presently a combate : for it fighteth with doubting , dispaire , and distrust . and in this combate , faith shews it selfe , by seruent , constant , and earnest inuocation for pardon : and after inuocation followes a strength & preuailing of this desire . viii . furthermore , god in mercie quiets and setles the conscience , as touching the saluation of the soule , and the promise of life , whereupon it resteth and staieth it selfe . ix . next after this setled assurance , & perswasion of mercie , followes a stirring vp of the heart to euangelicall sorrow , according to god , that is , a griefe for sinne , because it is sinne , and because god is offended : and then the lord workes repentance , whereby the sanctified heart turnes it selfe vnto him . and though this repentance be one of the last in order , yet it shewes it selfe first : as when a candle is brought into a roome , we first see the light before wee see the candle , and yet the candle must needes be , before light can be . x. lastly , god giues a man grace to endeauour , to obey his commandements by a newe obedience . and by these degrees , doeth the lord giue the first grace . the second worke of god tending to saluation , is to giue the second grace : which is nothing else , but the continuance of the first worke begun , that a man may perseuere in grace to the ende . now then to come the answer ; the holy ghost hath propounded to vs , this question of conscience , together with the resolution thereof , in these examples following . the men that were at peters sermon , beeing touched with the sense of their owne miserie , vpon the doctrine which had beene deliuered , as the holy ghost saies , were pricked in their hearts , and cried one to another : men and brethren what shall we doe ? peter mooued by the spirit of god answers them , repent and bee baptized , for the remission of your sinnes . the like was the case of the iayler , who , after that the stubbernnesse of his heart was beaten downe , by feare of the departure of the prisoners , he came trembling , and fell downe before paul and silas , and mooued this question vnto them ; sirs , vvhat must i doe to bee saued ? to whome they gaue answere , beleeue in the lord iesus , and thou shalt be saued , and thine houshold . the young man in the gospell sues to christ , and askes him , what shall i doe to be saued ? christ answers him . keepe the commandements . when he replied that he had kept them from his youth , christ tells him , that he must goe yet further , and sell all that he hath , and giue to the poore . and iohn tells the scribes and pharises , who came vnto his baptisme , and confessed their sinnes , that if they would flie from the wrath to come , they must repent , and bring forth fruits worthie a mendement of life . i answer then out of all these places , that he that would stand in the fauour of god and be saued , must doe foure things ; first humble himselfe before god : secondly , beleeue in christ : thirdly , repent of his sinnes : fourthly , performe newe obedience vnto god. for the first . humiliation is indeede a fruite of faith : yet i put it in place before faith , because in practise it is first . faith lieth hid in the heart , and the first effect wherein it appeares , is the abasing and humbling of our selues . and here we are further to consider three points : first , wherein stands humiliation : secondly , the excellencie of it : thirdly , the questions of conscience that concerne it . touching the first point , humiliation stands in the practise of three things . the first is , a sorrow of heart , whereby the sinner is displeased with himselfe , and ashamed in respect of his sins . the second is , a confession to god , wherein also three things are to be done : first , to acknowledge all our maine sinnes originall and actuall : secondly , to acknowledge our guiltinesse before god : thirdly , to acknowledge our iust damnation for sinne . the third thing in humiliation , is supplication made to god for mercie , as earnestly as in a matter of life and death : and of these three things we haue in scripture the examples of ezra , daniel , and the prodigall sonne . ezra 9. dan. 9. luk. 15. the second point is , the excellencie of humiliation , which stands in this , that it hath the promises of life eternall annexed to it , esa. 57. 15. i dwell in the high and holy place : with him also that is of a contrite and humble spirit , to reuiue the spirit of the humble , and to giue life to them that are of a contrite heart . psal. 51. 17. a contrite and a broken heart , o god , thou wilt not despise . prou. 28. 13. he that hideth his sinnes shall not prosper : but he that confesseth and forsaketh them shall finde mercie . 1. ioh. 1. 9. if we acknowledge our sinnes , he is faithfull and iust , to forgiue vs our sinnes , and to clense vs from all vnrighteousnesse . by all these and many other places , it is manifest , that in the very instant , whē a sinner begins , truly in heart and conscience to humble himselfe , he is then entred into the state of saluation . so soone as dauid said , i haue sinned , nathan pronounceth in the name of the lord , that his sinnes were put away . and dauid himselfe saith , alluding to the former place , i said i will confesse my sinne , and loe , thou forga●est the wickednesse of my sinne . when the prodigall sonne had but said , i will goe to my father , &c. euen then , before he humbled himselfe , his father meetes him , and receiues him . the third point , is touching the questions of conscience , concerning humiliatiō , all which may be reduced to foure principall cases . i. case . what if it fall out , that a man in humbling himselfe , cannot call to minde either all , or the most of his sinnes ? i answer ; a particular humiliation indeed is required , for maine and known sins : but yet there are two cases , wherein generall repentance , will be accepted of god for vnknown sinnes . one is , when a man hath searched himselfe diligently , and by a serious examination , passed through all the commandements of god , and yet after such examination and search made , cannot call to remembrance his particular offences ; then the generall repentance is accepted . for this is answerable to the practise of dauid , who after long search , when he could not attaine to the knowledge of his par●icular slippes , then he addresseth himselfe to a generall humiliation , saying , who knoweth the errours of this life ? clense me lord from my secret faults : and vpon this , he was no doubt accepted . againe , when a man humbleth himselfe , and yet is preuented by the time , so as he cannot search his heart and life , as he would : his generall repentance will be taken and accepted of god. the truth hereof appeares in the theife vpon the crosse , who hauing no time to search himselfe , made no speciall humiliation , yet vpon his generall confession he was accepted . now the ground of this doctrine is this ; he that truely repents himselfe of one sinne , in this case when he is preuented : is , as if he repented of all . ii. case . what must a man doe , that finds himselfe hard hearted , and of a dead spirit , so as he cannot humble himselfe as he would ? answ. such persons , if they humble themselues , they must be content with that grace which they haue receiued . for if thou be grieued truely and vnfainedly for this , that thou canst not be grieued , thy humiliation shall be accepted , for that which paul saith of almes , may be truely said in this case , that if there be a readie minde , a man shall be accepted , according to that he hath , and not according to that he hath not . iii. case . whether the party , that is more grieued for losse of his friend , then for offence of god by his sinne , doeth or can truely humble himselfe ? answ. a man may haue a greater griefe for an earthly losse , then for the other , and yet be truely grieued for his sinnes too . the reason is , because that is a bodily , naturall , and sensible losse , and accordingly sorrow for it is naturall . now the sorrow for the offending of god , is no sensible thing , but supernaturall and spirituall ; and sensible things doe more affect the minde , then the other . dauid did notably humble himselfe for his sinnes , and he did exceedingly mourne for the losse of his sonne absolom , yea and more too then for his sinnes , would god i had died for thee absolom , o absolom my sonne , my sonne , &c. againe i answer , that the sorrow of the minde , must be measured by the intention of the affection , and by the estimation of the thing for which we sorrow . now sorrow for sinne , though it be lesse in respect of the intentiō therof ▪ yet is it greater in respect of the estimation of the minde , because they which truly mourne for their sinnes , grieue for the offence of god , as the greatest euill of all ; and for the losse of the fauo●● of god , as for losse of the most excelle●t & pre●ious thing in the world . iv. case . whether it be necessarie in humiliation , that the heart should be smitten with a sensible sorrowe ? answer . i. in sorrow for sinne , there are two things : first , to be displeased for our sinnes ; secondly , to haue a bodily moouing of the heart , which causeth crying and teares . the former of these is necessarie , namely in heart , to be deepely displeased with our selues : the latter is not simply necessarie , though it be commendable in whomsoeuer it is , if it be in truth ; for lydia had the first but not the secōd . ii. it falleth out oftentimes , that the greatnesse of the griefe , taketh away the sensible paine , and causeth a nummednesse of the heart , so that the partie grieueth not . iii. sometimes the complexion will not affoard teares : & in such there may be true humiliation , though with drie cheekes . the second thing to be done for the attaining of gods fauour , and consequently of saluation , is to beleeue in christ. in the practise of a christian life , the duties of humiliation and faith cannot be seuered , yet for doctrines sake , i distinguish them . in faith there are two things required , and to be performed on our behalfe . first , to know the points of religion , and namely the summe of the gospell , especially the promise of righteousnesse and life eternall by christ. secondly , to apply the promise , and withall the thing promised , which is christ , vnto our selues ▪ and this is done , when a man vpon the commandement of god , sets downe this with himselfe , that christ and his merits belong vnto him in particular , and that christ is his wisdome , iustification , sanctification , and redemption . this doctrine is plaine out of the sixt of iohn : for christ is there propounded vnto vs , as the bread and the water of life . therefore faith must not be idle in the braine , but it must take christ and apply him vnto the soule and conscience , euen as meate is eaten . the questions of conscience touching faith are these . first , howe we may truely apply christ , with all his benefits vnto our selues . for wicked men apply christ vnto themselues falsely , in presumption , but fewe doe it truely , as they ought to doe . i answer , that this may be done , we must remember to doe two things . first , lay downe a foundation of this action , and then practise vpon it . our foundation must be laid in the word , or else we shall faile in our application , and it consists of two principles . the one is : as god giues a promise of life eternall by christ , so he giues commandement , that euery one in particular , should apply the promise to himselfe . the next is , that the ministerie of the word , is an ordinarie meanes , wherein god doeth offer , and apply christ with all his benefits to the hearers , as if he called them by their names : peter , iohn , cornelius , beleeue in christ and thou shalt be saued . when we haue rightly considered of our foundation : the second thing is , to practise vpon it , and that is , to giue our selues to the exercises of faith and repentance ; which stand in meditation of the word , and praier for mercie and pardon : and when this is done , then god giues the sense and increase of his grace . vvhen lydia was hearing the sermon of paul , then god opened her heart , act. 16. 12. secondly , it is demaunded : when faith beginnes to breed in the heart , and when a man beginnes to beleeue in christ ? answer . vvhen he beginnes to be touched in conscience for his owne sinnes , and withall hungers and thirsts after christ , and his righteousnesse , then beginneth faith . the reason is plaine . as faith is renewed , so it is begunne , but it is renewed when a man is touched in conscience for his sinnes , and beginnes a new to hunger after christ : therefore when these things first shew themselues , then faith first begins . for these were the things that were in dauid , when he renewed his repentance . the third dutie necessarie to saluation is repentance . in which , two things are to be cōsidered ▪ the beginning , namely , a godly sorrow 2. cor. 7. and vpon this sorrowe a change. in sorrowe we consider , first , the nature of it ; secondly the properties of it . touching the nature of sorrow , it is either inward or outward . the inward sorrow , is when a man is displeased with himselfe for his sinnes . the outward , when the heart declares the griefe thereof by teares , or such like signes . and sorrow in this case , called a godly sorrow , is more to be esteemed by the first of these , then by the second . the propertie of this sorrow , is to make vs to be displeased with our selues , for our sinnes directly , because they are sins , & doe displease god. if there were no iudge , no hell , or death , yet we must be grieued because we haue offended , so mercifull a god and louing father . and as godly sorrowe will make vs thus to doe , so is it the next cause of repentance , and by this is repentance discerned . the next thing in repentance is , the change of the minde and whole man in affection , life & conuersation . and this standeth in a constant purpose of the mind , and resolution of the heart , not to sinne , but in euery thing to doe the will of god. hereupon paul exhorteth them , to whome he wrote , to continue in the loue of god , and in the obedience of his word . barnabas when he came to a●tioch , and had seene the grace of god , was glad , and exhorted all , that with purpose of heart they should cleaue vnto god , or continue with the lord. so the prophet ezekiel saith , if the wicked will turne from all his sinnes , and keepe all my statutes , and doe that which is lawfull and right , he shall surely liue and shall not die . in this purpose stands the very nature of repentance , and it must be ioyned with humiliation and faith , as a third thing availeable to saluation , and not to be seuered frō them . for a man in shew may haue many good things : as for exāple , he may be hūbled , & seeme to haue some strength of faith ; yet if there be in the said man , a want of this purpose & resolutiō not to sinne , the other are but dead things , & vnprofitable , and for all them , he may come to eternall destruction . furthermore , we must distinguish this kind of purpose , from the minde and purpose of carnall men , theeues , drunkards , harlots , vsurers ; for they will confesse their sins , and be sory for them , yea and shed some teares , wishing they had neuer sinned as they haue . in these men , indeede there is a wishing will for the time , but no setled purpose . and it is a propertie of nature to auoid euill , but to haue a constant resolution of not sinning , is a gift of grace ; and for this , it is , that we must labour , otherwise our repentance , is no true and sound repentance . the fourth & last dutie , is to performe newe obedience vnto god in our life and conuersation . in this newe obedience , three things are required . first , it must be a fruit of the spirit of christ in vs , for when we doe any good thing , it is christ that doeth ' it in vs. paul saith , that good which i doe , i doe it not , but christ that dwelleth in me . secondly , this new obedience must be , the keeping of euery commandement of god. for as saint iames saith , he that breaks one commandement , is guiltie of all : that is , he that doeth willingly and wittingly breake any commandement , and makes not conscience of some one , maketh not conscience of any , and before god he is as guiltie of all , as if he had broken all . thirdly , in newe obedience , the whole man must endeauour , to keepe the whole law in his minde , will , affections , and all the faculties of soule and bodie . as it is said of iosiah , that he turned to god , according to all the lawes of moses , with all his heart . there are yet three other things required in him , that must performe new obedience : first , he must not liue in the practise of any outward sinne . secondly , there must be an inward resisting and restraining , of the corruption of our nature , and of our hearts , that we may truely obey god , by the grace of the spirit of god. the heart of ioseph was readie prest , to resist the euill request of potiphars wife . and dauid staid his affection from revenging himselfe vpon shemei , when he cursed him . thirdly , he must stirre vp and exercise the inward man , by all spirituall motions of faith , ioy , loue , hop eand the praise of god. here a necessarie question is mooued . cōsidering that all good workes , are the fruits of a regenerate person , & are contained vnder newe obedience ▪ how a man may doe a good worke , that may be accepted of god , & please him ? for resolutiō wherof , it is to be carefully remēbred , that to the doing of a good worke , sundrie things are required : wherof , some in nature do goe before the worke to be done , some doe accompany the doing thereof , and some againe doe followe the worke , being required to be done , when the worke is done . before the worke , there goes reconciliation : for the person must be reconciled vnto god in christ , and be pleasing to him : for if the person of the worker doe not please god , the worke it selfe cannot ; neither are workes of what dignitie soeuer , to be esteemed by the shevv , and outvvard appearance of them , but by the mind and condition of the doer . againe , before vve doe any good vvorke , vve must by praier lift vp our hearts vnto god , and desire him to inable vs by his spirit to doe it , & to guid vs by the same , in the action , vvhich vve are about to doe . this did the prophet dauid oftentimes , as vve may read in the psalmes , but especially in psal. 143. 10. when he saith ; teach me to doe thy will o god , for thou art my god , let thy good spirit lead me , vnto the land of righteousnesse . in the doing of the worke , we are to consider two things ; the matter , & the manner or forme of doing it . for the matter , it must be a worke commanded in the word of god. christ saith of the pharises , that they worshipped him in vaine , teaching for doctrines , the commandements of men . he therefore that will doe a worke , tending to the worshippe of god , must doe that which god commandeth . and here we must remember , that a thing indifferent in the case of off●nce , comes vnder a commandement of the morall lawe . to which purpose paul saith , if eating flesh will offend my brother , i will eate no flesh while the world standeth ; his meaning is , that though his eating of flesh , was a thing indifferēt in it selfe : yet in case of offence , his minde was to abstaine from it , as much as from the breach of the law of god againe , if an action indifferent , comes within the case , of furthering the good of the common wealth , or church , it ceaseth to be indifferent , and comes vnder commandement ; and so all kind of callings and their workes , though neuer so base , may be the matter of good workes . now for the forme of the worke , there must be first a generall faith , whereby we must be perswaded that the thing to be done , may lawfully be done ; for , what soeuer is not of faith , is sinne . secondly , a particular or iustifying faith , which purifieth the heart , and maketh it fit to bring forth a good worke : for it giues a beginning to the worke , & also couers the wants and defects thereof , by apprehending and applying vnto vs , christ and his merits . thirdly , it must be done in obedience ; for knowing the thing to be do●e , to be commanded of god , we must haue a minde and intention , to obey god in the thing we doe . it will be here demanded , seeing workes must be done in obedience , how , and to what part of the word we must direct our obedience ? i answer : to the law , but howe ? not considered in his rigour , but as it is qualified , mollified , and tempered by the gospel : for according to the rigour of the lawe , which commandes perfect obedience , no man can possibly doe a good worke . furthermore , the ends of a good worke are manifold : first , the honour and glory of god. whether ye eate or drinke ▪ or what soeuer ye doe , doe all to the glory of god. secondly , the testification of our thankefulnes vnto god , that hath redeemed vs by christ. the third is , to edifie our neighbour , and to further him in the way to life euerlasting . the fourth is to exercise & confirme our faith and repentance , both which be much strengthned , by the practise of good workes . fiftly , that we may escape the punnishment of sinne , the destruction of the wicked : and obtaine the reward of the righteous , life euerlasting . sixtly , that we may be answerable to our calling , in dooing the duties thereof , and in walking as children of light , redeemed by christ iesus . seuenthly , that we may pay the debt , which we owe vnto god. for we are debters to him in sundry regardes ; as we are his creatures : as we are his seruants : as we are his children : in a word , as we are redeemed by christ , and our whole debt is , our duty of praise and thanksgeuing . after the worke is done , then comes the acception of it . god acceptes of our workes diuers waies . first , in that he pardoneth the fault which comes from vs , and secondly , in that he approoues his owne good worke in vs. we then after we haue done the worke , must humble our selues , and intreat the lord to pardon the wantes of our workes , & say with dauid , lord enter not into iudgement with thy seruant : and with daniel , lord vnto vs belongeth open shame & cōfusion , but to thee righteousnes , compassion , and forgiuenes . and the reason is plaine , because in vs there is no goodnesse , no holines , no righteousnes , nor any thing that may present vs acceptable in his sight : and for this cause paul saith , i know nothing by my selfe , yet am i not thereby iustified . great reason then , that we should humble our selues before god , for our wants , and pray vnto him , that he will in mercie accept our indeauour , and confirme the good worke begunne in vs , by his holy spirit . ii. question . the next generall question touching man as he is a christian is , how a man may be in conscience assured , of his owne saluation ? for answer to this question , diuers places of scripture are to be skanned ; wherein this case of conscience , is fully answered and resolued . the first place is rom. 8. 16. and the spirit of god testifieth together with our spirits , that we are the sonnes of god. in these words are two testimonies of our adoption set downe ; the spirit of god dwelling in vs , & testifying vnto vs , that we are gods children : and our spirit , that is , our conscience , sanctified and renewed by the holy ghost . here put the case , that the testimonie of the spirit be wanting : then i answer , that the other testimonie , the sanctification of the heart , will suffice to assure vs. vve know it sufficiētly to be true , and not painted fire , if there be heare , though there be no flame . put the case againe , that the testimonie of the spirit be wanting , and our sanctification be vncertaine vnto vs , how then may we be assured ? the answer is , that we must then haue recourse to the first beginnings , and motions of sanctification , which are these . first , to feele our inward corruptions . secondly , to be displeased with our selues for them . thirdly , to begin to hate sinne . fourthly , to grieue so oft as we fall and offend god. fiftly , to auoid the occasions of sinne . sixtly , to endeauour to doe our dutie , and to vse good meanes . seuenthly , to desire to sinne no more . and lastly , to pray to god for his grace . where these and the like motions are , there is the spirit of god , whence they proceede : and sanctification is begunne . one apple is sufficient to manifest the life of the tree , and one good and constant motion of grace , is sufficient to manifest sanctification . againe , it may be demaunded , what must be done , if both be wanting ? answ. men must not dispaire , but vse good meanes , and in time they shall be assured . the second place is , the 15. psalme . in the first verse whereof , this question is propounded , namely , vvho of all the mēbers of the church , shall haue his habitation in heauen ? the answer is made in the verses following : and in the second verse , he sets downe three generall notes of the said person . one is , to walke vprightly in sinceritie , approouing his heart and life to god : the secōd is , to deale iustly in all his doings : the third is for speech , to speake the truth from the heart ; without guile or flatterie . and because we are easily deceiued in generall signes , in the 3 , 4 , and 5. verses , there are set downe seauen more euident and sensible notes of sinceritie , iustice and trueth . one is in speech , not to take vp or carrie abroad , false reports and slanders . the second is , in our dealings not to doe wrong to our neighbour , more then to our selues . the third is in our companie , to contemne wicked persons worthy to be contemned . the fourth is in our estimation we haue of others , & that is , to honour thē that feare god. the fift is in our wordes , to sweare and not to change : that is , to make conscience of our word and promise , especially if it be confirmed by oath . the sixt is in taking of gaine , not to giue money to vsurie , that is , not to take increase for bare lending , and to lend freely to the poore . the last is , to giue testimonie without briberie or partialitie . in the fift verse , is added a reason of the answer : he that in his indeauour doeth all these things , shall neuer be mooued , that is , cut off frō the church as an hypocrite . the third place of scripture , is the first epistle of iohn : the principall scope whereof , is to giue a full resolution to the conscience of man , touching the certainty of his saluation . and the principall grounds of assurance , which are there laid down , may be reduced to three heads . the first is this . he that hath communion or fellowship with god in christ , may be vndoubtedly assured of his saluation . this conclusion is propounded , chap. 1. v. 3. 4. where the apostle tels the church , that the end of the preaching of the gospel vnto them was , that they might haue fellowship , not onely mutually among themselues , but also with god the father , and with his son iesus christ. and further , that hauing both knowledge , and assurance of this heauenly communion , to be begun in this life , and perfected in the life to come , their ioy might be full . that is , they might thence reape , matter of true ioy and sound comfort , vnto their soules and consciences . now whereas it might be haply demaunded by some beleeuers , how they should come to this assurance ? s. iohn answers in this epistle , that the certainty thereof may be gathered by foure infallible notes . the first is remissiō of sins . for though god be in himselfe , most holy and pure , and no mortall man , being vncleane & polluted by sinne , can haue fellowship with him : yet god hath shewed his mercy , to those that beleue in him , and hath accepted of the blood of iesus christ his sonne , whereby they are clensed from all their corruptiōs , v. 7. if here it be asked , how this pardon and forgiuenes may be known ? it is answered , by two signes . one is hūble & heartie confession of our sins vnto god ; for so saith the apostle , if we confesse our sins , he is faithfull and iust to forgiue vs our sins , and to clense vs from all iniquitie , v. 9. the other is the pacified conscience ; for being iustified by faith we haue peace with god : and , if our heart condemne vs not : that is , if our conscience in respect of sinne doth not accuse vs , then haue we boldnesse towards god , chap. 3. v. 21. the secōd note of fellowship with god , is the sanctifying spirit , whereby we are renewed in holines and righteousnes : hereby we know that he abideth in vs , euen by the spirit which he hath giuen vs , chap. 3. v. 24. the third is , holines & vprightnes of heart & life . to this end the apostle saith , if we say that we haue fellowship with him , and walke in darknes , we lie & doe not truely : but if we walke in the light , as he is in the light , we haue fellowship one with another , &c. chap. 1. 6. 7. the fourth is , perseuerāce in the knowledge and obedience of the gospel . so the same apostle exhorteth the church : let therfore abide in you that same doctrine cōcerning christ , which ye haue heard from the beginning . if that which ye haue heard from the beginning , remaine in you , that is , if ye beleeue and obey it ; you also shall continue in the same , and in the father . chap. 2. 24. the second ground . he that is the adopted sonne of god , shall vndoubtedly be saued . this point the apostle plainely declareth , when he saith : beloued now are we the sonnes of god. — and we knowe , that is , we are vndoubtedly assured by faith , that when christ shal appeare in glory , we shal be like vnto him , for we shall see him as he is . that the latter part of these words , is thus to be expounded , i gather out of chap. 2. 28. as also by comparing this text with that of s. paul , where he saith , when christ which is our life shall appeare , then shall we also appeare with him in glory . and againe , if we be sonnes , we are also heires , euen the heires of god , and heires annexed with christ , if so be that we suffer with him , that we may also be glorified with him . nowe put the case , that the conscience of the beleeuer , will not rest in this , but desires to be further resolued , touching the certainetie of his adoption ? then i answer , that he must haue recourse vnto the signes , whereby a sonne of god may be discerned from a child of the deuill : and these are principally three . first is , truely to beleeue in the name of the sonne of god : for those that haue god for their father , are made the sonnes of god , by faith in iesus christ. and this faith shewes it selfe by obedience . for hereby we are sure that we knowe christ , that is , that we beleeue in him , and apply him with all his benefits vnto our soules , if we keepe his commandements . nay further , he that saies , i knowe him , and keepes not his commandements , is a liar , and the trueth is not in him , chap. 2 , 3 , 4. the second signe is , a heartie desire , and earnest indeauour to be clensed of his corruptions . euery sonne of god that hath this hope , purifieth himselfe , euen as christ is pure , chap. 3. vers . 3. the third is , the loue of a christian , because he is a christian : for hereby saies the apostle , are the children of god known from the children of the deuill : because the sonnes of satan doe hate their brethren , ( as cain did his brother abel ) euen for the good workes which they doe . on the other side , gods adopted sonnes , may hereby know themselues to be translated from death to life , because they loue the brethren , chap. 3. 10 , 11 , 12 , &c. the third ground . they that are assured , of the loue of god to them in particular , may also be certainely assured of their owne saluation . this doctrine followes necessarily vpon the apostles words , chap. 4. v. 9. for those whome god hath loued from all eternitie , to them he hath manifested his loue , by sending his onely begotten sonne into the world , that they might liue through him eternally . but howe may a man be assured of gods speciall loue and fauour ? the same apostle answers , by two notes ; the first is the loue of our brethren : and that according to gods commandement , wherein it is commanded , that he that loues god , should loue his brother also 4. 21. andif any man say , i loue god , and hate his brother , be is a liar . for howe can he that loueth not his brother , whome he hath seene , loue god whome he hath not seene ? 4. 20. nowe that a man deceiue not himselfe in the loue of his brother ; saint iohn giues three rules : one , that christian brotherly loue , should not be , for outward respects or considerations , but principally , because they are the sonnes of god , and members of christ : euery one that loueth him which did beget : that is god the father , loueth him also which is begotten of him . 5. 1. another is , that it must not be outward , in shew onely , but inward in the heart . let vs not loue in word or in tongue onely , but in deede and in trueth . 3. 18. lastly , that it be not onely in time of prosperitie , but vvhen hee stands in most neede of our loue . for whosoeuer hath this worlds good , and seeth his brother haue neede , and shutteth vp the bovvels of compassion from him , howe dvvelieth the loue of god in him ? 3. 17. the second note of gods loue vnto vs is , our loue of god . for those whome god loueth in christ , to them hee giues his grace , to loue him againe : and this louing of him againe , is an euident token of that loue , wherewith he loueth them . so saith the apostle , we loue him , because hee loued vs first , 4. 19. if it be demaunded , howe a man may be assured that he loueth god ? the answer is , hee may knowe it by two things ; first by his conformitie to him in holinesse . the child that loues his father , will be willing to tread in the steppes of his father : and so in like manner , he that loueth god , will indeauour euen as hee is , so to be in this world . 4. 17. but howe is that ? not in equalitie and perfection , but in similitude and conformitie , striuing to be holy , as he is holy , and indeauouring to doe his will in all things . secondly , by the vveaning of his affection from the things of this world , yea from all pleasures and delights of this present life , so farre forth , as they are seuered from the feare , and loue of god , loue not this vvorld , nor the things that are in the world : if any man loue this world , the loue of the father is not in him . 2. 15. the fourth place , is in the second of timothie , 2. 19. the foundation of god remaineth sure , and hath this seale , the lord knoweth who are his , and let euery one that calleth vpon the name of the lord , depart from iniquitie . in these wordes , paul goeth about to cut off an ofsence , which the church might take , by reason of the fall of hymenaeus and philetus , who seemed to be pillars , and principall men in the church . and to confirme them against this offence , he saith ; the foundation of god , that is , the decree of gods election , stands firme and sure : so as those which are elected of god , shall neuer fall away , as these two haue done . and this he declares by a double similitude ; first of all he saith , the election of god , is like the foundation of an house , which standeth fast , though all the building be shaken . secondly he saith , that election hath the seale of god , and therefore may not be chāged ; because things which are sealed , are thereby made sure and authenticall . nowe this seale hath two parts : the first concerns god , in that euery mans saluation is written in ▪ the booke of life , and god knoweth who are his . and because it might be said , god indeede knowes who shall be saued , but what is that to vs ? we knowe not so much of our selues . therfore saint paul to answer this , sets downe a second part of this seale , which concerns man , and is imprinted in his heart and conscience ; which also hath two branches ▪ the gift of invocation , and a watchfull care , to make conscience of all & euery sinne , in these words , and let euery one that calleth vpon the name of the lord , depart from iniquitie . vvhereby he signifieth , that those that can call vpon god , & giue him thanks for his benefits , and withall , in their liues make conscience of sinne , haue the seale of gods election imprinted in their hearts , and may assure themselues they are the lords . a fift place of scripture , touching this question is , 2. pet. 1. 10. giue all diligence to make your election sure , for if you doe these things , you shall neuer fall . which words containe two parts : first , an exhortation , to make our election sure , not with god , for with him all things are knowne , but to ourselues , in our owne hearts and consciences . secondly , the meanes whereby to come to this assurance , that is , by doing the things before named , in the 5 , 6 , and 7. verses ; & that is nothing else , but to practise the vertues of the morall law , there set downe , which i will briefly shewe what they are , as they lie in the text . to faith , adde vertue ] by faith he meaneth true religion , and that gift of god , whereby we put our trust and confidence in christ. by vertue , he meaneth no speciall vertue , but ( as i take it ) an honest and vpright life before men , shining in the vertues and workes of the morall law . by knowledge , he meanes a gift of god , whereby a man may iudge , how to carrie himselfe warily , and vprightly before men . by temperance , is vnderstood a gift of god , whereby we keepe a moderation of our naturall appetite , especially about meate , drinke , and attire . by patience , is meant a vertue , whereby we moderate our sorrowe , in induring affliction . godlines ▪ is another vertue , whereby we worship god , in the duties of the first table . brotherly kindnesse , is also that vertue , whereby we imbrace the church of god , & the members thereof with the bowels of loue . and in the last place , loue , is that vertue , wherby we are well affected to all men , euen to our enemies . now hauing made a rehearsall of these vertues : in the tenth verse he saith , if ye doe these things , ye shall neuer fall , that is to say , if ye exercise your selues in these things , you may hereby be well assured and perswaded , of your election and saluation . iii. question . the last generall question touching man as he is a christian is , how a man beeing in distresse of minde , may be comforted and releiued ? ans. omitting all circumstances ( considering that much might be spoken touching this question ) i will onely set down that which i take to be most materiall to the doubt in hand . distresse of mind , ( which salomō calls a brokē or troubled spirit ) is , whē a mā is disquieted and distempered in conscience , and consequently in his affections , touching his estate before god. this distresse hath two degrees ; the lesse , and the greater : the lesse is a single feare , or griefe , when a man standeth in suspense and doubt , of his owne saluation , and in feare that he shall be condemned . the greater distresse is despaire , when a man is without all hope of saluation , in his owne sense and apprehension . i call dispaire a greater distresse , because it is not a distinct kind of trouble of minde , ( as some doe thinke , ) but the highest degree , in euery kinde of distresse . for euery distresse in the minde , is a feare of condemnation , and comes at length to desperation ▪ if it be not cured . all distresse of minde , ariseth from temptation , either begunne or continued . for these two doe so necessarily followe , and so inseperably accompany each the other , that no distresse , of what kind soeuer , can be seuered from temptation . and therfore according to the diuers sorts of temptations , that doe befall men , must the distresses of the minde be distinguished . now temptations be of two sorts ; either of triall or seducement . temptations of triall , are such as doe befall men , for the triall and proofe of the grace of god which is in them . the temptations of triall are twofold : the first is a combate of the conscience directly and immediately with the wrath of god ; which beeing the most grieuous temptation that can be , it causeth the greatest and deepest distresse of conscience . the second is , the triall of the crosse , that is , of outward affliction , whereby god maketh proofe of the faith of his children ; and not only that , but of their hope , patience , and affiance in his mercie , for their deliuerance . temptations of seducement be such , as wherin men are entised , to fall from god & christ , to any kind of euil . and these are of three kinds . the first is , the temptation of blasphemies , or the blasphemous temptation , which is from the deuill immediately . the second is , from a mans owne sinnes , originall and actuall ; and this also hath sundrie branches , as we shall see afterward . the third proceeds from imagination corrupted and deceiued . now answerable to these seuerall kinds of temptations , are the seueral kinds of distresses : and as all temptations may be reduced to those fiue , which haue beene before named : so may all distresses be reduced to fiue heads , arising of the former temptations . before i come to handle them in particular , we are to consider in the first place , what is the best & most sure generall remedie , which may serue for all these , or any other kind of temptation , that is incident to man : & by this , the curing of any particular distresse , will be more easie & plaine . this generall remedie is , the applying of the promise of life euerlasting , in and by the blood of christ. for no physicke , no arte or skill of man , can cure a wounded and distressed conscience , but onely the blood of christ. and that this is the soueraigne remedie of all other , no man doubteth . the maine difficultie , is touching the manner of proceeding , in the application of the promise . herein therefore three things must be performed . first of all , the partie must disclose the cause of the particular distresse , that the remedie may the better be applied . for the truth is , that the very opening of the cause , is a great ease to the minde , before any remedie be applyed . yet by the way , this care must be had , that the thing to be reuealed , be not hurtefull to the partie , to whome it is made knowne . for the distresse may happily arise of some confederacie , in matters of treason ▪ by the concealing whereof , the partie to whome they are reuealed , may intangle himselfe in the same danger . secondly , if the cause may be knowne , ( for sometime it is hid , from the partie distressed ) thē triall must be made , whether the said partie , be fit for comfort yea or no ? for if he be found to be vnfit , the word of god shall be misapplyed , and consequently abused . his fitnesse for comfort , may be found out , by searching whether he be humbled for his sinnes , or not ; for mē may be in great distresse , and yet not touched at all , for their sinnes . this humiliation stands in sorrow for sinne , with confession of the same vnto god , and in earnest praier for the pardon thereof , with an heartie desire of amendment of life . but if on the other side , the partie be vnhumbled , then the first and principall care must be , to worke in him some beginning of humiliation . this may be done in a freindly , and christian talke and conference , whereby he must first be brought to see , and well to consider his own sinnes ; secondly , to grieue , and to be sorrie for them , at the least , for some of the principall . and touching this sorrow , two things must be remembred : first , that the nature of worldly sorrowe must be altered , by beeing turned , and changed into sorrow according to god. if a mā be in some danger of his life , by bleeding at the nose : experience teacheth , the counsell of the phisitian is , to open a vaine , and let the partie blood in the arme , that the course thereof may be turned another way : the like order is to be taken with men , that are troubled , with worldly sorrow in their distresse : and that is , to turne the course of their griefe , by causing them to grieue not for worldly respects , or onely in consideration of the punishment due vnto their sinnes , but principally for the very offence of god , in , and by their sinnes committed . this done , a second care must be had , that this sorrow for sinne be not confused , but a distinct sorrow . the man that is in sorrow , must not be grieued onely , because he is as other men are , a sinner : but more specially for this , and that particular sinne , by which it comes to passe , that he is such , or such or a sinner , that so his sorrow in respect of sinne , may be distinct , and brought as it were to some particular head . and men in this case , must deale with the partie distressed , as surgeons are woont to doe with a tumour , or swelling in the bodie , whose manner is , first to applie drawing & ripening plaisters to the place affected , to bring the sore to an head , that the corruption may issue out at some one place : and then afterward healing plaisters which are of great vse to cure the same . euen so confused griefe , must be reduced to some particulars : and then , and not before , is a man fit for comfort , when his conscience is touched in speciall , in regard of some one or more distinct and seuerall offences . and he that is grieued for one sinne truly , and vnfainedly , from his heart ; shall proportionally be grieued for all the sinnes , that he knoweth to be in himselfe . the third thing required in applying this remedie is , the ministring and conuaying of comfort to the mind of him , that hath confessed his sinnes , and is truly humbled for them : and it is a point of the greatest moment of all . where if the question be , how this comfort should be ministred ▪ the answer is , it may be done , by bringing the partie troubled , within the compasse of the promise of life . and there be two waies of doing this : the one false , and the other true . some thinke , that men may be brought within the couenant , by the doctrine of vniuersall grace and redemption . but this way , to perswade vs of title in the couenant of grace , is both false , and vnfit . false it is , because all the promises of the gospel , are limited with the condition of faith , and repentance , not beeing vniuersall , but made onely to such persons , as repent and beleeue : therfore they are indefinite in regard of whole mankind , and to beleeuers they are vniuersall . it is obiected , that god would haue all men to be saued . ans. the apostle is the best expounder of himselfe , and he faith in the acts to the same effect , the time of this ignorance god regarded not , but now he admonisheth all men euery where to repent . in which wordes , paul addes this circumstance of time ( now , ) to limit this good will of god , to the last age of the world , after the comming of christ in the flesh , and not to inlarge the same to all the posteritie of adam . and ●o must he be vnderstood in the place to timothie , god would haue all men to be saued , that is , now in this last age of the world . and thus the same apostle 2. cor. 6. expounds a certaine prophecie of isai , concerning the acceptable time of grace . now , saith he , is the acceptable time : behold ( now ) is the day of saluation , meaning the time of the new testamēt . and col. ● . 26. the mysterie hid frō the beginning , is now made manifest to the saints . and ro. 16. 26. the reuelatiō of the secret mysterie is now opened . all which , and many other places about the same matter , hauing this circumstance of time ( now , ) must needs be limited to this last age of the world . as for the note of vniuersalitie , all , it must not be vnderstood of all particulars , but of all kinds , sorts , conditions , and states of men , as may be gathered out of the former words : i would that praiers be made for all men , not for euery particular man : ( for there be some that sinne vnto death , for whome we may not pray , ) but for all states of men , as well princes as subiects , poore as rich , base as noble , vnlearned as learned , &c. but the saying of paul is vrged , 2. cor. 5. 18. god was in christ , recōciling the world vnto himselfe : therefore the promise in christ , belongs to the whole world , & consequently to euery one . ans the same apostle shall againe answer for himselfe . rom. 11. 15. the casting away of the iewes , is the reconciling of the world , that is , of the gentiles in the last age of the world : for so he said before more plainly , the falling avvay of the ievv , is the riches of the world , and the diminishing of them , the riches of the gentiles . and so must that place to the corinths be vnderstood , namely , not of all and euery man , that liued in all ages and times ; but of thē that were ( by the dispensation of the gospel ) to be called out of all kingdomes , and nations , after the death and ascenfion of christ. thus then the promise of saluation , is not vniuersall , without exception , or restraint : and therefore application made by the vniuersalitie of the promise , admits some falshood . secondly , this way of applying , is also vnfit . for the reason must be framed thus : christ died for all men : but thou art a man : therefore christ died for thee . the partie distressed will graunt all , and say , christ indeede died for him , i● he would haue receiued christ , but he by his sinn● hath cut himselfe off from his owne sauiour , and hath forsaken him , so as the benefit of his death will doe him no good . the right way of ministring comfort to a partie distressed followeth . in the handling whereof , first , i will lay downe the grounds , whereby any man that belongs to god , may be brought within the couenant . and then , i will shew the right way , how they must be vsed , and applied . for the first . recourse must not be had to all graces , or to all degrees and measures of grace ; but onely such , as a troubled conscience may feele and reach vnto . for those that be the true children of god , and haue excellent measure of grace ; when they are in distresse , feele little or no grace at all in themselues . the graces then , that serue for this purpose , are three . faith , repentance , and the true loue of god. which is the fruit of them both . and that we may the more easily and truly discerne of them , and not be deceiued , inquirie must be made , what be the seedes and beginnings of them all . the first gronnd of grace is this : a desire to repent , and beleeue , in a touched heart and conscience , is faith and repentance it selfe , though not in nature , yet in gods acceptation . i prooue it thus . it is a principle graunted and confessed of all men ; that in them which haue grace , god accepteth the will for the deede . if there be a willing minde ( saith the apostle ) it is accepted not according to that a man hath not , but according to that he hath . againe , god hath annexed a promise of blessednes , and life euerlasting to the true and vnfained desire of grace . whence it is , that they are in scripture pronounced blessed , which hunger and thirst after righteousnes . and who are they but such , as feele themselues to want all righteousnes , and doe truly and earnestly desire it in their hearts . for hunger and thirst , argues both a want of something , and a feeling of the want . and to this purpose the holy ghost saith , to him that is a thirst will i giue to drinke of the water of life freely now this thirstie soule , is that man , which feeles himselfe destitute of all grace , and gods fauour in christ , and withall doth thirst after the blood of christ , and desires to be made partaker thereof . god is wont mercifully to accept of the desire of any good thing , when a man is in necessitie , and stands in want thereof . the lord ( saies dauid ) heares the desire of the poore , that is , of them that are in distresse either of bodie , or minde . yea , he will fulfill the desire of them that feare him . it will be said , that the desire of good things is naturall : and therefore god will not regard mens desires . i answer , desires be of two sorts ; some be of such things , as men by the meere light of nature know to be good : for example : the desire of wisdome , of ciuill vertue , of honour , of happinesse , and such like : and all these nature can desire . others be aboue nature , as the desire of remission of sinnes , reconciliation , and sanctification : and they which seriously desire these , haue a promise of blessednes and life euerlasting . and hence it followes , that desire of mercie , in the want of mercie , is mercie it selfe ; and desire of grace , in the want of grace , is grace it selfe . a second ground is this . a godly sorrovv whereby a man is grieued for his sinnes , because they are sinnes , is the beginning of repentance , & indeed for substance is repentance it selfe . the apostle paul reioyced that he had in the worke of his ministerie , wrought this godly sorrow in the hearts of the corinthians , calling it sorrow that causeth repentance not to be repented of . this sorrow may be discerned in this sort : the heart of him in whome it is , is so affected , that though there were no conscience , nor deuill to accuse , no hell for condemnation ; yet it would be grieued in it selfe , because god by sinne is displeased , and offended . i● it be alleadged , that euery one cannot reach to this beginning of repentance , thus to sorrow for his sinne ; then i adde further , if the partie be grieued for the hardnes of his heart , whereby it comes to passe , that he cannot grieue , he hath vndoubtedly receiued some portion of godly sorrow . for it is not nature , that makes vs to grieue for hardnes of heart , but grace . the third ground is , that a setled purpose , and willing minde to forsake all sinne , and to turne vnto god , ( though as yet no outward cōuersion appeare , ) is a good beginning of true conuersion , & repentance . i thought ( saith dauid ) i will confesse against my selfe my wickednes vnto the lord : and thou forgauest the punishment of my sinne . and to this is added ( selah , ) which is not onely a musicall note , but ; as some thinke , a note of obseruation , to moue vs to marke the things that are set downe , as beeing of speciall weight and moment . and surely this is a matter of great consequence ; that vpon the very vnsained purpose of confession of sinne , god should giue a pardon thereof . take a surther proofe of this in the prodigall sonne , whome i take not for one that was neuer called , or turned to god , ( though some doe so , and seeme to haue warrant for their opinion : ) but rather for him that is the child of god , and afterward falls away . now such a one beeing brought by outward crosses and afflictions , to see his owne miserie , purposeth with himselfe , to returne to his father againe , and to humble himselfe , and confesse his iniquitie : and vpon this very purpose , when he had said , i will goe to my father , and say vnto him , father , i haue sinned , &c. at his returne a farre off , his father receiues him as his child againe , and after acceptation followes his confession . the like is to be seene in dauid , who beeing reprooued by the prophet nathan , for his sinnes of adulterie and murther , presently made confession of them , and at the very same time , receiued by the prophet , sentence of absolution , euen from the lord himselfe , wherein he could not erre . the fourth ground . to loue any man because he is a christian , and a child of god , is a sensible and certaine note of a man that is partaker of the true loue of god in christ. hereby ( saith s. iohn ) we knowe that we are translated from death to life , because we loue the brethren . loue here is not a cause but onely a signe of gods loue to vs. and our sauiour christ saith , he that receiueth a prophet in the name of a prophet , shall receiue a prophets reward . now that we be not deceiued in these grounds ; it must be rememebred , that these beginnings of grace , ( be they neuer so weak ) must not be flittering and fleeting , but constant & setled , not stopped or staied in the way , but such as daiely growe and increase : and then they are indeed accepted of god. and he that can finde these beginnings , or any of them truely in himselfe , he may assure himselfe thereby , that he is the child of god. hauing thus laid downethe groundes of cōfort : i come now to the way , by which the party in distresse , may be brought within the compasse of the promise of saluation . this way standes in two things ; in making triall ▪ and in applying the promise . first then , triall must be made ▪ whether the person distressed haue in him as yet , any of the forenamed grounds of grace or not . this triall may be made by him that is the comforter , in the moouing of certaine questions to the said person . and first , let him aske whether he beleeue and repent ? the distressed partie answers no , he cannot repent nor beleeue . then he must further aske , whether he desire to beleeue and repent ? to this he will answer , he doeth desire it with all his heart ; in the same sort is he to make triall of the other groundes . when a man is in the fit of tentation ; he will say resolutely , he is sure to be dāned . aske him in this fit , of his loue to god , he will giue answer , he hath none at all : but aske him further , whether he loue a man because he is a christian , and a child of god , then will he say he doth indeed . thus after triall made in this manner , some beginnings of faith and repentance will appeare , which at the first lay hid . for god vseth out of the time of prosperitie , by & in distresse and affliction to work his grace . the second point followeth . after that by triall some of the foresaid beginnings of grace , be found out , then comes the right applying of the promise of life euerlasting to the partie distressed . and that is done by a kind of reasoning ; the first part whereof , is taken from gods word , the second from the testimonie of the distressed conscience , and the conclusion is the applying of the promise , on this manner . he that hath an vnfained desire to repent and beleeue , hath remission of sinnes , and life euerlasting : but thou hast an earnest desire to repent and beleeue in christ. therefore remission of sinnes and life euerlasting is thine . and here remember , that it is most conuenient , this application be made by the minister of the gospell , who in it , must vse his ministeriall authoritie giuen him of god , to pronounce the pardon . for in distresse , it is as hard a thing , to make the conscience yeild to the promise , as to make fire and water agree . for though men haue signes of grace & mercie in them , yet will they not acknowledge it , by reason of the extremitie of their distresse . in this manner , vpon any of the former grounds , may the troubled and perplexed soule be assured , that mercie belongs to it . and this i take to be , the onely generall and right way , of conforting a distressed conscience . nowe that the promise thus applyed , may haue good successe , these rules must necessarily be obserued . i. one is , that the comfort which is ministred , be delaied with some mixture of the law ; that is to say , the promise alone must not be applyed , but withall mention is to be made , of the sinnes of the partie , and of the grieuous punishments , due vnto him for the same . the reason is , because there is much deceipt in the heart of man ; in so much , as oftentimes it falleth out , that men not throughly humbled , beeing comforted either too soone , or too much , doe afterward becom the worst of all . in this respect , not vnlike to the iron , which being cast into the fire vehemētly hot , & cooled againe , is much more hard , then it would haue bin , if the heat had bin moderate . and hence it is , that in the ministring of cōfort , we must somwhat keep thē down , & bring them on by litle & litle to repentance . the sweetnesse of comfort is the greater , if it be delayed with some tartenesse of the law. ii. another rule is this : if the distressed partie , be much possessed with griefe , of himselfe , he must not be left alone , but alwaies attēded with good company . for it is an vsuall practise of the deuill , to take the vantage of the place & time , when a man is solitarie and depriued of that helpe , which otherwise he might haue in societie with others . thus he tempted eue , when she was apart from her husband . and in this regard , salomon pronounces a woe to him that is alone . but herein doeth his malice most appeare , in that he is alway readiest , when a man is in great distresse , and withall solitarie , then vpon the sudden to tempt him to dispaire , and to the making away of himselfe . iii. thirdly , the partie in distresse must be taught , not to rest vpon his owne iudgement , but alwaies to submit himselfe , and be content to be aduised by others that are men of wisedome , iudgement , and discretion . a thing to be obserued the rather , because the very neglect thereof , hath caused sundrie persons , to remaine vncomforted for many yeres . iv. fourthly , the partie distressed , must neuer heare tel of any fearefull accidents , or of any that haue bin in like , or worse case thē himself is . for vpon the very report , the distressed conscience will fasten the accident vpon it selfe , and therby cōmonly wil be drawn to deeper griefe or dispaire . for the mind afflicted will imagine fearefull things , and sometime , the very bare naming of the deuil , will strike terrour & feare into it . v. fiftly , the partie that is to comfort , must beare with all the wants of the distressed ; as with their frowardnesse , peeuishnesse , rashnesse , and with their distempered and disordered affections and actions ▪ yea he must put vpon him ( as it were ) their persons , beeing affected with their miserie , and touched with their sorrowes , as if they were his owne , grieuing when he seeth them to grieue , weeping when they doe weepe and lament . vi. sixtly , he that is the comforter , must not be discouraged , though after long labour and paines taking , there follow small comfort and ease , to the partie distressed . for vsually , it is long before comfort can be receiued ; and why ? surely because god hath the greatest stroke in these distresses of minde , and brings men thorough all the temptations , that he hath appointed , before he opens the heart to receiue comfort . the church in the canticles seekes for her beleeued ; but before shee can finde him , shee goes about in the citie , through the streets , and by open places , passing by the watchmen thēselues , and after shee hath vsed all meanes without helpe or hope , at length shee finds her beloued ▪ him in whome her soule delighteth . thus much for the generall remedie of all distresses : nowe i come to the particular distresses themselues . the first distresse ariseth of a diuine temptation , which is a combate with god himselfe immediately . and this distresse is , when the conscience speaks some fearefull things of god , and withall the partie distressed , feeles some euident tokens of gods wrath . examples hereof we shall finde many in the word of god. one is , the example of righteous iob , who hauing beene long in outward afflictions , was withall exercised with the apprehension of the anger of god , and in that state he saith , that the arrows of the almightie were in him , that the venime thereof , did drinke vp his spirit , that the terrors of god did fight against him . yea further he addeth , that god was his enemie , and writ bitter things against him : and made him to possesse the sinnes of his youth . and at another time he complaineth , that gods wrath had torne him , that he hated him , g●ashed vpon him with his teeth , and had sharpened his eies against him in all which , and diuers other places , it appeares that his conscience was exercised , with the sense of the wrath of god , which had nowe euen seazed vpon his soule . another example we haue in dauid , who also was exercised with this temptation and trouble of minde , as the first wordes of the 6 psalme , and the whole tenour thereof doe euidently shewe ; for first , he desires the lord , not to rebuke him in his wrath , and afterward complaineth , that his griefe was so great , that his very flesh consumed , his bones were vexed , and his bodie brought to such a state , as no sicknesse could haue brought him vnto . and it is not vnlike , that the same prophet did often fall into the like kind of distresse of minde , as may be gathered out of psalme , 77 ▪ and sundrie other places . now as it fared with these , and diuers other seruants of god , in ancient times , so are we not without some instances thereof in our daies . amongest many , that worthy man master luther , writes of himselfe , that he was in this particular temptation , and that he learned in it , the doctrine of the iustification of a sinner , by the meere mercie of god , without any merit of workes ▪ and vpon the sense and experience of the nature and properties of this distresse , he w●ote● notable exposition of the 6. psalme of dauid ▪ ●●e scope and intent whereof , he writeth to be nothing else , but a soueraigne remedie of this and the like distresses of the minde and conscience . if it be demanded , what is the occasion of this kinde of temptation ? i answer , that it ariseth some times , vpon the commission of some notorious sinne , which doth wound the conscience , as in cain , iudas , and saul , who for their great and capit all sinnes , that stinged and wounded their consciences , grew to a fearefull state , and consequently perished in this temptation . sometimes againe it comes when there is no sinne committed , but obedience to god performed : and then there cannot be rendred any reason of it , either in man , or out of man , saue this , that god will haue it so to be . and the trueth hereof is plaine by the examples of iob and dauid before remembred . the effects of this temptation are many ▪ and very strange . for outwardly it works vpon the bodie , as it were a burning ague , & it causeth the entralls to rise , the liuer to rowle in the bodie : & it sets a great heat in the bones , & consumes the flesh , more then any sicknes can doe . and that it is so , as i say , beside experience , it is cleare in the word of god. dauid in this distresse affirmeth , that his eyes were eaten as it were with wormes , and sunke into his head psal. 6. 7. that his moisture became as the drought in sommer . psal. 32. 4. and iob saies , that his skinne was blacke vpon him , his bones were burnt with heat : yea that by meanes of this distresse he was now full of wrinkles , and his leanenes did rise vpon him . it is a principle which physitians doe hold , that the minde follows the temperature of the bodie , and is affected according to the good or euill constitution thereof : which though it be true , yet withall it is as manifest on the other side , that the bodie doth often follow the state and condition of the minde . for a distressed heart , must of necessitie , make a fainting and a languishing bodie . but the principall thing to be sought for in this temptation , is the remedie thereof : whereunto there be fiue things required , which are to be practised , as occasion shall be offered . first , choise must be made of the most fit and present remedie , and that must be vsed in the first place . now the most fit and present remedie is , to bring the partie troubled to the personall exercises of faith and repentance , by , and in him selfe . for this ende , he must examine his conscience most straigthly and narrowly of all the sinnes of his heart , and life . secondly , he must humbly confesse against himselfe , all his knowne sinnes : and withall acknowledge the due condemnation , that he thereby hath deserued . thirdly , he must crie to heauen for mercie , intreating the lord most instantly for pardon , and for the restraint of his wrath due vnto him for his sinne . dauid beeing in this distresse , performed all these duties , as we may read in the 6. psalme : and he saith further of himselfe , that whilst he concealed his sinnes , the hand of god was heauie vpon him : but vpon his earnest confession , and deprecation , he receiued mercie . and if we read the booke of iob , we shall finde that the principall scope thereof is this ; namely , to shew vnto vs , that iob was throughly exercised with this temptation , and that in the ende hauing beene rebuked both by his friends , and by god himselfe , his recouerie was made , by humbling himselfe , when he saith , behold , i am vile : againe , now i abhorre my selfe , and repent in dust and ashes . some may here demand , if it fall out , that the person himselfe , cannot performe any good dutie , of himselfe , by reason of his distraction in soule , and bodie , what must then be done ? ans. if the partie can but sigh , and sobbe vnto god for mercie , and comfort : it is no doubt , a worke of gods spirit , and a practise both of faith , and repentance . we knovv not ( saith saint paul ) what to pray as we ought , ( namely , in our distresses ) but the spirit it selfe maketh request for vs , with sighs that cannot be expressed : and therein lies our comfort . thus moses at the redde sea beeing in great distresse , & not knowing what to say , or doe , sighed and groned inwardly in his soule vnto the lord , for helpe and protection : and his very desire was in stead of a loud crie in the eares of the lord. the second thing is , that triall must be made , whether the partie hath in him any tokens of grace , or not . these tokens are the small beginnings of grace , which before i haue declared . as for example : a griefe because we cannot grieue for sinne as we should : a serious will and desire to beleeue , and repent : a purpose to sinne no more , and such like . if these be found in the partie , then by them as by sure pledges , he may bee assured of the fauour of god towardes him : and where any of these be found , the saying of god to saint paul must be vrged , my grace is sufficient for thee : and therewith must the distressed partie stay his minde . yea we are to be content with any condition in this life , be it neuer so miserabie , so long as we are in the fauour of god , though he should lay vpon vs euen the paines of hell , till the time of our death . so did dauid , who when he was pursued by his owne sonne , vttered these words vnto god , behold , if i please thee not , doe with me what thou wilt . and the like was the minde of paul , who beeing assured of the fauour of god , was content for his glorie , and the saluation of the israelites ( if it had beene possible ) to be separated from christ , and to indure the very pangs of hell . the third thing in this cure is , to applie to the said distressed partie , such promises of god made vnto afflicted persons , as are most large and comfortable . for example , that the lord is neere to them that are of a contrite heart , and vvill saue such as be afflicted in spirit . psal. 34. 18. againe , i came not ( saith our sauiour christ ) but to the lost sheepe of the house of israel . matth. 15. 24. he saies not , to the straying sheepe , but to such as ate now in the pit , readie to be drowned , or in the lyons mouth , readie to be deuoured . againe ▪ the spirit of the lord is vpon me , therefore he hath annointed me that i should preach the gospel to the poore ; that is , to such as are distressed in conscience , and poore in spirit : he hath sent me that i should heale the broken hearted , that i should preach deliuerance to the captiues . these and many other such like promises , are in this case to be vrged , and the partie mooued to indeauour to beleeue them , and to rest himselfe vpon them , though he loose all things els . fourthly , the partie must be brought to a serious consideration of his life past , and of gods mercifull dealing with him in former times , and therewith is he to be comforted for the time present . for if aforehand he hath receiued any tokens of the fauour and loue of god , by them he is now to stay and ●o settle his minde . the reason is plaine : the gifts of god are without repentance ; whome he loueth once , he loueth to the ende , and whome he chooseth he calleth , iustifieth , and sanctifieth , and will also in time glorifie . dauid beeing in such affliction , that he could hardly thinke vpon god , yet he tooke this course , praied to the lord for comfort , communed with his owne heart , and called to remembrance how god had formerly dealt with him , and with this meditation of the continuall course of gods mercie in his preseruation , he confirmed his faith , and staied his heart in his greatest troubles . the fifth and last thing to be done , is the remooueall of such reasons and doubts , as the partie distressed vsually makes against himselfe , for his owne ouerthrow . for it is the manner of those that are troubled in minde , to dispute against themselues ; and commonly they are woont to alleadge three things . first , beeing instructed how to humble themselues , and to depend on gods mercie , they will graunt , that all these indeede are good things , but they belong not to them : for they neither doe , nor can feele any thing , but the tokens of gods anger , and that they are alreadie entred , into some degrees of condemnation . this obiection may be taken away , by informing them of the manner of gods dealing in all his workes . for commonly he workes all things in his creatures , in , and by contraries , if we could know the whole frame of them . thus in the creation , euery creature had his beeing of that which had no beeing , and something was made , not of something , but of nothing . after the flood , the signe of gods couenant , for the preseruation of the world from destruction by raine , is the raine-bow , which indeede is a naturall signe of raine . when elias was to prooue the lord to be the onely true god , against the idolatrous priests of baal , and that by burnt offerings ; he powred water vpon the sacrifice , and fills a trench with water round about , and in this contrarie meanes was the sacrifice burnt vp . christ for the curing of a blind man , tēpers spittle & clay together , which in all reason , is a fitter means to put out the eyes ▪ thē to cause the blind to see . thus in the worke of our redemption , christ giues life , not by life , but by death , and he sendes men to heauen by the gates and suburbes of hell . he will not build vpon an olde foundation , but he pulls downe and destroies all , that man may haue no hope at all in himselfe , but that all the hope he hath , may be in god. first he kills , and then he makes aliue , as anna speaketh : first he woundeth , and then he healeth . he makes man to sowe in teares , that afterward he may reape in ioy . and he that knoweth gods dealing to be this , must herewith rest content , and satisfied : because in wrath , god vseth to remember his mercie ; yea his mercie is neuer sweete vnto the palate of the soule , vntill it be seasoned with some tast of his wrath . the paschall lambe was eaten with sowre hearbs , to signifie , that we can feele no sweetnes in the blood of christ , till we first feele the smart of our owne sinnes , & corruptions . secondly , these persons vse to alleadge against themselues , that if they could feele any cōfort at all , then they would stay their minds , and yeild to good perswasions , & exhortations . to this , the answer is ; that there is a rule of grace , ( which we must follow ) gathered out of the word of god , and the experience of gods children , contrarie to the rule of nature . and aboue the light of reason : and it is this , that in case of affliction , we must not liue by feeling , but by faith . this rule is grounded vpon the speech of the lord by the prophet , the iust man shall liue by his faith . when we haue neither sight , nor sense , nor any tast of gods mercie , but onely apprehend his wrath , euen then we must labour to lay hold of mercie in his word , and promise . sense , and feeling , are not alwaies fit directions for the time of this life : for he may be the deare child of god , that in prsent feeleth nothing but his wrath and indignation . this indeede is the true triall of our faith , when euen aboue and against reason , we relie on the mercie of god , in the apprehension of his anger . so did dauid . out of the deepe , ( saith he ) that is , beeing nowe deepely plunged into the pangs of a distressed conscience , haue i called vpon thee , o lord : and iob in the like case . lord , though though thou kill me , yet will i trust in thee . abraham is commended by the holy ghost , amongest other things , for this , that he beleeued in god , aboue hope : that is , against all matter of hope , that might possibly be conceiued , vpon the consideration of the strength of naturall causes . the theife vpon the crosse , feeling nothing but woe : and seeing nothing in christ but misery & contempt , yet he beleeued in christ , and was saued . in a word , christ himselfe when he was forsaken of all men , and voide of all worldly comfort , and felt nothing but the depth of the wrath of god , in his agonie and passion ; yet by the faith of his manhood , he staied himselfe and said , my god , my god. thirdly , they vse to plead , that their case is desperate , that neuer any was in such a state as they are , neuer any touched with the like distresse of minde . answ. it is false : for the holy ghost hath penned three notable places of scripture , the booke of iob , & two psalmes of dauid , wherein are propounded vnto vs the examples of iob and dauid , gods owne deare seruants , who were in as great distresse , as euer they , or any other haue beene . and they may not thinke , that they euer could be able , to indure greater paines then christ , who notwithstanding in the anguish of his soule vpon the crosse , cried out , my god , my god , why hast thou for saken me ? and thus much touching the first kind of trouble of conscience , called the diuine temptation . the second kind of distresse is that which ariseth from outward afflictions . by afflictions i vnderstand , all manner of miseries and calamities in this life , from the least to the greatest , from the paine of the little finger , to the very pangs of death . nowe the question is , howe the trouble of minde , arising by afflictions , may be remedied . for the answer of which question , two things are required of the partie distressed ; practise and meditation . the practise is that , which is to be vsed , in all distresses of minde whatsoeuer . and it is a diligent examination of the conscience in regard of sinne ; an earnest and heartie confession thereof vnto god : & deprecation , that is , earnest praier vnto him , for the pardon of the same . these three things , beeing done truely and vnfainedly from the heart , are a present remedie against this trouble , and bring with them much comfort . manasses the king of iudah , that had committed much wickednesse : when he was carried captiue to babel , and there put in chaines : he humbled himselfe , acknowledged his sinnes , and praied earnestly vnto the lord , and the issue was good ; for god was intreated of him , & gaue him deliuerance . iob beeing long in outward affliction , humbled himselfe in like manner , and at length receiued comfort . daniel humbled himselfe before god , for his owne sinnes , and for the sinnes of gods people , making request vnto god earnestly for them , and euen when he was in the acte of praying , the lord sent his angel gabriel , to giue him notice of deliuerance . lastly , the church of god , vnder the crosse , performed the like dutie , let vs search and trie our waies , and turne to the lord , , and god in mercie gaue an eare vnto her mourning and lamentation . by all these places , it is apparent , that there is no better remedie in the world , for the minde of man , grieued by meanes of outward afflictions , then the practise of the duties before named . the next thing vnto practise , is the meditation of the comfortable doctrines that are set downe in the word of god , touching afflictions . all which doctrines , may be reduced to fiue principall and maine grounds of comfort , shall be laid down in their order . the first ground is , that all afflictions from the least to the greatest , doe come to passe , not by accident , chance or fortune , but by the speciall prouidence of god. i explaine it thus . in euery particular crosse and affliction , there is the hand of gods particular prouidence , and that in three regards . first , because god decreeth , and foreappointeth euery particular crosse . marke the wordes of paul , whome god hath foreknowne , them he hath predestinate , to be made like vnto the image of his sonne ; and what is this image ? nothing else , but a conformitie vnto christ in afflictions for this life , and in glorie for the life to come . nowe if god hath decreed , that those whome he foreknewe , should be conformable vnto his sonne in these respects , then hath he also decreed the afflictions themselues . secondly , god doeth not onely barely permit afflictions to be , but also he effecteth them , and brings them into execution , as they are crosses , corrections , trialls , and punishments . i make peace ( saith the lord ) and i create euill , that is , not the euill of sinne , but of punishment , which is euill in our sense and feeling . for things are tearmed euill two waies : some are euill indeed , some are euill not indeed , but in regard of our sense , apprehension , and estimation ; and of this latter sort are afflictions , which god is said to create . and to this purpose is the saying of the prophet amos , shall there be euill in the citie , and the lord hath not done it ? thirdly , as god causeth afflictions , so he ordereth and disposeth them , that is , he limiteth & appointeth the beginning , the end , the measure or quantitie , and the continuance thereof . yea he also ordereth them to their right endes , namely , his owne glorie , the good of his seruants , and the benefit of his church . thus god is said to correct his people in iudgement , that is , so as he will haue the whole ordering of the correction in his owne hand . ioseph tells his brethren , that when they intended euill against him , in selling him to the ishmaelites for siluer , god disposed it for good . when shemei cursed dauid , he forbade his seruants , so much as to meddle with him , and why ? because ( saith he ) the lord bade him to curse , and who then dare say vnto him , why hast thou done so ? and to this purpose the prophet dauid saith , i held my peace and said nothing : why ? because thou lord hast done it , psal. 39. 9. here some will say , if afflictions did come onely from god , it were somewhat , but oftentimes they come from men , that beare vs no good will , and therefore no maruell though we be impatient . answ. when crosses doe come from men , god vseth them as instruments , to execute his iudgements vpon vs ; and in this worke , god is the cheife doer , and they are as tooles , in the hand of the workeman . and the lord inflicteth them vpon vs by men , to trie our patience vnder the crosse . ioseph , though he knewe well , the badde dealing of his brethren towards him , yet he looked not to them alone , but to an higher cause , namely , the lord himselfe , who executed his owne good will by them ; god ( saith he ) disposed it to good . and againe , god did send me before you into egypt for your preseruation . the second ground is , the commandement of god , touching the crosse , and obedience vnto him therein . this commandement is expressed , luk. 9. 23. where we are commanded to take vp our crosse euery day , and follow christ. abraham was commanded , with his own hands to sacrifice his onely sonne isaac ; and to this cōmandement , ( though otherwise a great crosse vnto him ) he addresseth himselfe to yeeld obedience . and in the prophecie of micah , the church saith , shee will beare the wrath of the lord , that is , shee will performe obedience to him in the crosse , because shee had sinned against him . and s. peter saith , that god resisteth the proud and giueth grace to the humble , therefore humble your selues vnder the mightie hand of god. and this beeing the commandement of god , that we should yeild obedience to him , in euery affliction , we ought to be no lesse carefull to obey it , then any one commandement of the morall lawe . the third ground is , that god will be present with his seruants in their afflictions . vpon this ground , dauid comforts himselfe , because god had promised to heare him , to be with him in trouble , and to deliuer him . and in another place , though i should walke in the shaddowe of death , i would feare none ill , for thou art with me . &c. nowe that we may the better vnderstand this doctrine , we are to consider what be the ends or effects of gods beeing with vs in a●fliction , whereby he testifieth his presence , and they are three . the first is , to worke our deliuerance from the crosse : call vpon me ( saith the lord ) in the day of thy trouble , and i will deliuer thee . this promise must not be vnderstood simply , but with an exception , so farre forth as it shall be for our good . for all promises of temporall deliuerance , are conditionall , and must be conceiued , with this limitation of the crosse and chastisement , if god please to impose it . some may say , how if god will not deliuer vs , but leaue vs in the affliction , what comfort shall we then haue ? answ. in the second place therefore we must remember , that god will temper and moderate our afflictions , so as we may be able to beare them . habbakuk praieth vnto god , in the behalfe of the church , that he would in wrath remember mercie . and paul saith , that the lord will not suffer vs to be tempted aboue that we are able to beare , but will giue an issue with the temptation . thirdly , put the case that god doeth not moderate our afflictions , but suffer them to remaine vpon vs , not onely for some time of our life , but to the very death : yet then will be testifie his holy presence another way , namely , by giuing the partie distressed , power and strength to beare his affliction . vnto you it is giuen ( saith paul ) for christ , that not onely ye should beleeue in him , but also suffer for his sake . the fourth ground of comfort in affliction is , that euery affliction vpon the seruants of god , hath some speciall goodnesse in it , rom. 8. 28. we know that all things , worke together for good vnto them that loue god. and in regard hereof , the crosses which are indured by gods children , are so farre from beeing preiudiciall to their saluation , that they are rather helpes and furtherances of the same . now this goodnes is perceiued two waies . first , by the fruit and effect of it , and then by the qualitie and condition thereof . in both which respects , afflictions are good . touching the fruits of afflictions , because they are manifold , i will reduce them to seauen principall heads . i. afflictions doe make men to see & consider their sinnes . iosephs brethren for twentie yeares together , were little or not at all troubled for their wickednes , in selling their brother ; yet vpon their affliction in egypt , they beganne to consider what they had done : we haue ( say they ) verily sinned against our brother , in that we saw the anguish of his soule , when he be sought vs , and we would not heare him : therefore is this trouble come vpon vs. manasses in the time of his peace , gaue himselfe to witchcraft , and the worshipping of strange gods : but when he was captiue in babylon , then was he brought to the sight of his sinnes , and mooued to humble himselfe before god for them . ii. afflictions serue to humble men in their soules before god. the young vnthrift in the gospel called the prodigall child , while his portion lasted he spent liberally , and was grieued for nothing : but when he came to be pinched with hunger , and that through his owne follie , then he humbled himselfe before his father , and returned home vnto him . dauid saith of himselfe , that in his prosperitie he thought he should neuer be mooued , because the lord of his goodnes had made his mountaine to stand strong : but ( saith he ) thou didst hide thy face , and i was troubled , then cried i vnto the lord. iii. they serue to worke amendement of life . no chastising ( saith the author to the hebrewes ) for the present seemeth to be ioyous , but aftervvard it bringeth the quiet fruit of righteousnes to them that are thereby exercised , that is , afflictions and chastisments that seaze vpon gods children , doe leaue after them amendment of life , as the needle passeth through the cloath , and leaueth the threed behinde it . when we are iudged ( saith the apostle ) vve are nurtered of the lord , that we might not be condemned with the world . and dauid confesseth psal. 119. it is good for me that i haue beene afflicted , that i might learne thy statutes . and the good husbandman , purgeth and pruneth the vine , that it may bring forth more and better fruit . iiii. they cause men to denie themselues , and to rely wholy on the mercy of god. thus paul receiued the sentence of death in himselfe , that he should not trust in himselfe , but in god , that raiseth the dead . v. the fi●t is inuocation . for afflictions make vs to crie hartelie and feruently vnto god , to bringe our selues into his presence , and there to abase our selues before him . thus the lord saith of his children that in their affliction they will seeke him diligently . vi. the sixth is patience . affliction bringeth forth patience , patience experience , &c. as if he should say ; because the loue of god is shed in our hearts , therefore in afflictions we are patient . now whilst we patiently beare the crosse , we haue experience of the mercie and loue of god towardes vs : and hauing once in some notable deliuerance , tried and tasted the mercie of god , we doe by hope ( as it were ) promise to our selues , the said fauour and mercy , for time to come . vii . the last fruit is obedience . this the holy ghost teacheth , to haue beene the fruit of the suffering of christ , when he saith , though he were the sonne , yet learned he obedience , by the things which he suffered . in the next place , afflictions are good in regard of their qualitie and condition , which is , that they are tokens and pledges of our adoption , when we make the best vse of them . if ye indure chastening , ( saith the holy ghost ) god offereth himselfe vnto you as vnto sonnes , that is , he comes to you in the crosse , not as a iudge and reuenger , but as a kind and louing father : and the crosse imposed , is as it were his fatherly hād , where with he chastiseth vs : and therefore iob praiseth god for his affliction , saying , god hath giuen , and god hath taken away , blessed be the name of the lord. the fifth ground of comfort is , that the partie distressed , hath partners in the crosse . for first he hath christ to be his partner , because he hath fellowship with him , in that he is afflicted , and is willing to obey god therein . paul accounteth it happines , to know the fellowshippe of christs afflictions , and to be made conformable vnto his death . phil. 3. 10. secondly , if the partie afflicted repent , christ communicateth with him in all his crosses , and accounts them as his owne . the apostle in this regard , would haue no man thinke it strange , no not when he is in the fierie triall ; but rather to reioyce because he is partaker of christs sufferings . phil. 4. 31. and christ saith to saul persecuting his church , saul , saul , why persecutest thou me ? thirdly , he that is afflicted , hath other seruants of god , partakers with him in all his afflictions . the apostle peter wisheth the church of god to resist sathan by faith , knowing , saith he , that the same afflictions are accōplished , in your brethren that are in the world . 1. pet. 5. 9. thus much generally of afflictions , and of comfort in them . it were a long and tedious worke , to set all downe in particular , together with their proper and distinct comforts : therfore i will passe them ouer , and speake onely of three kinds of afflictions , with their remedies . the first is , the deferring of deliuerance : a great affliction if it be considered . and touching it , i propound one question , namely , how the minde of the partie distressed , may be staied , when as the lord deferres deliuerance . for the answer hereof , three especiall points are to be considered . i. first , that god hath in his wisdome , set downe certen and vnchangeable times , for the accomplishment and issue of all things that are . there is a time appointed , to euery thing vnder ▪ the sunne . eccles. 3. 1. the speech of salomon is generall , and the meaning of it is this : whatsoeuer there is in the world , either done , or suffered , or enioyed by man , whether it be of the number of naturall things , or of those which are voluntarily vndertaken , or necessarily endured ; god hath in his prouidence sorted vnto them , a set time and season , whereof dependeth the successe of thē all . and this time , himself most freely ordereth and ruleth , at his owne good pleasure ; which , as no man can hinder or stay , so is it not in the power of any , to hasten , or preuēt . this point , the holy ghost in scripture prooueth by two instances , of the threatnings and promises of god , which himselfe accomplisheth at some certaine and vnchangeable times . when the old world in the daies of noah , had growne to much impietie , and wickednes , the lord appointed a certaine space of 120 yeares , for their repentance and conuersion , at the very ende and tearme whereof , he brought the flood vpon them , and not before . for if we compare the particular circumstances of time , noted in the 7. of genesis , with that which s. peter writeth , 1. pet. 3. 20. we shall find , that the inundation of waters came vpon the earth , at the very point of time before determined . againe , god threatned by ieremie , that the iewes for their sinnes , should be led captiue , and serue the king of babel 70 yeares . now if we take the iust computation of time , it will appeare , that so soone as euer those yeares were expired , the foresaid threat was accomplished . and therefore daniel alluding to ieremies prophecie , exactly setteth it downe , when he saith , the same night was belshazzer king of the chaldeans slaine , that is , the very night wherein those 70 yeares came to their full period . and as there are set times , allotted by god for the execution of his threatning sentences ; so also hath he determined certenly , the accomplishment of all and euery of his promises . an example hereof we haue in the israelites , of whome the lord said to abraham , that they should be in afflictiō in a strange land , 430 yeres , & then be deliuered . this promise of god was expressely fulfilled , as we may read in the booke of exodus . for before the ende and tearme of these yeares , they had no deliuerance at all : but when that time was expired , euen that selfe same day , departed all the hosts of israel , out of the land of egypt . and though moses , fourtie yeares before this time tooke in hand the worke of their deliuerance ; yet he did it without successe , and vpon a certaine accident , beeing himselfe constrained to flie into madian , he liued there as a stranger with iethro his father in law , till the saide time of foure hundred and thirtie yeares was accomplished ; toward the end whereof , being called of god to that office , he prospered , and not before . and in the same manner , hath god set downe a certen period of time , within which , he will exercise his children more or lesse , and at the end whereof , and not before , he will releeue and comfort them againe . now as the certentie of the accomplishment of gods threatning word , serues to terrifie all wicked liuers from sinne : so the vnchangeable performance of his promises , at the very time prefixed , and not before , teacheth the children of god sundrie things . first , that when they are in any distresse , and haue not present or speedie deliuerance , according to their desire ; they should wait the lords leisure , and expect with patience till the time come , which is appointed by him for their case and releefe : and in the meane while stay their hearts , by hope and affiance in his mercie . reason is plaine . god is sure in his word , therefore though heauines may indure for a night , yet ioy will returne in the morning psal. 30. 5. thus the lord comforteth the iewes in a particular distresse , as we may read in the prophecie of habbakuk ▪ where the prophet in the name of the iewes , complaineth and expostulateth the matter with god , why his owne people should be so lamentably afflicted , by a terrible and a furious nation , and why they should be led away captiues , by the chaldeans the enemies of god ? to this the lord makes answer , that as he had certenly determined , that iudgement to come vpon them , so certenly had he appointed a set time , wherein they should be deliuered . in the meane while , he biddes them to comfort themselues in this , that though the affliction should rest vpon them for a season , yet vndoubtedly they should be cased at the length : and therefore , that they should in patience waite for the vision , that is , the accomplishment of the vision , touching their deliuerance . secondly , hence we learne , that we must not onely beleeue the promises of god in generall , that god is true and faithfull in them , and that he is able and willing to fulfill them , euen as he made them : but we must beleeue them in particular , that is , with application to their proper and seuerall circumstances , which are the particular meanes , places , and times , whereby , and wherein he hath giuen his word , as touching our freedome and exemption from the crosse . take an instance hereof in the prophet daniel , who knewe well by the spirit of prophecie , that the lord had determined to bring vpon the iewes 70. yeares captiuitie in babylon . he knewe also that god had promised to put an ende to that captiuitie , at the end and tearme of those yeares . nowe what did daniel in this case ? vpon knowledge of the will of god in that point , during the said time , he praied not vnto the lord , for deliuerance of his people : but when he vnderstood that the time drew neere , wherein it was the will of god , that the iewes should returne out of captiuitie , then by faith applying the promise of god to that particular time : he besought the lord in praier and supplications , with fasting , in sackcloath and ashes , and the lord gaue eare vnto his praiers , & yeelded him a gratious answer . ii. the second point is , that god , when he deferres deliuerance , he doeth it vpon great and waightie causes and considerations , best known to himselfe . the first whereof is , that thereby he might humble men throughly , and bring them to an vtter deniall of themselues , and consequently cause them , to learne patience in afflictiō , which they would not learne , if they might be their owne caruers , and haue speedie deliuerance from the crosse , at their owne wils & pleasures . secondly , that beeing afflicted , they may acknowledge whence their deliuerance comes ; yea , whence they doe receiue not onely that , but euery other good benefit , which they inioy : namely , not from themselues , or any creature , but onely from the lord ; and accordingly may learne to value and prize his gifts , at their deserued excellencie . for it is a true saying , and often verified in affliction and want , that benefits easily obtained , are lightly regarded , and sooner forgotten . thirdly , that by the continuance of the crosse without intermission , he may make thē to distaste the world , and consequently drawe them to the meditation of the life to come , wherein all matter of mourning shall cease , and all teares shall be wiped from their eies . fourthly , the lord deferreth deliuerāce from affliction , that he might preuent greater euils and dangers , whereinto those that are afflicted might runne , if they had their hearts desire , and were eased not at his will , but at their owne wishes . when the children of israel came into canaan , they were informed , that they should dwell together with the canaanites , and moses rēdreth a reason therof , least ( saith he ) the wild beasts of the field multiply against thee . and for the preuenting of this euill , the israelites must indure some annoyance by the canaanites . euen so the lord keepeth his seruants vnder the crosse , for the preuenting of greater sinnes and offences . this should stay the mindes of men , & make them content , to waite vpon god for deliuerance , when they are afflicted . the third and last point is , that god alwaies hath and doeth exercise his best seruants , with long and continued crosses . abraham was childlesse , till he was 70. yeares of age , and at those yeares the lord promised him issue . but this promise was not accomplished till a long time after , when he was an hundred yeares old . dauid had a promise to be king of ierusalem , and iuda ▪ but the lord exercised him by many and grieuous afflictions , before he came to the crowne , in so much , that he saies of himselfe , that his eies failed with waiting vpon his god. zacharie and elizabeth praied to god , both of them in their youth , and many yeares after for issue , but the lord graunted not their request , till they were olde . to adde no more examples ; by these we see the lords dealing , euen with holy men & women , his owne deare seruants , that he doth not alwaies grant their requests , nor condescend to their desires at the first , but as it were holds thē off , & suspends his grace and fauour for a time . and therefore if it shall please him thus to deale with any of vs , we must frō these examples be taught , to possesse our soules with patience , resting contented in his will , and waiting on his good pleasure to the end . to conclude this point . suppose that the condition of gods seruants be such , as that they find no end of their afflictions , but that they do continue euen vnto death , what shall they doe in this case ? ans. besides that which hath beene said before , for the resolution of this question , i answer further , that first , they must still , euen vnto death , liue by faith , and say with holy iob , lord though thou kill me , yet will i trust in thee . secondly , they must stay and releiue their soules in the meane time , with these and such like meditations . i. that it is the will and pleasure of god , that we should through many afflictions , enter into the kingdome of god. act. 14. 22. nowe it is the propertie of a true child of god , to rest content in his fathers good will and pleasure , euen when he is afflicted , prou. 3. 11. my sonne — be not grieued at my correction , that is , let it not be tedious vnto thee , be content to beare it . our dutie therefore is , meekely to subiect our selues vnto the hand of god , as the child doeth vnto the correction of his father . ii. that though afflictions be long and tedious , yet god will at length giue a ioyful & comfortable issue . for so himselfe hath promised , math. 5. 4. blessed are they that mourne , for they shall be comforted . psal. 34. 19. great are the troubles of the righteous , but the lord will deliuer him out of thē all . marke the vpright man , & behold the iust , for the end of that mā is peace . iii. afflictions be they neuer so heauy , in regard of continuance , yet they are in no sort cōparable to those eternal ioies , that god hath prepared for thē that loue him . this was pauls meditatiō , who indured the crosse , euē to his dying day . our light afflictiō ( saith he ) which is but for a moment , worketh vnto vs an excellent , and eternal waight of glory . and elswhere he professeth that he did not count the afflictions of this present time , answerable in value to the glorie , which shall be reuealed vnto gods children , ro. 8. 18. saint peter tels them to whome he wrote , that in regard of their assured hope of eternall life , they should reioice , though now for a season , they were in heauinesse through manifold tentations , 1. pet. 1. 6. lastly the author to the hebrewes , comforteth the church by this reason , because it is is yet a very little while , and he that shall come , will come , and will not tarrie . iv. though god with-holdeth his hand in respect of deliuerance euen to death , yet his loue is constant and vnchangeable , and the crosse which we vndergoe , cannot seperate vs from that loue , wherewith he hath loued vs in iesus christ , rom. 8. 35. and thus much of the first particular distresse of minde . the second kind of afflictiō , is bodily & temporarie death , which consisteth in the seperation of the soule from the bodie . and touching this affliction , it is demanded , how any seruant of god , may be able to indure with comfort , the pangs of death ? for the answer hereof , two things are required : a preparation to death , and helpes in the time of death . concerning preparation , there are three duties to be performed . the first and most principall is commended vnto vs in the booke of psalmes , where dauid praies vnto god , lord make me to know mine ende , and the measure of my daies . and moses in like manner , lord teach me to number my daies , that i may apply my heart vnto wisedome . in which places , is remembred a notably dutie of preparation : to wit , that a man should resolue himselfe of death continually , and afore-hand number his daies . and this is done , by esteeming of euery day , as the day of his death , and accordingly doing alwaies that which he would doe , if he were now to giue vp the ghost . secondly , in way of preparation , we must indeauour to disarme and weaken death , who is as an armed man , that hath his weapons , whereby he seekes to destroy vs. and in this case , we must deale with death , as the philistims dealt with sampson . they saw by experience that he was a mightie man , and by his power and strength , had giuen them many foyles ; and therefore they laboured to knowe , in what part of his bodie his strength did lie . and after inquirie , finding it to be in the haire of his head , they neuer rested , till they had spoiled him thereof . and questionlesse , the time wil come , when we all must encounter , with this strong and powerfull sampson , death , in the meane while , it is a point of wisdome , to inquire wherein his power & might consisteth . when this search hath bin made , we shall finde that his weapons , are our manifold sinnes , and corruptions , both of heart and life . for as paul saith , the sting of death is sinne . therefore , that we may spoile him of this his furniture , we must exercise our selues in the practise of two duties . first , vse all meanes for the cutting off of the locke of our sinnes , whereby alone satan hath the vantage of vs ; and these meanes are the duties of inuocation , and true repentance . we must therefore be instant in praier , for the pardon of our sinnes past , and present , and in this point giue the lord no rest , vntill we haue obtained in our consciences , the sweete certificate of his fauour and mercie in christ , whereby our minds may be staied and comforted . this done , it stands vs in hand to turne vnto god , to be carefull to leaue sinne , to entertaine in our hearts , a resolued purpose and intention of newe obedience , and conformitie to the will , and commandement of god in all things . and this is the onely way in the world , to bereaue this our enemie of his armour , to pull the sting out of the mouth of this serpent ▪ and consequētly , euen in death to preuaile against him . thirdly , in way of preparation , our dutie is , euen afore-hand ( while we liue in this world ) to indeauour , to haue some true taste of life euerlasting , and the ioyes of heauen . the due consideration whereof , will be of great vse . for it will stirre vp in our hearts , a desire and loue of perfect happinesse in heauen , yea a feruent expectation of christs comming to iudgement : and it will further cause vs to say , with simeon , lord , now let thy seruant depart in peace : and with the apostle , i desire to be dissolued ▪ and be with christ. touching this spirituall ioy and comfort in the holy ghost , these questions of conscience are mooued . first , how may we in this life haue and nourish in our hearts , a true tast of eternall happinesse , and of the ioyes of the world to come ? ans. first , by a serious consideration of the euills that doe hinder , or preiudice our happines : and they are principally foure . one is ▪ the miserie of our liues ▪ in respect of sinne , and the consequen●s thereof . for there is no man in the world , be he neuer so righteous , that can truly say of himselfe , i am cleane from my sinne , prou. 20. 9. yea , euen the regenerate , that haue receiued grace to beleeue , to ●urne vnto god , and to liue according to the spirit , doe finde by experience , corruption and rebellion in their minds , wills , and affections , which daily affordeth matter of sinning against god : and on the other side , hindreth and quencheth all the good motions of the spirit that are in them . againe , such is the irreconciliable malice of satan , that he taketh vantage of mans corruption ▪ and neglecteth no time or opportunitie , to intrappe the children of god , in the snares of his temptations . and hence it is that man , by reason of his owne corruption , and the wicked suggestions of the deuill , is at continuall strife with himselfe , hath daily occasion of sorrow , worketh out his saluation with feare and trembling , wading ( as it were ) euen while he liueth , in a sea of many miseries . the second euill , is the vanitie of all things that are in the world . for whether we consider the world it selfe , or the things therein contained , done , or suffered , there is nothing so sure and steadie , whereunto man hauing attained , can possibly rest fully satisfied , and contented ; or which in the ende , will not prooue to be most vaine vanitie . and the truth hereof appeareth , in the experience of salomon himselfe ; who ( beeing king ouer israel ) wanted neither authoritie , nor abilitie , & opportunitie , to take knowledge and triall , of all worldly things in all estates and conditions . and hauing euen of set purpose , carefully and earnestly searched into them all , at length he concludes , that the issue of all was vnprofitable vanitie , and vexation of minde , as we may read in his ecclesiastes . the third euill is , the changeable condition of our life in this world , whereby it comes to passe , that we are alway in a fleeting and transitorie state . for we are ( as s. peter speaketh ) but strangers and pilgrimes , that wander to and fro in the earth , as in a strange countrey , and still are making forward to our owne home . we haue here no abiding citie : the houses wherein we dwell , are but innes , in which we soiourne for a time : yea the bodies which we haue , are but tents and tabernacles , alway readie to be shifted , and our selues to be trāslated into another place . fourthly , by remembring , that christ our head , beeing now in heauen , and we his members vpon the earth ; during our life , we are in presence separated from our head , and consequently , from that happie and glorious fellowship , which we shall inioy with him , and all the saints our fellow-members , in the kingdome of heauen . this s. paul noteth , when he saith , whilst we are at home in the bodie , we are absent from the lord : and thereupon himselfe desired to be dissolued , and to be with christ. hauing thus entred into the due consideration of the aforesaid euills , we must in the second place , exercise our selues in the frequent meditation , of the blessed estate of gods chosen , in the kingdome of glorie : who beeing translated out of this life , into the bosome of abraham , are fully and perfectly freed from sinne , from satan , from vanitie and mis●●ie : haue all teares wiped from their eyes : doe behold the face of god , are made like vnto christ in holines and honour : and doe with him inhe●it the kingdome , prepared for them , from the foūdations of the world . in the third place , hauing throughly considered of these things , we must compare the estate of this present life , in the respects before named , with the estate of that , which is to come in the kingdome of heauen : and laying them in a paralell together , we shall find the one , infinitely farre to excell the other , in regard of true ioy and comfort . and this will make vs , though liuing in the world , yet to vse it , as if we vsed it not : to haue our conuersation in heauen : to thinke , with paul , that to be loosed , and be with christ , is best of all for vs : to haue a t●ue & liuely tast of the ioyes of the world to come , and accordingly with abraham ▪ isaac , and iacob , to looke for a citie that hath foundations , whose builder and maker is god. secondly , it is demanded , how a man may truly discerne , whether this ioy of the spirit be in him , yea or no ? for answer hereunto , it is to be remembred , that there are sundrie properties whereby it differeth from carnall ioy . and these are principally fiue . first , this ioy is brought forth ( as it were ) of sorrow for sinne , and for the want of christ. ye shall sorrow , ( saith our sauiour christ to his disciples , meaning for his departure , ) but your sorrow shall be turned into ioy . these words , are not onely meant of his disciples , but of all beleeuers , who vpon consideration of their sinnes , and the spirituall want of christ iesus , doe mourne and lament . for not only they , but all true beleeuers , are there opposed vnto the world. againe , blessed are they that mourne : that is , beeing touched with causes of exceeding griefe , doe withall mourne for their sinnes ▪ for they shall be ▪ comforted . on the other side , carnall ioy ▪ as it hath his beginning from the flesh , and ariseth of things pleasing thereunto , so it ends in sorrow & heauines . in the end , reioycing is turned into mourning , saith salomon ▪ and , woe be to you that now laugh : for ye shall weepe . secondly , the ioy of the spirit , is a fruit of righteousnes : that is , it issueth and floweth from christ knowne and beleeued , to be made vnto vs of god , wisdome , righteousnes , sanctification , and full redemption . for from hence follows peace of conscience , and from peace comes ioy in the holy ghost . contrariwise , the ioy of the flesh , ariseth onely from the sudden feeling of some worldly delight : and therefore cannot bring any sound peace , vnto the conscience o● the man possessed of it . thirdly , spirituall ioy is founded in the holy vse of the word , sacraments , & praier : and in the practise of christian duties of mercie , loue , iustice , &c. the other is not so . for the world conceiueth a ioy besides the word , out of the exercises of inuocation and repentance : which stands in the practise of crueltie , malice , oppression , iniustice , and all manner of impietie . and hence it is , that hauing spent their daies in such matter of reioycing , at length in a moment they goe downe to hell . fourthly , heauenly ioy is so fixed and rooted in the heart , that it cannot be remooued thence . your ioy shall no man take from you , saith christ. it must needes therefore be true and sound , yea able to swallow vp all matter of griefe , and heauinesse : whereas the other is neuer sincere , but with the sweetnes thereof , hath alwaies mingled some bitternes . euen in laughter ( saitl , s●lomon , speaking thereof ) the heart is heauie . when the face of the wicked man shineth , and his countenance is pleasant , euen then is he inwardly sorrowfull , and his minde is troubled . lastly , the ioy of the spirit is eternall : abiding in the mind of man , not onely for the terme of this life , but for euer , in the world to come . so is not the reioycing of the world in earthly things : for it is fading and deceitfull , as the things themselues be , wherein it is placed : it hath the beginning in corruption , and endeth with this present life . the examples of the two rich men in the gospel , doe manifest this truth . and to this purpose , is the speech of zophar , in the booke of iob , that the reioycing of the vicked , is very short , and the ioy of hypoer●●es is but a moment , &c. by these fiue properties , may we put a true difference , betweene earthly and heauenly reioycing , and consequently discerne of them , euen in our selues . and if we perceiue this ioy of the spirit , ( rightly receiued in our hearts , and grounded in the right vse of the word , and sacraments ; as also in the exercises of inuocation , faith , and repentance ▪ ) to take place in our soules and consciences ; we shall finde it of force , to moderate and delay the very terrours of death . and so much for preparation . now the helpes to be vsed in the time of death , are manifold : the summe of all may be reduced to two heads , meditations , and practises . touching meditations , we must in the first place , consider death in a double respect ; one , as it is in it owne nature , and another , as it is changed and qualified by the death of christ. death in it owne nature , is a curse , or forerunner of condemnation , the very gates and suburbs of hell it selfe : but beeing qualified by christ , it is a blessing , a short passage vnto ioy , an entrance into euerlasting life , a quiet sleepe , voide of all annoyance , by dreames and fantasies . and the graue , a resting chamber , persumed by the death of christ , for the bodies of all the elect , our of which when they awake , they shall be admitted and receiued , into the presence of god in heauen . secondly , we are to consider , that there be three degrees of eternall life . the first where of , is in this world before we die ; and it is then , when we ▪ beginne to repent and beleeue in christ , and to be assured in conscience , that god the father is our father , christ our redeemer , and the holy ghost our comforter . for this is eternall life , to know god , and him whome he hath sent iesus christ. the next degree is in death : for death cuts off all sinne , originall and actuall : death frees vs from all worldly miseries : death prepareth the bodie , that it may be fit , to enter into eternall happinesse together with the soule , which is alreadie in heauen . the last degree is , when bodie and soule reunited , goe both together , into eternall and euerla●●ing glorie in heauen . our third meditation is , that there is a mysticall vnion and coniunction , betweene christ & euery beleeuer , and that not onley in regard of soule , but of bodie also ; which beeing once knit , shall neuer be dissolued , but is eternall . wherevpon the dying , dead , rotten , and consumed bodie , remaineth still a member of christ , abideth within the couenant , and is and shall be euer , a temple of the holy ghost . thus adam , and abraham , which are dead so many thousand yeares agoe , yea euery true beleeuer , from them to the end of the world , shall rise at the last day , in body to glorie , by the power of their coniunction with christ. in the winter season , we see the most trees voide of leaues , buddes , and blossomes : so as they seeme to vs to be dead , and yet neuerthelesse , there is a sappe in the roote of them , which in the spring wil ascend , & reuiue the decaied branches . euen so it is with our bodies , which though they be corrupted , rotten , burnt , or eaten with wormes , or deuoured by wild beasts , so as they may seeme to be vtterly perished , yet there is ( as it were ) a secret and hidden sap in them , ( by reason of their vnion with christ ) by which they shall be raised , reuiued , & quickened , beeing made like vnto the glorious bodie of christ their head , with whome they shall raigne , and liue for euermore . helpes in practise are two ; first , he that will beare with comfort the pangs of death , must labour that he may die in christ , and that is , by faith , laying hold of the promise of god , touching forgiuenesse of sinnes and life euerlasting by christ. all these ( saith the holy ghost ) died in faith , namely , abel , enoch , noe , abraham , and sarah , all laying hold of the promise of life by christ. when iacob on his death-bed , was blessing of his children , he brake forth into this heauenly speach , o lord i haue waited for thy saluation . in which words it is plaine ▪ that his faith rested on the mercy of god , & by hope he waited for his saluatiō . and our sauiour christ saith , as moses lift vp the serpent in the wildernesse , so must the sonne of man be lift vp , that whosoeuer beleeueth in him , might not perish , but haue life euerlasting . out of which words , the forenamed dutie may be learned , that looke as the children of israel , beeing stung with fierie serpents , and that vnto death , were healed by looking vp to the brasen serpent , erected by moses : so when we are stung with sinne and death , we must euer remember by faith to looke vpon christ. but specially when we are dying , then it is our part , to fixe the eies of our soules , by faith vpon him ; and thereby shall we escape death , and be made partakers of eternall life and happinesse . notable is the example of christ , who as he was man , alwaies fixed his trust and confidence in his fathers word , especially at his end . for when he was dying , and the pangs of death seazed vpon him , he cries vnto the lord , my god , my god , why hast thou forsaken me ? and againe , father , into thy hands i commend my spirit : which words are ful of faith , and doe bewray what great affiance he placed in his fathers loue , &c. when dauid in an extremitie , saw nothing before his eies , but present death , the people intending to stone him , at the very instant ( as the text saith ) he comforted himselfe in the lord his god ▪ but how ? by calling to minde the mercifull promises , that god had made vnto him , and by applying them vnto his heart by faith . and paul saith of himselfe , and the rest of the faithfull , that they receiued , the sentence of death in themselues , that they might not trust in themselues , but in god. from these examples it followes , that they which desire with comfort to beare the pangs of death , must die by faith ; that is , they must set before their eies , the promise of remission of sinnes , and life euerlasting , and depend vpon it , wrapping ( as it were ) and infolding themselues in it , as in a close and warme garment , that will keepe them safe and sure , against the winde and weather of temptation . the second practise in time of death is , to die in obedience ; which is nothing else , but willingly , readily , and ioyfully , without murmuring , to submit ourselues to gods will , in bearing the paines of death . a most worthie president of this obedience , we haue in our sauiour christ , when he said vnto his father , not my will , but thy will be done ; thereby submitting his will , to his fathers will , touching the death which he then suffered . and this his example at the time of his departure , must be a rule of direction vnto vs , vpon the like occasion . true it is , that obedience to god in death , is against corrupt nature : and therefore our dutie is , the more to invre our selues , to the performing of it : and that which the blessed apostle said of himselfe , i die daily , ought to be continually our resolution and practise . if we shall inquire , howe this may be done ; the answer is , when god layeth afflictions vpon vs , in our life time , then by indeauouring to beare them with patience , meeknes , and lowlinesse . for euery affliction , is ( as it were ) a petty death : and if we doe in it , subiect our selues to the hand of god , we shal the better obey him , in the great death of all ▪ and thus doing , whensoeuer god striketh vs with death , we shall with comfort endure the same . the third particular affliction , is satanicall molestation , whereby both persons , & places of mansiō , or abode , are either possessed , or otherwise molested by the malice of the deuill . touching this affliction , the question of cōscience is , how such persons as are possessed , or feare possession , or else indure molestations by the deuill in their houses : may haue their minds quieted and staied , and consequently , in that case be remedied ? and here 2. things are generally to be considered , in way of answer . first , it is to be remembred , that possession is known by two signes . the one is , when the deuill is euidētly present , either in the whole body , or in sōe part of it . the other , when he hath rule of the said bodie , either in whole or in part : so as the party himselfe , hath not that vse of his body , which he would . as for example , when the deuil possesseth the instruments of the voice , as the tongue , & makes a mā to speake latine , greeke , italian , or other tongues , which he vnderstandeth not . both these things were found in them that were possessed , in the time of our sauiour christ. secondly , we must consider , it falleth out oftentimes , that strange diseases doe seaze vpon men , hauing strāge effects in thē ▪ which the arte of physicke neither can search out , nor cure : & yet they are neither acts of witchcraft , nor reall possessiōs . as when god laid extraordinarie diseases on the corinthians , for the contempt of his word and sacraments , 1. cor. 11.30 . like vnto which , he vvorthily inflicts vpon men in these daies , for the same and other sinnes . now to stay the minde in this case , these rules are carefully to be thought vpon . first of all , it is to be remembred , that though satans malice and power , be very great and large : yet he cānot practise the same , against the children of god , when , where , and howe he listeth . the malice which satan beares to mankind , and principally to the members of christ , appeares in this , because he is said , to accuse them before god , day and night , reu. 20 2. and as a roaring lyon , to walke about the world , seeking whome he may deuoure , 1. pet. 5. 8. againe the scripture noteth him , to be a powerfull spirit , whose strength farre exceedeth and surpasseth the might of any man or creature , that is not of an angelical nature , as himselfe is . for he is tearmed a prince of the aire , and the god of this world , his power reacheth euen to the spirits & soules of men , whereby he worketh in the children of disobedience , eph. 2. 2. his principallitie is so great , that no strength , no defence of man is able to withstand it , vnlesse man take vnto himselfe the whole armour of god , eph. 6. 10. now although the deuill , be so malitious an enemie of mankind , that he ceaseth not to deuise , whatsoeuer may be hurtfull vnto them ; and withall so powerfull in his attempts , that no man by his owne proper strength , is able to resist him : yet he cannot put the least part of his power in execution , in what time , place , or manner he desireth . the reason is , because god hath determined his power , by certaine bounds and limits , which he cannot passe : and they are especially two . the one is , his owne nature , whereby he is a creature , and therefore finite . hence it is , that he can neither knowe , nor doe any thing , that is beyond the reach or capacitie of his nature , or aboue the power and skill of a creature . for example , he cannot directly and immediately knowe the deepe things of god , vnlesse they be reuealed vnto him : nor yet the secrets of mans heart . none knoweth the things of a man , saue the spirit of man , which is in him : euen so , the things of god knoweth none , but the spirit of god , 1. cor. 2. 11. again , he cannot doe that which is truely and properly a miracle , the cause wherof is hidden and vtterly vnknowne , and which comes not within the power and order of nature . for this is proper vnto god , who onely doth things simply wonderfull , psal. 77. 14. the second thing whereby satans power is restrained , is the will of god. for looke as the sea , beeing by nature , apt to ouerflowe the whole earth , is kept in , and shut vp within the shore , ( as it were ) with dores or gates , that it cannot break forth ; and that by the lord himselfe , who hath established his decree vpon it , iob. 38. so though satan be by nature strong , and his malice great , yet can he doe nothing at all , no nor execute his naturall power , to the hurt , and preiudice of any man , without the will and permission of god. thus the euill spirit , could not goe forth to deceiue ahab , vntill the lord had said vnto him , goe and thou shalt pre●aile , 1. king. 22. 22. thus the deuill , could not touch the bodie , children , goods , or friendes of righteous iob , whilest he was fenced and fortified , by the power and prouidence of god. but when the lord , in regard of iobs outward estate , had giuen him leaue , & said , loe all that he hath is in thine hand , then did he exercise his power , to the vtmost : yet so farre onely , as he was permitted , and no further . iob. 1. 12. the consideration of this first point , that satans power is determined by god , will serue to stay the minds of those , whose persons , houses , or friends are molested by him . for hereupon it followeth , that god , who hath the deuill bound vp ( as it were ) in chaines , will not suffer his power to be inlarged , against his owne children , to their destruction and confusion : but so far forth alone , as shall be expedient for their good and saluation . againe , that god beeing their father in christ iesus , they may in the case of such affliction , haue accesse vnto him , & call vpon him , for the restraint of satans power and malice , and consequently , for the deliuerance of them and theirs . a second rule is this ▪ such persons must haue recourse to god in his word , in which he promiseth his presence and protection , to his children , in their greatest dangers . and namely , that there shall no euill come vnto them , neither any plague shall come neere their dwelling : because he will giue his angels charge ouer them , to keepe them in all their waies . againe , that he wil be a wall of fire , round about his people . zach. 2. 5. that he will extend peace ouer his church , like a stood . isa. 66. 12. and that there shall be no sorcerie in iacob , nor south saying in israel . numb . 23. 22. and by this meanes , possessions and witchcraft , though they befall gods children , yet they shall turne to their good , rather then their hurt . thirdly , it must be considered , that the best seruants of god , haue beene in their times molested by the deuill . christ in his second temptation , was carried by the deuill , from the wildernes , to a wing of the temple of ierusalem . the children of iob , were destroied by the deuill , and he himselfe was filled with botches , and sores . a certaine woman , euen a daughter of abraham , that is , one following the faith of abraham ▪ was troubled with a spirit of infirmitie , eighteene yeares together . matth. 15. 21 , 22. and the daughter of the woman of canaan , was grieuously vexed with a deuill . fourthly , men in this case , ought to lay fast hold , vpon the promise of life euerlasting , and must wait the lords leisure , not limiting him in respect of time , or meanes of deliuerance . this was the practise of iob , though he kill me , yet will i trust in him . and of holy abraham , who did not limit god , but was content to doe with isaac , what the lord would : and though it was in likelyhood , a meane to bereaue him of all posteritie , yet still he kept himselfe to the promise . in the molestation and annoiance of houses by spirits , two things are to be remembred . first , men must not consort together , and abide there , where it is certenly knowne , that the lord hath giuen the deuill power and libertie ; least in so doing , they tempt the lord. our sauiour christ , did not of his owne priuate motion and will , betake himselfe into the wildernes , but by the direction of the holy ghost . math. 4. 1. paul in like manner , did not of his owne head goe to ierusalem , but vpon the motion of the spirit . act. 20. 22. in the light of these examples men are taught , not to cast themselues , into any places of apparent danger : much lesse to frequēt those , which god hath deliuered vp , into the power of satan . and this condemneth the rash , and headie conceits of some persons , who vpon confidence of their owne strength , doe put thē selues into needlesse dangers , hauing neither extraordinarie calling from god , nor any sufficient warrant out of his word . if it be asked , what mē are to doe in this case ? i answer , first , that they ought rather to flie to god by praier , and to draw neere vnto him in their hearts : and he in mercle will draw neere vnto them . secondarily , that which we doe in meates and drinkes , is also to be done in the houses and places where we dwell . and what is that ? we must sanctifie them to our vse , by the word and praier . noah at gods commandement , went into the arke , abode in it , and came out againe : and when he came forth of it , into the earth afterward ; it is said of him , that he built an altar , gaue thankes to god for his deliuerance , and praied the lord , to vouchsafe him the vse of the earth , as he had before . though abraham had a promise of the land of canaan , to him and his posteritie for euer , yet he went not out of his countrey toward it , till the lord commanded him : and when he was come thither , he built an altar , for the worship and seruice of god. the like he did afterward at bethel . and many yeres after , did iacob offer sacrifice vnto god , in the same bethel , when he came to dwell there . and for this very ende , in the law , by a speciall ordinance the first frutes of the haruest were offered to sanctifie the rest of the corne . and somuch touching the second distresse . the third kind of trouble of mind , is that which ariseth of the tentation of blasphemie , which in regard of the vilenes and vglinesse thereof : is not amisse tearmed by some , the foule tentation . and it is , when a man is troubled in his minde , with blasphemous cogitations and thoughts , directly against the maiestie of god , the father , the sonne , and the holy ghost . as for example : to thinke that god is not iust , mercifull : that he accepteth mens persons : that he hath not knowledge of things , that are done here below , or at least that he doth not regard them : that god cannot doe this or that : that he is iniurious to some men , and partiall to others , &c. these and such like blasphemous thoughts there be , which are not fit to be vttered amōgst men : forasmuch as they are most horrible , and execrable , as any can be conceiued . that we may the better know this temptation , let it be considered , what are the forerunners thereof , and by what meanes , it takes place in the heart possessed of it . sometimes it commeth , meerely and onely of the suggestion of the deuill ; which troubleth the phantasie , euen of those which are in that regard innocent , and casteth into their hearts , impure and vngodly thoughts . sometimes againe , it comes vpon men , by an euill custome : when as they willingly lend their eares , to leude and cursed speeches , that immediatly tend to the dishonour of god , or the wilfull abuse of his word , his iudgements , and mercies : and vpon the hearing , either giue their applause and approbation , though not expressely ; or doe not hinder or stay them , as much as in them lieth . otherwhiles , it creepes into the heart of man by degrees , when he beginnes to waxe cold in gods seruice , to make little conscience of those duties , that immediatly concerne his worship , & consequently inures himselfe , to the taking of the name of god in vaine , by often and eauselesse swearing , for swearing , cursing , &c. by these and such like meanes , is this foule and horrible tentation conuaied into the minde of man. now the danger of it , whether it ariseth frō these , or any other causes , is exceeding grieuous , specially to those , that haue begun to chuse the way of truth , and to applie their hearts to serue god , and to feare his name . for it bringeth forth strange and fearefull effects , as namely , desperation , & manifold horrors & troubles of mind : yea diuers persons haue hereupon bin astonished in such sort , that they haue bin mooued to make dispatch of thēselues ; being in their own iudgement no better , then the very firebrands of hell , now for the curing of this wōderfull trouble , & distraction of conscience , two things are to be done : to wit , inquirie must be made into the next causes , whence this tentation should arise : and after that , the remedie is to be applied . for the first . inquitie must be made , whether the present distresse , had his beginning from the thoughts of a mans owne minde , or from the suggestion of the deuill . for this is in all likelyhood , the next way to minister comfort , to the afflicted partie . it may be saide , how shall a man discerne the thoughts that are from the deuill , from his owne thoughts ? ans. he shall know them by sundrie notes . first , by the entrance of them into the mind . for those that come from the deuill , come speedily , as lightning into a house : and they are after a sort , forced into the minde by violence , so as the partie cannot auoid them : and they come into the minde againe and againe , yea a thousand times in a day , so as , by their often comming , they weaken the memorie , dull the senses , wearie and confound the braine . these are thoughts that come from the deuill , and by him are conuaied from without , into the minde of man. and if such cogitations , were from a mans owne selfe , they would not come with so great vehemencie and celeritie , but with leisure : and they would rise with more moderation , and lesse violence : yea further , the frequent vse of them , would not produce so many , and so fearefull effects as it doth . secondly , such thoughts may be discerned , to come from the deuil , by this signe ; because they are against the very light of nature , against naturall knowledge , reason , & cōscience . for they are most wicked and deuillish , fastning vpon god , things that are most vile and monstrous : whereas commonly , the thoughts that arise frō our owne corrupt nature , are not against the light of nature , though they be most corrupt . the third signe is , that at the first conceiuing of them , the partie is smitten with an extraordinarie feare , his flesh is troubled , and oftentimes , sicknes & faintings do follow . but the thoughts that men conceiue of themselues , cause neither feare , nor fainting , nor sicknes . fourthly , blasphemous thoughts , cannot come ordinarily from the heart of any , saue of those alone , that are of reprobate minds . but the parties that are thus distressed , are honest , ciuill , and such as professe the gospel , at least in shew ; yea sometime they befall such , as are the true mēbers of christ. therfore it is manifest , that they come from without , euen from the deuill casting them into the minde , and not from within a mans owne selfe . in the next place , inquirie must be made , whether the partie doth approoue , loue , & like these and such like thoughts , or no ? to this he will answer , if he be asked , that he abhorres thē as the deuill and hell it selfe : thus euen naturall men will answer , and that truly . after inquirie thus made , the remedie is to be applied . and the first and principall remedic , pertaines to doctrine , and instruction : in which the partie is to be informed of his or her estate ; namely , that the foresaid blasphemies , are not his sinnes , but his crosses . for they are the deuills sinnes , and he shal answer for them : and they are not ours , till we intertaine , receiue , approoue , and giue consent vnto them . for proofe hereof , let this be considered , that vncleane thoughts which haue their residence in the minde of man , are of two sorts : inward , and outward . inward are such , as haue their originall from the flesh , and arise of the corruption of mans nature , though stirred vp by the deuill . and these , at the very first conceiuing , are our sinnes , though they haue no long abode in our mindes : and they are directly forbidden , in the tenth commandement . outward thoughts are those , which haue relation to an outward cause , or beginning : of which sort are those euill thoughts , that be conucied into the minde by the deuill : and if we take no pleasure in them , nor yeeld consent vnto thē , they are not to be accounted our sinnes , but the deuils , by whome they are suggested . the truth hereof appeares in christs example ; into whose minde the deuil cast this blasphemous tentation , therby moouing him to infidelitie , couetousnes , & idolatrie : which neuerthelesse were not his sins , because his holy heart gaue not the least approbation to thē , but abhorred & repelled thē , & therfore was free frō any taint of sin , in or by them . this distinction of thoughts must be remembred . for hence it followes , that blasphemous thoughts , not consented to by vs , are not our sinnes , but the deuils : euen as in like case , when one wickedly disposed , sollicites another to treason , or murder : if the said partie listen not , nor yeild thereto , he cannot be holden guiltie of those crimes . therefore men must not feare those kind of thoghts ouermuch : at least , if they please not themselues ouermuch in them : because , though they be indeede their crosses , yet are they not their personall sinnes , for which they shall incurre the wrath and displeasure of god. againe , they must let them goe as they come : they are not to striue against them , for the more they labour to resist them , the more shall they be intangled with them . the second thing to be vsed in way of remedie , for the staying of the mind in this tentation , is , that though it should be graunted , that the foresaid euill and blasphemous thoughts are our sinnes , yet we are to remember , that they may through the mercie and goodnesse of god , be pardoned : if they be heartily and vnfainedly repented of : yea further , that neither they , nor any other sins ( except that against the holy ghost ) doe condemne him , that praieth against them , and is heartily sorrie for them . it was pauls complaint , rom. 7. 19. that he did not the good which he would doe , speaking of the inward indeauour of his heart : and againe , that he did the euill which he would not , meaning in respect of the corruption of his nature . now vpon this , that he indeauoured to doe that , which was agreeable to the will of god , that he loathed and detested the contrarie , & stroue against his corruptions , how did he comfort himselfe ? marke words following , v. 20. if i do that i would not : that is to say , if against my generall purpose , i sinne against god ; if i be sorrie for it , if i be displeased with my selfe , in that i cannot obey god , in that perfection i desire , it is no more i that doe it , but sinne that dwelleth in me . from this example of paul i gather , that if any man , haue in his minde euill thoughts , and doeth ( as paul did ) grieue , because he thereby offendeth god ; if he doe abhorre them , and pray against them , he shall not be condemned for them ; they shall neuer be laid to his charge . the partie then that is troubled with these thoughts , may vpon these grounds , stay his minde , and comfort himselfe : for if he shall not be condemned for them , then let him not feare them aboue measure . the third point to be remembred is , that the partie must not be alone . for this tentation beginnes , and is confirmed by solitarinesse ; and the parties thus distressed , loue to be apart by themselues , from the societie of others : and for that cause , in case they be lyable to this distresse , they must vse to solace themselues , in good company , that is meere and fit for them : and their mindes are to be exercised , in holy meditation of the word , and singing of psalmes ; and they are to be occupied in good speech and conference . our first parent eue was tempted by sathan , when shee was apart from adam : and our sauiout christ , when he was alone out of company and societie , then was he by the malice of the deuill , in the wildernesse , assaulted with strong and mightie tentations . the fourth point , to be remembred of the partie troubled is , that he must as heartely and earnestly repent him , of those his euill thoughts , as of euill wordes and deedes . for the trueth is , because men haue no more care of their thoughts , then commonly they haue ; therefore the lord iustly suffers the deuill ▪ to plague them , and torment them , by conuaying into their hearts , most vile and damnable cogitations . furthermore , the said partie must labour to be renued in the spirit of his minde , that is , to haue his minde inlightened by the spirit , whereby he may know and vnderstand the will of god in his word . after repentance for euill thoughts , there must follow watchfulnesse , and a carefull circumspection ouer all his waies ; but principally , he must haue an eie vnto his heart , the fountaine of all . keepe thine heart with all diligence , saith salomon : that is , aboue all things see that thou countergard thy thoughts , desires , motiōs , and affections . that the heart of a man may be garded , two rules are to be obserued . first , that the word of god dwell plentifully in it : for by this meanes , it is guided and directed , that it swarue not from god and his word ; and our hearts are then ruled and gouerned by the word , when we know & meditate , vpon the commandements and promises of god. this rule is of speciall vse . for therfore doe men hatch , & breed euill thoughts in their hearts , because they are not takē vp with holy meditations : & hence it is , that the heart of man , is made euen a pray vnto the deuill , because the word of god is not lodged therein . excellēt was the practise of dauid in this case , who kept the word of god in his heart , that he mighe not sinne against him . the second rule of the keeping of the heart , is to establish our thoughts by counsell . it is the wisemans aduise in so many words . prou. 20. 18. wherin he would teach vs , that it is the property of a worldly wise man , in matters of waight , not to trust to his own wit , but to follow the direction and counsel of wise and skilful men . and if this be a sound course in matters of the world , much more ought it to be taken , in the maine matters of religion , and conscience , concerning the heart and soule of man. and therfore by the law of proportiō , it giues vs direction , not once to thinke or conceiue , so much as a thought , but vpon aduice and direction taken at god and his word . thy testimonies ( saith dauid ) are my delight , and my counsellers . and what benefit had he by taking such a course ? surely , by the word of god , which was his continuall meditation , he gat vnderstāding , he became wiser thē the ancient ; it made him to hate al the waies of falshood : it kept him from declining from god , either to the right hand , or to the left . the same rule must be practized of vs , in the vse of our senses , our speeches , and actions , and then shall the heart be kept cleane , and free from these temptations . and seeing this temptation is so dangerous & fearefull , as hath beene said , and doeth ost●● befall men : our dutie is to make conscience , of practising the foresaid rules continually . and thus much concerning the third kinde of distresse of conscience . the fourth distresse of mind is that , which ariseth from a mans owne sinnes , or rather from some one special sinne committed . and this kind of tentation is twofold : for either it is more violent , and lesse common , or lesse violent and more common . the violent distresse of minde , shewes it selfe by feares and terrors of the conscience , by doubtings of the mercie of god , by lamentable and fearefull complaints made to others . nowe question is mooued , howe this violent distresse of minde , arising from our owne sinnes , is to be cured ? answ. that it may be cured by the blessing of god , three things must be done . first , that particular sinne must be knowne , which is the cause of this violent distresse . and here we are to know , by the way : that it is an vsuall thing , with the parties thus distressed , to dissemble and cloake their sinnes : and therefore they will alleadge , that their trouble ariseth frō some euill thoughts , from wicked affections , and from the corruption of nature : whereas commonly men are not distressed , in violent manner , for euill thoughts , affections , &c , but the violent distresse commeth from some actuall and odious sinne or sins done , which wound the conscience , and are the causes of great distraction of minde : and they are many , which hauing bin vpon occasion before rehearsed , i will not now repeat them . onely this must be remembred , that the greater sinnes against the third , sixt , and seauenth commandements , are the maine and proper causes of violent distresses : and the more secret these sinnes are , the more horrour goeth with them . secondly , the particular sinne being known , inquiry must be made , as much as possibly may be , by signes , whether the partie distressed repenteth , yea or no. for except he hath repented , he cannot be fitted to receiue comfort : and vnlesse he be first fitted to receiue comfort , he cannot be releiued in conscience . now if it be found , that the partie hath repented , then care must be had in the next place , that his repentance may be renued , for the particular sinne committed . thirdly , hauing thus done , the comfort must be ministred , for the moderating , or taking away of the distresse . and here remember by the way , that the comforts ministred , vsually & ordinarily must not go alone , but be mingled & tēpered , with some terrors of the law : that being thereby feared , with the consideration of sinne , and of the wrath of god due vnto the same , the comfort may appeare to be the sweeter . the ministring whereof , in case of this distresse , would not be direct and present , but by certaine steppes and degrees : except onely in the point of death : for then a directer course must be vsed . these degrees are two . first , the partie is to be informed of a possibilitie of pardon , that is , that his sinnes are pardonable , and though in themselues they be great , and hainous , yet by the mercie of god in christ , they may be remitted . nowe put the case , that the afflicted apprenhendeth onely the odiousnesse of his sinnes , and the wrath of god due to the same , and in this fit puts off the pardon from himselfe , and cannot be perswaded that his sinne may be forgiuen , what then is to be done ? ans. then for the effecting of this first degree , certaine grounds are to be laid downe , whereupon assurance in that case may be built vp in his heart . the first groūd of possibilitie of pardō is , that the mercy of god is infinite , yea ouer al his works , psal. 145. 9. that the death of christis of infinite price , merit , and value before god. that god is muchin sparing , isa. 55. 7. that with the lord is mercie , and with him is plenteous redemption , psal. 130. 7. that christs satisfaction is not only a a price , but a b coūterprice , 1. tim. 2. 6. able to satisfie for the sinnes of all men , yea for them that haue sinned against the holy ghost : for that sinne , is not therefore vnpardonable , because the offence thereof is greater , then the merit of christ : but because the partie offending neither doth , nor can apply the merit of christ vnto himselfe . an ancient father vpon cains words , my punishment is greater then i can beare , saith , thou liest cain , for gods mercie is greater then thy sinnes . the mercie of god was very great to manasses , and to salomon , and to many others , though they were great offenders . the second ground . men of yeares , liuing in the church of god , and knowing the doctrine of saluation , shall not be condemned simply for their sinnes , but for lying in their sinnes . vpon this ground , i say , that men distressed must be grieued , not so much for committing of sinne , as for lying and continuing in sinnes committed . a third ground . it pleaseth god many times to leaue men to themselues , and to suffer them to commit some sinne that woundeth consceence . it is true and cannot be denied . but we must withall remember , that sinnes committed , doe not vtterly take away grace , but rather make it the more to shine and shew it selfe . for god in mercie turneth all things , euen sinne it selfe , to the good of them that be his : and therfore sinne committed cannot either waste , or extinguish grace receiued , but by diuihe dispensation , serueth to amplifie and inlarge the same ; so as where sinne aboundeth , there grace aboundeth much more . rom. 5. 20. and the lord said to paul , beeing in great extremity . 2. cor. 12. 9. my grace is sufficient for thee , for my power is made perfect through weakenes . hence it appeareth , that the grace of god is not vtterly lost , but appeareth liuely in the time of distresse . the fourth ground is this . the promises of god touching remission of sinnes , and l●fe eternall , in respect of beleeuers are generall , and in regard of all and euery man indefinite : that is , they doe not define , or exclude any person , or any sinner , or any time ; onely they admit one exception , of finall impenitencie . here a question may be mooued , howe long he that ministreth comfort , must stand vpon the possibilitie of pardon ? i answer , vntill he hath brought the partie distressed , to some measure of true repentance : and this beeing done , then he is to proceede to the second degree of comfort . the second degree of comfort is , to teach , that the sinne or sinnes of the partie distressed , are indeede pardoned . but it may be asked , vpon what signes may this comfort be applyed ? i answere , vpon these two . first , if the partie distressed confesse , that he or shee is heartily grieued , that by their sinne or sinns , they haue offended so louing and so mercifull a god. secondly , if they professe , that they desire with all their heart , to be reconciled vnto god in christ : and at least doe desire to repent for their sinnes ; and withall doe carrie in heart , a purpose to sinne no more , but in all things , ( as much as in them lieth ) to performe newe obedience vnto god. nowe for the better enforcing of this comfort , some textes of scripture , fitting this purpose must be rehearsed , as for example , matth. 9. 12 , 13. i came not to call the righteous , that is to say , those that iudge themselues righteous , but sinners , that is , those which are grieued , because in their owne conscience , they are vile and hainous offenders , to repentance . againe . matth. 11. 28. come vnto me , allye that are wearie , and ●eauie laden , and i will refresh you . to conclude this point , there remaines yet a further question to be resolued , and that is this . a man after repentance , for some grieuous sinne , falls into it againe , and is distressed more then before : it is a case somewhat grieuous . for we knowe , that if a man be recouered of an ague , and through distemper in diet , or otherwise , makes a relapse in●o it againe , his case is often desperate , and he hardly scapeth with his life . in the same manner , it is a dangerous case , if after repentance , men make a relapse into the same sin againe . it may then be asked , how such persons may be recouered after a relapse ? i answer , though we finde not any one particular example in scripture , of any one person , that was restored againe after a relapse : yet neuerthelesse there is some comfort for such persons . vpon what grounds may some say ? ans. men that haue not so much as a drop of mercy , in cōparison of god , must forgiue their brethrē often & many times , yea as our sauiour christ saith to peter , till seuenty times seauen times , if they returne & say it repents them . now god is infinite in all his attributes . he is much in sparing : with him is plenteous redemption : and therefore he will questionlesse , vpon true repentance , often forgiue & forget , euen the same sinne iterated againe and againe . nowe these persons are to be releiued in this sort . first they must haue their consciences setled in this point , that their relapse is pardonable , though very dangerous . for proofe hereof read esay ▪ 2. 18. where mention is made of diuers apostataes , that were by god called to repentance , with promise of pardō , if they turned vnto him . and in luk. 15. the prodigall child , ( by whome i vnderstand one , that after grace receiued , ●ell from his repentance and obedience to god ) when he did but purpose in his heart to returne againe , was pardoned , and receiued into fauour . in the 2. cor. 5. 20. paul saith to the corinths , that were fallen away ▪ we pray you in christs steade that ye be reconciled vnto god. secondly , beeing thus setled in cōscience , they must againe repent them of their sinnes . thirdly and lastly , they are to be comforted , with the promise of remission of sinnes , after that some signes of renewed repentance for sins past , haue beene giuen . the second tentation or trouble of minde , which is more common and lesse violent , befalls the children of god : and it is a griefe of heart , more or lesse , wherby men are troubled , in respect of the want of grace in their hearts , and defects of obediēce in their liues . paul the deere seruant of god , was possessed with this trouble of minde , as we may read , rom. 7. and indeede there is no childe of god , but more or lesse , one time or other , he feeles the stings of sinne , & the buffe●ings of satan , which cause griefe in his heart . but this griefe is a notable grace of god , and therefore they which want it , must labour to haue it , and they which haue it , must not seek to put it out , but to keep it in measure & order . and the grounds of comfort , whereby the heart may be staied in this sorrow , that it be not immoderate , may be these . i. ground . it is gods will , that the worke of sanctification , or regeneration , should be imperfect in this life , and remaine vnfinished til death . this point needs no proofe , for it is manifest both in the word of god , and in daily experience . the reasons for which god will haue it to be so , may be these . first of all , god giues grace , according to the measure , and manner of our receiuing of it , which in this life is imperfect . some giftes of god in christ , bestowed on his seruants , as remission of sinnes by his death , and iustification by his obedience , are not put into vs , but are only applyed and made ours by imputation . some other giftes there be , which are infused and put into vs , as namely , sanctification , regeneration , the loue of god and man : and by one of these two meanes , to wit , either by imputation or infusion , are all the giftes of god in christ made ours . yet before we can haue them , we must receiue them : and the meanes whereby we receiue them is faith , which god hath ordained , to be the hand of our soules , to receiue his benefits bestowed on vs. which faith because it is weake and imperfect , in this life , therefore the gifts which we receiue thereby , are also imperfect . for though gods benefits be like a bottomlesse sea , yet the faith , whereby we lay hold of them , is like vnto a vessell with a narrowe necke , which though it be cast into the great ocean , receiues but a litle water at once , & that by degrees , drop by droppe , according to the widenesse of the mouth . and hence it is , that though the giftes of god without vs , which are ours by imputation , be perfect ; yet all such graces as are put into vs , are weake and imperfect . secondly , if any seruant of god , should be perfectly regenerate , and made absolutely holy in this life : then he should fulfill the morall lawe , and so become a sauiour to himselfe : and by the tenour of the law haue life : & so should not christ be a sauiour properly , but only an instrumēt , to dispose vs , to the keeping of the law , whereby we might saue our selues . but there is one only al-sufficiēt sauiour , christ iesus : & the beginning , the middle , & the accōplishment of our saluation , is to be ascribed to him alone . thirdly , it is the will of god , that his owne children , with whome he is well pleased in christ , should bee brought to nothing in themselues , that they might be all in all out of themselues in christ : beeing , as it were , emptied of selfe-loue , and of all confidence in their owne goodnesse . but if sanctification should be perfect at the first , then a man should not goe out of himselfe , but would rather stay as he is , and rest contented in his own goodnesse . for this cause paul , after his exaltation , was buffered by satans temptations , that he might not be exalted out of measure , 2. cor. 12. but should content himselfe with this , that he was in the loue and fauour of god in christ. ii. ground is : to consider , what makes a man professing christ , accepted of god , and howe much he himselfe must doe , for this ende ? the substance of all things to be done of vs for this ende , that we may become the children of god , may be reduced to three heads . first of all , we must heartily bewaile our sinnefull liues past , and seriously humble our selues , in regard of our owne sins , both of heart and life : and if by occasion wee fall into any sinne , we must not lie therein , but by speedie repentance , recouer our former estate . secondly , in regard of the sinnefulnesse of our hearts and liues , in times past , we must rest our selues on gods mercie alone , flying to the throne of mercie for the pardon of them all . thirdly , we must indeauour in the course of our liues afterward , to performe obedience to god in all his commandements : that thereby we may shew our selues thankefull to him for his mercie . consider the examples of this practise in gods children . all that dauid that worthy seruant of god could doe , after his sinnes committed , to bring himselfe againe into the fauour of god , whome he had offended , consisted of these very heads , which haue beene named ; repentance , confidence , and affiance in gods mercie , and performance of new obedience . and this his practise was verified , amongst many other places , specially in the 119. psalme , and in all the psalmes commonly called penitentiall . againe , the prophet daniel was accepted of god onely for the doing of these things . dan. 9. and in like manner was paul , and the rest of the apostles . yet here remaines a great difficultie . many a good seruant of god , may , and doth truly say of himselfe , i bewaile my sinnes , and doe in some sort rest on gods mercie , and withall i endeauour to performe new obedience : but alas ! here is my griefe , i cannot doe these things as i would . in matter of sorrow and griefe , i am troubled with hardnes of heart : in occasions of boldnes and confidence , with doubting : in indeauour to obey , with many sinnes , and sundrie faults . for the staying and moderating of this griefe , these rules may further be remembred . the first rule . if there be in the minde , a purpose not to sinne , in the wil , a desire to please god , and in the whole man , an indeauour to performe the purpose of the minde , and the desire of the will : marke what follows vpon this : god in mercie accepteth the purpose and will to obey , for obedience it selfe ; yea though a man faile in the very act , and doe not so well as he should . this is a great mercie of god , and we can neuer be sufficiently thankfull for the same . but yet that we may not here delude our hearts with conceits , and blesse our selues in vaine : we must know , that god doth not alwaies accept the will for the deede , vnlesse there be a constant purpose in heart , a true desire in will , and some resolued endeauour sutable in the life . malach. 3. 17. goa spares them that feare him , as a father spares his owne child . how is that ? though the childe beeing commanded some busines , goeth about it very vnhandsomly , and so the deede be done to small purpose : yet the father accepts it as well done , if he see the childe yeelde vnto his commandement , and doe his indeauour , to the vttermost of his power . euen so will god deale with those that be his children . but how will some say , can god accept a worke of ours that is imperfect ? ans. so farre forth , as the obedience is done in truth , so farre forth god accepts it , because it is his own work in vs : and as it is ours , he pardons it vnto vs , because we are in christ. a second rule is laide downe , rom. 7. 19. where paul saith to this purpose , the good which i would doe , i doe not , and the euill which i would not , that doe i. in these words , is set downe the state of all regenerate men in this life : and the meaning is this . the good things which god hath commaunded , i doe them , but not as i would , and the euill forbidden i auoid , but not as i would . this we shall see to be true by comparing the voyces of three kindes of men together . the carnall man saith , i do not that which is good , neither will i do it , and that which is euill i do , and i will do it . contrariwise , the man glorified , he saith , that which is good i do and will do it , and that which is euill i do not , neither will i do it . the regenerate man , in a midle betweene them both , he saith ; the good things commanded i do , but not as i would ; the euill things forbidden i auoid , but not as i would . and this is the estate of the child of god in this life , who in this regard , is like vnto a diseased man , who loues his health and therefore obserues both diet and physicke : and yet he often falls into his fit againe , ( though he be neuer so carefull to obserue the rules of the physitian ) by reason of the distemperature of his bodie : and hereupon is faine to goe to the physitian the second time for new counsell . in like manner , gods children , haue indeede in their hearts , a care to please and obey god ; but by reason of sinne that dwelleth in them , they faile often , and so are faine to humble themselues againe before him , by new repentance . againe , the seruants of god are like to a man , by some suddaine accident cast into the sea , who in striuing to saue himselfe from drowning , puts to all his strēgth , to swimme to the shore , and being come almost vnto it , there meetes him a waue or billow , which driues him cleane backe againe , it may be a mile or further , and then the former hope and ioy conceiued of escape , is sore abated : yet he returnes againe , and still labours to come to the land ▪ and neuer rests till he attaine vnto it . iii. ground . he that is indeede regenerate , hath this priuiledge , that the corruption of nature , is no part of him , neither doth it belong to his person , in respect of diuine imputation . paul saith of himselfe , rom. 7. 17. it is no more i , but sin that dwelleth in me . in which words , he distinguisheth betweene his owne person , and sinne that is in him . for in man regenerate , there be three things , the bodie , the soule , & the gift of gods image restored againe . now touching the corruption of nature , that is in his person , and so may be said to be his ; but it belongs not to the man regenerate , it is not his , because it is not imputed to him , and so indeede is , as though it were not in him . the apostle 1. thes. 5. 23. praies for the thessalonians , that god would sanctifie them throughout , and preserue their whole spirit , soule , and bodie . of which place ( amongst many ) this exposition may be giuen . the apostle speaking of men regenerate , and sanctified , makes three parts in them : bodie , soule , and spirit : and by spirit , we are to vnderstand , not the conscience , but the gift of regeneration , and sanctification , which is in the whole man bodie & soule , opposed to the flesh , which in a naturall man , is that which is called the old man , rom. 7. and the praier which paul makes in the behalfe of the thessalonians , teacheth vs in effect thus much ; that though corruption remaine in the regenerate , after regeneration ; yet in respect of diuine acceptation , he is accoūted as righteous , and so continueth : his sinne , ( by the mercie of god in christ ) not beeing imputed to him to condemnation . and so much for that point . now these grounds of comfort , and others of the like nature , may serue to sustaine and vphold the hearts of the children of god , when they shall be pressed and troubled , in consideration of their estate in this life , which cannot till death , be fully freed , from much weaknes and manifold imperfections . the fifth and last kinde of temptation or trouble of mind , ariseth from a mans ovvne bodie . before i enter to speake thereof , one question , in the meane time , must be answered , namely , how the bodie should , or how it can trouble the minde , considering that the soule or mind , is not bodily , but spirituall : and it is against reason , that that which is bodily , should either alter or trouble a spirit . for an answer hereunto , these things must be considered . first of all , the actions of man , doe proceede from one onely fountaine , and common cause , the soule ; and are done by the power thereof . the bodie of it self , is not an agent in any work , but as it were a dead instrument , in & by which the soule produceth all actions and workes . secondly , the most of the workes of the soule , and minde of man , are such , as are performed by the bodie , and the parts thereof , and by the spirits that are seated in the bodie , as by instruments . indeede some actions of the soule & mind , are done without the helpe of the bodie ; but i say , that the most actions thereof , are performed by the bodie , and spirits therein contained . yet these spirits in thēselues , are no agents at all : but the onely agent in any worke , is the soule it selfe . for example : the vsing of the outward senses , as of sight , hearing , tasting , touching , smelling , as also of the inward , as imagination , memorie , &c. all this is done by the braine , and the parts of the braine , as proper instruments . all affections both good and bad , are acted by the soule ; but yet they come from the heart , as the seat thereof . so also the power of nourishment , comes from the liuer , as the instrument , whereby the soule nourisheth the bodie . now then the bodie affecteth the soule and minde thus : the bodie and the soule are so ioyned together , that they make one person , and thus , the bodie beeing troubled , the soule is also troubled : yet is not this done , by any diuiding of the soule . for it cannot be diuided . neither by diminishing the parts of the soule , but onely by corrupting the action of the minde , or more properly , by corrupting the next instrument of the minde . this may be conceiued by a comparison . a skilful artificer in any sciēce , hath an vnfit toole , and a naughtie instrument to worke withall : his skill is good , and his abilitie is sufficient , but his instrument whereby he worketh is vnperfect : and therefore he brings forth an imperfect worke . now his toole takes not away the skill of his workmanship , nor his power of working , but keepes him frō doing that well , which otherwise he should and could doe well . in like manner , the body beeing corrupted , hinders the worke of the soule . it doth not take away the worke of the soule , nor the abilitie of working : but because it is a corrupt instrument , it makes the soule to bring forth a corrupt worke . the temptation followeth . the bodie causeth the trouble of the mind two waies , either by melancholie , or by other strange alterations in the parts of the bodie , which oftentimes befall men : in what sort we shall see afterwards . for it is a very common thing , yea more common then the former . touching melancholy , sundrie things are to be considered for our instruction , and for the remedie of that euill . and first of all , if it be asked what melancholie is ? i answer , it is a kind of earthie & black blood , that is specially in the splene , beeing stopt ; which conuaieth it selfe to the heart , and the braine , and there partly by his corrupt subsiāce , and specially by his contagious qualitie , annoyeth both heart and braine , beeing the seat & instrument of reason . the second is , what are the effects and operations of melancholie ? ans. they are strange , and often fearefull . there is no humour , yea nothing in mans bodie , that hath so strange effects , as this humour hath , beeing once distempered . an auncient diuine calls it the deuills bait , because the deuill , by gods iust permissiō , conueies himselfe into this humour , and worketh strange conceits . when the euill spirit came vpon saul , it so tempted him , that he would haue slaine him that was next vnto him : how so ? surely , because god in iustice withdrew his spirit of gouernment from him , and suffered satan , to enter into the humour of choler , or melancholie , or both , and by this meanes caused him to offer violence to dauid . now the effects thereof in particular , are of two sorts . the first effect , is in the braine and head . for this humour being corrupted , it sends vp noysome spirits , and filleth the instrument of reason ( as it were ) with a myst , and makes it vnfit to vse reason . hence followes the first effect , strange imaginations , conceits ▪ and opinions , framed in the minde : which are the first worke of this humor , not properly : but because it corrupteth the instrument , and the instrument beeing corrupted , the facultie cannot bring forth good , but corrupt actions . for example . that which they call the beast● like melancholie is , when a man thinkes himselfe to be a beast of this or that kind , and carries himselfe accordingly . of this sort , are those , that thinke themselues to be a wolues , and practise wolvish behauiour . thus we read , dan. 4. 30. that nebuchad-nezzar liued , behaued himselfe , and fed as a beast . some say , that he loss his soule , and had the soule of a beast . but they er●e . for there is no such transportation of soules into bodies , either of men , or beasts . others thinke , that nebuchadnezzar was smitten in the brain with this disease , and in a beastly imagination carried himselfe as a beast . and this interpretation is not against the text : for in the 31. verse of that chapter it is said , that his minde came to him againe : and therefore in the disease , his vnderstanding , & the right vse of his reason was lost . and the like is true in historie , by diuers examples , though it were not true in nebuchadnezzar . againe , take another example , that is common and ordinarie . let a melancholike person vpon the sudden , see some fearefull thing , the strength of his imagination presently fasteneth the thing vpon himselfe . as if he see or heare that a man is hanged , or possessed with a deuill , it presently comes to his minde , that he must be hanged , that he is or shall be possessed . likewise vpon relation of fearefull things , presently his phantasi : workes , and he imagineth , that the thing is alreadie , or shall befall him . and this imagination , when it enters once & takes place , it brings forth horrible and fearefull effects . the second effect or worke of melancholie , is vpon the heart . when the mind hath conceiued and framed fearefull things , there is a concord and consent between heart & affection , & then comes affection , and is answerable to imagination . hence doe proceede exceeding horrors , feares , and despaires , and yet the cōscience for all this vntouched , and not troubled or disquieted . thirdly , it may be demanded , whether there be any difference betweene the trouble of cōscience and melancholie ? for many hold , that they are all one . ans. they are not all one , but differ much . affliction of conscience is one thing , trouble by melancholie is another : and they are plainly distinguished thus . first , when the conscience is troubled , the affliction it selfe is in the conscience , and so in the whole man. but in melancholie , the imagination is disturbed , & not the conscience . secondly , the conscience afflicted , hath a true and certen cause , wherby it is troubled , namely , the sight of sinne : but in melancholie , the imagination conceiueth a thing to be so , which is not so : for it makes a man to feare and despaire , vpon supposed and fained causes . thirdly , the man afflicted in conscience , hath courage in many things : but the melancholike mā feares euery man , euery creature , yea himselfe , and hath no courage : when there is no cause of feare , he feares . fourthly , imaginations in the braine caused by melancholie , may be cured , taken away , and cut off by meanes of physicke : but the distresse of conscience , cannot be cured by any thing in the world but one , and that is the blood of christ , and the assurance of gods fauour . fourthly , the way to cure melancholy is this . first the person troubled must be brought to this ; that he will content himselfe , to be aduertised and ruled , not by his owne , but by the iudgement of others , touching his owne estate : and by this shall be reape much quiet and contentation . secondly search & triall must be made , whether he hath in him any beginnings of faith and repentance or no. if he want knowledge of his estate , then meanes must be vsed , to bring him to some sight and sorrow for his sinnes , that his melancholy sorrow , may be turned into a godly sorrow . if he want faith and true repentance , some good beginnings thereof must be wrought in his heart . thirdly , when he is brought to faith in gods mercie , and an honest purpose not to sinne any more ; then ▪ certaine mercifull promises of god , are to be laid before his eies : and he must be exhorr●d , to rest vpon these promises , and at no time to admit any imagination or thought , that may crosse the said promises . now the promises are these and such like : psal. 34. 9. no good thing shall be wanting to them that feare god. psal. 91. 10 no euill shall come neere the godly man. 2. chron. 15. the lord is with you , while you are with him , and if you seeke him , he will be found of you . iam. 4. 8. drawe nere to god , and he will draw neere to you . and the best meanes to cause any man thus diseased , to be at peace with himselfe , is to hold , beleeue , & know the truth of these promises , and not to suffer any bythought to enter into his heart , that may crosse them . moreouer , though the former promises may stay the minde , yet will they not take away the humour , except further helpe be vsed . therefore the fourth and last helpe , is the arte of physicke , which serues to correct and abate the humour , because it is a meanes by the blessing of god , to restore the health , and to cure the distemper of the bodie . and thus much touching the trouble of minde , caused by melancholy . the second meanes whereby the bodie annoies the minde is , when it occasions trouble to the minde , by strange alterations incident to the bodie . when a man beginnes to enter into a phrensie , if the braine admit neuer so little alteration , presently the minde is troubled . thus by the trembling of the heart , many fearefull imaginations are caused , when a man knowes not the cause . the same is procured by the swelling of the splene , by the rising of the entralls , by strange convulsions , and such like . the remedie hereof is this . first it is still to be considered , whether the partie thus troubled hath true faith and repentance or no. if he hath , it is so much the better . if ▪ he hath not , the first dutie is to vse all meanes , to stir vp in him some godly sorrow for his sinnes . secondly , this beeing done , meanes must be vsed to take away the opinion conceiued , and to giue information of the alteration of the bodie , and of the true cause thereof . this beeing knowne , the griefe or feare conceiued , will easily be staid . for take away the false opinion , and informe iudgement , and the whole man will be the better . thirdly , the opinion beeing altered and reformed , it may be the alteration in the bodie will remaine : the partie therefore in that case must be taught , that it is a correction of god , and that god doth not barely suffer the correction to be inflicted , but is the very author of it : and therefore the partie is to be well pleased , and to reioice in that will of god. for euery present estate , whether it be good or badde , is the best state for vs , because it comes by the wil of god. and thus much touching the distinct kindes of distresses of minde . i adde this one thing further , that if we make examination of the estate of such persons , as are troubled with any of these fiue temptations , we shall not vsually find them single , but mixed together , especially melancholy , with some other temptations . and so much of the first sort of questions , concerning man simply considered in himselfe . finis . notes, typically marginal, from the original text notes for div a09364-e60 prou. 18. 14. rom 14 2● ▪ heb ▪ 4. ● ▪ psal. 119. v. 49 , 50. a decr●● . de peni●ent : dist . 6. cap. ● caue●t spiritualis iudex , vt sicut non cōmi●●● cr●m●● nequiti● , 〈◊〉 non care ●t munere scienciae . b iudices in cau●●s poenitentium . bella● . d● paen . lib. 3. ca. 2. concil . t●id . ●ess . 14. can 9. mark. 2. 10. r●u . ● . 8. 2. cor. 5. 20. c theophylact. comment in ioan. 8. 34. & hieron . lib. ● ▪ comment . in math. super verba . tibi dabo claues . emanuel sa. in aphori● . confessatio●● . concil . t●id ▪ ses● . 6. cap. 9. a matth. 14 31. iam 1. 6. rom. 4. ●0 . concil . trid. ●e●● . 14. can . ● psal. 19 〈◊〉 . a 〈◊〉 veniale , quod non ●olli● or sinem ●d vltimum finem , vnde non mer●tur poenam ●●ernam , sed t●mpo●alem . iacob . de graphi●s : decision . aur●ar ca● . con●c . lib. 1. cap. 6. 1. ioh. 3. 4. concil . trid. i●●● . 14. can . ●● . notes for div a09364-e1250 iam. 5. 16. o splendida pecc●●● . act. 1● . 1. ioh. 3. 4. in p●cc●to ●ihil positivum . 1. cu●p● . 2. rea●●s . 3. p●●● . 4. macul● . act ▪ 3. 17. 1. ti● ▪ ● . 〈◊〉 . iob ●1 . 14. psal. 36. 2 , 3. a ignoran●i● iuris . b ignorancia fact● . voluntas 〈◊〉 cogitur . ●●o● . ● ▪ ● ▪ rom. 7. 18. and 22. 23 ▪ psal. 19. 1● . numb . 15. 〈◊〉 . math. ●5 . 42 ▪ 43. gen. 4. ●0 . gen. 1● . 20. exod. 3. 7. iam. 5. 4. act. 17. 30. o 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 rom. 8. ● . psal. ●9 . exod. 4. ●5 . 1. king . 22. 2. king . 17. 1. sam. 2. 25. matth. 1● . 1. cor. 6. 18. 1. tim. 5. 22. fro● . 〈◊〉 . 15. ● . ti● . 5. 24. 2. pe● . 2. 21. math. 5. 2● . ● . cor. 〈◊〉 . 〈◊〉 . ●●m . 1. 15. math. 15. 19. act. 15. ● . prou. 4. 23. psal 19. 1● . rom. 14. 23. act. 238. act. 16. 33. mat. 10 17. &c. math ▪ 38. 2. sam. 12. 13. psal. 32. 5. luk. 15. 18. psal. 19. 12. 2. cor. ● . 1● . 2. sam. ●8 33. psal. 51. act. 11. ●3 . ezek. ●8 . 21. ioh. 15. 5. iam. 2. 20. ● . king. 23. 25. gen. 3● . 9. ●0 . 2. sam. 16. 10. mark. 7. 7. 1. cor. 8. vlt. 1. cor. 10. 3● . psal. 143. 2. daniel 9. 8. 9. 〈…〉 5 ▪ 11. rom. 5. ● . chap. 3. v. 2. col 3 26. rom. 8. 19. gal. 3. 2● . prou. 18. 14. ● . tim 2. 4. act. 17. 3● . esa. 49 ● . ● . ioh ▪ ● . 1● . ● . cor. ● . 1● . matth. 5. 6. r●●●l . ●1 . 6. psal. 10. 1● . psal. 14● . 1● . 2. cor. ●● . 〈◊〉 . 3● . ● ▪ luk. 15. 17 , 18. 2. sam. 1● . 1● . 1. iohn . ● . 14. maior . minor. conclusio . eccles. 4. 10. c●●● 3. iob. 6. 4. iob. 13. 26. iob. 16. 9. psal. 6 . iob. ●0 30. iob. 15. 8. psal. 32. iob. ●9 . ●9 . rom ▪ ● . 〈◊〉 . exod. 14 ▪ 15. 2. cor. 12. 9. 2. sam. 15. 26. ●om . 9. 3. luk ▪ 4. 1● . psal. 77. 1● . ● . sa● . ● . hab. ● . 4. psal. ●30 . rom. 4. 18. psal. 6. and 77. 2. ch●o 33. 11 , 12. dan. 9. 〈◊〉 , 2● . lament . 3. 40. rom. 8. 28. esa. 45. 7. amos 3. 6. ierem 30. 11. g●n 50. 19 , ● . 2. sam. 16. 10. gen. 45. 5. & 50. 20. micah . 7. ● . 2. pet ● 5 , 6. psal 91. 15. psal. 13. 4. psal 50. 1● . hab. 3. ● . 1. cor. 10. 13. phil. 1. 29. consideration . g●n . 42. 〈◊〉 . humilia●●on . luk. 15. 17. &c. psal. 30. 7. amendment . heb. 12. 21. 1. co● . 11. 32. ioh. ●5 . a●negation . inuocation . hos. 5. 15. patience . rom. 5 3. obedience . heb. 5. 8. heb. 1● . 7. iob ● . gen. 6 ▪ . ier. 25. 12. exod. 〈◊〉 . 41. hab. 2. ● . ● dan 9. v. 2. reu. 21. 4. exod. 23. 28. deut. 7. 2● . pag. 112. psalme 37. 37. 2. cor. 4. 17. heb. 10. 37. psal 39. 4. psal. 90. 12. 1. cor. 15. rom. 7. 14. 23 , &c ● . pet. ● . 〈◊〉 ▪ heb. 1● . 14. 2 cor. 5. 6. phil 1. 23 , ap●● ▪ 22 4 1. ioh. 3. ● . m●●th . 25 34. 1. cor. 7. philip. 3. ●0 . 1. 2● . heb 11. 10. ioh. 16. 20. matth. 5. 4. prou. 14. 13. luk. 6. 23. rom. 14. 〈◊〉 . iob. ●1 . 13 , 14 , 15. ioh. 16. 〈◊〉 . prou. 1● . 13. luk. 1● . 10. and 16. 〈◊〉 . iob. 20. ● . iohn 17. ● . heb. 11. 1● . gen. 49. 1● . ioh 3 14. 15. ● . sam. 30. 6. 2. cor. 1. ● . 〈◊〉 ▪ 9● ▪ 10 , 〈◊〉 ▪ luk 1● ▪ 15. gen. 8. ●0 . 〈◊〉 . 1● ▪ 〈◊〉 . 13. ● . g●● 〈◊〉 . te●●atio f●da . eph. 4. 23. 24. prou. 4. ●3 . psal. 119. 11. psal. 119. ●4 . a 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 . b 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 . 2. chro. 33 13. 2. sam. 7. 14. 15. esca di●bo●● . a 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 . the souls looking-glasse, lively representing its estate before god with a treatise of conscience : wherein the definitions and distinctions thereof are unfolded, and severall cases resolved / by ... william fenner ... fenner, william, 1600-1640. 1643 approx. 391 kb of xml-encoded text transcribed from 113 1-bit group-iv tiff page images. text creation partnership, ann arbor, mi ; oxford (uk) : 2006-06 (eebo-tcp phase 1). a41128 wing f700 estc r477 12495847 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[12], 212 p. printed by roger daniel ..., for john rothwell ..., cambridge [cambridgeshire] : 1643. reproduction of original in cambridge university library. created by converting tcp files to tei p5 using tcp2tei.xsl, tei @ oxford. re-processed by university of nebraska-lincoln and northwestern, with changes to facilitate morpho-syntactic tagging. gap elements of known extent have been transformed into placeholder characters or elements to simplify the filling in of gaps by user contributors. eebo-tcp is a partnership between the universities of michigan and oxford and the publisher proquest to create accurately transcribed and encoded texts based on the image sets published by proquest via their early english books online (eebo) database (http://eebo.chadwyck.com). the general aim of eebo-tcp is to encode one copy (usually the first edition) of every monographic english-language title published between 1473 and 1700 available in eebo. eebo-tcp aimed to produce large quantities of textual data within the usual project restraints of time and funding, and therefore chose to create diplomatic transcriptions (as opposed to critical editions) with light-touch, mainly structural encoding based on the text encoding initiative (http://www.tei-c.org). the eebo-tcp project was divided into two phases. the 25,363 texts created during phase 1 of the project have been released into the public domain as of 1 january 2015. anyone can now take and use these texts for their own purposes, but we respectfully request that due credit and attribution is given to their original source. users should be aware of the process of creating the tcp texts, and therefore of any assumptions that can be made about the data. text selection was based on the new cambridge bibliography of english literature (ncbel). if an author (or for an anonymous work, the title) appears in ncbel, then their works are eligible for inclusion. selection was intended to range over a wide variety of subject areas, to reflect the true nature of the print record of the period. in general, first editions of a works in english were prioritized, although there are a number of works in other languages, notably latin and welsh, included and sometimes a second or later edition of a work was chosen if there was a compelling reason to do so. image sets were sent to external keying companies for transcription and basic encoding. quality assurance was then carried out by editorial teams in oxford and michigan. 5% (or 5 pages, whichever is the greater) of each text was proofread for accuracy and those which did not meet qa standards were returned to the keyers to be redone. after proofreading, the encoding was enhanced and/or corrected and characters marked as illegible were corrected where possible up to a limit of 100 instances per text. any remaining illegibles were encoded as <gap>s. understanding these processes should make clear that, while the overall quality of tcp data is very good, some errors will remain and some readable characters will be marked as illegible. users should bear in mind that in all likelihood such instances will never have been looked at by a tcp editor. the texts were encoded and linked to page images in accordance with level 4 of the tei in libraries guidelines. copies of the texts have been issued variously as sgml (tcp schema; ascii text with mnemonic sdata character entities); displayable xml (tcp schema; characters represented either as utf-8 unicode or text strings within braces); or lossless xml (tei p5, characters represented either as utf-8 unicode or tei g elements). keying and markup guidelines are available at the text creation partnership web site . eng conscience. 2005-08 tcp assigned for keying and markup 2006-01 spi global keyed and coded from proquest page images 2006-03 john latta sampled and proofread 2006-03 john latta text and markup reviewed and edited 2006-04 pfs batch review (qc) and xml conversion the souls looking-glasse , lively representing its estate before god : with a treatise of conscience ; wherein the definitions and distinctions thereof are unfolded , and severall cases resolved : by that reverend and faithfull minister of the word , william fenner . b.d. sometimes fellow of pembroke-hall in cambridge , and late parson of rochford in essex . acts 24.16 . i exercise my self to have alwayes a conscience void of offense toward god and toward men . cambridge . printed by roger daniel , printer to the universitie ; for john rothwell at the sunne in pauls church-yard . 1643. to the christian reader . it was the saying of solon , that there were many good laws made , but there wanted one law to make us put all those laws in execution : the like may be said concerning the books that are written now adayes , there are many good books written , but there wanteth one book to make us to put those good books in practice . such a book were worth writing , and worth reading . and i know no reason but that this book ( if the spirit of god write it in our hearts ) may have this happie effect : for it is a book that will teach us how to get into the state of grace , and how to get and keep a good conscience . and whosoever readeth a book with a good conscience will make conscience to practice what he readeth : for a good conscience is , as aristotle saith of justice , * a synopsis and epitome of all virtues : it is a * panacea to cure all soul-diseases : it is * a medicine to digest all book-surfetting . there are foure sorts of consciences : some bad and unquiet , some bad and quiet , some good and unquiet , some good and quiet . for a conscience to be bad and quiet is the worst temper that can be : better have a bad unquiet then a bad and quiet conscience : better have a tormenting tophet in the soul then a fools paradise : the best frame of conscience is the good and quiet conscience : this is a * paradise upon earth , * a pr●gustation and prelibation of heaven , a mansion for the trinitie to dwell in . now this ensuing treatise will teach us how to purchase this precious jewel of a good and quiet conscience . a treatise very necessary in these unconscionable dayes , wherein most people make no conscience to sinne against conscience ; and some have sinned so long against conscience as that they have lost all conscience of sinne . as * s. augustine saith of the name of a christian , so may i say of conscience , multi conscientiam habent , non ad remedium sed ad judicium , many have a conscience for their condemnation and not for their salvatition . conscience it is the house of the soul : but this house lieth waste and is much ruinated and decayed in these times , wherein * never more science but never lesse conscience . conscience * it is a private judgement-day before the publick day of judgement : and it is an ill presage that most people will never stand upright in the court of heaven , because they stand accused and condemned in the court of conscience . conscience is gods preacher in our bosomes : and it is a most certain rule ; that that man that will not regard the preacher in his bosome will never regard the preacher in the pulpit . and the reason why the preacher in the pulpit doth no more good , is because the preacher in the bosome is so much despised and neglected . and therefore i doubt not but this book ( these motives considered ) will be very acceptable to all those that have or desire to have a good and quiet conscience . for as * s. bernard most excellently saith , every mans conscience is his book ; and all books are written to discover and amend the errours of the book of conscience . let those that reade this book of cōscience look into the book of their own conscience , and amend all the faults of that book by this . the reverend authour of this book was a minister very conscientious , and one that had a great abilitie given him by god to preach unto and work upon the consciences of people , to awaken the sleepie conscience , to inform the erroneous conscience , to settle the doubtfull conscience , and to comfort the wounded conscience : his sermons were all dipt in conscience : and therefore a subject of conscience must needs be welcome from such a preacher . it is true that this birth is posthumum opus , and cometh out after the death of the authour : but i hope it will be the more pleasing , to revive the memory of him whose life and labours were deservedly precious in the esteem of gods people . and if conscience , though for a while blind , & dumbe , and seared , & put out of all office , will notwithstanding at last be put into office , and made to see , speak and feel , to the utter destruction of an impenitent sinner ; why may not a discourse of conscience , though long ago preached , be suffered to revive and live for the salvation of those that shall have grace to reade it aright ? especially considering that these sermons were perfected by himself in his life time ? much i could say in commendation of this worthie divine , both in regard of his unwearisome pains in preaching , consuming his own bodie to save the souls of others , as also of his learning and exemplarie pietie : but i forbear . all that i will say is this ; they that fully knew him did love and reverence him : and if any did disesteem him , it was because they did not fully know him . he is now a shining starre in the firmamēt of heaven . and there are hundreds of people that will blesse god to all eternity for his pains . he needeth not our praises , but our imitation . all that i desire from you that reade this short treatise is this , that ye would either get a good conscience by the reading of this book , or bring a good conscience to the reading of it . labour to make an addition to the heavenly joyes of this faithfull servant of god by making this book a means to bring thy soul to those heavenly joyes which are at gods right hand for evermore : which are joyes unspeakable and glorious , so great that , * as s. augustine saith , if one drop of the joyes of heaven should fall into hell , it would swallow up all the bitternesse of hell. and that god would make you heirs of this joy , is the prayer of your soul-friend edm. c. a table of the contents . an enquiry after a mans estate before god. coloss . 4.8 . what a mans estate before god is pag. 1 ministers are to enquire after the estate of their people 3 every man is either in an estate of grace or sinne 8 this estate may be known 11 why every man ought to enquire after his own estate 14 means whereby a man may come to know what estate he is in 15 impediments which hinder this knowledge 18 motives to be diligent in this enquirie 19 2. a treatise of conscience . rom. 2.15 . what conscience is 21 i. proposition . there is in every man a conscience 23 why the lord did plant a conscience in every man 25 ii. proposition . the light that conscience acts by is knowledge 1. of gods law ; 28 the light that conscience acts by is knowledge 2. of our selves . 28 the great necessity of knowledge 29 iii. proposition . the office of conscience is to bear witnesse , accusing or excusing 33 1. foure properties of this witnesse-bearing it is 1. supreme 34 2. impartiall 35 3. faithfull 36 4. privie 37 2. the parts of this witnesse-bearing : i. it s single witnessing 1. what we have done 38 2. what we intend to do ibid. 3. what is the bent of our hearts ibid. ii. it s judiciall bearing witnesse 42 1. about things to be done or omitted : where are considered 1. it s office , 1. to judge 45 2. to counsel 46 2. its adjuncts : it is either 1. illightned 51 2. erroneus 56 3. doubting 52 4. scrupulous 58 5. faithfull 63. or 6. unfaithfull 69 2. about things alreadie done or omitted : and here also 1. it is office is , 1. to approve 77 2. to absolve 78 3. to mislike 79 4. to condemne 80 2. its affections : it is either 1. tender 83 2. sleepie ibid. 3. benumbed 84 , or 4. seared 85 from all th●se proceed two other adjuncts ; i. a quiet conscience : concerning which is considered 1. what it is 87 2. how that in the godly differeth from that in the wicked 90 3. how to know whether we have it or no 100 where is handled ; whether a child of god may fear death , and how farre 105 whether a wicked man may be desirous to die , and in what cases 108 the great benefit of peace of conscience 110 ii. an unquiet conscience what it is , and the causes of it 114 the degrees of it 117 the difference of it in the godly and in the wicked 121 how a man may keep peace of conscience 131 how it dependeth upon obedience 135 what manner of obedience that is which peace of conscience dependeth upon ? 139 what a man must do to be freed from a burdened and troubled conscience 141 as conscience beareth witnesse of our actions so of our persons 146 it can and doth inform every man what estate he is in 147 how it doth this 150 when it doth this 153 why many neverthelesse are deluded about their estate 157 what a good conscience soundly renewed is 162 what a weak and infirm good conscience is 168 iv. proposition . the bond of conscience is the law of god 175 1. the primarie and supreme , is gods word 177 gods law bindeth the consciences of the regenerate 184 2. the secondarie and relative , others , or our selves 194 1. others may bind our conscience , as magistrates , superiours ; and how farre ibid. 2. we may bind our own consciences by lawfull vows and promises 207 what vows are unlawfull and not binding ibid. of the vow made to god in baptisme , how great it is , and how much to be regarded 209 an enquiry after a mans estate before god. coloss. 4.8 . whom i have sent unto you for the same purpose , that he may know your estate and comfort your hearts . the estate of a man before god is the relation that he standeth in unto god , as god is the free fountain of all spirituall life and salvation , and the determiner of mens everlasting conditions either in heaven or in hell : so that when we question about a mans estate , we question , whether he be in christ or not ; whether he have true grace yea , or no ; whether he be one of gods children or no , or whether he be yet no better then a reprobate . there be three things to be considered in this definition of every mans estate . first , it is a relation unto god ; not as a man is in himself , it may be rich , it may be poore in the world ; but i speak here as he is in relation towards god , whether he be rich towards god , yea or no. i do not speak as a man is in regard of others ; it may be he is a father or a sonne , a master or a servant , a king or a subject : but in relation to god , whether gods sevant or no , gods child or no. salute apelles , saith paul ; and he telleth us in what estate apelles was in before god , namely , in an estate of approbation , approved in christ . and the same apostle speaketh on the contrary of the unconverted gentiles , that they were strangers from the life of god , ephes . 4 , 18. secondly , as it is a relation unto god , so it is a standing relation : that wherein he standeth towards god , that is a mans estate before god. there is a difference between one that doth sin and one that is in the state of sinne : a child of god may sinne , but he is not in a state of sinne ; you cannot call him a wicked man. so also there is difference between one that doeth some good actions and one that is in a good estate : a carnall man may do some good things , but he is not in a good estate . the estate of a man is a standing thing , it is the relation that he standeth in towards god. thirdly , it is the relation that a man standeth in towards god as he is the free fountain of spirituall life and salvation . it is not every standing relation towards god : for a man may be considered in relation to god as a creatour , and so the heavens and the earth and the very brute beasts stand in relation to god as they are his creatures ; but they have not this estate that we speak of , which is a relation to god as the free giver of spirituall life and salvation ( he is free , he may choose whether he will give it or no. ) now this is a mans estate , the relation he standeth in unto god , whether the lord hath given him his saving grace , yea or no ; spirituall life in christ jesus , yea or no ; title to heaven and salvation , yea or no ? this is the meaning when we speak of a mans estate . it is said of sodom , they were sinners before god : that is they were in a bad estate , a state of sinne . it is said of zachary and elisabeth , they were both righteous before god ; that is , they were both in a very good state . all christians believe that there is a god : it behoveth every one now to consider in what estate he standeth to his god. this is a great question that we which are ministers ought to demand of our people , to know their estates . first , because we are shepherds , and are bound to look well how it standeth with our flock . if we do not labour to know your estates , we can never look well to your souls . consider that place in the proverbs , be diligent to know the state of thy flock , and look well to thy herds . where the wise man first requireth that we should look well to our flocks , and then directeth us in the manner how , viz. by being diligent to know their estate how it standeth with them . secondly , we are gods labourers ; and we must know in what estate our work standeth : else we may labour and labour and all in vain ; we may preach and exhort and call upon our people to heare and believe , and obey ; and all this may still be in vain , if we do not enquire in what estate they are . this is the reason why paul could not forbear sending and enquiring how it stood with the thessalonians , in what estate they were in , how it went with their faith , whether they kept it or no , lest the tempter had tempted them , and his labour should have been in vain ; for so it had been for all his preaching and teaching them if they had not been in a good estate : therefore he sent to know . thirdly , we are to take the care and the charge of your souls : now then how can we be quiet if we do not know in what estate your souls be ? a good father cannot be at quiet if he do not know how it is with his children : how if they should be sick ? how if undone ? oh it would comfort a good father to know his children to be in good case : but if it were otherwise with them , though it would grieve him much yet he had rather know it then not ; for if he know it he can better tell what to do . so it was with the apostle ; his very bowells yerned upon the philippians , oh my poore people , thought he , i wonder what estate they be in . how if they totter ? how if they miscarry ? how if the devil have tempted them to sinne and to apostatize ? how if they be in trouble of conscience ? he could never be at quiet till he knew their estate : i trust in the lord jesus , saith he , to send timotheus shortly unto you , that i also may be of good comfort when i know your estate . he had a great care of their souls , and therefore it would comfort his heart to know what estate they were in . fourthly , we are teachers , and therefore we must know the estate of our people : otherwise we are ignorant what doctrine to provide for them , what points to handle among them . paul in this epistle to the colossians , knowing onely their estate in the generall , delivereth abundance of generall precepts and exhortations unto them : he describeth unto them the mystery of christ , admonisheth them to continue stedfast therein , to embrace the preaching of the word , to beware of philosophy and the vain traditions and sophistry of men , to take heed of doting upon ceremonies , which are all ended in christ , to set their affections on heaven , to mortifie the deeds of the flesh , to put off the old man ; he warneth them to be loving and humble : he biddeth wives do their duties to their husbands , and husbands to love their wives ; children to obey their parents , and parents to encourage their children ; servants to obey their masters , and masters to deal well with their servants ; all to continue in prayer , watchfulnesse , thanksgiving ; to walk wisely towards them that are without , to be carefull of godly & holy communication : thus knowing their estate onely for the generall he teacheth them in generall , and therefore now he concludeth , as if he should say , i speak somewhat generally because i do not know your estates in particular ; and therefore i send to you tychicus , a faithfull good minister , that he may learn your estates in particular , and deal with you answerably . it may be some of you want corrosives ; it may be some of you want cordials ; it may be some have need to be searched and humbled , some of you to be encouraged and comforted : i have sent him to enquire into your estates in particular , that he may do accordingly . whom i have sent unto you for the same purpose , that he may know your estate and comfort your hearts . the use of this is threefold . first , for instruction . hence we may see that a minister doeth but his duty when he enquireth into mens estates how they stand before god : it is not prying into other mens matters ; it is not busi-bodinesse in other mens affairs ; it is not a spirit of meddling : no , a ●inister doeth but his duty when he doeth it . how can a physician apply true and proper physick unlesse he enquire into the state of mens bodies ? now a minister is a physician to mens souls ; and therefore he is to enquire of the state of mens souls how they stand before god. they are men of belial that say , what ? must the minister know all ? and , can there be nothing done but the minister must heare of it ? these are very evil speeches . the minister doeth but his duty when he is inquisitive . the second use may be for reproof . if it be the duty of a minister to enquire of mens estates before god , then those people are too blame that will not make known their estates . what is the reason that so many men abide in a rotten estate , but because they are loth to open truly and fully what they are to gods ministers ? nay many are like them in the prophet , who say to the seers , see not . they would not have gods ministers see what they do , nor see what they are . i confesse there be some that will open something about their estates , but not all they know by themselves : they keep in the main ; like some foolish clients who misinform their counsel , making their case better then indeed it is , and so their cause miscarrieth : so some keep in that which would give most light to judge of their estates : but this ought not so to be . i can tell you an example of one that being troubled about his estate before god , and some ministers being by , oh , saith he , i will tell you all that i know of my self ; i 'le not hide a syllable from you : and if i be yet no better then a wretch , i beseech you tell me plainly that i am so ; and if i be in christ , i beseech you prove it plainly unto me . this man took a right course , and thereby through gods mercy came in a little space to the assurance of his own blessed estate and condition . thirdly , for exhortation . let gods ministers know of your estates , that they may be able to speak to you accordingly . by this means they may speak words in due season , and like wise house-holders give every one his portion . if you had but a cut finger , would not you be glad to have the right plastre ? and if you had a burning fever , would you not desire the right remedy ? how much more in curing the sicknesse of the soul ? now from the text it self without any cutting up of the words we may gather foure propositions : 1. that there is an estate that every man is in , either an estate of grace or an estate of sinne . 2. that this state may be known . 3. that every man should be willing to have his estate examined , that it may be known whether it be good or no. 4. that a man can never have true comfort till it be known that he is in a good estate . 1. for the first , that there is an estate that every one is in , either of grace or sin ; see this in simon magus : i perceive , saith s. peter , thou art in the gall of bitternesse and in the bond of iniquity . see , he telleth him what estate he was in , viz. a very bad estate , in a desperate and damnable condition . in this state of sin and misery are all they that are not renewed by christ jesus . and for the other see an example , rom. 16.7 . salute rufus chosen in the lord : the text there telleth us what estate he was in , a very good estate ; he was a man in christ , a choise man , that is , a man in the state of grace and salvation . in this estate are all they that are called and sanctified and made new creatures unto god. every man is in one of the two estates : there is no middle estate which is neither the one nor the other , but in one of these two are all the whole world . the reason is , 1. from everlasting the world was divided onely into two ranks , either elect or reprobates . 2. here in this life the world is divided onely into two companies either godly or ungodlie . 3. at the day of judgement the lord will divide the whole world onely into two sorts , either sheep or goats . ii. for the second proposition , this estate may be known : especially every man may come to the knowledge of his own estate before god. i do not say that every man may know whether he be elect or reprobate : yet this i say too , that a godly soul may know that it is elected to life . the apostle exhorteth all that are godly to give diligence to make their election sure , 2. pet. 1.10 . he that atteineth to that faith which the apostle calleth the faith of gods elect , titus 1.1 . and receiveth the word of god , as paul saith the thessalonians did , and thence concludeth they were chosen of god , 1. thess . 1.4 , 5. he may attein to much assurance of his election . but though a godly man may know he is elected of god , yet for reprobation the case is not alike : 1. because ungodlinesse is not alwayes joyned with perseverance . 2. besides , god hath many reasons why he doth not reveal mens reprobation unto them : they would then be outragious in evil , desperate in wickednesse ; there could be no order or government in humane life : besides that , the form of christs administration of his kingdome could not be so as it now is : for christ hath bid his ministers preach the gospel to every creature , to whole parishes and towns , and except none : christ will not tell his ministers which be reprobates and which not , that they may preach unto all , and labour to work upon every soul ; and there is none in a parish but the minister must look upon him as one who may be saved : christ will not tell his people which be reprobates , that they may look upon every one as one that may be wonne to the faith for any thing they know : christ will not tell the reprobates themselves that they are reprobates , that every one of them may come to the use of the means ; how do they know but they may find grace ? yea and the lord doth seriously call them ; and it is their fault if they obey not . it is gods infinite mercy , that election , which is such a comfortable point , may be revealed to gods children ; and that reprobation , which is so intolerable and bitter , is not revealed to the reprobate . neverthelesse let me adde , that some particular men have known their own reprobation , as cain and judas , &c. and there be shrewd signes of it : ( i do not speak it as though i meant to perswade any man that he is one , but onely that he may take heed of them . ) 1. malicing the known truth is a very shrewd signe : as , when men know that godlinesse is pleasing to god , and yet they hate a man for it ; when men know the minister is commanded to rebuke sinne , and yet they will spite him for so doing : this is a very shrewd signe . paul persecuted the truth ; but yet , saith he , i obteined mercy , because i did it ignorantly , 1. tim. 1.13 . intimating that if he had done it against knowledge he had been in danger to have found no mercy . and therefore ye that mock and hate those wayes which god hath commanded , i beseech you , take heed lest ye sin unpardonably . 2. absolute apostasie is a shrewd signe too of reprobation : when men have been very forward in the profession of the truth , and fall totally away and prove miserably profane , as the apostle , sheweth , heb. 6.6 . 3. finall impenitency . this is an infallible signe of reprobation , when a man liveth in sin , dieth in sin , & goeth away without repentance . luke 13.3 . except ye repent ye shall all likewise perish . there be many of us have stood out long in impenitency ; let us take heed lest if we stay any longer we fall upon this great evil . i return to the point : a man may come to the knowledge of his own estate before god. i do not mean , whether he be in the state of election or reprobation : but he may know , whether he be in the state of salvation or damnation , that is , whether he be in the way that leadeth to heaven or hell , whether he be in such a case that if he die now he shall be saved or not saved : every man may thus know in what estate he is ; because the word of god sheweth a man this : as for example , he that committeth sinne is of the devil . mark ; the apostle telleth us what estate that man is in that liveth in sinne , in a very bad estate . so on the contrary ; he that hath this hope purgeth himself . mark ; the apostle telleth us what estate that man is in who purgeth himself ; he is in a very good estate , in a state of true hope in christ . and so 1. cor. 6.10 . the apostle nameth divers who are not in the state of salvation but of damnation : if they die in such case they cannot inherit the kingdome of heaven . so that if a man will but search the word , and believe that god doth say true , he may know his estate . 2. without this knowledge a man cannot have an accusing or an excusing conscience in respect of his estate : but men may have , yea many men have , a conscience accusing them of being in a very bad estate ; and many men have an excusing conscience that plainly doth witnesse that they are in a very good and gracious estate . i and my people are wicked , saith pharaoh . his conscience did accuse him of being in a bad estate . i am holy , saith david ; i am thy servant . his conscience told him he was in the state of grace . so that ye need not go farre to know what estate you are in : there is that in your bosome that can decide the matter . 3. men cannot desire nor flie f● o an unknown estate : but men are commanded to flie from a bad estate , and seek out a good one : therefore they may know the one and the other . o generation of vipers , who hath warned you to flie from the wrath to come ? bring forth therefore fruits meet for repentance , saith john to the pharisees . he supposeth these men might easily know that they were in a very bad estate , or else how could he say thus unto them ? before i come to the uses let us consider these three things : 1. that every man living is born in a very bad estate . we all know it well ; but oh that we would consider it ! we are all by nature children of wrath . now here lieth the question , when did we change our estates ? we are in the same state of damnation wherein we were born except we are come out of it . i say , here lieth the question , whether we are come out of it or no , whether we have mended our estate . 2. consider that the greatest part of the world never mend their estates : but as they were born in a cursed estate , so they live and die in it . and i speak not this of heathen onely ; but alas ! how many in the visible church do so ? how many were there in the church of philippi whom the apostle could not think of without weeping when he considered in what estate they were . so in the church of corinth , not many wise , not many rich , not many noble called ; but commonly the meanest in the eye of the world were in the best estate towards god. nay more then so ; many of them who seek to get into a good estate misse of it and perish . see , luke 13.24 . strive to enter in at the strait gate : mark ; it 's a strait gate , and letteth but few in : for many shall seek to enter in and shall not be able . here and there a few even where the constant ministery is . 3. consider that it is a marvellous hard thing to passe from state unto state , from a bad to a good estate . there is a very vast gulf between the state of sinne and the state of grace , and it is marvellous hard to passe it . these things premised , the uses follow . 1. this point may be many wayes usefull : first , for instruction . if god hath made it possible unto us to find out what estate every one of us is in , then sure he would have us go about it and enquire after it . god might have left us to perish in our naturall blindnesse , never to have known in what case we had been untill we were past recovery . first , we are all wanderers from god and from the wayes of peace , and therefore god might justly have suffered us for ever to have wandred , and never to have been able to find out whether we had been right or wrong . secondly , god hath dealt so with some : he hath suffered some to go on all their dayes blindfold to hell . thus the lord dealt with the scribes and pharisees ; let them alone , saith he , they be blind leaders of the blind : and if the blind lead the blind , they will both fall into the ditch . ye see the lord hath dealt so with some ; and it is his mercy he hath not dealt so with us . sith god hath made it possible for us to know , it is our duty to enquire after it : and that yet further for these reasons : 1. first , because the lord commandeth it : examine your own selves whether ye be in the faith ; prove your selves : know ye not your own selves , how that jesus christ is in you , except ye be reprobates ? where ye see the apostle commandeth the duty of self-triall : and consider how he presseth it upon us : 1. do ye not know what estate you are in ? then examine and enquire . 2 do ye think ye are in a good estate ? look ye prove it , and be sure ye be not in an errour . do ye object ye do not know , neither can ye know ? no ? then your estate is very bad : find out some good tokens in you , except ye be reprobates . this command makes it a clear duty . 2. but a second reason to prove it our duty to enquire what estate we are in , is , because without the knowledge thereof we can never have any true peace in our consciences : the conscience must needs be without peace so long as we are ignorant of what estate we are in : being justified by faith we have peace with god through our lord jesus christ . first the apostle sheweth their estate ; they were in a state of justification : and from the knowledge thereof they had peace . we are bound to get true peace to our consciences ; oh , what a lamentable maze are vve in till our consciences have peace ! and this they cannot have untill vve are fully acquainted in vvhat case vve stand before god : acquaint thy self with god , and be at peace . 3. thirdly , vve can never be fit for any duty of gods vvorship as long as vve knovv not vvhat estate vve are in : we can never be fit for any holy duty , to heare , pray , receive the sacrament : let a man examine himself , and so let him eat , &c. first he must examine in vvhat estate he is before he can be fit for that high service . so for repentance : let us search and try our wayes , and turn again to the lord : first find our selves in an ill estate , and then return . so for joy ; it is a duty to rejoyce in the lord : but vve are never fit for rejoycing till vve have proved vvhat estate vve are in : let every man prove his own work ; so shall he have rejoycing . we can never be fit for any duty untill vve knovv in vvhat estate vve are in , because every duty varieth according as the estate of every man is . to instance in prayer ; he that is not in the state of grace must pray one vvay , and he that is in the state of salvation must pray another vvay : the one that he may be converted and brought home to god ; the other , that he may be strengthened and encreased in grace . and so for the duty of hearing , &c. the second use is for direction ; to let us understand by vvhat means vve may knovv vvhat estate vve are in . there be foure means to know this . 1. by our outward and inward actions . i do not say , by our outward actions : for a man may be in the state of hypocrisie , and yet his outward actions may be good . neither do i say by our inward actions alone : for a man may be in the state of self-deceit , and yet say his heart is good and his meaning and mind good . but i say , by them both put together . our saviour setteth it out by a tree ; every good tree bringeth forth good fruit : but a corrupt tree bringeth forth corrupt fruit . so if the heart bringeth forth the fruit of righteousnesse ▪ joy in good things ▪ patience , meeknesse , gentlenesse , love , obedience , godly conversation , &c. these evidence a good estate : but if the heart bringeth forth deadnesse , earthlinesse , impatience , evil conversation , &c , these are corrupt fruits and signes of a very bad estate . 2. ye may know what estates ye are in by your inclinations and dispositions , from whence these actions proceed . are your hearts inclined heavenward and god-ward , as davids ? are ye bent to holinesse and self-deniall , &c. as a bow is bent to shoot the arrow ? this is a signe of a good estate : as 1. chron. 22.19 . there is speech of setting the heart to seek god. ye know when a man will do a thing indeed , we say he is set on 't . it may be ye do some good duties , make some fair offers of seeking god ; but are your hearts set on 't ? or are they set on the world and inclined earth-vvard ? the inclinations of every creature in the vvorld do ever shevv vvhat the creature is . hovv do vve knovv that a stone is heavy ? because it inclineth dovvnvvard . hovv do vve knovv a man is cholerick ? because he is inclined unto vvrath . so a mans estate may be knovvn by his constant inclination either to good or evil . 3. one may knovv vvhat estate he is in by that reflexive act which is proper onely to man. there is an act in mans soul ( vve call it a reflex act ) vvhich no creature hath but onely man , vvhereby he can perceive vvhat himself is and doeth . when a man thinketh or speaketh , he can reflect upon himself , and perceive vvhat he thinketh or speaketh : vvhen he prayeth , he can reflect upon his ovvn heart , and perceive hovv it carrieth it self all along in his prayers . i say , no creature in the vvorld hath in it this reflexive act but onely man. the fire burneth , but it cannot reflect upon its ovvn burning : oculus non videt se videre , the eye seeth , but it doth not see that it doth see ; that is , that creature doth not perceive vvhat it doeth vvhen it seeth . but every man hath this reflexive act in him , vvhereby he is privie to vvhat himself thinketh , doeth , is . none knoweth the things of a man , save the spirit of a man that is in him . this is the reason vvhy some knovv not vvhat estate they are in , because they choke their ovvn spirit and hoodwink their consciences . thine ovvn heart knovveth hovv it is vvith thee , and vvould faithfully tell thee if thou vvouldst enquire of it and hearken unto it . search vvith gods candle , and thou mayst easily find vvhat is in thee . the spirit of a man is the candle of the lord , searching all the inward parts of the belly . 4. ye may knovv vvhat estate ye are in by a certain kind of feeling . as there is a kind of bodily feeling vvhereby every man knovveth the estate of his body whether he be sick or in health , so there is a spirituall feeling . the tvvo disciples did feel their hearts burn : paul did feel a great combat in him betvveen the flesh and the spirit : so if men be covetous and vvorldly , they may feel it . yet indeed some men be past feeling : their case is the vvorse because they cannot feel hovv bad it is : but for the most , they may easily feel what their estate is . the third use is , to shevv you the impediments that hinder this knovvledge . if you vvould attein to knovv vvhat estate you are in , then remove the impediments ; vvhich are 1. vain thoughts . men vvho are in a state of sinne and vvrath , yet have many vain thoughts lodging within them keeping them from knowing it : god is mercifull ; and christ died for sinners ; and , there be worse sinners then they ; why should they think so ill of themselves ? and , they may be better all in good time : these vain thoughts hoodvvink their eyes that they cannot see their estate , nor resolve that it is so dangerous as indeed it is . o jerusalem , wash thy heart from wickednesse : how long shall these vain thoughts lodge within thee ? they were in a very bad estate ; and yet they had such vain thoughts that they could not see it . 2. presumption is another impediment . men pray , and heare , and do other good duties , and so take all to be well without serious examining . this was the case of the laodicean people : they thought they had that in them which they had not , and that their estate was good , when it was nothing so . 3 another let are the cares of this life : whereby the heart is so occupied that it doth not find time to search its own estate . therefore our saviour saith , take heed that your hearts be not overcharged with the cares of this life , lest that day come upon you unawares ; intimating that these cares are great lets from considering our estates . 4. another let is an evil conscience , which affrighteth a man so soon as he beginneth to stirre , and maketh him afraid to go on to look soundly into his estate . he that doeth evil hateth the light . 5. another let is ignorance . there is none that understandeth , none that se●keth after god. mark ; they did not seek in what case they stood before god because they did not understand . 6. another let is spirituall sloth and sluggishnesse of heart . men cannot endure to take pains with their own hearts till they have made out a true judgement in what case they are ; they begin and quickly give over ; and so for want of diligence and pains-taking make nothing sure . the last use is for exhortation ; that all men would bestirre themselves and set in earnest upon this enquirie , that we may every one know in what state we stand . 1. consider , this is an enquiry about our souls . we enquire about our outward man , about the estate of our bodyes , and vvorldly affairs , &c. oh , let us not neglect this main enquiry , am i in christ , yea or no ? am i a new creature , yea or no ? doth my soul live to god or no ? 2. consider , this is a question about our everlasting estate . we can never have comfort untill we have put this out of question : and therefore this is a question which all questions must give way unto . if ye be not in christ , ye had need lay aside all and look about it onely . hovv can men eat , drink , sleep , &c. sith the wrath of god abideth upon all unbelievers ? methinks our souls should take no content , do nothing else but faint after christ , untill we know our interest in him . i say again , this is the grand enquiry , that businesse which all businesses must give place unto . oh , the sloth of our souls ! let us in time awake and rouse them up , and never rest untill we know our own estate to be good before god , that so our hearts may have comfort , and that with god. a treatise of conscience . rom . 2.15 . which shew the work of the law written in their hearts , their consciences also bearing them witnesse and their thoughts in the mean while accusing or else excusing one another . i have shewed you , that every man is in an estate before god. and that hath made way now to a treatise of conscience ; which will shew us what estate we are in before god. i desire to handle it common-place-wise : and first i will tell you in brief what the conscience of every man is . i say , of every man : for angels and devils have a conscience too : ye may see it in the speech of the angel to john when john would have worshipped him , i am thy fellow-servant , saith he , see thou do it not . mark ; he had a conscience that could say , i am a servant , and therefore must not take worship to me . so for the devils : when our saviour bade them come forth of the possessed , they say , art thou come to torment us before our time . see ; they had a conscience that told them there would be a time when they should be further tormented . but i am not to speak of such consciences , but of the conscience of man. now the conscience of man is the judgement of man upon himself as he is subject to gods judgement . divines use to expresse it in this syllogisme , he that truly believeth in christ shall be saved : my conscience telleth me this is gods word . but i believe truly in christ : my conscience telleth me this also . therefore i shall be saved . and so also on the contrary side . so that conscience is a mans true judgement of himself : if we would judge our selves ; that is , if we would bring our selves before the tribunal of conscience to receive its judgement . foure propositions are conteined in that portion of scripture which i have chosen to make the subject of this ensuing treatise , rom. 2.15 . 1. that there is in every man a conscience . [ their consciences bearing them witnesse , ] every one of them had a conscience bearing them witnesse . 2. that the light which conscience is directed to work by is knowledge . [ written in their hearts . ] 3. that the bond that bindeth a mans conscience is gods law . [ which shew the effect of the law written in their hearts . ] 4. that the office and duty of conscience is to bear witnesse either with our selves or against our selves , accusing or excusing our selves or actions . [ bearing witnesse , and their thoughts accusing or excusing one another . ] i begin with the first . proposition i. there is in every man a conscience . there was a conscience in all these heathen in the text ; their consciences bearing them witnesse . there was a conscience in the scribes and pharisees : being convicted of their own consciences . there is a conscience in good men : as in paul ; our rejoycing is this , the testimony of our conscience . there is a conscience in wicked men : their mind and conscience is defiled . as it is impossible the fire should be without heat , so it is impossible that any man should be without a conscience . indeed we use to say , such an one hath no conscience : but our meaning is , that he hath no good conscience . but every one hath a conscience , either good or bad . the lord engraved conscience in man when he created him at first . true it is , since the fall of man conscience is miserably corrupted ; but man can never put it off : conscience continueth for ever in every man , whether he be in earth or heaven or hell . the most base and devilish profanelings in the world have a conscience : let them choke it or smother it as much as they can , let them whore it or game it or drink it away as much as they are able for their hearts ; yet conscience will continue in spite of their teeth . 1. no length of time can wear this conscience out . what made josephs brethren to remember the cruel usage they shewed him but conscience ? it was about tvventy years before ; yet they could not vvear it out . 2. no violence nor force is able to suppresse conscience but that one day or other it will shew it self . what made judas go and carry back the money that he betrayed our saviour for , and also to cry out , i have sinned , but conscience ? no question but he laboured to suppresse it ; but he could not . 3. no greatnesse nor power is able to stifle conscience , but that it will one day like a band-dog flie in a sinners face . what made pharaoh crie out , i am wicked , but conscience ? he vvas a great king ; and yet he vvas not able to over-povver conscience . 4. no musick , mirth , or jovializing can charm conscience , but it vvill play the devil to a vvretched soul for all that . what vvas the evil spirit of melancholy that came upon saul , but conscience ? he thought to allay it with instruments of musick ; but it still came again . 5. death it self is not able to part conscience from a sinner . what is that vvorm that shall never die , but onely conscience ? and in hell conscience is as that fire that never goeth out . i confesse some seem to have lost conscience quite : they can omit good duties as though they had no conscience at all : they can deferre repentance and turning to god as though they had no more conscience then a beast : but one day conscience vvill appear , and shevv plainly , that it vvas present vvith them every moment of their lives , and privie to all their thoughts and all their vvayes , and set before them all the things that they have done . be men never so secure and senselesse , and seared for the present , conscience vvill break out either first or last : either here or in hell it vvill appear to every man , that he hath and ever had a conscience . novv the reasons vvhy the lord did plant a conscience in every man living are , 1. because the lord is a very righteous judge : and as he commandeth earthly judges not to judge vvithout vvitnesse : so he himself vvill not judge vvithout vvitnesse , and therefore he planteth a conscience in every one to bring in evidence for him or against him at gods tribunall . 2. because the lord is very mercifull . we are vvonderous forgetfull and mindlesse of god and of our ovvn souls , and have need to be quickned up to our duties : therefore the lord hath given every one of us a conscience to be a continuall monitour . sometime vve forget to pray , and then conscience putteth us in mind to go to god : sometime vve are dull in the duty , and conscience is as a prick to quicken us . sometime our passions are distempered , and then conscience checketh and commandeth us to bridle them . we should never be kept in any order if it vvere not for conscience : therefore hath the lord in mercy given us a conscience . the first use is , to condemne that diabolical proverb common among men ; conscience is hanged a great while ago . no , no ; achitophel may hang himself , but he cannot hang his conscience : saul may kill himself , but conscience cannot be killed . it is a worm that never dieth . as the reasonable soul of man is immortall , so conscience also is immortall . secondly , this condemneth such as go about to suppresse conscience : their conscience maketh them melancholick and lumpish now and then , and they go about to shake it off . alas ! why do ye go about that which is utterly impossible ? ye may suppresse it for a while , and gagge it for a while ; but ye can never shake it off . conscience sticketh so close that a man may as soon shake off himself as his conscience . and indeed his conscience is himself : let a man examine himself , that is , his conscience . judge in your selves , that is , judge in your consciences . thirdly , this confuteth that drunken opinion , that conscience is nothing but a present fit of melancholy . no ; it causeth it may be the present melancholick fit , but it is not it . conscience is a standing power in a man that is evermore with him , and will evermore judge him and condemne him if he be guiltie before god. it will be with him when his dumpish fit is over . let him laugh and be merry ; yet conscience lies at the bottome of all , and will spoyl all the mirth . let the drunkard be never so joviall ; i will not believe but conscience in the midst of that drunken mirth causeth some sadnesse within , and telleth him this is a very wicked life . let the carnall hypocrite daub up the matter with good duties and good prayers and good hopes ; i cannot believe but there is a conscience lieth at the bottome and telleth him he is rotten for all this . you may see this in cain : he had been at a good duty , sacrificing to the lord ; but his countenance fell when he had done , conscience did lie at the bottome , and did tell him god did not accept him . conscience is with evil men at church at sermon , at sacrament , and telleth them secretly that they are not the persons to whom the blessing of these ordinances belong . lastly , this may be for exhortation to the godly ; that they would consider this , that they have ever a conscience within them ; and that therefore they would labour alwayes to keep it void of offence : which was pauls exercise , acts 24.16 . take head you offend not your consciences in duties of piety towards god , in your prayings , hearings , &c. no nor in your callings , eatings , drinkings , liberties , recreations : look alwayes to your consciences , that you offend them not , because they are ever with you . when two live ever together , they had need not offend one another ; else there will be no quiet : you and your consciences must ever live together : if ye offend them ▪ ye are like to have very ill lives . better live with a curst scold then live with an offended conscience : ye had better offend the whole world then offend conscience . there are none whom ye are alwayes to live with ; but conscience ye are alwayes to live with . ye are not alwayes to live with your husbands , nor alwayes with your wives , nor alwayes with your parents or masters ; there is a time when you must part : but conscience and you will never part : therefore labour to keep it void of offence . and thus much of the first proposition ▪ there is in every man a conscience . proposition ii. the light that conscience acteth by , is knowledge . this knowledge is twofold ; 1. of gods law , 2. of our selves . 1. the knowledge of gods law . to know gods will what is good , what is bad ; wha● god commandeth , what he forbiddeth . every man under heaven hath this law of god in some measure writ in his conscience . i confesse gods children onely know gods law to purpose , as it is a light to guide them in the way o● salvation : but all the world have some measure of knowledge , whereby they may gather tha● there is a god , and that he ought to be worshipped and obeyed , and that he hath powe● over life and death . all the world have knowledge in some measure what is good and what is not , what is to be done and what not , what is according to conscience and what not : all the world have this knowledge in some measure ; i do not say , enough for salvation , but enough to make them inexcusable before god for not following that light , and not living according to that knowledge which they have . if there were not some light in this behalf , some knowledge of the law of god in every man , conscience could do nothing . 2. knowledge of our selves : this also is the light that conscience acteth by . there is in every man some measure of knowledge of himself according to the measure of knowledge that he hath of gods law . our consciences look backward and forward ; forward to gods law , and backward on our selves , whether we be such as gods law requireth , yea or no. first , ye may find this in good men . this light did the conscience of david go by : i was upright before god , saith his conscience , and i kept my self from mine own iniquitie . his conscience had a light whereby he knew what he did . secondly , ye shall find this in wicked men . this light the conscience of achan went by : i have sinned against the lord god of israel , and thus and thus have i done . these are the two lights that every mans conscience goes by : it hath light in some measure to know the law of god , what he should do and what he should not do ; and it hath light in some measure to know himself , what he hath done or not done , whether he hath done as he should yea or no. now these two lights are necessary ; as thus i prove . first , the knowledge of gods law is necessary , for else conscience cannot work . a drunkard might be drunk every day in the yeare , and yet conscience could not trouble him nor condemne him of sinne unlesse he knew the law , that god hath forbid drunkennesse . and so the swearer . and so evil words and bad thoughts conscience cannot accuse for , unlesse there be so much light as to know they are forbidden . and therefore divines do all say that the synteresis is necessarie to the exercise of conscience . the synteresis is this : when a man keeps in his mind the knowledge of the things conteined in gods law : namely , that we must obey god , honour our parents , not commit adultery , not kill , not steal , not lie , not covet , &c. unlesse the knowledge of these be kept in mind conscience cannot work . and therefore when we would stirre a mans conscience , we appeal to his knowledge ; know you not that the unrighteous shall not inherit the kingdome of god ? as if he had said , your own consciences may condemne you to the pit of hell if ye be unrighteous , because your synteresis can tell you that the unrighteous shall not inherit the kingdome of god. this is the reason why we say that there is a naturall conscience and there is an illuminated conscience ; because some have no light but onely the light of nature , some have besides the light of gods word , which sheweth that which nature sheweth , and much more clearly , and teacheth many things more which nature cannot teach : and hence the conscience of the illightned condemneth for such things as the naturall conscience never stirreth about . secondly , the knowledge of our selves is needfull ; else conscience cannot act neither . though we know what gods law requireth and what not , what is good and what not , yet unlesse we know whether we go with it or against it , conscience cannot accuse nor excuse . as for example ; a close hypocrite , he knoweth well enough that the lord hath condemned hypocrisie , and that hypocrites must have their portion in hell : yet if he do not know himself to be an hypocrite , his conscience can never condemne him for being one . and therefore both these knowledges are necessary , as vvell the knovvledge of a mans self as of gods lavv . many vvho had a hand in crucifying our saviour , sinned grievously ; yet they sinned not against knovvledge , because they knevv not vvhat they did : father , forgive them , they know not what they do . thirdly , it is a contradiction to say a blind conscience in act . the conscience cannot be blind and yet actually condemne . indeed the conscience it self may be blind , but it can never act and be blind : if it truly accuse or excuse it must have some light . it is true , it may erroneously excuse or accuse , and yet have no true light : seeming light is enough to do that : seeming knovvledge is enough to make conscience erroneously excuse : as they vvho killed the apostles , their consciences excused them , and told them they did god good service : they seemed to knovv it vvas good service to god , and therefore their consciences excused them , &c. thus ye see that the light that conscience vvorketh by is knovvledge . the use of this point is first , to let us see the infinite necessity of knovvledge . as good have no conscience at all as conscience vvithout knowledge : for it cannot act and perform its office . this is the reason vvhy so many thousands go on in their sinnes vvithout repentance , because being ignorant they have no conscience to prick them thereunto : as jer. 8.6 . no man repenteth him of his wickednesse , saying , what have i done ? why , vvhat vvas the reason that conscience did not prick them , and say , this thou hast done and that , thus ye have rebelled , & c ? the text answereth in the next verse , my people know not the judgement of the lord. the stork knoweth her time , and the turtle , and the swallow ; but my people do not know their duties . another use is , to exhort us that we would labour to perfect the light of conscience , that it may be able to guide us and direct us unto heaven . our conscience hath knowledge enough by the light of nature to make us inexcusable , and to clear the justice of god though he should damne us for ever : but there must be a greater light then that , that must guide us to heaven . o let us pray to christ the true light to set up this light in us , that we may never be at a losse in our way to happinesse , never step out of the right path but our conscience may be able to put us in again , never go slowly but our conscience may spurre us on faster ; that our conscience may not be like the snuff of a candle in a socket , that flameth up now and then , and then is dark again , and again it flameth out and is dark again : a man may see his book by it , but he cannot see to reade ; he may see his pen and ink by it , but he cannot see to write ; a woman may see her needle and cloth by it , but she cannot see to work : so it is with some mens consciences : their light is so dimme that they can see the duties , but they cannot see to do them ; they can see the commandments of god , but they cannot see to obey them . o labour to perfect the light of your consciences , that ye may see to walk by them . and thus much also of the second proposition , the light that conscience acteth by , is knowledge . now i should come to the third proposition which as i first propounded them was this , the bond that bindeth conscience is gods law : but i will now a little alter the method , and make the other which was propounded last to be the third in the handling ; and it is this , proposition iii. the office of conscience is to bear witnesse , to accuse or excuse . conscience is put into this office by god himself . it is gods officer : not onely his register-book that shall be opened at the day of judgement , wherein is set down our thoughts , words and deeds ; but it is a preacher also to tell us our duty both towards god and towards man : yea , it is a powerfull preacher ; it exhorteth , urgeth , provoketh : yea , the most powerfull preacher that can be ; it will cause the stoutest and stubbornest heart under heaven to quake now and then ; it will never let us alone till it have brought us either to god or to the devil . conscience is joyned in commission with gods own spirit to be an instructour unto us in the way we should walk ; so that the spirit and it are resisted or obeyed together , grieved or delighted together : we cannot sinne against conscience but we sinne also against gods spirit ; we cannot check our own consciences but we check and quench the holy spirit of god. the office of conscience to our selves is , to bear witnesse : my conscience beareth me witnesse , saith paul. conscience is alwayes ready to do this office , if it shall at any time be invited unto it : for conscience looketh sometimes for inviting ; sometimes it will not bear witnesse unlesse we invite it and call upon it so to do . but there will come a time when it will do it and must do it and shall do it , namely at death or at judgement : then it will bear witnesse whether men invite it or no. now it may be suppressed and silenced and kept under from witnessing ; but then it must bear witnesse and shall , either excusing or accusing , acquitting or condemning , when god shall judge the secrets of mens hearts , as the apostle speaketh . the properties that are given unto conscience in the discharge of its office are foure : 1. it is supreme ; 2. it is impartiall ; 3. it is faithfull ; 4. it is privie . 1. it is supreme : it hath highest authoritie ; it is the most uncontrollable and ablest witnesse that can be : the greatest , weightiest witnesse in the world ; better then ten thousand witnesses . though all the world do condemne us , yet if our own consciences do not , we need not fear : and so on the contrary , if conscience do condemne us , it will be small comfort though all the world flatter and commend and excuse us . it is a supreme witnesse : though all the angels in heaven should come and bear witnesse , their witnesse is not so uncontrollable as conscience is . there is no appealing from the witnesse of conscience ; we must ●e tried by it . if conscience do acc●se and condemne us , the lord onely is greater then our conscience , 1. john 3.20 . and will give judgement with it when it doth its office . and if our conscience do not condemne us , we may be confident to stand before all the judges and kings in the vvorld , yea , we may have confidence towards god , saith the text . and as conscience is supreme in bearing of witnesse , so also it is supreme in commanding . all the commands of it are powerfull and supreme : it will not be slighted : it bindeth kings and princes : nay , though god himself command the contrary , yet can we not disobey conscience without sinne . by this it appeareth , that when conscience doth witnesse its witnesse is supreme ; when conscience commandeth , its command is supreme . 2. conscience as it is supreme in witnessing or commanding so it is impartiall in judging . it respecteth no persons , no estates , but accuseth the richest as well as the poorest , the greatest as well as the meanest . it made great belshazzar so to quake that the joynts of his loyns were loosed , and his knees smote one against another , dan. 5.6 . it made great felix to tremble to heare paul speak of righteousnesse and of judgement . felix thought to scare paul ; but conscience scared felix . so on the other side , it is impartiall in excusing . it will give evidence of the good works of the poorest in the world as well as of the wealthiest . art thou never so mean ? thy conscience will be as ready to excuse thee if thou hast done well , as if thou wert the greatest . it is impartiall in its office : others , it may be , dare not or will not accuse , but conscience spareth none , no not it self : though its accusations do load and burden and torment it self , yet it will do its office . 3. conscience also is faithfull in its office and sincere . it alwaies speaketh of us as it thinketh : it may be deceived and mistaken for a time , but it never speaketh contrary to what it thinketh : it is a faithfull and sincere witnesse of our thoughts , words , actions , and courses , whether they be good or evil , so farre as it is illightned by gods word . it ever giveth evidence aright ; it never flattereth nor condemneth any without a cause : it is a faithfull and a very upright witnesse . others may dissemble with us , and commend us and applaud us when we are naught , and call us good men and good women when we are nothing so : but this will tell us plainly how vile and sinfull we are ; and if we say we are good when we are not , it will tell us plainly we lie . he that saith i know him , and keepeth not his commandment● , is a liar . mark ; though he say it , yet his conscience giveth him the lie . it is faithfull again in excusing . it beareth witnesse of every good dutie we perform and of whatsoever good is in us . though all jobs friends spake evil of him , and god himself by his outward judgements seemed to condemne him for a wicked man , yet still his conscience ( like a faithfull witnesse ) did not forsake him nay , it offered to reason with god himself , i would reason with god : i know i shall be justified , and i will never forsake mine innocency till i die . still his conscience stood for him and excused him . thus on both sides conscience is a faithfull and sincere witnesse : it will not be corrupted to speak otherwise then it knoweth the matter is . 4. it is most privy to what it doth witnesse . it is more privy to what we have done then all the world : it can say more for us or against us then all the world . thou knowest all the wickednesse that thy heart is privy unto , saith solomon to shimei 1. kings 2.44 . the use of all this is ; seeing conscience is so supreme , so impartiall , so saithfull , so privy , we should take heed how we do any thing that might give it advantage against us . if we were to appear before an earthly judge to answer for our behaviour , and should have a companion present continually with us , marking every thing in us , telling us of every fault , and witnessing it against us unto the judge , how carefull would we be of doing any thing that might give him advantage against us ? lo , we have conscience as a continuall watch-man , espying out all our wayes , setting down whatever we do amisse , checking us for it for the present , and one day accusing us before god and setting all things in order before our faces ; oh how should we then labour to get into christ jesus , that our consciences may be purged in his bloud , and study all our life long to keep peace and friendship with them . wo be to them who live in their sinne● ! they will need no other witnesse to come against them to condemne them for ever but this witnesse conscience which lieth continually in their bosomes . this i have spoken for the office of conscience , which is to bear witnesse either with us or against us : now the parts of this bearing witnesse are , first , its single witnessing ; secondly , its judiciall witnessing . by single bearing witnesse i mean that conscience beareth witnesse what we have done , and what we do , and what we intend to do , and what we are : by judiciall bearing witnesse i mean that con●cience doth passe sentence on the same whether it be good or evil , whether it be concerning the action or the person . first , therefore of the single bearing witnesse of conscience : and that is about three things : 1. what we have done ; 2. what we intend to do ; 3. what is the frame and bent of our heart . 1. it beareth witnesse what we have done ; what in our childhood , what in our youth , what in ou● riper age , what openly , what secretly . those things which seem to be forgotten conscience will remember them to us : like a writing in marble , though it may be filled and choked with dust and covered with rubbish , yet when that is done away , and the stone svvept clean , then the vvriting vvill appear legible ; so though mens deeds may for the present seem to be forgotten , yet they are vvritten in their hearts vvith a pen of iron and the point of a diamond , as origen observeth upon jer. 17.1 . novv the thoughts and care● of this life put them out of our minds ; but the time vvill come vvhen all vvorldly businesse shall cease , and the onely businesse shall be to look into the records of conscience . we use to say , conscience hath a very good memory . the chief buttler had forgot his promise unto joseph ; but his conscience remembred him of it two years after : i remember my faults this day , saith his conscience . adonibezek had forgot his cruelty ; but his conscience brought it to his mind : as i have done so god hath requited me , saith his conscience . 2. conscience beareth witnesse of what we intend and purpose to do , whether against god or man. it will testifie every purpose and project of the heart though it be never acted ▪ though it die in the heart and never come to light . men little think of this : tush ( saith one ) i never did such a thing , though i once intended it , or had some thoughts ●bout it . mark ; those very thoughts will conscience bring forth and testifie what they were . heare the apostle ; in that day god shall judge the secrets of men , &c. the most hidden things conscience shall bring to light , and christ shall judge them . 3. conscience beareth witnesse of the bent and frame of our hearts , what we affect most and love most , and rejoyce and delight in most , and desire most and grieve for most , what our affections runne upon most , whether upon god or the world , whether upon heaven or the things of this life . conscience bare witnesse to david , that his delight was in the law of the lord , that god was his portion , that gods statutes were his counsellours . conscience bare witnesse to the false teachers in christs time , that they affected vain glory and the praise of men more then the praise of god. conscience bare witnesse to demas , that notwithstanding his fair profession his heart was set upon the world . conscience bare witnesse to jehu , that for all his seeming zeal his heart was not upright . but it may be objected , how can this be ? the heart is deceitfull above all things : who can know it ? who can know it ? that is , who else can know it but a man himself ? none under god can know the heart of man but a mans own conscience , the spirit of man that is in him . i confesse a man may be ignorant of some secret and particular deceit in his heart : but who knoweth not the generall standing of his own heart ? or may know the chief bent of his own soul . david in a particular deceit was ignorant : i said in my prosperitie , i shall never be moved , never distrust god more , never be disquieted in my mind more . he was deceived in that particular ; but he knew very well the generall and chief bent of his heart , that it was truly set upon god and upon holinesse . 2. it is true , many men take it that their hearts are set upon god when they are not : but what is the reason ? not because they do not or may not know the contrary , that they love the world most : but because they will not know it , they are unwilling to believe it , they are loth to have any bad conceit of themselves . so that when jeremy saith , the heart is deceitfull above all things : who can know it ? his meaning is , what carnall man can abide to know the worst of himself ? 3. it is not because they know it not , but because they will not heare the testimony of conscience : but when it telleth them truly how the case is with them , they gather all the rotten and broken pieces of arguments together to stop the mouth of conscience , and to perswade themselves to think well of themselves . 4. men seem not to know their own hearts , not because they do not know what they are , but because they are ignorant of gods law whereby they should judge of themselves . they know their hearts are set on the world , and that the bent and frame of their affections are placed on earthly things : but they hope an under-affection to god will be accepted , to love god in the second place will serve the turn . they know they are carnall ; but they hope such carnality may be in a man and yet he be right . yea , but a mans heart may say on the contrary side , that he loveth the world more then he loveth god when he doth not : how then doth conscience bear right witnesse ? i answer , this ariseth either from the strength of corruption and weaknesse of grace : we look into our selves , and see our corruptions violent , and our love to god small ; and so we are deceived , not seeing the radicall power of this love of god , which in regard of its virtue is stronger then the other : as a fool , if he should feel hot water , would conclude that there is no cold at all in it ; whereas there is radicall cold in that water , such as will expell all that heat in a little space . or else this ariseth from anguish of spirit , which so disturbeth the mind that it cannot see its own condition nor be capable of the comforts belonging unto it ; as it was with the israelites , exod. 6.9 . otherwise doubtlesse we may know our own hearts ; and when our conscience beareth witnesse its witnesse is right . i. use , of reproof to those who stand out against the witnesse of their conscience , and like hard-hearted felons plead still , not guiltie , though never so much evidence come against them , though conscience oft tell them , this they have done , thus they do , such they are . oh stop not your eares against conscience ; stand not out against it , but believe its testimony , and make use of it to repent of the evil it accuseth of while mercy may be had , before god himself cometh and joyneth with conscience to condemne for ever . ii. it serveth for singular encouragement to all to abound in good works . conscience will bear witnesse of them all to our unspeakable comfort in the time of afflictions , yea at death and judgement . job felt it a sweet thing to have conscience give in testimony of his integrity and uprightnesse : when his friends proved miserable comforters and god himself seemed to write bitter things against him , yet his conscience witnessed that he had been eyes to the blind , and feet to the lame , he had fed the hungry and clothed the naked and comforted the fathe●lesse . there is not a good thing that ever we do but conscience will afford us the sweetnesse and comfort of it in our toubles : remember , o lord , saith hezekiah , that i have walked before thee in truth and with a perfect heart . we have spoken of consciences single bearing witnesse : now followeth its judiciall bearing witnesse ; which is when it passeth sentence upon on the morall of our actions , whether they be good or evil , whether blessed or cursed . this is performed by a logicall discourse , by way of reasoning on this manner , the word saith , whoever looketh on a woman to lust after her hath committed adulterie in his heart : that is the synteresis . now the assumption ; but i have had wanton eyes and lustfull lookings after a woman : that is the single bearing witnesse of conscience . therefore i have committed adultery in my heart : that is the judiciary sentence of conscience which it passeth on a mans self . so again ; whosoever crucifieth the flesh with the affections and lusts , he is in christ : but , saith conscience , i crucifie the flesh with its affections and lusts ; therefore i am in christ . though there be not the form of this discourse in our consciences , yet there is the force of it : for when conscience doth judicially witnesse against any man or for any man , it doth it by the word , and proceedeth in the way which is propounded . the use of this is , first for comfort to the godly , who may hence gather the assurance of their salvation from the rule of gods word and the witnesse of their conscience that they walk by this rule . the word saith , he that hungreth and thirsteth after righteousnesse shall be filled ; he that doeth these things shall never fall , &c. get the rule of your hearts and lives to meet and ye have what ye desire . o what infinite mercy is this to all godly souls , that the lord hath planted this conscience in their bosomes , that they need not go farre for their comfort : their own consciences and the rule may preach it to them . secondly , the wicked on the other side , if they continue as they are , may hence gather arguments for their own damnation . if the rule and conscience might be heard they would speak bitter things against them , and give a fearfull sentence on them . it may be they can smother their consciences now for a time ; but they will one day reade them a fearfull lecture . i speak not now onely of those who drown their consciences in their cups , and fear their consciences by their grosse sinnes ; but of those who would seem godly and perform good duties , but with hypocriticall hearts and carnall minds . o that they would heare but conscience argue a little in this manner ; to be carnally minded is death , that is , is an evident signe of a man that is in the state of death and damnation , but , saith conscience , i am carnally minded ; or we are carnally minded : therefore we have an argument about us of death and damnation . and so also for all other sinnes ; there is not a wicked man under heaven but he may argue out of his own miserable estate by his conscience , or he might if it were awaked , as one day it will be . thirdly , this may serve for instruction . no matter what opinions men have of us in the world : the question is , what is the judgement of our own consciences upon us ? it may be thou art taken for a man of great knowledge and a forward man in godlinesse ; it may be the godly dare not judge otherwise of thee : but the question is , what is the judgement of conscience ? doth not thy conscience tell thee thou art but a proud fool , conceited of thy knowledge , and lovest to heare thy self talk ? and so for thy performance of good duties , what testimony doth conscience give of the manner of doing of them ? the testimoniall of conscience is above all testimonials in the world : all the good opinions of the world are not worth a rush without this : if conscien●● can say that in our wayes we seek to please god , and allow not our selves in any evil vvay , this testimony is full and satisfactory , and onely this . yet further concerning this judiciall vvitnesse of conscience : it is either about things to be done or omitted , or things already done or omitted . the judiciall vvitnesse of conscience about things to be done or omitted is double : 1. to judge out of gods lavv vvhether it be good or evil ; 2 , to counsel out of our ovvn judgements either to do it or forbear it according as the nature of the action is : if it be good , conscience vvill counsel us to do it ; if bad , to forbear it . the judiciall vvitnesse of conscience about things already done is fourefold : 1. to approve ; 2. to absolve ; 3. to mislike ; 4. to condemne . i begin vvith the first , the judiciall vvitnesse of conscience about things to be done or omitted : vvhere i shall consider , first , the office of conscience in this behalf , viz. 1. to judge , 2. to counsel : and then the adjuncts of conscience in discharging this office . 1. conscience judgeth of the thing to be done , vvhether it be good or evil , lavvfull or unlavvfull . as vve trie the vveight of gold by a pair of balances , so conscience trieth all our actions by gods vvord . it is the oracle of god : as the jevvs vvent to gods oracle to enquire of the lord , so our conscience is gods oracle to enquire of and to determine of things whether they be good or evil : it is a judge in the bosome . when the question in corinth was , whether women should be uncovered when they pray , the apostle sendeth them to conscience for judgement , judge in your selves , saith he ▪ whether it be comely or no ; that is . put it to the judgement of your own consciences . so say the disciples to the jews , whether it be better to obey god or man , judge ye ; put it to your own consciences . thus ye see it is the office of conscience to judge of an action to be done whether it be good or bad , lawfull or unlawfull . 2. the second office of conscience is to counsel for the doing of that which is good and forbearing of that which is evil . this is that faithfull friend in our bosome , that voyce within us and behind us saying , this is the way ; walk in it . mark the words there ; ye see these two offices of conscience . this is the way ; there is the judgement of conscience : and walk in it ; there is the counsel of conscience . nay , conscience doth not onely give good counsel , but if it have leave it will bring arguments to perswade to follow it : it will tell us the thing is well-pleasing to god , of good report , that which will bring peace to our hearts . and so on the contrary , if it be evil , conscience will counsell us to forbear , yea bring arguments to disswade ; o do it not : it will tend to the dishonour of god , and be offensive to others ▪ and wound our souls , &c. it was conscience that withheld david from killing saul , and prest him from it by a strong argument , o he is the lords anointed . it was conscience that withheld joseph from yielding to the enticings of his mistresse , and yielded him an argument to disswade him from it , how shall i do this great wickednesse , and so sinne against god ? it was conscience that disswaded nehemiah from flying , should such a man as i flie ? and if one argument will not serve , conscience will use more . the use of this may be first for instruction . hence we learn that naturall men may have a conscience urging to good and restraining from evil . there is no man so evil or ignorant but he hath naturally some light with him by which conscience is set on work to advise and to counsel , and to say , this is very good ; do it : this is very sinfull , forbear it . this therefore is no signe of grace in any man to have his conscience calling upon him to do good or disswading him from evil : the very heathen had so according to their light ; yea and in many of them it was forcible to restrain them from many sinnes which they were inclined unto . and so may many men be put upon many good duties , not for any love or liking of that which is good , but because they would please and satisfie conscience , which otherwise will not suffer them to be quiet . it was conscience that kept abimelech from defiling sarah , and yet a carnall man. here then a question may be asked , whether a mere naturall man can avoid sinne for conscience sake . i answer , that this expression , for conscience sake , may be taken two wayes : either 1. for conscience of the commandment of god and love to it ; and so none but gods children do obey for conscience sake : and so it is meant when paul speaketh of being subject for conscience sake , and peter speaketh of suffering wrong for conscience sake . or secondly , for conscience sake , that is , when conscience it self inforced by scar compelleth one to do a thing or not to do it : as we say , my conscience will not suffer me . thus carnall men come to church for conscience sake , and pray for conscience sake , &c. that is , their conscience driveth them to these duties , and will not be quiet without they perform them . secondly , sith a mere naturall man may have a conscience stirring him up to good as well as the truly godly , it will not be amisse to give you the difference . the difference is in three things ; 1. a godly mans conscience siniteth him and stirreth him very kindly , so that he melteth before god. when david had numbred the people , the text saith , his heart smote him . the word signifieth , it smote him kindly , gave him a loving blow , made him spread forth himself before god. a wicked mans conscience giveth him a dead blow , a churlish and sullen blow . 2. a godly mans conscience stirreth him reciprocally : he stirreth up his conscience , and his conscience stirreth up him ; he speaketh to his conscience , and his conscience speaketh to him : the stirring is reciprocall . commune with your hearts . what hast thou done , o my soul ? thus and thus have i done , saith the soul . whereas a wicked mans conscience speaketh to him , but he cannot endure to speak to his conscience : his conscience stirreth him , but he hath no will to stirre his conscience ; nay , he doth all he can to keep it quiet : but the godly as his conscience smiteth him so he smiteth upon his conscience : i smote upon my thigh , saith ephraim . the godly , when conscience stirreth them , they stirre it and provoke it to speak out all it hath to say . commune with your own heart , and be still : they are still to give it full audience , and call upon it to speak on ; what hast thou more to say , conscience ? 3. a godly mans conscience stirreth him to good ; and he is resolved to go to the utmost of what conscience stirreth him unto : that with job , his conscience may not reproch him all his dayes for not following it : whereas it is otherwise with the wicked . 3. the third use is this ; seeing conscience is appointed by god to be our guide and our counsellour , it should be our practice in every thing we do to ask counsel of conscience whether we were best do it or no. i say that conscience is gods oracle : whatsoever we are to do we should ( as david ) enquire of gods oracle , may i go this way to work , or shall i take an other course ? heare counsel and receive instruction , saith salomon , that thou mayst be wise at thy latter end . conscience is a faithfull counsellour ; heare it . it is the great mercie of god that thou hast such a privie counsel : thou canst go no where but it is about thee to advise thee . therefore as rehoboam said to his green heads , what counsel give you ? so say thou to thy conscience , what advise givest thou , conscience , in this case ? my carnall friends counsel me thus and thus ; mine own carnall heart and lusts would have me go this way : but , conscience , what counsel givest thou ? 4. the fourth use is to reprove the custome of most men , who with ahab refuse the counsel of that one true wholesome prophet , and have foure hundred other counsellours who will give counsel as they would have it : they regard not this good michaiah ; they slight the counsel of conscience ; their lusts and their carnall reason and flesh and bloud are their counsellours ; the counsel of conscience , they say , is not good at this time , as he said of achitophels : they will heare conscience at another time , but not now . but take heed ; for if you reject the counsel of conscience , it is because the lord hath a purpose to destroy you . the adjuncts of conscience , which shew themselves in the discharge of this dutie of judging and counselling . the adjuncts are of two sorts : 1. such as respect consciences abilitie to discharge its duty ; 2. such as accompanie conscience in the discharge thereof . of the former sort are foure : 1. an illightened conscience . 2. an erroneous conscience . 3. a doubting conscience . 4. a scrupulous conscience . of the latter sort are two : 1. a faithfull conscience . 2. an unfaithfull conscience . first , the illightened conscience is such a conscience as is in it self rightly informed by gods law , and doth direct and judge aright in matters both concerning our generall and particular calling , both towards god and towards man. and this illightened conscience is a great blessing of god : 1. because it is the proper effect of the law of god ; 2. because it is a very great advantage to a man in the whole course of his life when a mans conscience is illightened to direct him in every case what he is to do . if an illightened conscience be so great a blessing , then be thankfull to god for it if ye have it , and use it as a blessing . some have it , and use it not as a blessing : the devils have it as a curse ; many vvicked men have it as a curse : it maketh their sinnes the greater . like as a colour , the more light shineth upon it the greater it is green is more green , and white is more white , and red more red , &c. so it is with sinne : the more light thy conscience hath the greater is thy sinne ; thy drunkennesse is more heinous , and thy swearing and the like , by how much committed against more light . oh therefore make use of the light of thy conscience , as david did : thy word is a lump unto my feet , and a light unto my paths . what follovveth ? i have sworn , and i will perform it , to keep thy righteous judgements . mark ; when his conscience was illightened , he bound himself to follow the directions thereof . 2. is an illightened conscience such a blessing ? o labour to get it ; be not without it for a vvorld . thou wert better walk blindfold over narrovv bridges and planks , better vvalk in the dark through a place full of downfalls and marlpits , then walk without a conscience illightened . he who walketh in the darknesse knoweth not whither he goeth , john 12.35 . o labour therefore to get a conscience illightened . it is true , a man may have an illightened conscience and yet go to hell : but this is most certain ; without an illightened conscience a man cannot go to heaven . and if thy conscience be something illightened , yet labour for more light . it will prevent many a stumble , save thee from many a knock . thou knovvest not vvhat case thou mayst be in , vvhat difficult straits thou mayest be put unto : if thou hast not light in thy conscience to direct thee , what wilt thou do ? ii. an erroneous conscience . secondly , an erroneous conscience is , vvhen conscience not understanding gods lavv , or misapplying it , doth judge amisse and direct amisse . so josephs conscience for a while was in an errour when mary was found vvith child : his conscience informed him that he must either make her a publick example or put her away privily . here his conscience erred about this particular untill the angel had better informed him . there is a question here raised by divines , and it is , whether we ought to follow conscience erring or no ? a question very necessary to be handled , partly because of mens ignorance in this kind , and partly because of the frequency of the case . i answer thus ; first , vve must not obey conscience erring or counselling to that vvhich is evil ; for our errour of conscience doth not make the transgression of the lavv to be no sinne ; though an erroneous conscience lead us to transgresse it . 1. because the lavv of god is above conscience ; and therefore the commandment of gods lavv standeth in full force though conscience command contrary to it . suppose a man should think in his conscience he might not take an oath though never so lawfully called thereunto by the magistrate and in never so necessary a case , when as the word of god commandeth us to swear in truth , in righteousnesse , and in judgement ; i must follow the commandment of god rather then conscience , because gods law is above conscience . 2. because if i follovv my conscience vvhen it is in an errour , i offend not onely against gods lavv but i offend also my conscience : for though for the present while conscience is erroneous it doth not take offense , yet vvhen it cometh to see its ovvn errour then it will. therefore this is our first ansvver , we must not obey conscience erring , or counselling to that which is evil . if our conscience should counsel us to tell a lie to help our neighbour , that is evil and against gods lavv ; and therefore if in doing it vve do obey conscience , vve sinne . secondly vve answer , that an erroneous conscience vvhatever it commandeth ( though the lavv of god commandeth the clean contrary ) yet vve cannot disobey it vvithout sinne . for this is a constant rule , we alwayes sinne vvhen vve disobey conscience : if conscience erre not , then in disobeying it vve sinne double , against the law and against conscience : if conscience do erre and vve disobey it , vve sinne too ; for though vve do not sinne against the lavv , yet vve sinne against conscience , and so against the lavv too ; not as though vve vvere bound to obey conscience vvhen it erreth , and yet vve sinne if vve disobey it . thirdly , albeit it be alvvayes a sinne to disobey conscience though it erre , yet it is not alvvayes a sinne to obey conscience when it erreth . let us consider three propositions , and you shall see vvhat i mean. first , if conscience think that to be commanded which is absolutely forbidden , or that to be forbidden vvhich is expressely commanded , then vve sinne vvhich side soever we take : as if an ignorant man thinks in his conscience that he is bound to pray to saints departed , which thing the lord hath expressely forbidden : if this man do pray unto saints , he sinneth , because the lord hath expressely forbid him to do it ; if he do not pray unto saints , he sinneth too , because his conscience telleth him he is commanded to pray unto them . the second proposition is this , if conscience hold a thing indifferent to do or not to do which yet is not indifferent but absolutely commanded , then it is alwayes a sinne not to do it , but it is no sinne to do it . the third proposition is this , if conscience hold a thing necessarie which god hath left indifferent , as if a man in conscience thought that he o●ght to pray foure times a day ( which thing yet god hath left indifferent ) in this he is bound to obey conscience though it erre . and it is no sinne to obey conscience thus erring ; though it be a sinne in conscience thus to erre . the use of this is , i. to let us see vvhat a sacred sovereigne thing a mans conscience is . it is alvvayes a sinne to disobey conscience vvhether it erre or no , as it is alvvayes a sinne to disobey god. a man can never go against his conscience but he sinneth . 1. because conscience is our guide : it is our invvard and our inseparable guide ; vve can never come by any direction but by conscience ; vve can never let in the commandment of god but onely by conscience : and therefore the lord hath made it a very sovereigne thing . 2. because vve break a commandment through the loyns of a sinne , vvhen vve go against conscience . ajax light upon a beast and slevv it : his conscience thought verily it vvas a man ; kill it not , saith conscience , it is a man : he goeth against his conscience and killeth it . his conscience here vvas in an errour , yet he as truly guilty of murder before god as if he had indeed slain a man , because he slevv a man through the loyns of this beast : his bloudy mind looked at a man , and smote at a man , and slevv a man. so vvhen conscience is erroneous , and thinketh this is a commandment of god ; it is not so , but he thinketh it so in his conscience ; if he do contrary he breaketh a commandment though it be none , because the errour of his conscience made it one to him . was not herod truly guilty of the murder of christ ? he thought in his conscience that christ had been among the infants slain at bethlehem . thus conscience is a sovereigne thing : it is alvvayes a sinne to go against it erre or not erre : and if it be a sinne to go against conscience vvhen it erreth , vvhat a sinne is it to go against it vvhen it doth not erre ? ii. this may serve for a vvord of exhortation , to exhort men to bevvare lest they sinne against conscience ; especially vvhen conscience is in the right . conscience is as gods face in a man : when conscience looketh on thee , the lord looketh on thee . it is true , the lord looketh on thee alvvayes : but thou mayest see the lords looking upon thee vvhen conscience looketh on thee : and therefore thou never sinnest against conscience but thou provokest the lord to his face , vvhen not onely god seeth thee but thou seest him . thy conscience shevveth thee the lord ; it presenteth god before thine eyes , commanding or forbidding , wilt thou do the evil now ? wilt thou omit the good duty now ? when conscience findeth fault thou dost novv provoke the lord to his face . if it be such a sinne to sinne against conscience in an errour , it is much more a sinne to sinne against conscience it being in the right . thus much of a conscience erring . iii. a doubting conscience . a doubting conscience is such a conscience as so hangeth in suspense that it knoweth not which way to take : it knoweth not which is the sinne and which not . if it goes this way to work , it may be i shall sinne , saith conscience : if that way , it may be i shall sinne too , saith conscience . such a man sinneth which way soever he taketh . the reason is this , because he doubteth . he that doubteth is condemned if he eat , saith the apostle : for whatsoever is not of faith is sinne . suppose a man doubteth whether it be lawfull for him to do such a thing , and doubteth also whether he may lawfully omit the doing it ; in such a case whether he do it or not do it he sinneth , because both wayes he doubteth . yet here these rules are very usefull . 1. rule ; when conscience doubteth on the one part and is resolved on the other , we must refuse the doubting part and take that wherein we are certain and sure . as for example ; when one doubteth of the lawfulnesse of playing at cards and dice ; he is sure it is no sinne not to play , but whether he may lawfully play he doubteth : in this case he is bound not to play . so when one doubteth whether it be a sinne not to call his family together every day to prayer ; gods ministers tell him he must or he sinneth : i doubt of that , saith he . do you so ? but you are sure it is no sinne to do it : therefore you are bound to do it , because you are bound to decline the doubtfull part and take that which is certain . and so of all other the like particulars . 2. when conscience doubteth on both sides which is the sinne and which not , then a man ought to do that which is most void of offense . as for example ; say an anabaptist amongst us doubteth whether it be a sinne in him to bring his child to church to be baptized , or a sinne to refuse ; here is rule is , that that which is most void of offense , and most agreeable to brotherly unity and concord , is to be taken , the balance hanging otherwise even ; and the arguments to urge both the one or the other seeming of like weight , then this must be put into the scale and resolve the doubt . 3. it is lawfull to do some things when yet our conscience doubteth of the lawfulnesse of them . for we must consider there are two kinds of doubting : there is a speculative doubting , and there is a practicall doubting . speculative doubting is to doubt of the lawfulnesse of the thing it self to be done : practicall doubting is to doubt of the lawfulnesse of the doing of it . now this latter is not alwayes a sinne , but the other is : as for example ; if a servant be commanded of his master to attend on him on the lords day , he knoweth not what his businesse should be , and perhaps doubteth it is not of such moment as to be done on that day ; yet he hath no reason to deny his attendance : in this case though he doubt of the lawfulnesse of the thing done , yet he need not doubt of the doing of it , because he knoweth not what the businesse is , and hath no reason whereby he is able to justifie his refusall . and so much also of a doubting conscience . iv. a scrupulous conscience . the difference between a doubting conscience and a scrupulous conscience is this ; a doubtfull conscience hangeth in suspense , and doubteth which is the sinne and which is lawfull ; but a scrupulous conscience inclineth to the lawfulnesse of the thing to be done , but yet not without many doubts and scruples , because of some difficulties which it hath heard of , and which it knoweth not how to answer or resolve . the rule which here we must go by is this , when we incline to the lawfulnesse of the thing , we should labour to suppresse all difficulties and ambiguities which cause us to doubt . the apostle includeth this rule in that word fully ; let every man be fully perswaded in his heart : get all difficulties removed , all stumblings , and stickings , and hoverings , and scruples taken away . but how if that cannot be done ? hovv if vve cannot get all scruples removed ? if that cannot be done , then it is lavvfull to follovv conscience notvvithstanding the doubts and scruples of it . observe that place vvell , deut. 13.1 , &c. the lord commandeth if a false prophet should come amongst them to dravv them from the truth , and should shevv a signe or miracle to confirm his doctrine , and the signe should come to passe ( vvhich might put doubts and scruples into their consciences ) neverthelesse conscience inclining to the truth they are bound to stand to that : for these doubts and scruples do not argue a vvant of faith , but onely a vveaknesse of it . i. this shevveth vvhat need vve have to labour to have our consciences rightly informed . it is a comfortable thing for a christian to have his conscience so fully illightened as that he can vvithout doubting or scruple discharge the duties both of his generall and particular calling : and it is a great disturbance to a christians mind , vvhen his conscience is so vveak and ignorant that he cannot perform his duties vvithout doubts and scruples vvhether he is right or no , especially in matters of greatest moment . it is a great misery to have our consciences blind , vvhich should be our guides , and vvhich it is a sinne to disobey . this is the reason vvhy s. paul doth so often speak , i would not have you ignorant , 1. cor. 10.1 . and 11.3 . it is a very great misery that ones conscience should be ignorant vvhat to do , vvhat to hold , vvhat to follovv : i say , it is a lamentable miserie , that many vvho have follovved the directions of conscience , should by it be led to death and damnation , to do things contrary to gods vvord . what a misery vvas it for the jevvs to have zeal and not according to knovvledge ? &c. ii. this should teach us to use the means truly to inform conscience . without knowledge the heart is not good ; that is , it is most profane . there be three means to get knovvledge . 1. let us pray unto god that he vvould open our understandings ; that as he hath given us consciences to guide us , so also he vvould give our guides eyes that they may be able to direct us aright . the truth is , it is god onely that can soundly illighten our consciences : and therefore let us pray ●nto him to do it . all our studying , and reading , and hearing , and conferring will never be able to do it : it is onely in the power of him who made us to do it . thy hands have made and fashioned me : o give me understanding , that i may learn thy commandments . he who made our consciences , he onely can give them this heavenly light of true knowledge and right understanding : and therefore let us seek earnestly to him for it . 2. we must seek it in humilitie , alwayes suspecting our own knowledge . we are not too confidently and presumptuously to trust to our own judgement , and despise or neglect the judgement of others . the humble god will teach : pride and self-conceitednesse blindeth exceedingly . 3. we must seek with sobriety , alwayes contenting our selves with that knowledge which is most necessary , and not be curious about vain and idle-brained questions , or solicitous to answer every objection that shall be raised up against the truth . a lover of the truth should not be ready to entertain all objections against it , and never be settled till he can answer all that can be cast in ; which will be never . it is not expected that there should be in every man such a ripenesse of judgement and such a measure of illumination as that he should be able to dispute with the most learned , or answer every objection that can be raised : but we must with that good martyr say , though i cannot dispute for christ i can die for him : we must be content with our measure , to be wise unto sobriety . iii. those godly souls that have weak consciences must use them very gently : scrupulosi non sunt rigidè tractandi , those that are scrupulous are not to be handled rigidly . when a mote is in the eye , it is not boistrously to be dealt withall ; that will make it worse . the eye is a tender part , and so is the conscience . again , we must take heed of offending weak consciences . it may be thou knovvest thine ovvn liberty , that thou mayst do this or that ; but thy brother is vveak , and he doth not knovv it to be lavvfull : o take heed of giving offense : consider the apostles vvords , 1. cor. 8.12 . when ye sinne against your brethren , and wound their weak consciences , ye sinne against christ . consider also the practice of the apostle , and the resolution that he had ; if meat offend my brother , i will eat no flesh while the world standeth , vers . 13. it is a grievous offense to offend the conscience of the vveak ; and therefore bevvare of it . they are very unchristian speeches , i know mine own liberty : if others be offended , what care i ? why should i prejudice my self for them ? it is true , another mans conscience cannot abbridge me of my liberty : but yet i in charity ought to suspend the act of my liberty vvhen i knovv the using it vvill give offense to the vveak . iv. to admonish our selves , if conscience be so tender a thing , to be carefull that we offend not our own consciences . conscience is quickly offended ; but it is not so soon pacified . every notorious step into evil , or neglect in duty , offendeth conscience ; and conscience will keep a grudge a long time , and vvill give many a secret wound , deading the heart to duty , making faith and confidence in god dull : we cannot pray with courage , nor come before god with boldnesse . if our hearts condemne us not , we have confidence , saith john. an erroneous conscience will defile you ; a doubting conscience distract you ; a scrupulous conscience unsettle you : but above all other , an illightened conscience , if it have any thing against you , will exceedingly disable you ; this stabbeth at the heart your confidence towards god. go then and labour to purge conscience , else conscience will hinder you ; whether you pray , or heare , or receive the sacrament , &c. it will deprive you of comfort . if thou bring thy gift to the altar , and there remembrest that thy brother hath ought against thee , leave there thy gift before the altar : first go and be reconciled to thy brother , and then come and offer thy gift . the case is greater and more dangerous when conscience hath something against us : there is no offering will be accepted untill conscience be satisfied . if thou shouldst be about to pray , and conscience should stand up against thee as an adversary , and tell thee thou hast been vain , and loose , and carnall all this day , thou hast not set thy self to keep close to god this day , thou hast fallen into this and that sinne this day ; thou art not fit to pray till thou hast reconciled thy self to conscience : alas , thy conscience will secretly undermine all thy praying . first , therefore reconcile conscience by humbling thy self , and breaking thy heart , and resolving , i have sinned , i will do no more . when conscience can say thy sorrow , and repentance , and resolution for new obedience is sincere , then thou art fit to pray , but not before . so whatever other duty thou goest about , be sure to reconcile conscience ; else all will miscarry . v. a faithfull conscience . thus i have expounded the adjuncts of conscience which shew themselves in the discharge of its duty , namely , such as respect consciences ability to the doing of it : which , as ye have heard , are foure : 1. an illightened conscience ; 2. an erroneous conscience ; 3. a doubting conscience ; 4. a scrupulous conscience . now followeth those which do accompany it in the doing of its duty : and they are two : 1. a faithfull conscience ; 2. an unfaithfull conscience . a faithfull conscience is that which doth alwayes advise and counsel aright when need is . this is a very rare conscience : it is rare to find a conscience every way faithfull . for , to say the truth , conscience is alwayes faithfull in it self ; for it knoweth not how to deal deceitfully with any man : but yet i may say , as solomon , a faithfull man who can find ? so , a faithfull conscience who can find ? it is a very rare thing . not for any deceit that is in conscience it self , but because men commonly would have it unfaithfull ; therefore a conscience that will not let men make it unfaithfull though they would , such a conscience i call a faithfull conscience : and i say it is rare . but such a conscience there is ; and it hath three properties : 1. it is watchfull ; 2. it is rigid and severe ; 3. it is importunate . 1. a faithfull conscience is watchfull , alwayes awake to apprehend every opportunity of doing and receiving good , or resisting evil . as when there is an opportunity to pray , to heare , to shew mercie ▪ a faithfull conscience will remember us of it , and put us upon it ; as also when there is any opportunity of quickning and edifying our selves or others . it was a watchfull conscience that made david say , i will never forget thy precepts : that is , i will never omit any opportunity to remember them to do them . it was a watchfull conscience that made paul say , i became all things to all men , that by all means i might save some ; that is , by taking all opportunities and advantages to do good . it was a watchfull conscience that made peter say , i will not be negligent to put you alwayes in remembrance of these things ; that is , i will neglect no opportunity . again , a watchfull conscience taketh notice of every motion and inclination to evil : it is awake to see when evil is conceived ; to tell us of it , to oppose it , and to disswade us from it : like a watchman on the top of a tower , alwayes awake to see when any danger approcheth . it is gods minister with eyes on every side , to espie seasons of good , and stirre up to make use of them ; and of evil , and give warning to avoid them . 2. as a faithfull conscience is watchfull , so also it is rigid and severe . in every cause it delivereth its judgement : nothing can escape its sentence : it will not favour our lusts in any particular . if there be any opportunity of duty to god or man , it maketh us to heare of it ; though it be such a duty as none other will call upon us for , or it may be dare not put us in mind of ; as of love , and care , and help towards inferiours ; yet conscience will : it titheth mint and cumine , and will tell us of the least duty . and so on the other side , it will not swallow the least sinne . as it will not swallow a camel , so it will strain at a g●at ▪ a faithfull conscience is faithfull in the least . if david sinne but in the lap of a garment , conscience smiteth him for it . it made abraham so precise to a thread or a shoe-latchet ; he would not take so much as that of the king of sodom . it made moses strict to a very hoof : it made paul find fault with the corinthians about their hair : it made augustine condemne himself for an apple . 3. as a faithfull conscience is watchfull and severe , so also it is importunate in all its counsels . it doth not onely deliver its judgement , but doth with importunitie urge the following of its counsel . it will have no nay , but will be obeyed . i● leadeth us bound in the spirit to do it ; as paul said , i go bound in the spirit . see how importunate this faithfull conscience was with the psalmist : i will not give sleep to mine eyes , nor slumber to mine eye-lids , untill i find out a place for the lord. it will not take any nay , say we wha● we will : say we be sleepie , say we be busie , say we be loth and full of excuses , it will be importunate , and that with vehemencie . it will follow a man , if he will not heare it , with a hue and crie of inward checks . it will sometime promise , sometimes threaten , urge us with hope , fear danger , &c. as we would be saved , we must d● this ; as we would escape the wrath to come , we must forbear that . thus importunate is a faithfull conscience . i. we see here what a great blessing it is to have such a faithfull conscience , such a faithfull friend in our bosome , which will be carefull to tell us of all our dutie , and perswade us to it ; and of every evil , and disswade us from it . it will not flatter us in any thing , but tell us plainly , this ye should do ; this ye should not do . it regardeth not what pleaseth us ; but what is good for us , that it looketh to , and that it perswadeth to , and that it urgeth . o what a blessing is this ▪ this blessing had those willing israelites who gave so freely and largely towards the building of the tabernacle . the text saith , that their heart stirred them up , and their spirit made them willing . mark ; their heart ( that is their conscience ) stirred them up : ye have bracelets ; offer them , saith conscience : ye have ear-rings and jewels , &c. part with them too , saith conscience , to further this pious work in hand . their spirit made them willing ; their faithfull friend in their bosome , conscience , overcame them with arguments and strong perswasions . this is a great blessing , to have such a faithfull conscience : it will make a man part with all his lusts , pride , self-love , covetousnesse , carnall delights , for gods glorie and our own true good . ii. it is a signe that god meaneth well to that man to whom he hath given a faithfull conscience . o this is an angel keeper indeed . did not christ mean well to his church in the canticles , when he gave her such a conscience as carried her on wheels unto him ? or ever i was aware my soul made me like the chariots of amminadib . return , return , o shulamite ; return , return . return , return , saith conscience ; and again , return , return . hath the lord given thee such an importunate conscience as will have no nay , will not let thee alone in omitting good or committing evil , will not let thee slumber and sleep in securitie , but continually joggeth and awaketh thee ? hath he given thee a severe , a precise conscience , that will not favour thee in the least evil ? it is a most comfortable signe that the lord meaneth well unto thy soul . iii. labour to be a friend unto conscience , that it may continue faithfull unto thee . true friends will deal faithfully and plainly one with another , and will be importunate to do one another good : conscience will not deal thus with thee unlesse thou be a friend unto conscience . now then are we friends unto conscience when we do what conscience requireth . as our saviour said to the disciples , ye are my friends if ye do whatever i command you : so i may say of conscience . for conscience if it be truly illightned will command nothing but what christ commandeth . if we deal so in our constant course with conscience , be willing to hearken to it , and be ruled by it , then if we be out of the way now and then , conscience will be true to us , and be importunate with us for our good . iv. be sure thou stand not out against conscience when once it is importunate . it is a great sinne to stand out against conscience though it be not importunate ; but it is a sinne a thousand times greater to stand out against it when it is importunate . the greatest standing out against conscience is the greatest sinne : it is a sinne which cometh nearest that against the holy ghost , which accompanied with some other adjuncts is the greatest standing out against conscience . there is no sinne that doth more harden the heart then to do evil when conscience is importunate to disswade from it . this sinne was the cause why saul was rejected of god ; i forced my self , saith he : he forced his conscience ; his conscience was importunate to have him stay according to the commandment of god , but he forced himself to the contrary . i confesse , if conscience be importunate to the utmost , as it is with gods children , men cannot with any force put it by , it will have no nay . sometimes it is so with the wicked in some particular thing : but often conscience in them is importunate , and yet will suffer it self to be born down . now to bear conscience down is a very high sinne , and exceedingly hardeneth the heart : therefore take heed of it . vi. an vnfaithfull conscience . thus i have handled a faithfull conscience . the second affection now followeth ; which is an unfaithfull conscience . i do not mean such an one as is overtaken with evil ( for the best conscience hath its failings ) but such a conscience as so giveth in that it suffereth a man to forsake god , and to serve the devil and his own lusts : this is an unfaithfull conscience ; and it also hath three properties : 1. it is a silent conscience . 2. it is a large conscience . 3. it is a remisse conscience . 1. a silent conscience , that conscience which knoweth how to judge , how to counsel , how to direct , yet is silent and saith nothing is an unfaithfull conscience ; that knoweth what duties we ow to god and man , yet putteth us not upon them , nor is importunate for the performance of them ; and so for sinnes , what we ought not to do , telleth not of the evil , disswadeth not from it , urgeth not arguments to cause forbearance ; this is an unfaithfull conscience . it is like to a sleepy carelesse coachman , who giveth the horses the rains , and letteth them runne whither they will : so this unfaithfull conscience leaveth the rains on a mans neck , and letteth him runne whither he will , into any danger , any mischief , that he may do evil with both hands . do ye not think ahabs conscience was fast asleep , which let him sell himself to work wickednesse ? and so manasseh's conscience ? 2. a large conscience ; vvhich maketh conscience it may be of some great duties , but taketh liberty in other vvhich it counteth lesser . thus do●g's conscience would not suffer him to break his vow , to depart on the sabbath day ; but yet it suffered him to accuse david . jehu's conscience made him zealous in gods cause against the house of ahab and the priests of baal ; but it suffered him to maintain the high places which jeroboam had set up . thus gamaliel's conscience made him speak well for paul , and yet continue ( it seemeth ) in much other evil . this conscience will restrain from great staring sinnes , or from such sinnes as the man hath no naturall propensity unto : but others which seem of a lower nature , or vvhich are suitable to a mans particular desires , these conscience will swallow without remorse . as civil people , that cannot swallow down couzenage and injustice , and yet neglect of prayer and other religious duties never troubleth them . and so some professours , who cannot omit hearing sermons and talking of religion , and yet can rest without the power thereof . 3. it is remisse ; that is , though it doth counsel and direct , yet it doth it with such coldnesse and remissenesse that it is easily answered and put off . thus it was with david . it cannot be thought but his conscience said , plot not against vriah's life : but he would ; and so conscience let him do it . this conscience will be answered with every slight and idle excuse : as when conscience telleth one , your wayes are not good : i wish you to repent , and make your peace with god ; it may be the man answereth , yea , so i mean to do ; but i cannot yet intend it : when i have dispatched such and such businesse then i will do it . if conscience speak again , yea , but you were best to do it now ; true , saith he , i know it , i know it . if god would give me repentance i would repent : it is his gift ; of my self i cannot do it . or when it telleth him of family-duties , it may be he answereth , i have no leisure ; so long as i go to god by my self , i hope it will serve turn . or when it telleth him of his wickednesse , it may be he answereth , many worse then i have found mercy ; and i hope so shall i. this is the conscience that letteth a mans heart say , i shall have peace . now conscience being remisse and cold , it is easily put off and answered with these idle and foolish excuses , or with some other pretenses like these , and so letteth the man go and live as before . this conscience is like eli , which said , ye do not well , my sonnes , but exercised no severity to cause them to do otherwise . by this we see the dangerous estate of those men who have such a conscience . there be many who live in many sinnes , in carnall courses , some in company-keeping and drunkennesse , some in hatred and variance , some in chambering and wantonnesse , some in covetousnesse and love of this present world : your consciences , no question , can say , ye should do well to be more godly , to look more after christ and after heaven , and ye should do well to get the truth of saving grace ; yet it may be they say nothing or nothing to the purpose in this behalf . therefore is these mens case so dangerous because their consciences are so silent and so remisse . they have lost the most sovereigne remedy , namely conscience . conscience is the most sovereigne means ( under god and his holy spirit ) to work repentance in men that can be ; and is it not dangerous to have it prove traiterous and unfaithfull ? what good can the ministerie of the word do unto you when every idle and false excuse or pretense which the wisdome of the flesh can devise can stop the mouth of your conscience when it calleth upon you to do what the word requireth ? it must needs be dangerous , and so much the more because it is so pleasing unto you : ye take delight in such silent , and large , and remisse unfaithfull consciences ; ye love not to have your consciences too busie with you ; ye like not that your consciences should be too clamorous and importunate with you ; ye would have them not too rigid and vehement against your sinnes . it fareth with you as with many young men who have sold themselves unto folly , and think none their friends but parasites that flatter them , or those who connive and wink at their folly : but such friends will soon prove foes , and so will such moderate and quiet consciences . it is a dangerous thing to have such a silent conscience ; to want the chief means under god of doing a man good . it was conscience that told the lepers , we do not well to hold our peace : it was conscience that never would let the prodigall sonne be quiet till he returned to his father , and said unto him , i have sinned against heaven and before thee , and am no more worthy to be called thy sonne : it is conscience that is the most powerfull means under god to quicken a man up to repentance and obedience ; and therefore they are in a miserable case that want this great help . but what are the causes why mens consciences be so evil and unfaithfull ? the causes hereof are chiefly these foure : 1. ignorance is one cause why a mans conscience is unfaithfull , when we do not labour to have conscience throughly illightened and informed . who are more carelesse and negligent of their duties both to god and man ? who can with more freedome lye , steal , covet , sinne , &c. then those that are ignorant of the law of god ? they know not that they do so much hurt to their own souls as they do . an ignorant mind hath alwayes an evil conscience . it is impossible conscience should be faithfull where it is not illightened : and hence it cometh to passe that conscience is so negligent and unfaithfull , because we have been so carelesse of informing it . thy conscience must needs be silent as long as thou art ignorant . ignorance is soon put to silence . 2. a second cause is often slighting of conscience . it may be conscience speaketh not , or but coldly and remissely , because when it hath advised , and counselled , and admonished ; thou hast neglected it and disregarded it from time to time . though it judge and counsel , yet thou wilt not listen : like cassandra the prophetesse , who though her predictions were true and certain , yet were they never believed : so though conscience speaketh true , yet men follow it not ; and therefore it becometh silent when it is not regarded , but all its counsel , and advise , and perswasions slighted and neglected . hence , i say , it cometh to passe that for want of imployment it is still and falleth asleep , till the time come that it must be awaked . 3. the third cause is that violence that is often offered unto it . many times when conscience perswadeth to any good duty , or disswadeth from any evil course , men will do against it and withstand it violently , and put off the wholesome advise of it : hence it cometh to passe that conscience having so many injuries offered unto it , beginneth to provide for its own ease , and so either it is silent and saith nothing , or else is soon answered and rebuked ; as it was with moses : when pharaoh would never hearken unto moses , but still fell to excuses , and at last to deny all , he would not let israel go notwithstanding all that moses could urge , but said to moses get thee from me ; take heed to thy self ; see my face no more ; moses then answered , thou hast spoken well : i will see thy face no more . so it is with conscience ; when men have been obstinate , and have refused to heare it , and would have it speak no more , thou hast well spoken , saith conscience : henceforth i will trouble you no more , but let you alone to take your course : i will advise you no more ; or if i do , i will not be any more importunate . 4. a fourth cause is , that men do wilfully stop the mouth of conscience : if it beginneth to speak , presently they busie themselves about other things ; or if that will not do , they runne into companie , and there spend their time , that the howlings of conscience may not be heard ; and if still it be loud , they strike up the drumme , and ring all the bells , that the voice of it may be utterly drowned : and so conscience at last is content to stand by , to heare and see and say nothing . by this means many times it falleth out that those who have had very turbulent and clamourous consciences not suffering them to be quiet , have at last tamed them and put them quite to silence ; or if they do speak , it is so coldly and remissely that they care not whether they be obeyed or no. oh these are damnable and devilish devises ! whoever ye be that do thus , ye are in a dangerous estate , and ye carry the brands of hell and damnation upon you . if ever you desire to avoid this dangerous estate , then shun the cause : labour to have your conscience throughly illightned and informed by the word of god , that it may reade you your duty . a friend that knoweth but little can give but little counsel . again , give heed evermore to the counsel of conscience . you know achitophel took it ill that his counsel was not followed ; therefore he made away himself in displeasure : so conscience will take it very ill if its counsel be not followed : it will strangle it self , and smother it self ; you shall heare no more of it . especially take heed you do not reject conscience , nor offer violence to it : if you do , you will make it unfaithfull and remisse ; and then you lose the best means under heaven of your good : then deadnesse of spirit succeedeth , and hardnesse of heart taketh place , and you deprive your souls of all possibility of cure . as long as a sickman hath any possibility of cure he is still under hope ; but if ever he lose that he is gone : conscience is the possibilitie of the soul to amendment ; and therefore if you dull conscience , and make conscience remisse and unfaithfull , you take the ready way to deprive your selves of all possibility of rising again . consider these things , and have a care of your consciences . and thus we have handled the office of conscience about things to be done and omitted , with its adjuncts , affections , and properties in that behalf . i come now to consider the office of conscience about things already done or omitted , together with the affections of conscience in the discharge of that office . the office of conscience about things already done or omitted . this hath foure parts : 1. to approve ; 2. to absolve ; 3. to mislike ; 4. to condemne , according to the good or evil of our actions or omissions . the judgement is not onely of the things , what they are ; but whither they tend , and what they will produce . i. an approving conscience . first , when that vvhich is done is good , conscience approveth it : as paul saith , this is our rejoycing , the testimony of our conscience , 2. cor. 1.12 . when he had lived uprightly and sincerely , his conscience approved of it : so when he had great sorrow and heavinesse for his brethren , his conscience approved it ; my conscience bearing me witnesse , saith he . so at his latter end we may see how his conscience approved the vvhole course of his life : i have finished my course , i have kept the faith , &c. there is consciences approbation of him : from henceforth , saith he , is laid up for me a crown of righteousnesse : there is consciences judgement concerning the issue of it . conscience so approveth every particular good action done by a faithfull man , that by it he may gather a testimony of the uprightnesse of his heart : as hezekiah ; remember , lord , that i have walked uprightly before thee . hereby we know that we are translated from death to life , because we love the brethren . mark ; love to gods children is a sufficient testimony not onely of our uprightnesse in that particular act , but also of the simplicity of our hearts in the generall , and that vve are translated from death to life . so when good old simeon had now even finished his dayes , see what an approbation his conscience gave of him ; lord , now lettest thou thy servant depart in peace according to thy word . his conscience here gave a threefold blessed approbation of him . 1. that he had been gods faithfull servant ; thy servant . 2. that he had walked in the wayes of true peace and comfort ; depart in peace . 3. that the promise of gods word was his in particular ; according to thy word . ii. an absolving conscience . the second part of the office of conscience is to absolve and acquit . thus samuel pleading his innocency , had his conscience testifying for him , whose ox have i taken ? or whom have i defrauded ? and his conscience absolved him as clear and free from those sinnes . thus also job ; if i have lifted up my hand against the fatherlesse , when i saw my help in the gate ; if i rejoyced because my wealth is great ; if i have not given my bread to the hungry ; or if i have rejoyced at the misery of mine enemie : then let it be thus and thus to me . his conscience absolved him as clear of those sinnes . nay , the conscience of a child of god doth not onely absolve him from the guilt of those sinnes which he never committed , but also from the guilt of those sinnes which he hath committed against god or against man. it can tell him he hath truly repented , and truly been humbled , and truly got pardon . ye know david had committed divers sinnes : yet when he had humbled his soul before god , and obtained pardon , his conscience telleth him as much and absolveth him , psal . 103.3 . blesse the lord , o my soul , &c. who forgiveth all thy sinnes . nay , though a child of god have many infirmities dayly and hourly , yet his conscience doth absolve him : it is no more i that do it , saith his conscience , but sinne that dwelleth in me . if i distrust , it is no more i ; for i fight against it : if i be overtaken by any weaknesse , it is no more i ; for i laboured against it , and do bewail it . iii. a misliking conscience . the third part of consciences office in things done is to mislike if we have done ill . there be imperfections in the best obedience of gods dearest servants : what i do i allow not , saith paul : his conscience misliked something done by him . but that mislike of conscience which now i speak of is of things that are ill done , that is , not done in truth and sincerity . thus it is in all that are not renewed by the holy ghost : the office of their conscience indeed is to mislike what they do : when they have prayed , their conscience can mislike it , and say , i have not prayed with a heavenly mind , a holy heart : when they have been at a sacrament , conscience can truly mislike it , and say , i have not been a fit guest at christs table , &c. when they are crossed and tempted , their consciences truly mislike their carriage , and say , i do not fight and resist , but readily and willingly yield to every invitation to evil . do ye not think that jeroboams conscience misliked his altering gods worship , his innovating religion , his making israel to sinne ? do not ye think his conscience misliked him for these things ? do not ye think that nabals conscience misliked his griping ? and doegs conscience misliked his slandering ? and pashurs conscience misliked his opposing and misusing jeremie ? and the old prophets conscience misliked his lying ? who would have thought but balaam said well , whatsoever the lord saith unto me that will i speak , and , i cannot go beyond the commandment of the lord to do lesse or more ; no , not for balaks house full of gold ; who vvould have thought but that this was well said ? yet his own conscience could not choose but mislike it , being not spoken in sinceritie . many a man hath gone for a christian twentie or thirtie years , and every one liketh him ; and yet it may be his conscience hath disliked him all the while . iv. a condemning conscience . the fourth part of consciences office in this behalf is to condemne if we have done evil and contrarie to gods law . conscience hath an office not onely to mislike us but also to condemne us : nay , it will hasten more to condemne us then god. we see it in adam : when adam had sinned his conscience condemned him before god did : he knew he was naked , that he had made his soul shamefully naked ; his conscience condemned him for an apostate before the lord came to passe sentence upon him . nay , it condemneth us oftner then god ; god will condemne a sinner but once for all , viz. at the last day ; but conscience condemneth him many thousand times before that . many men and women who do seem godly in the worlds eyes . god knoweth how many of them have condemning consciences in their bosomes , for all their civilities , and formalities , and crying god mercie , and patched up hopes ; many who would say that man were uncharitable who should condemne them for such and such , who ( it may be ) find conscience within so uncharitable , and saying plainly , ye are so ; like the conscience of pauls heretick , who is said to be condemned of himself . i. this serveth for the praise of the justice of god : that he may be just when he judgeth , the lord needeth no other witnesse against us but our own consciences : they make way for the just judgement of god. ye may see this in this portion of scripture which we have in hand ; wherein is shewed both that god hath appointed a day wherein he will judge the world , vers . 16. in the day when god shall judge the secrets of all men according to my gospel : and then in the verse going before the apostle sheweth that now in the mean while every mans conscience maketh way for this just judgement of god ; their conscience bearing witnesse , and their thoughts in the mean time accusing or excusing one another . at the last day every man shall be judged according to his conscience ; a child of god according to his ; a carnall man according to his . the lord shall absolve all his children , and their own consciences shall absolve them . the lord shall condemne all the rest , and their own consciences shall condemne them . this is the book that every mans life is set down in : every passage of conversation both of the godly and the wicked is recorded dayly in this book : and according to what is written therein will the lord judge every soul at the last day , as rev. 20.12 . the dead were judged out of those things which were written in the book according to their works . the apostle there speaketh prophetically , and putteth the past time for the future ; they were judged , that is , they shall be judged . so that ye see that by the judgement of conscience way is made for the just judgement of god. ii. this should be a means to keep us from sinne , and to keep us in a holy life : for according to our works so will be the evidences of our consciences , whether they be good or evil . we had need to take heed what we write in our consciences ; for according to what is written there so shall we be judged . therefore if any sinne standeth upon record in our consciences , we had need get it blotted out by the bloud of christ . repent , be humbled , beg for pardon , rest not till thou seest this debt-book conscience crossed , and thy sinnes stand there cancelled and discharged . thus i have shewed you the offices of conscience about things heretofore done . now let me shew you the affections of conscience in the discharge of these offices . ye have heard that conscience hath foure offices in things heretofore done ; 1. an office to approve ; 2. an office to absolve ; 3. an office to dislike ; 4. an office to condemne ; the two former when we have done well and lived well ; then the office of conscience is to approve and absolve : the two latter when we have done ill and lived ill ; then the office of conscience is to mislike and to condemne . now followeth the affections of conscience in the discharge of these offices ; and they are foure : 1. a tender conscience ; 2. a sleepie conscience ; 3. a benumbed conscience ; 4. a seared conscience . first , a tender conscience ; that is , a conscience touched with the least sinne , and checking us for the least sinne ; as for vain thoughts , exorbitant passions , idle words , and the like . such was davids conscience , which smote him for cutting off the lap of sauls garment . such was zaccheus his conscience , which troubled him for supposed sinnes : if i have wronged any man , saith he . he did not know ; but his conscience was so tender that it made him carefull of ifs. this tender conscience is a singular blessing of god : and if we desire to attain unto it we must labour to see the odiousnesse of sinne , yea the malignity and exceeding evil there is in the least sinne : this will make us tender of it . secondly , we must labour to mourn for every sinne though it seem little : this also will keep our consciences tender . and we have great cause to prize a tender conscience . what got the bethshemites by not being tender in conscience ? they looked into the ark , and because they durst venture upon it the lord smote fifty thousand of them at once . what got the man that gathered sticks on the sabbath for not being tender in conscience ? he was stoned to death . conscience should tender the least commandment of god , and so be tender of the committing the least sinne . this conscience is a great blessing . the second affection of conscience is sleepinesse . a sleepy conscience is not so quick in smiting us as it ought : either it checks not , or else with such faintnesse that it worketh not upon us ; it maketh us never the more watchfull against sinne . this we see by many who can commit such sinnes without trouble or disquiet as would bring others on their knees and make them walk heavily long after . this sleepy conscience is very dangerous : it maketh men as ready to fall into the same sinnes to morrow as to day , and next day as to morrow : it letteth them see their faults , but amendeth none ; because this is such a conscience as doth not cause men to feel the burden of their sinnes . a man can never come to christ as long as he hath a sleepy conscience ; because it doth not cause sinne to be burdensome . they who have this conscience can sleep for all it , and eat and drink and be merry for all it : now a man can never come to christ that is not burdened with his sinne , that he cannot bear it , cannot be quiet for it , cannot sleep for it : then christ calleth him , come unto me , all ye that are weary and heavy laden , and i will ease you . a benumbed conscience ; that is , such a conscience as is in a deep sleep . this differs from the former in degree . you know there is a lesse sleep , and there is a greater sleep : there is a lesse sleep , when onely the outward senses are bound ; and there is a sleep when the inward senses are bound too . now a benumbed conscience is a conscience that is in a deep sleep ; preach to it , it mourneth not ; cry to it , it listeneth not : this is a benumbed conscience . nor the greatnesse of sinne , nor the wrath of god denounced against it can move it . men can know themselves guilty of such and such sinnes , and yet not lay them to heart : conscience never telleth them about it . thus the apostle speaketh of those who knew the judgement of god , that they which commit such things are worthy of death , yet not onely do the same , but have pleasure in them that do them : their consciences though informed , and in some measure knowing the evil of their courses and the severitie of gods judgement , yet let them go on still , and not onely commit the evil themselves , but delight to see others as bad as themselves . such are our swearers , and drunkards , and company-keepers , &c. this is a very wretched conscience : the lord deliver us from it . fourthly , a seared conscience ▪ that is , such a conscience as speaketh not a jote ; seared with a hot iron , as the apostles phrase is , 1. tim. 4.2 . a senselesse conscience , a past-feeling conscience : when men can swallow down sinne like drink , oathes , contempt of god , his word and worship , mockage of gods servants , hating to be reformed ; such as sinne without any remorse . this kind of conscience is in foure sorts of men : 1. in dissolute and profligate persons ; who like common strumpets have their souls lie open to every sinne that cometh by . 2. in obstinate sinners , such as , like ahab , have sold themselves to work wickednesse in the sight of the lord. 3. in scoffers and jeerers ; who speak evil of them who runne not in the same excesse of riot with themselves , and nickname the godly . 4. in apostates and backsliders ; who speak lies through hypocrisie , and have fallen from the profession of the truth : all these men have a conscience seared with a red-hot iron . this is a great judgement of god : greater then this there cannot be : no outward judgement that can fall upon us is like unto it : not the plague , nor shame , nor beggery , no nor any curse besides hell it self is equall to it . by this the onely means under god of repentance is taken away . such may come to repent ; but it is a thousand to one if ever they do . it is like a gravestone lying upon their consciences , which keepeth them under untill the day of judgement : at which time god will awaken their consciences , and then they will be more furious in tormenting then the very devils themselves . ye that are not yet fallen upon this wretched conscience , i beseech you take heed that ye never do . but ye will ask me , how may we avoid it ? avoid it ? alas , ye may avoid it if ye be carefull : for conscience never seareth it self : if ever it be seared , it is ye your selves that do fear it . indeed the mind of man may blind its own self ; and the heart of man may corrupt its own self ; and the affections of man may defile their own selves : but conscience never corrupteth it self , never seareth it self . but you will say , what must i do to avoid this searing of conscience ? first , listen to conscience well , that whatever it saith to thee from god thou maist do it . this was the course of the psalmist ; i will hearken what the lord god will say in me ( so some translate it . ) heare then and listen what the lord god will say in thee , what thy conscience illightened saith in thee , and do it . secondly , whenever this conscience is quick follow it . nothing more seareth conscience then suffering quicknings to die . blow the coles if they do but smoke . as the apostle saith , quench not the spirit ; so quench not conscience . i have hitherto shewed you that every man hath a conscience , and the reasons why god hath given us a conscience , the light that it acteth by , the offices of it , and the affections of it . now from all these proceed two other adjuncts of conscience : 1. a quiet conscience ; 2. an unquiet conscience . a quiet conscience . concerning a quiet conscience three things are to be considered : 1. what a quiet conscience is ; 2. how it differeth from that quiet conscience which is in the wicked ; 3. the examination whether we have this quiet conscience or no. i. for the first , what a quiet conscience is ; it is that which neither doth nor can accuse us , but giveth an honourable testimony of us in the course of our lives and conversations ever since we were regenerate ( i put that in too : for 1. we do not begin to live till we be regenerate , and 2. we can never have a true quiet conscience till then . ) such a quiet conscience had good obadiah ; i fear the lord from my youth , saith his conscience : this was a very honourable testimony that his conscience gave him . such a quiet conscience had enoch : before his translation he received this testimony , that he pleased god. haymo saith , this testimony was the testimony of scripture , gen. 5.24 . where it is said that he walked with god. this is true ; but this is not all : the text saith not there was such a testimony given of him , but he had it : and that before his translation ; but the testimony of moses was after his translation : therefore it was the testimony of his conscience that bore witnesse within that he pleased god. so that this is a quiet conscience , which neither doth nor can accuse us , but giveth an honourable testimony of us in the whole course of our life and conversation . now to such a quiet conscience there be three things necessary : 1. uprightnesse , 2. puritie , 3. assurance of gods love and favour . first , uprightnesse is when a man is obedient indeed . many will be obedient , but they are not obedient indeed , not humbled indeed , not reformed indeed . what it is to be obedient indeed ye may see exod. 23.22 . but if thou shalt indeed obey his voyce , and do all that i shall speak , &c. mark ; that is obedience indeed when we do all that god speaketh , and are obedient in all things . this is an upright conscience , when the heart is bent to obedience in all things . an example we meet with in paul ; i have lived in all good conscience before god untill this day . his conscience could not accuse him of any root of wickednesse and corruption allowed and cherished in him : that is an upright conscience . hast thou such a conscience as this , my conscience can truly bear witnesse there is no sinne i favour my self in , allow my self in , but condemne all , strive against all . thus david proveth that his conscience was upright ; if i regard iniquitie in my heart , the lord will not heare my prayer . the regarding of any iniquity will not stand with uprightnesse . a second thing required to a true quiet conscience is puritie . though our heart be upright and stand generally bent to the lords will , yet if we be guiltie of some particular sinne this will hinder the quiet of our conscience . therefore saith paul , i know nothing by my self ; that is , nothing to accuse me ; no corruption , no root of unbelief reigning in him : infirmities he had many , and frailties he had many , and he knew them , but be knew nothing to accuse him . whatever was amisse in him , his conscience told him he used all holy means against it . if thy conscience can truly say thus also of thee , then hast thou a truly quiet conscience . thirdly , assurance of gods love , favour , and pardon . though we have fallen into great sins , yet our consciences may have quiet if we can be truly assured of gods love and favour in the pardon of them . the apostle proveth that the sacrifices of the law could not purge away sinne ; but onely christs bloud can do it . his argument to prove it is this , because those sacrifices could not free a man from having conscience of sinne ; they could not purge the conscience : but christs bloud can : after assurance of pardon in christs bloud conscience can no more condemne for sinne , how many or how great soever the sinnes were which have been committed . these are the three things required to a true quiet conscience . furthermore a quiet conscience implieth two things : 1. a calmnesse of spirit : 2. a chearfull , merry and comfortable heart . these two i mean when i speak of a quiet conscience . 1. a calmnesse of spirit , or a quietnesse of mind , not troubled with the burden of sinne nor the wrath of god , nor terrified with the judgements due unto sinne . this quietnesse and calmnesse of spirit is promised to all them that truly hearken unto christ and obey him ; who so hearkeneth to me shall be quiet from fear of evil . 2. a chearfull , merry and joyfull heart . when our conscience giveth a comfortable testimonie of us , it cannot but make our hearts joyfull . this is our rejoycing , the testimony of our conscience , saith paul : the comfortable testimony which his conscience gave of him made him to rejoyce . a wicked man cannot truly rejoyce : no , though he be merrie and joviall and laugh , yet his carnall estate is a snare , he can have no true joy ; but the righteous sing and rejoyce , prov. 29.6 . no mirth like the mirth of a good conscience . all other joy is but outside , painted , seeming joy : that is onely true joy that is rooted in the comfortable testimonie of an upright good conscience , which telleth a man his peace is made with god , and that whether he be in sicknesse or in health god loveth him , whether he live or die he is the lords . thus ye see what a quiet conscience is . how a quiet conscience in the godly differeth from the quiet conscience that is in the wicked the second thing propounded to be considered about a quiet conscience , is , how it differeth from that quiet conscience which is in the wicked . 1. i confesse that the wicked seem to have a very quiet conscience : many thousands of carnall people seem to live and die in quiet . look into alehouses , lewd houses , into all places ; who so merrie and brisk , and heart-whole ( as they say ) as they who have no saving grace ? yet 2. this quiet conscience in them must needs differ from the quiet conscience of the children of god. certainly the lord will not give the childrens bread unto dogs ; neither will he smile upon their souls ; neither doth he pardon the sinnes nor accept the persons of the ungodly : and therefore if they have a quiet conscience , it must needs differ from that in the godly . must not copper needs differ from gold ? and we who are the lords messengers must teach you the difference : they shall teach my people the difference between the holy and the profane . now the question is this , wherein lieth the difference between the quiet conscience of the righteous and the quiet conscience of the wicked ? answ . the difference between them lieth in foure things : 1. in the thing it self ; 2. in the cause ; 3. in the effect ; 4. in the continuance . i. in the thing it self . the quiet conscience in the godly is double ; not onely apparentiall and nominall , but reall and substantiall : it is quiet and quiet too , peace and peace too : i create the fruit of the lips , peace , peace . mark ; peace and peace too ; peace in appearance , and peace in truth and substance also . but the peace and quiet of conscience which the wicked have is not such peace : it is peace and no peace ; peace in appearance , but no peace in truth . their god is the god of this world , and he perswadeth them they have peace : but my god , saith the prophet , speaketh otherwise ; there is no peace to the wicked , saith my god. they talk of a good conscience sometimes , and boast they have a good conscience ; but the truth is , they cannot have true peace within : for saith the prophet , the wicked is like the troubled sea which cannot rest , whose waters cast up mire and dirt . so doth a wicked mans conscience secretly cast up mire and dirt in his face : his peace can onely be outward and apparentiall . ii. there is a difference in the cause . the quiet of a good conscience ariseth from one cause , and the quiet of a bad conscience ariseth from another . 1. the quiet of a good conscience ariseth from a distinct knowledge of the word of god , and of the precepts and promises conteined in it : but the quiet of an evil conscience ariseth from ignorance : when men know not god nor his holy word , which should bind conscience , they fear nothing because they see nothing ; they know not the danger of sinne : like a blind man standing before the mouth of a cannon , he feareth no danger because he seeth none : so carnall men fear not because they know not what cause they have to fear . their very prayers that they make are an abomination to god , and they know it not : their good duties they do are all like cockatrices egs , and they know it not ; they know not that they are in the bond of iniquitie , in the snare of the devil . their consciences are quiet because they know not what cause they have to be otherwise . this is one difference ; the quiet and peace of a good conscience ariseth from light and from knowledge ; the quiet and peace of an evil conscience , from darknesse and ignorance . 2. the quiet of a good conscience ariseth from a due examination of our selves by the word , and purging of our consciences . conscience never can be good without purging and sprinkling ; no nor without a due examination : the quiet of a good conscience ariseth from this . whereas the quiet of a wicked mans conscience ariseth from want of this : he never examineth his conscience , but letteth it sleep till god awake it with horrour . i say , a wicked mans conscience sleepeth , and that maketh it quiet , and he is not troubled nor molested with it . like a baillif or sergeant fallen asleep by the way ; the desperate debtour whom he lieth in wait for may passe by him then , and find him very quiet , and not offer to arrest him : or like a curst dog fallen asleep ; a stranger may passe by him then and not be meddled with : such like is this quiet evil conscience . 3. the quiet of a good conscience ariseth from a good ground , from the works of gods spirit , from true saving grace , from righteousnesse . rom. 14.17 . we reade of righteousnesse and peace : true peace of conscience ariseth from righteousnesse : whereas the false peace of the wicked ariseth onely from vain hopes and conceits ; they are not guiltie of such and such great sins ; or , they are not so bad as some others : as the pharisee's conscience was quiet ; why ? god , i thank thee , i am not as other men are , no drunkard , extortioner , nor like this publicane . or perhaps from this ground their peace ariseth ; the lord is very mercifull ; and , the lord jesus died for sinners . or perhaps this is their plea , they are good comers to church ; they have prayers in their families ; they have been professours of christ jesus so many years : from hence they dream of peace upon false grounds , whenas the way of peace they have not known . when conscience shall be awaked , then it will tell them how they have by flattery deceived their own souls , and that having no true righteousnesse they could have no true peace . 4. the quiet of a good conscience ariseth from tendernesse and from life . therefore the apostle joyneth together , life and peace , rom. 8.6 . true peace of conscience ariseth from life : whereas the quiet of a wicked conscience ariseth from searednesse and benumbednesse and deadnesse , when men being past feeling of sinne are not troubled at the committing of it . thus ye see the second thing wherein the difference lieth , namely in the cause . iii. they differ in the effect . first , the effect of the quiet of a good conscience is comfort and rejoycing : being justified by faith , we have peace with god through our lord jesus christ . what followeth ? by whom we have accesse by faith , rejoycing , &c. mark ; the peace of conscience bringeth forth rejoycing . and so in other places peace and joy are joyned together . but the evil conscience , though quiet , wanteth this rejoycing . if carnall men had no more mirth then what the quiet and peace of their consciences doth help them to , they would not be so merrie as most of them be . secondly , another effect of true peace of conscience is , it sanctifieth the soul , it purgeth the heart , purifieth the life , and reformeth the whole man. it is the instrument whereby god sanctifieth his people more and more : the god of peace sanctifie you wholly . observe the title which the apostle there giveth unto god when he sanctifieth his people , he calleth him the god of peace ; he sanctifieth his people by peace : it maketh them think thus , we must not do thus or thus as others do ; we shall lose the peace of our conscience if we do . this maketh them strive against sinne , denie their own wills and carnall appetites ; if i should not do so i should have no peace . this peace sanctifieth : but the peace which carnall men seem to have doth not sanctifie the soul : they are never the more holy for the same . again , another effect of the peace of a good conscience is , to put life into us in the performance of good duties : it maketh us with gladnesse and delight perform the duties of our generall and particular callings : but the false peace of an evil conscience suffereth the wicked to be dead and dull to good duties . the true peace keepeth our hearts and our minds : we should lose our minds in the things of this life , but this peace doth keep them upon god ; we should lose our hearts upon our profits and pleasures and affairs in the world , but the peace of conscience doth keep them upon heaven : phil. 4.7 . the peace of god which passeth all understanding , shall keep your hearts and minds . this doth the peace and quiet of a good conscience : but the quiet of a wicked mans conscience doth not do thus ; it keepeth not his mind in this manner , but it is upon earthly things for all that . iv. they differ in respect of duration and continuance . the quiet of a good conscience is settled and grounded in the godly ; it never faileth them nor forsaketh them : the other peace is fading . let a feeling sermon come and rifle carnall men , it taketh away their peace from them ; their consciences then flie in their faces , and then they see they are not right : let losse of outward things come a●● light upon them , or any other affliction , it taketh their peace from them ; conscience then breaketh out upon them and sheweth them how they have deceived themselves with false peace , especially at their death , then an evil conscience ( that hath been quiet before ) in stead of comforting will affright and amaze them . but if we have the quiet of a good conscience , it will make us heare the word with comfort , and not be troubled and disquieted by a searching sermon or the threatnings of gods judgements : nay , if we be in trouble , this will quiet us ; if in affliction , this will comfort us : it will endure all our life , and be present at our death ; then especially it will shew it self a friend unto us , in standing by us to chear and refresh us . great peace have they which love thy law , & nothing shall offend them , saith david : nothing shall offend them or take away their peace : it is an eternall and everlasting peace . thus you have seen how the true and false peace of conscience differ . but here cometh a question to be answered , & it is this ; have all gods children this peace of conscience ? i dare say some of you look for this question , and long to have it answered . i answer therefore , no ; they have it not alwayes . job seemed one while not to have it : i have sinned , saith his conscience : what shall i do unto thee , o thou preserver of men . david seemed one while not to have it : mine iniquities are gone over my head as a heavie burden ; they are too heavie for me , psal . 38.4 . his sinnes lay heavie upon his conscience for a fit . hezekiah one while seemed not to have it : behold , for peace i had great bitternesse . and therefore i say the children of god have it not alwayes . but let me tell you ; they might have it alwayes . 1. it is possible they should have it alwayes : their sinnes of ignorance and infirmitie do not break the peace of their consciences : cannot ; for if they could , then no man should have true peace of conscience at any time . nothing but willing and witting sinnes , sinnes against conscience , can break the peace of conscience : and as it is possible for the children of god to live without these , so it is possible for them alwayes to have peace ; yea , they may have daily more and more peace . 2. as it is possible for the children of god alwayes to have peace , so they are commanded to keep their peace alwayes ; and it is their own fault if at any time they lose it : acquaint thy self with god , and be at peace , saith eliphas . so , let the peace of god rule in your hearts , unto which ye are called . we are not onely commanded to have peace in our hearts , but also that it may rule there , that no corruption perk over it to hinder it : we are called to this peace , and commanded to have it ; and therefore as it is a sinne in the common-wealth when one breaketh the peace , so it is a sinne in the spirit to break the peace of conscience : we are all bound to the peace . 3. if the children of god have it not alwayes , then they feel the want of it : and in the want of that comfort nothing else will comfort them . it is not all the peace and prosperitie of the world that can comfort their hearts as long as they have not this peace ; not all the mirth in the world can content them untill they enjoy this peace again , the peace and quiet of a good conscience : they faint for it , and long after it , they can have no strength without it ; the lord will give strength unto his people ; the lord will blesse his people with peace . it is not so with corrupt hearts : they can be without peace , and yet never faint ; they can eat and drink for all that , and sleep and be merry for all that , yea and go about their profits and their earthly businesses as roundly as ever for all that : but the children of god if they want the peace of conscience , they have no strength to do any thing almost , they faint till they have it again . 4. the godly alwayes have the seeds of it in them : l●ght is sown for the right●ous , and gladnesse for the upright in heart . mark ; it is sown in their hearts , and it will spring up at one time or other to chear them and to comfort them . as it is with the wicked ; they may seem now and then to have true peace , but they have the seeds of horrour alwayes in them , which will sprout forth at last , and then they shall find the worm of an evil conscience again : so on the contrarie side , the godly may seem now and then to have no peace , but yet they have alwayes the seeds of true peace in them , which will in time shew themselves , and solace their souls for ever . 5. they never want peace as the wicked do want it : the wicked want it , and have no possibility of having it : they go in such paths as wherein they shall never know peace , such paths as will never lead them unto it : still their conscience is able to say , they are not right , they are carnall and not spirituall ; they know no true peace of conscience , neither can they : but the children of god walk in such wayes as will bring them to true peace of conscience ere they have done . by this ye see what a good and quiet conscience is . it cannot be but that all must like it , and wish , o that we had it ! beloved , let us labour to get it and the assurance of it . no blessing under heaven is like it : it is a heaven upon earth . happie are they who can shew they have it : and miserable are they who have it not . dulce nomen pacis , sweet and pleasant is the very name of peace , especially of the peace of a good conscience : if ye have it , no misery can make you miserable : and if ye have it not , no happinesse can make you happie . it is christs legacy which he bequeathed to his church ; peace i leave with you ; my peace i give unto you . it is glorious and honourable : beest thou never so mean in the world , thou art glorious if thou hast this peace : beest thou never so despised and disgraced among men , thou hast honour enough if thou hast this peace : rom. 2.10 . to every one that doth good , glory and honour and peace . mark how it is accompanied ; namely , with glory and honour : but shame and confusion and dishonour is upon all them that have it not . iii. examination , whether we have a quiet conscience . concerning a quiet conscience i propounded three things : 1. what it is ; 2. how it differeth from that quiet conscience that is in the wicked ; 3. the examination whether we have this quiet conscience yea or no. the two former we have handled already : namely , what a quiet conscience is ; and , how it differeth from that quiet conscience which is in the wicked . let us passe on now unto the third , namely , to an examination of our selves whether we have a true quiet conscience yea or no. a quiet good conscience is such a marvellous blessing that it cannot possibly be but we must like it and wish , o that we had it . let us then examine our selves and see whether we have it or no. many have peace and quietnesse ( as hath been shewed alreadie ) arising from false grounds : they have peace of conscience because they know not what belongeth to trouble of conscience ; or if they know that a little ( as some of the wicked do ) yet they do not consider that sorrow which one ●●y will burst in upon them and sink them utt●rly : let us trie then our peace by these notes . i. i● the quiet of our consciences be good , it is such as we have carefully sought for at the mercies of god in the bloud of jesus christ , when being pinched with the burden of our sinnes we did fly to the promises of god to seek comfort , to the bloud of christ , to find ease and to get assurance of gods favour . if our peace come not this way , it is naught , and we were better to be without it then have it . it may be we speak peace to our selves ; but doth the lord speak peace to our consciences ? i will heare what the lord will speak : for he shall speak peace to his people , and to his saints : but let them not turn again to folly ( for that will break all their peace . ) o go to god then , and heare whether he speaketh peace to your consciences ; whether it be god in christ reeonciling the world to himself that speaketh it to you . it is not true peace without we have sought for it at the throne of grace , without it be peace of gods making . now the lord speaketh peace to his people who come to him for peace three wayes . 1. he speaketh peace to them by his word . this speaking is thus ; when the word promiseth peace to those who walk by such a rule , and they walk by that rule , then gods word speaketh peace to their souls . the rule is set down gal. 6.15 . in christ jesus neither circumcision availeth any thing nor uncircumcision , but a new creature : and then followeth , as many as walk according to this rule , peace be upon them . 2. god speaketh peace to his people in their consciences . this speaking is thus ; when the conscience can say , i am in christ , i am engraffed into christ , then the lord speaketh peace by the conscience , peace be with you all that are in christ jesus : so also when the conscience can say , i hunger after righteousnesse , i truly mourn for sinne , i desire in all my wayes to please god. thirdly , god speaketh peace by his spirit . this speaking is thus ; when the word hath spoken peace by the promise , and when the conscience speaketh , i am thus and thus qualified , and therefore i have peace , then the spirit of god cometh in and witnesseth , yea , you say right ; peace belongeth unto you indeed , and i say amen to it . when the spirit of god doth say thus , then the lord speaketh peace to the soul . the fruit of the spirit is love , joy , peace . peace is the fruit of the spirit : it speaketh it to the soul , breedeth it in the soul . now , beloved , examine your selves : is your peace of this stamp ? do ye seek it of god , and get it in the bloud of christ jesus ? do ye get it by the word , and by your truespeaking conscience , and by the holy spirit of god ? if ye get it on this wise , then it is true peace of conscience indeed . if ye get it by your own vain hopes and by your good meanings , &c. this peace will not hold alwayes : when your consciences come to be awaked , your peace will all vanish away and be no more . this is the first note to try and examine your selves by . ii. if our quiet and peace of conscience be good , it is accompanied with such a life as is agreeable to the will of god : it avoideth sinne , as the thing that disturbeth the peace . how can any man have true peace of conscience when his life doth not please god but provoketh his wrath against him ? it cannot be that he should have true peace who in his heart doth regard sinne : there is no peace to the wicked , saith my god. no , whereever true peace of conscience doth inhabit , it dwelleth with godlinesse of life and unblamablenesse of conversation ; as the apostle peter joyneth them together , 2. pet. 3.14 . wherefore , beloved , seeing ye look for such things , be diligent that ye may be found of him in peace without spot and blamelesse . mark the words ; in peace , without spot and blamelesse . if ever we would be found in true peace , we must live without spot and blamelesse . a wicked mans conscience may seem to have peace , and tell him he hath served god ; this day i have paid my vowes , saith the conscience of the whore : but this is a rotten and deceitfull peace . true peace of conscience is ever accompanied with such a kind of life as is agreeable to the will of god in his word . iii. if our peace be good , it will make us endure to heare any point in gods word with joy and delight . a wicked heart can heare points of mercie and comfort with joy : so long his peace lasteth : every man that calleth upon the name of the lord shall be saved ; if we confesse our sinnes , god is just to forgive us our sinnes ; if any man sinne , we have an advocate with the father , jesus christ the righteous ; whoever shall confesse that jesus is the sonne of god , god dwelleth in him and he in god : such points as these a wicked heart can reade with delight ( though if they were truly opened and expounded they would yield him cold comfort , yet he can heare them with delight in the lump : ) but if a searching point or some terrible point cometh , he is afraid to heare that . ahab had a quiet conscience but onely when michaiah did preach : felix had a quiet conscience no doubt ; yet he trembled to heare paul preach of death and of judgement , acts 24.25 . one would have thought that paul ( a prisoner ) should rather have been afraid : but paul had true peace of conscience , and therefore he could think and speak of death with great comfort , and of judgement with joy ; so could not felix . beloved , this is a strong signe of a false peace , when some points of gods word lay us slat and bereave us of our hold . ye shall have many say , o they have such peace , and they have such a good conscience , as quiet as can be , and as heartwhole as can be : by and by a sound searching point cometh and ransacketh them to the quick , and they are gone . i confesse they go and get some untempered morter or other , and dawb up their consciences again ; but they are gone for the time . this is a strong signe of a rotten peace . but a child of god can heare any point , heare of death , of judgement , of any thing contained in the word , with delight and comfort . it is true , he may be amazed thereat : but he is glad at heart that he heareth it , and will make use of it , be it mercy or judgement . sweet or bitter points all are welcome to him : even the bitterest points are sweet to him , because god and he are at peace ; and therefore he knoweth there is no news from god but it is good . iv. if our peace of conscience be good , it will heal that base fearfulnesse which is in many : who dare not be in the dark , dare not go through a church-yard in the night . some will quake at the very shaking of a leaf , as the wicked in job : which is nothing but a guiltie conscience . i grant this fearfulnesse is naturall to some ; yet i say the true peace of conscience will cure it . i do not say this is a reciprocall signe of true peace of conscience ; for many wicked men may be bold enough : but i say true peace of conscience will cure this immoderate fearfulnesse in the godly . but here two questions are to be asked . i. whether every true child of god that hath true peace of conscience can think of death with comfort and be desirous to die . answ . 1. peace of conscience doth not take away naturall fear . it is the nature of every living creature to be very fearfull of death . the philosopher calleth death 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 , the fearfullest thing of all fearfull things . bildad calleth it the king of terrours . nature loveth its own preservation ; and therefore feareth the destruction of it . peace of conscience doth not take away all this fear . 2. besides , peace of conscience doth not take away alwayes all degrees of slavish fear of death . the reason is , because peace of conscience may be weak , mixed with much troubles of conscience . for as faith may be very imperfect , so peace of conscience may be in some very imperfect . good old hilarion was very fearfull to die : he cried out to his soul when he lay on his death-bed , o my soul , hast thou served christ these fourescore years , and art thou now afraid to die ? again , a mans love may be very imperfect . perfect love indeed casteth out fear ; but imperfect love doth not . hezekiah had peace of conscience : remember lord , saith he , i have walked before thee in truth , and with a perfect heart . mark ; he had the peace of a good conscience ; his conscience told him he had a sincere heart , and that his wayes pleased god : yet he was afraid to die : i do not think it was onely because he had no issue , though that might be some reason of it . 3. when a child of god is afraid to die , it is not so much for love of this life as out of a desire to be better prepared . this made david cry out , o spare me , that i may recover strength , before i go hence and be no more . and so job ; let me alone , that i may take comfort a little , before i go whence i shall not return . these good men were then something unwilling to die : they might have many reasons ; most likely this was one ▪ that they might be better prepared , and more fit and ready for their departure . 4. some of gods people ; as these , job and david , at other times ; i say , some of gods people have such marvellous peace with god as that if it were gods will they had much rather die then live ; i desire to be dissolved , saith paul , and to be with christ ; which is farre better . it may be in regard of the church , or the care of their children and charge god hath laid on them , they could be content to remain still in the body : neverthelesse , they account their state after death much better ; and , were it put to them whether to die or to live longer here , they would choose death rather of the twain . nay , elias requested for himself that he might die : it is enough , lord : take away my life . not that they love death it self ; for death is evil in its own nature , contrary to nature , a badge of sinne : but for the love they have to and the assurance they have of eternall life after death . 5. nay there is no child of god but may truly be said to love death , and to love the day of judgement and the appearing of christ jesus . divines use to put this as a signe of gods children : nay , the apostle maketh this as a propertie of gods children , to love christs appearing : i have fought a good fight , saith paul , i have finished my course : there he telleth us of his own peace ; and then he telleth us of his reward ; from henceforth is laid up for me a crown of righteousnesse , which the lord the righteous judge shall give me in that day ; and not to me onely , but to them also that love his appearing : that is , to all his children : for all the children of god love the appearing of jesus christ to judgement . though all do not desire it with the same strength of faith , yet all desire it with faith . they believe that christ hath destroyed him that hath the power of death , which is the devil ; they believe christ hath taken away deaths sting , which is sinne , and swallowed death up in victory ; and may all say , thanks be unto god who hath given us victory through our lord jesus christ . neither do they so much question this as their faith to believe it ; saying , lord , help our unbelief . 6. gods children have good reason to do so , and to check their own hearts whenever they do otherwise . whenever any disturst cometh , they should check it down again : whenever any fear ariseth , they should say , what ? i fear death ? which is a thing so precious ? precious in the sight of the lord is the death of his saints . is death precious , and shall i be so vain as to fear it ? thus ye see an answer to the first question , whether every child of god that hath true peace of conscience can be desirous to die . ii. quest . whether a wicked man that hath no peace of conscience may not be desirous to die too ? answ . 1. the horrour of conscience may make a wicked man desirous to die . he may have so much horrour of conscience as that he may think certainly hell cannot be worse : ( hell is infinitely worse ; but he may not think so . ) thus judas was desirous to die , when he went and hanged himself : thus many in despair do make away themselves . i confesse some in despair may be fearfull to die : as cain was fearfull to die ; it was fear of death made him speak thus unto god , it shall come to passe that every one that findeth me shall slay me , gen. 4.14 . the reason was , because , though he were in despair , yet he was not so sensible of his horrour as judas was : for cain could go and build for all this , and train up his children in musick and the like for all this ; but judas was in a case more sensible of his misery . 2. dolour of pain may make a wicked man desire to die . thus it was with saul : saul had received his deaths wound , and was in most grievous pain : he could not die presently , neither could he live ; but lying in very great pain between both , desired the amalekite to stand upon him and slay him , 2. sam. 10.9 . ( though osiander think the amalekite lyed unto david to curry favour with him ; but josephus and others think he spake the truth . ) sure it is , that many wicked wretches having no peace of conscience to sweeten and allay their torments , have been desirous to die : nay some have hastened their own death . 3. malecontentednesse , & shame , and disappointment of their aims may also make wicked men desirous to die , and , if death come not soon enough of it self , to dispatch away themselves with cruel self-murder . thus it was with achitophel : when he saw his counsel was not followed he haltered himself : he had no peace of conscience to comfort him against all his dumps and discontents ; and therefore he was desirous to die . 4. wicked men , being vexed at something for the present , may seem to be desirous to die ; and yet if death should come indeed , they would be of another mind , and be content death should be further off . nay , jonas ( that strange man of a good man ) o for a fit he would be dying , yea that he would , lord , take my life from me : for it is better for me to die then to live . i suppose if god had taken him at his word , he could have wished his words had been in again . but thus it is often in the mouthes of wicked people ; i would i were dead ; and , i would i were out of the world : not for any peace of conscience they have , nor for any desire of death , but onely for a momentany pang . if they were to die indeed , they would be loth enough to it . like the man in the fable : who being wearied with his burden of sticks , lay down and called for death ; but when death came indeed to take him , and said , what shall i do , man ? thou calledst me : i pray thee , said he , help me up with my burden of sticks . when he was to die indeed , then he would rather have his own wearisome burden . it is but a fable ; but this is the fashion of many . 5. when wicked men are desirous to die indeed sometimes not out of discontent or any such like reason , yet it cannot be out of any true peace of conscience : they may go away like lambs , as we say ; but it is in a fools paradise . it may be whilest they lived they thought to go to heaven : but when they dy , then all their thoughts perish , as the psalmist speaketh in another case . to return therefore where we left ; o beloved , is there any of you that want the peace of a good conscience ? and do ye know what you want ? what a great benefit and blessing ? that ye may see this , and fully know it , and by knowing it earnestly desire it , consider , first , that it is the very head of all comforts . a worthy divine calleth it abrahams bosome to the soul : ye know what a blessing it was unto lazarus to be taken from his fores into abrahams bosome : the peace of a good conscience is like this bosome of abraham : who would not gladly lie in it ? such a man who hath it can never look upon another mans comfort , but a good conscience will say , yea , and i have my comfort too . when paul was commending of timothie , see how his own conscience spake of himself at the same time : he worketh the work of the lord , as i also do . mark ; his conscience would be putting in comfort for himself : doth timothie work the lords work ? yea and so do i too , saith his conscience : it is musculus his observation upon the place . secondly , a quiet conscience maketh a man to tast the sweetnesse of things heavenly and spirituall : it maketh the word to be to him , as to david , sweeter then hony , yea then the hony-combe : i have not departed from thy judgements , o lord , saith he ( thus saith his conscience : ) now what followeth next ? how sweet are thy words unto my tast yea , sweeter then hony unto my mouth . a good conscience maketh a man tast sweetnesse in prayer , when his conscience telleth him he prayeth aright : it maketh him tast sweetnesse in a sabbath , when his conscience telleth him he sanctifieth it aright : so also in the sacrament , when his conscience can witnesse he receiveth aright . what is the reason so few of you tast sweetnesse in these things ? the reason is this ; because ye have not the peace of a good conscience : it would find sweetnesse in every good dutie , in every good word and work . thirdly , a good quiet conscience maketh a man tast sweetnesse in all outward things , in meat , in drink , in sleep , in the company of friends : it putteth a better upon a very morsel , prov. 17.1 . brown bread and a good conscience , there is a better upon it then upon all the costly fare of the wealthie without it . bernard calleth a good conscience a soft pillow : another calleth it a dear bosome friend : solomon calleth it a continuall feast . it maketh a man tast sweetnesse in every outward thing . the healthy man onely can take pleasure in recreations , walks , meats , sports , and the like : they yield no comfort to those that are bedrid , or sick , or half-dead . but when the conscience is at peace the soul is all in good health ; and so all things are enjoyed with sweetnesse and comfort . fourthly , it sweetneth evils to a man , as troubles , crosses , sorrows , afflictions . if a man have true peace in his conscience , it comforteth him in them all . when things abroad do disquiet us , how comfortable is it to have something at home to chear us ? so when troubles and afflictions without turmoil and vex us and adde sorrow to sorrow , then to have peace within , the peace of conscience , to allay all and quiet all , what a happinesse is this ? when sicknesse and death cometh , what will a good conscience be worth then ? sure more then all the world besides . if one had all the world , he would then give it for a peaceable conscience . nay , what think ye of judgement and the tribunal of christ ? do but think what a good conscience will be worth then ? when paul was accused and hardly thought of by some of the corinthians , this was his comfort ; i know nothing by my self , saith his conscience : i count it a very s●all thing to be judged of you . nay , he goeth further : his conscience telleth him he hath the lord jesus ( who justifieth him ) to judge him ; he hath a sweeter judge then his own conscience , even his saviour , to judge him . o there is no created comfort in the world like the comfort of a peaceable conscience . the heathen mena●der could say , 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 conscience is a little pettie god . we may not give it such a big title : but this is most certain ; the conscience is gods echo of peace to the soul : in life , in death , in judgement it is unspeakable comfort . is there any then that want this ? let them above all things labour to get it : it is more worth then all things else . whatever we neglect , let us not neglect this . it is safer to neglect bodie , health , means , maintenance , friends , and all that ever we have in the world then to neglect this . the more we have the worse it is for us , if we have not this . had we all this worlds good , it is like a stone in a serpents head or a toads head , or a pearl in an oyster ; not our perfection but our disease . again , you who have a peaceable conscience , 1. labour to maintain it . be often in communion with god , be not strangers to him , the light of whose countenance is the peace of your souls . it is the walking with god that breedeth true peace and preserveth it . it is said of levi , that he walked with god in peace . o let us stirre up our selves to walk close with god , that so we may have peace : no sweet peace but in so doing . 2. we must take heed we do not trouble nor disquiet it , that we do not resist it , or offer violence unto it by committing sinne against the peace of it , but endeavour to maintain the peace of it by obeying the voyce of it . get the fear of god , which is wisdome ; and to depart from evil , which is true understanding : all her paths are peace , prov. 3 , 17. we cannot walk in any one path of true wisdome but we shall find in it peace : there is peace in humilitie , and peace in charity , and peace in godlinesse , and peace in obedience , &c. break any of these things , and ye break the peace . ye heare what an admirable thing the peace of conscience is : o then , if ye have it , make much of it : nay , if ye have it , ye will for certain make much of it . the very having of it will teach you the worth of it , and learn you to prize it , and make you above all things unwilling to leave it . and thus much of the first , viz. a quiet conscience . an unquiet conscience . i have already handled a quiet conscience . i come now to speak of a troubled and unquiet conscience : concerning which i shall shew you three things : 1. what it is ; 2. the degrees of it ; 3. the difference of the trouble that may be in a good and that may be in a bad conscience . i. what a troubled conscience is . it is a conscience accusing for sinne , and affrighting with apprehensions of gods wrath . and here i would have you consider two things : 1. what are the causes of it ; 2. wherein it consisteth . first , the causes of it are these five . 1. the guilt of sinne : when a man hath done evil , and his conscience doth know it , then doth the conscience crie guiltie : when he knoweth it , saith the text , then he shall be guilty . this is it which woundeth and pierceth conscience ; this is the sad voyce of conscience . like judas ; i have sinned in betraying the innocent bloud : like cain ; my sinne is greater then can be forgiven . so the brethren of joseph ; we are guilty , say they , concerning our brother . it is like the head of an arrow sticking in the flesh , or like a dreadfull object continually presenting it self before our eyes : my sinne is ever before me , saith david . when we have transgressed gods law , and our conscience can cry guiltie , when the guilt of sinne lieth upon conscience , this is one cause of the trouble of it . 2. another cause is the apprehension of gods wrath for sinne : when knowing that we have sinned and offended god , we apprehend his wrath in our minds , and behold the revenging eye of his justice against us . this is a very grievous thing , so terrible that no man or angel is able to abide it : as we see the kings and potentates , the mighty men of the earth , call for the mountains to fall upon them , and the hills to cover them from the wrath of god , rev. 6.15 , 16. when we have incurred gods displeasure and our consciences see it , when his anger resteth upon us and our consciences feel it , this is another cause of the trouble of conscience . 3. a third cause of the trouble of conscience is the fear of death and of hell : when we know we have offended gods law , and we know also what our sinnes do deserve , namely death and judgement aad damnation for ever ; this doth most trouble and disquiet conscience , when it fastneth on the apprehension of it . the apostle calleth it a fearfull looking for of judgement , when conscience looketh for nothing else but for hell and damnation , this must needs trouble conscience . 4. another cause is privative , want of supportance ; when god doth withhold from conscience the help of his spirit . ye know the spirit can inable conscience to undergo all its troubles ; the spirit can prompt it with mercies and the promises of god , and hold it up : but when the lord bereaveth the conscience of this help , and doth not at all support it , this must needs also trouble conscience . 5. when god doth fasten on the conscience such thoughts as may affright and terrifie it ; as thus , god doth not love me ; christ will not own me ; i have sinned , i am a reprobate , past hope , &c. when such thoughts as these fasten on the conscience , it cannot choose then but be troubled . thus i have shewed you what are the causes of the trouble of conscience . secondly , this trouble of conscience consisteth in two things : first , in want of comfort : it cannot apply to it self neither the promises of this life nor of that which is to come . conscience crieth , this belongeth not to me : this mercy , this comfort is not my portion . secondly , in a terrour and anguish of mind from these three heads : 1. from the guilt of sinne ; 2. from the apprehension of gods wrath ; 3. from fear of death and of judgement . this is the three-stringed whip wherewith conscience is lashed . these ye shall find upon the conscience of adam and eve , when they had sinned against god. their conscience was whipped 1. with the guilt of sinne ; they saw they were naked , gen. 3.7 . 2. with the apprehension of gods wrath ; they hid themselves from the presence of god , vers . 8. 3. with the fear of some vengeance which they began to look for ; i was afraid , saith adam , verse 10. this three-stringed whip ye may see also was upon the conscience of cain after he had slain his brother : his conscience was whipt 1. with the guilt of sinne ; my sinne is greater then can be forgiven : 2. with the apprehension of gods wrath ; from thy face , o lord , am i hid : 3. with the expectation of death and of judgement ; it shall come to passe that every one that findeth me shall slay me . thus i have shewed you what a troubled conscience is . the degrees of a troubled conscience . ii. the next thing i promised to shew is the degrees of a troubled conscience . a troubled conscience hath divers degrees : for some consciences are more troubled then other some . 1. the first degree is such a degree as may be in gods children : and this ariseth not so much from the apprehension of gods wrath as from the guilt of sinne : their consciences grieve and are troubled to think that they have sinned and offended the lord god. thus we see david could not be at quiet : although nathan had told him from god that his sinne was forgiven , yet his conscience still troubled him : against thee onely have i sinned , and done this evil in thy sight , saith he . i grant the consciences of gods children are troubled at the apprehension of gods anger ; but then it is his fatherly anger , not the anger of an enemy . though for a fit they may seem to apprehend th●● too , yet mostly it is for that they have provoked their loving father to anger against them . a father may be angry with his child out of love ; and so the lord may be with his dear children . the lord was angry with me too , saith moses , deut. 1.37 . o let not my lord be angry , saith abraham the father of the faithfull . o god of hosts , how long wilt thou be angry with thy people that prayeth , saith the psalmist . sometimes the lord is angry with the prayers of his people ; but it is in love , because he would have them pray better , and obey better , and look to their standing better . now the consciences of gods people are very much troubled when the lord is thus angry with them . 2. the second degree of trouble of conscience is such as is in the wicked , and yet not altogether without hope . the conscience is troubled , but yet so as it conceiveth hope : god is mercifull ; and , christ died for poore sinners , &c. thus many a wicked man is troubled and affrighted in conscience , nor for sinne , but for the wrath of god against it ; yet he conceiveth for the present that the sinne is pardonable and may be forgiven : christ may forgive ; god may pardon . it is indeed but a poore ground of hope and comfort upon possibilities : but yet this lightneth the trouble in the mean time , and it may be within a while shaketh it quite off : like the wicked jews , isa . 57.10 . who were worried and wearied most grievously ; yet they said not , there is no hope . there may be much horrour and disquiet in these consciences for a time : but ther● is a higher degree yet , a worse troubled conscience 〈◊〉 this . 3. the third degree of a troubled conscience is , when it is for the present altogether hopelesse ; such a conscience as is swallowed up in despair : when men thinking of their manifold sinnes , of the direfull wrath of god , of the dreadfull torments of hell for ever , their consciences make them despair of all hope or possibilitie of avoiding this ; bringing such thoughts as these , what a deal of time have i spent in sinne , wherein i might have made my peace with god , and have prevented all this ? what a great and omnipotent god have i offended ? what an infinite judge have i provoked , who is able to revenge himself on me , and who will be my foe to eternitie ? conscience also bringing in thoughts of the torments and unsufferable pains to be endured in hell , and such swallow up in despair without all hope for the present or the future . like the wicked man which eliphaz speaketh of , he believeth not that he shall return out of darknesse , job 15.22 . so these have no hope of escaping , expect to perish as spira ; o , saith he , i envy cain and judas : i would i were in their cases : they are damned ; but i shall be worse for evermore . now though to these all hopes be gone for the present , yet some of these troubled consciences scramble up again with vain hopes , and some do not . cain got up again , it should seem : but judas did not . those that never get up again , either 1. they live in intolerable horrour and vexation of spirit , as if they had a devil in them to put them to anguish , and often ( being weary of their lives ) do make away themselves , and so leap quick into hell : or else 2. they runne desperately into all abominable courses : their consciences telling them there is nothing to be expected but damnation , they give themselves desperately to commit sinne with greedinesse , saying with them in jeremie , there is no hope ; therefore we will walk after our own devises , jer. 18.12 . or else 3. they grow senselesse of it . they see they are wrong , but they are not sensible of it . it may be they pray and reade and heare ; but their consciences secretly whisper , all is to no purpose . conscience eateth and eateth like a worm , and they pine away in their iniquities , as the prophet speaketh . a kind of sorrow they have , but they cannot mourn ; a kind of sad dolour , but they cannot weep : ye shall not mone nor weep , but pine away in your sinnes , saith the text . i confesse there be more presumers in the world , who promise themselves that all shall be well with them : but yet there be despairers too , and very many , whose consciences are troubled with secret despair ; though it may be not apparently to others . now the causes of these despairing consciences are these . 1. the greatnesse of sinne ; when the heart thinketh secretly thus , certainly the lord cannot find in his heart to forgive me . as it was with cain : when he had lived in earthly-mindednesse , and then in formality , and then in discontent and in hatred , and then in hardnesse of heart , the lord rebuked him , and yet his heart was so hard that still he went on in evil ; then he murdered his brother ; and lastly he despaireth ; my sinnes are greater , saith his conscience , then can be forgiven . he thought god could not find in his heart to forgive him . so when men sinne and sinne , and the lord doth rebuke them , and yet they do sinne , and their consciences do check them , and yet they go on , at last they come to have secret despairs in their heart , that god now will not look towards them ; whereas if yet they had a mind to stoop to jesus christ , they might be forgiven . 2. a second cause of despairing is multitude of temptations . indeed the godly should not be so apt to think themselves forsaken of god by reason of temptations as sometimes they are : they should rather count it joy , as james speaketh , chap. 1.2 . but yet many of the wicked despair finally by this means : because they do so often fall into temptations , therefore they conclude they are forsaken of god. 3. ignorance of gods word . when the guiltinesse of sinne meeteth with minds not instructed in the doctrine of free grace and reconciliation by christ ; this is a cause of despair . 4. so also inured custome of sinning is another cause . when men are often quickned , and grow dead again ; then quickned again for a fit , and then hardned again : in the end they fall to despair . these and the like are the causes of despairing consciences . and thus i have shewed also the second thing propounded to be handled , namely , the sundry degrees of troubled consciences . iii. the third thing is the difference between the troubled conscience in the godly and in the wicked . the consciences of gods children may be troubled , and are many times ; and the consciences of the wicked they are troubled too : now the question is , how do they differ ? i answer , 1. that trouble in the conscience of wicked men is accompanied with impenitency , and sometimes with blasphemy : i would i were able to resist god , saith francis spira : like those in the revelation who blasphemed god because of their torments . sometimes it is accompanied with cursings , as isai 8.21 . sometimes with infinite murmuring . but in gods children it is not so : when their conscience is troubled , they justifie god , and clear god , and give him the glory of all , and submit under his hand , and subdue their hearts unto him : as david in his trouble did not fret and murmure against god , but saith he , if god have no pleasure in me , lo , here i am : let him do with me what seemeth him good . so that the trouble of conscience in the children of god and in the wicked doth much differ in this first respect . 2. the trouble of conscience in the wicked ariseth onely from the apprehension of gods wrath and fear of judgement for sinne , not for the sinne it self and from the love of holinesse : but that in gods children ariseth chiefly for sinne , and the want of the apprehension of gods love unto them : how long wilt thou forget me , o lord ? for ever ? how long wilt thou hide thy face from me ? psal . 13.1 . mark whence the trouble of the psalmist came : this was his trouble , that god did hide his face . 3. trouble of conscience in the wicked never maketh them part with sinne , never breedeth a hatred of sinne in them ; but that in gods children doth . true it is that a wicked mans troubled conscience may make him vomit up his sinne , like a dog that vomiteth up his troublesome meat : but he doth not vomit up his stomach to that meat ; for when the trouble is over he returneth to his vomit again . so a carnall man returneth to his deadnesse of heart again , and to his securitie again , when the trouble is over . pharaoh , whilest his conscience was troubled at the sense of gods judgements , o then saith he , i have sinned : i pray , moses , let me have your prayers ; and i will let you go . if the children of israel could have packed up and departed while this trouble had lasted , they might have been gone . but when he saw there was respite , he hardned his heart again . mark ; his trouble of conscience did not make him part with his sinne : but that in gods children doth . 4. that in the wicked driveth them from god : they have little heart to come unto him : they see nothing but wrath ; and they rather go about to seek ease in other things then to seek his favour : as saul sought ease in musick , and cain in building castles and cities , and judas in a desperate course . their trouble fetcheth them not to god. but the trouble in gods children worketh otherwise : in the midst of trouble of conscience they rest upon god : as heman crieth , o lord god of my salvation , in the midst of the troubles of his soul . the eyes of gods children are still towards heaven ; they think still they should have some help from god : they pray and cry , and though god seemeth to neglect them , yet they cannot give over : they will not be beaten off from waiting on god when he will speak comfort to them . 5. that trouble that is in the wicked maketh their heart sullen ; but that in the godly melteth their heart : my soul is like melting wax , saith david in his troubles of conscience . his soul melted before god , and was even poured out before him , psal . 22.13 . this is a kindly working . thus ye see the difference . vses . 1. by this we see what a miserable thing it is to have such a troubled conscience . it is the greatest misery that can be : it is even a hell to men here upon earth : it is like a dismall ghost to terrifie the soul : it is like a burning furnace in the bosome : it maketh the life bitter . in a word , the spirit of man is not able to bear it : the spirit of man will sustein its infirmities : but a wounded spirit who can bear ? as long as a mans spirit is sound , it will bear any thing . some have born agues , fevers , stones , colicks , convulsions , rackings , torturings : as long as a mans spirit is sound he is able to bear any of them , all of them : but a wounded spirit who can bear ? never was there man that was able to bear a wounded spirit . we may see by many of gods children how heavy it is : david rored with the anguish of it : a strange phrase . heman was ready even to runne out of his wits with it : while i suffer thy terrours , saith he , i am distracted , psal . 88.15 . moses putteth himself into the number , we are even consumed by thine anger , psal . 90.7 . ethan complaineth that it was like a burning fever : how long , o lord wilt thou hide thy face ? for ever ? shall thy wrath burn like fire ? psal . 89.46 . if it be thus with gods children , what may we think of the wicked ? if we could search into the bosomes of some wicked men who are enemies to god , then we might see and understand the true weight and burden of this troubled conscience . cain crieth out of more then he can bear . judas thought to find more ease in hell then in his own heart : so terrible was the torture of his troubled conscience , that he murdered himself , thinking verily that hell could not be worse . 2. see here what an infinite misery every sinner shall one day be in . though he be not troubled with this harpye for the present , though he be not yet gastered with this furious hag ; yet the day will come when he shall : i say the time will come when all ye that are wicked shall be haunted with this hellish agony of a troubled conscience ; either here before ye die , or when ye die , or at the furthest when your souls are departed out of your bodies : this is unavoydable to all that live and continue in sinne . though for a while ye live in mirth and pleasure and securitie , and conscience letteth you alone ; though like nabal to day ye feast and make merry ; yet there is a conscience within you , an abigail which to morrow will tell you of it , and then your hearts will die within you and be like stones , as cold and as heavie as a stone within you . as samuel met with saul , because thou hast forsaken the lord , the lord also hath forsaken thee : so conscience will find you out . however for a while ye slight and neglect it , or else perhaps suppresse it , yet it will find you out , as eliah did ahab , and then ye will say as he did , hast thou found me , o mine enemy ? yea , i have found thee : thou hast sold thy self to work wickednesse in the sight of the lord : thou hast been a profane beast , thou hast runne against heaven , and against god and christ ; and thy life hath been full of rebellions , &c. now i have found thee out . the day will come when thy conscience shall be like jobs messenger . ye know what news the messengers brought job ; first news of one great evil , and then of another greater , and then of a third worst of all ; cattel and goods taken away , servants dead , sonnes and daughters dead , i onely am left alive to tell thee : so , i say , the time will come when conscience shall thus report , thy pleasures are dead ; thy profits are dead ; thy comforts are dead ; thy heart is dead ; thy soul is cursed , and must die for ever ; and i onely am left alive to tell thee : and then he shall crie out , cursed was i that ever i was born : and cursed be the womb that bare me : and the paps that gave me suck . then shalt thou mourn at the last , when thy flesh and thy bodie are consumed , and thy conscience shall say , how have i hated instruction , and my heart despised reproof ? i have not obeyed the voyce of my teachers , nor enclined mine ears to them that instructed me . such dolefull messages conscience will bring in one day ; and then it shall hisse like a snake in thy bosome , know now that for all these things thou shalt come to judgement . and so thy conscience shall bray thee like a fool in a mortar , as it were with a pestill , and it shall pounce thee and beat thee and distresse thee for evermore . this is the moth that getteth into the cloth , and doth eat it : when thou with rebukes dost correct man for iniquitie , thou makest his beautie to consume away like as when a moth fretteth a garment . this will make thy face gather blacknesse , and thy spirit be overwhelmed for evermore . i must adde another use yet : for all this is the law : and untill ye be in christ ye are all under the law , the curse of it , the rigour of it : and we are bound to tell you how ye shall find it if ye do not submit to the righteousnesse of christ . but though we do preach the law , yet we do preach it in the hand of a mediatour , saith paul , gal. 3.19 . a terrible killing law , but yet in a mercifull hand , in the hand of a mediatour , to drive us to seek for mercie : and therefore the third use shall be , to call upon you to be humbled , and to see that there is no living for you in your sinnes . go and stoop to christ jesus , who onely can purge your guiltle consciences by his bloud . i beseech you , consider , ye who yet abide in your sinfull estates and are yet in the flesh : i beseech you , consider what the event will one day be . if ye will not look out , your consciences will find you out at the last , and then wo be to you . your consciences will make all things grievous and bitter to you , even those things which in themselves are most sweet and good : when ye heare of heaven , of mercie , of the bloud of christ , these will but encrease your miserie : conscience will say , you have no part in them . when you heare the word , any promise or comfortable passage in it , your conscience will say , yea , this is my miserie , i have no share in these things . this will be a hell unto you , and will torment you before your time . this will also make all outward good things bitter unto you : when you see wife and children and friends , then conscience will whisper and say , i shall not have these long : ere long i shall have none but damned companie . when you see your goods , estates , and the like , conscience will mutter , alas , ere long i shall be in a place where a drop of water shall not be afforded me to cool my tongue . when you see the light and other comfortable objects , o wo is me ; i shall shortly be in a place where i shall see nothing but darknesse , utter and everlasting darknesse . conscience will make your afflictions intolerable , your sicknesse intolerable , your death-bed intolerable , the face of death intolerable . i beseech you , brethren , consider these things , you that have not felt a troubled conscience untill this houre . ye hardly know yet what it is : ye will know it to your sorrow , if you do not consider it . there is a phrase in ezek. 30.24 . where god saith he will make pharaoh grone with the gronings of a man deadly wounded : so it will be with you , if you will not hearken and submit to jesus christ ; conscience will make you grone with fearfull grones ; o wo is me , i am undone , without hope , without remedie . consider this therefore , and be wise , before the things which concern your peace be hidden from you . and let me the rather exhort you to this in regard of the danger of the times . the lords wrath is gone out , and his judgements do flie through the earth , and his plagues do fall on every side of us : what will your guiltie consciences do now ? oh you can never endure them . ye had need of purged consciences now lest ye be quite comfortlesse in the day of visitation . how miserable is their case who want the peace of conscience in the time of distresse ? when troubles and afflictions are without , then how grievous is it to want peace and comfort within ? when gods mortall arrows are in your bodies , then to have the arrow of his wrath sticking in your souls , this will adde sorrow to sorrow , and make your estate much more uncomfortable and unsupportable . beloved , peace of conscience is good at all times ; but it is most precious when calamities fall on us : then to have the peace of a good conscience that may bring us good news from heaven , that all is well within , all peace there , this is such peace as all the world cannot give nor sell nor buy . never more need of the peace of conscience then now . as one said of the books of faith , there be abundance of books written of faith : buy them all up , saith he ; ye will need every one of them ere long : so may i say of whatever may forward the peace of conscience ; buy it , purchase it , get it , as much peace as you can possible : ye will have need of it all ere long . take heed of troubling your consciences or clogging them with guilt , lest the lord cast you off , and lest ye be hardned , and so ye perish from the right way . do not think thus , o we are believers , and have no need of such threatnings . he who is certain of his salvation knoweth assuredly he should be damned if he should go on in sinne without repentance ; this if is true enough ; if the righteous forsake his righteousnesse , all his former righteousnesse shall be forgotten . and , wo is me , saith paul , if i preach not the gospel . in the state of innocencie there was use of threatnings : so is there now in the state of grace . the lord threatned adam in innocencie , if thou eat thereof thou shalt die the death . job was awed by threatnings not to lift up his hand against the fatherlesse ; for , saith he , destruction from god was a terrour to me . my flesh , saith david , trembleth for fear of thee , and i am afraid of thy judgements . let us have grace , saith the apostle , whereby we may serve god acceptably with reverence and godly fear . why ? for our god is a consuming fire . for be it that gods children ( that is , all believers ) shall never fall finally away ; yet this threatning is one of christs instruments whereby he keepeth them from falling : and they also may tast of much bitternesse if they grow indulgent to their corruptions . o therefore take heed of this curse , that your consciences may not dog you with the guilt of sinne and the apprehension of gods wrath . you will never be able to bear it , much l●s●e in the time of affliction . o it is good being in a drie house when a great tempest is up : and it is safe being in a good harbour when a storm b●●teth hard . a good conscience is good at all ●imes ; but o how sweet then ! when jonah fell into affliction , the want of peace in his conscience made him look upon his affliction as upon hell , as though he had been in the belly of hell : they who follow lying vanities , forsake their own mercies , saith he . mark ; his conscience dogged him with his fleeing from god , and forsaking his own mercies . ye see he was miserably distressed by it till the lord did deliver him . be charie then of conscience , and get it purged , that it may speak peace to you in trouble . 4 questions . now i have declared unto you , what a troubled conscience is ; what is the cause of it , and wherein it consisteth ; how many degrees there be of it ; how the troubled conscience of the godly differeth from the troubled conscience of the wicked ; the miserie of a troubled conscience ; and , what a deal of mischief it doth one , especially in affliction : now i should leave this point , but that there be sundrie questions to be answered about it . i. suppose a man be rid of this trouble , and have peace of conscience , how shall he maintein it , and keep out troubles from it ? ii. whether and how the peace of our conscience dependeth upon our care and obedience ? iii. what manner of obedience it is that peace of conscience doth depend on ? iv. if a man have no peace , but onely a burdened conscience , what must such a man do to be freed from it and to attein true peace ? i. question ; how a man may keep peace of conscience . i begin with the first : suppose a man have peace of conscience , what must he do to keep and maintein it ? i answer , first , we must labour to prevent troubles of conscience by taking heed that we do nothing contrarie to conscience . we must not be drawn by friendship , or credit , or the love of any lust , to do that which conscience forbiddeth . nothing should be so dear unto us as the peace of conscience : nothing for the love of it should make us do ought against our conscience . how miserable are those comforts , delights , satisfactions which we get to our selves in such courses as our own hearts do condemne ! however they seem comforts for a while , and contentments for a while , and delights for a while , yet at last it will appear that miserable comforts are they all . nothing that we get in any evil way will chear and comfort us in a time of need . what said francis spira at the time of his death , when seeing his wife and children about him , and thinking on the goods and estate which he had got for them by denying the truth which he had before mainteined against the romish errours ▪ he cried out in the horrour of his conscience , how terrible is the sight of these unto me ! however before they had been comforts to him , yet now he could not endure the sight of them . o , thought he , i recanted for your sake ; i yielded to superstition , and it was long of you : therefore he abhorred now the sight o● them . wretched is he that alloweth himself in any course which his conscience findeth fault with . it is a good rule the apostle giveth , blessed is he that condemneth not himself in that which he alloweth : that is , blessed is he that hath not a condemning conscience , that alloweth not himself in any course wherein his conscience doth condemne him . so that if we have peace of conscience , and desire to maintein it , let us never allow our selves in any course that our conscience may condemne us in . that is the first answer . secondly , if we will maintein our peace , we must labour to have our hearts grounded in the assurance of the love of god : alas , it will fail us else , and leave us in trou●le and perplexitie in time of greatest need . observe how the apostle joyneth love and peace together , 2. cor. 13.11 . the god of love and peace be with you . if he be the god of love to us , it is sure enough he will be the god of peace also : if we know once that god loveth us , then we may set our hearts at rest : as long as we doubt of his love our conscience can never have true peace : and therefore if we would maintein true peace of conscience let us labour to be assured of gods love . thirdly , we must use the exercise of faith in applying the bloud of christ ; we must labour to purge and cleanse our consciences with it . if we find that we have sinned , we must runne presently to the bloud of christ to wash away our sinne . we must not let the wound fester or exulcerate , but presently get it healed . as there is a fountain of sinne in us , so there is a fountain of mercie in christ , set open for judah and jerusalem , and for every poore soul to wash in . as we sinne dayly , so he justifieth dayly , and we must dayly go to him for it : as every day we runne into new debts , so the lords prayer teacheth us every day to beg forgivenesse : we must every day eye the brazen serpent . justification is an ever-running fountain , and therefore we cannot look to have all the water at once . a fountain ever runneth anew ; so justification ever floweth anew , and we must go to it . christ is a priest for ever after the order of melchisedec . o let us sue out every day a dayly pardon of course ! let us not sleep one night without a new pardon . better sleep in a house full of adders and venemous beasts then sleep in one sinne . o then be sure with the day to clear the sinnes of the day : then shall our conscience have true peace . but how if i have relapsed ? what shall i do then ? i answer , every man that falleth doth not fall on all foure , as we use to say ; he doth not fall quite : there be degrees of falling . as in a sick man , though he be ill yet he is not by and by dead ; some life remaineth still , which will look out towards health again : so there is so much life in justification as to recover thee again . be constant therefore in this course : ever go to christ , ever wash in this fountain , ever bring thy soul hither to be cleansed ; and then thy conscience ever shall have peace . fourthly , if we would maintein our peace , then let us labour to be constant in obedience to jesus christ . whosoever keepeth his word , in him verily is the word of god perfected ; and hereby know we that we are in him , 1. john 2. 5. mark ; hereby our conscience may tell us that we are right , and speak peace to us , if we keep his word , ii. question ; how the peace of conscience doth depend upon our care and our obedience . the reason why i raise this question is this , because as our justification is onely in christ , so our peace is onely in him ; how then doth the peace of our conscience depend on obedience ? the place of scripture that occasioneth the doubt is , 1. pet. 3.21 . the answer of a good conscience towards god by the resurrection of jesus christ. it is by christ ; how dependeth it then on our obedience ? answ . 1. a good conscience doth not depend upon our obedience as the principall cause of it , but upon justification which we have by christ if we be in him : rom. 5.1 . being justified by faith we have peace with god through our lord jesus christ . ye see then that our peace is grounded upon our justification as the principall cause of it . if we should seek for peace from our works and obedience , alas , they are sinfull and defective ; there is no peace to be found in them : our conscience would be troubled at our best duties , at our weaknesse in prayer , our frailties in hearing , our slips in every holy service : there is nothing we do but our conscience might find fault with it , and pick a hole in it ; and therefore we had need to flie unto christ for true peace . no wonder then that papists have not true peace , but professedly say , that every man must doubt , and no man can be sure of his salvation . they must needs doubt indeed who trust to their own works : which can never bring true peace . the conscience must ever be quarrelling and finding of fault , and be without peace , if we trust to the best works . so that this is the first answer , all true peace dependeth upon justification by faith in christ as the principall cause . secondly , we answer , that our peace dependeth upon our obedience in this sort , that we can have no peace except we be given to obedience . those men that can sinne and yet be at peace , were never justified in their lives . a child of god when he sinneth ; as for example , if he should be tempted to lie , or to omit a good dutie , which he knoweth he is bound to perform ; yet this would much trouble his conscience ; his soul would be ashamed , his heart perplexed , he would not know how to look the lord in the face ; i have sinned : what shall i do unto thee , o thou preserver of men ? when david had sinned against god , i am troubled , saith he ; and i go mourning all the day long . and therefore peace of conscience doth depend thus farre on obedience , as that a man cannot have peace unlesse he be obedient , and take heed of sinne , and labour in all things to be upright before god. now if you ask me , but how doth our peace depend upon our obedience ? i answer , it dependeth upon obedience as the removing cause : it removeth that which would hinder our peace . sinne would interrupt our peace : now obedience removeth sinne . to this purpose the apostle speaketh 1. john 3.18 , 19. my little children , let us not love in word and in tongue , but in deed and in truth : for hereby we know that we are of the truth , and shall assure our hearts before god : hereby we shall assure our consciences that we are in him , if we take heed of hypocrisie : if we love in truth , and be obedient in truth , we shall thereby remove all our doubts and our fears , our troubles and perplexities of conscience . so that peace doth depend on obedience as the removing cause : it removeth that which otherwise would hinder peace . this is the first . again , our peace of conscience dependeth upon our obedience as the witnessing cause of it . obedience is one of the witnesses of true peace ; it witnesseth that we have peace with god. this is our rejoycing , even the testimony of our conscience , that in simplicitie and godly sinceritie we have had our conversation in the world . see here , it is the witnessing cause of it : paul had peace of conscience ; his conscience was able to make him rejoyce : how ? because it gave testimony that his conversation was godly and simple and gracious . though we be in christ , yet we can have no peace unlesse holy obedience doth witnesse the same . obedience is not the cause of the peace of our consciences before god , but it is the cause of our perceiving the same : we know we have peace by reason of our obedience : we know that every one that doeth righteousnesse is born of god : we know we are passed from death to life , because we love the brethren : hereby we know that we dwell in him and he in us , by the spirit that he hath given us . mark ; we come to know it by obedience and by the fruits of obedience . take away obedience , we can never know peace . they that walk by this rule , peace shall be upon them and upon the israel of god , saith the apostle . thirdly , our peace of conscience dependeth on our obedience as the confirming cause : christ confirmeth our peace to us by making us walk close to him and obedient unto him . paul sheweth how it preserveth peace , as a shoe preserveth the foot : ye know if we should walk without shoes , barefoot , our feet would be in danger of pricking and hurting : so doth obedience to the gospel preserve our peace : stand , saith the apostle , having your feet shod with the preparation of the gospel of peace . mark ; he compareth it to a shoe , which he would have us shod with ; and then it will be the gospel of peace to us , and our peace shall be in safety . fourthly , our peace dependeth upon our obedience , not onely as a signe of true peace , nor onely as a guard to it , but as a thing pleasing to god , without the which we displease god. for though god be pleased with his children alwayes in christ , yet he is not pleased that any in christ should be disobedient to him . ye have received of us how ye ought to walk and to please god , saith the apostle . when gods children walk in obedience , that is pleasing unto god. so that peace of conscience doth greatly depend on obedience : for otherwise conscience will be troubled ; o i do not please god ; this is displeasing unto god ; and , this doth provoke god. not as though there were any such perfection in our obedience that can satisfie any tittle of gods law ; but because when our persons are pleasing to god in jesus christ , then our obedience to god is pleasing too in jesus christ , and conscience will say it . thus much shall suffice for answer to the second question . iii. question ; what manner of obedience it is that peace of conscience dependeth upon ? the reason of this question is this ; because it should seem there is no such obedience in this life as any peace of conscience should depend on . doth not james say , in many things we sinne all ? doth not our saviour say , when ye have done all that ye can , say , we are unprofitable servants ? if our conscience can still say that we are unprofitable , and that we do sinne in every thing that we do , yea in many things , in all the duties we go about ; if our consciences can say thus , how can any peace depend upon obedience ? what obedience do you mean that peace of conscience dependeth upon ? i answer , 1. absolute perfection in obedience is not required unto evangelicall peace . for if it were , no man could have peace ; no not paul , nor abraham , nor any of the holiest of gods children : and therefore absolute perfection is not required . if we say we have not sinned , we make christ a liar , and his word is not in us , 1. john 1.10 . our conscience can still say we have sinned ; and it can still say our obedience is imperfect : a halting leg can never go perfectly . a jacob is called he that halteth ; and every godly soul halteth ; though he do not halt between two , as wicked people do , yet he halteth in following after god. what purblind eye can see perfectly ? or thick eare heare perfectly ? he that hath these imperfections of body can neither go nor see nor heare perfectly ; so the best of gods children have imperfections of heart and spirit and mind : their faith is imperfect , their love is imperfect ; and therefore their obedience must needs be imperfect . but absolute perfection is not required to true peace of conscience ; and therefore this doth not hinder it . 2. though absolute perfection be not required to peace , yet such obedience is required as may be acceptable to god. so saith the apostle , we labour that whether present or absent we may be accepted of him . such obedience we must shew as may be accepted of him , or we cannot have true peace . if our endeavours be not acceptable , our conscience will quickly heare of it , and tell us so : if we pray coldly , or heare unprofitably , or live loosely , if we do not do that which is acceptable to god , our consciences will soon complain . nay though we do do the duties , if we do not do them in an acceptable manner , conscience will have matter against us still . 3. this acceptablenesse of obedience lieth in this , when our obedience is sincere , universall , and totall , and proceeding from the spirit of christ jesus dwelling in us . the apostle giveth it this phrase , when we walk not after the flesh but after the spirit , rom. 8.4 . that is our fulfilling the law , when christ hath fulfilled the law for us , and maketh us sincerely to walk by it , not after the flesh but after the spirit : when we do not favour our selves in one lust , nor suffer our selves in any beloved sinne ; but whatever it be that is evil , our conscience can say we truly do hate it and labour to avoid it ; whatever it be that is commanded us , be it never so contrary to our nature , yet our conscience can say we sincerely set our selves to do it . so walking not after the flesh but after the spirit , this is sincerity of obedience , and this is required unto peace . 4. this sincerity of obedience maketh us to bewail our very infirmities , and to be humbled for them : not onely to be humbled for greater sinnes , but also to be humbled for our infirmities . if we be not soundly humbled for our very infirmities also , they will hinder the peace of our conscience : we can have no peace except our conscience can witnesse that our infirmities do humble us and drive us to christ and cause us to sue out a pardon . if conscience have not a pardon sealed for infirmities also , it will not be at peace . christ bare our very infirmities : therefore we must be humbled for them , and go to him for pardon of them too , or conscience will not be at peace . thus i have answered also this third question . iv. question ; how if a man have a burdened and troubled conscience , what must he do to be freed from it ? the reason of this question is this ; because men are ignorant about it . when men are troubled in conscience and burdened a little that way , presently they daub all with peace , and go a wrong way to work . this course the lord doth complain of in the false prophets who preached too much peace ; they have healed the hurt of the daughter of my people slightly saying , peace , peace , when there is no peace . and so they do more hurt then good : like a chirurgion that skinneth the wound before he giveth searching salves to kill the matter of it : afterwards it breaketh out worse , and it is a hundred to one but it will cost the patient his life : so it is with many men : a man cannot rore a little for his sinnes , i have been a sinner , and what shall i do ? i have been a beast , &c. but , o , say they , believe man , christ died for thee , and the promise is to thee , and god will pardon thee . thus they heal him slightly with peace , peace , and it may be there is no peace to him yet ; he had need to be searched more deeply : they skinne the wound , and it is a thousand to one but it loseth the mans soul , by giving a cordiall where a corrosive was necessarie . and therefore great reason that this question should be answered , if a man have a burdened troubled conscience , what must such a man do to be freed from it ? i answer , 1. let him take heed that he meddle not too much with the secret will of god , what his decree and purpose is from eternitie . as soon as an arrow is shot into the conscience , and the conscience cometh to be humbled , commonly the heart layeth about it , an● how if god have reprobated me ? and what if he have appointed me to wrath ? how then ? beloved , ye must take heed of this : if your hearts fasten upon reprobation , that will marre all : that will quite discourage a poore soul from going to god. 2. understand the word right . do not think that because god hath not in particular named thee , therefore he hath excluded thee . gods promises are made in generall to all that believe ▪ and they are to be applyed in particular to all them that believe : why then shouldst thou exclude thy self when god doth not exclude thee ? wouldst thou have christ ? christ to justifie thee ? christ to sanctifie thee ? christ to rule thee ? wouldst thou be under christs regiment , and live at his will ? come and welcome : no soul is excepted . whosoever will , let him take of the water of life freely . ye see there is a quicunque vult . whosoever will. indeed if thou hast not a will to be in christ ; but thou wilt do thus and thus , and thou wilt have thy will , and this lust , and that friend , and such a course , and , tush , this is too strict ; nay , if you be there thou art not for christ : i have nothing for thee but hell and damnation . but if thou wouldst have christ indeed , and be in christ indeed , thy heart in christ , thy will in christ , thy whole self in christ ; then arise , he calleth thee . thus understand the word right , the gospel doth not exclude thee whosoever thou art . 3. thou must not for fear of shame or losse , &c. keep from restitution wheresoever thou hast done wrong , or satisfaction wheresoever thou hast cozened , or reformation wheresoever thou art accustomed to any evil , or the doing any thing that may procure ease and quiet to thy conscience . it may be one is troubled in conscience for his wronging his neighbour in twentie pounds , and if he would make restitution he might have sound peace : but he will not ; no , he daubeth up his conscience some other way . another it may be suffereth disorders in his familie and foul abuses , which if he would redresse he might have peace : but he will not . another , if he would down with his pride ; another , if he would be acquainted with gods servants , or if he would take any pains in good duties , be more diligent for the work of repentance , &c. but these things will not be done : men plaister up their consciences ( i know not how ) some other way , and so go to hell for not taking the right way . but if any of you be troubled in conscience , keep back nothing , hold back nothing that may make for your true peace and quiet . 4. thou must wait on god : cast thy self at his feet , humbly desire him to give thee the true peace of conscience . but wait gods leisure , knowing thou hast deserved to be utterly deprived of it : and thus doing thou shalt find it to thy great comfort at last . blessed are all they that wait for him ; that is , when the lord will be mercifull . he will do it with judgement ; he will do it when it may do thee the most good , when it may bring himself most glorie : therefore it is fit thou shouldst wait for his time of comforting . now because many do misconstrue this waiting gods leisure , ( as for example , one is dead to all good duties , o , ●aith he , i wait the lords leisure till he quicken me : my heart is much hardned , saith another ; but i wait the lords leisure till he be pleased to soften it . thus men are lazie in the mean while ; and yet they think they wait the lords leisure . o beloved , this is not the waiting the lord meaneth ; this will not stay conscience ; conscience is guiltie for all this waiting ) therefore i beseech you consider what waiting i mean. 1. wait upon the lord , and keep his way ; thou dost not wait else , unlesse thou keep praying , and striving , and meditating , and enquiring , and watching thine own heart lest it should slip aside . 2. thou must wait as a servant waiteth upon his master : if his master calleth , he cometh ; if he sendeth , he goeth ; if he beckeneth , he taketh notice : so thou must wait . as servants wait upon their masters , so our eyes wait upon the lord till he have mercie upon us . be obedient in the mean time : go when he sendeth ; come when he calleth ; observe when he beckeneth ; be diligent to be doing his pleasure . 3. thou must wait onely upon god , not upon thy lusts too , and upon other things too ; but thou must wait onely upon god : my soul , wait thou onely upon god , saith david , psal . 62.5 . if thou wait upon any thing else , this is not to wait upon god. one waiteth a time to be revenged ; another waiteth a time to satisfie this or that lust : this is not to wait upon god at all . 4. take heed of healing thy self , and comforting thy self , or daubing up thy conscience thy self : if thou dost so , thou dost not wait upon god to do it : if thou dost it thy self , and snatchest at comfort thy self before he do give it , then thou dost not wait till he give it . suppose a man hath done thee an injury ; the lord he will right thee if thou wilt wait : but if thou go and recompense evil for evil , and right thy self , thou dost not wait upon god as solomon adviseth , say not thou , i will recompense evil ; but wait on the lord and he will save thee . mark ; thou must not save thy self , thine own credit , &c. by revenging , but wait on god for all . so here if thy conscience be troubled , thou must wait upon god to comfort it : if thou goest and daubest up the matter thy self , and criest , peace , peace , to thy self , thou dost not wait upon god. thus i have answered the last question , how if a man have a burdened and troubled conscience , what must such a man do to be freed from it ? and hitherto we have spoken of the two last adjuncts of conscience , a quiet conscience , and an unquiet conscience ; what they be , and , how they differ : and we have resolved and answered the questions and difficulties about them . conscience beareth witnesse of our persons . concerning the witnesse of conscience , i told you that conscience beareth witnesse of two things : 1. it beareth witnesse of our actions ; 2. it beareth witnesse of our persons . the former hath been declared unto you at large : i come now to the latter ; conscience beareth witnesse also of our persons , whether we be good or evil , whether in christ or in sinne : and here i will shew you foure things : 1. that every mans conscience may inform him what state he is in , whether of salvation or damnation , whether of grace or of nature . 2. how conscience doth it . 3. when conscience doth it . 4. how it cometh to passe then that so many thousands mistake and are ignorant and deluded about their estates . 1. for the first , that every mans conscience may inform him what estate he is in , whether good or bad ; ( i speak especially of such as live under the light of the gospel of christ . ) there are two rules : the one is gods word , which pointeth out both estates ; and the other is every mans conscience , which is privy to the frame and standing of every mans own heart , and which of these estates his estate is , conscience is privy to this . i will instance in some sorts of men . 1. the jews , who contented themselves with formality : they sacrificed , they offered , they payed their tithes , they did that which moses commanded them for the letter of it : now ye shall see their conscience could tell them that they were not perfect nor upright with god : all their duties , and formalities , and gifts , and sacrifices could not make them that did the service perfect , as perteining to the conscience , heb. 9.9 . mark ; their consciences could say they were not upright for all this . as they were not upright , so their conscience could tell them they were not upright . 2. another instance we have in the scribes and pharisees : when they would have condemned the woman taken in adultery , their own conscience was privy that they were sinners themselves , john 18.9 . so also it is with a child of god : his conscience is able to inform him that he is a child of god , and that he doth truly serve god. i thank god , saith paul , whom i serve with a pure conscience . his conscience told him he was a true servant of god , and that he was gods : whose i am , saith he . so davids conscience ; i am thine ; save me : for i have sought thy commandments . so the church ; my beloved is mine , and i am his . ye see then how conscience can inform and tell us what estate we are in , whether we be godly or carnall , whether our conversation be in heaven or on earth , whether we be in christ or out of him . the spirit of man knoweth what is in him . it is easie to know what our great thoughts of heart are upon , what our greatest purposes and projects and studies be ; whether about god or the world : the spirit of a man must needs know it . and therefore every man may draw out from conscience a true conclusion how it is with him . the reasons are these : 1. the first is taken from the nature of conscience . the nature of conscience is such that it must needs be able to know what is with a man. now his welldoings or his illdoings are with him : he was with himself when he did them ▪ when thou art proud , or impatient , or carelesse in any duty , thou art with thy self when thou art so : all thy illdoings are with thee : and therefore thy conscience must needs know what thou art . our transgressions are with us ; and as for our iniquities we know them . take a curser ; and , as solomon saith , thine own heart knoweth that thou hast used to curse others . so it is with a godly soul : thine obedience is with thee , and thy self-deniall is with thee , and thy care to walk before god , all is with thee ; and therefore thou must needs know it . this is the nature of conscience ; it is privy to what is with one . 2. the second reason is taken from the equity of gods judgements on the wicked . the lord he will judge none to hell , but his conscience shall confesse he was one that walked in the way to hell and death . ye may reade it in the man that had not on the wedding-garment : when christ did charge him with his not having on a wedding-garment , and did condemne him to utter darknesse , the text saith , he was speechlesse ; that is , his conscience confessed that christs judgement was just : i have not on a wedding-garment , saith his conscience ; and it is my fault that i have none ; and i am rightly condemned . thus his conscience did know it ; otherwise he could not have been speechlesse in his own desense . as festus told agrippa that he answered the priests , it is not the manner of the romanes to deliver any man to dye before that he who is accused have his accusers face to face , and have licence to answer for himself concerning the crime laid against him : so may i say , that the great judge of quick and dead will not judge any man to hell but he will have his accusers face to face , and if he can answer for himself he may . now if conscience be not privy to what estate soever a wicked man is in , his conscience could never accuse him face to face at the last day , nor justifie the lord jesus and make the sinner stand speechlesse before god. he might answer , lord , i do not know any such thing as is laid to my charge : i am not convinced that the case is thus and thus with me , that i am in such an estate as i am accused of . no wicked man shall be able to say thus : therefore conscience can inform a man in what estate he is . 3. the third reason is taken from the lords manner of judging the godly . he will judge them and absolve them secundùm allegata & probata , as we say , according to the word and their own consciences . ye may see the true form of judgement which the lord will go by , matth. 25. where the lord convinceth the whole world who were righteous and who not , who to be judged to punishment , and who to life for ever ; at last he concludeth , the wicked shall go away into everlasting punishment , but the righteous into life eternall . as if he had said , your consciences can say ye are wicked : ye did not feed , nor clothe , nor visit me : go your wayes to hell . so for the righteous ; your consciences can say ye are righteous : go ye to heaven . thus the lord will do . now this could not be if conscience could not inform every one that is godly that he is so : if conscience could not witnesse what estate they are in , this could not be . thus ye see the truth of the first thing . ii. the second thing that i promised to shew you is , how conscience doth this . ye have heard that it is able to inform every one what estate he is in before god : now it followeth to consider , how conscience doth it . this it doth by comparing the word of god with our hearts , and our hearts with the word : as for example ; they who have respect to all gods commandments shall never be ashamed , saith the word : but , saith conscience , i desire to know all my dutie to god and man , and to perform all that i know : and therefore i shall not be ashamed . to him that soweth righteousnesse shall be a sure reward , saith the word : but , saith conscience , i plough up my nature and all the fallow-ground of my heart , and i sow righteousnesse : and therefore to me shall be a sure reward . so , to be spiritually minded is life and peace , saith the word ; but , saith conscience , i am spiritually minded ; my mind is set upon things that are spirituall : therefore i have life and peace . so conscience also judgeth of the state of sinne . those that live after the flesh shall die , saith the word : but , saith conscience , my life is led after the flesh and the lusts of it : therefore i shall die . he that believeth not is condemned already , saith the word : but , saith conscience , i do not believe : therefore i am in the state of condemnation . the word saith , a good tree bringeth forth good fruit , and a corrupt tree bringeth forth corrupt fruit : but , saith conscience , my works and my courses are corrupt and naught : therefore so is my heart . thus ye see that conscience doth it by reasoning : and this conscience can very well do ; 1. because conscience hath a very good judgement . it is a very wise and judicious facultie in the soul of man. some make it an act of judgement . we do not take it so : it is not an act of judgement , but it is a reflexive facultie of the soul having a very good judgement . whether it be right to obey you rather then god , judge ye , saith peter , acts 4.19 . appealing to their own consciences to judge in the point . so that conscience is a facultie of a good judgement . now if it be judicious , it must needs be able to reason and to argue about our estates , and find out whether they be good or no. it is the judgement of man that is able to argue , and able to hold an argument : we thus judge , saith the apostle , that if one died for all , then are all dead , 2. cor. 5.14 . mark ; his proposition he would prove was , that all the believers in christ are dead to themselves and alive unto god. now ye may see how his judgement maketh here an argument ; if christ died for them all , then they are all dead : but christ died for them all : therefore they are all dead . judgement is able to make arguments : and therefore if conscience be a reflexive faculty that hath a very good judgement , it must needs be able to frame arguments , and so make out what our estates are . 2. because there is naturall logick in every mans conscience : it can frame syllogismes , thus , as many as be led by the spirit of god , are the sonnes of god , saith the word : but , saith a godly mans conscience , i am led by gods spirit , and i am carefull to follow the leading of gods holy spirit : therefore i am one of gods sonnes . and so on the other side . ye will say , how can a countrey-mans conscience make syllogismes ? it is onely for scholars and such as have studied logick in the schools to make syllogismes . i answer , it is true ; artificiall logick is onely among scholars : but there is naturall logick in conscience , which doth not stand upon forms . the godly people at rome were never brought up at universitie : yet the apostle telleth them they had logick enough to argue themselves to be dead unto sinne and alive unto god through christ ; likewise also , saith he , reckon ye your selves to be dead indeed unto sinne , but alive unto god through jesus christ our lord. the originall is , 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 , exercise so much logick in your selves ; like good logicians prove your selves to be dead unto sinne and alive to god. so that ye see there is naturall logick in conscience : and therefore conscience is able to frame arguments about our estate , and to inform us what it is . iii. the third thing i propounded to consider is , when conscience doth this . this is a very necessarie point : and indeed so they are all ; but this more especially . i have shewed that conscience is able to inform us what estate we are in , whether of grace or nature : but when doth it perform this ? i answer , i need not so much speak of the godly , because they do mark conscience . but let me speak of such as are foolish , disobedient , serving divers lusts , who never had yet the washing of regeneration nor the renewing of the holy ghost : i answer about them ; 1. their conscience must needs have a time when to do it . i do remember my faults this day , saith pharaohs butler , gen. 41.9 . his conscience did inform him ; and there was a time when his conscience did inform him . 2. conscience would choose a time by it self : it would inform a wicked man solemnly and punctually of his rotten and cursed estate he is in . i say , it would have a solemn time by it self for this , if it could have it : but a wicked man taketh an order with his conscience that it shall not tell him solemnly how it is with him ; neither will he find a time to suffer it : as it was with felix ; when his conscience began to grumble against him , when paul had told him of righteousnesse and of judgement , he trembled ▪ his conscience began to stirre , and would then have solemnly dealt with him indeed : but he shuffled it off , and would not find time ; go thy way at this time , saith he to paul ; i will heare thee at a more convenient time . and so he said to his conscience too . conscience would take a solemn and set time to inform men what their estates are ; but men will not suffer them : and therefore conscience is fain to take such sudden times as it can get . ye will ask , what times be they ? i answer , first , when conscience interlineth : as for example , in the hearing of the word : while men are hearing the word , it may be the preacher preacheth of holinesse , and a wicked man heareth it ; but i have it not , saith his conscience . mark ; his conscience interlineth . it may be the preacher is preaching how desperately carelesse men are of their souls , how they look to every thing more then to them ; conscience interlineth , this is my case . it may be he is preaching against adulterie ; this sinne i have committed , saith a guiltie conscience : or against rushing upon gods ordinances without preparation ; this is my constant course , saith an evil mans conscience . it may be the preacher is preaching of conversion and becoming a new creature in christ ; this i am yet to seek in , saith conscience . thus conscience interlineth : though the man heareth on , and it may be taketh little to heart , yet conscience interlineth a sudden information of his wretched estate . like a bi●d that flieth by , or like a swift-shot arrow , that is presently out of sight , so it may be a man taketh very lit●le notice of it . like the forenamed felix : as paul was preaching of righteousnesse and temperance , i have it not , saith his conscience ; and of judgement to come , what shall i do then ? saith his conscience . thus conscience interlined , and made him tremble on a sudden , like a sudden shivering of a cold , or a sudden startle of a man affrighted , and away it was gone quickly . i beseech you observe your own bosomes . do ye not feel this now and then at a sermon , when ye heare it ? do not your consciences interline our sermons , and put in parentheses now and then ? when ye heare such and such a sinne reproved , condemned , and this is my sinne , saith conscience : when ye heare these and these graces commended , and i never had these , saith conscience : when ye heare these and these marks of a carnall estate , and these or some of these are in me , saith conscience ? do not your consciences interline in this manner ? as paul was speaking to the shipmen concerning god , his conscience did sweetly interline thus , there stood by me this night an angel of god , whose i am , saith his conscience . and as he was writing to the romanes , god is my witnesse , saith he , whom i serve in my spirit . but do not your consciences interline otherwise with you ? if they do , i beseech you consider it : your consciences do then truly inform you of your rotten estates : listen to them . secondly , when conscience falleth a choking . as for example , in prayer : a wicked man prayeth ; but i do not pray right , saith his conscience . i humbly beseech thee , o lord : nay , but i do not beseech humbly , saith his conscience . i desire to be sanctified & purged from my sins : nay , but i do not hunger after any such thing , saith conscience . i do not confesse my sinnes right , nor beg for grace right . do your consciences choke you thus ? now your consciences inform you of your estates . peradventure ye hardly perceive this choking at all : it is done in a moment , and it presently ceaseth , because ye are not willing to heare it : and therefore it may be conscience doth it by sudden flashes . it is said the lord spake suddenly to moses : so often conscience speaketh suddenly to men , a word and away . as david saith of the wicked , god shall shoot an arrow at them , and they shall be wounded on a sudden : so conscience shooteth a quick arrow , and it woundeth men in the twinkling of an eye , and it is gone . lord , have mercy upon us , said one : but i should not say so vainly and in ordinary talk , saith conscience . i do not hate this man for his holinesse and strictnesse : but you do , saith conscience . and so when men are defending evil by arguments ; but this is false , saith conscience . thus conscience choketh on a sudden , and is gone . i confesse generally the men of the world mark not these things : they are such sudden sparklings of conscience that men for the most part do not heed them : but these are gods witnesses ; and men shall know one day they were truly informed of their estates by these instantaneous items of conscience . thirdly , when conscience shooteth like a stitch in a mans side . as for example ; sometimes when men are about their callin●s and their wordly businesse , then cometh conscience like a sudden stitch in ones side , and giveth them a twitch , o how worldly am i ! saith conscience : shall i never get this worldly-mindednes cured ? many times conscience speaketh while men are working , or playing , or eating , or buying , or selling . fourthly , so likewise when conscience commenteth upon the judgements of god. let an adulterer fall sick ; yea , this is for mine adulterie , saith his conscience . let a company-keeper be in want of outward things ; yea , this is my drunkennesse , saith conscience : this is my wickednesse , my way , my doings which have procured me these things ; this ague , this poverty , this shame , this discomfort . thus i have shewed you how conscience doth inform the wicked of their wretched estate ; and when it doth it . it remaineth now that i speak something of the fourth point . iv. 4 how cometh it to passe then that so many thousands mistake , and are ignorant and deluded about their estates ? the reason of this doubt is this ; seeing conscience is able to inform every one what his estate is , whether it be blessed or cursed ; and seeing also that conscience doth it ; and doth it by argument ; and hath its time when it doth it : a man now would wonder that any should be ignorant of his estate when his own conscience doth tell him how it is with him . for answer i will explain unto you two things : 1. the reasons why men are mistaken ; 2. the reasons why they are mistaken though conscience inform them . first , they build upon false grounds which are not in gods word . some are so foolish that they build upon outward things , as health , peace , prosperitie , successe , and the like . they prosper , and all things go well with them , and therefore sure god is at peace with them : this is not so ; but they think so though . some again build upon grounds which men of corrupt minds do give them , or which they take from the common opinion of most , thinking that to be faith and repentance which the most take so to be , or which a teacher fit for their palate taketh so to be . on the contrarie side , weak christians oftentimes mistake themselves by judging their estates to be bad , because god letteth them be poore and mean & comfortlesse in the world : therefore they conclude god is angrie with them , or that they are not that which they seem to themselves to be , because they are so crossed in all outward things . this is the first reason of errour in this kind . 2. a second reason is the not-right understanding of gods word : as when men judge of themselves by such places of scripture as were not intēded to be rules & to be of use to such ends as they apply them : as whosoever calleth upon the lord shall be saved , rom. 10.13 . hence the wicked may falsely conclude , i call upon the lord , and i pray unto him ; therefore i shall be saved . and so on the contrarie , a weak christian who findeth not in himself those degrees of grace which some places of scripture seem to require concludeth from thence against himself , therefore i have no grace at all . this is a second cause of mistaking . 3. a third cause is the not trying and examining our own hearts . some are loth to trouble themselves about it : they are loth to think so bad of themselves as that they are in such a course as wherein god will not love them . nay , they cannot endure that others should discover their hearts unto them : they had as lieve they should shew them the pit of hell as shew them themselves . they look to some common gifts and graces that are in them , such gifts and graces may be in a reprobate , but they will not think so ; as illumination , knowledge , the gift of prayer , of temperance , &c. these they look to , and these they speak of , though they have reigning lusts within in their hearts : as jehu ; come , see my zeal , saith he , 2. kings 10.16 . he doth not say , come , see my pride and hypocrisie : but , my zeal . jehu looked at his zeal , and so thought he was right . so on the contrarie , weak christians may sometimes look onely at their sinnes and infirmities , and take no notice of gods graces that are in them , & so may mistake their own selves , & conclude amisse of their estates . thus i have shewed you the reasons why men are mistaken about their estates . now i will shew you the reasons why men are mistaken though conscience do tell them . 1. because the speeches of conscience in the wicked many times , yea most times , are low speeches . the gnawings of conscience whereby they are told they are in a bad and a damned estate are like the gnawings of a very little worm that a man can hardly feel . where their worm dieth not : the word in the originall , 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 signifieth a very little worm that breedeth in scarlet , that a man can very hardly see or perceive : so men sometimes do hardly see or perceive the condemning and gnawing of conscience . again , conscience biteth suddenly , as i told you ; it giveth a little nip , and away : like a sparrow that flieth by ; it flieth so fast by a mans eye that he can scarce tell whether it be a sparrow or no : so it is not easily perceived whether it be a condemning conscience or no : it giveth such sudden nips , and away , that men seldome take notice . beloved , there is never a wicked man under heaven ; unlesse he be delivered up absolutely to a reprobate sense , but hath a thousand of these sudden momentany nips every day in the yeare . had he the heart to observe them ( but be hath not ) he might see his wretched estate , to trouble him , and provoke him to christ , and to be converted that god might heal him ; i say , had he a heart he might see it : but these nips are so secret and sudden that he doth not . so likewise it is with the godly in regard of true comfort : their conscience suddenly flasheth in comfort , and they many times do not observe it . as job speaketh of god , lo , he goeth by me , and i see him not : he passeth on also , and i perceive him not : so doth the lord go by his children in the sudden flashes of comfort in their conscience , but many times they see him not , perceive him not . 2. because the devil blindeth mens eyes , therefore they do not see what their consciences do shew them . ye may reade this of the wicked people in corinth : s t paul saith he commended himself and the gospel to every mans conscience in the sight of god ; that is , he did so preach , and so live , that every mans conscience could not choose but say , certainly paul preacheth the truth , and paul liveth right , and we must live as he speaketh and doeth . he made their consciences say thus , and to tell them they were not right if they did not . but mark what followeth : some did not see this : why ? the god of this world , saith he , hath blinded their eyes . so the god of this world blindeth the eyes of the wicked , that what their consciences shew them they do not see it nor observe it . so for gods people ; though they be in a good and a blessed estate , and their consciences can say it , yet satan oftentimes hindereth them that they do not perceive their own comfort . 3. men do not love conscience . we should love conscience better then the dearest friend we have under heaven . we would do much for a friends sake : but we should do a thousand times more for conscience sake : obey magistrates for conscience sake ; suffer disgrace , reproches , any thing , for conscience sake . it is better then all the friends in the world . but the wicked , they do not love conscience : let conscience speak , they care not to heare it . they will heare friends , but they will not heare conscience . let their lusts call , and their profits and pleasures call for this and that thing , they heare all : but they love not to heare conscience . nay , many wicked men are angry to heare talk of it . when paul had made mention of conscience , ananias commanded he should be smitten : men and brethren , saith paul , i have lived in all good conscience before god untill this day . smite him on the mouth , saith the high priest ananias . he was angry to heare him talk of a good conscience . this is most certain ; men do not love conscience , nor to be curbed by conscience , nor informed by conscience : they had as lieve see the devil as that their consciences should inform them of their estates , and tell them thus and thus they are . they are told rightly , and yet they are mistaken , because they do not love to heare conscience of that theme . of a good and bad conscience . ye have heard concerning the witnesse-bearing of conscience about our estates . the next thing to be spoken of is that welknown distinction of a good and a bad conscience . this distinction we reade of in scripture : concerning a good conscience see heb. 13.18 . we trust we have a good conscience . concerning a bad conscience see heb. 10.22 . having our hearts sprinkled from an evil conscience . there be both the members of the distinction . of them both briefly and in order ; and first of a good conscience . the goodnesse of conscience is twofold ; naturall , and renewed . 1. the naturall goodnesse of conscience consisteth in those reliques of goodnesse which it reteineth since the creation . ye know man depraved and corrupted his conscience by his fall : yet there be some reliques left , as reason , and knowledge , and reflexion . i do not mean reliques of any spirituall goodnesse in conscience : for as there is no spirituall goodnesse left in the other faculties of the soul , so neither in conscience . but the naturall goodnesse which i mean is nothing else but the veracity of conscience , whereby it is inforced according to the knowledge it hath to tell the truth . thus every wicked man hath a good conscience : their conscience is good in that sense ; their conscience hath this naturall goodnesse , that it telleth them the truth how it is with them . nay , it is essentiall to conscience to be good in this sense . it is the essentiall property of conscience to speak according to its knowledge . it is the best faculty a wicked man hath : it is better then his mind , or heart , or will. there is more goodnesse in a wicked mans conscience then in any other of the powers of his soul : his conscience speaketh more for god then himself doth , and standeth more for god then himself will. not but that as all the powers of the soul are desperately corrupted by sinne , so conscience is desperately corrupted as well as any of them : but i speak of the essentiall goodnesse of it , which can never be lost . the devils in hell have not lost the goodnesse of their essence : nay , their essence is better then the essence of gods saints : their essence must be good , because that is gods creature ; nay , better then any mans essence , because the lord made them a degree above man. and as man is a degree above beasts , so angels are a degree above man : so conscience is a degree above other powers of the soul in its naturall goodnesse . that conscience hath such a naturall goodnesse in it , see it in those cursed scribes and pharisees , hypocrites , who brought the woman taken in adultery to christ : their conscience was good ; they were convicted of their consciences : their consciences dealt honestly with them , and told them the truth that they were wicked sinners themselves . this is the naturall goodnesse in conscience . 2. a renewed good conscience . i call it a renewed good conscience , because when a man is renewed , all the man is renewed ; all his mind and the spirit of it is renewed , ephes . 4.23 . that ye may be renewed in the spirit of your mind . if the man be renewed , all the mind must be renewed ; and therefore the conscience must be renewed too ; for the mind and the conscience ever go together : nay , conscience is mainly seated in the mind ; and therefore if the mind be renewed , so is the conscience ; and if the mind be defiled , so is the conscience . to them that are defiled is nothing pure , but their minds and consciences are defiled . mark ; when they are defiled , they are defiled together : so when they are washed and renewed , they are washed and renewed together . now this renewed conscience is either perfect or defective . 1. perfect . i mean not perfect in every degree of goodnesse : for so no mans conscience in the world is perfect : but i mean perfect in every part and condition of goodnesse . 2. a defective good renewed conscience is that which faileth in some conditions of goodnesse . we call it a weak conscience , which is apt to be polluted and defiled again . 1. cor. 8.7 . their conscience being weak is defiled . this is a defective good conscience , a conscience renewed , but imperfectly renewed . i. to a good conscience that is soundly renewed five things are necessary . 1. knowledge of gods will , and that which doth follow the true knowledge of his will , namely true humiliation and fear . by nature the conscience is blind and sturdy and venturous ; and therefore it is necessary that it should be illightened to understand the will of god and to presse it : and again it is necessary that the heart should be humbled , or else it will not stoop to gods will : and it is necessary also that this holy fear should fall upon the heart , that it may not dare to transgresse . s t peter being to speak of a good conscience , premiseth all these as necessarie thereunto : first he adviseth that christians have knowledge to be able to give a reason of the hope that is in them ; and then that they should have meeknesse and fear , for to do it : with meeknesse and fear , saith he , having a good conscience . mark ; knowledge and meeknesse and fear are required to make a good conscience ; without them the conscience cannot be good . by nature we are all blind , and stubborn , and fearlesse of sinning : and therefore till we be cured of these evils , our consciences cannot be good . 2. the second thing is a watchfulnesse and warfare against sinne : this is required too to a renewed good conscience . by nature we are drowsie , and carelesse , and secure , and do not stand upon our guard to wage warre against our lusts and the desires of our flesh ; and so long our consciences can never be good : and therefore this spirituall watchfulnesse and mainteining warre against sinne is required to the having a good conscience : that thou maist warre a good warrefare , saith paul to timothie , having faith and a good conscience , 1. tim. 1.18 , 19. some who seemed to have a good conscience , because they did not maintein this holy warfare against sinne and the flesh , they have lost it : therefore this is another requisite required to a good conscience . 3. the third is tendernesse of conscience . by nature our hearts are seared , and dead , and unclean : and therefore we must get us tender and pure hearts if we would have good renewed consciences . the end of the commandment is love , out of a pure heart and good conscience and faith unfeigned , 1. tim. 1.5 . see how the apostle compoundeth them together , a pure heart and a good conscience . we must get our hearts purged and quickened , that they may be sensible of the least evil ; and then our consciences will be good and be as a bridle to hold us from evil . a hard heart and a good conscience can never stand together . 4. the fourth is the cleannesse of conscience by the washing of christs bloud . this is the main and the principall of all : yea indeed the bloud of christ is the sole and onely cause of a good conscience . i would not be mistaken : i named indeed other causes ; knowledge , and humbling , and a holy fear , a combat against sinne , and tendernesse : but i do not mean as though a good conscience were partly beholding to them and partly to christs bloud : for it is wholly and onely beholding to christs bloud for its goodnesse ; his bloud is the onely price of it : but my meaning is this , that though christs bloud be the one onely cause of redemption , yet in the application of redemption the lord useth all those forenamed graces while he applieth it to the conscience . therefore this now i adde ; the washing of christs bloud , this is chiefly required to the goodnesse of conscience . we have two places of scripture to prove it : the one , heb. 9.14 . how much more shall the bloud of christ purge your consciences from dead works ? it is that onely can do it . the other text is 1. pet. 3.21 . the answer of a good conscience towards god by the resurrection of jesus christ . where the apostle first giveth this title to a renewed conscience , to be called a good conscience : secondly , he nameth the cause that maketh it to be good , the power of christs resurrection : when the resurrection of christ jesus is powerfull upon us , then conscience becometh good . 5. the fifth is quietnesse . by nature nothing is so fierce and violent , if it be once awaked , as conscience is : o it is unspeakably furious . thus is conscience by nature : and therefore it can never be good untill we get it appeased with the assurance of the pardon of our sinnes , and so true peace and comfort established in it . this is the reason why the scripture joyneth a good conscience and faith so often together : as 1. tim. 3.9 . holding the mysterie of faith in a pure conscience . it cannot be a pure or good conscience if faith be not held in it . as long as the conscience is not underpropped by faith , the conscience must needs be in a wildernesse : perhaps my sinnes are imputed unto me ; perhaps they are pardoned : perhaps they are covered , perhaps not . as long as the conscience lieth under these uncertainties , it cannot be firm and soundly good indeed : therefore we must labour for assurance of pardon by faith . thus much of a good renewed conscience that is perfectly and soundly renewed . ii. secondly , there is a good conscience renewed but not soundly renewed , very much as yet defective and imperfect . the former conscience is called conscientia firma , a firm conscience : this is called conscientia infirma , an infirm conscience . rom. 15.1 . we that are strong ought to bear the infirmities of the weak . this infirm conscience is a good conscience too , and renewed , but cumbred with sundry imperfections ; which in processe of time by growth in grace are , for the most part , conquered in the godly . true faith is required unto this : for the apostle calleth such an one a brother in christ , one that hath this infirm conscience : it is good neither to eat flesh , nor to drink wine , nor any thing whereby thy brother stumbleth . and we must not set such an one at nought , tush , what care i for him ? i know i may lawfully do thus : and this is my christian liberty ; and shall i lose it for him , because of his conscience ? nay saith the apostle , why dost thou set at nought thy brother ? mark ; the apostle counteth such an one a christian brother , and not to be set at nought : and therefore this is a good conscience too , differing as much as white from black from such consciences as are weak through superstition of mind and through pride of heart because they will not be otherwise , or through affected ignorance because they love not to be better informed . these weak consciences are wicked ; i speak not of these ▪ i speak of a good conscience , a conscience renewed , but renewed imperfectly , having yet sundry defects and imperfections . the imperfections of it are 1. imperfection of knowledge . it doth not yet soundly and clearly understand what is lawfull and what is pure , and what is by christian liberty indifferent . paul saith , i know and am perswaded by the lord jesus , that there is nothing unclean of it self : but to him that esteemeth any thing to be unclean , to him it is unclean . he speaketh of things that are indifferent : the apostle had knowledge : but there were others who did not know this ; o i may not eat this meat ; i may not play at bowls , or use any other recreation : i should sinne if i should , &c. this is one weaknesse in this kind of conscience , weaknesse of knowledge . 2. the second imperfection is to be grieved where it needeth not be grieved : as when it seeth other do that which it self through mistake doth judge to be evil , it is apt to be grieved and troubled to see it ; if thy brother be grieved with thy meat , now walkest thou not charitably . it may be thou thinkest it lawfull to eat such meat ; but he thinketh otherwise , and so is grieved to see thee eat . this is another imperfection in this conscience , to be grieved and offended without just cause . 3. a third imperfection is in judgement : it is apt to judge and condemne another mans liberty : 1. cor. 10.29 . why is my liberty judged of another mans conscience ? he speaketh of a weak conscience ▪ it is apt to be judging & condemning my liberty saith he ; but why so ? this is a fault and an imperfection indeed ; o such an one sinneth , he doeth so and so : yet it may be the thing is not unlawfull but a weak conscience is apt so to judge it , and to condemne him that doeth it . let not him that eateth despise him that eateth not : and let not him that eateth not judge him that eateth , rom. 14.3 . 4. a fourth imperfection is this : a weak conscience is apt to be misled . so the apostle intimateth ; take heed lest by any means this liberty of yours become a stumbling-block unto them that are weak : for if any man see thee who hast knowledge sit at meat in the idoles temple , shall not the conscience of him that is weak be emboldned to eat those things which are offered to idoles ? and through thy knowledge shall thy weak brother perish for whom christ died ? where ye see that weak consciences are apt to be misled . the reason is this , because when they see others whom they know to be more learned and judicious then themselves to do so and so , that may soon tempt them to do it though their conscience be against it . the first use is this ; if any have weak consciences let them labour to strengthen them . ye see what imperfections are in a weak conscience ; how apt it is to be offended and to judge other mens liberty , how prone to misleading : therefore let every good soul labour to be strengthened . the second use is this ; those that be strong must be carefull that they offend not the weak . though they do believe such and such christian liberties they have , yet if they know the use of them will offend their weak brother , they should be carefull to abstein , let no man put a stumbling-block or an occasion to fall in his brothers way . thirdly , if it be such a sinne to sinne against the conscience of the weak , then what a sinne is it to sinne against the conscience of all that are godly , whether weak ones or strong ones ? ye who walk after the flesh , and can have disorders in your families , and vanity in your mouths , and apparent corruptions in your lives ; ye who can drink and be drunken and keep company and profane the lords dayes ; ye offend the consciences of all that are godly : it is a grief to their souls to see it . let me tell you ; it is a sinne to be wicked however , and the high-way to hell : but to be wicked when ye have godly neighbours about you , your sinne now is double : for as you offend god , so you offend them too . ye may remember what christ saith , whosoever offendeth one of these little ones which believe in me , it were better for him that a milstone were hung about his neck , & that he were drowned in the depth of the sea , matth. 18.6 . ah ye vile wretches ● ye little imagine what fearfull vengeance ye pull on your own heads : it were better for you that a milstone were hung about your necks , and ye thrown into the sea , then that ye should offend one of these little ones . ye may call them what ye will ; call them puritanes , precisians , uncharitable people , censurers : ye may call them as satan teacheth you to call them : but it is certain , it were better a milstone were hung about your neck , and ye thrown into the sea , then that ye should offend any one of christs little ones : the lord open your eyes that ye may repent and believe the gospel your selves and be saved . 4. lastly , be exhorted , brethren , to labour after a good conscience . how excellent a thing is it that hath so many good ingredients ! illumination is one ingredient , and faith is another , and tendernesse another , and purenesse another , and quietnesse another , and the bloud of jesus christ another . it is like aarons composition , which smelt sweetly when he went into the sanctuarie : it is compounded of excellent conditions , such as smell sweet when we come before god : the lord loveth that such should come near him . we may come with assurance to speed if we come with a good conscience ; let us draw near with assurance of faith , having our hearts sprinkled from an evil conscience . mark ▪ we may draw near with assurance if we come with a good conscience . it will comfort us in all troubles , and support ▪ us in all dangers : it maketh us happie : nay , there is no happines without it . it will make us with quietnesse & contentednesse of spirit undergo whatever it shall please god to lay upon us . how can they want comfort that have this ? it is a spring of comfort within them . this will remain with us when all other comforts will forsake us : when friends fail , and estate faileth , when credit and health and strength and all fail , then a good conscience , if we have it , will speak peace to us , yea and it will effect it in us , comfort us , and fasten comfort upon us . friends may speak words of comfort and peace to us ; but it may be we are not able to receive it : the minister may preach peace ; but it may be we are not able to take it : but a good conscience speaketh peace and effecteth it ; it doth not onely speak it but it putteth it into our hearts . it proppeth us up in all miseries , in sicknesses , yea in death it self . a good conscience then maketh us hold up our heads when all the world shall be confounded : a good conscience will bear us out against the king of terrours : it is onely a good conscience that can look death in the face , and say , o death , where is thy sting ? thanks be to god who giveth us victorie through our lord jesus christ. yea , at the day of judgement , when the whole world shall be burning before us , when the great men of the world who go in silks and scarlet and broidered hair shall fear and shiver as a reed shaken with the wind , this will make us with boldnesse undergo the terrour of it . this will make us happie in all our distresses : when crosses pelt us , and sicknesse paineth us , and death attatcheth us , we are happie men . what if we have the tokens of gods wrath upon our bodies so we have the marks of his love upon our souls ? what outward calamitie soever happeneth to us , yet if we have this good conscience we are happie . o then let us labo●r to get it by faith and a holy life . if we would be safe in the floud-time , in the day of gods wrath , we must be busie now about the ark , we must provide beforehand for it : nothing but this ark will save us in the deluge of gods anger . it is in vain to trouble our selves about other things : jubal was a merrie man ; he made pipes and organes : jabal built tents ; others planted vineyards : but noah provided his ark . many desire comfort in sicknesse , in death ; but they do not provide for it before-hand : they look after their sports or businesses in the world ; but this ark is neglected , this good conscience , without which all mens labour is vain . be they what they will be , in never so much credit and esteem , they are yet most miserable when troubles and afflictions come on them , as one day they shall and shall not tarrie ; then all their comforts will forsake them : when death looketh them in the face : then their hearts die within them . how full of pride and haughtinesse soever they were before , yet when they come to die , if their consciences be awaked , they will with saul fall down to heare the name of death , and no spirits be left in them . nay , if we want a good conscience when we lie on our deathbeds , and desire good people to pray for us , good sir , i beseech you let me have the benefit of your prayers to god for me : alas ▪ if thou hast not a good conscience , all the prayers under heaven will not help thee . see heb. 13.18 . brethren , pray for us : for we trust we have a good conscience . mark ; the apostle telleth them they may pray for him with comfort , because he had a good conscience . as if he had said , if we had not a good conscience , it were in vain for you to pray for us . if ever god heare the prayers made for us , we must have a good conscience . those that have not this good conscience shall never enter into the kingdome of heaven : though they had moses , daniel , and job to pray for them , yet all their prayers could not help them in the time of their distresse . the bond of conscience . now we must look back unto the foure propositions which at the beginning i observed in the text i am upon ; 1. that there is in every man a conscience . 2. that the light which directeth conscience is knowledge . 3. that the bond which bindeth conscience is gods law . 4. that the office of conscience is to bear witnesse , to accuse or excuse . i have in the handling of these a little altered the method , and spake of the two first and the last . now followeth the third , and that is consciences bond , which is gods law : which shew the work of the law written in their hearts , &c. it is onely the work of gods law that it beareth witnesse of , that it accuseth or excuseth for : the law of god is consciences bond . neverthelesse we must here distinguish : the bonds of conscience are either primarie and supreme , or secondarie and relative . 1. the primarie and supreme bond of conscience is onely gods word and law : that onely is the supreme bond of conscience : there is one lawgiver , who is able to save or to destroy : who art thou that judgest another ? that is , there is but one supreme lawgiver to bind the consciences of men , and that is god. and the reason is given , because it is god onely who is able to save and to destroy . as if he had said , god onely hath power over life and death , either to save a man for ever , or destroy a man for ever , and to judge a man according to all that he hath done : and therefore he onely can make laws to bind the consciences of men . 2. now the secondarie or relative bond of conscience is , when others who have authoritie from god bind conscience to this or that . i call this a relative bond , because it is onely in relation to the authoritie of god. for though men cannot challenge any doings or omissions contrarie to their law to be sinnes , yet if they have authoritie from god to command any thing , then they become beams and parts of gods law , and do by virtue of that bind a mans conscience . this relative bond of conscience is twofold . first , other men may bind our consciences ; as magistrates , and masters , and parents : who though they cannot bind conscience as they are men , yet when they have authoritie from god , their commands have gods seals upon them , and do bind , i say , in relation to gods law , which biddeth us obey them ; rom. 13.5 . ye must needs be subject , not onely for wrath but also for conscience sake . the apostle there speaketh of magistrates ; and he telleth us that their laws bind our consciences in relation to gods , and therefore we must be subject unto them for conscience sake . thus others may bind our consciences . secondly , we our selves may bind our own consciences ; and that is by vows which we make unto god , or by our promises which we lawfully make unto men . the vows which we freely make unto god , these bind conscience to keep them : numb . 30.4 . the vow of a woman is called the bond wherewith she hath bound her soul . mark ; she bindeth her soul and her conscience with it . so the promises which we lawfully make unto men , these also bind conscience : for though before we promise it was in our own power , yet when we have promised we have bound our own consciences to the performance , because there is gods seal upon it ; gods law commandeth us to be true of our words . these are relative bonds , bonds onely in relation to gods law : gods law is still the supreme bond of conscience . i will handle that first . i. the law of god whereby he willeth and commandeth and forbiddeth this or that in his word , this is the main bond of conscience : when this bindeth it , nothing else can loose it ; and contrary , if this loose it , nothing else can bind it . it so bindeth conscience as the observing and violating of it is that which maketh conscience clear or guilty before god. this is it which maketh a man a debtour ; i am a debtour , saith paul , both to the grecians and to the barbarians : that is , i am bound in conscience by gods command to preach the gospel unto both . this is it that denominateth a man to be bound : i go bound in the spirit unto jerusalem ; that is , i knowing it to be gods will am bound in conscience to go . this is that which layeth a necessity upon a man ; a necessity is laid upon me to preach ; i. i am bound in conscience by gods word so to do . this is that which layeth a kind of enforcement upon men ; we cannot but speak the things which we have seen and heard ; that is , if we should not , our consciences would flie in our faces : we are bound by gods will to do so , and our consciences lay a charge upon us that we cannot go against it . the onely will and word of almighty god is that which supremely bindeth conscience . 1. because god onely knoweth the heart ; he seeth our thoughts , and he onely can reach to the secrets of our spirits ; and therefore he onely can bind our conscience . for who else can tell whether we make conscience of a thing yea or no ? perhaps we do , perhaps we do not . nor man nor angel can tell certainly : but god knoweth certainly , and he onely ; and therefore he onely can bind our consciences . when the lord doth command or forbid , the conscience is privy that god seeth it ; and therefore now it is bound . the word of god is quick and powerfull ; it pierceth even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit , and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart . this bindeth a mans thoughts and intentions ; he cannot be free in these things : and the reason is given by the apostle ; all things are naked and open to the eyes of him with whom we have to do . as if he had said , we are conscious of gods all-seeing power ; he seeth our hearts and our thoughts and all that is in us : and therefore his word doth bind us , yea it bindeth all our secrets : we cannot think a vain thought but our conscience will crie guiltie before god , because our conscience doth know that god knoweth all . besides , the conscience cannot fear any law but onely gods law . ye know when conscience is once in a doubt , it is fearfull , and beginneth to ask questions with it self , may i do this ? or may i not do it ? asking no questions for conscience sake . the conscience when it doubteth useth to ask questions . now this supposeth the lawgiver to be able to see it : otherwise the conscience would not be thus afraid , if it were onely the commandment of a creature , that could not search the heart . so that here ye see one reason why gods law is the supreme bond of conscience ; because no eye can see it but gods. 2. because god onely hath power over conscience : it is his commandment onely that maketh any thing sinne or not sinne unto us . augustine defineth sinne to be a thought , or word , or deed , or lust against the commandment of god. against thee , against thee onely have i sinned , saith david . he saith he had sinned onely against god. why ? you will say , he sinned also against man : did not he commit adulterie ? that was a sinne against bathsheba : and murder ? that was a sinne against uriah . true , he sinned against man relatively , in relation to the commandment which saith , thou shalt not injure thy neighbour : but primarily and principally the sinne was against god. conscience is like the kings servant , whom none can arrest or attach without leave from the king : so no man can bind conscience without leave had from god : for conscience is onely subject to his power : he onely hath power over conscience . 3. because conscience is gods book . now no creature can adde to gods book or diminish from it . ye may remember that dreadfull anathema at the end of gods book ; if any man shall adde to this book , god shall adde to him the plagues that are written in this book : and if any man shall diminish from this book , god shall take away his part out of the book of life . now conscience is also gods book wherein his law is written . nay , conscience is called gods law : for it is said , that when the gentiles which have not the law do the things conteined in the law , they having not the law are a law unto themselves : that is , their conscience is gods law unto them . like as the bible conteineth gods law for us christians , so did their consciences contein the law of god to them : yea , to us christians much rather : for we are not to let gods law be written onely in our bibles , but we must get it written in our consciences : our consciences are to be gods books wherein his laws are to be written . and therefore if it be a sinne to adde a new law in the materiall book to bind men , then it must needs be a sinne for any creature to put a new law into conscience , which is the spirituall book of god. it is god onely who can write laws in this book : his book is above all the laws in the world ; and none but god can put in and put out : and therefore none but he can bind conscience . i s●eak still of this absolute , and supreme bond of conscience : for magistrates may bind relatively ; but not as they are the●r laws , but by the law of god before made . thus ye see the necessity of this truth , that gods law is the absolute and supreme bond of conscience . uses . 1. this serveth to direct ministers how to convince the consciences of their people . if ministers desire to work upon their hearers , they must speak to the conscience ; they must shew them gods authority , that it is gods will and gods command . tell conscience never so much , that we should do thus or thus upon other grounds and inducements , it starteth not at that , except it be convinced by the word of god that it is gods will , the commandment of the great god of heaven , the god of the spirits of all flesh , who will look for our obedience : this maketh conscience to startle , this affecteth it and bindeth it . s t paul when he said that he approved himself and his preaching to mens consciences , what followeth ? if our gospel be hid , it is hid to them that perish , &c. as if he had said , this maketh all the world to startle , except they be reprobates and men delivered over to satan . it is easie to see what ministerie affecteth most and doeth the most good in the hearts of the people , namely that which bringeth the clearest voice of gods spirit calling to obedience and binding the conscience . they can heare with ease and great pleasure the sermons of those whose doctrines are stuffed with humane discourses . learning and policie never pierce conscience . nay , let carnall preachers preach never so much against peoples sinnes , they can make a sport of it , though they heare their sinnes with humane learning declaimed against . when the preacher doth not clearly preach the lords voyce , though he rip up sinne , yet if it be not in the demonstration of the spirit of god , and shewing his clear authority , the heart will not be affected . conscience knoweth when it is bound , and when it is but dallied and jested with : and therefore if ministers desire to have their ministerie work upon the hearts of their people , they must shew them gods authority , and confirm it by his word , and let them see that it is the commandment of the lord , that which will one day judge them . let him know , saith paul , that the things that i write are the commandments of the lord. it is the lord of heaven and earth that biddeth thee yield , and commandeth thee to give over thy base lusts : it is he in whose hands thy breath is ; thou hadst best be obedient . i tell thee , thy conscience observeth it ; and if thou wilt not obey , it will rore like the roring of the sea one day against thee , and sting thee like a scorpion . the things that thou hearest , know thou that they are the commandments of god : and if thou disobey , thou dost disobey not men but god. 2. is it so that the word of god onely is the supreme bond of conscience ? then this teacheth us to have an eye to gods word in that which we do , if we would satisfie conscience . i say , have an eye to gods word : not onely to do that which it may be is in gods word ; conscience counteth that to be nothing : but to have an eye to gods word . conscience will not be satisfied with any obedience that we do if we have not an eye to gods word . whatever we have an eye to besides , conscience knoweth it is nothing , if in all we have not an eye to the commandment of god : though we do obey it , conscience looketh upon it as if we did not obey it . it is onely gods commandment and authoritie that bindeth conscience : and therefore nothing satisfieth conscience unlesse we have an eye unto that . if we do not aim at gods will in doing what we do , conscience counteth our obedience as no obedience at all . as for example ; ye that are husbands , ye love your wives : but is it because god commandeth it ? it may be ye love them because they love you , or because your affections are to them : alas , this is nothing : pagans and reprobates can do so . but do ye aim at the doing of gods will , who commandeth you ? o say you , the lord doth command me , i do it . what of that ? do ye look at his commandment when ye do it ? if not ; be humbled , and know ye must get grace to do so , or ye are not obedient to god , neither will conscience set it down for obedience . ye that are servants , ye serve your masters : but do ye aim at gods will ? thus , o the lord hath commanded me to be faithfull and painfull in my service . doth your soul look to this ? it may be ye serve them because they are kind , and because they pay you your wages , and the like : this is nothing to conscience : conscience looketh at the commandment of god ; and if your souls do not aim at the commandment of god , it will not satisfie conscience . ye that are neighbours , it may be ye love one another , and be friends one with another : but doth your soul look at gods commandment ? is it because god hath commanded us to love one another ? people seldome aim at god in these cases : they are friends with their neighbours : why ? their neighbours are friends with them . but they do not trouble their thoughts to aim at gods commandment in it . let me tell you ; conscience will not count this obedience : for conscience feeleth no bond but gods word : and if ye do not look at that , it is no obedience with conscience ; conscience will never acquit you or absolve you for this ; it accounteth of this obedience as no obedience at all . see 1. cor. 10.25 . and so forward . there the apostle handling that question of conscience , at last concludeth , whether ye eat or drink or whatsoever ye do , do all to the glorie of god , vers . 31. let your hearts look at that , and aim at that ; in whatsoever ye do , still look at god : all is lost with conscience else . though ye eat never so soberly , and drink never so moderately , pray never so duly , conscience counteth it all nothing if ye do not look at god : it is god onely and his word that doth bind it ; and it will never give a discharge except your hearts look at him . 3. this serveth to confute our antinomists , such as say the law of god bindeth not the conscience of the regenerate . ye see here that the law of god bindeth the conscience : and therefore if the regenerate have any conscience at all , ( as certainly they have the best conscience of all men ) then it must needs bind their conscience . we confesse the conscience of the regenerate is freed from many things by christ . first , it is freed from the yoke and bondage of the ceremoniall law , gal. 5.1 . stand fast in the libertie wherewith christ hath made us free , and be not entangled with the yoke of bondage . every mans conscience is freed from that yoke of the ceremoniall law , because it ended in christ . secondly , the conscience of the regenerate is freed from seeking justification by the deeds of the law . indeed the first covenant was by the works of the law ; he that doeth them shall live in them : but the second covenant speaketh better things ; he that believeth shall be saved . it is true , if god had not sent his sonne we must have sought justification by the works of the law : though it were impossible to find it by reason of our sinnes , yet conscience was bound that way . but now that christ jesus hath sealed up a new covenant in his own bloud , conscience is freed from that former : rom. 3.28 . therefore we conclude , that a man is justified by faith without the deeds of the law . for though justifying faith never be without the sincere doing of the law , yet the deeds of the law have no influence into justification : conscience is freed from seeking justification thereby . thirdly , the conscience of the regenerate is freed from the rigour of the law . they are bound in conscience to use the law as a rule of their life , and in sinceritie to obey it ; but are not bound by the gospel to the rigour of it : that they are freed from ; and so they are not under the law but under grace . i grant that all carnall people , who are yet out of christ , do all lie under the rigour of the law : and as long as they submit not to jesus christ , nor get into him , they are bound in conscience to keep it , though they cannot : they cannot sinne in one tittle , but conscience will condemne them before god. they shall be condemned for every vain thought , for every idle word , for every the least sinne , for every the least lust , for any the least omission of good . they lie under the rigour of the law , and they are bound in conscience to keep it , and they shall be countable for every transgression , because they are under the law . but the conscience of the regenerate is free from this rigour , because they are under grace , and therefore they are delivered from the law : the lord hath deliverd them by the body of christ ; and therefore they are not bound by the gospel to all that obedience that the law in rigour requireth . fourthly , the conscience of the regenerate is freed from the curse of the morall law . for though the law doth condemne , yet their conscience needeth not fear it , because they are in christ : there is no condemnation to those that are in christ jesus , which walk not after the flesh but after the spirit . indeed those that are not regenerate , not ingraffed into christ , they are still in the mouth of the gunshot : the law doth condemne them , and they have no shelter , and their conscience is bound by it ; and they shall find one day that by it their conscience will condemne them to hell . it may be now for the present their conscience is quiet , and they choke it , and so it letteth them alone : yet they are condemned in conscience , and one day they shall find it . but the regenerate are by christ freed in conscience from all this condemnation . thus farre we grant . but the antinomists and i know not what marcionites would have more . they cannot abide to heare that a regenerate person is bound to any sincere obedience to gods law as the rule of their life : they crie out against the morall law as once the babylonians did against jerusalem , down with it , down with it even to the ground : o ye do not preach christ if ye talk of the law . beloved , these are drunken opinions , fitter to be preached among drunkards and epicures and monsters then among the peculiar ones of god. the law of god doth bind the conscience of all the people of god , so that they are bound to make it a rule of life . nay the scripture calleth it christs bond whereby he bindeth his people to him : the kings of the earth set themselves , and the rulers take counsel together against the lord and against his anointed , saying , let us break their bonds , and cast away their cords from us . tush , we will not be tied by his laws , nor be so precisely strait-laced with such commandments as these . here the laws of the lord are called bonds and cords : gods people are bound to him by them : but the wicked they stand out and refuse to be bound . now if the law be called a bond , i pray what bond is it , but of conscience ? it is not a bond like a prisoners fetters , to be put about their legs : this is a spirituall bond that bindeth the conscience . but let me prove it to you by arguments . there be sundrie arguments to prove it . first , that which hath power to say to the conscience of the regenerate , this is thy dutie , and this must be done , that bindeth the conscience : but the law of god hath power to say thus to the conscience , this is your dutie . who can tell better then christ ? when ye have done all these things that are commanded you , say , we are unprofitable servants ; we have done that which was our dutie to do . mark ; he speaketh of gods law , things commanded : now the law is nothing else but a ●atalogue of those things that god hath commanded us . when ye have done all these things , saith our saviour , know it is your dutie . here ye see the law hath power to say to the conscience , this is your dutie . but ye will object , we are under faith ; and do ye tell us of law ? i answer , as chrysostome answereth out of paul , do we then make void the law through faith ? god forbid : yea , we establish the law . see how the apostle doth abhorre this thought : god forbid , saith he . as if he had said , farre be it from me to teach such an abominable doctrine : no , no ; we establish the law . heare what christ saith himself , think not that i am come to destroy the law : i am not come to destroy , but to fulfill it . o thought some , if we believe in christ then we hope we shall have done with the law . no , no , saith christ ; ye shall as soon pull the heavens and the earth out of their place as disannull one tittle of the law . secondly , that which hath this authoritie that the breach of it is a sinne , bindeth conscience : but the law hath this authoritie , that neither regenerate nor unregenerate can transgresse it but they sinne : therefore the law bindeth their consciences . for the regenerate and all are bound in conscience to take heed of sinne : whosoever committeth sinne transgresseth also the law . david was a regenerate man ; yet when he had defiled bathsheba , i have sinned , saith he . joseph was a regenerate man ; yet confesseth , if he should transgresse the lords commandment , he should sinne : how shall i do this great wickednesse , and so sinne against god ? but ye will object , this is old testament . what of that ? i hope you will not take up the old damned heresie again of the cerdonians , and cainites , and apellites , and manichees , and severians , and other such cursed hereticks condemned by the church of god : their heresie was , to hedge out the regenerate from the old testament . and s t augustine proved it against them , that the morall law of god was ever the rule of obedience , and shall so continue with the gospel to the end of the world ; and every transgression thereof is sinne . the breach of the ceremoniall law was a sinne once ; but now it is not : because once it bound the conscience ; now it doth not : but the breach of the morall law is still sinne : therefore still it bindeth the conscience . do ye not remember what st james saith now under the gospel ? he presseth it yet on mens consciences : he that said , do not commit adultery , said also , do not kill . now though thou commit no adultery , yet if thou kill , thou art become a transgressour of the law . and though ye may call it a law of liberty in what sense ye please , yet he telleth you , ye had best look to your words and deeds : for ye must be judged by this law of liberty : so speak ye and so do as they that shall be judged by the law of liberty . thirdly , that which being observed doth cause the conscience of the regenerate to excuse , and being transgressed to accuse , that bindeth their conscience : ( for what else do you make binding of conscience but this ? ) but the law of god being observed doth cause the conscience to excuse ; being transgressed , to accuse ; in many things we sinne all , saith the apostle . mark ; our consciences do accuse us : as we do sinne in many things , so our consciences do accuse us when we do so . i am a sinfull man , saith s t peter , luke 5.8 . his conscience did accuse him of sinne . fourthly , that which is the condition of gods covenant of grace bindeth the conscience , yea of the regenerate : but sincere obedience to gods law is a condition of gods covenant of grace . see luke 1.72 . to remember his holy covenant , and the oath that he sware that he would give us , that being delivered out of the hands of our enemies we might serve him without fear in holinesse and righteousnesse before him all the dayes of our life . mark ; sincere and universall obedience is a condition of the covenant of grace , not onely for a manifestation to our selves that we are truly justified ; as these upstart patritians do hold : but it is the condition of the covenant of grace . every covenant hath its conditions annexed ; and therefore it is called the book of the covenant , exod. 24.7 . the words of the covenant , exod. 34.28 . the tables of the covenant , deut. 9.11 . the reason is this ; because when a covenant is made , the conditions are put into a book or a table and expressed in words . onely here is the difference between the first covenant of works and the second covenant of grace : both have conditions ; but here , i say , is the difference ; in the one grace giveth the covenant , and grace giveth the condition of the covenant ; but a condition is annexed though : now hence we may argue ( and none but enemies to the gospel can denie it ) if the covenant of grace do bind a mans conscience , then certainly the condition of the covenant bindeth a mans conscience too : but the covenant of grace bindeth the conscience of the regenerate ; and therefore the condition of it bindeth . if you ask , what is this to obedience ? the answer is , that obedience is the condition of the covenant of grace , as the forenamed scripture expresseth , luke 1.72 . thus ye see the law of god bindeth the conscience of all the regenerate . this is the third use . 4. hath the word of god supreme power to bind conscience ? then hence we may learn , that no creature can dispense with it , nor free conscience from guilt when a man transgresseth the word . what a damned usurpation is it in the pope to offer to dispense ? the canonists say he may dispense de praeceptis veteris & novi testamenti , ( they are their own words ) he may dispense with the commandments of the old and new testament . he dispensed with king henry the eighth , and undertook to free his conscience from guilt though he married his own brothers wife . gregorie the second undertook to free subjects from being bound in their consciences to keep their oaths of allegeance to leo the emperour . o these are damned aspirings ; and they plainly declare him to be antichrist , who exalteth himself in this manner . the word of god is the supreme binder of conscience : and therefore not all the angels in heaven can dispense with one idle word . for ever , o lord , thy word is settled in heaven . gods word is settled for ever in heaven ; and therefore ye may assoon remove the heaven from its place as one tittle of the word from binding conscience . doth the word say thus or thus ? thou hadst best do it : if thou wilt not , all the whole world cannot help thee ; thy conscience will condemne thee at the day of judgement without remedie . hath the word convinced thee of thy sinnes , and made thy conscience say , i am a sinner , and am guiltie before god ? i tell thee then , thy conscience is bound , and all the world cannot loose it . but hast thou been humbled and emptied of thy self , and doth the word pronounce pardon of thy sinnes in christs name , that thy conscience can say , the lord speaketh peace to my soul ? i tell thee , thou art loosed , and nor hell nor devil nor , sinne nor flesh nor any thing can bind thee . ye may see the power of gods word in that speech of our saviour , whatsoever ye shall bind on earth shall be bound in heaven , matth. 18.18 . that is , my word which ye preach is of that nature , that if that loose your conscience , it is loosed indeed , and nothing can bind it ; if that do bind it , it is bound soundly indeed , and nothing can loose it . o this is a terrour to the wicked ! doth the word of god say , he that hardneth his neck , being often rebuked , shall suddenly be destroyed , and cannot be cured ? o fear and tremble ye that harden your necks against the reproofs of the almightie : his word bindeth over your consciences to christs barre . doth the word say . whoremongers and adulterers god will judge ? if thou beest such an one , thy conscience is bound with this word , and it will apply it to the soul before the tribunal-seat of christ . doth the word crie out against any of thy courses ? thy conscience is bound as with chains , and it is not all thy vain hopes and excuses can loose thee . again , this is comfort to the godly : gods word is the supreme binder of conscience . o ye blessed of the lord , the word of god tieth such a fast knot to your comforts that all hell cannot open it with their teeth : the word of the lord jesus is with you , who hath the key of david , that openeth and no man shutteth , and shutteth and no man openeth . yea , but sayest thou , my sinnes are against me : what then ? mark what the word saith , we have an advocate with the father : thy conscience is bound to believe that . yea , but i have a very naughtie heart , and i cannot tell what to do with it : mark what the word saith ; believe in the lord jesus , and thou shalt be saved : this bindeth thy conscience . but i offend dayly : mark still what the word saith ; christ bringeth in everlasting righteousnesse . if thou beest unworthy to day , there is righteousnesse for thee to day ; if unworthy worthy to morrow , there is righteousnesse for thee to morrow ; if unworthy for ever , there is righteousnesse for thee for ever . this is gods word , and thy portion ; this bindeth thy conscience to lay hold on it . but i have abundantly sinned : what saith christs word ? i will abundantly pardon . o what comfort is this to every poore soul which the lord jesus hath humbled ! his word is the supreme binder of conscience , above the law , above justice , above threatnings , above all the world besides . his promising word is the supreme binder of thy conscience , if thou beest one of christs : and therefore fear not ; onely believe , and be thankfull , and give glory to god. this is the childrens bread ; no stranger can intermeddle with it . the secondary bond of conscience . ye have heard that the bonds of conscience are of two sorts : first , there is a supreme bond of conscience , and that is gods word : of which i have already spoken . secondly , there is a relative bond of conscience , which bindeth conscience indeed , but it is onely in relation to gods word , because gods word putteth authority upon it . and this latter is also of two sorts : 1. others may bind conscience ; 2. we our selves may bind our own consciences . 1. others may bind our consciences . 1. others may bind our consciences , namely , when they have authority conferred upon them from god , and so their laws and commands receive vigour and force from gods laws . thus the laws and commands of magistrates bind the conscience of people ; of parents bind the conscience of children ; of masters bind the conscience of servants : for though they do not bind conscience as they are the commandments of men , yet having gods seal and authority upon them they do . i will set down some conclusions whereby ye may know how farre the laws and commandments of others bind or not bind conscience . 1. conclusion . 1. magistrates have power to command us . let every soul be subject to the higher powers : for there is no power but of god ; and the powers that be are ordained of god , rom. 13.1 . that chapter doth most clearly prove this conclusion unto us . out of the first part of the chapter we learn , 1. that magistrates have power and authority to make laws , and to establish orders among men ; and therefore they are called powers : 2. we learn that these laws of magistrates receive strength and force from the law of god : for the powers that be are ordained of god , saith the text . 3. those laws made by the magistrate and confirmed by god have power to bind conscience , vers . 5. wherefore we must be subject not onely because of wrath but also for conscience sake . and the violating of them is sinne . when their authority is confirmed by god , we cannot resist them but we resist the ordinance of god , saith the apostle : nay , we may pull condemnation upon us if we do ; they that resist shall receive to themselves condemnation , vers . 2. so that this first conclusion telleth us what laws of men are to be obeyed ; viz. 1. such as do virtually flow from gods word , though not expressely commanded in it ; 2. such as are good and wholesome and profitable for the common-wealth : these though they are not particularly commanded in gods word , yet are they by virtue of it injoyned : and therefore to neglect them and be disobedient unto them , is to neglect and be disobedient to god. again , so farre onely are they to be obeyed ( so farre onely , i say ) as they virtually do flow from gods word : for so farre onely they receive force from gods law . this is the first conclusion . 2. conclusion . 2. the commandments of magistrates and those that are in authoritie lose their power of binding the conscience in foure cases : 1. when they command that which though in it self it be not simply and absolutely sinfull and unlawfull , yet it doth put us upon a necessity of sinning : as for example , if a magistrate command single life to all ministers , this thing is not in it self simply unlawfull ( for it is lawfull to marry , and it is lawfull not to marry ) yet this commandment is unlawfull , because it would put ministers upon a necessity of sinning : the reason is , because all have not this power . and therefore such a commandment as this would not bind conscience : for the conscience cannot be bound to impurity , or an apparent danger of impurity : and therefore though the thing be not simply unlawfull , yet the commandment is simply unlawfull , and doth not bind conscience . the apostle maketh such a commandment to argue a seared conscience in the commander : and therefore none but a seared conscience can think it is bound by it , 1. tim. 4.2 , 3. 2. the commandments of magistrates lose their power of binding the conscience when they command things that are unlawfull in themselves and contrary to the word of god. in this case they do not bind conscience , because gods seal is not on them . we have an example of this in the three blessed children ; who when the king commanded them to worship the image that he had set up , they did not conceive themselves bound in conscience to obey : they would rather suffer torment then obey it . so also daniel , when he was commanded not to ask any petition of god for thirty dayes space , but onely of the king , daniel did not conceive himself bound in conscience , nay he chose rather to be cast into the den of lions then obey . in this case the answer of the apostles is necessary ; who when they were commanded not to preach any more in the name of the lord jesus , thus they answered , whether it be right in the sight of god to obey men rather then god , judge ye . 3. when mens laws and commands overthrow the libertie of christianitie , that christian libertie which christ hath purchased for us , then they lose their power of binding the conscience . but here i must tell you of a caution ; viz. that this libertie may be considered in a double respect : 1. in regard of it self , the libertie it self ; 2. in regard of the exercise or use of this libertie . now there is a very great difference between these two considerations ; as there is a great difference between a mans having a sword and a mans wearing a sword . the magistrate may restrain a man from wearing a sword at such or such a time , though he do not take his sword from him : so there is difference between the having our libertie and the using our libertie . there is a libertie purchased for gods children , whereby all things are become lawfull unto them : all things are lawfull unto me , saith paul 1. cor. 6.12 . and there is nothing evil in it self : ( he speaketh of indifferent things . ) gods children are freed from the observation of meats , and drinks , and times , and garments . now whatsoever commandment is made by the magistrate contrarie to this libertie doth not bind conscience : for nothing can bind conscience when christ doth loose it : yet there may be a restraint of the use of this libertie : as for example , the magistrate may command us to forbear some kinds of meats at some certain times ; and so also for garments , and the like : namely , when the doctrine about meats and drinks and garments is pure . and therefore in such a case the command of the magistrate bindeth the conscience ; otherwise not . 4. when they command things indifferent to be absolutely necessarie , to make them idolatrous or superstitious , then in this case they are unlawfull and bind not the conscience to obey them . but when are they idolatrous ? i answer ; 1. when they are commanded either as absolutely necessarie to christianitie , to the very being of religion and the worship of god , and with as much necessitie as holinesse it self , then hey are made superstitious and idolatrous : and in this case the caveat of s t john is strongly to be kept , babes , keep your selves from idol●s . 2. when they are commanded as things meritorious , as pleasing to god for themselves , and to merit of him , then they are idolatrous . 3. when they are commanded for the substantiall perfection of religion , as though religion were imperfect without them , then they are made idolatrous , and lose their virtue of binding the conscience . but all such commands of things that are indifferent , which are commanded without respect to make them idolatrous , they may be obeyed . this is our second conclusion . 3. conclusion . 3. those laws and commandments of magistrates which want the authoritie of gods law to confirm them ( and therefore bind not the conscience ) ought not to be disobeyed for all that with scandal or contempt and by unreverent slighting or despising the magistrate or his laws . he must be acknowledged a magistrate under god for all that : 1. tim. 2.1 , 2. i exhort that supplications be made for kings and those that are in authoritie . he speaketh there of heathen kings ; yet he calleth them kings , and saith they have authoritie : and we ought to pray for them : and therefore how much more when kings and magistrates subscribe to christian religion ? nay , though they command that which is utterly unlawfull , we must not rise up against them : for if we do , we rise up against god. we must obey them one way or other , either actively or passively : when they command that which is lawfull for us to do , we must obey them by doing : when they command that which is unlawfull for us to do , and threaten punishment , then we cannot actively obey them by doing , because they command against god ; yet we must passively obey by suffering and submitting to their penalties , because the lord hath given them authority over us . this is our third conclusion . 4. conclusion . 4. those laws of magistrates which by gods law do not bind conscience , do yet in matter of scandal bind us to obedience . if the magistrate shall command any thing beyond his power to command yet not unlawfull for us to do , though such a command do not bind to obedience in case of conscience , yet in case of scandal it doth . thus christ was content to pay tribute though he needed not to have done it : the children , saith he , are free : neverthelesse , lest he should offend the magistrate , he did pay it . i will put an example of another nature ; in a private wrong , though we are not expressely bound to it , yet rather then scandalously to contend , conscience doth bind us to yield . needed abraham to have condescended so farre unto lot as to let him take his choice before him ? no rather then scandal of religion should arise , ye may reade that he did it . thus i have briefly made it manifest how farre the commands of the magistrate do not bind conscience , and how farre they do . objections . 1. but it may be objected ; conscience hath onely relation to god. i answer , it is true , as the supreme and absolute binder of conscience : but it hath a relation also unto men in the second place , inasmuch as god putteth upon men such terms as conscience hath relation to , acts 24.16 . herein i have alwayes endevoured my self , to have alwayes a clear conscience both towards god and towards men . mark ; conscience hath relation to both : for though it have its main relation to god and his word , yet in him it hath relation unto men . 2. again it may be replied ; the magistrates do not undertake , nor can they , to meddle with mens invisible spirits ; for they are not able to see whether the spirit of man be obedient or no : and therefore how do their laws bind us in conscience . the magistrate onely looketh at the bodie : mens thoughts and affections and consciences are naked onely to god. it is true , the magistrate doth not undertake but onely to bind the outward man : neverthelesse the conscience of the subject feeleth it self to be bound to obedience under pain of sinning against god , who giveth this generall precept , submit your selves to every ordinance of man for the lords sake , to the king , &c. the conscience feeleth this , and so it cometh to be bound . 3. again it may be replied ; the conscience is not bound but onely by way of religion . if i make conscience of a thing , then i make a matter of religion of it : but what religion is there in the commandments of magistrates ? suppose the magistrate commandeth us to get our armour in readinesse , to mend our high-wayes , to moderate expenses at nuptials , or the like ; these are civil things and not religious , and therefore how can they bind conscience ? we make conscience onely of religion and the worship of god. such laws do not bind conscience under the name of religion , but under the name of civil discipline . and again , though they do not bind conscience per se and immediately , yet they do per aliud and as subjoyned to an higher law . for though the breach of such laws be onely a civil fault in it self , yet in another respect it may be a morall sinne , if the powers that are ordained of god be neglected and disobeyed . and therefore though the conscience do not regard civil laws as they are civil ; neither do we make conscience of them as they are civil : yet as they are made by the minister of god , and backed by his authoritie which the lord hath set on them , so they do take hold of conscience ; and not to perform them is contrarie to justice and charitie and the profit and safetie of the commonwealth , and so a sinne . uses . 1. this confuteth the anabaptists , who denie that any obedience is to be given to the secular power . ye see here that the laws of magistrates have gods seal upon them ; and therefore we must yield obedience unto them : for they bind in conscience . again , this confuteth the papists , who teach that their popes laws and commandments are of supreme authoritie , and require equall submission of spirit with gods laws : and also that the omission of them is death and damnation . our doctrine and religion goeth between both : for we teach that gods authoritie is onely supreme , and that he onely can make laws under pain of death and damnation ; and that the authoritie of magistrates is secondarie , and secondarie obedience is to be given unto them . the papists speak blasphemie in saying their pope can make laws under pain of damnation to be kept : our saviour christ maketh this a propertie onely of god ; fear not him that can kill the bodie , and there is all that he can do : but fear him who can cast both bodie and soul into hell : i say unto you , fear him , luke 12.4 . as if he had said , men can reach no further then the bodie , and their punishments can go no further then the death of the bodie . 2. this teacheth us what to do if men should command any thing which is unlawfull for us to perform : ( suppose there should be any such humane commands as are repugnant to gods. ) in this case ye see we must obey god rather then men ; nay , suffer losse of goods , losse of libertie , yea losse of life , rather then obey the commandments of men in case they be contrarie to the commandments of god. ye may reade a lamentable example in ephraim ; they were utterly destroyed for obeying their king rather then their god : the king commanded to worship the calves , and to go unto bethel and not to jerusalem to worship : they yielded to his commandment , and did so ; o thought they , we shall displease the king if we do not . for this sinne of theirs they were broken in judgement , hos . 5.11 . ephraim is destroyed and broken in judgement , because he willingly walked after the commandment . beloved , gods commandment is sovereigne , and the supreme binder of conscience : whatever commandment is repugnant to gods word , wo to us if we do it ; nay , though it be to save our goods or our lives . it is true , we must give to cesar the things that are cesars ; but so as withall we must be sure to give to god the things that are gods. 3. this comforteth gods people against the calumnies and slanders of wicked and ungodly men that upbraid them for their obedience to god. o say they , ye are irregular and despisers of authoritie . i say , this is comfort to the godly , that god is able to bear them out in obeying him rather then men . gods word is the supreme binder of conscience ; and therefore , whatever men think of such , they are absolutely bound to obey god. if men command us against the word of god , we know their authoritie is the ordinance of god ; and therefore if they go beyond that , they do not bind us in conscience . if god had not bound us in conscience to him , others might have taken it ill if we should not obey them : but now what cause have others to think ill of us ? what folly were it in us to seek to please men and to displease god ? if we were at libertie , then we might choose whom we would obey : but now we are bound unto god , and must be obedient unto god , whatever men command to the contrarie , let us do it therefore with chearfulnesse . by this we shew our submission to god ; by this we satisfie conscience , which being bound unto god doth continually urge us to obey him . why should we omit part of the exactnesse of our obedience which the word of god doth require ? we have more to do then ever we shall be able to perform : we should therefore be carefull to do all that we may . by our obedience to god in this kind we convince the conscience of others of our uprightnesse towards god : though through the overruling dominion of their lusts and passions they rage at us , and their mouthes speak evil of us , yet we may have an evidence in their consciences within which may testifie for us : their consciences will whisper within them , surely they do well to please god rather then men : their consciences will be on our side , though their actions and tongues be against us . we have a notable example of this acts 4.15 , 16. when the rulers of the jews had threatned the apostles , and had reviled them with many bitter words , and had bidden them go aside for a while , then they concluded among themselves , surely an evident signe is done by them , and we cannot deny it : so that their consciences acquitted them for good men . so when the wicked of this world have spoken evil of the wayes of the righteous , and blasphemed the holy name after which they are named : yet when they are alone , and their consciences at counsel within themselves , then they conclude , indeed they do well . thus their consciences give a good evidence of us , and accuse them for not doing the like . and thus much shall suffice to be spoken of other mens binding of conscience . ii. we may bind our own consciences . ii. we our selves may bind our own consciences : and that is by those vows and promises which we make to god of any thing lawfull and in our power . those vows and promises which we make unto god according to the warrant of his word they do bind our conscience . they are our own before we have made them : as ananias and sapphira their gift was their own before they vowed it to the church : while it remained was it not thine own ? and when it was sold , was it not in thine own power ? acts 5.4 . we need not vow unlesse we will : but after we have vowed our vows are gods bonds , and do bind the conscience to the performance of them . nay , we lie unto god , as the text saith they did , if we do not stand to the performance of them . but it may be demanded , what vows are they which are unlawfull , and do not bind conscience ? i answer ; 1. such as we make of things impossible and beyond our power : these are unlawfull , and do not bind conscience . 2. such as we make of things unlawfull ; when we vow to do that which is contrarie to gods law : such as davids was when he vowed the destruction of nabals familie : this doth not bind conscience : nay , we are bound in conscience to break it . 3. such as though they be of things lawfull and possible , yet we want freedome in the performance of them : as for a wife or a servant or a child to make a vow , when their relation to such as are over them will not suffer them to perform it : this bindeth not conscience . nothing bindeth conscience but that which hath gods seal upon it : but this hath not gods seal on it ; and therefore it doth not bind conscience ▪ indeed it bindeth us in conscience to repent of it . 4. such as though they be lawfull and profitable and in our own freedome , yet if there fall a greater consequence before the time of performance , we are not bound in conscience to perform them : as if a man upon the receit of some mercie should in testimonie of his thankfulnesse vow a hundred pounds to good uses , in the mean time his estate so decayeth as that he shall undo himself and his familie if he perform it ; this is so great a consequence , and contingently hapned , that it freeth his conscience from performing what he had vowed : or if a man should promise marriage to a woman , and before the time of nuptials she be found unchast ; this is a farre greater consequence , and he is not bound in conscience to marry her . these kinds of vows do not bind in conscience : but all other do bind us . 1. use ; we may learn from hence never to vow but with good judgement and counsel . for either we must keep our promise , or not : if we must , that is a signe it is good , and therefore had need of deliberation : if we must not keep it then it is a signe of rashnesse and inconsideratenesse and besides it may prove scandalous and offensive to them to whom we make it , and also to them that shall heare of it : and therefore it requireth good judgement and advise to vow . what a rash vow was that of good jephthah ? if thou wilt deliver ammon into my hand , whatsoever meeteth me i will offer it for a burnt-offering . how if a dog had first met him ? what a sinne had it been ? how if his daughter ? what a thing had that been ? and indeed it proved to be his daughter . vows without judgement do but increase our sinnes and aggravate our transgressions against god. 2. use ; this teacheth us to keep our good vows whatsoever they be that we make . indeed it is hard to keep a good , yea it is hard to make a good vow in that manner as we should : it requireth a great deal of faith and self-deniall and humilitie and strength of resolution : but when we have made it , our sinne is the greater if we do not then keep it ; better it is not to vow then that thou shouldst vow and not pay . hast thou vowed a vow ? then deferre not to pay it : god hath no pleasure in fools . as if the holy ghost had said , it is the part of a fool to vow before he consider and be absolutely resolved to perform , to be off and on with the lord god of hosts : the lord hath no pleasure in fools : therefore pay all thy good vows , and be humbled for thy rash vows . but we are fallen into bad times , when truth and equitie is perished from among men : every one is a deceitfull bow ; yea , the best ( almost ) is a briar : nothing so common as vows and promises ; but few make conscience of performing them . nay , men are carelesse of their grand vow which they have made vnto god in their baptisme . o this is a very fearfull sinne ! ye have all made a vow unto god in your baptisme that ye would live otherwise then ye do , and ye make no conscience to keep it . baptisme is a very weightie thing : if there were no other thing to bind you to holinesse and obedience and faith but onely the vow ye entred into in your baptisme , did ye consider what a vow it is , it would move you alone . it is said of apollos that he was fervent in spirit though he knew nothing but the baptisme of john : apollos considered what a vow he had made unto god in his baptisme , that , though he knew nothing else , it made him zealous for god. baptisme is a very great binder of conscience : it bindeth a man to believe , and to go out of himself , and to submit to jesus christ . the wicked pharisees saw this to be true : if we shall say that johns baptisme was from heaven , he will say , why did ye not then believe ? beloved , was not your baptisme from heaven ? was it not an ordinance of god ? and did ye not solemnly then vow unto god ? why then do ye not believe ? why do ye not denie your selves , your works , your wayes , and take up christs crosse ? as christ saith of john baptist , among them that are born of women there hath not been a greater then john the baptist ; so may i say of bonds and of vows and covenants . among all the vows and covenants that ever were made there hath not been a greater then this of baptisme : and therefore ye had best look to the performing of what ye then vowed : if ye do not , ye are grievous breakers of covenant with god ; which sinne will surely stand against you for evil . it is most certain , that baptisme doth greatly bind us in conscience to walk answerably to it in all righteousnesse and true holinesse : and we can never be saved ( though we are baptized ) except we can answer with a good conscience that we live as we vowed in our baptisme : 1. pet. 3.21 . the like figure whereunto , even baptisme , doth also now save us ; not the putting away of the filth of the flesh , but the answer of a good conscience towards god. mark ; unlesse we can answer with a good conscience that we live according to our promises in it , our baptisme cannot save us . i pray , consider that speech of st paul ; we are buried with christ by baptisme into his death , that like as christ was raised up from th● dead by the glory of the father , even so we also should walk in newnesse of life . mark ; there is the vow that we made unto god in our baptisme : and the apostle there telleth us we are bound in conscience to keep this vow ; otherwise we had better have been without our baptisme . do not think that god will be mocked : ye are content to go for christians : but if ye be christians , consider ye are under a great vow ; and if ye do not keep it , gods covenant hath a quarrel against you , and ye shall be broken in judgement . there is no sinne that ye live in , no lust that your conscience telleth you hath enterteinment in your hearts , but it is sacramentall perjurie against the vow that ye made unto god in your baptisme . are ye dead to good duties ? ye vowed in your baptisme ye would not be so . do ye not dayly mortifie and subdue your affections ? ye vowed in your baptisme ye would . do ye not dayly fight against sinne and the flesh , like the faithfull souldiers of christ ? ye vowed in your baptisme ye would . what a horrible perjurie is this ? nay , it is worse : it is a sacramentall perjurie . when the apostles saw any sinne in the people , presently they tell them of baptisme : as if they should say , do ye live thus and thus , when ye vowed the contrarie in your baptisme ? when there were divisions in corinth ; some would be of cephas , and some of apollos , and some of paul : paul then telleth them of their baptisme ; were ye baptized in the name of paul ? as if he had said , i pray , consider how contrary this is unto your baptisme : ye were baptized into christ ; and are ye thus divided among your selves ? so when there was corruption crept into the people of galatia , s t paul telleth them of their baptisme : as many of you , saith he , as have been baptized into christ have put on christ . as if he had said , this corruption of yours is contrarie to your baptisme : ye were baptized into christ , and ye have vowed to put on christ ; and do ye yield to such corruptions as these ? so also when there was want of love and unitie and affection between one another among the ephesians , s t paul telleth them of their baptisme : o saith he , there is one god , one faith , one baptisme . as if he should say , this is contrarie to your baptisme : ye were all baptized with one baptisme ; and do not ye live in peace ? and is there not unitie of spirit one with another among you ? what ? and were all baptized with one baptisme ? beloved , ye never do that which is not good but ye go clean contrarie to your baptisme . what ? were ye baptized into christ , and do thus ? baptized into christ and pray thus ? baptized into christ , and heare the word of christ thus ? serve god no better then thus ? your baptisme bindeth you in conscience against every sinne and every evil way : o let us take it to heart and consider it . finis . notes, typically marginal, from the original text notes for div a41128-e120 ille verè scripturas legit qui verba vertit in opera . * 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 * 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 , à sanandis omnibus morbis . * 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 * laetitia bonae consci●ntiae paradisus est anim●rum , g●udium ▪ angelorum hortus deliciarum , ager benedictionis , templ●m sol●m●m● , aula dei , habitaculum spiritús sancti , bernard . * 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 . * multi christianum nomen ad judicium habene non ad remedium . domus animae , guil. parisiens . * dum tempora superiora cum nostris comparo , dicere consuevi plus illos conscientiae , scientiae minus babuisse ; nos contrà , scientiae plus , conscientiae minus habere , beza . * prejudicium judicii , tertull. * unicuique liber est propria conscientia ; & ad hunc librum discutiendum & emendandum omnes alii invenli sunt . praelucendo pereo . * tanta est dulcedo coelesti● gaudii , ut si una guttula difflueret in infernum , totam amaritudinem inferni absorboret . notes for div a41128-e2740 what a mans estate before god is . rom. 16 . 1● ephes . 4.18 , gen. 13.13 . luke 1.6 . observ . ministers are to enquire after the estate of their people . reasons . 1. prov. 27.23 . 1. thess . 3.5 3. philip 2.19 . col. 4.8 . vses . 1. instruct . jer. 8.12 . 2. reproof . isai . 30.10 . 3. exhortation . 1. observ . acts 8.23 . rom. 16.7 . matth. 25.32 . 2. prop. e●e●●ion ma● be k●own . shrewd signes of it . that a man may know his estate , proved . reasons 1. 1. john 3.8 . 1. john 3.3 . ii. exod. 9.27 . psal . 86.2 . iii. matth. 3.7 , 8 , eph. 2.3 . phil. 3.17 . 1. cor. 1.26 . 3. vse 1. of instruction . it is every mans duty to enquire after his estate . ma●t● . 15.14 . reasons 2. cor. 13.5 . rom. 5.1 . jo● . 22.21 . 1. cor. 11.28 . lam. 3 , 40. ga● . 6.4 . vse . 2. of direction . means to know what estate we are in . matth. 7.17 . psal . 119.112 . 1. cor. 2.11 . prov. 20 27. luke 24.32 . eph. 4.19 . vse 3. impediments . jer. 4.14 . rev. 3.17 . luke 21.34 john 3.20 . rom. 3.11 . vse 4. of exhortation . notes for div a41128-e5260 what conscience is . rev. 19.10 matth. 8.29 . 1. cor. 11.31 . foure propositions . 1. there is in every man a conscience . john 8.9 . 2. cor. 1.12 . tit. 1.15 . reasons 1. 2. vse 1. mar. 9.44 . vse . 2. 1. cor. 11.28 . verse 13. vse 3. prov. 14.13 . gen. 4.5 . vse 4. ii. proposition . psal . 18.23 . josh . 7.20 . 1. cor. 6.9 . luke 23.34 . john 16.2 . vse 1. vse 2. iii. proposition . the office of conscience is to bear witnesse . rom. 9.5 . foure properties of conscience . 1. jo●n 2.4 . job 13.3 . vse . of consciences single bearing witnesse . gen. 41.9 . judg. 1.7 . rom. 2.16 . psal . 119.77 . ob. 1. jer. 17.9 . answ . psal . 30.6 . ob. 2. answ . vse 1 , vse 2. isai . 38 ▪ 3. 2. the judic●all bearing witnesse of conscience . vse 1. matth. 5.6 . 1. p●t . 1.01 . v●e . 2. vse 3. 2. cor. 1.12 . 1. conscience judgeth . 1. cor. 11.13 . 2. conscience counselleth . isai 30.21 . 1. sam. 24.10 nehem. 6.11 . vse 1. object . answ . rom. 13.5 . 1. p●t . 2.19 . vse 2. 1 sam. 24.10 . psal . 4.4 . jer. 31.19 . job . 27.6 . vse 3. 1. sam. 23.2 . prov. 19.20 . vse 4. the adjuncts of conscience . 1. an illightened conscience . vse 1. psal . 119.105 . vse 2. 2. an erroneous conscience . matth. 1 19. quest . answ . 2. 3. vse 1. vse 2. isa . 65.3 . 3. a doubting conscience . rom. 14.23 . rule 1. rule 2. rule 3. 4 a scrupulous conscience . quest. answ . deut. 13.1 , 2 , 3 , 4. vse 1. vse 2. prov. 29.1 . means to get knowledge . 1. psal . 119 73. 2. psal . 25.9 . 3. vse 3. antonius . vse 4. 1. john. 3.21 . matth. 5.23 . 5. a faithfull conscience . prov. 20.6 . properties : 1. it is watchfull . psal . 119.39 . 1. cor. 9.22 . 2. pet. 1.12 . 2. it is severe . luke 16.10 . 3. it is importunate . acts 20.22 . psal . 132.4 . vse . 1. exod. 35.21 vse 2. cant. 6.12 , 13. vse . 3. john 15.14 . vse 4. maxima viola●io consci●n●iae ●st maximepec●atum . 1. sam. 13.12 . 6. an unfaithfull conscience . properties thereof ; 1. it is silent . m●●h . 7.3 . ● . it is large . 2. kings 10. ●● . 3. it is remisse . deut. 29.19 . vse . 2. kings 7.9 . quest. answ . 1. pet. 2.15 . f●●d . 10.29 . rom. 9.1 . 2. tim. 4.7 , 8 , 1. jo●n 3.14 . luke 2.29 . 1. sam. 12.3 . rom. 7.15 . gen 3.7 . tit. 3.11 . use 1. rom. 2.15 . vse 2. 1. a tender conscience . 1. sam. 24 . 5● 1. sam. 6.19 . numb . 15.32 , 36. 2. a sleepy conscience . matth. 11.28 . 3. a benumbed conscience . rom. 1.32 . 4. a seared conscience . use . 1. kings 18.12 . h●b . 11.5 . die●nte scripturâ inquit ille . acts 23.1 . 1. cor. 4.4 . heb. 10.2 . prov. 1.33 . 2. co● . 1.12 . job 21.23 . ezek. 44.23 isai . 57.19 vers . 21. heb. 10 , 22. rom. 5.1 . rom. 15.13 . gal. 5.22 . 1. thess . 5.23 . psal . 119.165 . job . 7.20 . job . 22.21 . col. 3.15 . psal . 29.11 . psal . 97.11 . isai . 59.8 . john 14.27 psal . 35.8 . ● . pet. 5.14 . gal. 5.22 . prov. 7.14 . job . 15.21 . job 18.14 . 1. jo●n 4.18 . 2. kings 20.3 . psal . 39.13 . job 10.20 , 21. phil. 1.23 . 1. kings 19.4 . 2. tim. 4.8 . heb. 2.14 . 1. cor. 15.56 , 57. psal . 116.15 . matth. 27.5 . 2. sam. 17.22 . jon. 4.3 . 1. cor. 16.10 . psal . 119.103 . 1. cor. 4.3 , 4. exhortation . mal. 2.6 . what it is lev. 5.4 . gen. 42.21 . psal . 51.3 . psal . 51.4 . psal . 80.4 . desperatio est homicida animae , aug. desperate est in infernum descendere , isià . e●ek 24.23 . gen. 4.13 . 2. sam. 15.26 . exod. 8.15 . psal . 88.1 . vse 1. prov. 18.14 . vse 2. 1. sam 25.37 . 1. sam. 15.16 . 1. kings 21.20 . psal . 39.11 . vse 3. exhortation . m.m. ezek. 18.26 . 1. cor. 9.16 . job 31.23 . psal . 119.120 . heb. 12.28 . rom. 14.22 . answ . 2 answ . 3. zech. 13.1 . object . sol. answ . 4. psal . 28.6 . dub. sol. 2. cor. 1.12 . 1. john 2.29 . 1. john 4.13 . 1. john 3.14 . gal. 6.16 . ephes . 6.15 . 1. thess . 4.1 . 2. cor. 5.9 . matth. ● . 17 . jer. 8.11 . rev. 22.17 . isai . 30.18 . psal . 123.2 . prov. 20 22. 1. every mans conscience may inform him in what state he is . 2. tim. 1 . 3● . isai . 59.12 . eccles 7.22 . matth. 22.12 . acts 25.16 . 2. how conscience doth this . psal . 119.6 . prov 11 18. rom. 8.6 rom. 8.13 . john 3.18 . rom. 6.11 . 3. when conscience doth this . acts 24.25 . conscience interlineth . act 2● 25. acts 27.23 . rom. 1.9 . conscience choketh . num. 12.4 . jer. 4.18 . 4 why many are deluded about their estate . reas . 2. reas . 3. isai . 66.24 . job 9.11 . ● . cor. 4.2 . rom. 13.5 . acts 23. ● concerning a good conscience john 8.9 . tit. 1.15 . a firm conscience . 1. pet. 3.15 , 16. an infirm conscience rom. 14.21 . rom. 14.10 . rom. 14.14 . rom. 14.15 . 1. cor. 8.9 , 10 , 11. use 1. 2. rom. 14.13 . 3. heb. 10 . 2● . 1. cor. 15.55 , 57. gen. 4.20 . 1. sam. 28.20 . the bond of conscience is gods law . jam. 4 : 12. the law of god the prime bond of conscience . rom. 1.14 . acts 20.22 . 1. cor. 9 . 1● . acts 4.20 . reasons heb. 4.12 . vers . 13. 1. cor. 10.27 . psal . 51.4 . rev. 22.18 , 19. rom. 2.14 . use 1. 2. cor. 4.2 . ● ▪ cor. 14.37 . use 2. use 3. from what christians are freed . rom. 6.14 . rom. 7.6 . rom. 8.1 . anti●●mis●● psal . 2.1 , 2 , 3 arguments . that gods la● bindeth the conscience of the regenerate . arg. 1. luke 17.10 . rom. 3.31 . arg. 2. 1. john 3.4 . jam. 2.11 . arg. 3. arg. 4. use 4. azorius the jesuite reports it . psal . 119.89 . prov. 29.1 . dan. 9.24 . dan. 3.16 . dan. 6.16 . rom. 14.14 . 1. john 5.21 . matth. 17. ●7 . obj. 1. answ . obj. 2. answ . 1. pet. 2.13 . obj. 3. answ . use 1. use 2. use . 3. 1. sam. 25.22 . num. 30.3 . judges 11.30 . eccles. 5.5 . baptisme . acts 18.25 . matth. ●1 . 25 . matth. 11.11 . rom. 6.4 . 1. cor. 1.13 . gal. 3.27 . ephes . 4.5 . cases of conscience practically resolved containing a decision of the principall cases of conscience of daily concernment and continual use amongst men : very necessary for their information and direction in these evil times / by jos. hall. hall, joseph, 1574-1656. 1654 approx. 392 kb of xml-encoded text transcribed from 232 1-bit group-iv tiff page images. text creation partnership, ann arbor, mi ; oxford (uk) : 2005-10 (eebo-tcp phase 1). a45158 wing h371 estc r30721 11415099 ocm 11415099 47749 this keyboarded and encoded edition of the work described above is co-owned by the institutions providing financial support to the early english books online text creation partnership. this phase i text is available for reuse, according to the terms of creative commons 0 1.0 universal . the text can be copied, modified, distributed and performed, even for commercial purposes, all without asking permission. early english books online. (eebo-tcp ; phase 1, no. a45158) transcribed from: (early english books online ; image set 47749) images scanned from microfilm: (early english books, 1641-1700 ; 1463:7) cases of conscience practically resolved containing a decision of the principall cases of conscience of daily concernment and continual use amongst men : very necessary for their information and direction in these evil times / by jos. hall. hall, joseph, 1574-1656. the third edition much inlarged. [22], 399 p. : port. printed by r.h. and j.g. and are to be sold by fr. eglesfield ..., london : 1654. "to the reader" reads: "higham near norwich, march 29, 1650." running title reads: divers practicall cases of conscience resolved. has engraved portrait frontispiece. reproduction of original in the harvard university library. created by converting tcp files to tei p5 using tcp2tei.xsl, tei @ oxford. re-processed by university of nebraska-lincoln and northwestern, with changes to facilitate morpho-syntactic tagging. gap elements of known extent have been transformed into placeholder characters or elements to simplify the filling in of gaps by user contributors. eebo-tcp is a partnership between the universities of michigan and oxford and the publisher proquest to create accurately transcribed and encoded texts based on the image sets published by proquest via their early english books online (eebo) database (http://eebo.chadwyck.com). the general aim of eebo-tcp is to encode one copy (usually the first edition) of every monographic english-language title published between 1473 and 1700 available in eebo. eebo-tcp aimed to produce large quantities of textual data within the usual project restraints of time and funding, and therefore chose to create diplomatic transcriptions (as opposed to critical editions) with light-touch, mainly structural encoding based on the text encoding initiative (http://www.tei-c.org). the eebo-tcp project was divided into two phases. the 25,363 texts created during phase 1 of the project have been released into the public domain as of 1 january 2015. anyone can now take and use these texts for their own purposes, but we respectfully request that due credit and attribution is given to their original source. users should be aware of the process of creating the tcp texts, and therefore of any assumptions that can be made about the data. text selection was based on the new cambridge bibliography of english literature (ncbel). if an author (or for an anonymous work, the title) appears in ncbel, then their works are eligible for inclusion. selection was intended to range over a wide variety of subject areas, to reflect the true nature of the print record of the period. in general, first editions of a works in english were prioritized, although there are a number of works in other languages, notably latin and welsh, included and sometimes a second or later edition of a work was chosen if there was a compelling reason to do so. image sets were sent to external keying companies for transcription and basic encoding. quality assurance was then carried out by editorial teams in oxford and michigan. 5% (or 5 pages, whichever is the greater) of each text was proofread for accuracy and those which did not meet qa standards were returned to the keyers to be redone. after proofreading, the encoding was enhanced and/or corrected and characters marked as illegible were corrected where possible up to a limit of 100 instances per text. any remaining illegibles were encoded as <gap>s. understanding these processes should make clear that, while the overall quality of tcp data is very good, some errors will remain and some readable characters will be marked as illegible. users should bear in mind that in all likelihood such instances will never have been looked at by a tcp editor. the texts were encoded and linked to page images in accordance with level 4 of the tei in libraries guidelines. copies of the texts have been issued variously as sgml (tcp schema; ascii text with mnemonic sdata character entities); displayable xml (tcp schema; characters represented either as utf-8 unicode or text strings within braces); or lossless xml (tei p5, characters represented either as utf-8 unicode or tei g elements). keying and markup guidelines are available at the text creation partnership web site . eng casuistry. conscience. 2005-01 tcp assigned for keying and markup 2005-01 aptara keyed and coded from proquest page images 2005-02 rachel losh sampled and proofread 2005-02 rachel losh text and markup reviewed and edited 2005-04 pfs batch review (qc) and xml conversion vera effigies reverendi do●● iosephi hall norwiciepis copi . this picture represents the forme , where dwells ▪ a mind , which nothing but that mind excells . there 's wisdome , learning , witt ; there grace & lov● rule over all the rest : enough to prove , against the froward conscience of this time , the reverend name of bishop is no crime ▪ cases of conscience practically resolved : containing a decision of the principall cases of conscience , of daily concernment , and continual use amongst men. very necessary for their information and direction in these evil times . the third edition much inlarged . by jos : hall , b. norwich . london , printed by r. h. and j. g. and are to be sold by fr : eglesfield at the marigold in s. paul's church-yard . 1654. to the reader . of all divinity that part is most usefull , which determines cases of conscience ; and of all cases of conscience the practicall are most necessary ; as action is of more concernment than speculation : and of all practicall cases those which are of most cōmon use are of so much greater necessity & benefit to be resolved , as the errors thereof are more universall ; and therefore more prejudiciall to the society of mankind : these i have selected out of many ; and having turned over divers casuists , have pitch't upon these decisions , which i hold most conformable to enlightened reason , and religion : sometimes i follow them , & sometimes i leave them for a better guide . in the handling of all which , would i have affected that course , which seneca blames in his albutius , to say all that might be spoken , i could easily have been more voluminous , though perhaps not more satisfactory . if these lines meet with different judgments , i cannot blame either my selfe , or them . it is the opinion of some schoolmen ( which seems to be made good by that instance in the prophet daniel * ) that even the good angels themselves may holily vary in the way , though they perfectly meet in the end : it is farre from my thoughts to obtrude these my resolutions as peremptory , and magisteriall upon my readers , i onely tender them submissely , as probable advises to the simpler sort of christians ; and as matter of grave censure to the learned . may that infinite goodnesse to whose only glory i humbly desire to devote my selfe and all my poore indeavours , make them as beneficial , as they are wel-meant to the good of his church , by the unworthiest of his servants higham near norwich , march 29. 1650. j. h. b. n. the contents of the first decade . cases of profit and traffique . i. whether it be lawfull for me to raise any profit by the loane of mony ? p. 1 ii. whether may i not sell my wares as deare as i can , and get what i may of every buyer ? 13 iii. whether is the seller bound to make known to the buyer the faults of that which he is about to sell ? 19 iv. whether may i sell my commodities the dearer for giving dayes of payment ? 24 v. whether and how farre monopolies are , or may be lawfull ? 30 vi. whether and how far doth a fraudulent bargaine binde me to performance ? 38 vii . how farre and when am i bound to make restitution of another mans goods remaining in my hands ? 47 viii . whether and how farre doth a promise extorted by feare , though seconded by an oath , binde my conscience to performance ? 54 ix . whether those moneyes , or goods which i have found may be safely taken , and kept by me to my owne use ? 61 x. whether i may lawfully buy those goods , which i shall strongly suspect , or know to be stollen , or plundred ; or if i have ignorantly bought such goods , whether i may lawfully ( after knowledge of their owner ) keep them as mine ? 66 the contents of the second decade . cases of life and liberty . i. whether and in what cases it may be lawfull for a man to take away the life of another ? p. 71 ii. whether may i lawfully make use of a duel for the deciding of my right ; or the vindication of my honour ? 81 iii. whether may it be lawfull in case of extremity to procure the abortion of the child for the preservation of the mother ? 89 iv. whether a man , adjudged to perpetuall imprisonment , or death , may in conscience indeavour , and practice an escape ? 101 v. whether and how farre a man may be urged to an oath ? 108 vi. whether a judge may upon allegations , proofes and evidences of others , condemn a man to death , whom he himselfe certainly knowes to be innocent ? 117 vii . whether and in what cases am i bound to be an accuser of another ? 129 viii . whether a prisoner indicted of a felonious act , which he hath committed ; and interrogated by the judge concerning the same , may stand upon the denial , and plead not guilty ? 136 ix . whether and how farre a man may take up armes in the publique quarrell of a warre ? 143 x. whether and how far a man may act towards his owne death ? 150 the contents of the third decade . cases of piety and religion . i. whether upon the appearance of evill spirits , we may hold discourse with them , and how we may demean our selves concerning them ? 161 ii. how farre a secret pact with evill spirits doth extend ; and what actions and events must be referred thereunto ? 174 iii. whether reserving my conscience to my selfe , i may be present at an idolatrous devotion ; or whether in the lawfull service of god i may communicate with wicked persons ? 183 iv. whether vowes be not out of fashion now under the gospell ; of what things they may be made ; how farre they oblige us : and whether and how farre they may be capable of a release . 192 v. whom may we justly hold an heretique ; and what is to be done in case of heresie . vi. whether the lawes of men doe bind the conscience ; and how farre we are tyed to their obedience ? 210 vii . whether tithes be lawfull maintenance for ministers under the gospel ? and whether men be bound to pay them accordingly ? 219 viii . whether it be lawfull for christians , where they finde a countrey possessed by savage pagans and infidels , to drive out the native inhabitants , and to seize upon and enjoy their lands upon any pretence whatsoever ; and upon what grounds it may be lawfull so to doe ? 233 ix . whether i need in case of some foule sinne committed by me to have recourse to gods minister for absolution ; and what effect i may expect there-from . 249 x. whether it be lawfull for a man that is not a professed divine , that is ( as we for distinction are wont to call him ) for a meer laick person , to take upon him to interpret scripture ? 262 the contents of the fourth decade . cases matrimoniall . i. whether the marriage of a son or daughter , without or against the consent of parents , may be accounted lawfull ? 285 ii. whether marriage lawfully made may admit of any cause of divorce , save onely for the violation of the marriage-bed by fornication , or adultery ? 296 iii. whether after a lawfull divorce for adultery , the innocent party may marry againe ? 311 iv. whether the authority of a father may reach so farre as to command , or compell the child to dispose of himselfe in marriage where he shall appoint ? 322 v. whether the marriage of cousensgerman , that is , of brothers and sisters children be lawfull ? 331 vi. whether it be necessary , or requisite there should be a witnessed contract , or espousals of the parties to be married before the solemnization of the marriage ? 343 vii . whether there ought to be a prohibition , and forbearance of marriages , and marriage-duties for some times appointed ? 353 viii . whether it be necessary that marriages should be celebrated by a minister ; and whether they may be valid , and lawfull without him ? 361 ix . whether there be any necessity or use of thrice publishing the contract of marriage in the congregation before the celebration of it ; and whether it be fit , that any dispensation should be granted for the forbearance of it ? 366 x. whether marriages once made , may be annulled , and utterly voided ; and in what cases this may be done ? 372 additionals to the fourth decade . i. whether a marriage consummate betwixt the unkle and neece be so utterly unlawful , as to merit a sentence of present separation ? 383 ii. whether it be lawfull for a man to marry his wives brothers widow ? 406 iii. whether an incestuous marriage contracted in simplicity of heart betwixt two persons ignorant of such a defilement , and so farre consummate as that children are borne in that wedlock , ought to be made knowne and prosecuted to a dissolution ? 412 i have perused these foure decades of practicall cases of conscience with much satisfaction and delight , and finde them to be , in respect of their subject matter , so profitable , necessary and daily usefull ; and so piously , learnedly and judiciously discussed and resolved , that they seem unto me best , though they come last , ( like the wine in the marriage feast made sacred by christs divine presence and miracle ) and therefore doe well deserve ( amongst many other the divine dishes and delicacies , wherewith this right reverend , pious and learned authour hath plentiously furnished a feast for the spirituall nourishment and comfortable refreshing of gods guests ) both the approbation and commendation of all , and my selfe amongst the rest , though unworthy to passe my censure on such a subject . john downame . resolutions . the first decade . cases of profit and trafick . case i. whether is it lawfull for me to raise any profit by the loane of money ? you may not expect a positive answer either way : many circumstances are considerable ere any thing can be determined . first , who is it that borrowes ? a poore neighbour that is constrained out of neede ? or a merchant that takes up money for a freer trade ? or a rich man that layes it out upon superfluous occasions ? if a poore man borrow out of necessity , you may not expect any profit for the loane : ( deuteronomy 15. 7 , 8 , 9. ) to the poorest of all we must give , and not lend : to the next ranke of poore we must lend freely : but if a man will borrow that money ( which you could improve ) for the enriching of himselfe ; or out of a wanton expence will be laying out that which might be otherwise usefull to you , for his meere pleasure , the case is different ; for god hath not commanded you to love any man more then your selfe ; and there can be no reason why you should vail your owne just advantage to another mans excesse . secondly , upon what termes doe you lend ? whether upon an absolute compact for a set increment , ( what ever become of the principall or upon a friendly trust to a voluntary satisfaction according to the good improvement of the summe lent ? the former is not safe , and where there hath been an honest endeavour of a just benefit disappointed either by unavoidable casualty , or force , may not be rigorously urged , without manifest oppression . the latter can bee no other then lawfull : and with those that are truly faithfull and conscionable , the bond of gratitude is no lesse strong then that of law and justice . thirdly , if upon absolute compact ; is it upon a certainty , or an adventure ? for where you are willing to hazard the principall , there can be no reason but you should expect to take part of the advantage . fourthly , where the trade is ordinarily certaine , there are yet farther considerations to be had : to which shall make way by these undenyable grounds . that the value of moneys or other commodities is arbitrable according to the soveraigne authority and use of severall kingdomes and countries . that whatsoever commodity is saleable , is capable of a profit in the loane of it ; as an horse , or an oxe , being that it may be sold , may be let out for profit . money it selfe is not onely the price of all commodities in all civill nations , but it is also , in some cases , a trafiqueable commodity : the price whereof rises , and falls in severall countries upon occasion ; and yeeldeth either profit or losse in the exchange . there can be no doubt therefore but that money thus considered , and as it were turned merchandise , may be bought and sold , and improved to a just profit . but the maine doubt is , whether money meerely considered as the price of all other commodities , may be let forth for profit ; and be capable of a warrantable increase . for the resolving whereof be it determined , that all usury , which is an absolute contract for the meere loane of money , is unlawfull both by law naturall , and positive , both divine and humane . nature teacheth us that metals are not a thing capable of a superfoetation ; that no man ought to set a price on that which is not his owne time : that the use of the stock once received , is not the lenders , but the borrowers ; for the power , and right of disposing the principall , is by contract transferred for the time to the hands of him that receives it ; so as hee that takes the interest by vertue of such transaction , doth but in a mannerly and legall fashion rob the borrower . how frequent the * scripture is in the prohibition of this practice , no christian can bee ignorant : and as for humane lawes raised even from the meere light of nature amongst heathen nations , how odious , and severely interdicted usurary contracts , have been in all times , it appeares sufficiently by the records which wee have of the decrees of a egypt , of athens , of rome ; and not onely by the restraint of the twelve tables , and of claudius and vespasian ; but by the absolute forbiddance of many popular statutes condemning this usage : tiberius himselfe , though otherwise wicked enough , yet would rather furnish the bankes with his owne stock , to bee freely let out for three yeeres to the citizens , upon onely security of the summe doubled in the forfeiture , then he would endure this griping & oppressive transaction : and how wise cato drove out all usurers out of sicilie , and lucullus freed all asia from this pressure of interest , history hath sufficiently recorded . as for lawes ecclesiasticall , let it be enough that a * councel hath defined , that to say usury is not a sinne , is no better then heresie : and in succeeding times how liable the usurer hath ever been to the highest censures of the church ; and how excluded from the favour of christian buriall , is more manifest then to need any proofe . secondly , however it is unlawfull to covenant for a certaine profit for the mere loane of money , yet there may be , and are circumstances appending to the loane , which may admit of some benefit to be lawfully made by the lender for the use of his money ; and especially these two ; the losse that he sustaines , and the gaine that he misses , by the want of the summe lent : for what reason can there be , that to pleasure another man , i should hurt my selfe , that i should enrich another by my owne losse ? if then i shall incur a reall losse or forfeiture by the delayed payment of the summe lent ; i may justly look fot a satisfaction from the borrower ; yea if there be a true danger of losse to me imminent , when the transaction is made , nothing hinders but that i may by compact make sure such a summe as may be sufficient for my indemnity ; and if i see an opportunity of an apparent profit that i could make fairely by disbursing of such a summe bona fide , and another that hath a more gainefull bargaine in chace shall sue to me to borrow my money out of my hand for his owne greater advantage , there can be no reason why in such a case i should have more respect to his profit , then my owne ; and why should i not even upon pact , secure unto my selfe such a moderate summe as may be somewhat answerable to the gaine which i doe willingly forgoe , for his greater profit ? since it is a true ground which lessius ( with other casuists ) maintains against sotus and durand , that even our hopes of an evident commodity are valuable ; and that no lesse then the feares of our losse . shortly , for the guidance of our either caution , or liberty in matter of borrowing , and lending , the onely cynosure is our charity ; for in all humane and civill acts of commerce , it is a sure rule , that whatsoever is not a violation of charity cannot be unlawfull , and whatsoever is not agreeable to charity can be no other then sinfull : and as charity must be your rule , so your selfe must be the rule of your charity ; looke what you could wish to be done to you by others , doe but the same to others , you cannot be guilty of the breach of charity : the maximes of traffique are almost infinite ; onely charity ( but ever inseparable from justice ) must make the application of them ; that will teach you that every increase by loane of money is not usurary ; and that those which are absolutely such , are damnable : that will teach you to distinguish betwixt the one improvement of loane , and the other ; and will tell you that if you can finde out a way , whether by loane , or sale , to advance your stock , that may be free from all oppression , and extortion ; and beneficiall as well to others , as to your selfe , you need not feare to walke in it with all honest security : but in the meane time take good heed that your heart beguile you not in mis-applications ; for we are naturally too apt out of our self-love to flatter our selves with faire glozes of bad intentions ; and rather to draw the rule to us , then our selves to the rule . but whiles i give you this short solution , i must professe to lament the common ignorance , or mistaking of too many christians , whose zeal justly cryes downe usury as a most hatefull and abominable practice , but in the meane time makes no bones of actions no lesse biting , and oppressive : they care not how high they sell any of their commodities , at how unreasonable rates they ●et their grounds , how they circumvent the buyer in their bargaines , and thinke any price just , any gaine lawfull that they can make in their markets : not considering that there is neither lesse , nor lesse odious usury in selling and letting , then there is in lending : it is the extortion in both that makes the sinne ; without which the kind or termes of the transaction could not be guilty . surely it must needs be a great weaknesse to think that the same god who requires mercy and favour in lending , will allow us to be cruell in selling ; rigour and excesse in both equally violates the law of commutative justice , equally crosses the law of charity : let those therefore that make scruple of an usurious lending , learne to make no lesse conscience of a racking bargaine ; otherwise their partiall obedience will argue a grosse hypocrisie ; and they shall prove themselves the worst kinde of what they hate , usurers : for in the ordinary loan● usury , the borrower hath yet time to boot for his money ; but here the buyer payes downe an excessive interest , without any consideration at all , but the sellers cruelty . for the fuller clearing of which point ; whereas you aske case ii. whether may i not sell my wares as deare as i can , and get what i may of every buyer ? i answer , there is a due price to be set upon every saleable commodity ; else there were no commerce to be used among men : for if every man might set what rate he pleases upon his lands or goods , where should he finde a buyer ? surely nothing could follow but confusion , and want ; for mere extremity must both make the market and regulate it . the due price is that which cuts equally and indifferently betwixt the buyer and seller ; so as the seller may receive a moderate gaine , and the buyer a just penny-worth . in those countries wherein there is a price set by publique authority upon all marketable commodities , the way of commerce is well expedited , and it is soone and easily determined , that it is meete men should be held close to the rule . but where all things are left to an arbitrary transaction , there were no living , if some limits were not set to the sellers demands . these limits must be the ordinary received proportion of price current in the severall countries wherein they are sold ; and the judgement of discreet , wise , experienced and unconcerned persons ; and the well-stated conscience of the seller . if men shall wilfully run beyond these bounds , taking advantage of the rarenesse of the commodity , the paucity or the necessity of the buyers to enhance the price to an unreasonable height , they shall be guilty of the breach of charity , and in making a sinfull bargaine purchase a curse . not that a man is so strictly tyed to any others valuation , as that hee may not upon any occasion aske or receive more then the common price ; or that if the market rise he is bound to sit still : there may be just reason upon a generall mortality of cattle to set those beasts that remaine at an higher rate , or upon a dearth of graine , or other commodities , to heighten the price ; but in such cases wee must bee so affected as that wee grudge to our selves our owne gaine , that wee bee not in the first file of enhancers , that wee strive to be the lowest in our valuation , and labour what we may to bring downe the market ; alwaies putting our selves in our conceits into the buyers roome ; and bethinking how we would wish to be dealt with , if we were in his cloathes . it is lawfull for the seller in his price to have regard not to his rents and disbursements onely , but to his labour , and cost , to his delay of benefit , to his loss in managing , to his hazard or difficulty in conveyance ; but all these in such moderation , as that he may be a just gainer by the bargaine : not setting the dice upon the buyer ; not making too much haste to be rich , by the secret spoiles of an oppressed neighbour . those things whose end is onely pleasure or ornament , as a jewel , an hauke , or an hound , can admit of no certaine value ; the owners affection must estimate it , and the buyers desire must make up an illimited bargaine ; but even in these , and all other commodities that carry the face of unnecessary , conscience must be the clarke of the market ; and tell us that we must so sell , as we could be willing to buy . from all which it followes , that the common maxime current * in the shops of trade , that things are so much worth as they can be sold for ; and those ordinary rules of chapmen , that men who are masters of their wares may heighten their prices at pleasure , and get what they can out of all commers ; and what ever they can get out of the simplicity , or necessity of the buyers , is lawfull prize , are damnably uncharitable and unjust . it were an happy thing , if as it is in some other well ordered nations , there were a certaine regulation of the prices of all commodities by publique authority , the wisdome whereof knows how to rise and fall according to the necessity of the occasion ; so as the buyer might be secured from injury , and the seller restrained from a lawlesse oppression . but where that cannot be had , it is fit that justice and charity should so far over-rule mens actions , that every man may not be carryed in matter of contract , by the sway of his owne unreasonable will , and be free to carve for himselfe as he lists of the buyers purse : every man hath a bird in his bosome that sings to him another note . a good conscience therefore will tell you that if ( taking advantage of the ignorance or unskilfulnesse of the buyer ) you have made a prey of him by drawing from him double the worth of the commodity sold , you are bound to make restitution to him accordingly , and in a proportion so , in all the considerable summes which you shall have by your false protestations , and oathes , and plausible intimations wrought out from an abused buyer ; above that due price which would make you a just and rightly moderated gainer : for assure your selfe , all that you willingly doe this way is but a better-coloured picking of purses ; and what you thus get is but stolne goods varnisht over with the pretence of a calling , and will prove at the last no other then gravel in your throat . case iii. whether is the seller bound to make knowne to the buyer the faults of that which he is about to sell ? it is a question that was long since disputed betwixt the heathen sages , antipater and diogenes , as cicero * informes us : with whom cato so decides it as that his judgement may justly shame and condemne the practice of too many christians : for a full answer , due consideration must be had of divers circumstances . first , what the nature and quality of the fault is ; whether it be sleight and unimporting ; or whether such as may vitiate the thing sold , and render it either unusefull or dangerous to the buyer : or againe , whether the fault be apparent , or secret : both these doe justly vary the case : sleight and harmeless faults may bee concealed without injustice ; main and importing must be signified : if apparent defects bee not discerned by the buyer hee may thanke himselfe ; secret faults knowne onely to the seller , ( such as may be prejudiciall to the buyer ) ought not to be concealed , or if they be concealed so , as that the buyer payes for it as sound , and perfect , binde the seller in conscience , either to void the bargaine , or to give just satisfaction . secondly , it would be considered , whether the buyer before the bargaine be stricken , hath required of the seller to signifie the faults of the commodity to be sold , and out of a reliance upon the sellers fidelity and warrant , hath made up the match : or whether in the confidence of his owne skill , without moving any question , hee enter resolutely , ( de bene esse ) upon the bargained commodity : if the former , a double bond lyes upon the seller to deale faithfully with the buyer , and therefore to let him know the true condition of the thing exposed to sale , that so either he may take off his hand ; or if he shall see that notwith standing that defect it may serve his turne , he may proportion the price accordingly : otherwise he shall be guilty ( besides falshood and oppression ) of perfidiousnesse . but if the buyer will peremptorily rely upon his owne judgement , and as presuming to make a gaine of that bargaine ( which the seller out of conscience of the imperfection , sets ( as hee ought ) so much lower as the defect may bee more disadvantageous to the buyer ) will goe through with the contract , and stand to all hazards , i see no reason why the seller may not receive the price stipulated ; but withall if the match may carry danger in it to the buyer , ( as if the horse sold bee subject to a perilous starting , or stumbling ; the house sold have a secret crack that may threaten ruine ; or the land sold be lyable to a litigious claime which may be timely avoyded ) the seller is bound in conscience ( at least after the bargaine ) to intimate unto the buyer these faulty qualities , that hee may accordingly provide for the prevention of the mischiefe that may ensue . but if the seller shall use art to cover the defects of his commodity , that so he may deceive the buyer in his judgement of the thing bargained for , or shall mix faulty wares with sound , that they may passe undiscovered , he is more faulty then his wares , and makes an ill bargaine for his soule . in this , shortly , and in all other cases that concerne trade , these universall rules must take place . that it is not lawfull for a christian chapman to thrive by fraud . that hee may sell upon no other termes then he could wish to buy . that his profit must be regulated by his conscience , not his conscience by his profit . that he is bound either to prevent the buyers wrong ; or if heedlesly done , to satisfie it . that he ought rather to affect to be honest , then rich : and lastly , that as he is a member of a community both civill and christian , he ought to be tender of another mans indemnity no lesse then of his owne . case iv. whether may i sell my commodities the dearer for giving dayes of payment ? there is no great difference betwixt this case , and that of loane , which is formerly answered ; save that there money is let , here commodities money-worth ; here is a sale , there a lending ; in the one a transferring of the right and command for the time ; in the other perpetually ; but the substance both of the matter and question is the same ; for in both there seemes to be a valuation of time : which whether in case of mutuation , or sale , may justly be suspected for unlawfull . for answer ; there are three stages of prices acknowledged by all casuists ; the highest , which they are wont to call rigorous ; the meane , and the lowest ; if these keep within due bounds , though the highest be hard , yet it is not unjust , and if the lowest be favovorable , yet it is not alwayes necessary . if then you shall proportion but a just price to the time , and worth of your bargaine , so as the present shall passe for the easiest price , some short time for the meane , and the longer delay for the highest , i see not wherein , all things considered , you doe offend . and certainly to debarre the contract of a moderate gaine for the delay of payment upon moneths prefixed , were to destroy all trade of merchandise : for not many buyers are furnished with ready money to buy their wares , at the port ; nor could the sellers make off their commodities so seasonably , as to be ready for further traffique , if they must necessarily be tyed to wait upon the hopes of a pecuniary sale ; and not left to the common liberty of putting them over to whole-sale men upon trust ; who upon a second trust distribute them to those , that vent them by retaile , both for days agreed upon : by which meanes the trade holds up , and the common-wealth enjoyes the benefit of a convenient and necessary commerce . a practice that is now so habituated amongst all nations into the course of trade , that it cannot well consist without it : so as nothing is more ordinary in experience than that those , who are able to pay downe ready money for their wares , know to expect a better pennyworth , then those that runne upon trust : and there may be just reason for this difference ; for the present money received enables the seller to a further improvement of his stock , which lyes for the time dead in the hands that take day for their payment . so then , it is not mere time that is here set to sale , which were odious in any christian to bargaine for ; but there are two incidents into this practice which may render it not unwarrantable . the one is the hazard of the summe agreed upon : which too often comes short in the payment : whiles those subordinate chapmen , into whose hand the grosse summe is scattered , turne bankrupts , and forfeit their trust ; so as no small losse is this way commonly sustained by the confident seller ; in which regard we are wont to say justly , that one bird in the hand is worth two in the wood . the other is the cessation of that gaine which the merchant might in the meane time have made of the sum differred ; which might in likelihood have beene greater then the proportion of the raised price can amount unto ; to which may be added the foreseene probability of the raising of the market in the intervall of payment : the profit whereof is precluded by this meanes to the seller : whose full engagement takes him off perhaps from a resolution to have reserved those commodities in his own hands , in expectation of an opportunity of a more profitable utterance , had not the forwardnesse of the buyer importuned a prevention . upon these considerations , if they be serious , and unfained ; i see not why you may not in a due and moderate proportion , difference your prices according to the delayes of payment , without any oppression to the buyer : howbeit , if any man pleaseth to be so free , as to take no notice of time , but to make future dayes in his account present , i shall commend his charity , though i dare not presse his example as necessary . the case is equally just on the behalfe of the seller : who if he be either driven by some emergent necessity ; or drawne by the opportunity of a more gainfull bargaine , to call for his money before his day , may justly be required by the late buyer , to abate of the returnable summe , in regard of the prevention of the time covenanted ; by reason of the inconvenience or losse whereunto he is put upon the suddaine revocation of that money , which is not by agreement payable till the expiration of the time prefixed . but what quantity is to be allowed on the one part , or defalked on the other , is onely to be moderated by christian charity , and that universall rule of doing what we would be willing to suffer . case v. whether , and how farre , monopolies are , or may be lawfull . the most famous monopolie that we finde in history is that of egypt , gen. 41. 56 , 57. wherein the provident patriarch joseph , out of the fore-sight of a following dearth , bought up the seven yeares graine for pharaoh , and layd it up in publique store-houses ; and in the generall scarcity sold it out to the inhabitants , and strangers , with no small advantage ; which was so farre from unlawfull , as that he thereby merited the name of the saviour of aegypt : * and if any worthy patriot out of a like providence , shall before-hand gather up the commodities of his country into a publique magazine for the common benefit and reliefe of the people ; upon the pinch of an ensuing necessity , he is so farre out of the reach of censure , as that he well deserves a statue with the inscription of publique benefactor ; so as it is not the meere act of monopolizing that makes the thing unlawfull , but the ground and intention , and the manner of carriage . all monopolies , as they are usually practised , are either such as are allowed by soveraigne authority , or privately contrived by secret plot and convention for a peculiar gaine to some speciall persons . if the first , it must be considered upon what reason that priviledge is granted , and upon what termes ; if both these be just , the grant can be no other . for first , it may not be denyed , that supreme authority , whether of princes or states , hath power to grant such priviledges where they shall finde just cause ; and secondly , that there may be very just motives of granting them to some capable and worthy persons ; i should be ashamed to imagine that either of these should need any probation . doubtlesse then , there is manifest equity , that where there hath beene some great merit , or charge , or danger in the compassing of some notable worke for a common good , the undertaker should be rewarded with a patent for a secured profit to himselfe . as put case some well minded printer ( as one of the stephens ) is willing to be at an excessive charge in the faire publication of a learned and usefull worke for the benefit of the present and following ages ; it is most just that he should from the hands of princes or states receive a priviledge for the sole impression ; that he may recover , with advantage , the deep expence he hath beene at ; otherwise some interloper may perhaps underhand fall upon the work at a lower rate , and undoe the first editor ; whose industry , care and cost shall thus be recompenced with the ruine of himselfe and his posterity ; as were too easie to instance . if a man have by notable dexterity of wit , and art ; and much labour and charge after many experiments , attained to the skill of making some rare engine of excellent use for the service of his prince and countrey , as some singular water worke ; or some beneficiall instrument for the freeing of navigable rivers from their sandy obstructions , it is all the reason in the world , that by the just bounty of princes he should be so far remunerated , as that he alone may receive a patent of enjoying a due profit of his owne invention . but how farre it may be lawfull for a prince , not onely to gratifie a well deserving subject , with the fee of his owne devise , but with a profit arising from the sole sale of marketable commodities through his kingdome ; or whether , and how farre in the want of monies , for the necessary service of his state , he may for the publique use , raise , set , or sell monopolies of that kind , is diversly agitated by casuists ; and must receive answer according to the absolutenesse or limitation of those governments , under which they are practised : but with this , that where this is done , there may be great care had of a just price to be set upon the commodities so restrained , that they be not left to the lawlesse will of a priviledged ingrosser , nor heightned to an undue rate by reason of a particular indulgence . this may be enough for authoritative monopolies . the common sort of offensive practices this way are private and single , or conventionall , and plotted by combination ; the former , as when some covetous extortioner , out of the strength of his purse , buyes up the whole lading of the ship , that he may have the sole power of the wares to sell them at pleasure , which , there is no feare but he w●ll doe with rigour enough : the true judgment of which action , & the degrees of the malignity of it , must be fetcht , as from the minde , so from the management of the buyer ; as being so much more sinfull , as it partakes more of oppression . the latter , when some brethren in evill conspire to prevent the harvest , to buy up , or hoord up the graine ; with a purpose to starve the market , and to hatch up a dearth : a damnable practice in both kindes ; and that which hath of old beene branded with a curse ; neither lesse full of justice than uncharitablenesse ; and that which cryes aloud , for a just punishment , and satisfactory restitution . i cannot therefore but marvaile at the opinion of learned lessius ( which he fathers also upon molina ) that too favourably minces the hainousnesse of this sin ; bearing us in hand , that it is indeed an offence against charity , and common profit , but not against particular justice , his reason : to buy that corne ( saith he ) could not be against justice , for he bought it at the current price : nor yet to sell it , could be against justice , because he was not tyed out of justice at that time to bring it forth to sale : when he might easily have considered , that it is not the mere act of buying , or of not selling , that in it selfe is accused for unjust , but to buy , or not to sell , with an intention , and issue of oppressing others , and undue enriching themselves by a dearth . for what can be more unjust then for a man to indevour to raise himself by the affamishing of others ? neither can it serve his turne to say by way of excuse , that the multitude of buyers may be the cause of a dearth , and yet without sin ; since they doe rather occasion , then cause a scarcity ; and are so farre from intending a dearth in making their market , that they deprecate it , as their great affliction . and if , by his owne confession , those , who either by force , or fraud hinder the importation of corne , that a dearth may continue , are guilty of injustice , and are bound to make restitution both to the commonwealth in giving cause to raise the price ; as also to the merchant , whom they have hindered of his meet gaine ; how can those be liable to a lesse sin , or punishment , that either buy up , or wilfully keep in , their graine with a purpose to begin , and hold on a dearth ? and what lesse can it be then force or fraud , that by their crafty and cruell prevention the poor are necessitated to want that sustenance , whereby their life should be maintained ? wise solomon shall shut up this scene for me . he that with holds corn , the people shall curse him , but blessings shall be upon the head of him that selleth it . prov. 11. 26. case vi. whether , and how farre doth the fraudulent bargaine binde me to performance . how farre in matter of law , you must advise with other counsaile , but for matter of conscience , take this : is the fraud actively yours , done by you to another ? or else passively put by another upon you ? if the former , you are bound to repent and satisfie ; either by rescinding the match , or by making amends for the injury : if the latter ; wherein did the fraud lye ? if in the maine substance of the thing sold , the bargaine is both by the very law of nature , and in conscience , void ; yea indeed , not at all : as if a man have sold you copper lace for gold ; or alchymie-plate for silver ; the reason is well given by * casuists : there is no bargaine without a consent ; and here is no consent at all , whiles both parties pitch not upon the same subject ; the buyer propounds to himselfe gold and silver , the seller obtrudes copper , and alchymie ; the one therefore not buying what the other pretended to sell , here is no bargaine made , but a mere act of cozenage , justly liable to punishment by all lawes of god and man. but if the fraud were onely in some circumstances , as in some faulty condition of the thing sold not before discerned ; or in the over-prizing of the commoditie bought ; the old rule is , caveat emptor ; you must for ought i know ) hold you to your bargain ; but if that faulty condition be of so high a nature that it marres the commoditie , and makes it uselesse to the buyer , the seller being conscious of the fault ) is injurious in the transaction , and is bound in conscience to make satisfaction ; and if he have willingly over-reacht you in the price , in a considerable proportion is guilty of oppression . it is very memorable in this kinde that cicero relates to us of a fraudulent bargaine betwixt * canius , a roman knight and orator , and one pythius a banker of syracuse . canius comming upon occasion of pleading to the city of syracuse , tooke a great liking to the place ; and setling there , gave out that he had a great desire to buy some one of those pleasant gardens , wherewith , it seemes , that city abounded ; that he might there recreate himself when he pleased , with his friends . pythius , a crafty merchant , hearing of it , sends word to canius , that hee had a faire garden which he had no minde to sell ; but if he pleased to make use of it for his solace , he might command it as his owne ; and withall courteously invites canius to suppe with him there the day following : in the meane time being a man by reason of his trade of exchange , very gracious in the city , he calls the fishermen together , and desires them that the next evening they would fish in the streame before his garden , and bring him , what they shall have caught : canius in due time comes according to the invitation , to supper ; where there was delicate provision made for him by pythius ; and store of boates bringing in their plentifull draughts of fish , and casting them downe at the feet of pythius : canius askes the meaning of this concourse of fishermen , and store of profered provision ? pythius tells him this is the commodity and priviledge of the place , if syracuse yeeld any fish , here it is caught , and here tendered ; canius beleeving the report , importunes his host to sell him the ground : the owner after some seeming loathnesse , and squeamish reluctation , at last yeelds to gratifie him with the bargaine : the deare price is payd downe with much eagernesse . the new master of the place , in much pride of his purchase , the next day repaires early to his garden , invites his friends to a friday feast ; and finding no boat there , asks the neighbour whether it were holiday with the fishermen , that he saw none of them there ; no , said the good man , none that i know ; but none of the trade use to fish here ; and i much marvailed at the strange confluence of their boats here yesterday : the roman orator was downe in the mouth ; finding himselfe thus cheated by the money-changer : but , for ought i see , had his amends in his hands ; he meant , and desired to buy the place , though without any such accommodation ; but over-bought it upon the false pretence of an appendent commodity ; the injury was the sellers , the losse must be the buyers . but if such be the case , that you are meerely drawne in by the fraud , and would not have bought the commodity at all , if you had not beene induced by the deceit , and false oathes and warrants of the seller , you have just reason , either , if you may , to fall off from the bargaine ; or , if the matter be valuable , to require a just satisfaction from the seller ; who is bound in conscience , either by annulling the bargaine , or abatement of price to make good your indemnity . in these matters of contract there is great reason to distinguish betwixt a willing deceit , and an involuntary wrong ; if a man shall fraudulently sell an horse which he knowes secretly and incurably diseased , to another for sound ; and that other , beleeving the sellers deep protestation , shall upon the same price , bonâ fide , put him off to me ; i feel my selfe injured , but whither shall i go for an amends ? i cannot challenge the immediate seller , for he deceived me not ; i cannot challenge the deceiver , for he dealt not with me ; in humane lawes , i am left remedilesse ; but in the law of conscience , the first seller , who ought to have born his own burthen of an inevitable losse , is bound to transferre by the hands that sold me that injurious bargaine , a due satisfaction . neither is it other of fraudulent conveyances in the houses or land , how ever the matter may be intricated by passing through many perhaps unknowing hands , yet the sinne and obligation to satisfaction , will necessarily lie at the first door ; whence if just restitution doe not follow , the seller may purchase hell to boot . think not now on this discourse , that the onely fraud is in selling ; there may be no lesse ( though not so frequent ) fraud in buying also ; whether in unjust payment , by false coyne ; or by injustice of quantities , as in buying by weights , or measures above allowance ; or by wrong valuation of the substance & quality of the commodity , misknown by the seller ; as for instance , a simple man , as i have knowne it done in the western parts , findes a parcell of ambergris cast upon the sands ; he perceiving i● to be some unctious matter , puts it to the base use of his shooes , or his cart wheel ; a merchant that smels the worth of the stuffe buyes it of him for a small summe ; giving him a shilling or two , for that which himselfe knowes to be worth twenty pounds : the bargaine is fraudulent ; and requires a proportionable compensation to the ignorant seller into whose hands providence hath cast so rich a booty . shortly , in all these intercourses of trade , that old and just rule which had wont to sway the traffique of heathens , must much more take place amongst christians , ( cum bonis benè agier ) that honest men must be honestly dealt with : and therefore that all fraud must be banished out of their markets ; or , if it dares to intrude , soundly punished ; and mulcted with a due satisfaction . case vii . how far , and when am i bound to make restitution of another mans goods remaining in my hand ? restitution is a duty no lesse necessary , than rarely practised amongst christians . the arch publican zacheus knew that with this he must begin his conversion ; and that knowne rule of saint austen * is in every mans mouth , no remission without restitution . for this act is no small piece of commutative justice ; which requires that every man should have his owne : most just therefore it is , that what you have taken , or detained from the true owner should be restored ; neither can it be sufficient , that you have conceived a drye and bootlesse sorrow for your wrongfull detention , unlesse you also make amends to him by a reall compensation . but you are disabled to make restitution by reason of want , your will is good , but the necessity , into which you are fallen , makes you uncapable of performance : see first , that it be a true , and not fained necessity ; many a one , like to leud criples that pretend false soares , counterfeit a need that is not , and shelter themselves in a willing jaile , there living merrily upon there defrauded creditor , whom they might honestly satisfie by a well improved libertie : this case is damnably unjust ; but if it be a true necessity of gods making , it must excuse you for the time ; till the same hand that did cast you downe , shall be pleased to raise you up againe ; then , you are bound to satisfie ; and in the meane time , lay the case truly before your creditor , who if he be not mercilesse , where he sees a reall desire , and indeavour of satisfaction , will imitate his god in accepting the will for the deed : and wait patiently for the recovery of your estate . you ask now , to whom you should tender restitution ? to whom , but the owner ? but he , you say , is dead ; that will not excuse you ; he lives still in his heires ; it is memorable ( though in a small matter ) which seneca reports of a pythagorean philosopher at athens , who having run upon the score for his shooes at a shop there ; hearing that the shoomaker was dead , at first was glad to think the debt was now paid ; but straight recollecting himselfe , he sayes within himselfe ; yet , howsoever , ever , the shoomaker lives still to thee , though dead to others ; and thereupon puts his money into the shop , as supposing that both of them would finde an owner . it is a rare case that a man dyes , and leaves no body in whom his right survives : but if there be neither heire , nor executor , nor administrator , nor assigne ; the poore ( saith our saviour ) ye shall have alwayes with you ; make thou them his heire : turne your debt into almes . obj. but alas you say ; i am poore my selfe , what need i then look forth for any other ? why may not i employ my restitution to the reliefe of my owne necessity ? sol. it is dangerous , and cannot be just for a man to be his owne carver altogether in a business of this nature ; you must look upon this money , as no more yours than a strangers ; and howsoever it be most true that every man is nearest to himselfe , and hath reason to wish to bee a sharer , where the need is equall ; yet it is fit this should be done with the knowledge and approbation of others : your pastor , and those other that are by authority interessed in these publique cares , are fit to be acquainted with the case ; ( if it be in a matter meet to be notified ) as a businesse of debt or pecuniary ingagement , let their wisdome proportion the distribution ; but if it be in the case of some secret crime , as of theft , or cozenage , which you would keep as close as your owne heart , the restitution must be charged upon your conscience to be made with so much more impartiality , as you desire it more to be concealed ; herein have a care of your soule , what ever becomes of your estate . as for the time of restitution it is easily determined , that it cannot well be too soone for the discharge of your conscience , it may be too late for the occasions of him to whom it is due ; although it may fall out , that it may prove more fit to deferre for the good of both : wherein charity and justice must be called in as arbitrators ; the owner calls for his money in a riotous humour to mis-spend it upon his unlawfull pleasure ; if your delay may prevent the mischiefe , the forbearance is an act of mercy : the owner calls for a sword deposited with you , which you have cause to suspect he meanes to make use of , for some ill purpose ; your forbearing to restore it is so both charitable and just , that your act of delivery of it may make you accessary to a murther . whereto i may adde , that in the choice of the time , you may lawfully have some respect to your selfe ; for if the present restitution should be to your utter undoing , which may be avoided by some reasonable delay , you have no reason to shun anothers inconvenience by your own inevitable ruine ; in such case let the creditor be acquainted with the necessity , his offence deprecated ; and rather put your selfe upon the mercy of a chancery , then be guilty of your owne overthrow . but when the power is in your hand , and the coast every way cleare , let not another mans goods or mony stick to their fingers ; and thinke not that your head can long lye easily upon another mans pillow . yea , but you say the money or goods mis-carried , either by robbery or false trust , ere you could employ them to any profit at all ; this will not excuse you ; after they came into your power , you are responsible for them ; what compassion this may work in the good nature of the owner for the favour of an abatement , must be left to his own brest ; your tye to restitution is not the lesse ; for it is supposed , had they remained in the owners hands they had been safe ; if it were not your fault , yet it was your crosse , that they miscarried ; and who should bear your crosse but your self ? shortly then , after all pretences of excuse ; the charge of wise solomon must be obeyed : with-hold not good from the owners thereof , when it is in the power of thine hand to doe it , prov. 3 , 17. case viii . whether , and how farre doth a promise extorted by fear , though seconded by an oath , bind my conscience to performance ? a mere promise is an honest mans strong obligation ; but if it be withall backed with an oath , the bond is sacred , and inviolable . but let me ask you what promise it is that you thus made , and bound ▪ if it be of a thing unlawfull to be done , your promise and oath is so farre from binding you to performance , that it bindes you onely to repentance that ever you made it ; in this case your performance would double and heighten your sinne : it was ill to promise , but it would be worse to performe : herod is by oath ingaged for an indefinite favour to salome ; she pitches upon baptist's head ; he was sory for such a choice , yet for his oaths sake hee thinkes hee must make it good : surely , herod was ill-principled , that he could thinke a rash oath must binde him to murder an innocent ; he might have truly said , this was more than he could doe ; for that we can do , which we can lawfully doe . but if it be a lawfull thing that you have thus promised , and sworne ; though the promise were unlawfully drawne from you by feare , i dare not perswade you to violate it . it is true that divers learned casuists hold , that a promise drawne from a man by feare is void , or at least revokable at pleasure ; and so also the oath annexed , which followes the nature of the act whereto it appends ; chiefly upon this ground ; that both these are done without consent , meere involuntary acts , since nothing can be so contrary to consent as force and feare : but i dare not goe along with them ; for that i apprehend there is not an absolute involuntarinesse in this engagement , but a mixt one , such as the * philosopher determines in the mariner , that casts his goods over board to save his life ; in it selfe , he hath no will to doe it ; but here and now upon this danger imminent , he hath an halfe-will to perform it . secondly , i build upon their owne ground ; there is the same reason , they say , of force , and of fraud ; now that a promise and oath drawne from us by fraud bindes strongly , we need no other instance then that of joshua made to the gibeonites ; there could not be a greater fraud than lay hid in the old shooes , thred-bare garments , rent bottels , and mouldy provisions of those borderers ; who under the pretence of a remote nation put themselves under the interest and protection of israel : josh. 9. 12 , 13. &c. the guile soone proved apparent , yet durst not joshua , though he found himselfe cheated into this covenant , fall off from the league made with them ; which when , after many ages , saul out of politique ends went about to have broken , we see how fearfully it was avenged with a grievous plague of famine upon israel , even in davids dayes , 2 sam. 21. 1. who was no way accessary to the oppression ; neither could be otherwise expiated than by the bleeding of saul's bloody house . when once we have interessed god in the businesse , it is dangerous not to be punctuall in the performance . if therefore a bold thiefe , taking you at an advantage , have set his dagger to your brest , and with big oathes threatned to stab you , unlesse you promise and sweare to give him an hundred pounds to be left on such a day in such a place for him , i see not how ( if you be able ) you can dispence with the performance ; the onely help is , ( which is well suggested by * lessius ) that nothing hinders why you may not , when you have done , call for it back againe , as unjustly extorted . and truly , we are beholding to the jesuite for so much of a reall equivocation ; why should you not thus right your selfe , since you have onely tyed your selfe to a mere payment of the summe ? upon staking it downe for him , you are free . but if he have forc'd you to promise , and swear not to make him knowne , you are bound to be silent in this act , concerning your selfe ; but withall , if you find that your silence may be prejudiciall to the publique good , for that you perceive the licentiousnesse of the offender proceeds ( and is like so to doe ) to the like mischiefe unto others , you ought , though not to accuse him for the fact done unto you ; yet to give warning to some in authority to have a vigilant eye upon so leud a person , for the prevention of any further villany . but if it be in a businesse , whose perill rests onely in your selfe , the matter being lawfull to be done ; your promise and oath ( though forced from you ) must hold you close to performance , notwitstanding the inconveniencies that attend . if therefore you are dismissed upon your parole , for a certaine time , to returne home , and dispose of your affaires , and then to yield your selfe againe prisoner to an enemy ; the obligation is so strict and firme , that no private respects may take it off : and it should be a just shame to you , that a * pagan should out of common honesty hold himself bound to his word , ( not without the danger of torment and death ) when you that are a christian slip away from your oath . case iv. whether those moneys or goods which i have found , may be safely taken and kept by me to my owne use . it is well distinguished by sotus out of aquinas * , that those things which may be found , are either such as call no man master , as some pearl , or precious stone , or ambergris lying upon the shore ; or such as have an owner , but unknowne to us , or ( as we may adde , to make up the number compleat ) such as whose owner we know . where the true owner is knowne , speedy restitution must follow ; otherwise the detention is in the next doore to theft ; where the commodity found hath no owner , it justly falls to the right of the first finder ; for both the place and the thing are masterlesse , ( adespota ) and common ; offering themselves to the next commer : the onely difficulty is in those things which have an unknown owner : and certainly common justice and honesty suggests to us , that we may not seize on commodities of this kinde , as absolutely our own ; the casualty of their mis-laying doth not alter their propriety ; they are still his that lost them ; though out of his sight , yet not out of his right ; and even naturall justice , would give every man his owne . the lawes both civill and canon , and municipall doe sufficiently guide our practise in many particular cases of this nature , and our conscience must lead us to follow them : if they be quick commodities , as horses , sheep , kine , and the like , ( which we call waifes and strayes ) every one knowes they are to be publiquely impounded , that upon search the owner may be the surer to find them ; and if he come not in , the sooner , to be openly cryed in severall markets , that the noise of his own neglected goods may come to his eare : and if , upon a continuing silence , they be put into the custody of the lord of the manour , ( who is most likely to be responsible ) and he shall make use of them , before his year and day be expired , he shall not doe it without some mark of distinction , that yet the true owner may know , they are not challenged by the present possessour , as his owne , but lye open to the just claime of their true master . but if they be dead commodities , as a jewell , a purse , or some ring of price , or the like , the finder may not presently smother up the propriety of it in his owne cofer ; his heart tells him that the meer accident of his finding it , cannot alienate the just right of it from the true owner ; he is therefore bound in conscience , in an honest sincerity to use all good means for the finding out of the right proprietary , whether by secret inquiry , or open publication : and if after due inquisition , no claime shall be made to it for the present , he shall reserve it in his hand in expectation of a just challenge : upon the assurance whereof ( how late soever ) he is bound to restore it to the proper owner : who , on the other side , shall faile in his duty of gratitude , if he returne not some meet acknowlegement of that good office , and fidelity : in all which mutuall carriages , we ought to be guided by those respects , which we could wish tendered to our selves in the like occasions . mean while , in all the time of our custody , we are to looke upon those commodities as strangers ; making account of such a potentiall right onely in them , as we are ready and desirous to resigne to the hands that purchased and lost them . on the contrary , no words can expresse the horrible cruelty and injustice that is wont to be done in this kinde , not onely on our shores , but in other nations also , upon the ship-wrecked goods both of strangers , and our own compatriots ; whiles in stead of compassioning and relieving the losse , and miseryes of our distressed bretheren , every man is ready to run upon the spoile , and , as if it were from some plundered enemy , is eagerly busie in carrying away what riches soever come to hand , which they falsly , and injuriously terme gods grace , when as indeed it is no other than the devils booty . this practise can passe for no other than a meere robbery , so much more haynous , as the condition of the mis-carried owner is more miserable : what a foule inhumanity is this , to persecute him whom god hath smitten ; and upon no other quarrell to be cruell to our brother , than because the sea hath been mercilesse ? deare countrymen , ye especially of the west , leave these abominable pillages to savage nations , that know not god ; and , putting on the bowels of tender compassion , lend your best succour rather for the rescue of poore wrecked soules , and safely preserving that small residue of their drowned fraight , which you cannot imagine that the sea hath therefore forborn to swallow , that you might . case x. whether i may lawfully buy those goods which i shall strongly suspect , or know to be stolen or plundered ; or , if i have ignorantly bought such goods , whether i may lawfully ( after knowledge of their owner ) keep them as miue . to buy those goods which you know , or have just cause to suspect to be stoln or plundered , is no better th●n to make your selfe accessary to the theft ; if you doe it with an intention to possesse them as your owne ; for what doe you else herein , but ex-post-facto partake with that thiefe , who stole them ; and incourage him in his leud practices ? since according to the old word ; if there were no receivers , there would be no thieves . neither will it serve the turn , that in the case of plunder , there may seeme a pretence of justice , in that this is pleaded perhaps to be done by some colour of authority ; for certainly where there is not law , there can be no justice , whereof law is the onely rule : whatever then is against an established law , in matter of right and possession , can be no other than unjust ; take heed therefore lest that heavy challenge of the almighty be ( upon this bargaine ) charged upon you ; psal. 50. 18. when thou sawest a thiefe , thou consentedst with him : these stoln waters may be sweet in the mouth , but they will be poyson in the maw , and like the water of a just jealousie , rottennesse to the belly : but if ( as these ill-gotten goods are lightly cheap penny-worths ) you buy them onely with an intention to gratifie the true owner , with an easie purchase of his owne , ( which would perhaps else be unrecoverable ) ( whiles your profession , it do it for no other end , takes off the scandall ) i cannot but allow your act , and commend your charity . but if , making use of that rule which saint paul gives for meat , in bargaining for any other commodityes , you shall extend your liberty to whatsoever is sold in the market , and shall in the exercise of that freedome upon a just and valuable consideration ignorantly buy those goods which you afterward heare , and know , to be anothers , the contract is on your part valid , and faultlesse , since your invincible want of knowledge acquits you from any guilt of consent ; but withall , there is an after-game to be plaid by you : you are bound ( upon just notice ) to acquaint the true owner with the matter , and to profer your selfe ready to joyne with him in the prosecution of law , or justice upon the offender , and upon a meet satisfaction to tender him his own . but if the theft be onely upon probability ; and it be doubtfull whether the goods belong to the owner notifyed to you , your duty is to make diligent inquiry into the businesse ; and if upon due inquisition , you finde too much likelihood of the theft , i dare not advise you ( with some casuists ) to reverse the bargaine , and to returne the commodity to those false hands that purloyned it ; but rather to call the probable owner , and with him to appeale unto just authority ; for a more full examination of the right , and an award answerable to justice : but if there appeare no good grounds for an impeachment , you may peaceably sit down in the possession , till further evidence may convince your judgement in the contrary . resolutions . the second decade . cases of life and liberty . case i. whether , and in what cases it may be lawfull for a man to take away the life of another . how light a matter soever it may seeme to the world now long soaked in blood , a mans life is most precious ; and may not ( but upon the waightiest of all causes ) be either taken , or given away . the great god hath reserved to himself this prerogative , to be the onely absolute lord of it ; neither can any creature have power to command it , but those onely to whom he hath committed it by speciall deputation ; nor they neither , by any independent or illimited authority ; but according as it is regulated by just lawes : to call for a mans life meerly out of will , is no other than a turkish tyranny . now the same god that hath ordained soveraign powers to judge of , and protect the life of others , hath given weighty charge to every man to tender and manage his owne : which bindes him to use all just meanes for his owne preservation ; although it should be the necessitated destruction of another . let us see therefore how far , and in what cases , man , that is alwayes appointed to be master of his owne life , may be also master of another mans . that publique justice may take away the life of hainous malefactors , is sufficiently knowne , to be not lawfull onely , but required ; and indeed so necessary , that without it there were no living at all amongst men . that in a just warre the life of an open enemy may be taken away , is no lesse evident ; the onely question is of private men in their owne cases . and here we need not doubt to say that even a private man , being mortally assaulted , may in his owne defence lawfully kill another ; i suppose the assault mortall , when both the weapon is deadly , and the fury of the assailant threatens death ; as for some sleight and suddaine passages of a switch , or a cane , they come not under this consideration , although those small affronts offered to eminent persons prove oftentimes to be quarrells no lesse than mortall . but even in these assaults , ( except the violence be so too impetuous , that it will admit of neither parle nor pause ) there ought to be ( so much as may consist with our necessary safety ) a tender regard and indeavour to avoid the spilling of bloud ; but if neither perswasion , nor the shifting ( what we may ) our station , can abate any thing of the rage of the assailer , death must : yea , if not my brother onely , but my father , or my sonne should in this forcible manner set upon mee , howsoever i should hazard the award of some blowes , and with teares beg a forbearance , yet , if there would bee no remedy , nature must pardon mee ; no man can bee so neare mee as my selfe . i cannot therefore subscribe to the counsell of * leonardus lessius ( abetting some ancieut casuists , and pretended to be countenanced by some fathers ) that it were meet for clericall and religious persons rather to suffer death , than to kill a murtherer : since no reason can be shewed , why their life should not bee as deare to them as others ; or why they should be exempted from the common law of nature ; or why their sacred hands should be more stained with the foule blood of a wicked man-slayer , justly shed , than any others . i am sure phineas thought not so ; nor samuel after him ; and ( which is most of all ) that the honor and priviledges of the sonnes of levi were both procured , and seoffed on them upon an injoyned blood-shed . * onely here is the favour and mercy of that learned casuist , that clerks and votaries are not alwayes bound rather to dye , than kill : for , saith he , if such religious persons should bethink himselfe , that he is in a deadly sinne , and should thereupon feare that he should be damned , if he were killed in that wofull and desperate estate ; hee were then bound by all meanes to defend himselfe , and to preferre the safety of his owne soule , before the life of another : as if nothing but the feare of damnation could warrant a man for his owne safeguard , as if nothing but the danger of hell could authorize an holy person to be his owne guardian ; as if the best of lives were so cheap and worthlesse , that they might be given away for nothing , whereas contrarily precious in the sight of the lord is the death of all his saints , psalm . 116. but in such a case ( according to the opinion of this great * casuist ) charity to our selves doth not more arme and enforce our hand , than charity to our neighbour holds it , and bindes it up : we may not kill , lest the man-slayer , dying in the attempt of this murther , should everlastingly perish : surely , i cannot but admire this unreasonable mercy in a father of the society ; where was this consideration when so many thousands of innocent persons were doomed to be blown up in a state of impenitence ; whose unrepented heresie must needs have sent them up instantly to their hell ? by this reason , a malefactor , if he be obdured in his sinne , and professeth to bee remorslesse , may not feele the stroke of justice . shortly then , if a man will needes be wicked to my destruction , the evill is his owne ; let him beare his owne guilt , let me looke to my owne indempnity . the case is yet more difficult where the attempt is not upon my person , but my goods ; if a man will be offering to robbe my house , or to take my purse , what may i doe in this case ? surely , neither charity , nor justice can disswade me from resisting ; the lawes of god and man will allow me to defend my owne ; and if in this resistance the thief , or burglayer miscarry , his blood will be upon his owne head : although in the meane time , charity forbids that this slaughter should be first in my intention ; which is primarily bent upon my owne safety , and the vindication of my owne just propriety : the blood that followes is but the unwilling attendant of my defence : of the shedding whereof , god is so tender , that he ordained it onely to be inoffensively done in a nightly robbery ; exodus 22. 2. where the purpose of the thiefe is likely to bee more murtherous , and the act more uncapable of restitution . what then if the thiefe , after his robbery done , ceasing any further danger of violence , shall betake himselfe to his heeles , and run away with my money ? in such a case , if the summe be so considerable , as that it much imports my estate , how ever our municipall lawes may censure it ( with which , of old , even as killing ( * se defendendo ) was no lesse than felony of death ) my conscience should not strike me if i pursue him with all might , and in hot chase so strike him , as that by this meanes i disable him from a further escape , for the recovery of my owne ; and if hereupon his death shall follow , however i should passe with men , god and my owne heart would acquit mee . neither doubt i to say● the like may be done upon a forcible attempt of the violation of the chastity of either sexe : a case long agoe adjudged by the doome of nature it selfe in marius the generall of the roman army ( as * cicero tells us ) clearely acquitting a young man for killing a colonel that would have forced him in this kind . but i may not assent to † dominicus bannez , petrus navarrus , and cajetan , ( though grave authors ) who hold , that if a man goe about upon false and deadly criminations to subborne witnesses against mee , to accuse me to a corrupted judge , with a purpose to take away my life , in a colour of justice , if i have no other way to avoid the malice , i may lawfully kill him : it were a wofull and dangerous case , if every man might be allowed to carve himselfe of justice ; meere accusations are no convictions ; how know i what god may work for me on the bench , or at the barre ? what evidence hee may raise to cleare mee ? what confusion , or contraction hee may cause in the mouthes of the hired witnesses ? what change he may work in the judge ; what interposition of higher powers ; there is a providence in this case to be relyed upon ; which can and will bring about his owne holy purposes , without our presumptuous , and unwarrantable undertakings . case ii. whether may i lawfully make use of a duell for the deciding of my right , or the vindication of my honour ? i have long agoe spent my opinion upon this point , in a large epistolar discourse , which i finde no reason to alter : thither i might referre you to spare my labour ; but lest perhaps that should not be at hand ; shortly thus : the sword in a private hand was never ordained to be a decider of any controversies , save this one , whether of the two is the better fencer ; nor yet that alwayes , since eccles. 9. 11. the race is not to the swift , nor the battaile to the strong ; as solomon hath observed : it can be no better therefore , than a meere tempting of god , as * rodriguez justly censures it , to put our selves , or our cause upon so unwarranted a tryall : i finde but two practises of it in the records of scripture ; the one , that famous challenge of goliah , which that proud philistim had not made , if he had not presumed of his giantly strength , and stature , so utterly unmatchable by all israel , 1 sam. 17. 24. that the whole host was ready to give back upon his appearance ; he knew the advantage so palpable , that none would dare to undertake the quarrell ; and had still gone on to triumph over that trembling army , had not gods inexpected champion , by divine instinct taken up the monster , and vanquisht him , leaving all but his head , to bedung that earth , which had lately shaken at his terrour . the other was in that mortall quarrell betwixt joab and abner , on the behalfe of their two masters , david and ishbosheth ; 2 sam. 2. 14. wherein abner invites his rivall in honor , to a tragicall play , ( as he termes it ) a monomachie of twelve single combatants on either part ; which was so acted , that no man went victor away from that bloudy theater ; only it is observable , that in both these conflicts still the challengers had the worst . in imitation of which latter , i cannot allow that which i find frequently done in the managing of publique hostility ; that some confident caval●er out of meere bravery of spirit craves leave to put himselfe forth before both armies , and ( as in way of preface to an ensuing battaile ) bids defiance to any antagonist ; an act of more valor than judgement ; whereof the undertaking is void of warrant ; and the issue ( lightly ) of successe ? whiles it pleaseth god commonly to punish presumption with a foyle ; and the ominous miscarriage of one , proves a sad discouragement to many . and if single fortitude be not triable this way , much lesse justice in causes litigious ; to make the sword arbiter of such differences , were no better than to revive the old ordalian triall used by our heathen ancestors : sith god hath no more ordained , nor promised to blesse the one than the other ; and reason it selfe tells us , in how ill a condition that righteous cause is , which must be carried by the sharper weapon , the stronger arme , the skilfuller fencer . now whereas there are two acts , as introductions into the field , a challenge , and an acceptation ; both of them have their guilt , but the former so much more , as it hath in it more provocation to evill . i cannot therefore but wonder at , and cry downe the opinion of bannez , and cajetan , that a man slandered by an unjust accuser , may justly challenge him the field , and vindicate himselfe by the sword ; a doctrine , which if it were allowed and accordingly practised , besides that it would destroy the course of justice , and wrest revenge out of the hands of the almighty , were enough to make the world an aceldama ; for who would not be his owne judge for the accusation ; and his owne executioner for the revenge ? there may yet seeme more innocence in the acceptation ; which makes shew of a meere passive nature , and appeares to be extorted by the insolence of a provoking adversary , whose pressures are wont to receive such construction , as that the challenged party refusing , upon what ground soever , is in the vulgar opinion proclaimed for base and recreant ; and i must needs confesse , the irritation diminisheth the offence ; but withall , however the spanish and italian casuists ( whose nations are wont to stand a little too highly upon the points of a mis called honour ) are wont to passe faire interpretations of the matter , i cannot but find it deeply guilty also : for what is this other , than a consent to sin by engaging in blood ; which by a man wise and conscionable might be turned off with a just contempt , without imputation of cowardise : since the plea of conscience is able to beare downe the vaine fancies of idle sword-men : or , if that will not be taken , the false blurres that are cast upon a worthy mans reputation by vulgar breath , deserve no entertainment but scorne ; or lastly , other means lie open to both parts for the proofe of a questioned valour , which in a lawfull way the challenged is ready to embrace ; he walks not unprovided about the businesse of his calling , if he be fairely set upon , on equall termes , he shall make no doubt to defend himselfe : but to make a formall businesse of a quarrell , on either part , and to agree upon a bargaine of blood-shedding , is wicked and damnable ; and though both should come fairely off , yet the very intention to kill , is murther . this case is so cleare , that the counsell of * trent hath thought fit to denounce heavy sentences , and inflict sharp censures upon emperours , kings , states , and potentates , that shall give allowance to duels within their dominions ; pronouncing them ipso jure excommunicate ; and depriving them of those towns , cities , lands , ( if held of the church ) where such unlawfull acts are made : and that those who either act , or patronize , and by their presence assist , countenance , or abett such combats , shall incurre the sentence of excommunication , the losse of all their goods , and perpetuall infamy ; and if they dye in such quarrell , shall , as selfe-murtherers , be debarred the priviledge of christian buriall . briefly therefore , neither your justice , nor your honour may depend upon the point of private swords , and if there can be no other remedy , you must rather suffer in either , than hazard your soule . case iii. whether may it be lawfull , in case of extremity , to procure the abortion of the child , for the preservation of the mother ? i feare want of true judgement renders too many of the weaker sexe grossely culpable in matter of willing abortion ; whiles being not well principled either in nature , or grace , they think it not unlawfull , or at least , venially so , whether out of the feare of painefull childe-birth , or for the avoidance of too great a charge , to prevent the fulnesse of their conceptions ; and therefore , either by over vehement motion , or unwholsome medicine , are not unwilling to fore-stall nature , and to free themselves early of that which might in time prove their burden : wherein they little know how highly they offend the majesty of god in destroying his potentiall creature , and how heavy weight of guilt they lay upon their soules , whiles they indeavour to give an undue ease to their bodies . your question supposes an extremity ; and surely such it had need to be , that may warrant the intention of such an event . for the deciding whereof , our casuists are wont to distinguish double ; both of the state of the conception , and of the nature of the receipt : in the former , they consider of the conception , either as it is before it receive life , or after that it is animated : before it receive life , they are wont to determine , that howsoever it were no lesse than mortall sin , in a physitian to prescribe a medicinall receit to cause abortion , for the hiding of a sinne , or any outward secular occasion ; yet for the preservation of the life of the mother , in an extreme danger , ( i say , before animation ) it might be lawfull : but after life once received , it were an hainous sin to administer any such mortall remedy . the latter casuists are better advised ; and justly hold that to give any such expelling or destructive medicine , with a direct intention to work an abortment , ( whether before or after animation ) is utterly unlawfull , and highly sinfull : and with them i cannot but concur in opinion ; for , after conception we know that naturally followes animation , there is only the time that makes the difference ; which in this case is not so considerable , as to take off a sinne : that of * tertullian comes home to the point which both covarruvias and † lessius urge to this purpose : homicidii festinatio est prohibere nasci ; it is but an hastening of murder to hinder that which would bee born ; homo est qui futurus est ; it is a man that would be so , &c. upon this ground we know that in a further degree of remotenesse , a voluntary selfe pollution hath ever beene held to have so much guilt in it , as that angelus politianus reports it as the high praise of * michael verrinus , that he would rather dye , than yeild to it : how much more when there is a further progresse made towards the perfection of humane life ? and if you tell me that the life of the mother might thus be preserved , whereas otherwise both she and all the possibilities of further conceptions are utterly lost ; i must answer you with that sure and universall rule of the apostle , that wee may not doe evill that good may come thereon , rom. 3. 8. the second consideration is of the nature of the receit , and the intention of the prescriber ; there are prescripts that may , in , and of themselves tend towards cure , and may have ordinarily such an effect ; but yet being used and applyed for the mothers remedy , may prove the losse of the conception , being yet inanimate ; these if they be given with no other intention than the preservation of the mothers life , may bee capable of excuse ; for that the inconvenience ( or mischief rather ) which followed upon the receits was accidentall , and utterly against the minde , and hopes of him that advised them . but if the conception bee once formed , and animated , the question will be so much more difficult , as the proceedings of nature are more forward : whereupon it is , that the septuagint in their translation ( as lessius well observes ) have rendered that mosaicall law ( in lxod. 21. ) concerning abortions , in these termes . if a man strike a woman that is with child , and shee make an abortion , if the child were formed , he shall give his life for the life of the child ; if it were not formed , he shall be punished with a pecuniary mulct to her husband * : applying that to the issue , which the vulgar latin understands of the mother ; and making the supposition to be of a formation and life ; which the latine more agreeably to the originall , makes to be death ; and our english , with † castalion expresses by mischief : but whether the mischief be meant of the death of the mother , or of the late-living issue , the scripture hath not declared : * cornelius à lapide taking it expresly of the mothers death , yet drawes the judgement out , in an equall length to the death of the childe , once animated ; making no difference of the guilt ; since the infants soule is of no lesse worth , than hers that beates him . in this case of the conception animated , i find the casuists much divided ; whiles some more tender than their fellowes , will not allow in the utmost extremity of a dying mother , a medicine that may be directly curative to be given her , if it should be with any apparent danger of the childe ; in case that the child may be probably drawne forth alive ; which they doe upon this false and bloudily uncharitable ground , * that the child dying without baptisme , is liable to eternall damnation , which wofull danger therefore the mother ought to prevent , though with the certaine hazard of her own life : but the foundation of this judgement being unsound , ( since to doome the children of believing parents inevitably to hell for the want of that , which they are not possibly capable to receive , is too cruell and horrible ) the structure must needes totter . these men whiles they professe themselves too carefull of the soule of the childe ( which yet may perhaps be safer than their owne ) seeme to bee somewhat too hard-hearted to the body of the mother . * others more probably hold , that if the case be utterly desperate ; and it bee certaine that both mother and childe must undoubtedly perish if some speedy remedy be not had ; it may then be lawfull to make use of such receits as may possibly give some hopes to save the mother , though not without some perill of the child . but all this while , the intentions , and indeavours must be no other than preservatory ; however it pleaseth god to order the events : shortly , no man that purposely procureth an abortion , as such , can wash his hands from blood ; no woman that wilfully acts , or suffers it , ( however the secrecy may exempt her from the danger of humane lawes ) can thinke to avoid those judgments of the righteous god , which he hath charged upon murderers . i cannot here therefore forbeare to give the world notice of the impious indulgence of a late pope in this kind ; sixtus quintus , who in our time sat in the see of rome , finding the horrible effects of that liberty , which too many both secular and religious persons tooke to themselves in this matter of abortion ; in a just detestation of that damnable practice , thought meet in much fervour of spirit to set forth his bulla cruciata ; than which there was never a more zealous piece published to the world ; wherein that pope pronounces all those , which have any hand in the acting or procuring of this wicked fact , of the ejecting of conceptions , whether animate or inanimate , formed , or informed , by potions , or medicaments , or any other meanes whatsoever , to have incurred both the crime and punishment of man slaughter : charging due execution to be done upon such persons accordingly : and withall in a direfull manner excommunicates them , and sends them to hell , ( without repentance ) reserving the absolution solely to himselfe and his successors . now comes a late * successor of his , gregory 14 ; who finding the sentence too unreasonably hard for his petulant , and thriftie italians , and , indeed , for all loose persons of both sexes ; mitigates the matter ; and , as a spanish casuist expresses it truly , in the very first yeare of his pontificate in a certaine constitution of his , dated at rome , the last day of may , 1591. delevit censuras , quas sixtus v. imposuerat contra facientes , procurantes , &c. abolisht and took off those heavy censures , which * sixtus had imposed and reduced the terrible punishments by him ordained to be inflicted unto a poore bare irregularity ; and determines , that any confessor , allowed by the ordinary , may absolve from this sin of procured abortion : by the sleightnesse of the censure , in effect , animating the sin : an act well becomming the mother of fornications : after all which pandarisme , let all good christians know , and resolve the crime to be no lesse than damnable . but withall , let me advise you , ( with * martinus vivaldus ) that what i have herein written against the procurers of abortions , may not be extended to the practise of those discreet physitians , and chirurgeans , who being called to for their aide in difficult and hopelesse child-births , prescribe to the woman in travaile such receits , as may be like to hasten her delivery , ( whether the childe be alive or dead : ) forasmuch as the conception is now at the full maturity ; and the indeavour of these artists is not to force an abortement , but to bring forward a naturall birth , to the preservation of the mother , or the childe , or both . case iv. whether a man adjudged to perpetuall imprisonment , or death , may in conscience indeavour , and practise an escape . what the civill or common lawes have in this case determined for the publique good , comes not within the compasse of our disquisition : let the guardians , and ministers of those lawes looke carefully to the just execution of them accordingly : the question is onely of the law of private conscience ; how farre that will allow a man to goe in case of a sentence passed upon him , whether of death or bonds . and first of all ; if such sentence be unjustly passed upon an innocent , no man can doubt , but that hee may most lawfully , by all just meanes , worke his owne freedome : but if an offender , what may he doe ? the common opinion of casuists is peremptory ; * that he that is kept in prison for any offence wherupon may follow death , or losse of limb , whether the crime be publique or private , may lawfully flee from his imprisonment , and may for that purpose use those helps of filing , or mining , which conduce to this purpose : their ground is , that universall rule , and instinct of selfe-preservation , which is naturall to every creature ; much more eminent in man , who is furnished with better faculties than the rest , for the working of his own indemnity : whereto is added that main consideration of aquinas ; that no man is bound to kill himselfe , but onely doomed to suffer death ; not therefore bound to doe that upon which death will inevitably follow , which is to wait in prison for the stroak , if he may avoid it ; it is enough that he patiently submits to what the law forces upon him , though he doe not cooperate to his owne destruction : his sentence abridges him of power , not of will to depart : whereupon they have gone so far , as to hold it in point of conscience not unlawfull for the friends of the imprisoned , to conveigh unto him files , and cords , or other instruments usefull for their escape : but herein some better-advised doctors have justly dissented from them ; as those , whose judgement hath not beene more favourable to malefactors , than dangerous and prejudiciall to the common-wealth : for how safe soever this might seeme in lighter trespasses , yet if this might be allowed , as in conscience lawfull to be done to the rescue of murtherers , traytors , or such other flagitious villains , what infinite mischiefe might it produce ? and what were this other than to invite men to be accessary to those crimes , which the law in a due way intends to punish ? certainly , by how much a more laudable act of justice it is , to free the society of men from such wicked miscreants , by so much more sinfull and odious an office it were , to use these sinister means for their exemption from the due course of justice ; but howsoever for another man to yield such unlawfull aide , is no better than a foule affront of publique justice , and enwrappes the agent in a partnership of crime ; yet the law of nature puts this liberty upon the restrained party himselfe , both to wish and indeavour his owne deliverance : although not so ; but that if the prisoner have ingaged himselfe by solemne promise , and oath to his keeper , not to depart out of his custody ; honesty must prevaile above nature ; and he ought rather to dye , than violate that bond which is stronger than his irons : very heathens have by their example taught us this lesson ; to regard our fidelity , more than our life : thus it should be , and is , with those that are truly christian and ingenuous , under what ever capacity ; but in the case of gracelesse and felonious persons , goalers have reason to looke to their bolts and locks ; knowing ( according to the old rule of wise thales ) that he who hath not stuck at one villany , will easily swallow another ; perjury will easily downe with him , that hath made no bones of murther . but where the case is entire , no man can blame a captive if he would bee free ; and if hee may untie the knot of a cord wherewith he was bound ; why may he not unriver , or grate an iron wherewith he is fettered ? for so much as hee is not bound to yeild , or continue a consent to his owne durance : this charge lies upon the keeper , not the prisoner . a man that is condemned to perish by famine , yet if he can come by sustenance may receive , and eat it : that athenian malefactor , in * valerius maximus , sentenced to die by hunger , was never found fault with , that he maintained himself in his dungeon by the brests of his good-natur'd daughter . and if a man be condemned to be devoured by a lion , there can be no reason why he should not ( what he may ) resist that furious beast , and save his owne life . but when i see our romish casuists so zealously tender in the case of religious persons , as that they will not allow them , upon a just imprisonment , to stirre out of those grates , whereto they are confined , by the doom of their prelates ; and when i see the brave resolutions of holy martyrs , that even when the doores were set open , would not flee from a threatned death , i cannot but conclude , that whatsoever nature suggests to a man , to work for his owne life or liberty , when it is forfeited to justice , yet that it is meet and commendable in a true penitent , when he findes the doome of death or perpetuall durance justly passed upon him , humbly to submit to the sentence ; and not entertaine the motions and meanes of a projected evasiō : but meekly to stoop unto lawfull authority , and to wait upon the issue whether of justice , or mercy : and at the vvorst , to say vvith the poet , merui , nec deprecor . case v. whether and how far a man may be urged to an oath . an oath , as it is a sacred thing , so it must bee no otherwise than holily used ; whether on the part of the giver , or taker ; and therefore may neither be rashly uttered , nor unduly tendered upon sleight , or unwarrantable occasions : we have not to doe here with a promissory oath , the obligation whereof is for another inquisition ; it is the assertory oath that is now under our hand ; which the great , god by whom we sweare , hath ordained to be an end of controversies ; at the mouth of two or three witnesses shall the matter be established , deuter. 19. 15. and 17. 6. as for secular titles of mine , or thine ; the propriety of goods , or lands , next after written evidences , testimonies upon oath must needs be held most fitly decisive the only scruples are wont to be made in causes criminall . 1. wherein surely we may lay this undoubted ground , that no man is to be proceeded against without an accuser , and that accusation must be made good by lawfull witnesses : a judge may not cast any man upon the plea of his owne ey-sight : should this liberry be granted , innocence might suffer , and malice triumph : neither may any man be condemned upon hear-say ; which how commonly false it is , daily experience sufficiently evinceth . on the other side , men are apt enough to connive at each others wickednesse ; and every man is loath to be an informer , whether out of the envy of the office , or out of the conscience of his owne obnoxiousnesse . and yet thirdly , it is requisite that care should bee taken , and all due meanes used by authority , that the world may not be over-run with wickednesse ; but that vice may be found out , repressed , punished . there cannot , fourthly , be devised a fairer , and more probable course for the effecting hereof , than by the discovery upon oaths of the officers and jurors in assizes , and sessions ; and of churchwardens , and sidemen in visitations . the ground of all presentments to , or by these men must be either their owne knowledge , or publique fame , or an avowed information . any of these gives a lawful hint to the judge , whether ecclesiasticall or civill , to take sull triall of the cause and person . knowledge is alwayes certain , but fame is often a lyar ; and therefore every idle rumour must not be straight taken upon trust ; the inconvenience and injury whereof i have often seene ; when some malicious person , desiring to doe a despight to an innocent neighbour , raises a causelesse slander against him , whispers it to some dis-affected gossips , this flies to the eare of an apparitor ; hee straight runs to the office , and suggests a publique fame ; the honest man is called into the court ; his reputation is blurred in being but summoned ; and after all his trouble and disgrace hath his amends in his own hands . the rule of some casuists , that ten tongues make a fame , is groundlesse and insufficient ; neither is the number so much to be regarded as the quality of the persons . if a whole pack of debauched companions shall conspire to staine the good name of an innocent ( as we have too often knowne ) it were a shamefull injustice to allow them the authors of a fame : the more judicious doctors have defined a publique fame by the voice of the greater part of that community , wherein it is spread , whether towne , parish , city : and therein of those that are discreet , honest , well-behaved . we are wont to say , where there is much smoake , there is likely some fire : an universall report from such mouthes therefore , may well give occasion to a further inquiry . if any mans zeale against vice will make it a matter of instance , the case is cleare , and the proceeding unquestionable ; but if it be matter of meere office , the carriage of the processe may bee liable to doubt ; herein it is meet such course be taken , as that neither a notorious evill may be smothered , nor yet innocence injured : to which purpose the most confident reporter may be called upon ( because fame hath too many tongues to speak at once ) to lay forth the grounds of that his whispered crimination ; and if the circumstances appeare pregnant , and the suspicions strong , i see not why the ecclesiasticall judge ( for with him onely in this case i professe to meddle ) may not convent the person accused , lay before him the crime which is secretly charged upon him ; and either upon his ingenuous confession , enjoyn him such satisfction to the scandalized corgregation as may be most fit , or upon his denyall urge him to cleare himselfe by lawfull witnesses , of the crime objected ; or why he may not , if hee see further cause , appoint a discreet and able prosecutor to follow the business in a legall way ; upon whom the accused , if he be found guiltless , may right himselfe . but all this while , i finde no just place for an oath to be administred to a man for his owne accusation ; which certainly , is altogether both illegall and unreasonable ; if a man will voluntarily offer to cleare himselfe by an oath , out of the assurednesse of his owne innocence , he may be allowed to be heard , but this may neither be pressed to be done , nor yet conclusive , when it is done ; for both every man is apt to be partiall in his owne case , and he that durst act a foule sin will dare to face it . it was ever therefore lawfull ( even when ecclesiasticall inquisitions were at the highest ) for a man to refuse answer to such questions upon oath , or otherwise , which tended to his owne impeachment ; as unjustly , and unwarrantably proposed : and it was but a young determination of * aquinas , when he was onely a batchelour , in the generall chapter at paris , contradicted by all the ancient graduates there , that when the crime is notorious , and the authour unknowne , the secret offender is bound upon his ordinaries charge and command , to reveale himselfe . even the spanish casuists , the great favourers and abettors of the inquisition , teach that the judge may not of himselfe begin an inquiry , but must be led by something which may open a way to his search , and as it were force him to his proceeding , ex officio , as publique notice , infamie , common suspicion , complaint ; otherwise , the whole processe is void in law ; although herein some of them goe too far in favour of their great diana , that where the crime is known , and the author unknowne , the judge may in a generality inquire of him that did it , and if he have any private information ( though without any publique fame foregoing ) he may in some cases , raise a particular inquisition upon the party , and call him to defend himselfe ; which course cercertainly , gives too much advantage to private malice ; and opens too much way to the wronging of innocence . the faire way of proceedings in all christian judicatures , should be , by accuser , witnesse , and judge , in distinct persons openly knowne ; the accuser complaines , the witnesse evinceth , the judge sentences : the one may not be the other ; much lesse all three : were that to be allowed , who could be innocent ? when a witnesse then is called before a competent judge , to give evidence upon oath concerning a third person , in a matter cognoscible by that jurisdiction , he is bound to swear in truth , in judgement , and in righteousnesse , jer. 4. 2. as for his owne concernments , he must referre himself to the testimonies and oathes of others . case vi. whether a judge may upon allegations , proofes , and evidences of others , condemn a man to death , whom he himself certainly knows to be innocent . the question hath undergone much agitation ; the streame of all ancient divines , and casuists runs upon the affirmative ; their ground is , that the judge , as he is a publique person , so in the seat of judicature , he must exercise a publique authority ; and therefore waving his private knowledge and interest , must sentence according to the allegations and proofes brought before him ; since he is a judge of the cause , not of the law ; whereof he is to be the servant , not the master : there he sits not to speake his owne judgement , but to be the mouth of the law , and the law commands him to judge according to the evidence ; the evidence therefore being cleare and convictive , the doome can be no other than condemnatory . for my part , i can more marvell at their judgement herein , than approve it ; professing for the negative , with some fewer and latter authors , upon these sure grounds . it is an evident and undeniable law of god which must be the rule of all judges ; the innocent and the righteous slay thou not , exod. 23. 7. this is a law neither to be avoided , nor dispensed with : accusations and false witnesses cannot make a man other than innocent ; they may make him to seeme so ; in so much as those that know not the cause exactly , may perhaps be mis-led to condemne him in their judgments : but to the judge , whose eyes were witnesses of the parties innocence , all the evidence in the world cannot make him other than guiltlesse ; so as that judge shall be guilty of blood , in slaying the innocent , and righteous . secondly , the law of judging according to allegations and proofs is a good generall direction in the common course of proceedings ; but there are cases wherein this law must vaile to an higher , which is the law of conscience : woe be to that man who shall tye himselfe so close to the letter of the law , as to make shipwrack of conscience ; and that bird in his bosome will tell him , that if upon what ever pretences , he shall willingly condemne an innocent , he is no better than a murtherer . thirdly , it is not the bare letter of the law that wise men should stand upon , but the drift and intention of the law ; of that , we may in some sense say as the apostle did of an higher law , the letter killeth . now every reasonable man knowes that the intention of the law , is to save and protect the innocent ; to punish onely the guilty : the judge therefore shall be a perverter of law , if , contrary to his knowledge , he shall follow the letter against the intention , in condemning an innocent . let no man now tell me , that it is the law that condemnes the man , and not the judge ; this excuse will not serve before the tribunall of heaven ; the law hath no tongue ; it is the judge that is lex loquens ; if he then shall pronounce that sentence which his owne heart tells him is unjust and cruell , what is he but an officious minister of injustice ? but , indeed , what law ever said , thou shalt kill that man whom thou knowest innocent , if false witnesse will sweare him guilty ? this is but a false glosse set upon a true text , to countenance a man in being an instrument of evill . what then is in this case to be done ? surely , as i durst not acquit that judge , who under what ever colour of law should cast away a known innocent , so i durst not advise against plaine evidences and flat dispositions , upon private knowledge , that man to be openly pronounced guiltlesse ; and thereby discharged ; for as the one is a grosse violation of justice ; so were the other a publique affront to the law ; and of dangerous consequence to the weale-publique : certainly , it could not but be extreamely unsafe , that such a gappe should bee opened to the liberty of judgement , that a private brest should be opposed ( with an apparent prevalence ) against publique convictions : our casuists have beaten their braines to finde out some such evasions as might save the innocent from death , and the judge from blood-guiltinesse : herein therefore they advise the judge to use some secret meanes to stop the accusation , or indictmenr ; ( a course that might be as prejudiciall to justice , as a false sentence ) to sift the witnesses apart , as in susanna's case , and by many subtile interrogations of the circumstances to finde their variance or contradiction . if that prevaile not , cajetan goes so farre , as to determine it meet ( which how it might stand with their law , he knowes , with ours it would not ) that the judge should be fore all the people give his oath , that hee knowes the party guiltlesse ; as whom he himselfe saw at that very houre in a place far distant from that , wherein the fact is pretended to bee done : yea * dominicus à soto could be content ( if it might be done without scandall ) that the prisoner might secretly be suffered to slip out of the gaole , and save himselfe by flight . others think it the best way , that the judge should put off the cause to a superiour bench ; and that himselfe should ( laying aside his scarlet ) come to the bar , and as a witnesse avow upon oath the innocence of the party , and the falsity of the accusation : or lastly , if he should out of malice , or some other sinister ends ( as of the forfeiture of some rich estate ) be pressed by higher powers to passe the sentence on his own bench , that he ought to lay downe his commission , and to abdicate that power he hath , rather than to suffer it forced to a willing injustice . and truly were the case mine , after all faire and lawfull indeavours to justifie the innoncent , and to avoid the sentence , i should most willingly yeild to this last resolution : yea , rather my selfe to undergoe the sentence of death , than to pronounce it on the knowne-guiltlesse ; hating the poore pusillanimity of dominicus à soto * , that passes a nimis creditu rigidum , upon so just a determination ; and is so weakly tender of the judges indempnity , that he will by no means heare of his wilfull deserting of his office on so capitall an occasion . in the main cause of life and death , i cannot but allow and commend the judgement of leonardus lessius ; but when the question is of matters civill , or lesse criminall , † i cannot but wonder at his flying off ; in these where in the businesse is but pecuniary , or banishment , or losse of an office , he holds it lawfull for the judge , ( after he hath used all meanes to discover the falsenesse of the proofes , and to hinder the proceedings , if thus hee prevailes not ) to passe sentence upon those allegations and probations , which himselfe knowes to be unjust . the reasons pretended are as poor as the opinion ; * for , saith hee , the common-wealth hath authority to dispose of the estates of the subjects , and to translate them from one man to another , as may be found most availing to the publique good ; and here there appeares just cause so to doe , lest the forme of publique judgements should be perverted , not without great scandall to the people ; neither is there any way possible to help this particular mans inconvenience and losse ; therefore the common-wealth may ordaine that in such a case the judge should follow the publique forme of judicature , though hereby it falleth out that a guiltlesse man is undone in his fortunes ; and yet his cause knowne to be good by him that condemnes it . thus he . but what a loose point is this ? why hath not a man as true propriety in his estate as his life ? or what authority hath the common-wealth , causelesly to take away a mans substance or inheritance ( being that he is the rightfull owner ) more than a piece of himselfe ? when his patrimony is setled upon him , and his in a due course of law and undoubted right of possession , what just power can claime any such interest in it , as without any ground of offence to dispossess him ? or what necessity is there that the forme of publique judgements should be perverted , unlesse an honest defendant must be undone by false sentence ? or rather is not the forme of publique judgement perverted , when innocence suffers for the maintenance of a formality ? or how is the judge other than a partner in the injury , if for want of his seasonable interposition a good cause is lost , and a false plea prevailes ? that therefore , which in the second place he alledgeth , that the subject can have no reason to complaine of the judge , for as much as it is out of his power to remedy the case , and to passe other sentence than is chalked forth by the rule of law ; might as well be alledged against him in the plea of life and death , wherein he will by no meanes allow the judge this liberty of an undue commendation ; neither is there any just pretence , why an honest and well-minded ▪ judge should be so sparing in a case of life , and so too prodigall in matter of livelyhood . as for this third reason , that the mis-judgement in case of a pecuniary damage or banishment , may be afterwards capable of being reversed , and upon a new traverse the cause may be fercht about at further leisure ; whereas death once inflicted is past all power of revocation ; it may well inferre that therefore there should bee so much more deliberation , and care had in passing sentence upon capitall matters , than civill , by how much life is more prcious , and irrevocable , than our worldly substance ; but it can never inferre that injustice should bee tolerable in the one , not in the other . justice had wont to be painted blind-fold , with a paire of scales in her hand ; wherefore else , but to imply that he , who would judge aright , must not look upon the issue or event , but must weigh impartially the true state of the cause in all the grounds , and circumstances thereof , and sentence accordingly ? to say then that a judge may passe a doome formally legall , but materially unjust , because the case upon a new suit may be righted , were no other than to say , i may lawfully wound a man , because i know how to heale him againe . shortly therefore , whether it be in causes criminall , or civill , whether concerning life or estate , let those who sit in the seat of judicature , as they will answer it before the great judge of the world , resolve ( what event soever follow ) to judge righteous judgement , not justifying the wicked , not condemning the innocent ; both which are equally abominable in the sight of the almighty . case vii . whether , and in what cases am i bound to be an accuser of another . to be an accuser of others , is a matter of much envy , and detestation , insomuch as it is the style of the devill himselfe to be accusator fratrum , an accuser of the brethren : yet not of his owne brethren in evill ; it was never heard that one evill spirit accused another ; but of our brethren , revelat. 12. 10. it was a voice from heaven which called him so : saints on earth are the brethren of the glorious spirits in heaven ; it is the wickednes of that malicious spirit to accuse saints : but though the act be grown into hatred , in respect both of the agent and of the object ; yet certainly there are cases wherein it will become the saints to take upon them the person , and office of accusers . accusation therefore is either voluntary , or urged upon you by the charge of a superiour . voluntary is either such as you are moved unto by the conscience of some hainous and notorious crime committed , or to be committed by another , to the great dishonour of god , or danger of the common peace , whereto you are privy : or such as whereunto you are tyed by some former engagemeut of vow , or oath : in the former kinde ; a worthy divine in our time travailing on the way , sees a leud man committing abominable filthinesse with a beast ; the sinne was so foule and hatefull , that his heart would not suffer him to conceale it ; hee therefore hastens to the next justice , accuses the offender of that so unnaturall villany ; the party is committed , endicted , and upon so reverend ( though single ) testimony found guilty . or , if in the case of a crime intended , you have secret , but sure intelligence , that a bloudy villaine hath plotted a treason against the sacred person of your soveraigne , or a murther of your honest neighbour ; which hee resolves to execute ; should you keep this fire in your bosome , it might justly burn you . whether it be therefore for the discovery of some horrible crime done , or for the prevention of some great mischief to be done , you must either be an accuser , or an accessary . the obligation to accuse is yet stronger , where your former vow or oath hath fore-ingaged you to a just discovery ; you have sworn to maintaine and defend his majesty's royall person , state , dignity ; and to make knowne those that wilfully impugne it ; if now , you shall keep the secret counsels of such wicked designments , as you shall know to be against any of these , how can you escape to bee involved in a treason , lined with perjury ? these are accusations which your conscience will fetch from you , unasked ? but if being called before lawfull authority , you shall be required upon oath , to testifie your knowledge even concerning offenders , of an inferiour nature ; you may not detract your witnesse , though it amount to no lesse than an accusation . yet there are cases , wherein a testimony thus required , tending to an accusation , may be refused ; as in case of duty , and nearenesse of naturall , or civill relation ; it were unreasonably unjust for a man to be pressed with interrogations , or required to give accusatory testimonies in the case of parents , or children , or the partner of his bed : or if a man out of remorse of conscience shall disclose a secret sin to you formerly done , in a desire to receive counsaile , and comfort from you ; you ought rather to endure your soule to be fetcht out of your body , than that seeret to bee drawn out of your lips : or if the question be illegal , as those that tend directly to your own prejudice ; or those which are moved concerning hidden offences , not before notified by publique fame , or any lawfull ground of injury , which therefore the judge hath no power to ask ; in these cases , if no more , the refusall of an accusation , though required , is no other than justifiable . but where neither the conscience of the horridnesse of a crime done ; nor prevention of a crime intended , nor duty of obedience to a lawfull authority , nor the bond of an inviolable pre-ingagement , call you to the bar ; it is not a more uncharitable , than thanklesse office to bee an accuser : hence it is that delators , and informers , have in all happy and well-governed states , been ever held an infamous and odious kinde of cattell . a tiberius , and a domitian , might give both countenance and reward to them , as being meet factors for their tyranny , but a vespasian , and titus , and antonius pius , and macrinus , or what ever other princes carryed a tender care to the peace and welfare of their subjects , whipt them in the publique amphitheater , and abandoned them out of their dominions , as pernicious , and intolerable . and as these mercenary flies , whether of state , or of religion , are justly hatefull , next to the publique executioners ; so certainly , those busie spirited-men , which out of the itching humour of medling , run from house to house , with tales of private detraction , may well challenge the next roome in our detestation . this together with the other , is that which god so strictly forbids in his law , levit. 19. 16. thou shalt not goe up and downe as a tale-bearer amongst thy people , neither shalt thou stand against the bloud of thy neighbour : i am the lord. a practice which wise solomon , though a great king ; and ( as one would think ) out of the reach of tongues , cryes downe with much feeling bitternesse ; prov. 18. 8. the words of the tale bearer are as wounds , and they goe downe into the innermost parts of the belly : no lesse than five severall times in his divine * proverbs , inveighing sharply ( as if himselfe had been stung in this kinde ) against these close back-biting calumniations . shorlty then , accuse when you are forced , either by the foulenesse of the fact , or the necessity of your duty : otherwise reserve your tongue for better offices . case viii . whether a prisoner indicted of a felonious act which he hath committed , and interrogated by the judge concerning the same , may stand upon the deniall , and plead not guilty . the casuists vary ; and out of respect to their owne lawes , are much perplexed in their resolutions : making the great scruple to be in the juridicall interrogations , ( which if the judge have not proceeded in the due forme of law required in such cases ) may warrant the offenders deniall ; and secondly , making difference of the quality of the offence , and danger of the punishment ; which if no lesse than capitall , may ( say they * ) give just ground to the accused party , either to conceale the truth , or to answer with such amphibolies , and equivocations , as may serve to his owne preservation ; in which course , naturall equity will beare him out , which allowes every man to stand upon his owne defence : and the case i perceive is aggravated in forraigne parts , as by the rack , so by an oath administred to the person accused ( which they call † juramentum calumniae ) which lessius justly calls a spirituall torture , by the vertue whereof , hee solemnely urged , not to deny what hee knowes , or believes to be true , concerning the businesse questioned ; a practise , which i cannot blame * lessius , if he professe to wish that the pope , and all secular princes , would joyne together to abrogate ; as being an evident occasion of much perjury . to lay down and determine the case as it stands with us in our ordinary proceedings of justice ; it must be premised : 1. to deny a knowne truth , and to averre a willfull lye , cannot be other than a sin . 2. there is a vast difference betwixt concealing a truth and denying it . 3. it may be sometimes lawfull to conceale some truths , though never lawfull to deny or contradict them . 4. no man can be bound directly to accuse himselfe , 5. it is consonant to naturall equity , that a man for the saving of his life should use the helpe of all evasions that are not sinfull . 6. it cannot be sinfull to put himselfe upon a legall triall in a case importing his life . 7. there is no place for a legall triall , where there is an absolute confession of guiltinesse . these positions being pre-required ; i say , that it is lawfull for the prisoner , though convinced in his conscience of the fact , yet to plead not guilty to the indictment at the barre : for as much as he doth therein , according to the sense both of the judge , and jury , onely hide and keepe back that truth ; the finding out , and eviction whereof , lyes upon their further search and proofe , so as he doth , in pleading not guilty , in effect as good as say , what ever i finde in my selfe , i have no reason to confesse my guiltinesse ; i stand upon my lawfull defence , and cast my selfe upon my just tryall ; yielding my selfe onely so far guilty , as your evidence and proofes can make me : let justice passe upon me , i have no reason to draw on my owne condemnation : the plea thus construed is lawfull , and just ; wherein not the shuffling equivocations of the offendor , but the upright verdict of a legall jury must carry the cause : to which purpose , that which sounds as a deniall in the accused , is nothing else but a professed referring himselfe to a juridicall triall of that fact , which he is not bound to confesse . but when the hand of god hath once found out the man in his sin ; and he finds himselfe legally convinced of his crime ; it greatly behoves him ( as joshuah charged achan after the lot had discovered his sin ) to give glory to god , in a free and full confession of his wickednesse , and to be more open and ingenuous in his acknowledgement , than he was close , and reserved in his plea : wherein as he shall discharge his conscience to that great and holy god , whom he hath offended , so he shall thus tender some kind of poore satisfaction to that society of men , whom hee hath scandalized by his crime . in which regard i cannot but marvell at the strange determination of learned * azpilcueta , the oracle of confessaries , who teaches , that the prisoner , who being rightly interrogated by the judge , stood stiffly in deniall of the fact , and is upon his condemnation ( carried to his execution , is not bound at his death to confesse the crime to the world , if he have before secretly whispered it in the ear of his ghostly father , and by him received absolution . a sentence that allowes the smothering of truthes , and the strangling of just satisfaction to those who are concerned , as patience , in the offence ; and lastly , highly injurious to publique justice ; whose righteous sentence is by this meanes left questionable , and obnoxious to unjust censure . how much more requisite were it that a publique confession should , in this case , save the labour of a private , whereby certainly , the soule of the offender would be more sensibly unloaded , justice better vindicated , more glory would accrew to god ; and to men more satisfaction . but however it be lawfull for the accused to stand upon these points of legality in the proceedings against him : yet for my owne part ; should i be so farre given over , as to have my hand in bloud ; and thereupon be arraigned at the barre of publique justice ; i should out of just remorse be the first man that should rise up against my selfe and ( which in other mens cases were utterly unlawfull ) be my owne accuser , witnesse , and judge : and this disposition i should rather commend in those , whose conscience hath inwardly convicted them for haynously criminous : that since they had not the grace to resist so flagitious a wickednesse ; they may yet endeavour to expiate it , before men , with an ingenuous confession : as before god , with a deepe and serious repentance . case ix . whether , and how farre a man may take up armes in the publique quarrell of a war. warre is no other than a necessary evill , necessary in relation to peace : onely , as that without which so great a blessing cannot bee had : as the wise woman said to joab , 2 sam. 20. 18. they should first treat with the men of abel , ere they smite : & upon the charge of the lord of hosts , deut. 20. 10. conditions must first be tendered even to heathen enemies , before any acts of hostility shall be exercised ; where this which is the worst of all remedies , proves needfull , if you ask how farre it is lawfull to ingage ; i must aske you , ( ere i can returne answer ) first of the justice of the quarrell : for surely where the warre is knowne to be unjust , the willing abettors of it cannot wash their hands from blood : to make a warre just ( as our casuists rightly ) there must bee a lawfull authority to raise it ; a just ground whereon to raise it ; due formes and conditions in the raising , managing , and cessation of it : that no authority lesse than supreame can wage a warre , it is cleare in nature ; for that none other besides it can have power of life and death ; which both must lye at the publique stake in warre . that none but a just and weighty cause can be the ground of a warre , every mans reason apprehends ; for how precious a blessing had that need to bee , that is held worth the purchasing with the price of so much bloud ; and how heavy a curse must that needes bee , which can onely be remedied , or prevented by so grievous a judgement as war ? that due termes and conditions are requisite to bee offered ere warre be undertaken ; and observed in the managing and ceasing of it , humanity it self teacheth us ; without which men should run upon one another with no lesse fury and disorder than beasts ; not staying for any capitulation but the first advantage ; nor terminating their discord in any thing but utter destruction . where all or any of these are wanting , the warre cannot be just : and where it is known not to be such , woe be to those hands that are willingly active in prosecuting it . now the care of all these three maine requisites must lie chiefly upon that power , which is entrusted by the almighty , with the over-ruling of publique affaires : for the subject , as he is bound to an implicite reliance upon the command of the supreame power ; so ( unlesse it be in a case notoriously apparent to be unjust ) must yeild a blind-fold obedience to authority ; going whither he is led , and doing what he is bidden ; but if the case be such , as that his heart is fully convinced of the injustice of the enterprise , and that he clearly finds that he is charged to smite innocence , and to him , against god ; i cannot blame fight , if with sauls footmen ( when they were commanded to fall upon the priests of the lord ) he withhold his hand , and craving pardon , shew lesse readinesse to act , than to suffer . in the second place , i must aske you with what intentions you addresse your selfe to the field ; if it be out of the conscience of maintaining a just cause , if out of a loyall obedience to lawfull authority : i shall bid you go on , and prosper : but if either malice to the parties opposed , and therein desire of revenge , or a base covetousnesse of pay , or hope and desire of plunder have put you into armes ; repent and withdraw : for what can be more sordid or cruell , than to be hired for dayes-wages to shed innocent blood ? or what can bee more horribly mischievous for a man , than to kill , that hee may steale ? upon your answer to these questions it will be easie for mee to returne mine ; in a just quarrell , being thereto lawfully called , you may fight ; warrantable authority hath put the sword into your hand ; you may use it . but take heed that you use it with that moderation , and with those affections that are meet : even an authorized hand may offend in striking ; magistrates themselves , if there be revenge in their executions , doe no other than murder : far be it from you to take pleasure in bloud ; and to enjoy another mans destruction : if ( especially in those warres that are intestine ) you shall mingle your teares with the blood , which you are forced to spill , it may well become christian fortitude . shortly ; doe you enter into your armes , imprest , or voluntary ? if the former , you have nothing but your owne heart to looke unto for a fit disposition ; that power , whom you justly obey , must answer for the cause ; if the latter , you have reason diligently to examine all the necessary points , of the power , of the cause , of your intentions : as well considering that in a warre it is no lesse impossible that both sides should be in the right , than that in a contradiction both parts should be true : here therefore your will makes it selfe the judg of all three ; and ( if any of them faile ) leaves you answerable for all miscarriages ; so as you had need to be carefully inquisitive , in this case , upon what grounds you goe ; that so ( whatsoever may befall ) a good conscience may beare you out in the greatest difficulties , and saddest events that are wont to attend upon warre . case x. whether and how farre a man may act towards his own death . directly to intend or endeavour that , which may worke his owne death , is abominably wicked , and no lesse than the worst murder . for if a man may not kill another , much lesse himselfe ; by how much he is nearer to himselfe than to another : and certainely if we must regulate our love to another by that to our selves , it must follow that love to our selves must take up the first roome in our hearts : and that love cannot but be accompanied with a detestation of any thing that may bee harmefull to our selves . doubtlesse , many that can be cruell to another , are favourable enough to themselves ; but never man that could be cruell to himself would be sparing to another's blood . to will or attempt this is highly injurious to that god , whose we onely are ; who hath committed our life as a most precious thing to our trust , for his use , more than our owne ; and will require from us an account of our managing of it , and our parting from it . it is a foule misprision in those men , that make account of themselves as their owne , and therefore that they are the absolute lords of their life : did they give themselves their owne being ? had they nothing but meere nature in them ? can they but acknowledge an higher hand in their formation , and animating ? what a wrong were it therefore to the great lord and giver of life , to steale out of the world , without his leave that placed us there ? but much more if christians , they know themselves , besides , dearly paid for ; and therefore not in their own disposing , but in his that bought them . secondly , most desperately injurious to our selves , as incurring thereby a certaine damnation ( for ought appeares to lookers on ) for ever , of those soules which have wilfully broken gods more easie , and temporary prison , to put themselves upon the direfull prison of satan to all eternity . nature it selfe , though not enlightened with the knowledge , of the estate of another world , found cause to abhor this practice : however the stoicall philosophers , and some high roman spirits following their doctrine , have beene liberall of their lives ; the thebans of old professed detestation of this worst of prodigalities : and the athenians enacted that the hand , which should be guilty of such an act , should be cut off , and kept unburied ; and it was wisely ordained by that grecian common-wealth , when their virgins ( out of a peevish discontentment ) were growne into a selfe-killing humour , that the bodies of such offenders should bee dragged naked though the streets of the city ; the shame whereof stopped the course of that mad resolution . it is not the heaviest of crosses , or the sharpest bodily anguish that can warrant so foule an act . well was it turned off by antisthenes of old , when in the extremity of his paine he cried out , oh who will free me from this torment ! and diognes reached him a poynard , wherewith to dispatch himselfe : nay , said hee , i said , from my torment , not from my life : as well knowing it neither safe , nor easie , to part with our selves upon such termes . farre , farre be it from us to put into this ranke and file those worthy martyrs , which in the fervour of their holy zeale have put themselves forward to martyrdome ; and have courageously prevented the lust and fury of tyrants , to keep their chastity , and faith inviolable . i looke upon these as more fit objects of wonder , than either of censure , or imitation . for these ( whom wee may well match with sampson , and eleazar ) what gods spirit wrought in them , hee knowes that gave it ; rules are they by which we live , not examples . secondly , however wee may not by any meanes directly act to the cutting off the thred of life ; yet i cannot but yeild with learned * lessius , that there may fall out cases , wherein a man may ( upon just cause ) doe , or forbeare something whereupon death may indirectly ensue : indirectly , i say , not with an intention of such issue : for it is not an universall charge of god , that no man should upon any occasion expose his life to a probable danger ; if so , there would be no warre , no traffique ; but onely that he should not causelesly hazard himselfe ; nor with a resolution of wilfull miscarriage . to those instances hee gives of a souldier that must keep his station , though it cost him life : of a prisoner that may forbeare to flee out of prison , though the doores be open : of a man condemn'd to dye by hunger , in whose power it is to refuse a sustenance offered : of a man that latches the weapon in his owne body to save his prince : or of a friend , who when but one loafe is left to preserve the life of two , refraines from his part and dyes first : or that suffers another to take that planke in a shipwrack , which himselfe might have prepossessed , as trusting to the oares of his armes : or that puts himselfe into an infected house out of meer charity to tend the sick , though hee know the contagion deadly ; or in a sea-fight blows up the deck with gun-powder , not without his own danger ; or when the house is on fire , casts himselfe out at the window with an extreame hazard : to these , i say , may be added many more ; as the cutting off a limb to stop the course of a gangreene ; to make an adventure of a dangerous incision in the body , to draw forth the stone in the bladde ; the taking of a large dose of opiate pills , to ease a mortall extremity ; or lastly , when a man is already seized on by death , the receiving of some such powerfull medicine , as may facilitate his passage ( the defect of which care and art , the eminently-learned lord * verulam justly complaines of in physitians : ) in these , and the like cases , a man may lawfully doe these things which may tend , in the event to his owne death , though without an intention of procuring it . and unto this head must bee referred those infinite examples of deadly sufferings for good causes , willingly embraced for conscience sake . the seven brethren in the maccabees , ( alluded to by st. paul to his hebrewes , heb. 11. 35. ) will and must rather endure the butchering of their owne flesh , than the eating of swines flesh , in a willing affront of their law : daniel will rather dye than not pray . shadrach , meshach , and abednego , will rather fall downe bound into the fiery fornace seven-fold heated , than fall down before the golden image . and every right-disposed christian will rather welcome death than yeild to a willing act of idolatry , rebellion , witchcraft : if hereupon death follow by the infliction of others , they are sinfull agents , hee is an innocent sufferer . as for that scruple among our casuists , whether a man condemned to dye by poyson , may take the deadly draught that is brought him ; it is such , as wise socrates never made of old , when the athenians tendred him his hemlock ; and indeede it may as well be disputed , whether a man condemned to dye by the axe , may quietly lay downe his head upon the block ; and not , but upon force , yeild to that fatall stroke . a juster scruple is , whether a man condemned to a certaine and painefull death , which hee cannot possibly eschew ; may make choice rather of a more easie passage out of the world ; wherein i marvell at the indulgence of some doctors , that would either excuse , or mince the matter . for although i cannot blame that naturall disposition in any creature , to shrinke from pain , and to affect ( what it may ) the shifting from extremity of miserie : yet for a christian so to doe it , as to draw a greater mischief to himselfe , and an apparent danger to his soule , it cannot justly beare any other than a hard construction . for thus to carve himselfe of justice , is manifestly to violate lawfull authority ; and whiles he would avoid a short pain , to incur the shame and sin of a selfe-executioner . but if in that way , wherein the doome of death is passed , a man can give himselfe ease , or speed of dissolution ( as when a martyr being adjudg'd to the fire , use the helpe of a bagge of gun-powder , to expedite his passage ) it cannot be any way judged unlawfull : the sentence is obeyed , the execution is accordingly done ; and , if the patient have found a shorter way to that end which is appointed him , what offence can this be either to the law , or to the judge ? resolutions . the third decade . cases of piety and religion . case i. whether upon the appearance of evill spirits wee may hold discourse with them ; and how we may demean our selves concerning them . that there are evill spirits , is no less certaine than that there are men : none but a sadduce , or an atheist can make question of it . that evill spirits have given certaine proofes of their presence with men , both in visible apparitions , and in the possessions of places , and bodies , is no lesse manifest , than that we have soules , whereby they are discerned . their appearances are not wont to be without grievous inconveniences ; whether in respect of our dreadfulnesse , or their dangerous insinuations . it is the great mercy of the god of spirits , that hee hath bound up the evill angels in the chaines of darkenesse , restraining them from those frequent , and horrible appearances which they would otherwise make to the terrour , and consternation of his weak creatures . whensoever it pleaseth the almighty , for his owne holy purposes , so farre to loosen , or lengthen the chaines of wicked spirits , as to suffer them to exhibit themselves in some assumed shapes unto men , it cannot but mainly import us to know , what our deportment should be concerning them . doubtlesse to hold any faire termes of commerce , or peace ( much more of amity and familiarity ) with them , were no better than to professe our selves enemies to god ; for such an irreconcileable hostility there is betwixt the holy god , and these malignant spirits , that there can bee no place for a neutrality in our relation to them : so as hee is an absolute enemie to the one , that bids not open defiance to the other . as therefore wee are wont by our silence to signifie our heart-burning against any person ( in that we abide not to speake unto those whom wee hate , ) so must wee carry our selves towards evill spirits : and if they beginne with us , as that devill did in in the serpent with eve ; how unsafe and deadly it may bee to hold that with them , appeares in that first example of their onset ; the issue whereof brought misery , and mortality upon all mankinde ; yet then , were our first parents in their innocency , and all earthly perfection : wee now so tainted with sinne , that satan hath a kinde of party in us , even before his actuall temptations . as therefore wee are wont to say that the fort that yeilds to parley is halfe won ; so may it prove with us , if we shall give way to hold discourse with wicked spirits ; who are farre too crafty for us to deale withall : having so evident an advantage of us , both in nature ( we being flesh and blood , they spirituall wickednesse ) and in duration , and experience , we being but of yesterday , they coetaneous with the world and time it selfe . if you tell mee that our saviour himselfe interchanged some speeches with the spirits whom he ejected ; it is easily answered , that this act of his was never intended for our imitation ; sith his omnipotence was no way obnoxious to their malice , our weakness is . i cannot therefore but marvell at the boldnesse of those men , who professing no small degree of holinesse , have dared to hold familiar talk with evill spirits , and could be content to make use of them for intelligence ; as the famous jesuite , in our time , pere cotton ; who having provided 50. questions to be propounded to a demoniack ( some concerning matters of learning , some other matters of state , concerning the then french king and the king of england ) and having them written down under his owne hand to that purpose ; being questioned concerningit , answered , that hee had licence from rome to tender those demands : as i received it upon certaine relation from the learned dr. tilenus with many pregnant and undeniable circumstances , which i need not here expresse . although this need not seeme strange to me , when i finde that * navarre determines plainly , that when evill spirits are present ( not by our invocation ) as in possessed bodies , it is lawfull to move questions to them , ( so it be without our paayers to them , or pact with them for the profit of others ; yea , thus to confer with them , even out of vanity , or curiosity , is but venial at the most : thus he , with whom † lessius goes so far as to say , licitum est petere verbo à diabolo ut nocere desinat , &c. it is lawfull to move the devill in words to cease from hurting , so that it be not done by way of deprecation , or in a friendly compliance , but by way of indignation : a distinction which i confesse past the capacity of my apprehension ; who have not the wit to conceive how a man can move without implying a kinde of suite ; and how any suite can consist with an indignation . it savours yet of a more heroicall spirit , which the church of rome professeth to teach and practice , the ejection of evill spirits by an imperious way of command ; having committed to her exorcists a power of adjuration , to which the worst of devils must be subject ; a power more easily arrogated , than really exercised : indeed , this over-ruling authority was eminently conspicuous , not onely in the selected twelve , and the seventy disciples of christ , who returned from their embassie with joy , ( luk. 10. 17. ) that the devils were subject to them through his name , but even in their holy successors of the primitive church , whiles the miraculous gifts of the holy ghost were sensibly poured out upon men ; but if they will be still challenging the same power ; why doe they not as well lay claime to the speaking of strange tongues ? ( mar. 16. 17. 18 ) to the super-naturall cure of all diseases ? to the treading on serpents and scorpions ? to the drinking of poysons without an antidote ? and if they must needs acknowledge these faculties above their reach , why doe they presume to divide the spirit from it selfe ; arrogating to themselves the power of the greatest workes , whiles they are professedly defective in the least ? wherein surely , as they are the true successors of the sonnes of sceva , act. 19. r3 , 14 , 15 , 16. who would be adjuring of devils by the name of jesus , whom s. paul preached , so they can looke for no other intertainment than they found from those demoniacks , which was to be baffled , and beaten , and wounded . especially , if we consider the foule superstition , and grosse magick , which they make use of in their conjurations ; by their owne vainely-devised exorcismes , feoffing a supernaturall vertue upon drugges , and herbes , for the dispelling , and staving off all evill spirits ; because the bookes are not perhaps obvious , take but a taste in one , or two : * in the treasure of exorcismes , there is this following benediction of rue , to be put into an hallowed paper , and to be carried about you and smelled at for the repelling of the invasion of devils † . i conjure thee ô thou creature of rue , by the holy lord , the father , the almighty and eternall god , which bringeth forth grasse in the mountaines , and herbes for the use of man : and which by the apostle of thy sonne our lord jesus christ , hast taught , that the weake should eat herbes : i conjure thee that thou bee blessed , and sanctifyed to retaine th●s invisible power and vertue , that whosoever shall carry thee about him , or shall smell to thee , may be free from all the uncleannesse of diabolicall infatuation ; and that all devills , and all witchcrafts may speedily fall from him , as herbes or grasse of the earth : through the same our lord jesus christ , which shall come to judge the quick and the dead , and the world by fire . the like is prescribed to be done to the seedes of hypericon or st. johns wort . * adde to this , the horrible fumigation to this purpose as it followes . i conjure thee o thou creature of galbanum , sulphur , assa foetida , aristolochium , hypericon and rue , by the † living god , by the † true god , &c. by jesus christ , &c. that thou be for our defence ; and that thou be made a perpetuall fumigation , exorcised , † blessed , and consecrated to the safety of us , and of all faithfull christians , and that thou be a perpetuall punishment to all malignant spirits , and a most vehement , and infinite fire unto them , more than the fire and brimstone of hell is to the infernall spirits there , &c. * but what doe i trouble you with these dreadfull incantations , whereof the allowed bookes of conjuration are full ? to these i may adde their application of holy water , ( wherein they place not a little confidence ) which ( saith lessius ) receives the force from the prayers of the church , by the meanes whereof it comes to passe , that it is assisted with divine power ; which ( as it were ) rests upon it , and joynes with it , to the averting of all the infestations of the devill : but faine would i learne where the church hath any warrant from god to make any such suit ; where any overture of promise to have it granted ? what is their prayer with out faith ? and what is their faith without a word ? but i leave these men ( together with their crosses , and ceremonies , and holy reliques , wherein they put great trust in these cases ) to their better informed thoughts . god open their eyes that they may see their errors . for us , what our demeanour should be in case of the appearance , or molestation of evill spirits , we cannot desire a better patterne than s. paul ; his example is our all-sufficient instruction , 2 cor. 12. 7 , 8. who when the messenger of satan was sent to buffet him , fell presently to his prayers ; and instantly besought god thrice , that it might depart from him . lo he that could command evill spirits out of the bodily possession of others ; when it comes to his own turne to be buffeted by them , betakes himselfe to his prayers to that god , whose grace was sufficient for him : verse 9. to them must we still have our recourse ; if wee thus resist the devil he shall flee from us : iam. 4. 7. in the primitive times , those that could command , needed not to sue : & therefore fasting and prayers , was an higher ( as a more laborious ) work ( to this purpose ) in the disciples , than their imperative course of ejection ; but for us , we that have no power to bid , must pray ; pray , not to those ill guests that they would depart ; not to the blessed virgin , or our angel-keeper that they would gard us from them , but to the great god of heaven , who commands them to their chains : this is a sure and everlasting remedy , this is the onely certaine way to their foile , and our deliverance , and victory . case ii. how farre a secret pact with evill spirits doth extend , and what actions and events must be referred thereunto . it is a question of exceeding great use , and necessity , for certainly many thousands of honest , and well-minded christians are in this kinde drawne into the snares of satan , unwarily , and unwittingly : for the determining of it , these two grounds must be laid ; first , that there is a double compact with satan ; one direct and open , wherein magicians and witches , upon wofull conditions and direfull ceremonies , enter into a mutuall covenant with evill spirits : the other , secret and indirect , where in nothing is seen , or heard , or known to be agreed upon ; onely by a close implication , that is suggested and yeilded to be done , which is invisibly seconded by diabolicall operation . the second ground is , that whatsoever hath not a cause in nature according to gods ordinary way must be wrought either by good or evill spirits : that it cannot bee supposed that good angels should bee at the command of ignorant , or vicious persons , of either sexe , to concurre with them in superstitious acts , done by meanes altogether in themselves ineffectable and unwarrantable : and therefore that the devill hath an unseene hand in these effects , which hee marvailously brings about , for the winning of credit with the world , and for the obliging and engaging of his owne clients : of this kinde there is too lamentably much variety in common experience : take an handfull , if you please , out of a full sack : let the first be , that authentick charme of the gospell of st. john allowed in the parts of the romish correspondence , wherein the first verses of that divine gospell are singled out , printed in a small roundell , and sold to the credulous ignorants , with this fond warrant , that whosoever carries it about him shall be free from the dangers of the dayes mis-happes : the booke and the key , the sive and the sheeres for the discovery of the thiefe ; the notching of a stick with the number of the warts which wee would have removed , the rubbing of them with raw flesh , to be buried in a dunghill that they may rot away insensibly therewith , or washing the part in moon-shine for that purpose : words , and characters , of no signification , or ordinary forme , for the curing of diseases in man , or beast , more than too many whereof we find in cornelius agrippa , and paracelsus . formes of words and figures for the stanching of blood , for the pulling out of thornes , for easing paine , for remedying the biting of a mad dog . amulets made up of reliques , with certaine letters and crosses , to make him that weares them invulnerable , whistling for a winde wherewith to winnow ; as it is done in some ignorant parts of the west . the use of an holed flint , hanged up on the rack , or beds head , for the prevention of the night-mare in man , or beast . the judging by the letters of the names of men or women , of their fortunes , as they call them , according to the serious fopperies of arcandam . the seventh sonne 's laying on of hands for the healing of diseases ; the putting of a verse out of the psalmes into the vessell to keep the wine from sowring ; the repeating of a verse out of virgil to preserve a man from drunkennesse all that day following , images astronomically framed under certaine constellations 1 to preserve from severall inconveniences , as under the signe of the lion the figure of a lion made in gold , against melancholick fancies , dropsie , plague , fevers : which lessius might well marvell how cajetan could offer to defend ; when all the world knowes how little proportion and correspondence there is betwixt those imaginary signes in heaven , and these reall creatures on earth . judiciary astrology , as it is commonly practised , whether for the casting of nativities , prediction of voluntary , or civill events , or the discovery of things stolne or lost : for , as the naturall astrology , when it keeps it selfe within its due bounds is lawfull , and commendable , ( although not without much uncertainty of issue ; ) so that other calculatory , or figure casting astrology is presumptuous and unwarrantable ; cryed ever downe by councells and fathers , as unlawfull ; as that which lies in the mid-way betwixt magick , and imposture , and partakes not a little of both . the anointing of the weapon for the healing of the wound , though many miles distant ; wherein how confident soever some intelligent men have beene ) doubtlesse there can be nothing of nature , sith in all naturall agences , there must necessarily be a contraction either reall , or virtuall ; here in such an intervall , none can bee : neither can the efficacy bee ascribed to the salve ; since some others have undertaken and done the cure , by a more homely and familiar ointment ; it is the ill-bestowed faith of the agent that draws on the successe from the hand of an invisible physitian . calming of tempests , and driving away devills by ringing of bells , hallowed for that purpose . remedy of witcheries , by heating of irons , or applying of crosses . i could cloy you with instances of this kinde , wherewith satan beguiles the simple upon these two mis-grounded principles ; 1. that in all experience they have found such effects following upon the use and practise of such meanes ; which indeed cannot be denyed : charms and spels commonly are no lesse unfailing in their working , than the best naturall remedies ; doubtlesse , the devill is a most skilfull artist : and can do feats beyond all mortall powers ; but god blesse us from imploying him : 2 king. 1. 3. is it not because there is not a god in israel that we goe to enquire of baal-zebub the god of ekron ? 2. that there may be hidden causes in nature for the producing of such effects , which they know not ; neither can give any reason of their operations , whereof yet we doe commonly make use , without any scruple ; and why may not these be ranged under the same head ? which they have used with no other but good meaning , without the least intention of reference to any malignant powers ; in answer whereto , i must tell them , that their best plea is ignorance , which may abate the sinne , but not excuse it : there are indeed , deep secrets in nature , whose bottome we cannot dive into , as those wonders of the load-stone ; a piece outwardly contemptible , yet of such force as approacheth neare to a miracle : and many other strange sympathies and antipathies in severall creatures ; in which ranke may be set the bleeding of the dead at the presence of the murtherer : and some acts done for the discovery of witchcraft both in this , and our neighbor kingdome ; but withall , though there be secrets in nature which we know not how she works ; yet we know there are works which are well knowne , that she cannot doe : how far her power can extend is not hard to determine : and those effects which are beyond this , ( as in the forementioned particulars ) we know whither to ascribe : let it be therefore the care and wisdome of christians to looke upon what grounds they goe : whiles they have god , and nature for their warrant , they may walke safely ; but where these leave them , the way leades downe to the chambers of death , case iii. whether reserving my conscience to my self , i may be present at an idolatrous devotion ; or whether in the lawfull service of god i may communicate with wicked persons . the question is double : both of them of great importance ; the former i must answer negatively , your presence is unlawfull upon a double ground ; of sinne , and of scandall : of sin , if you partake in the idolatry ; of scandall , if you doe but seeme to partake : the scandall is three-fold ; you confirm the offenders in their sin , you draw others by your example into sin , you grieve the spirits of those wiser christians , that are the sad witnesses of your offence . the great apostle of the gentiles ( 1 cor. 8. 4 , 5 , 6 , 7 , 8 , 9 , 10. ) hath fully determined the question in a more favourable case : the heathen sacrifices were wont to be accompanied ( in imitation of the jewish , prescribed by god himselfe ) with feastes ; the owners of the feast civilly invite the neighbours ( though christians ) to the banquets ; the tables are spread in their temples ; the christian guests , out of a neighbourly society , goe , sit , eate with them : s. paul cries downe the practice , as utterly unlawfull : yet this was but in matter of meat ; which sure was gods , though sacrificed to an idoll ; how much more must it hold in rites and devices , meerely , either humane , or devilish ? i need not tell you of the christian souldiers in the primitive persecution , who when they found themselves by an ignorant mistaking drawne , under a pretence of loyalty , into so much ceremony as might carry some semblance of an idolatrous thurification , ranne about the city in an holy remorse , and proclaimes themselves to be christians : nor how little it excused marcellinus bishop of rome from an heavy censure , that he could say he did but for company cast a few graines of incense into the fire . the charge of the apostle ( 1 thes. 5. 22. ) is full , and peremptory , that we should abstaine from every appearance of evill . it is a poore plea that you mention of the example of naaman . alas , an ignorant pagan ! whose body if it were washed from his leprosie , yet his soule must needes be still foule : 2 kings 5. 17 , 18 , 19. yet even this man will thenceforth offer neither burnt-offering , nor sacrifice unto any other god , but unto the lord , nor upon any ground but the lords peculiar ; and will therefore lade two mules with israelitish earth ; and is now a professed convert : yea , but he will still bow in the temple of rimmon : but how will he bow ? civilly onely , not religiously ; in the house of rimmon , not to the idoll ; not in relation to the false deity , but to the king his master : you shall not take him going alone under that idolatrous roofe , but according to his office , in attendance of his soveraigne : nor bowing there , but to support the arme that lean'd upon him : and if upon his returne home from his journey he made that solemne protestation to his syrians , which he before made to the prophet : take notice , o all ye courtiers , and men of damascus , that naaman is now become a proselyte of israell , that hee will serve and adore none but the true god ; and if you see him at any time kneeling in the temple of your idoll rimmon , know that it is not done in any devotion to that false god , but in the performance of his duty and service to his royall master ; i see not but the prophet might well bid him , goe in peace . how ever that ordinary and formall velediction to a syrian , can be no warrant for a christians willing dissimulation . it is fit for every honest man to seeme as he is ; what do you howling amongst wolves , if you be not one ? or what do you amongst the cranes , if you be a stork : it was the charge of jehu , when he pretended that great sacrifice to baal ; search , and looke that there be here with you none of the servants of the lord , ( 2 king. 10. 23. ) but the worshippers of baal onely : surely had any of gods clients secretly shrouded himselfe amongst those idolaters , his blood had beene upon his owne head : briefly then , i● you have a minde to keepe your selfe in a safe condition for your soule , let me lay upon you the charge which moses enforced upon the congregation of israel in the case of corah's insurrection , depart i pray you from the tents of these wicked men , and touch nothing of theirs , lest ye be consumed in all their sins . numb . 16. 26. the latter i must answer affirmatively : if the ordinances be holy , why should you not take your part of them ? it is an unjust nicenesse to abridge your selfe of a blessing , for another mans unworthinesse : doubtless , there ought to be a separation of the precious from the vile ; the neglect whereof is the great sinne of those , whom in duty it concernes to perform it ; but where this is not accordingly done , shall i suffer for anothers offence ? my owne sinnes may justly keepe me off from gods table ; if another mans may doe so too , i appropriate the guilt of his sin to my own wrong : surely it argues but small appetite to these heavenly viandes , if you can be put off with a pretence of others faults : judge of the spirituall repast by this earthly ; were you throughly hungry , would you refraine from your meat because one of the guests hath a paire of foule hands ? that may be a just eye-sore to you , but no reason why you should forbeare wholesome dishes : carve you for your selfe , and looke to your owne trencher , he feedes for himselfe , not for you ; sinne is the uncleannesse of the soule , that cleaves closer to it , than any outward nastinesse can to the skin ; to feed thus foule then is doubtlesse unwholesome , to himselfe , it can be no hurt to you . but you are ready to straine the comparison higher to your owne advantage : say , that one of the guests hath a plague-fore running upon him , shall i then thinke it safe to sit at the table with him ? now sin is of a pestilent nature , spreading its infection to others besides its owne subject ; therefore it is meet we keepe aloofe from the danger of his contagion : true , there are sinnes of a contagious nature , apt to diffuse their venome to others , ( as there are other some whose evill is intrinsecall to the owner ) but these infect by way of evill counsails , or examples , or familiar conversation , not by way of a meere extemporary presence of the person , by spreading of their corruption to those that are taken with them ; not by scattering abroad any guilt to those that abhorr them . well did our saviour know how deadly an infection had seised on the soule of judas , yet he drives him not from his board , lest his sinne should taint the disciples . the spirit that writes to the seven asian churches ( rev. 2. 20 , 21 , 22. ) saw and professed to see the horrible infection spread amongst the thyatirians by the doctrine and wicked practises of their jesebell , yet all that he enjoyns the godly party is to hold their own . have no fellowship , saith the apostle with the unfruitfull works of darknesse , ( eph. 5. 11. ) loe he would not have us partake in evill : he doth not forbid us to partake with an evil man in good works . however therefore we are to wish and endeavour ( in our places ) that all the congregation may be holy ; and it is a comfortable thing to joyn with those , that are truly conscionable , and carefully observant of their wayes , in the immediate services of our god : yet where there is neglect in the overseers , and boldnesse in the intruders , and thereupon , gods sacred table is pestred with some unworthy guests ; it is not for you , upon this ground , to deprive your selfe of the benefit of gods blessed ordinances ; notwithstanding all this unpleasing encombrance you are welcome , and may be happy . case iv. whether vowes bee not out of season now under the gospel ; of what things they may be made ; how farre they oblige us ; and whether and how far they may be capable of release . it is a wrongfull imputation that is cast upon us by the roman doctours , that we abandone all vowes under the gospell : they well see that we allow and professe that common vow ( as lessius termes it ) in baptisme ; which yet both bellarmine , and he , with other of their consorts , deny to be properly such : it is true , that as infants make it by their proxies , there may seeme some impropriety of the engagement as to their persons ; but if the party christened be of mature age , the expresse vow is made absolutely by , and for himselfe . besides this , we allow of the renovation of all those holy vowes , ( relating to the first ) which may binde us to a more strict obedience to our god , yet more , though we doe not now allow the vowes of things in their nature indiffernt , to be parts of gods worship , ( as they were formerly under the law ) yet we doe willingly approve of them , as good helps and furtherances to us , for the avoiding of such sinnes as we are obnoxious unto ; and for the better forwarding of our holy obedience . thus , the charge is of eternall use , psal. 76. 11. vow unto god and performe it : not that we are bound to vow ; that act is free and voluntary : but that when we have vowed , we are straitly bound to performance : it is with us for our vowes as it was with ananias and saphira for their substance . whiles it remained ( saith s. peter ) was it not thine own ? ( acts 5. 4. ) hee needed not to sell it , he needed not to give it ; but if he will give , he may not reserve : if he profess to give all , it is death to save some ; he lies to the holy ghost , that defalks from that which he engaged himselfe to bestow . it mainly concernes us therefore to looke carefully in the first place , to what we vow , and to our intentions in vowing , and to see that our vow be not rash and unadvised , of things either triviall , or unlawfull , or impossible , or out of our power to performe ; for every vow is a promise made to god ; and to promise unto that great and holy god , that which either we cannot , or ought not to doe , what is it other than to mock and abuse that sacred majesty , which will not hold him guiltlesse that taketh his name in vaine ? it is the charge to this purpose of wise solomon , be not rash with thy mouth , and let not thine heart be hasty to utter any thing before god , for god is in heaven , and thou upon earth , therefore let thy words be few , eccles. 5. 2. your vow therefore must be either of things morally good , for the quickening you in that duty which you are bound to doe : or of things indifferent in themselves , the refraining , or doing whereof , may tend either to the restraint from sinne , or the furtherance of your holy obedience : as a man that findes his brains weak , and his inclination too strong to pleasing liquor , bindes himselfe by a vow to drinke no wine save onely at gods table : or a man that findes himselfe apt to be miscarryed by his appetite , confines himselfe by his vow to one dish , or to one meale for the day : or a man that findes himself given to the pleasure of gaming , to the losse of his time , and the weakning of his estate , curbes himselfe by his vow never to play for money : or a man that findes his prayers weak , and his flesh rebellious , vowes to tame his unruly desires , and to stir up his duller devotions by fasting . and as the matter of your vow must be carefully regarded ; so also your intentions in vowing ; for if you vow to doe good to an ill end , your thanke is lost , and danger of judgement incurred : as if you vow to give almes for vaine-glory , or ostentation : or , if god shall prosper your usurious , or monopolizing project , you will build an hospitall ; your vow is like to be so accepted , as the story tells us , the prayers were , of that bold curtizan , who coming to the shrine of s. thomas of * canterbury ( as that traitour was stiled ) devoutly beg'd , that through the intercession of that saint , she might be graced with so winning a beauty , that might allure her paramours to a gainfull courting of so pleasing a mistresse , when suddainly ( as my author tells me ) she was stricken blinde : and certainely , so it might well be ; for if a supposed saint were invoked , it was god that was highly provoked by the sinfull petition of a shamelesse harlot : and it was most just for him to revenge it ; and so we may well expect it shall be with whosoever shall dare to make use of his sacred name to their owne wicked or unwarrantable purposes . since therefore our vowes must be for their matter ( as casuists well determine ) de meliore bono , and for intentions , holy and directed onely to good ; it plainly appeares that many idle purposes , promises , resolutions , are wont to passe with men for vows , which have no just claime to that holy title : one sayes he vowes never to be friends with such a one that hath highly abused him ; another , that he will never come under the roofe of such an unkinde neighbour : one that he will drinke so many healths to his honoured friend ; another that he will not give the wall or the way to any passenger : one that he will never weare suit but of such a colour ; another that he will never cut his haire till such an event ; these , and such like may be foolish , unjust , ridiculous selfe engagements , but vowes they are not , neither therefore do bind the conscience , otherwise than as sampsons cords , and withes , which he may break as a thred of tow , iudg. 16. 9. 12. but as for true vowes , certainly they are so binding , that you shall sin hainously in not performing them : it is not better than dishonesty to fail in what we have promised to men ; but to disappoint god in our vowes , is no lesse than sacriledge : that of solomons is weighty , eccles. 5. 4 , 5 , 6. when thou vowest a vow unto god , deferre not to pay it , for he hath no pleasure in fooles ; pay that which thou hast vowed : better it is that thou shouldst not vow , than that thou shouldst vow and not pay it : suffer not thy mouth to cause thy flesh to sin , neither say before the angel that it was an errour ; wherefore should god be angry at thy vow , and destroy the worke of thine hands ? if therefore a lawfull and just vow have passed your lips , you may not be false to god , and your selfe in not keeping it . but if it shall so fall out , that there proves to be some maine inconvenience or impossibility in the fulfilling of this your solemne promise unto god , whether through the extreme prejudice of your health , and life , or the over-swaying difficulty of the times what is to be done ; surely as under the law ( numb . 30. 3 , 4 , 5. ) it was left in the power of the parent to over-rule the vow of the childe , so i doubt not but under the gospel , it is left in the power of your spirituall fathers , to order , or dispense with the performance of those vowes , which you would , but cannot well fulfill : neither was it spoken in vaine , nor in matter of sins onely , which our saviour in way of authorization , said to his apostles and their successours , whatsoever ye shall binde on earth , shall be bound in heaven , and whatsoever ye shall loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven . mat. 18. 18 in this case therefore , i should advise you to make your addresse to your spirituall pastor , and freely to lay open your condition before him , and humbly to submit your selfe to his fatherly directions in that course , which shall be found best and sasest for your soule : think it not safe in a businesse of so high nature to relye upon your owne judgment , and to carve out your own satisfaction ; but regard carefully what god hath said of old , the priests lippes should keep knowledge : and they should seeke the law at his mouth : for he is the messenger of the lord of hosts . mal. 2. 7. case v. whom may we justly hold an heretick ; and what is to be done in the case of heresie ? there is no one point wherein the church of god hath suffered more , than in the mis-understanding of this question ; how many thousand innocents , have in these latter ages of the church perished in this unhappy quarrell ? yea , how many famous churches have beene most unjustly thunder-struck with direfull censures of excommunication down to the pit of hell , upon pretence of this crime , which have bin lesse guilty than their anathematizers ? and even amongst our selves , how apt we are to brand one another with this hatefull mark where there is no true merit of such a reproach ? it much imports us therefore to know who may be deservedly thus stigmatized by us : i have elsewhere somewhat largely insisted on this theme ; whither i might spare some lines to referre you ; but , in short , thus : to let passe the originall sense , and divers acceptions of the word , an heresie is no other than an obstinate errour against the foundation ; all truths are precious , but some withall necessary ; all errours are faulty , but some damnable ; the naynousnesse of the error is according to the worth of the truth impugned ; there are theologicall verities fit for us to know and believe ; there are articles of christian faith needfull to be known and believed ; there are truths of meet and decent superstructure , without which the fabrick may stand ; there are truths of the foundation so essentiall , as that without them it cannot stand : it is a maime to the house if but a tile be pulled off from the roofe , but if the foundation be razed , the building is overthrown : this is the endeavour and act of heresie . but now the next question will be , what doctrines they are which must be accounted to be of the foundation ; our countrey-man fisher the jesuite , and his associates wil tell you roundly , that all those things , which are defined by the church to be believed , are * fundamentall : a large ground-work of faith : doubtlesse the church hath defined all things contained in the scripture , to be believed ; and theirs ( which they call catholick ) hath defined all those traditionall points , which they have added to the creed , upon the same necessity of salvation to be believed ; now if all these be the foundation , which is the building ? what an imperfect fabrick doe they make of christian religion ; all foundation , no walls , no roofe ? surely it cannot , without too much absurdity , be denied , that there is great difference of truthes , some more important than others ; which could not be , if all were alike fundamentall : if there were not some speciall truthes , the beliefe whereof makes , and distinguisheth a christian , the authors of the creede apostolick ( besides the other symboles received anciently by the church ) were much deceived in their aime : he therefore that believes the holy scriptures ( which must be a principle presupposed ) to be inspired by god ; and as an abstract of the chiefe particulars thereof , professeth to believe and embrace the articles of the christian faith , to regulate his life by the law of gods commandements , and his devotion by the rule of christ prescribed ; and lastly to acknowledge and receive the sacraments expresly instituted by christ ; doubtlesse this man is by profession a christian , and cannot be denyed to hold the foundation ; and whosoever shall wilfully impugne any of these , comes within the verge of heresie : wilfully , i say , for meere error makes not an heretick ; if out of simplicity , or grosse ignorance , a man shall take upon him to maintaine a contradiction to a point of faith , being ready to relent upon better light , he may not be thus branded : eviction and contumacy must improve his error to be hereticall . the church of rome therefore hath beene too cruelly-liberall of her censures this way , having bestow'd this livery upon many thousand christians whom god hath owned for his saints : and upon some churches more orthodoxe than her selfe , presuming upon a power ( which was never granted her from heaven ) to state new articles of faith , and to excommunicate and barre all that shall dare to gainsay her oracles : whereas the great doctor of the gentiles hath told us from the spirit of god , that there is but one lord , one faith , one baptisme ; ( ephes. 4. 5. ) and what faith is that ? s. jude tells us : iude 3. the faith that was once delivered the saints ; so that as well may they make more reiterations of baptisme , and multiplicities of lords , as more faiths than one : some explications there may be of that one faith , made by the church , upon occasion of new-sprung errours , but such , as must have their grounds from fore-written truths , and such , as may not extend to the condemnation of them whom god hath left free : new articles of faith they may not be , nor binde farther than god hath reached them . hereticks then they are , and onely they , that pertinaciously raze the foundation of the christian faith ; what now must be done with them ? surely , first , if they cannot be reclaimed , they must be avoided : it is the charge of the beloved disciple to the elect lady , 2 john v. 10. if any man come unto you and bring not ( that is , by an ordinary hebraisme , opposes ) this doctrine , receive him not into your houses , neither bidde him god speede ; but the apostle of the gentiles goes yet higher ; sor writing to titus the great super-intendent of crete , his charge is , tit. 3. 10. a man that is an heretick , after the first and second admonition reject . now , when wee compare the charge with the person , we cannot but finde that this rejection , is not a meer negative act , of refraining company , but a positive act of censure , so as he , who had power to admonish , had also power to reject in an authoritative , or judicatory way : he sayes then , devita , reject or avoid , not ( as erasmus too truly , but bitterly scoffes the romish practise ) de vita tolle : this of killing the heretick , as it was out of the power of a spirituall supervisor , so was it no lesse farre from the thoughts of him that desired to come in the spirit of meekness : fagots were never ordained by the apostle for arguments to confute hereticks ; this bloudy logick and divinity was of a much later brood , and is for a dominick , not a paul to owne : for certainely faith is of the same nature with love , it cannot be compelled , perswasions may move it , not force : these intellectuall sinnes must look for remedies of their owne kinde ; but if either they be ( as it is often ) accompanied with damnable blasphemies , against god , whether in his essence , or attributes , or the three incomprehensible persons in the all-glorious deity , or the blessed mediator betwixt god and man jesus christ , in either of his natures ; or else , shall be attended with the publique disturbances and dangerous distempers of the kingdome , or state wherein they are broached , the apostle's wish is , but seasonable , in both a spiritual and a bodily sense ; gal. 5. 12. would to god those were cut off that trouble you : in the mean time , for what concernes your selfe , if you know any such , as you love god , and your soules , keepe aloofe from them , as from the pestilence . * epiphanius well compares heresie to the biting of a mad dog , which as it is deadly , ( if not speedily remedied ) so it is withall dangerously infectious , not the tooth onely , but the very foame of that envenomed beast carries death in it ; you cannot be safe , if you avoid it not . case vi. whether the lawes of men doe binde the conscience , and how far we are tyed to their obedience . both these extreames of opinion concerning this point , must needs bring much mischiefe upon church and kingdome : those that absolutely hold such a power in humane lawes make themselves slaves to men : those that deny any binding power in them , run loose into all licentiousnesse : know then that there is a vast difference betwixt these two ; to bind the conscience in any act , and to bind a man in conscience to do or omit an act : humane laws cannot do the first of them ; the latter they may , and must doe : to binde the conscience is to make it guilty of a sin in doing an act forbidden , or omitting an act injoyned as in it selfe such : or making that act in it selfe an acceptable service to god , which is commanded by men : thus humane lawes cannot bind the conscience : it is god onely , 1 john 3. 21. who , as he is greater than the conscience , so hath power to binde or loose it : esay 31. 22. it is he that is the onely law giver to the conscience : jam. 4. 12. princes and churches may make lawes for the outward man ; but they can no more binde the heart , than they can make it ; in vain is that power , which is not inabled with coertion , now what coertion can any humane power claim of the heart , which it can never attain to know ? the spirit of man therefore is subject onely to the father of spirits , who onely sees and searches the secrets of it , and can both convince , and punish it . besides , well did penitent david know what he said , when he cryed out , against thee onely have i sinned : psal. 51. he knew that sinne is a transgression of the law , and that none but gods law can make a sin : men may be concerned , and injured in our actions , but it is god who hath forbidden these wrongs to men , that is sinned against , in our acts of injustice and uncharitablenesse : and who only can inflict the spirituall ( which is the highest ) revenge upon offenders . the charge of the great doctor of the gentiles to his galatians , was galat. 5. 1. stand fast in the liberty wherewith christ hath made us free , and be not intangled againe in the yoak of bondage . what yoak of bondage was this , but the law of ceremonies ? what liberty was this , but a freedome from the bondage of that law ? and certainly if those ordinances , which had god for their author , have so little power to bind the conscience , as that the yoake of their bondage must be shaken off , as inconsistent with christian liberty ; how much less is it to be indured , that we should be the servants of men , in being tyed up to sin by their presumptuous impositions ? the lawes of men therefore doe not , ought not , cannot bind your conscience , as of themselves ; but , if they be just , they binde you in conscience to obedience : they are the words of the apostle to his romans , rom. 13. 5. wherefore ye must needes be subject ; not onely for wrath , but also for conscience sake . however then their particular constitution in themselves put no speciall obligation upon us , under paine of sinne , and damnation ; yet in a generall relation to that god , who hath commanded us to obey authority , their neglect or contempt involves us in a guilt of sin : all power is of god , that which the supreme authority therefore enjoyns you , god enjoyns you by it , the charge is mediately his , though passing through the hands of men . how little is this regarded , in these loose times , by those lawlesse persons , whose practises acknowledge no soveraignty but titular , no obedience but arbitrary , to whom the strongest laws are as weapons to the leviathan , who esteemes iron as straw , and brass as rotten wood , job 41. 27. surely had they not first cast off their obedience to him that is higher than the highest , they could not without trembling heare that weighty charge of the great god of heaven , rom. 13. 1. let every soule be subject to the higher powers : for there is no power but of god ; and the powers that be , are ordained of god : 1 pet. 2. 13. submit your selves to every ordinance of man for the lords sake ; and therefore should be convinced in themselves , of that awe , and duty , which they ow to soveraignty , and know and resolve to obey god in men , and men for god. you see then how requisite it is , that you walk in a middle way betwixt that excessive power , which flattering casuists have beene wont to give to popes , emperours , kings , and princes in their severall jurisdictions , and a lawlesse neglect of lawfull authority : for the orthodox , wise , and just moderation whereof , these last ages are much indebted to the learned and judicious chancellour of paris * , john gerson , who first so checked that over-flowing errour of the power of humane usurpation ( which carried the world before it ) as gave a just hint to succeding times , to draw that streame into the right channell , in so much as † dominicus à soto complaines greatly of him , as , in this , little differing from the lutheran heresie : but in the way which they call heresie , we worship the god of our fathers , rendring unto cesar the things that are cesars , and unto god those things that are gods ; yeilding our bodyes to cesar , act. 24. 14. reserving our souls for god : tendring to just lawes our active obedience , to unjust , passive . but in the meane time , farre be it from us to draw this knot of our obligation harder , & closer then authority it self intends it : what ever popes may doe for their decrees , certainly good princes never meant to lay such weight upon all their lawes as to make every breach of them ( even in relation to the authority given them by god ) to be sinfull . their lawes are commonly shut up with a sanction of the penalty imposed upon the violation : there is an obedientia bursalis , ( as , i remember , gerson calls it , ) an obedience , if not of the person , yet of the purse ; which princes are content to take up withall : we have a world of sinnes ( god knowes ) upon us in our hourly transgressions of the royall lawes of our maker ; but woe were us , if wee should have so many sins more , as we break statutes : in penall lawes , where scandall or contempt finde no place , humane authority is wont to rest satisfied with the mulct paid , when the duty is not performed . not that we may wilfully incur the breach of a good law , because our hands are upon our purse-strings ready to stake the forfeiture ; this were utterly to frustrate the end of good lawes , which doe therfore impose a mulct that they may not bee broken ; and were highly injurious to soveraign authority , as if it sought for our money , not our obedience , and cared more for gain then good order ; then which there cannot be a more base imputation cast upon government : as then we are wont to say in relation of our actions to the lawes of god ; that som things are forbidden because they are sinfull , and some things are sinfull because they are forbidden , so it holds also in the lawes of men ; som things are forbidden because they are justly offensive ; and som other things are only therfore offensive because they are forbidden ; in the former of these we must yield our careful obedience out of respect even to the duty it self ; in the latter , out of respect to the will of the law-giver ; yet so , as that if our own important occasions shall enforce us to transgress a penall law , without any affront of authority or scandall to others , our submission to the penalty frees us from a sinfull disodedience . case vii . whether tithes bee a lawfull maintenance for ministers under the gospel ; and whether men bee bound to pay them accordingly . as the question of mine and thine hath ever embroyled the world ; so this particular concerning tithes hath raised no little dust in the church of god ; whiles some plead them in the precise ( quota parta ) due & necessarie to be paid , both by the law of god , and nature it self ; others decry them as a judaicall law ; partly ceremoniall , partly judiciall ; and therfore either now unlawfull , or at least neither obligatory , nor convenient . what is fit to be determined in a businesse so over agitated ; i shall shut up in these ten propositions . 1. the maintenance of the legall ministery allowed and appointed by god was exceeding large and liberall . besides all the tithes of corn , wine oyle , herbs , herds , flocks ; they had forty eight cities set forth for them , with the fields round about them , to the extent of two thousand cubits every way : they had the first fruits of wine , oyle , wool , &c. in a large proportion ; he was held to be a man of an evil eye that gave lesse then the sixtith part : they had the first born of cattle , sheep , beeves , goats ; and the price of the rest , upon redemption : even the first-born of men must ransom themselves at five shekels a man ; they had the oblations and vowes of things dedicated to god : they had the ample loaves ( or * cakes rather ) of shew-bread , and no small share in meat-offerings , sin-offerings , trespasse-offerings , heave-offerings , shake-offerings ; of sacrifices eucharistical they had the brest and shoulder ; of other , the shoulder and the two cheekes ; yea the very burnt offerings afforded them an hide : besides all these , all the males were to appeare before the lord thrice a year ; none were exempted ( as their doctors tell us ) but servants , deaf , dumb , idiots , blind , lame , defiled , uncircumcised , old , sick , tender and weak , not able to travel , and no one of these which came up might appeare empty-handed . what do i offer to particularize ? there were no less then twenty four gifts alotted to the priests , expresly in the law ; the severals wherof who so desires to see , may finde in the learned and profitable annotations of master ainsworth * , out of maimonides . 2. we can have no reason to imagine , that the same god who was so bountifull in his provisions for the legall ministery , should bear lesse respect to the evangelicall ; which is far more worthy and excellent then the other ; justly therfore doth s. paul argue from the maintenance of the one , a meet proportion for the fit sustentation of the other , 1 cor. 9. 13. 3. it is not fit for gods ministers to be too intent to matter of profit ; their main care must be the spiritual proficiency of the soules of their people ; the secular thoughts of outward provisions must come in only on the by ; but howsoever they may not be intangled in worldly affaires , yet they ought in duty to cast so much eye upon these earthly things as may free them from neglect ; it is to timothy that s. paul writes , that it any man provide not for his own , & especialy for those of his own house he hath denied the faith , & is worse then an infidell . 1 tim. 5. 8. 4. under the law the tenth part was precisely alotted by the owner of all things , for the maintenance of the sacred tribe ; and if the wise and holy god had not found that a meet proportion for those that served at his altar ; he had either pitched upon som other , or left it arbitrary ; yea even before the law , gen. 14. 20. abraham ( and in his loynes levi himselfe ) paid tithes to melchisedec ( heb. 7. 4. ) the priest of the most high god ; and whether it were by his example , or by some naturall instinct , we find the very heathen nations , after some great victory atchieved , were wont to devote stil the tithe of their spoiles to their deities : so camillus , when he had after a long siege taken the rich city vejos , ( a place of such importance , that upon the taking of it , he wished som great cross might befall rome for the tempering of so high a felicity ) he presently offereth the tithe to his * gods : yea it was their custome who were most devout to consecrate the tithe of all their increase to those gods they were most addicted unto ; in so much as the romans noted it in their lucullus , that hee therfore grew up to so vast an estate , because he still devoted the tithe of his fruits to hercules : and * pliny tells us that when they gathered their frankincense , none of it might be uttered till the priest had the tithe of it set forth for him . 5. there can be no good reason given , why we may not observe the very same rate of proportion in laying out the maintenance of the ministery under the gospell ; and if these rules and examples bee not binding , ( since religion consisteth not now in numbers at all ; yet there is no cause why christian kingdoms , or commonwealths may not settle their choice upon the same number , and quantity with both jewes and gentiles . 6. the nationall lawes of this kingdom have set out the same proportion of tenths for this purpose ; if therfore there were no other obligation from the law of god or of the church , nor any precedents from the practise of the rest of the world , yet in obedience to our municipall lawes , we are bound to lay forth the tenth part of our increase to the maintenance of gods service ; and that tenth is as truly due to the minister as the nine parts to the owner . 7. since the tenth part is in the intention of the law both civill and ecclesiasticall , dedicated to the service of god ; and in the meer intuition thereof , is alotted to gods ministers , there can be no reason why it can be claimed , or warantably received by lay persons , for their proper use & behoof ; so as this practise of impropriation , which was first set on foot by unjust and sacrilegious buls from rome , is justly offensive both to god and good men ; as mis-deriving the well-meant devotions of charitable and pious soules into a wrong channell . nothing is more plaine then that tithes were given to the church and in it , to god ; how therefore that which is bequeath'd to god may be alienated to secular hands , let the possessors look ? 8. let men be tied to make good the apostles charge ( since the legall rate displeases ) and it shall well satisfie those that wait upon gods services under the gospel ; the charge of the apostle of the gentiles , is : let him that is taught in the word communicate to him that teacheth , in all good things , gal. 6. 6. whereto hee adds , ver . 7. be not deceived , god is not mocked . the charge is serious , and binding : and the required communication is universall ; and that with a grave item of gods strict observation of performance : we may not think to put it off with ambroses mis-pointed reading , of referring the all good things to the teaching , ( a conceit sensibly weak , and misconstructive ; ) nothing is more evident then that it hath relation to the communicating ; wherein ( for ought i see ) god intends a larger bounty to the evangelicall ministery then to the legall ; where all is to be communicated , what is excepted ? all , not exclusive of the owner ; but imparted by the owner ; let this bee really done , there will bee no reason to stand upon the tenths . 9. but that this may be accordingly done , there is no law that requires a meer arbitrarinesse in the communicators : the duty of the teacher is punctually set downe , and so well known that the meanest of the people can check him with his neglect : and why should wee thinke the reciprocall duty of the hearer fit to bee left loose and voluntary : yet such an apprehension hath taken up the hearts of too many christians as if the contributions to their ministers were a matter of meer almes ; which as they need not to give , so they are apt , upon easy displeasures , to upbraid : but these men must be put in minde of the just word of our saviour ; the laborer is worthy of his wages : the ministery signifies a service ; a publique service at gods altar ; whereto the wages is no lesse due , then the meat is to the mouth of him that payes it ; no man may more freely speak of tithes then my selfe , who receive none , nor ever shall do ? know then ye proud ignorants , that call your ministers your almes-men , and your selves their benefactors , that the same right you have to the whole , they have to a part ; god and the same lawes that have feoffed you in your estates , have allotted them their due shares in them ; which without wrong ye cannot detract . it is not your charity but your justice which they presse for their owne : neither think to check them with the scornfull title of your servants ; servants they are indeede , to gods church , not to you ; and if they doe stoop to particular services for the good of your souls , this is no more disparagement to them , then it is to the blessed angels of god , to be ministring spirits , heb. 1. 14. sent forth to minister for them who shall be heires of salvation . shortly , it is the apostles charge ratified in heaven , that they which labour in the word and doctrine should be remunerated with double honour ; that is not formall of words and complements , but real of maintenance ; which he laies weight upon his timothy to enioyn , 1. tim. 5. 17. 10. and surely how necessary it is that we should bee at som certainty in this case , and not left to the meere arbitrary will of the givers , it too well apears in common experience ; which tell us how ordinary it is , where ministers depend upon voluntary benevolences , if they doe but upon som just reproofe gall the conscience of a guilty hearer ; or preach som truth which dis-relishes the palat of a prepossessed auditor , how he straight flies out ; and not only withholds his own pay , but also withdrawes the contributions of others : so as the free-tongued teacher must either live by ayre , or be forced to change his pasture : it were easy to instance , but charity bids mee forbeare . hereupon it is , that these sportulary preachers are faine to sooth up their many masters , and are so gaged with the feare of a starving displeasure , that they dare not be free in the reprehension of the daring sins of their uncertain benefactors ; as being charmed to speak either placentia or nothing . and if there were no such danger in a faithfull and just freedom , yet how easy is it to apprehend , that if even when the laws enforce men to pay their dues to their ministers , they yet continue so backward in their discharge of them : how much lesse hope can there be , that being left to their free choyce , they would prove eyther liberall or just in their voluntary contributions . howsoever therfore in that innocent infancy of the church , wherein zealous christians , out of a liberall ingenuity were ready to lay downe all their substance at the apostles feet , & in the primitive times immediately subsequent , the willing forwardness of devout people tooke away all need of raysing set maintenances for gods ministers ; yet now , in these depraved and hard hearted times of the church , it is more then requisite , that fixed competencies of allowance should by good lawes be established upon them ; which being done by way of tithes in those countries wherein they obtaine , there is just cause of thankfulnesse to god for so meet a provision , none for a just oppugnation . case viii . whether it bee lawfull for christians where they find a countrey possessed by savage pagans and infidels , to drive out the native inhabitants ; and to seize , and enjoy their lands , upon any pretence ; and upon what grounds it may be lawfull so to doe . what unjust and cruel measure hath been heretofore offered by the spaniard to miserable indians , in this kind , i had rather you should receive from the relation of their own bishop , bartholomaeus casa then from my pen. he can tell you a sad story of millions of those poor savages made away to make room for those their imperious successors ; the discovery of whose unjust usurpation , procured but little thanks to their learned professors of complutum and salamanca : your question relates to our owne case ; since many thousands of our nation have transplanted themselves into those regions , which were prepossessed by barbarous owners : as for those countries which were not inhabited by any reasonable creatures , ( as the bermudas , or summer-islands ; which were only peopled wih hogs and deer , and such like bruite cattle ) there can be no reason why they should not fall to the first occupant ; but where the land hath a known master the case must vary : for the decision whereof some grounds are fit to be laid . no nation under heaven but hath som religion or other , and worships a god such as it is , although a creature much inferiour in very nature to themselves ; although the worst of creatures , evil spirits ; and that religion wherein they were bred , through an invincible ignorance of better , they esteem good at least . dominion and propriety is not founded in religion , but in a naturall and civill right ; it is true that the saints have in christ , the lord of all things , a spiritual right in all creatures ; all things are yours , ( saith the apostle ) and you are christs , and christ is gods : but the spirituall right gives a man no title at all to any naturall or civill possession here on earth ; yea christ himselfe , though both as god , and as mediator , the whole world were his , yet hee tells pilate , my kingdom is not of this world ; neither did he ( though the lord paramount of this whol earth ) by virtu of that transcendent soveraignty put any man out of the possession of one foot of ground which fell to him , either by birth , or purchase ; neither doth the want of that spirituall interest debar any man from a rightfull claim and fruition of these earthly inheritances . the barbarous people were lords of their owne ; and have their sagamores ; and orders , and formes of government under which they peaceably live , without the intermedling with other nations . infidelity cannot forfeit their inheritance to others ; no more then enmity professed by jewes to christian religion , can escheat their goods to the crownes under which they live ; yea much lesse : for those jewes , living amongst christian people , have , or might have had meanes sufficient to reclaime them from their stubborn unbeleefe , but these savages have never had the least overture of any saving helps to wards their conversion : they therefore being as true owners of their native inheritances , as christians are of theirs , they can no more be forced from their possessions by christians , then christians may be so forced by them : certainly , in the same tearms wherein they stand to christians , do also in their judgement , christians stand to them ; and if it would seem hard to us , that an inundation of pagans should ( as hereto fore it hath done ) break in upon us , and drive us out of our native possessions , how could it seem less unjust in us to them ? their idolatries , and sins against nature are hainous and abhominable and such as for which god of old condemned the seven nations to an utter extirpation ; but what commission have wee for their punishment ? could we shew such a patent in this case as the israelites had for their warres against ameleck , and those neighbouring heathens , all were sure : but you know who said , what have i to do to judge them that are without ? 1 cor. 5. 12. and if hee may not be a judge , who may be an executioner . refusall of christianity can be no sufficient ground of either invasion , or expulsion , sith violence is not the appointed way for plantation of the faith ; which must be perswaded , and not compelled ; that sentence therefore of pope * gregory ; justum sanctumque esse bellum , &c. ( that it is a just and holy war which is by christians made against infidels , that they being brought under subjection the gospel of christ might be preached unto them ; lest that if they should not be subjected , they might be an hindrance to preaching , and to the conversion of those that would beleeve ; ) is surely either not out of the chayre , or beside the cushion ; and better beseems a successor of romulus , then of peter : i may not omit to acquaint you how hotly this main question was disputed by spanish & italian divines upon the very first entrance of this litigious usurpation ; at which time pope alexander 6. ( anno 1493. ) gave his large decretory bull to ferdinand king , and isabella queen of castile and aragon for his expedition against the barbarous indians of the then newly discovered world : genesius sepulveda , a learned spaniard writ then , in defence and incoragement of this holy invasion , a dialogue , which hee called democrates secundus , which was published at rome , by the procurement of antonius augustinus , auditor of the palace ; which no sooner came abroad , then it was eagerly set on , by the divines both of italy and spaine ; amongst these latter , the doctors of salamanca , adde the complutenses ; and above them antonius ramirus bishoppe of segovia falls foule upon that offensive ▪ discourse , which genesius would faine have vindicated by an apology , set forth to that purpose ; but how insufficiently , it were easie to shew , if it were as needfull : but to make the matter good , hee thinks to back himselfe by the authority of great and famous persons , both counsellors , and doctors , by him cited ; and above all by that loud bull of * alexander ; wherein yet , for ought i see , the charge which is laid on those princes is only to reduce the people living in those islands and countries to receive christian religion ; which we may well apprehend more likely to be done by other means then by the sword . after much agitation it pleased the king of spaine , to require the judgement of † franciscus à victoria , the famous professor of divinity at salamanca , concerning this so weighty affaire ; which he hath published with such wisdome and moderation , as so great a businesse required ; stating the question aright on both sides ; both shewing the insufficiency of the received grounds of that indian expedition , and directing to those just motives , & rules of proceedings herein , as might bee , in such a case , justifiable ; to which grave and solid discourse of his , you may , if you please , bee referred for further satisfaction . onwards , i shall draw forth some few of such considerations from him as may serve for my present purpose . first therefore it is lawfull for christians to travell into any countrey under heaven , and as strangers , to stay there , without any wrong done to the natives ; a thing allowed by the law of nations derived from the law of nature , by which law it is every where held an inhuman thing to offer ill measure to a stranger . it is the argument that righteous lot used to the worst of pagans , the sodomits ; only unto these men doe nothing , for therefore are they come under the shadow of my roof . gen. 19. 8. and if before the division of nations , the earth lay freely open to all passengers without scruple , to travel whither they pleased , surely , that partition was never intended to warant a restraint ; and if nature have made the sea and all the in-lets of it common , it were very injurious to abridg any nation of the free use of so liberall an element . secondly , it is lawfull for us to use trafique with those infidels , and to interchange comodities with them , and to abide upon their coasts for negotiation , and to fish in their sea , and to take part of those profits which nature hath made common to all comers , and if those pagans shall oppose us in so warrantable courses , it will be meet for us to tender them al fair satisfaction ; perswading them that we intend no harm or prejudice to them in their persons , or estate ; but much good to both ; labouring to win them by all courteous demenor ; but if they shall flie out , notwithstanding all our kind indeavors , into a violent opposition of us ; setting upon us in a hostile manner , offering to cut our throats in so unjust a quarell , it is lawfull for us to stand upon our defence , and to repell one force with another ; and to use all convenient meanes for our security ; and if we cannot otherwise be safe , to raise bulwarks or fortifications for our own indemnity ; and if we finde our selves over-powred by implacable savages , to call for the aid and assistance of our friends , and ( if the enmity continue and proceed ) of our princes : since the just cause of war is the propulsation of publique injuries ; and such injury is as great as barbarous . but if not so much cruelty of disposition , as feare and suspicion of a strange nation shal arm them against us ; our care must bee so to manage our own defence , as may be least offensive to them ; & therfore we may not take this occasion of killing their persons , or sacking their townes , or depopulating their countrys ; for that in this case they are no other then innocent . if after all gentle intreaties , courteous usages , and harmlesse self-defence , they shal persist in a malicious hostility , & can by no means be reclamed from their impetuous onsets ; there is now just cause not to deale with them as innocents , but as enemies : and therfore to proceede against them accordingly . but an higher and more warrantable title , that we may have to deale with these barbarous infidels , is , for the propagation of christian religion ; and the promulgation of the gospel of jesus christ amongst these miserable savages : for which wee have good ground from the charge of our saviour : goe preach the gospell to every creature ; mar. ult . and he that was in bonds for the name of the lord jesus , tels us , the word of god is not bound ; 2 tim. 2. 9. not bound , either in fetters ; or within limits : oh that wee could approve to god , and our consciences , that this is our main motive and principall drift in our western plantations ; but how little appearance there is of this holy care and endeavour , the plaine dealer upon knowledge hath sufficiently informed us ; although i now heare of one industrious spirit that hath both learned the language of our new-islanders , and printed some part of the scripture in it ; and trained up some of their children in the principles of christianity : a service highly acceptable to god , and no lesse meritorious of men : the gospell then may be , must be preached to those heathens , ( otherwise they shall perpetually remaine out of the estate of salvation ) and all possible meanes must be used for their conversion ; but herein i must have leave to depart from victoria , that he holds it lawfull if the savages do not freely permit ( but goe about to hinder ) the preaching of the gospell , to rayse war against them ; as if he would have them cudgeled into christianity : surely this is not the way : it is for mahumetans to profess planting religion by the sword ; it is not for christians ; it is a just clause therfore that he puts in , that the slaughters hereupon raised may rather prove an hindrance to the conversion of the savages , as indeed it fell out ; the poor indians being by these bloody courses brought into such a detestation of their masters , the castilians , that they profest they would not goe to heaven if any spanyards were there . the way then to plant the gospel of christ successefully among those barbarous soules , must be only gentle , and plausible : first , by insinuating our selves into them by a discreet familiarity , and winning deportment , by an holy and inoffensive living with them ; by working upon them with the notable examples of impartiall justice , strict piety , tender mercy , compassion , chastity , temperance & all other christian virtues ; and when they are thus won to a liking of our persons and carriage , they will be then wel capable of our holy counsels ; then will the christian faith begin to relish with them ; and they shall now grow ambitious of that happy condition , which they admire in us : then shall they be glad to take us into their bosoms : and think themselves blessed in our society and cohabitation : lo this is the true way of christian conquests ; wherein i know not whether shal be the greater gainer , the victor or the conquered ; each of them shall blesse other , and both shall be blessed by the almighty . case ix . whether i need in case of some foule sin , committed by mee , to have recourse to gods minister for absolution ; and what effect i may expect therefrom . a meane would do well betwixt two extremes ; the careless neglect of our spirituall fathers on the one side , and too confident reliance upon their power , on the other : some there are that doe so over-trust their leaders eyes , that they care not to see with their own ; others dare so trust their own judgement , that they think they may sleight their spiritual guides : there can be no safety for the soul , but in a mid-way betwixt both these . at whose gyrdle the keyes of the kingdom of heaven doe hang , mee thinks wee should not need dispute , when we hear our saviour so expresly deliver them to peter , in the name of the rest of his fellowes ; and afterwards to all his apostles , and their lawfull successors in the dispensation of the doctrine and discipline of his church : in the dispensation of doctrine to all his faithfull ministers under the gospell ; in the dispensation of discipline to those that are entrusted with the mannaging of church-government ; with these latter we meddle not ; neither need we , if we had occasion ; after the so learned & elaborate discourse of the power of the keyes , set forth by judicious doctor hammond ; to which i suppose nothing can be added . the former is that which lies before us : doubtlesse , every true minister of christ , hath by virtue of his first and everlasting commission , two keyes delivered in his hand ; the key of knowledg , and the key of spirituall power : the one , whereby he is enabled to enter and search into , not only the revealed mysteries of salvation , but also , in some sort , into the heart of the penitent ; there discovering ( upon an ingenious revelation of the offender ) both the nature , quality , and degree of the sinne ; and the truth , validity , and measure of his repentance : the other whereby he may in some sort either lock up the soul under sin , or free it from sinne ; these keyes were never given him , but with an intention that he should make use of them upon just occasion . the use that hee may and must make of them is both generall , and speciall : generall ; in publishing the will and pleasure of god signified in his word , concerning sinners ; pronouncing forgivenesse of sins to the humble penitent , and denouncing judgement to the unbeleeving , and obdured sinner : in which regard , he is as the herald of the almighty , proclaming war and just indignation to the obstinate ; and tendring terms of pardon and peace to the relenting and contrite soule : or rather , as the apostle stiles him , 2 cor. 5. 20. gods ambassador offering and suing for the reconciliation of men to god ; and if that be refused , menacing just vengeance to sinners . speciall , in a particular application of this knowledge and power to the soul of that sinner which makes his addresse unto him : wherein must be inquired both what necessity there is of this recourse , and what aid and comfort it may bring to the soul. two cases there are wherein certainly there is a necessity of applying our selves to the judgement of our spirituall guides ; the first is in our doubt of the nature and quality of the fact ; whether it be a sin , or no sinne ; for both many sinnes are so gilded over with fair pretences and colourable circumstances , that they are not to be de cryed but by judicious eyes ; and some actions which are of themselves indifferent , may by a scrupulous conscience be mistaken for hainous offences : whither should we goe in these doubts but to our counsaile learned in the lawes of god ; of whom god himself hath said by his prophet . the priests lips should keep knowledge ; and they should seeke the law at his mouth ; for he is the messenger of the lord of hosts . mal. 2. 7. the second is in the irresoluble condition of our souls after a known sin committed ; wherein the burdened conscience not being able to give ease unto it self , seeks for aid to the sacred hand of gods penetentiary here on earth , & there may find it ; that is , that which elihu , as upon experience , suggesteth unto job , on his dunghill : job 33. 22. the soul of the remorsed draweth near to the grave , and his life to the destroyers : ver . 23. but if there bee a messenger ( of god ) with him , an interpreter , one of a thousand , to shew unto man his uprightnesse , ( and the soundnesse of his repentance ) ver . 24. then is ( god ) gratious unto him , and saith , deliver him from going down into the pit ; i have found a ransome , &c. ver . 26. hee shall pray unto god ; and he will be favorable unto him ; and hee shall see his face with joy . in case of some dangerous sicknesse of the body , wee trust not our owne skill , nor some ignorant quack-salvers , but seek to a learned and experienced physitian for the prescription of some sure remedies ; whereas , if it be but for a sore finger , or a tooth-ach , we care only to make use of our own receits : and so in civil quarels ; if it be only som sleight brabble , wee thinke to compose it alone ; but if it be som maine question importing our free hold , wee are glad to waite on the stairs of some judicious lawyer , and to fee him for advice : how much more is it thus in the perilous condition of our soules ; which as it is a part farre more precious then its earthly tabernacle , so the diseases whereto it is subject , are infinitely more dangerous and deadly . is your heart therfore embroyled within you , with the guilt of some hainous sin ? labour what you may to make your peace with heaven ; humble your self unto the dust before the majesty whom you have offended ; beat your guilty brest , water your cheeks with your tears ; & cry mightily to the father of mercies for a gracious remission ; but if after all these penitent endevours you finde your soule still unquiet ; and not sufficiently apprehensive of a free and full forgiveness ; betake your selfe to gods faithfull agent for peace ; run to your ghostly physitian , lay your bosome open before him ; flatter not your own condition ; let neither feare nor shame stay his hand from probing and searching the wound to the bottome ; and that being done , make carefull use of such spirituall applications as shall be by him administred to you : this , this is the way to a perfect recovery , and fulness of comfort . but you easily grant that there may be very wholsome use of the ghostly counsell of your minister in the case of a troubled soule ; but you doubt of the validity and power of his absolution ; concerning which it was a just question of the scribes in the gospell ; who can forgive sinnes but god only ? mar. 2. 6. our saviour therefore to prove that he had this power , argues it from his divine omnipotence ; he only hath authority to forgive sinnes , ( ver . 7. ) that can say to the decrepit paralytick ; arise , take up thy bed and walke ; ( ver . 9. ) none but a god can by his command effect this ; he is therefore the true god that may absolutely say , thy sins be forgiven thee , ( ver . 10. ) indeede , how can it be otherwise ? against god only is our sin committed , against man only in the relation that man hath to god ; he only can know the depth of the malignity of sin , who only knowes the soule wherein it is forged ; he only who is lord of the soule , the god of spirits , can punish the soule for sinning ; hee only that is infinite can doome the sinfull soule to infinite torments ; he only therefore it must be , that can release the guilty soule from sin and punishment , if therefore man , or angell shall challenge to himselfe this absolute power to forgive sin let him be accursed , yet withall it must be yeelded , that the blessed son of god spake not those words of his last commission in vaine ; whos 's soever sins ye remit , they are remitted unto them ; and whose soever sinnes ye retaine , they are retained . john 20. 23. neither were they spoken to the then present apostles only , but in them to all their faithfull successors to the end of the world . it cannot therfore but be granted , that there is some kind of power left in the hand of christs ministers , both to remit and retain sin : neither is this power given only to the governors of the church , in respect of the censures to be inflicted or relaxed by them , but to all gods faithfull ministers , in relation to the sins of men : a power not soveraign and absolute , but limited & ministeriall , for either quieting the conscience of the penitent , or further aggravating the conscience of sin and terror of judgement to the obstinate and rebellious : neither is this only by way of a bare verball declaration , ( which might proceed from any other lips ) but in the way of an operative and effectuall application , by virtue of that delegate , or commissionary authority which is by christ entrusted with them : for certainly , our saviour meant in these words to conferre somwhat upon his ministers , more then the rest of the world should be capable to receive , or perform , the absolution therefore of an authorized person must needs be of greater force and efficacy then of any private man , how learned or holy soever ; since it is grounded upon the institution and commission of the sonne of god , from which all power and virtue is derived to all his ordinances ▪ and we may wel say , that whatsoever is in this case , done by gods minister ( the key not erring ) is ratified in heaven : it cannot therfore but be a great comfort , and cordiall assurance to the penitent soule to heare the messenger of god ( after a careful inquisition into his spiritual estate and true fight of his repentance ) in the name of the lord jesus pronouncing to him the full remission of all his sinnes . and if either the blessing or curse of a father goe deeper with us , then of any other whosoever ; although but proceeding from his own privat affection , without any warrant from above ; how forcible shall we esteem the ( not so much apprecatory , as declaratory ) benedictions , of our spirituall fathers , sent to us , out of heaven ? although therefore you may perhaps , through gods goodnesse , attaine to such a measure of knowledg and resolution , as to be able to give your self satisfaction concerning the state of your soul ; yet it cannot be amisse , out of an abundant caution to take gods minister along with you , and making him of your spirituall counsaile , to unbosome your selfe to him freely , for his fatherly advice and concurrence : the neglect whereof , through a kinde of eyther strangenesse of mis-conceit , is certainly not a little disadvantageous to the soules of many good christians . the romish laity makes either oracles or idols of their ghostly fathers ; if we make ciphers of ours , i know not whether we be more injurious to them , or our selves . we go not about to rack your consciences to a forced and exquisite confession , under the pain of a no-remission , but wee perswade you for your owne good , to be more intimate with , and less reserved from , those whom god hath set over you for your direction , comfort , salvation . case x. whither it bee lawfull for a man that is not a professed divine , that is ( as we for distinction are wont to call him ) for a laick person , to take upon him to interpret the scripture . many distinct considerations had neede to make way to the answere . first , it is one thing for a man to interpret scripture , another thing to take upon him the function of preaching the gospell , which was perhaps in your intention ; this is far more large then the other , every mā that preacheth interpreteth the scripture , but every one that interprets scripture doth not preach . to interpret scripture is only to give the sense of a text ; but to preach is to divide the word aright ; to apply it to the conscience of the hearer ; and in an authoritative way to reprove sin , and denounce judgement against sinners ; to lay forth the sweete promises of the gospell to the faithfull and penitent ; for the performing whereof there must be a commission to gods minister from him that sends him ; upon which the apostle hath pronounced a ( 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 ) who is suffiicient for these things ? secondly , it must bee considered in what nature , & within what compass the interpretation is ; for doubtlesse the just degrees of callings must be herein duly observed ; whether in a publique way ; as pastors of congregations ; or in a private way , as masters of families ; whether in the schooles , in a meere grammaticall way ; or in the church , in a predicatory . thirdly , it must be considered , as what the calling , so what the gifts are of the interpreter : for surely ; meere interpretation doth not depend upon the profession , but upon the faculty of the undertaker ; whether he be learned , or ignorant ; whether skilfull in languages and arts ( which certainly must be required in whosoever would put forth his hand to so holy and great a work , or whether inexpert in both : where these gifts of interpretation , and eminent endowments of learning are found , there can be no reason of restraining them from an exercise so beneficially edificatory to the church of god : without which the truth of christian religion had wanted much both of her vigour , and lustre in all generations . how famously is it known that origen before his entring into holy orders , even at eighteene yeeres of his age entred into that great worke of his catechisings : act. 18. 24. 25. apollos the alexandrian was an eloquent man , and mighty in scriptures , and taught diligently the things of the lord ; yet knew nothing but the baptisme of john , till aquila and priscilla took him to task , and more perfectly expounded to him the way of god ; and what happy use it pleased god to make of laick hands , for both the defence and propagation of the gospell , we need no other witnesse then s. jerome ; who hath memoriz'd amongst the primitive christians , aristides , agrippa , hegesippus , justine , musanus , modestinus , both the apollonii , heraclius , maximus , and many others , whom god raised up amongst the learned laity of those times , to apologize for christianity ; and in the last foregoing age , how scarce removed out of our sight , are laurentius valla , both the earles of mirandula , capnio , fagius , sof an instan erasmus , faber , and the rest of those famous way-makers to the succeeding restitution of the evangelicall truth : and what a treasure in this kind had the church of god lost , if it should have missed the learned annotations upon the scripture , derived to us from the hands of mercerus , joseph scaliger , drusius , both causaubons , tilenus , grotius , heinsius , selden , and such other expert philogists , never initiated into sacred orders ? fourthly , due and serious consideration must be had of the interpretation it selfe ; that it bee genuine and orthodox : for there can be nothing in the world more dangerous then to mis-construe god speaking to us in his word ; and to affixe upon his divine oracles a sense of our owne , quite dissonant from the intention of that spirit of truth : care therfore must be taken that the intepretation given , be every way conform to the analogy of faith , and fully accordant to other scripture ; the neglect wherof , through either ignorance or misprision hath bred many foul and perilous soloecismes in divinity ; to give you a taste of too full a dish : in the 18. of ecclesiasticus * , where the vulgar reades , hee that lives for ever created all things at once : some , and those no mean ones , of the ancient , followed also by latter interpreters , have been misled into an ungrounded conceit of an instan●any & entire creation of the world , and all the parts thereof , in the first moment of time ; whereas the scripture hath expresly and punctually set down the several six dayes , wherein each part of it was distinctly formed : which those misconstruers are fain to understand of the distinct notifications given to the angels , concerning this almighty work : and what curious subtleties have beene hereupon raised by our school-divines , * is more fit to be past over with an unpleasing smile , then to be seriously recounted ; whereas the intention of the place , is only to signify that god made all things in the universall world , that have any being ; intimating not the time of creation , but ( as our † version hath it ) the generality of things created . what advantage the blasphemous arrians have formerly taken from the mis-interpretation of proverbs 6. 22. where wisdom is brought in ( by the mistaking of som ancients ) to say , * the lord created me ( in stead of possessed me ) in the beginning of his way , before his works of old , is more worthy of indignation , then any farther prosecution . but most pregnant and notable is the grosse mis-prision of a late famous school-man , franciscus d' arriba , confessor to the late queen mother of france , who to maintain that new way of reconciling that scholasticall difference among the roman doctors , concerning the effectual aid of divine grace , depending or not depending upon free will ( about which he had 60 daies disputation with cardinall ascoly & cardinall bellarmine ; shewing how it might well be maintained without the devises of physicall predeterminations , or that scientia media of our late jesuites ) relies chiefly for his opinion upon that text of esay † 45. 11. haec dicit dominus sanctus israelis qui fecit ventura , thus saith the lord the holy one of israel who hath made things to come ; following a mis-edition of the vulgar which perverts the sense , by making a wrong stop in the sentence , whereas their owne montanus , & any other that hath but seen the hebrew text , would read it ; haec dicit dominus sanctus israelis qui fecit eum ; ventura interrogate me : thus saith the lord the holy one of israel ; and his maker : ask me of things to come concerning my sonnes , &c. referring the ventura , ( things to come ) to the following interrogate . so poza the late extravagant doctor of spain in the maintenance of his novel opinions against fathers and councels , pressed against him , stands upon his defence , out of the synod of constātinople , act. 5. grounded upon * the words of miscalled solomon ; beat usqui praedicat verbum inauditum ; corrupting both the text & the councell ; whereas it should be read , verbum inauditum obedientis : and the councell hath it aright , ( 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 : ) as ours turns it likewise , well is be that speaketh in the eares of them that will heare : it were easie to fill a just volume with instances of this kind . to this purpose it will be requisite to make use of all those helps that may enable an interpreter to understand the scriptures ; whether those that are internall in it self ; or externall from other supplies : of the former kind are a diligent sifting of the context and inference , and a carefull comparing and conferring of one scripture with another , for all truths agree with themselves ; & this word of god is the sun that gives us light to see it self externall ; where it will be needefull to call both for the aid of arts and tongues ; and for the testimonies and judgements of reverend antiquity , and the not-to-be-neglected authority of modern doctors ; and thirdly , a due regard of those golden rules of interpreting ; which are recommended to posteeity by the learned penns of clemens of alexandria , hierome , augustine , gerson , hyperius , illyricus , jacobus matthias , and others ; which , as meet for a volume apart , may not expect to finde a roome in so concise a tractate . the want and neglect of all which requisites what strange work it must needs make with the simple and unlettered , wee may well conceive , when great clerks have hereupon bewrayed so foul and palpable miscarriage . albinus , the learned master of charles the great , writing upon john finding it said of judas that having received the sop , hee went immediatly out ; et erat nox ; and it was night ; puts both together as spoken of judas ; he ( saith hee ) was the night that went out ; as christ is the day that gives knowledge to his disciples , that were day too ; so judas , the night , gives knowledge to the jewes that were night , of a traitrous wickedness , &c. what work † bernard ( who shewed in this , that he saw not all things ) makes of daemonium meridianum , the noone-day-devill , in one of his sermons , is evident to be seene ; yet had he been as well seen in language as he was fervent in his devotion ; hee had spared that discourse as raised from a meere ungrounded interpretation ; there being no devill in the text ; but a phantasme of his deluded imagination : and if i should set forth the descents that our postillers run upon the names of jobs three daughters , i should seeme to you as apt to sport in so serious a subject ; and if i could thinke it worth the labour of gathering up the wilde senses , far-fetcht allegories , absurd inferences , that ignorant friers have fastned upon scripture , it is not a small skin that would containe that tome . surely that man whosoever he be , that would be hoising saile in these deeps of scripture , had neede to bee well ballast , and well tackled , and skilfull in the compasse , else he will have much adoe to escape a wrack : he that will walk in paths of danger had need to have his eys about him ; an hoodwinkt man may easily bee carried against a post : and hee that hath not light enough to see his own way , had need to take heed whom he trusts : hee that would blind-fold follow those very interpretations which the church of rome hath commended for authenticall , would run into foul and dangerous absurdities : let me single out som few confessed by their owne estius , and lucas brugensis ; such as are plainly contradictions to scripture , and doe , as it were , give the lye to gods spirit . such is that 2 sam. 8. 18. filii autem david sacerdotes erant ; the sonnes of david were priests : whereas every child knowes that the scripture frequently tells us none could be priests but of aarons order and tribe ; out of levies loins ; and that david was of the house of judah : the septuagint rightly turns it 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 * . againe who that shall finde it in the vulgar interpretation : david desperabat &c. david despaired that he could escape from the face of saul : would not inferre that he utterly distrusted gods assurance , by the prophet , of his future kingdom ; whereas the originall is by estius his own confession , festinabat , as we also turn it , david made haste to get away , &c. 1 sam. 23. 26. he that should find it reported of one of the sonnes of er , qui stare fecit solem ( hee that made the sun to stand stil ) would justly wonder what kind of man this was , that had been so long obscured from the world , & yet should have don so strange a miracle as never was don but by joshua ( 1 chron. 4. 22. ) whereas hee that lookes into the text , shall finde no mention at all of the sun ; but only of the meer proper name of jechim the son of er. he that shall read in job , where god speakes of the leviathan ; cum sublatus fuerit ( i. leviathan ) timebunt angeli & territi purgabuntur ; when he raiseth up himselfe , the angels shall feare , and being terrified shall bee purged ; job . 41. 25. would sure think this whale were the devill , ( as som ancients have mistaken him ) and may well wonder how the good angels being celestiall spirits ) could be capable of fear ; or how the evill angels could be capable of purging : when the text hath no mention nor thought of * angels ; but only signifying the strength and terriblenesse of the whale , expresses it in these words ; when he raiseth up himself the mighty are afraid ; by reason of breakings they purifie themselves . solomon was faulty enough in his idolatry , but he that shall read 1 kings 11. 5. ( in the vulgar interpretation ) that hee went after chamosh the god of the moabites , shall adde one idoll more to him then we find him guilty of ; solomon was in his holy and regular times ; 1 king. 4. 32. full of heavenly meditations and divine ditties ; but hee that should follow the vulgar interpretation , would fasten upon him almost * four thousand more then ever he owned . after that merab sauls eldest daughter was given away to adriel the meholathite , 1 sam. 18. 20. contrary to engagement , hee that will follow the vulgar , must say that david straight fell in love with michal , the other sister ; whereas the text tells us that michal fel in love with him . he that should find in the vulgar construction , that saul sung all the day naked before samuel in naioth , would think his new prophesying had put him into a merry vein , 1 sam 19. 24. whereas the text only tells us that hee fell down stripped of his wonted clothes . he that should find in the vulgar , psal. 71. 5. david reporting of him●self [ non novi literaturam ] i know no learning , would wonder at the prophets disparagement of his skill , who had elsewhere professed himself wiser then his teachers ; whereas all that he sayes , is * that the mercies & blessings of god upon him have been so many , that he knows not the numbers thereof . he that should find the 7 angels in the revelation vestitos lapide ; cloathed with stone † rev. 15. 6. would sure think them buried ; wheras the text is , clothed in pure white linnen . and what do you imagine would a plain reader think of that charge of the wise man ; noli velle mentiri omne mendacium ; bee not willing to lie all manner of lies , ecclus. 7. would hee not straight say : som belike i am allowed to lye ? whereas the words are peremptory even in estius his reading , according to ours ; use not to make any manner of lyes . yea that very correction of the vulgar interpretation which brugensis allowes and magnifies , 1 cor. 15. 51. with what safety can it passe the judicious ; whiles he reades , omnes quidem resurgemus , sed non omnes immutabimur ; wee shall all rise again , but we shall not all be changed : for how can those rise again that never died ? how are those capable of a resurrection , which are only changed ? whereas the just sense runnes according to our * version , we shall not all sleep , but we shall all bee changed . for those that are found alive at our saviours second cōming shall not sleep in death ; yet both they and the formerly dead must undergoe a change . i could utterly weary you with instances ; how must he that reades the apocryphall ecclesiasticus , needs say that this man ( how obscure soever in his authority ) saw more and cleerer then all the acknowledged prophets of the old testament ; for hee hath foretold us expresly the very name of our lord jesus which none of them ever beforehand published : for hee ( ecclus. 43. 23. ) speaking of the deep sea , is read in the vulgar to say , plantavit illum dominus jesus ; the lord jesus planted it : i shame to think what sport a jew will make of such a grosse mistaking ; wherein 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 ( jesus , is mis-read for ) 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 islands , so as the right sense is only this ; god by his counsell appeaseth the deepe , and planteth i stands therein ; but i forbeare , only if you have too much leisure , you may be pleased to cast your eye upon the margine . in these and many more ( for i meant to give you but an assay ) the mistakes are important , and such as make no small change in the text ; which i have therefore produced that i might let you see how easie it is for a man that takes all things upon trust to be abused by his credulity ; and how unsafe it is much more for an unexpert & injudicious person to meddle with the holy oracles of the almighty . the conclusion then must be , that however it may bee lawfull for the eminently learned , either in schooles or families ( according as their calling may warrant them ) to interpret even difficult scriptures , and to unty the knots of a text ; yet since not many are thus qualified , and those that are so qualified , if they neglect to follow the prescribed rules may easily miscarry , to the great perill both of their own souls , and others ; i should therefore advise that this may bee the act of but some few choice persons , and of them , with all possible caution ; and that ordinary christians , if they have a desire , besides all fundamentall truths ( which are laid down openly and cleerly in the sacred word of god ) to inform themselves in those darker verities , which lie hidden in more obscure scriptures , to have recourse to their learned and faithfull pastors ; and rather to rest in that light which they shal receive from their well-digested instructions , then to rely upon their own ( perhaps confident , but much weaker ) judgement . resolutions . the fourth decade . cases matrimoniall . case i. whether the marriage of a sonne or daughter without or against the parents consent may be accounted lawfull . matrimony , though not a sacrament , yet a sacred institution of god , for the comfort and propagation of mankind ; is so fruitfull of questions as that * sanchez the jesuite hath stuffed an huge volume with them alone ; it were pitty that so many should in that estate be necessary ; we meddle not with those secret , and ( some of them ) immodest curiosities : contenting our selves only with those which meet us every day in the ordinary practise of men : wherof this which you have moved may well challeng the first place : a question wherein i was vehemently pressed in my late western charge , by som persons of greatest eminency in those parts upon occasion of som of their children undutifully carving for themselves in the choice of their matches ; the offended parents in the height of their displeasure were very earnest to invalidate & annul the marriage ; i gave them in effect the same account of the point , which now i give to you : that this disallowed marriage was one of those things which are unjust and unlawfull to bee done , but being once done are valid . how unwarrantable and injurious it is in the child to match himselfe without or against the parents consent , there needs no other judg the● the law of nature it self , which teacheth us that the child is no other then the peculiar goods , and living substance of the parent ; yea , as some civilians have taught us to expresse it , he is * pars viscerum matris , a part of the mothers bowels ; and part of the purest substance of the father ; and therefore ought no more to bee exempted from the parents power of disposing , then the very limbs of his owne body ; upon this ground it was that by the law of god it was lawfull for the † jewes , in case of extremity , to sell , as themselves , so their children also to servitude ; but to those onely of their owne nation , and in the * law civil there is the like permission , although under certaine ●onditions ; and particularly , in an utter exigency , victus causa ; to the latter whereof , som † expositors hold so strictly , as that they wil not admit this to be don for the redemption of the parent from death , or perpetual bondage ; but only to preserve him from affamishing : wherein certainly they are over-strait laced , and too much wedded to syllables ; it being questionless the intention of the law to comprehend all equally-pressing necessities ; to which they adde that this must be only in the fathers power , and that to a child not emancipated , and left to his owne disposing : it is not in my way to dispute the case with them , take it at the easiest , it sufficiently shewes the great power that nature it self yelds to the parent over the child ; by how much stronger then the parents interest is in the child , so much more wrongfull it must needs bee in the child to neglect his parents in finally bestowing himselfe ; and if we look into the positive law of † god , wee shall find the child so wholly left to the parents will and disposition , as that he may , at his pleasure , dispense with , or frustrate the vow of his child made to god himselfe . neither do the * roman doctors generally hold otherwise this day in case of an under-age ; and some of them extend this power yet further ; yet not without a distinction : holding , that after the age of puberty , those vows only are in the mercy of the father , which may be prejudicial to the government of the family , & paternal pow'r ; which is sufficient for my purpose in the question in hand . and although those casuists doe sufficiently doat upon their monkery , and the vows thereunto appertayning ; yet they ascribe so much to the bond of filial duty , as that they teach , that a sonne which ( his parents being in extreme need , and wanting his help ) enters into a religious order ; or comes not out of it ( though professed ) when hee might be likely by his coming forth to bee aidfull to his said parents , is guilty of a sin against the fift commandement : so as even with them , the respect to a parent ought to overweigh a vow of religion ; although consummate by a solemn profession . but , that you may not object to me the age of the law as therefore abrogated because mosaicall , heare what the chosen vessell saies under the new law of the gospel . if any man thinke that he behaveth himselfe uncomely towards his virgin , if shee passe the floure of her age , and need so require , let him doe what hee will , hee sinneth not ; let her marry : ( 1 cor. 7. 36. ) neverthelesse he that standeth stedfast in his heart , having no necessity ; but hath power over his owne will , and hath so decreed in his heart that he will keep his virgin , doth well , &c. ( ver . 37. ) loe , the apostle supposeth it in the parents power either to keep his daughter a virgin , or to dispose of her in marriage : she is not her owne , either to hold , or give ; but must be altogether ordered by the superior will of a parent : not , that any force is allowed either way to be used towards the daughter ; whether to continue her in a constrained virginity , or to call her against her minde upon a dis-affected match ; no , that god who disposeth all things sweetly , would have us doe so too ; hee allowes parents to be rulers of their children , but not tyrants : what they doe therefore in this kinde , must be more by councel then command : and with more sway of love then authority : thus , consulting wisely with the state of times and the childs disposition and abilities of contayning , must the parent either keep his virgin , or labour for the provision of a meete consortship thus did the two great patriarchs of gods ancient church , abraham and isaac , provide fit matches for their holy seed ; whiles the unholy provided unfit matches for themselves : thus did their godly issue in all generations take their parents along with them in the choice of meet yoke-fellowes , whiles the godless , whether out of impetuous lust , or stubborn disobedience , affect with esau , gen. 28. 6 , 7 , 8. to be their owne purveyors , to the great regret , and heart-breaking of their parents . lastly , the latitude that s. paul gives of the liberty of marriage to al christians is , tantum in domino ; onely in the lord , 1 cor. 7. 39. now how can that marriage bee in the lord , which is against him ? and how can that bee other then against the lord ; which is against the lords commandement ? and what commandment can be more express then honor thy father and thy mother gal. 6. 1. and , children obey your parents ? ver . 2. and what can bee more contrary to the honour and obedience due to parents , then to neglect them in the main business that concernes our lives ? and what businesse can concern our life so much , as the choice of a meet partner , with whom we may comfortably weare out all the dayes of our pilgrimage on earth ? doubtlesse then , we may in a generality safely conclude , that it is altogether unlawfull for a childe to sleight his parents consent in the choice of his marriage ; there may be some particular cases incident wherein perhaps this may without sinne or blame be forborn ; as when the child either by general permission , or former elocation shall be out of the parents disposing , or where the parent is defective in his intellectuals , or where the child lives in remotis , out of the compasse of intelligence ; or where the parent being averse from the true religion denies his consent to match with any but those of his own straine ; or shall upon other by-occasions wilfully stand upon so unreasonable terms , that neither friends nor authority can over-rule him : but where these or the like preponderating exceptions doe not intervene , the child cannot without sin balk the parents consent to his choice in marriage . but though such marriages without , or against consent , bee not lawfully made ; yet being once made , they are valid . * the civill law , out of the grounds of policy , goes herein too far ; which sentenceth those marriages void ; which are made without the consent of parents of guardians ; but as matrimony hath somthing in it of nature , something of civility , something of divinity , as instituted by god , and by him to be regulated ; so sure this last interest ought to over-sway the other two ; the marriage therefore thus made , being , though faulty , yet true ; is doubtlesse after consummation indissoluble . the parties repentance , and the parents sorrow may have leisure to afflict them , no power to relieve them . case ii. whether marriage lawfully made may admit of any cause of divorce , save only for the violation of the marriage bed , by fornication or adulterie . our saviour hath so punctually decided the case in his divine sermon upon the mount , that i cannot but wonder at the boldnesse of any man , who calls himself a christian , that dares raise a question after so full and clear a determination from the mouth of truth it self . whosoever ( saith he ) shall put away his wife , saving for the cause of fornication , causeth her to commit adultery ; and whosoever shall marry her that is divorced , committeth adultery mat. 5. 32. yet i find this so evident an assertion checked by two sorts of adversaries ; the one , certain wild novellists , who admit of very sleight causes of separation ; the other , romish doctors , who plead for some other main and important additions to this liberty of divorce . i have heard too much of , & once saw a licentious pamphlet thrown abroad in these lawlesse times , in the defence and encouragement of divorces ( not to be sued out , that solemnity needed not , but ) to be arbitrarily given by the disliking husband , to his displeasing and unquiet wife ; upon this ground principally , that marriage was instituted for the help and comfort of man ; where therefore the match proves such , as that the wife doth but pull downe a side , and by her innate peevishnesse , and either sullen , or pettish and froward disposition brings rather discomfort to her husband , the end of marriage being hereby frustrate , why should it not , saith he , be in the husbands power ( after some unprevailing means of reclamation attempted ) to procure his own peace , by casting off this clog , and to provide for his own peace and contentment in a fitter match ? woe is me , to what a passe is the world come that a christian pretending to reformation , should dare to tender so loose a project to the publique ? i must seriously profess when i first did cast my eye upon the front of the book , i supposed some great wit meant to try his skill in the maintenance of this so wild , and improbable a paradox ; but ere i could have run over som of those too wel-penned pages , i found the author was in earnest , and meant seriously to contribute this peece of good councel in way of reformation to the wise and seasonable care of superiors ; i cannot but blush for our age , wherein so bold a motion hath been amongst others , admitted to the light : what will all the christian churches through the world , to whose notice those lines shall come , think of our wofull degeneration in these deplored times , that so uncouth a designe should be set on foot amongst us ? or how can they construe it other then a direct contradiction to our saviours sentence , in maintaining that practise which hee expresly professeth to oppose ? for , what was the jewish guise here checked by our saviour , but a voluntary repudiation of a lawfull wife upon the terms of dislike , other then fornication ? their mis-interpretation of the law alluded unto , argues no lesse ; the law alluded unto is , that of deutronomy ▪ where god sayes , when a man hath tak●n a wife , and hath been her husband , and it shall be , that she finde not grace in his eyes , because he hath found in * her matter of nakednesse , he shall write her a bill of divorcement , and send her away , deut. 24. 1. whereupon he infers with an ego dico , i say unto you , whosoever shall put away his wife saving for fornication , causeth her to commit adultery : the matter of nakednesse therefore , for which the jews were then wont to divorce their wives , ( and offended in so divorcing them ) was any other displeasing qualitie , besides the breach of wedlock through bodily uncleannesse ; for which only had they dismissed their wives , our saviour had neither faulted their glosse nor their practise ; so as herein christ the giver of the law , decides one of those great controversies , which were agitated between the emulous schools of sammai , and hillel : determining on sammai's side , that for no other nakedness but that of adultery it was lawfull to divorce a wife : and flatly condemning by the like answer that [ 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 ] ( mat. 19. 3. ) every cause of repudiation then ordinarily received ; as it was by the pharisee purposely propounded unto him . answerable whereunto is that of the prophet malachi , who ( in our just reading ) hath so fully decided the cause , as if it had been expresly referred to his umpirage : the lord ( saith he ) hath been witnesse between thee and the wife of thy youth , against whom thou hast dealt treacherously ; yet is she thy companion , and the wife of thy covenant , mal. 2. 14 , 15 , 16. ( loe , the wife of thy covenant , therefore too sure setled to bee turn'd off upon every sleight occasion ; what ? was thy covenant to take her for thy wife till thou shouldst dislike her ? what were this but to mock god and the world ? thy covenant implies no less then firmitude and perpetuity . ) therefore take heed to your spirit ; and let none deal treacherously against the wife of his youth : for the lord , the god of israel , saith , that he hateth putting away ; for one covereth violence with his garment , saith the lord of hosts : therefore take heed to your spirit that you deal not treacherously . what is this treachery which the prophet cries out against thus vehemently , thrice over with a breath , but pretended and unjust suggestions against a lawfull wife , for her undue divorce ? and what is that violence , but the injurious execution of those suggestions ? upon which unsufficient grounds the lord professes to hate putting away . yea how apparently contrary is this practise to the very originall institution of marriage it self ? he that made it in paradise ordained thus : therefore shall a man leave his father and his mother , and shall cleave unto his wife ; and they two shall be one flesh , gen. 2. 24. loe , before ever there was father , or mother , or son in the world , god hath appointed that the bonds betwixt husband and wife shall be more strait and indissoluble then betwixt the parent and child ; and can any man be so unreasonable as to defend it lawfull , upon some unkinde usages , or thwartness of disposition , for a parent to abandon and forsake his child ; or the son to cast off his parent ? much lesse therefore may it be thus betwixt an husband & wife : they two are one flesh ▪ behold here an union of gods making : a mans body is not more his own , then his wives body is his : and will a man be content to part easily with a peece of himselfe ? or can we thinke that god will indure an union made by himself to be sleightly dissolved ? or how is this bodily matrimony a lively image of the spirituall marriage betwixt christ and his church ( who hath said , i will betroth thee unto me for ever ; yea i will betroth thee unto me in righteousnesse , and in judgement , and in loving kindenesse , and in mercies , hos. 2. 19. ) if upon small occasions it may be subject to utter dissolution ? yea , what speak i of divinity ? even modest heathens would hisse this libertinisme off the stage : amongst the rest , what a fool was socrates ? the oracle , belike , called him the wisest man of his time ; but what a fool was he to indure the unquiet clack of his xantippe with such cool patience , if he might have quit himself of the trouble with a sodain act of her dismission ? or what use was there of those delegates of athens and the harmosyni of lacedaemon for the peecing up of these domestique breaches betwixt husband and wife , if the imperious husband had power to right himself by turning the scold out of doors ? lastly , what silly counsail was that which the jewish rabbi gave to his client , matcht with a shrew ; the bone that is falne to thy lot , that doe thou gnaw upon ; if it were altogether free for him to leave that bone , and take another ? but i have dwelt too long on so grosse a subject : there may yet seem some better colour for the plea of the romish doctors which admit infidelity and here●ie into the rank of those causes which may warrant a divorce : but herein the ambiguity of the word ( if heed be not taken ) may deceive you ; the * hebrew text , to which our saviour alludes , uses a word which signifies excision , or cutting off ; the greek , a departing away , or putting off ; the latine , divortium , in his true sense is not so hainous as either of the other , signifying rather a turning aside , but in our ordinary acception amounts to no less then both . but what unjust difference they make betwixt finall separation and dissolution , we shall finde in our next discourse : onwards , that such separation may not be made of man and wife ( lawfully joyned together ) for heresie or misbelief ; we need no other conviction then that peremptory and clear determination of our saviour which we have formerly insisted on : for though his words on the mount were in a way of doctrinall assertion , yet afterwards the same words were used by him , in way of a satisfactory answer to the pharises question concerning causes of divorce ; professedly resolving that there could be no allowable ground of such separation except fornication . what words can be more plain ? it is but a shift to say ( as the cardinall doth ) that our saviour here meant only to expresse the proper cause of the separation of married persons ; which is the breach of marriage faith : as having no occasion to speak of those generall grounds which reach to the just sundring of all humane societies ; such as heresie and infidelitie ; which are enough to unglew all naturall and civill relations betwixt father and son , master and servant , husband and wife : for it is clear that neither question nor answer were bounded with any particularities ; the pharisee asks , whether for every cause ? our saviour answers ; for no cause but fornication ; and it is spoken beside the book , that child or servant should or may forsake parent or master in case of heresie , or infidelity : s. paul teacheth other doctrine : let as many servants as are under the yoke ( of bondage ) count their ( infidell ) masters worthy of all honor ; 1 tim. 6. 5. not worthy therefore of desertion and disclamation : and if the servants may not shake off the bonds of duty ; much lesse may the son brake or file off the bonds of nature ; and as for the matrimoniall knot , how too sure it is to be loosed by infidelity it self , let the apostle speak ; if any brother hath a wife that beleeveth not , and she be pleased to dwell with him , let him not put her away , 1 cor. 7. 12. and the woman which hath an husband that beleeveth not ; and if he be pleased to dwell with her , let her not leave him , ver . 13. and if even infidelity have not power to dis-oblige the wife or husband , much less heresie : in this pretended case therefore to separate from board and bed , is no better then a presumptuous insolence ; it is the peremptory charge of christ , what god hath joyned together , let not man put asunder , mat. 19. 6. in all lawfull marriages , it is god that joyns the hands and hearts of the married . how dare man then undoe the work of god upon devises of his own ? had the lord ever said , if thy wife be a wilfull mis-beleever , rid thy hands of her ; this separation were just ; but now that his charge is clean contrary , what an impious sauciness is it to dis-joyn those whom god hath united ? as therefore , it is not in the power of any third person , upon any whatsoever pretence , violently to break the sacred bond of marriage ; so neither may the husband or wife enthral each other by a wilfull desertion ; whether upon pretext of religion , or any secular occasion ; in which cause what is to be don must come under a further disquisition ; certainly it was never the intention of the holy and wise god , by vertue of that which was ordained for mans comfort and remedy of sin , to binde him to a remedilesse misery ; which must necessarily fall out , if upon the departure of an unbeleeving or hereticall yoke-fellow , the relict party must be tyed up to a perpetuall necessity of either containing , ( if he can ) or , if he can not , of burning ; the wise doctor of the gentiles well fore-saw the dangerous inconvenience that must needs hereupon ensue , and hath given order for prevention , accordingly . but if the unbeleeving depart , let him depart ; a brother or a sister is not under bondage in such cases ; but god hath called us to peace , 1 cor. 7. 15. not , that it is free for a man or woman so forsaken , to carve him , or her self of redresse ( what an infinite confusion would follow upon such licentiousness ? ) but that after long and patient expectation , and all probable means used for the reduction of the party deserting ; recourse be had ( as to the last refuge ) to publique ecclesiastical authority ( which is the fittest to manage these matrimoniall affairs ) in whose power it may be , either by grave admonitions , and just censures to bring back the offendor to his duty ; or upon his continuing contempt , to set a day for the publication of the just freedom of the forsaken : wherein they shall doe no other then execute that apostolike sentence for exemption from an unjust bondage , and providing for a just peace . case iii. whether after a lawfull divorce for adultery , the innocent party may marry again . although matrimony be not , according to the romish tenet , one of those sacraments which imprint an indeleble character in the receiver ; yet it hath , as they hold , such a secret influence upon the soul , as that it leaves a perpetuall bond behind it , never to be dissolved till death ; so as those offenders , which by just censure are separated from the board and the bed , cannot yet be freed from the bond of marriage : upon this ground it is that they bar the innocent party from the benefit of a second marriage , as supposing the obligation of the former still in force . in the ordinary bills of the jewish divorce , the repudiated wife had full-scope given her of a second choice ; as the words ran : * she was to be free , and to have power over her own soul ; to goe away ; to be married to any man whom she would : they were not more liberall , then our romish divorcers are niggardly : the jewish divorce being upon unwarrantable cause , made their liberality so much more sinfull , as their divorce was more unjust : for the divorced woman was still in right the lawfull wife of that unrighteous husband that dismissed her ; the romish doctrine makes their strait-handednesse so much more injurious , as the cause of separation is more just . even this question also is expresly determined by our saviour in his answer to the pharisee : whosoever shall put away his wife , except it be for fornication , and marrieth another , committeth adultery : mat. 19. lo then , he that for so just a cause as fornication putteth away his wife and marrieth another , committeth not adultery : the exception manifestly implies so much , both in reason and common use : neither indeed , are the words capable of any other probable sense : that which bellarmine would fasten upon it , referring the exception to the former clause , of dismission only , so as it might be lawfull to divorce only for fornication , but not to marry after divorce ; cannot stand without a supply of words of his own , which god never alow'd him to intersert ; and besides utterly destroies the sense ; casting such a doctrine upon our saviour , as he would hate to own ; for except that restraint be refered to the marrying again , the sense would run thus , whosoever puts away his wife commits adultery ; which stands not with truth or reason : sith it is not the dismission that is adulterous , but the marryage of another : it is therefore the plain drift of our saviour , to teach the pharisee , that the marriage of a second wife ( after dismission of a former , upon any other cause , except for fornication ) is no less then adultery : thereby enforcing , that upon a just dismission for fornication , a second marriage cannot be branded with adultery . neither will it serve his turne , which he would borrow from st. augustine , that upon this negative of our saviours , we may not look to build an affirmative of our own ; for though it be granted , that he , who putting away his wife not for fornication , & marrieth another , sinneth ; yet it followes not that he who having dismissed his wife for fornication , marrieth another , sinneth not at all : a sin it may be , though not an adultery : for surely if it be a sinne ; it must be against a commandement ; and if against any commandement , it must be against the seventh ; and what is the seventh cōmandement , but thou shalt not commit adultery ? besides , the pharisees question [ is it lawfull for a man to put away his wife for every cause ? ] was not without a plaine implication of liberty to marry another ; which our saviour well knowing , gives a full answer as well to what he meant , as what hee said ; which had not been perfectly satisfactory , if he had only determined that one part concerning dismission , and not the other concerning marriage ; which clause if two other evangelists expresse not , yet it must bee fetcht necessarily from the third ; since it is a sure & irrefragable rule ; that all four evangelists make up one perfect gospell , it is therefore a very tottering and unsure ground which our rhemists build upon ; as if the apostle meant to crosse his lord and master , when hee saith , the woman which hath an husband is bound by the law to her husband , so long as hee liveth , rom. 7. 2. therfore only death can dissolve the bond of marriage ; not divorce , not adultery , not divorce for adultery : for how plainly doe the words carry their answer in themselves : * the woman ( saith the apostle ) that hath an husband : but the woman legally divorced for fornication , hath no husband : s. paul speakes of a true wife , not a divorced harlot : hee had no occasion here to look aside at matter of divorce , but takes marriage as in its intire right ; rather desiring to urge ( for cleering the case of our obligation to the law ) that the husband being once dead , the wife is free to marry again , then to intimate the case of her incapacity to marry till he be dead . as for that bond therfore , which is so much stood upon , if it be taken without all relations to the duties of bed and board ; it is meerly chimericall ; nothing but fantasie . there are , or should bee bonds of affectation ; bonds of mutual respects , and reciprocall duties betwixt man and wife , and these must hold firme notwithstanding any locall separation ; neither time , nor place may so much as slacken , much lesse loose them : but where a just divorce intervenes , these bonds are chopt in peeces , and no more are , then if they had never beene : and if all relations cease in death ( as they doe , in whatsoever kind ) surely divorce , being ( as it is ) no other then a legall death , doth utterly cut off ( as the hebrew term imports ) all former obligations and respects betwixt the partys so finaly separated . the adulterous wife therfore duly divorced being thus dead in law as to her husband , the husband stands now as free as if he had never married , so as i know not why the apostle should not as well speake to him as to any other ; when he saith : neverthelesse to avoid fornication , let every man have his own wife , 1 cor. 7. 2. neither is it otherwise in the case of a chaste wife after her separation from an adulterous husband , mar. 10. 12. in these rights god makes no difference of sexes , both may lawfully claim the same immunities : which certainly should they be denied to either , must needs draw on very great inconveniences : for in how hard a condition should the innocent party be hereupon left ? either the husband or wife must bee forced to live with an adultrous consort ; or be tyed to a perpetuall necessity of either doing that ( which perhaps they cannot do ) containing ; or of suffering that which they ought not to endure , burning . what remedy now can bee expected of so great a mischief ? our romish doctors propose two ; reconciliation , or continence : both good , where they may be had ; reconciliation , in case of a seasonable & submisse repentance ; that which is the apostles charge in case of desertion , holds here also , [ 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 ] let her be reconciled ; the more hainous the wrong is , the more commendable is the remission . continence , after such separation , in case of ability so granted : for surely this holy disposition is a gift ; and therefore is not had , where it is not bestowed ; those that place it in our power , derogate from the thanks of the giver : yea , he that gives it tels us all cannot receive it , mar. 19. 11. hee must not only give it , but give us power to take it . but where the offending party is obstinately vicious ; & the innocent ( after all endeavors ) unable to contain , without a supply of marriage , the case is remedilesse ; and we know gods mercy such , as that he leaves no man for matter of resolution utterly perplexed . shortly then , i doubt not but i may notwithstanding great authorities to the contrary ) safely resolve , that in the case of divorce it is lawful for the innocent person to marry ; but for that i finde the * church of england hitherto somwhat tender in the point ; and this practice , where it rarely falls , generally held , though not sinfull , yet of ill report , and abnoxious to various censures ; i should therfore earnestly advise and exhort those whom it may concerne , carefully and effectually to apply themselves to the fore-mentioned remedies ; reconciliation , if it be possible , to prevent a divorce ; holy endeavors of a continued continence ( if it may be obtain'd ) to prevent a second marriage after divorce : but if these prevail not , i dare not lay a load upon any mans conscience which god hath not burdened ; i dare not ensnare those whom god will have free . case iv. whether the authoritie of a father may reach so farre as to command or compell the child to dispose of himself in marriage where hee shall appoint . the extent of a paternal power , as we have partly shewed already , hath been wont to be very large ; reaching in som cases by the civill law to the life of the child ; and by the jewish law , to his liberty : so as it might seem much more over-ruling in case of marriage ; which also seemes to be intimated by the apostle in that he supposes and gives a power to the parent either to give or keep his virgin : and how apt parents are to make use of this awfull authority in matching their children for their own worldly advantage , contrary to their affections and disposition , we have too lamentable experience every day ; neither is it easy to set forth the mischievous effects that have followed upon those compelled marriages : for hence ensue perpetuall discontentments to the parties so forcedly conjoyned ; an utter frustration of the end of mariage , which should be mutuall comfort : and not seldome , dangerous machinations against the life of the disaffected consort ; as it were too easie to instance every where ; but especially if the affections of the yong couple have been before ( as it oft falls out ) placed elsewhere ; what secret heart burnings ; what loathing of conjugall society ; what adulterous plottings doe straight follow ; what unkind defiances passe between them ? how do they weare out their days in a melancholick pining , & wish each other , & themselves dead too soon ? yea herin an imperious or covetous parent may be most injurious to him selfe , in robbing himselfe of that comfort which he might receive from a dutifull child in her person , in her posterity ; for the avoiding of which mischiefs it were meet & happy , that both parent and child could both know their limits , which god , and nature hath set , and keep them . let the child then know that he is his parents ; that as he was once a part of them , in respect of his natural being , so he should be still in his affections , and obsequiousness , and therfore that hee ought to labour by all means to bring his heart unto a conformity to his parents will & desire , according to that universall rule of the apostle , children obey your parents in all things ; for this is well pleasing unto the lord : colos. 3. 20. the word is comprehensive , in all things . things unlawfull passe for impossible ; we only can doe what we ought . in all those things then which are honest , lawfull , just , parents must be obeyed : and the motions for marriage being such , impose upon the child so far a duty of obedience as that he is bound to work his affections what he may to a compliance with his parents will ; the wilful neglect whereof is no better then a kind of domestique rebellion . let the parent again consider that the child however derived from his loins , is now an entire person in him self ; that though the body came from him , yet the soule was from above ; that the soul of his child is endowed with powers and faculties of its own ; that as he is not animated by his parents spirits , so he is not in wardly swayed by his parents will or affections ; that when his reason coms to be improved , there may bee differences of judgement betwixt his parent and him , and from thence may arise a diversity or contrariety of affections and desires ; and these affections and passions may grow to such strength as that he himselfe sh●ll not be able to ma●ter them ; and if the parent feele himself subject to such infirmities , well may he be induced to pity those whom a vigorous heat of youth hath rendred more head-strong and unruly ; withall , let him consider that though the child shold be advised by the parent , yet it is fit that he should like for himselfe ; that the will is to be led , not driven ; that no marriage can be happy , but that which is grounded in love ; that love is so altogether voluntary , that it can not consist with constraint . lastly , let him know that the power of the father though great , yet is not unlimited ; it is the charge which the father of mercies hath laid upon all earthly fathers in their carriage towards their children ; fathers , provoke not your children to wrath ( or ( as the * vulgar reads it ) to indignation ) lest they be discouraged : and surely , if there be any thing wherein the passion of the child may be like to be inordinately stirred , it is in the crossing of an once-well-setled-affection ; and diverting the streame of love into another channell ; for the avoiding whereof the imperiall lawes have been so indulgent to the child ; as that ( according to their best glosses ) they permit not the father to disinherit the daughter for chosing an husband not unworthy of her self , though against her fathers● mind ; yea some of them have gone a step further : but i forbeare : how far it may be lawfull and fit for the parent to puni●h the disrespect of a child ; in so important a case , is not for me to determine ; doubtlesse where the provision is arbitrary , the parent will be apt so to manage it , as to make the child sensible of a disobedience ; so as both parts herein suffer , and are put into a way of late repentance . briefly therefore , on the one side the son or daughter doe justly offend , if without cause , or wilfully they refuse the parents choyce ; and are in duty bound to worke their hearts to an obedient subjection to those , unto whom they owe themselves ; and for this cause must bee wary in suffering their affections to over-runne their owne reason , and their parents guidance ; eyther suppressing the first motions of unruly passions , or if they grow impetuous , venting them betimes into the tender eares of their indulgent parents , or discreet and faithful friends ; that so they may seasonably prevent their own misery , and their parents grief : on the other side the parent shal offend , if holding too hard an hand over the fruit of his own body , he shall resolve violently to force the childs affections to his own bent ; & where he finds them setled wil rather break then bow them ; not caring so much to perswade as to compell love : these harshnesses have too much of tyranny in them to be incident to a christ an parent ; who must transact all these matrimonial affaires in a smooth & plausible way of consent & indulgence : a noble and ancient pattern whereof we find in the contract betwixt isaac & his rebecca , gen. 24. 49 , 50 , 51 , 52 , &c. the match was treated on betwixt abrahams proxie , and the maids father bethuel , and her brother laban : the circumstances drew their full consent ; all is agreed upon betwixt parents ; but when all this is don , nothing is don till rebecca have given her assent ; they said , wee will call the damsell , and enquire at her mouth , ver . 57. and they called rebecca , and said unto her , wilt thou goe with this man ? and she said , i will goe . ver . 58. now the contract is made up ; till then , all the engagements of bethuel and laban were but complements ; till then , all the rich jewels of gold and silver given to the intended bride ; and all the precious things given to her mother , & brother , were but at the mercy of the receivers ; neither ought it to be other in all christian espousals ; the free and cheerfull consent of parents and parties makes the match both full and happy ; let not the childe dare to crosse his parents ; let not the parent think to force the child ; and when an undue bargain is , through the heat of passion , made up past reclamation , let love and pity so far intercede for the offenders , that they may smart for their rashness & neglect , without their utter undoing . case v. whether the marriage of cousens germans , that is , of brothers or sisters children , be lawfull . the displeasure of the canon law against such marriages is so high flowne , that no lesse can take it off then an utter diremtion of them even though they be not ratified only , but consummate by carnall knowledg : and the grave authority of some ancient and holy fathers , and eminent doctors of the church ( besides five severall councels ) have passed an hard sentence upon them . the maine ground of the supposed unlawfulness , is , that clause of gods law which was more then judiciall : no man shall approach unto any neere of kin to his flesh to uncover their nakednesse ; i am the lord , levit. 18. 6. which though cornelius à lapide * ( following his radulphus ) would seeme to restraine to the ensuing particularities onely ; yet they may not think that god will suffer so universal a charge to be so straitly pent , especially , when we know that there are divers other no lesse unlawful copulations omitted in this black roll of uncleannesses , then those which are expresly mentioned ; the rest being intended to come in by way of analogy only : for it is easy for any reader to observe , that all the severalities of the degrees prohibited run still upon the male ; under which , if the like exorbitances of the other sexe were not meant to be comprehended , females should be lawlesse , and the lawe imperfect ; to marry then with a cousen-german is apprehended by these canonists to be an approach to one neare kinne to our flesh ; and therefore intimated in that inhibition : doctor * willet ( a man much deserving of gods church ) conceives these marriages to bee analogically forbidden , in this catalogue of moses for , saith he , if the degrees of affinity be limited to the third or fourth degree ; as it is not lawfull for a man to marry his wives daughters daughter ( levit. 18. 17. ) why should not the line of consanguinity hold to the fourth degree likwise ; and so neither the sonne to marry his fathers brothers daughter ; or the daughter the sonne ? but that worthy divine did not heedfully observe the great difference betwixt these instanced degrees ; for the one of these is an equal line , the other in an unequal ; the one is a collaterall consanguinity , the other is in a directly descending affinity ; so as the husband should bee grandfather in law to the wife , which in all reason were very unlawful , and absurd ; since in all those descending degrees there is a kinde of reverential inequality betwixt the lower and superiour , which abhorres from all proportion of a match : whereas the collateral equidistance of cousensgerman from the stock whence both descend , hath in it no such appearance of inequality , certainly then , no analogy can draw these marriages within the prohibition ; whether the neerenesse of approach to our flesh be a just bar to them , must be further considered . gregory * , ( whom some would faine interess in our english apostle ship ) writing to his augustine , in way of answere to his interrogations puts these mariages in the same rank with the marriages of brothers and sisters , which hee brands with this note , that they seldom ever prove fruitfull ; as for those of brothers and sisters ( which were usual , as dio dorus siculus tells us ) amongst the egiptians , and are this day in use in barbarous nations ) nature it selfe abominates the mention of them : in the first plantation of the world there was a necessity of them ; as without which there could have been no humane generation ; but afterwards , as the earth grew more peopled , so these matches grew still more odious : like as it was also in the first plantation of the church ; the holy seed being confined to a narrow compasse , were forced , unlesse they would joyne with infidels , to match somtimes over-neer to themselves ; as even abraham himself , the father of the faithfull , married his brothers daughter : but when the bounds of men and beleevers came to be enlarged , the greater elbow room opened a wider liberty of choice ; and now gods select people found it meet to observe a due distance in the elections of their wives ; so regarding the entireness of their tribes , as that they fell not within the lines of prohibition ; wherein no mention being made of brothers and sisters children in all ages and nations , some have thought fit to make use of their free-dom in this kind . what neede i to urge the case of zelophehads five daughters , num. 36. 11. who by gods own approbation , were married to their fathers brothers sonnes ; to mince the matter , and to make these sonnes , nephews , according ao the hebrew phrase ( as doctor willet indeavors to doe ) is without either need or warrant ; since these scruples were not since that time stood upon by the jewish people : yea this practise was no lesse current among the civiller heathens of old ; i could tell you of cluentia * ( by ciceroes relation ) married to her cousen marc. aurius ; of marcus antonius the wise and vertuous philosopher , marrying his cousen faustina , and a world of others : were not this labor saved me by the learned lawyer hotoman ; who tells us how universall this liberty was of old , as being enacted by the lawes of the roman empire ; and descending to the lawes of † justitian ; confidently affirmes that for five hundred yeeres , all christian people ( magno consensu ) allowed and followed these imperiall constitutions concerning matrimony : although i might here put him in minde of theodosius enacting the contrary in his time ; as it is like , by s. * ambroses instigation ; who then sharply inveighed against these matches in a vehement epistle to paternus , being then in hand with a marriage betwixt his son & his sisters daughter : but excepting that good emperour , the coast was cleare perhaps , for the cesarean constitutions ; not so for the judgement of divines ; amongst whom , it were enough that s. ambrose and s. augustine ( the flower of the latine fathers ) if no other , doe bitterly oppose it : this judgement being found not probable only , but exceeding profitable to the roman see , it is no wonder if it obteyned both credit and vigour from thence . decrees & decretals make this inhibition good , not without damning the contrary practise ; and now the civill and canon lawes clashing with one another , how can it be but the prevalence must be according to the power of the abettor ? what liberty the court of rome hath taken to it self in the restraint of marriages , and upon what ground ; all christendom both sees and feeles : one while their prohibition reaches to the seventh degree in natural kindred , then to the fourth : one while the impediment of spirituall cognation , is streched so far , without any colour of divine authority , as that ( what by * baptisme , what by confirmation ) twenty severall persons are excluded from the capacitie of intermarriage : anotherwhile the market is faln to fourteene : and wherefore this ? but for the sweet & scarce valuable gaine of dispensations , upon these occasions flowing in to the lateran treasure ? for which considerations wee have learned not to attribute too much to the judgement or practise of the roman courtiers in this point . upon the sūming up then of this discourse , will you bee pleased to see the vast latitude of different opinions concerning these marriages ? the canon lawe decryes them with such rigour , as to ordain them ( though after a conjugall conversation ) separated ; some moderate divines ( as doctor willet ) finding this sentence too hard , go not so far ; but hold this neerness of blood a sufficient bar to hinder a marriage contracted , though not consummate : som others ( as mr. perkins in my conference with him ) hold it , though not unlawfull , yet inconvenient : som others ( as learned and accute m. wootton , and m. attersoll ) who have written a very large discourse in way of vindication of them ) hold them both lawfull , and not inexpedient ; * hotoman yet higher , pium & christianum esse , quod duarum sororum liberi matrimonio copulentur ; that such a marriage is pious and christian : in all this variety if you desire my opinion , i shall neyther censure such marriages where they are made , nor yet incourage them to be made where they are not : to those that are free i should be apt to suggest counsails of forbearance , the world is wide , the choice abundant ; let it be never so lawfull , yet how unwise and unsafe were it to put the conscience upon the nicety of a dangerous scruple , when it may kee●s aloof off with a cleere freedom and resolute contentment ? that these marriages are disallowed by so great authority , should bee reason enough to divert the free thoughts to a safer election ; and againe , that these marriages are allowed both by civill lawes , and by the judgement of eminent divines ; and not any where forbidden eyther ( jure caesareo or apostolico ) by gods law or caesars ; should be reason enough to bear up the hearts of those who are so matched , from a scrupulous dejection . let the persons therfore so married enjoy themselves with mutual complacency and comfort , not disquieting themselves with needlesse anxieties ; let those single persons who have the world before them look further off ; and fasten their affections at a more unquestionable distance : as it was wont to be worthy m. perkins his expression to this purpose ; let those who must walke close to the brimof a steep precipice , look well to their feete and tread sure , and so they may come off perhaps as safely as those that are further off ; but if a man be to choose his way , let him so cast it , as that he may not approach neere to the brink of danger . case vi. whether it is necessary or requisite there should be a witnessed contract , or espousals of the parties to bee married , before the solemnization of the marriage . it is necessary wee should distinguish betwixt those things which are essentiall to the very being of marriage , & those which are requisite to the orderly and well-being of it : it may not be denyed that the marriage is true & valid , which with full consent of parties is made without the intervention of a previous contract in a due & lawful form prescribed by the church : but it is no less true that such a marriage is very unmeet , & liable to just exceptions : that * god , who is the author & institutor of marriage made a difference in his law , betwixt a betrothing & a matrimony ; he that ordained the one , ordained the other also ; and ordained the one in order to the other : and this was constantly observed in the practise of gods ancient people accordingly , so we finde the blessed * virgin espoused to joseph before his taking her to wife ; neither did the christian church think fit to vary from so holy a pattern ; whereto s. † paul alludes , when writing to , and of the church of corinth which he had happily planted , and forwarded in grace ) he saith , i have espoused you to one husband , that i may present you as a chaste virgin to christ. loe hee hath betrothed them to christ in that he had entred them into a covenant of grace , and prepared their soules for a full consummation of their blessed union with christ in glory , intimating ( as matrimony is a lively resemblance of our spirituall conjunction with the lord of glory ) that our bodily espousalls here below , are they which must make way for a complete marriage ensuing : it were not difficult , if it were needfull , to deduce this holy practise downe from the primitive times to the present : before the nicene councell we find the synod of ancyra * enjoyning a severe penance to the man that should defile his body by an incestuous copulation , after espousalls contracted : and the councell of eliveris or granado , about the time of the nicene convention , takes such notice of these betrothings , as that it decreed † , that if any parents should break the faith mutually engaged in these espousals , they should bee held off during the space of three yeeres from the communion . what should i trouble you with the decree of * syricius concerning these contracts ; or with the pregnant testimonies of s. chrysostom and ambrose to this purpose ; which were but to wast time & paper upon so cleere a truth ? as there was no christian church which did not carefully observe this sacred rite : so above all other the roman hath been at least curious enough in calling for a strict and severe account of their espousals : what voluminous discourses ? what a world of nice questions have faln from the pens of their canonists and casuists concerning this subject ? certainly this is a point of so much use and agitation amongst them , that were it not for the quarels arising herefrom , it is to bee feared their consistories would want work , and their advocates imployment : but to speake ingenuously , those of the roman clientele are not more careful & punctual in scaning , and observing the rules and practise of their espousals , then ours here are incurious of both : how many have we heard to say , they wil make no promise of themselves till they come to the church-dore ? and of those that doe contract themselves , how weakly & insufficiently is it performed on many hands ? so as their act , if questioned , is no way obliging ; nor such as upon the least discontent , will indure a contestation . now whereas there is a double contract or espousall , the one of the future ; the other of the present : that of the present , if it bee expressed in ful termes , differs nothing from marriage it self , save only in the publick solemnization ; which doubtlesse is a ceremony so requisite , as that without it an horrible confusion must needes follow both in church and state. that of the future , is a mutuall engagement of both parties , that they will marry each other ; which is most properly an espousall-contract ; giving both assurance to each other of a mutuall consent to a matrimony that shall bee ; and yet withall some meet respiration of a more full triall and inquiry into each others condition : for which purpose the wisdom of the church hath ordained that there should be a solemne publication of that more private contract three severall sabbaths , to the whole congregation ; not with ur the earnest charge of a discovery of whatsoever impediment might justly hinder the intended matrimony . the frequent , but unfit , use of these espousall-contracts in the roman church , betwixt their children in minority ( allowing * seven yeers in eyther parry for a meete age to this purpose ) must needs breed both much question and inconvenience : but in those which are of a mature age , and therefore able to judge of what may bee most expedient for themselves , this institution cannot be but singularly usefull & beneficiall : for neither is it meet that so great a work , and so highly importing us as matrimony , should bee rashly and suddainly undertaken ; neither doth it a little conduce to our safety , that since marriage once passed is irreversible , we may have som breathing-time betwixt our promise and accomplishment to inform our selves throughly before it bee too late , what we must trust to for ever . for we may take notice , that though marriage is indissoluble , yet these espousals , or contracts of a future marriage are not so ; many things may intervene betwixt this engagement by promise , and that a full and compleat solemnization , which may break off the match . the casuists determine of seventeen severall cases , at the least , which may sort to this effect ; som whereof have a proper relation to the romish religion ; others are common to what ever contracts of this kind ; i shall not grudge you the mention of them all . an espousall-contract therefore may ( according to their judgement ) be broken off . by the willing remission of both parts , although it had been seconded by an oath : by the entrance of the one party into some order of religion : by a contract with some other in words of the present : by the travaile of one of the parties into remote coun●ries , and not returning up on a lawfull summuns at a time prefixed by the judge : by an affinity supervening upon the sinfull copulation of one of the parties with the near kinswoman of the other : by the absolution of the judg upon suit of one of the parties repenting and pleading minority : by lapse of the time set for the accomplishment of the marriage by the disease of one of the parties being fallen into palsie , leprosie , the neopolitan sickness , or any other contagious distemper , or notable deformity . by the fornication of one of the parties committed since the contract : by a vow of chastity preceding the contract : by som capitall enmity intervening betwixt the families and persons of the contracted by the omission of performing the promised conditions ; as when the dowry agreed upon , is retracted or held off ▪ by the fame of a canonicall impediment , by susception of orders after conrract ; by the supervention of a legall kindred , inexpected ; by the harshnesse and asperity of disposition in either party . and ( which may comprise many other particularities ; by the falling out and discovery of any such accident , or event , as if it had beene sooner knowne would have prevented the making of such a contract ; all these say they , may bar a marriage after espousalls : but yet so , as that the parties may not be their own arbiters , to break off their contracts at pleasure , but must have recourse to the judge ecclesiasticall ; and submit themselves to the over-ruling sentence of the church . if you balk those which are proper to the romish superstition , yet you shall finde many just and allowable causes which may ( after a contract of espousall ) interrupt a purposed matrimony : so as , if there were neither rule , nor example of any such preceding engagement , yet surely , it were very fit for our own security , and our confident and comfortable entrance into that estate which we shall never put off , to observe carefully this previous betrothing of our selves ere wee knit the knot that can never be loosed . case vii . whether there ought to bee a prohibition and forbearance of marriages , and marriage duties for some appointed times . it is one thing what is lawful another thing what is fit and expedient ; as s. paul hath taught us to distinguish : marriage being of gods own institution , and that in the perfection of paradise , there can be no time wherein it may be unlawful to celebrate it ; yet there may be times wherein it is unfit : there is the like reason of times and places ; both of them are circumstances alike ; the debt of the marriage-bed not onely may , but must bee paid by them whom god hath called to that estate yet there are places wherein it were barbarous and piacular to defray it : even , besides those places which are destin'd to an holy use , the jewes of old held this act done in the field or under a tree , worthy of scourging : doubtlesse * there are times so wholly consecrated to devotion , as that therein it would be utterly unseasonable to let our thoughts loose to the most lawful pleasures : hence is that charge of the apostle , defraud not one the other , except it be with consent for the time , that ye may give your selves to fasting and prayer : 1 cor. 7. 5. so then as solomon himselfe can say , there is a time to embrace , and a time to refrain from embraceing . ecclus. 3. 5. but what the limitation of this time may be , no small question hath been raised in the church of god : neyther doe there want extremities on both sides : the church of rome hath heretofore been excessively large in her prohibitions ; forbiding the solemnization of marriage upon pretence of the holiness of the great feasts to be observed ; for the whole third part of the yeere ; neither doth the account fall lesse , if we reckon from the advent to the epiphany ; from septuagesima sunday to the octaves of easter ; and from three dayes before the ascension to the octaves of pentecost ; all which had wont to be strictly kept ; besides the feast of s. john baptist added by some ; and the foure ember weekes by others ; but now of late upon second thoughts , their councell of trent * have found it meet to shorten the restraint , and somewhat to enlarge the liberty of the seasons for marriage , having exempted the two only solemn feasts of easter and the nativitie , and abridged some previous weekes of the former : and for us how observant our consistories had wont to bee of those inhibitions for their own gain , every almanack can witnesse . some worthy divines in our church did not stick to professe their great dislike of our conforming herein to the church of rome , to the scandal of the reformed : concerning both which , i must say : that if either wee or they doe put any holinesse in the time exempted , or any unholiness in the act inhibited , we cānot be excused from superstition , can any time be more holy then gods owne day ? yet on that day wee doe commonly both publish marriages , and celebrate them . but if , as in some solemne fasts , indicted by the church for some publique humiliation , we both doe , and injoyne to abstaine from all conjugall society ; so in a desire the more dovoutly to celebrate the memory of gods infinite mercy to man kinde in sending a saviour into the world for our redemption ; and of the glorious resurrection of that son of god for our justification , we shall take off our selves from all worldly cares or delights , i see not why it should not be both lawfull and commendable . but , to say as it is , as the romanists are guilty of too much scruple in this kind , so too many of our own are no lesse faulty in a careless disregard of the holiest occasions of restraint ; which i would to god it did not too palpably appear in the scandalous carnality of many ( otherwise inoffensive ) professors . it is a common practise ( which i have long wisht an oportunity to censure ) that husbands and wives forget one another too soon : scarce are their consorts fully cold , ere they are laying for a second match ; and too few moneths are enow for the consummation of it . let me be bold to say , this haste hath in it too much not immodesty only , but inhumanity : if we look abroad into the world , wee shall find not among gods peculiar people only , but even amongst the very heathens , a meet ( and not niggardly ) intermission betwixt the decease of the one husband , or wife , & the marriage of another : a whole yeer was found little enough for the wife to mourne for her husband departed : and so is still amongst the very chineses , though atheous pagans ; * and by the civill lawes , a woman marrying within a yeer after her husbands death is counted in famous . it was no short time that * abraham ( though now very old ) breathed upon the death of sara ( the first of wives mentioned as mourned for ) before he took keturah ; and yet the hebrew † doctors observe that there is a short letter in the midst of that word which signifies his mourning ; to imply ( say they ) that his mourning was but moderate : i am sure his sonne isaac ( gen. 24. 67. ) was not comforted concerning the death of that his good mother , till three yeers after her decease : at which time he brought his rebecca into that tent which even still retayned the name of sarahs : whereas with us , after the profession of the greatest deerenesse , the old posie of the deaths-ring tells what we may trust to ; dead and forgotten : who can but blush to read that some heathens were faine to make lawes that the wife might not be allowed to continue her solemne mourning for her husband abve 10 moneths ; and to see that our women had need of a law to inforce them so to mourn for the space of one ? in other reformed churches there is a determinate time of months set , untill the expiration whereof widowes ( especially the younger ) are not suffered to marry ; it were more then requisite that these loose times were , here with us , curbed with so seasonable a constitution ; but it were yet more happy , if a due regard of publique honesty & christian modesty could set bounds to our inordinate desires ; & so moderate our affections , that the world may see we are led by a better guide then appetite . case viii . whether it bee necessary that marriages should be celebrated by a minister ; and whither they may bee valid , and lawfull without him . it is no marvell if the church of rome ( which holds matrimonie a sacrament , conferring grace by the very work wrought ) require an absolute necessity of the priests hand in so holy an act ; but for us , who ( though reverently esteeming that sacred institution , yet ) set it in a key lower , it admits of too much question whether we neede to stand upon the terms of a ministers agency in the performance of that solemn action : there are those in these wilde times that have held it sufficiently lawful for the parties having agreed upon the bargain before friends and witnesses , to betak themselves to bed others have thought this act of conjoyning the married persons in wedlock a fitter act for the magistrate to undertake . and certainely if there were nothing in marriage but meere nature , it could not bee amisse that men and women should upon their mutuall agreement couple themselves together after the manner of brute creatures ; and if there were nothing in mariage but meer civility the magistrate might be meet to be imployed in this service : but now that we christians know matrimony to be an holy institution of god him selfe : which hee not only ordained , but actually celebrated betwixt the first innocent payre ; and which being for the propagation of an holy seed , requires a speciall benediction ; how can we in reason think any man meet for this office , but the man of god , set over us in the lord ; to derive the blessings of heaven upon our heads ? from hence therfore have our wholsom lawes taken a just hint to appropriate this service to a lawfull minister only : so as what ever private contract may bee transacted in corners betwixt the parties affected to each other , yet the marriage knot cannot be publiquely quit by any other hand then gods ministers . and herein certainly wee have just cause to bless the wisdom both of the church and state , which hath so regulated these matrimoniall affairs ; as that they are not only orderly but safely managed : for doubtless were not this provision carefully made , the world would bee quite over-run with beastliness , and horrible confusion : and in this point we may well give the church of rome her due , & acknowledge the wise care of her lateran and tridentine councells , which have enacted so strict decrees against clandestine marriages , and have taken so severe a course for the reforming of many foul disorders in these matrimoniall proceedings ; as may be of good use for the christian world : had they done the like in other cases , their light had not gone out in a snuffe : as therfore it is generally both decreed and observed ( not without excellent reason ) in all christian churches , that marriages should be solemnized in the publick congregation of gods people ; so it cannot but be requisite that it should be done by him , who is ordained to be the mouth of the congregation to god ; & the mouth of god to the congregatton ; and , as under the law , the priest was the man , who must conveigh blessings from god to his people ; so under the gospell who can be so apt for this divine office , as he that serves at the evangelicall altar ? and if all our marriages must be ( according to the apostles charge ) made in the lord , who is so meet to pronounce gods ratification of our marriages , as he who is the profest herald of the almighty ? as it is therefore requisite ( even according to the roman constitutions ) that hee who is betrusted with the cure of our soules , should besides other witnesses be both present & active in , and at our domestique contracts of matrimony : so by the laws both of our church and kingdome , it is necessary he should have his hand in the publique celebration of them . there may then be firme contracts , there cannot be lawfull marriages without gods ministers . case ix . whether there bee any necessity or use of thrice publishing the contract of marriage in the congregation , before the celebration of it ; and whether it bee fit that any dispensation should bee granted for the forbearance of it . there were amongst the jewes certain ceremoniall observations ( besides the precepts ) which they called the hedg of the law , and such there cannot want amongst christians ; whose prudence must direct them both to the ordaining , and keeping of some such expedient rules , as may best preserve gods lawes from violation : of that kind is this which we now have in hand ; this publique and reiterated denunciation of * bannes before matrimony , is an institution required and kept both by al the churches of the roman-correspondence , and by all the reformed ; amongst which , as ours , is most eminent , so it hath still expressed the most zeal and care of the due observing of so wholsom a rite : sixe severall * canons were made in our provinciall synod under the authority of king james of blessed memory in the yeer 1603. to this purpose , with as strict charges , restrictions and cautions , as the wit of man could in this case devise ; and the late directory hath found cause to second so usefull and laudable a constitution : for the convenience , if not necessity , whereof , we need no other argument then the grievous mischiefes that have followed upon the neglect of this ordinance ; that one were enough , which is instanced by the tridentine * synod it self ; that some leud persons having secretly married themselves to one , take liberty to leave that match , and publiquely joyne themselves to another , with whom they live wickedly in a perpetuall adultry ; the frequent practise whereof in those hotter climates we may easily beleeve ; when wee see that in our own more temperate region , the feare of hanging cannot hold som off from so foul a sin . let me add hereunto the late experiments of som odiously incestuous marriages , which even by the relation of our diurnalists ) have by this means found a damnable passage , to the great dishonour of god , and shame of the church ; and hereupon the sad issue of stoln marriages , wherein parents have been most feloniously robbed of their children , are roo feelingly known , & irrecoverably lamented : but as for unfitness and inequality of matches , both for age and condition ( to the too late repentance and utter undoeing of both parties ) they are so ordinary , that they are every dayes occurrences : and all these evils have sensibly grown from the want of these publique denunciations of bannes ; partly upon the unhappy throwing open of the fence of discipline , and partly upon the surreption of secretly mis-gotten dispensations ; and though that forementioned synod of ours , seconded by royal authority , took * the most probable course that could be conceived ( the liberty of those faculties being continued ) for the preventing of these abuses ; as the restraint of the grant of them by any other , save those who have episcopall authority ; and security to bee given upon good bonds that the coast is cleere from all precontracts , suits of law , and prohibited degrees ; that the full consent of parents or guardians is had ; that the marriage shall bee celebrated in the parish church where one of the parties dwelleth ; and lastly the oathes required of two sufficient witnesses ( one whereof known to the judge ) that the expresse consent of parents or guardians goes along with the match intended ; and that there is no impediment from any pre-contract , kindred or alliance : yet notwithstanding all this prudent caution we have by wofull experience found our offices cheated , facultys corruptly procured , and matches illegally struck up , contrary to the pretended conditions : whereas all this mischief might have been avoyded , if as no marriage may bee allowed but publick ; so tho●e publick marriages might not bee celebrated but after thrice publication of the contract in both the parish churches where the persons contracted are known to inhabit : for so both the parents of either side cannot but be acquainted with the ingagements of their children ; and if there be any just hindrance , eyther by precontract , or by proximity of blood , or affinity , it cannot bee concealed ; that so the snare of either an unlawfull or prejudiciall matrimony may be seasonably eschued : to this good purpose therefore it is no lesse then necessary ( as i humbly conceive ) to be both enacted and observed , that no marriage should bee allowed of any person whatsoever ( except perhaps the peers of the realme , who are supposed to bee famously known through the kingdom ) without a solemn publication of their contracts at three several meetings to the congregation assembled ; and that there may no dispensation at al be granted to the contrary upon any whatsoever conditions : and if som pretend bashfulnesse , others feare of malicious prevention ( as the tridentine doctors suggest ) yet it is fit that both should vaile in the inevitable danger of those mischievous inconveniences which follow upon these clandestine matches , and silent dispensations . case x. whether marriages once made may bee anulled , and utterly voided ; and in what cases this may be done . in what only case a divorce may be made after a lawful marriage you have seen before ; now you enquire of the anulling or voiding of marriages made unlawfully : which doubtlesse may bee done by just authority upon divers well-grounded occasions : for as it is an indispensible charge , those whom god hath joyned together let no man put asunder ; so it no lesse truly holds on the contrary ; those whom god hath forbidden to be joyned , let no man keep together . our casuists are wont to bee very copious in this subject , distinguishing betwixt those impediments which may hinder a marriage from being made , and those which may undoe and void the marriage once made . they insist upon many particularities of both kinds ; and som , perhaps too many , i shall instance only in those of the latter sort which are unquestionable ; whereof the first shall be a mis-prison of the match ; when one party is mistaken for another ; as when he who by a full contract consented to marry with anne , is by a fraudulent substitution put up on a marriage with mary ; whether upon the likness of the woman , or the want of a discerning sense in the man ; or by som cunning conveyance of the perfidious contrivers ; for certainly it is the consent that maks the marriage ; & if the hearts be not joined together by mutuall agreement & affection , the coupling of the hāds is but a ceremony utterly ineff●ctual ; i doubt not but it was in jacobs power to have disavowed the match with leah , whom his father in lawe had deceitfully obtruded upon him being more injurious in changing his wife , then in ten times changing his wages ; since his heart was not accessary to that match , which the darkness of the night , and subtlety of a lahan had drawn him into . the like case is in the marrying a bond-woman in stead of a free ; a base plebeian in stead of a person of honour : as then we use to say that mis-reckoning is no payment , so we may well affirm that a mis-marriage is no true wedlock ; and therfore justly to be branded with a nullity . a second my bee the foedity and unnaturalness of the match ; when the parties incestuously marry within the first collaterall degree of brothers and sisters ; the very mention whereof , even nature it self , not depraved , abhorres : so as i cannot but wonder that the romane schoole should bee so much divided in this point , whiles * bonaventure , richardus and durand hold such a marriage even by divine lawe , a nullity ; contrarily aquinas , cajetan , thomas de argentina and others ( whom covarruvias recites ) defend this to be only an impediment by the canon law , and therfore that it may be in the popes power to dispence with so foul a matrimony ; against whom upon better reason , * scotus , and dominicus à soto prove such marriages by the law of nature to be utterly void and null ; with whom all ingenuons christians cannot but willingly concurre in their judgments . a third may be the horribleness of a crime committed in the way to a wicked match ; and that of two sorts ; the one of murther , the other of adultery : the former , when the wife hath conspired with the adulterer to murder her husband , with an intent to marry the murtherer ; or in the like case the husband to murther the wife . the latter when a man living in a known adultry with another mans wife , contracts matrimony with the adultresse in the life time of her husband . a fourth , is the indissoluble knot of mariage with a former still surviving husband or wife ; the force whereof is such , as that it frustrates and voideth any supervening matrimony ( except in the case specified in the foregoing discourse of divorce ) during the naturall life of the consorts . many unhappy , and perplexed cases have we met withall in this kinde ; neither doth it seldome fall out , that the husband being confidently reported for dead in the warres , or in travell abroad ; the wife after some yeers stay , and diligent inquisition , finding the rumor strongly verified by credible testimonies , and tendred oathes , begins to listen to some earnest suitor ; and bestowes her self in a second marriage ; not long after which , her only true , revived husband returnes , and challengeth his right in that his lawfull wife ; pretending the mis-carri●ge of letters and messages sent by him in that forced absence . in this case what is to be done ? the woman hath cast her self upon the danger of a capitall law , except shee have expected the time limited by statute ; or if she escape , one of the husbands is to seek for a wife , whom both may not enjoy : doubtless the second marriage is by ecclesiasticall authority to bee pronounced , as it is , null ; which indeed never had any true right to be : and the first must be content to swallow its own inconveniences . a fifth , may be a violent enforcement of the match : when a woman is upon fear of pain , or death compelled to yeeld her self in marriage , and is not perswaded , but affrighted into the bonds of wedlock : surely this is rather a rape then a matrimony , and therefore , upon utter want of consent , a nullity . a sixt may be a preceding , irremediable impotency , or incapacity of marriage duties ; whether naturall , or advantageous ; whether by way of perpetuall maleficiation , or casualty : i say , preceding ; for if any such disability be subsequent to the marriage , the nullity is avoided ; but if the persons find in themselves beforehand such remediless incapability of a marriage estate , they shall be highly injurious to each other , and shall fouly abuse the ordinance of god , in their entring into such a condition : for it is apparent , that the main ends of marriage are herein utterly frustrate ; which were by gods appointment , the propagation of mankinde , and the remedy of incontinency ; neither of which being attainable in such a defective estate of body , justly is such a match pronounced a nullity . but here i cannot but take occasion to commend the modesty of the women of our nation ; amongst whom , there are so rare examples of suits in this kind , prosecuted in our ecclesiasticall consistories ; it is not to be doubted but there are many defects of this nature to bee found every where , yet scarce one in an age offers to complain and call for redresse : so as it seems they are willing to smother all secret deficiencies , in a bashfull silence ; whereas those of other warmer regions impatient of the wrongs of their conjugall disappointments , fly out into open contestations , and fearelesly seeke for those remedies which the lawes provided in such cases will allow them . certainly the merit of this modest temper is so much the greater , by how much more it is concealed from the world ; and those of either sexe that are content to bite in their hidden grievances of this kinde , are worthy of double honour from those consorts , whose injurious infirmities they both have not disclosed , and suffer in suppressing . additionals . certain cases of doubt , besides the formerly published , having been proposed to me , and received a private solution ; i have thought fit upon the addresse of a second edition , to adjoyn them to their fellows , for the satisfaction of any others , whom the same cases may concern . case i. whether a marriage consummate betwixt the uncle and neece bee so utterly unlawfull , as to merit a sentence of present separation . resolution . what prodigious matches have beene of late made , and are still continued , upon advantage taken of the unsetlednesse of the times , i had rather silently lament , then openly proclaim to the world : such as are not capable of any apology ; call for our blushing and teares ; but there are some others which dare stand upon the termes of defence : such is this which you have here propounded on the behalf of your friend , whom it seemes a mis-learned advocate would faine bear up in a course altogether unjustifiable ; that cause must needs be desperately ill ; that can find no mercenary abettors : his offensive marriage with his neece is hartned by a sophisticall pleader ; whose wit and skill is so ill bestowed in this case , that i wish his fee might be perpetuall silence : but when hee hath made use of his best art to so bad a purpose , those colours of defence , wherewith hee thinks to daub over so soul a cause , will prove but water-colours , which shall easily be wash'd off by this present confutation . it was lawful , he saith , before the leviticall law , thus to match : so were worse marriages then this : let him tell me that cain , and enoch , and seth married their owne sisters , as saturne also did , by the report of diodorus siculus ; necessity made it then not unlawfull : it is a just rule of * law ; those things may not be drawne into precedent , which have been yeelded upon meer necessity ; as we use to say ; necessity hath no law , so it can make none , afterwards , as mankinde grew , nature it selfe taught men to keep further aloofe from their owne flesh ; and still remotenesse of distance enlarged it selfe with time . abraham ( saith hee ) married his neece sarah , gen. 11. 29. ( if at least sarah were iscah ) nahor his neece milcha , amram his aunt jochebed ; and these not without a large bles-upon the bed . let him tell me also , that jacob married two sisters , and conversed conjugally with both ( which were now shamefully incestuous ) yet was herein blessed with the issue of six of those patriarchs , who were the root of those glorious stemmes of israel . if we should speak most favourably of these conjunctions , to ranke them under malum quia prohibitum ; it must needs follow , that till the prohibition came , they could not bee censured as evill : though good authors make it justly questionable , whether these fore-alledged marriages should deservedly bee charged with a sin , or excused by gods extraordinary dispensation , in the meane time the blessing was to the person , not to the act ; even lots incestuous copulatio with his daughters sped well ; two famous nations sprang thence , & of one of them , the gracious progenitrice of the saviour of the world ; yet this is no plea for the allowance of that monstrous conjunction . after ●he law , one justifiable example were worth a thousand before it . lo , good caleb ( saith he ) married his daughter achsah to his brother othoniel . joshua . 15. 16 , 17. indeede , this case comes as home to the businesse as it is farre off from the text . see whether mes-prision of scripture may mislead us : a man that understands nothing but the english , or vulgar latin , may easily run into so foul an error ; weigh but the place well , & you will soon find the fault without me ; othniel the son of kenaz , calebs brother , tooke kerath-sepher , and caleb gave him achsah his daughter to wife ; the english wanting cases expresses it doubtfuly , it will be cleare in the latin ; as montanus , and pagnine , two great masters of the hebrew in their interlinear , read it , othniel filius kenaz , fratris calebi ; othniel the sonne of kenaz , which kenaz was caleb's brother , both the hebrew & chaldee cleare that sense : so the septuagint , as emanuel-sa also urges upon that place judg , 1. 13. expresly say that kenaz was the brother of caleb , and not othoniel ; wherein yet i cannot much blame an unballanced judgement , whiles i find the septuagint contrary to themselves : for in josh. 15. 16 they say othniel was calebs younger brother ; in judg. 3. 9. they say , kenaz the father of othniel was so ; for which there is no excuse , but the large sense of a brother in the hebrew , we are brethren , saith abraham to lot , yet he was lots uncle : so was kenaz a progenitor to othniel ; for caleb is stiled the son of jephunneh the kenezite , josh. 14. 14. & num. 32 ▪ 12. the case was only this , kenaz was the ancestor of caleb ; and one of the same name was his brother , the father of othniel : what can be more plain then 1 chron. 4. 13. and the sons of kenaz , othniel & seraiah ; so as if wee take this most strictly to the letter ; it implies nothing but the marriage of two cozens german , othniel the son of kenaz , and achsah the daughter of caleb , brothers children , as bucer upon the place , melanchton in his tract de conjugio , junius : and indeede , who otherwise ? and now by this time you see what a poore ground this is to build upon ; rather , you see a castle , not built on the sand , but in the ayre ; meer misconceit . but , saith the advocate , this marriage is no where directly forbidden in the law ; i must tell him it is but a meer shuffle to stand upon the terms of a direct prohibition , when there is one no lesse forceable & convictive : two wayes may ought be effectually forbidden in the law ; either in plain expression of terms , or in clear implication of sense ; surely , that is rather more in the law which it means irrefragably , than what it verbally expresseth : now , however this be not in the letter of the law , yet in the sense it is : the same law that forbids the nephew to marry the aunt , doth eadem operâ , forbid the uncle to marry the neece ; in regard as of neerness , yea identity of blood , the case is the same : however , som inequality may be conceived in respect of government & subjection . and if upon som oeconomicall termes , it be more unfit for a nephew to marry his aunt , than for an uncle to marry his neece , yet in regard of blood and that bodily conjunction , which god principally aymes at in this prohibition , what difference can possibly bee conceived ? nature hath made no other distance betwixt the nephew and the aunt , than bewixt the neece & the uncle : or if there be any , they must be sharper eys than mine that can discerne it : god himself ( me thinks ) hath put this out of doubt ; the reason wherewith hee backs his command is iresistible ; the nephew shall not marry the fathers sister ; why so ? for she is thy fathers neer kinswoman , v. 12. lo it is the neerness of blood that makes this match unlawfull , not respect of civil inequality ; where the blood then is equally neere , the marriage must be equally unlawfull . that rule of law which is pretended , in prohibitoriis , quicquid non prohibetur , permittitur . what is not forbidden , is permitted , had neede of a fair construction ; indeed , that which is not forbidden either in words or in necessary analogy & implication of sense , is supposed to be left at large , but what place hath this axiome in a case not less really forbidden than the expressed ? and if wee should strictly follow the letter of this maxime , it would lead us into sodome : since there are marriages not specified , which would be monstrously incestuous , & such as honesty would blush to mention , as shall appeare in the sequele . neither is there any more force in that other , in poenalibus non fit extensio , that penall lawes should not bee stretcht further then their words import . certainly in som sense , i know no law that is not penall : but why this law , thou shalt not marry thy aunt or neece should be rather penal , than , thou shalt not commit adultry , i know not ; i am sure learned zanchius accounts these of the 18. of leviticus , equally morall : and bucanus holds them to be against the law of nature . and if in humane laws this axiom may challenge a place , yet in the roy all laws of our maker , where , under one sin mentioned , all the species & appendances , and the whols claim of that wickednesse is wont to be comprised , doubtless it is utterly unsufferable : neither is here any extension of this prohibition beyond those limits which god hath fixed in the undoubted sense of his law . in the seventh commandement , nothing is expressed but adultry , shall we therefore say neither fornication , nor pollution , nor sodomie is there forbidden ? were not this to destroy that lawe , which god makes to be spirituall , and to open the flood gates to a torrent of licentiousnesse ? surely , it is easy to observe that gods spirit no lesse meanes that which he pleaseth to suppresse . the psalmist sayes , promotion comes neither from the east , nor from the west , nor from the south , psal. 75. 6. shall we therefore say , is is from the north ? is not that coast equally excluded , though not expressed ? it is too much boldness to hold god too strictly to syllables , when it is easie to determin what he meant to imply : these rules then are useless : let me see now if the advocat can as easily shake off one or two rules of law , which i shall return upon him in lieu of his . is committit in legem , &c. hee wrongs the law who keeping close to the letter , strives against the intent and purpose of the law : and that other not unlike , in fraudem legis facit qui salvis verbis legis sententiam ejus circumvenit , if this be not the case in hand , i shall professe to know nothing . from rules , let us look to authorities , it is directly maintained ( hee saith ) by the canonists and scholemen ; but what is it that is so maintained ? not this match ( let no man think so ) but that proposition , viz : that this match is no where directly forbidden in gods law , if wee take it of express terms , no wise man ever denied it ; not canonists & scholemen only , or those few named authors , but all reasonable men concurre in this truth ; what needs a citation of some , where all agree ? but if we take it of the necessary & cleare sense of the law by just analogy and infallible implication , now , none of the forecited , or any other orthodox authors will deny the certaine and indubitable prohibition of this marriage . how well the rest will speed , judg by their fore-man , tho : aquinas who expresly determines it a false position , that those are joyned together by god , who match within the fourth degree , whereas this is in the third ; not to say how stifly peter lombard urges the unlawfulness of marriages to the very seventh degree , vel quousque parentela possit agnosci , even as farre as the kindred may bee discerned , following herein pope gregory and nicholas : to shut up short , none of all his cited authors dare be any other then professed enemies to this match ; no lesse , then the most zealous commissioner of that now abolished court , whose late sentence is upon record enough to this purpose . as for lyra , who is trailed in here , and cited strongly in othniels case , what shall i say ? it grieves my soul to see any well-minded christian so abused by mis-information : this author hath thus turpitudinem sororis , &c. thou shalt not uncover the nakednesse of thy fathers sister , or thy mothers sister ( & eodem modo ) and in the same manner is forbidden the marriage betwixt the brother , and the daughter of the aunt , for it is the same degree , so lyra : nothing can be more peremptory against this case in favor of which he is alledged . this would be the issue of all the rest , if it were worth the while to examin them , in that , which yeelded , nothing advanceth the cause of the producer . they are all as professed enemies to this match as my selfe ; only they deny an expresse mention of this cause , which was never either thought needfull , or intended to be pleaded . for the protestant divines which are cited to give testimony to the non-prohibition of this marriage , i must cry shame upon those false hands which have so palpably abused both your friend & the authors : let me give but a taste of som , melancthon zanchius , bucanus , who are said to allow the match , by admiting only the degrees mentioned to bee prohibited ; no place is instanced ; versatur in generalibus , you know the word , but let your eyes be judges of their opinion : melancthon mentioning the marriage of abraham and sarah , in the second degree : hoc gradu ( saith he ) in linea inaequali &c. in this degree in an inequallline ; marriages are forbidden by gods law , because god doth universally ordaine a greater reverence to be yeelded to a superior degree , then to an equall : it is the very case in hand , which melancthon thus sentenceth : for zanchius , he citing the text of levit. 18 13. thou shalt not uncover the nakednesse of thy mothers sister ; adds , ergo neque mater teram , &c. therfore no man ( saith he ) may marry his aunt , and that charge which he gives concerning the aunt would god have to bee understood also of the uncle , which is the fathers brother , or the mothers brother , whiles he adds a reason of the prohibition , for she is the neer kinswoman of thy father or mother : thus zanchius in his book de operibus dei. lib. 4. de sponsalibus , who absolutely condemnes this marriage as incestuous , and indispensable . bucanus , moving the case of abrahams marriage with sarah , and amrams with jochebed &c. leaves it in doubt whether these men were ( as the times stood ) particularly dispensed with by god , or whether they sinned in thus marrying , even before the law , against the law of nature , by which he holds these matches utterly prohibited ; with what forehead then could any scholar obtrude these fals allegations upon an honest client , whether to draw his foot into a snare , or to keep it there , under pretence of favoring what they professedly oppose . as for the moderne jewes , to whom he stretches out his hand for succour , it matters little what they now teach or do ; they are not more without god , then without honesty , or credit ; their opinions are fabulous , their judgement frivolous , and their practise not worth our knowledge or regard . i rather descend to the resolution of our owne church ; that our ever honoured mother hath passed her condemnatory sentence upon this marriage in her ratification of that orthodox and just table of forbidden degrees , set forth by authority under archb. parker , what doubt we now ? do we acknowledg the oracular voice of our dear and holy mother the church of england , and yet question whether we should obey it ? certainly in a case of conscience , a dutifull son ( mee thinks should rather hold fit to follow the sacred determination of the church , then the municipall acts of the civill state . it is an ill office of those that would set church and state , canons and statutes together by the eares even in these points wherin they are perfect friends . the statute of 32 of henry 8. c. 38. intending to marre the romish market of gainfull dispensations , and injurious prohibitions , professeth to allow all marriages that are not prohibited by gods law , such is this in hand , prohibited , though not in the letter , yet in necessary inference and interpretation . the canon 99. of 1603. hath thus : no person shall marry within the degrees prohibited by the lawes of god , and expressed in a table set forth by authority , in the yeer 1563. and all marriages so made and contracted shal be adjudged incestuous and unlawfull . what scruple can arise hence ? here is a perfect harmony betwixt statute and canon . it is a meer cavill ( no better to take and for or , as if the meaning were , that all degrees , whether prohibited by the lawe of god , or expressed in that table are forbidden : this is a foule straine both to grammer and to the sence and scope of the canon , which plainly intends to aver that all those degrees prohibited in that table are also forbidden by the laws of god. a truth so certain , that if either self-love , or love of gaine did not betray the eye , it is a wonder how it should abide a contradiction . it is observable that neither statute nor canon speak of an expresse prohibition in gods law , and the canon purposely distinguisheth the termes prohibited by gods law , and expressed in the table , as justly supposing there may be as strong a prohibition in a sense implyed , as verbally expressed : else , if our lawes ( as is pretended ) should give allowance ( which god forbid ) to any marriages not expresly in terminis , forbidden ; wee should have strange and uncouth mixtures . god by moses expresly forbad the uncovering the nakedness of father and mother ; hee expressed not the nakednesse of son and daughter : he expresly names the nakednesse of the fathers wife , he expresseth not the nakednesse of the mothers husband : he expresly names the nakednesse of thy sister , he expresseth not the nakedness of thy brother ; he expresseth the nakednesse of thy sons daughter , he expresseth not the nakednesse of thy daughters son : he expresseth the nakednesse of thy fathers wives daughter , he expresseth not the mothers husbands sonne ; he expresseth the fathers sister , not the mothers brother : he expresses the daughter in law , not the son in law . so as by this rule , if it should be carried only by meer verball expressions , a woman might marry her son in law ; the nephew might marry his great aunt , the neece her grea-uncle ; the daughter might marry her mothers husbands sonne ; the grand-mother might marry her daughters son ; the daughter might marry with her mothers husband ; were these things to be allowed , the world would be all sodome : these things therefore are of necessity included in the law by a clere analogy ; no lesse then if they had beene expressed . but have there been , as hee saith , precedents of this march ? i am sory to heare it ; surely , the more the worse and the more need to redresse it ; the addition of this , if neglected , would help to strengthen an ill claim . cozens-german , he saith , have beene allowed to marry ; what is that to the present case ? the difference is as much as betwixt a nephew and an uncle ; the uncle hath too much of the parents both right , and blood , to challenge an equall claim with a cozen. in the shutting up , it pitties me to see your worthy friend driven to this plea ; and like a drowning man to snatch at so small a twig : being done ( he saith ) it ought not to be undone . alas , the canon is peremptory . it is incestuous and unlawfull ; what plea is there for continuance ? speak not therfore of either connivence or dispensation ; this match is only capable of a late , but much wished repentance on the offenders part ; and a just diremption on the part of the judges . case ii. whether it be lawfull for a man to marry his wives brothers widow . amongst all the heads of case . divinity , there is no one that yeeldeth more scruples , then this of marriage , whether wee regard the qualification of the persons , or the emergency of actions and events . it is the lawfulness of this match that you inquire after , not the expedience and i must shape my answer accordingly . it hath been the wisdom and care of our godly and prudent predecessors , to ordaine a table of all the prohibited degrees to be publiquely hang'd up in all the severall churches of this nation ; to which all commers might have recourse for satisfaction : this catalogue you have perused , and find no exception of the case specified ; i know no reason therfore why you may not conclude it not unlawfull . the question of the expedience would require another debate , doubt less , in all cases of this nature , it must needs be yeelded that it were more meet and safe ( since the world yeilds so large a latitude of choice ) to look further off ; a wise and good man will not willingly trespasse against the rules of just expedience : and will be as carefull to consider what is fit to be done , as what is lawfull ; but that comes not , at this time , within your inquiry . whiles therfore i give my opinion for the lawfulness of this marriage with the relict of the wives brother , i doe no whit clash ( as you suggest with the judgement of beza , and master perkins , who professe their dislike of such copulations : i shal as readily cry them down for unmeet , and inconvenient , as those , that with too much boldnesse come over neere to the verge of a sinfull conjunction , but for the not unlawfulnesse of this match , i did upon the first hearing give my affirmative answer : and the more i consider of it , i am the more confirmed in that resolution . that universal rule mentioned by you , as laid down by those two worthy authors , must indure a limitation ; cujus non licet inire nuptias , ejus nec conjugis licet ; that there is the same degree and force of relation of a third person ( in the case of marriage ) to the husband and to the wife ; so as proximity of blood in the one , should not be a greater bar then the same proximity of alliance in the other ; otherwise , many more copulations will fall under censure , then common practise will condescend unto ; and that ground of , uxor pars quadam viri , the wife is as a part of the husband , as it holds not in naturall relation at all , so not in all conjugall ; as might be too easily instanced in divers particulars . and if there were not som difference in these relations , those second persons which are interessed in the husband or wife , might not come neer to the next in affinity to them ; for example , my brother may not marry my sister , therefore by this rule , he might not marry my wives sister , and so it should bee unlawfull for two brothers to marry two sisters , then which nothing is more ordinary or lesse obnoxious to disallowance . that generall rule therefore , must be restrained necessarily to the first ranke of affinity ; if we descend lower it holds not . for further explanation , our civilians and canonists are wont to make two kinds or degrees of affinity , the one primary , the other secondary ; in the first is the affinity between the husband and the cozens of blood to his wife , or è cōverse ; which indeed is justly held no lesse for a barr of marriage then his own naturall consanguinity ; for that is an affinity contracted upon interest of blood , by virtue of that entire union between man and wife , wherby they both become one flesh ; the secondary affinity is that wherein there is another person added moreover to that first kinde now mentioned ; the affinity arising only from the interest of an affinity , formerly contracted , not from consanguinity ; and this is not so binding as either to hinder a marriage to be contracted , or being contracted , to dissolve it . in this rank are the brothers wife and sisters husband ; and therefore , upon the decease of the brother and sister , the husband of the sister deceased , and the wife of the deceased brother may marry together , as dr. nicholauseverhardus out of richardus de media villa , and * ; of this kind is the marriage now questioned which therfore doth not fall within the compasse of the prohibition , secundum ge●us affinitatis , &c. the second kind of affinity , which is by a person added unto the first kinde is no bar to matrimony ; and with this judgment i find no reason why i should not concur ; but if any man think that he sees just ground to entertaine a contrary opinion , i prejudge him not , but modestly leave him to the freedom of his owne thoughts . case iii. whether an incestuous marriage contracted in simplicity of heart betwixt two persons ignorant of such a defilement , and so farre consummate as that children are borne in that wedlock , ought to be made known and prosecuted to a dissolution . it is a question ( as it may be put ) full of doubt and intricacy , parallel whereunto , and eminent in this kind , was that case , which i had long since from the relation of m. perkins ; and since that , have met with it in the report of two severall german authors . the case thus : a gentlewoman of great note in those parts , being left a widow , had her son trained up in her house ; who now having passed the age of his puberty , grew up as in stature , so in wanton desires ; earnestly soliciting her chamber-maid to his lust ; she had the grace not only to repell his offers , but being wearied with his wicked importunity , to complain to her mistresse , of his impetuous motions : the mother out of a purpose to repress this wild humor in her son , bids the maid , in a seeming yieldance to make appointment the night following with him , at which time shee would change beds with the maid , & schoole the young man to purpose . this being accordingly done , the devil so farre prevailed with the mother , that instead of chastising , she yeelded to the lust of her son , and by him conceived a daughter : & now finding her self to grow big , for the hiding of her shame , she retired secretly to a remote part of the country , where she unknowne left the burden of her wombe , and took order for all care & secrecy of education : after som yeeres the mother thinks fit to call home her concealed issue , under the pretence of a kinswoman , and gives her such breeding in her house , as might become the child of a friend ; the maid grew up to such comelinesse , both of person and behaviour , that the sonne , now grown a man , fell into passionate love with her , & in short , married her ; little thinking that hee was now matched with his owne daughter , he gotten by him of his own mother : they lived lovingly and comfortably together , and had divers children betwixt them . only the mother , who was alone conscious of this monstrous copulation , began to finde an hell in her bosom ; and in a deep remorse , made the case , at last known to some learned divines of that time , who be stowed many serious thoughts upon so uncouth a businesse ; and finally agreed upon this determination . that all circumstances throughly weighed , the penitent mother should after a sound humiliation secretly make her peace with god , for so foul and prodigious a sin ; but that the knowledge of the horrible incestuousness of this match , should still and ever , be concealed from the yong couple , who thought of nothing but a faire and honest legality in this their conjunction . the decision of this point comes somwhat home to yours ; to spend my opinion therefore in this case , i find no reason , all things considered , to vary from their judgment . i say then , that the mothers sinne was not more hainous in yeilding to so abominable an act of incest with her son , then in smothering the seasonable notice of it for the preventing of a worse incest with her daughter ; for that first act of her incest was transient , but this incest which was occasioned by her silence was permanent , and derivable to her posterity : she ought therfore , though to her perpetuall shame , when she saw an inclination in her son , to so foully unnaturall a match , to have forestalled it by a free confession , and to have made him sensible of so odious a procreation : which not being done , it must needs be said , that , as the first act of the sonne was a voluntary fornication , but an involuntary incest ; so this incestuous copulation of the son with the daughter , was involuntary in them both ; and there cannot be an actuall sinne , wherein there is not a consent of the will. on the one side , it is shamefull to thinke that so grievous a sin should passe without som exemplary censure , & that so foule blood should be propagated to succeeding ages , for want of the timely intervention of a vindicative authority ; but on the other side , it would be well considered what miserable inconveniences , yea mischiefs would follow upon so late a discovery ; first , all honest hearts are put into a just ; but unprofitable horror , to think that such a flagitious wickedness could be committed ; then the mother , who had rinced her soule with a fountain of teares , for so hatefull a miscarriage , and reconciled her self to that god , who was the only witness of her sin , should bee so late exposed to the unseasonable shame of that world , which , never was privy to her offence . as for the yong couple thus prodigiously conjoyn'd , how could they choose , upon the too late notice of their so deplorable condition , but run mad for anguish of soule , and weare out the rest of their dayes in shame and sorrow : and for the children born to them in so detestable a wedlock , whom they had formerly beheld with complacence & comfort , as the sweet pledges of their conjugall love , how must they now needs look upon them , as the living monuments of their ignominy ; and loath them as the most basely begotten imps of a worse then besti all copulation . and when riper age should bring that unhappy of spring forth into the world how should they be every where pointed at , & hooted after as som strange aberrations of nature ; all which are avoyded by this secrecy . but if on the other side you shall reply that this one evill is more , then equivalent to all these ; that in the meane time , these parties live in a continuall incest , and traduce it to following generations ; i must put you in minde to distinguish betwixt the state of incest , and the sin of incest ; it is true they live in a state of incest , but , from the sin of incest they are excused by an ignorance , altogether invincible ; an ignorance both of the originall fact , & of their mutual relations ; for it is to be supposed , that had they had the least intimation of the natural interest of father & daughter , they would with much indignation have defied so foul a cōmixture , which even bruite creatures ( if wee may beleeve histories ) have by the instinct of nature abominated , & upon after knowledg , revenged . and if any light of knowledge had broken forth unto the parties , of that condition wherein they stood , then to have continued under that state of incest , but an houre , had been damnably sinful ; now all those inevitable consequences of shame & horror must have been sleighted & forgotten , and must have shut up in a sodain dissolution . but as there are many degrees of incest , and the sin is so much more , or lesse haynous , as the parties are neerer or more remote ; i perceive the case intimated by you , concerns a lower ranke of incestuous copulation , namely , an incest arising from a mans carnall knowledge of a person too neere in blood unto her , whom he afterwards marrieth ; the fact known only by one , who now doubts whether he be not bound to reveale it : and why not sooner , when so faulty a match might have been prevented ? why so late , when the remedy intended , would bee as noxious as the disease ? why at all , when there is no necessity or use of the revelation ? this question starts another more universall , how farre we may or ought to mak known the secret sin of another ? doubtlesse to prevent som enormous act , which may follow upon our silence ; or upon the urging of lawfull authority , when we are called to give evidence concerning a fact questioned ; or to antevert some great danger to the publique , to our selves , to our friend , we may , & must disclose our knowledg of a closs wickedness ; or if the act be so haynously flagitious , and redounding to so high dishonour of god , as that our conscience tells us shall participate of this sinne in concealing it ; our holy zeal shall herein bear us out in a just accusation ; although in this case , heede must be taken , that our single crimination may be so carried and made good by circumstances , that it draw us not into the perill of a slander ; but , without these , i cannot see , that the revealing of a secret sinne , can be construed any otherwise than an act of detraction ; than which , nothing can be more odious and prejudiciall to humane society : wee have learn'd from aquinas that there are eight wayes of this hatefull practise ; whereof foure are direct ; the raysing of a false crime , the amplifying of a true crime ; the disclosing of a crime secret , and the sinister construction of anothers fact . to these i must adde , that even where the act is such as challengeth a revelation , the time may bee unseasonable and past the date . you know that the notice of treason , if too long smothered , drawes the concealer into danger : and in this case , though there be no perill in the silence , yet there may be injury : shortly , this sinne , if ever , should have been so early made known to the party concerned , as might have prevented the making up of a match secretly sinfull ; and have convinced the agent of a foule illegality , whereof he was ignorant . but now thus overlate , would break out to an unprofitable vexation , since this crime which might justly have hindred the marriage from being contracted , ought not to have the force , after so long intermission and successe of an intervenient wedlock , to dissolve it . the time was , when the minister in a solemne preconization , called you either then to speake , or for ever after to hold your peace : had you then spoken it might have been construed as zeale , now , not to hold your peace , will bee interpreted no better then malice . an advertisement to the reader . i have beene earnestly moved by some judicious friends , to goe on with this subject , and to mak up a compleat body of case-divinity , both practicall , speculative , and mixt ; whereof i confesse there is great defect in our language ; but i remember the talke which plutarch reports to have been betwixt crassus , and king deiotarus , two old men , but great undertakers . crassus jeeres deiotarus for laying the foundation of a new city in his decayed age ; deiotarus twits crassus for going about , in the like age to subdue the warlike parthians ; both justly supposing our decrepit age a just disswasive from * venturing upon great enterprises ; although herein i should not want a worthy precedent , that honour of navarre , martinus azpilcueta , who at ninty years finished the fourth edition of that his elaborate manuall of cases of conscience . but as for me , i am sufficiently conscious of my owne inabilities for so long , and difficult a worke ; onely this , i shall willingly profess , that such scruples as i meete with in my way , i shall not allow my selfe to balke , and shall leave the answers upon the file . in the meane time , let me incite some of our many eminent divines , whose wits are fresh , and bodies vigorous , to go through with so usefull a worke ; many yeares are passed since my ancient and learned colleague dr. ralph cudworth told me that hee had with much labour finished that taske , and devoted it to the presse , which yet sleeps in some private hands . it were happy if his worthy sonne , the just heyre of his fathers great abilities , would make strict inquiry after it , and procure it to the publique light , for the common benefit of gods church both in the present , and succeeding ages . the end. notes, typically marginal, from the original text notes for div a45158-e320 * dan. 10. 13. 20 , 21. 12. 1. notes for div a45158-e1610 * exod. 22. 25. levit. 25. 36 , 37. deut. 23. 19 , 20. nehem. 5. 7. psal. 15. 5. prov. 28. 8. ezek. 18. 8. a vid. alexand. ab alexand. gen. dierum l. 1. c. 7. * concil . viennens . * dom. sot. de justif. & jure l. 6. quaest . 2. artic. 3. tradit hoc ut axioma jurisconsultorum . * tul. de offic. l. 3. * so the vulgar renders zapnath paaneah salvator mundi , gen. 41 45. * lessius l. 2. c. 17. dub . 5. * cicer. de offic. l. 3. sect 58. * aug. epist. 54 ▪ ad macedon . * arist. eth. l. 2. c. 2. * lessius de jure , &c. l. 2. c. 42. dub . 6. * attilius regulus . * dom. sot. de jure & justit . l. 5. q. 3. pag. 436. * les. de jur . &c. l. 2. c. 9. dubit . 8. ex antonio & sylvestr . &c. * ibid. paragr . ult . * less . ibid. * dalton . p. 244. * orat. pro. mil. † bann q. 64. a. 7. dub . 9. nav. l. 2. c. 3. less . l. 2. de jure , &c. c. 9. dub . 8. * rodrig . sum. cas . tom. 1. cap. 73. * conc. tr. sess. 25. rodriguez . tom. 1. c. 73. de duello , * tertul. in apol. c. 9. † less . l. 2. c. 9. du . 10. * ne se pollueret , mavit ipse mori . ex politiano gerard. voss. de orig . & progres . idol . l. 3. c. 18. * exod. 21. 22. the septuagint seem to have taken 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 ( death ) for 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 a diminutive of 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 a man : as cornel , à lapid . probably guesses † castal . si pernicies non fuerit : ours , if no mischief follow . * cornel. à lap. in exod. 21. * vel. ut alii , quorum animae certissimè in limbum descendunt siue baptismo . mart. alphons . viv. explan . bullae de abort . * rodr. sum. to. 1. c. 5. de abort . * vid rodrig . ubi supra . * constit. greg. 14. quae dicit quod quivis confessor approbatus ab ordinario potest absolvere à peccato abortus . ibid. * mart. alphons . vivald . expli . bull crue . * qui retinetur in carcere propter aliquod delictum , &c. rodrg . sum. cap. 40. * val max. l. 5. dom. sot. de jure , &c. l. 5 q. 5 * silvestr . v. correct . dom. sot. l. 5. de jure , q. 4 less . de judice l. 2. c. 29. * dom. à sot. de jure , &c. l. 5. qu. 4. * etenim quod homo , qui ●fficio suo vivit , debeat tantam ●acturam facere , durum creditu est . dom. sot. ubi s●p●a . † in causis civilibu , et minùs criminalibus * less . de jure , &c. l 2. de judice dub. 10. quia resp . habeat authoritatem disponendi , &c. * prov. 11. 13. 20. 19. 26. 20. 26. 2. * rodriguez . tract . ordinis judicialis cap. 10. † sotus l. 5. q 6. de justi . 11. rei , art. 1. * less . de jur . l. 2. cap. 13. dub . 3● . * mart. azpil . navar. enchirid . cap. 25. num . 38. * less . de jure l. 2. c. 9. dub . 6. * 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 . lverul . adv. of learn . * navarr . enchir. cap. 11. n. 28. † less . l. 2. de magia cap. 44. dub . 6 , * thesaurus exoreismorum ; atque conjurationum terribilium , &c. tract . dispersi● daemonum . fratris valerii poly●●ori patavini . ord. minorum conventualium † t it applicabile . 3. rutae in charta benedicta super se portandae o● faciendae , ad omnem invasionem diabolicam repellendam . * applicabile . 15. tit. profumigatio horriblis , ejusque vulgata benedictio . * less . ubi supra dubit . 5. * bromiard . sum . praedict . * relat. of the third confer . p. 6. * epiphan . haeres . l. 1. * tract . de vit. spec . lect . 4. cit. dom. à soto ut infra . † gersonis positio parum distat ab haeresi lutheran● . dominic . à soto de jure , &c. l. 1. qu. 6. * ten hand breadths long , five broad , seven fingers high . * h. ainsworth in lev. 24 ▪ 9. ex maimonide * 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 , &c. clem. al. stro 1. * plin. l. 12. b●ngus de num . myster . num . 10● * greg. cap. pervenerabilem . & cap si non . 23. q 4. justum sanctumque esse bellum quod infidelibus à christianis infertur , ut eis imperio subditis praedicari possit christi evangelium , ne si imperio subditi non siat , praedicationi & conversioni eorum qui crediderint impedimento esse possint . * decret & indultum alex. 6. super expeditione , &c populos in ejusmodi insulis & terris d●gentes ad christianam religionem indulc ere velitis & d●b●atis , &c † franc. a victoria relect. de indis ▪ * eccles. 18. 1. 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 * 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 . communiter . montan. † estii annotat. in locum . * prov. 8 22 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 . † vulg. tra. esa. 45. 11. * ecclus. 25. 9. blessed is he that preaches a word unheard of . * erat autem ipse nox . † psal. 91. 6. bern. ser. 33 * the word in the originall is 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 which every man knowes to bee used ordinarily to signifie either principes , or sacerdotes , as exo. 2. 16. * where doubtlesse 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 was mistaken for 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 ▪ which title is sometimes given to the angels . 1 king. 11. 5. * quinque milla , for mille & quinque , five thousand , for a thousand and five . † cecinit for cicidit , * the word is 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 numer●s . † rev. 15. 6. 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 . su●● . 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 rev. 15. 6. * 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 pro 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 neh. 6. 2. percutiamus soedus in vitulis , in campo uno : for , in viculis , in campo , ono anni nostri sicut aranca meditabuntur , psal 90. 9 for , as a tale that is told : concupiscentia spadona devirginabit juvenculā , ecclus . 20. 4 super for subter . gen. 35 8. vulnera for ulcera , exod 9. 9. distinctum for bis tinctum , exod 49. 28. sanctuarii for sancto atrii , levit. 6 16. tonsis for tusis , levit. 22. 24. neque for atque , levit. 25 11. solis , for salis , deut. 29. 23 non fuerit for fuerit . josh. 2. 18. o●cidentale● for orientalem , jos. 12 3. hamata for squamata , 1 sam. 17. 5. vagi habitabunt for pagi habitabuntur , 1 sam. 27. 8. judam for ludā 2 sam 6. 20. tumulum for tumultum , 2 sam. 18. 29. capides seculi for sacculi , prov. 16. 11. ad alia for ad alta , prov. 26. 2. sponsa for speciosa , cant. 2. 13. adultera for adulta , ecclus. 42. 9. in fidelem for fidelem , esa. 17. 10. immitantes for irritantes : terra for ●er . ecclus. 48. 2 , 3. obsurduit for obsorduit , esa. 33. 19 imprudentem for impudentē , esa. 33. 19 faunis fica ri●s for fatuis sicarii● , esa. 50 39 vinctas for tinctas ezec. 23. 13. ejiciat ▪ for mittat . mat. 9. 38. angelus for angulus zach. 10. 4. servivit for servavit , ose. 12. 12. confessus for confusus , mar. 8. 38. sexta for tertia , mar. 15. 25. mytelem for melita , act 28. 1. compellebantur for complebantur . luk. 8. 23. placue runt for lat●●erunt heb 13. 2. adduxistis for addixistis . ja● . 5 6. in carne for in carcere , 1 pet. 3. 19. appropinquabit for appropinquavit , 1 pet. 4. 7. tubarum for turbarum , rev. 19. 1. de igne chaldaeorum for de 〈◊〉 chaldaeoru● . nehem. 9. 7. * thom. è sanchez ▪ societ . jes. theol. de matrimonio * jaco ▪ leon●ssa . consil. matrimon . 49. † exod. 21. 7. deut. 15. 12 , 13. * l. 2. c. de patribus qui , &c. † covarruv . l. 3. var. c. 14. ex accursio & aliis . les. l. 2. c. 5. dub 4. † num. 30. 3 , 4 , 5 , 6. * less . de jure l. 2. c. 40 dub . 14. * navar. enchir. 4. prae . c. 14. n. 14. filius qui parentibus in extrema necessitate constitutis , &c. * matrimonia esse irritae , &c. instit. de nuptiis , & ff ▪ de jure nuptiarum . ita & evarist . in constit . edita anno c. * 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 * deut. 24. 1. 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 . * maimon . treat . of divorce . * so also 1 cor. 7. 39. * decreeing to take bonds of the persons divorce to remain single . can & constit. c. 107. * 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 , eph ▪ 6. 4. 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 , colos . 3. 2. * cor à lap in locum . * will. syno . controver . 15. de mart. q. 3. * greg. resp . ad interrog . augustini . q. 6. * cic. orat . pro cluentio † hotoman de grad cognat ▪ laurent . kirchovius profes . rostoch . in consil . matrimon . * ambr. ep . ad paternium 66. * hodie cessat fraternitas & aliqua ex parte compaternitas per concilium trident. sess. 24. navar. c. 22. n. 27. * hotoman de vita matrimon . p. 6. cita●●e kirchovio , ut supra . * exod. 22. 16. ●evit . 19 20. deut. 20. 7. deut. 22. 25 23. 28. jer. 2 2 * compare mat. 1. 18. with d●u 22 13 † magdeburg . cent. 2. de conjugio 2 cor. 11 2 * concil . anciran . can . 24. † concil . eliv . c. 45. * luicbrand in syric . * aetas legitimè contrhbendi matrimonium , est in masculis 14 annos , in faeminis 12 sponsalbus autem contrahendis , septem in utriusque . navar. c. 22. n. 28 * maimon . shicard . de reg. * concil trid. sess. 24. * alex. ab . alex. l. 3. gen. dier . c. 7. cod. l. 2. tit . 12 * as appeares by comparing of gen. 23. 2. with 25. 1. † 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 gen. 23. 2. * concil . trident. sess 24 decret . de reformat matrimon . * constit. 62 , 63 , 101 , 102 , 103 , 104 * concil trid. 〈…〉 * constit. and canons ut supra . can. 101 , 102 , 103. * martin . alphons . vivald . candelab-aureum de matrim . & par●ic . de consanguin . * scot. m 4. d. 40. sot. ibid. q. un . art . 4. * in argumentum trati nequeunt , quae propter necessitatem sunt concessa * consil , matrimonial . germanor . consil. 5. notes for div a45158-e18330 * plut in v●●a crassi the nature, power, deceit, and prevalency of the remainders of indwelling-sin in believers together with the wayes of its working and means of prevention opened, evinced, and applyed with a resolution of sundry cases of conscience thereunto appertaining. owen, john, 1616-1683. 1675 approx. 519 kb of xml-encoded text transcribed from 154 1-bit group-iv tiff page images. text creation partnership, ann arbor, mi ; oxford (uk) : 2005-12 (eebo-tcp phase 1). a53712 wing o775 estc r26173 09378648 ocm 09378648 42900 this keyboarded and encoded edition of the work described above is co-owned by the 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(eebo-tcp ; phase 1, no. a53712) transcribed from: (early english books online ; image set 42900) images scanned from microfilm: (early english books, 1641-1700 ; 1313:8) the nature, power, deceit, and prevalency of the remainders of indwelling-sin in believers together with the wayes of its working and means of prevention opened, evinced, and applyed with a resolution of sundry cases of conscience thereunto appertaining. owen, john, 1616-1683. [4], 298 p. printed for thomas cockerill, london : 1675. reproduction of original in: new college (university of edinburgh). library. created by converting tcp files to tei p5 using tcp2tei.xsl, tei @ oxford. re-processed by university of nebraska-lincoln and northwestern, with changes to facilitate morpho-syntactic tagging. gap elements of known extent have been transformed into placeholder characters or elements to simplify the filling in of gaps by user contributors. eebo-tcp is a partnership between the universities of michigan and oxford and the publisher proquest to create accurately transcribed and encoded texts based on the image sets published by proquest via their early english books online (eebo) database (http://eebo.chadwyck.com). the general aim of eebo-tcp is to encode one copy (usually the first edition) of every monographic english-language title published between 1473 and 1700 available in eebo. eebo-tcp aimed to produce large quantities of textual data within the usual project restraints of time and funding, and therefore chose to create diplomatic transcriptions (as opposed to critical editions) with light-touch, mainly structural encoding based on the text encoding initiative (http://www.tei-c.org). the eebo-tcp project was divided into two phases. the 25,363 texts created during phase 1 of the project have been released into the public domain as of 1 january 2015. anyone can now take and use these texts for their own purposes, but we respectfully request that due credit and attribution is given to their original source. users should be aware of the process of creating the tcp texts, and therefore of any assumptions that can be made about the data. text selection was based on the new cambridge bibliography of english literature (ncbel). if an author (or for an anonymous work, the title) appears in ncbel, then their works are eligible for inclusion. selection was intended to range over a wide variety of subject areas, to reflect the true nature of the print record of the period. in general, first editions of a works in english were prioritized, although there are a number of works in other languages, notably latin and welsh, included and sometimes a second or later edition of a work was chosen if there was a compelling reason to do so. image sets were sent to external keying companies for transcription and basic encoding. quality assurance was then carried out by editorial teams in oxford and michigan. 5% (or 5 pages, whichever is the greater) of each text was proofread for accuracy and those which did not meet qa standards were returned to the keyers to be redone. after proofreading, the encoding was enhanced and/or corrected and characters marked as illegible were corrected where possible up to a limit of 100 instances per text. any remaining illegibles were encoded as <gap>s. understanding these processes should make clear that, while the overall quality of tcp data is very good, some errors will remain and some readable characters will be marked as illegible. users should bear in mind that in all likelihood such instances will never have been looked at by a tcp editor. the texts were encoded and linked to page images in accordance with level 4 of the tei in libraries guidelines. copies of the texts have been issued variously as sgml (tcp schema; ascii text with mnemonic sdata character entities); displayable xml (tcp schema; characters represented either as utf-8 unicode or text strings within braces); or lossless xml (tei p5, characters represented either as utf-8 unicode or tei g elements). keying and markup guidelines are available at the text creation partnership web site . eng sin. conscience, examination of. man (theology) 2005-03 tcp assigned for keying and markup 2005-04 aptara keyed and coded from proquest page images 2005-05 judith siefring sampled and proofread 2005-05 judith siefring text and markup reviewed and edited 2005-10 pfs batch review (qc) and xml conversion sold by sam l : james bookseller at the bible in gutter lane cheap side london where may be had bibles & common prayers . books of divinity , history , physick , mathematicks , poetry , voyages and travels &c. n. b. ready mony for any library or parcel of books sam l. sympson sculp t the nature , power , deceit , and prevalency of the remainders of indwelling-sin in believers . together with the wayes of its working , and means of prevention . opened , evinced and applyed , with a resolution of sundry cases of conscience thereunto appertaining . o wretched man that i am , who shall deliver me from this body of death ! i thank god through jesus christ our lord , rom. 7. 24 , 25. london , printed for thomas cockerill , at the sign of the atlas in cornhil near the royal exchange . 1675. the preface . that the doctrine of original sin , is one of the fundamental truths of our christian profession , hath been alwayes owned in the church of god. and an especial part it is of that peculiar possession of truth , which they enjoy , whose religion towards god is built upon , and resolved into divine revelation . as the world by its wisdom never knew god aright , so the wise men of it were always utterly ignorant of this inbred evil in themselves and others . with us the doctrine and conviction of it , lie in the very foundation of all wherein we have to do with god , in reference unto our pleasing of him here , or obtaining the enjoyment of him hereafter . it is also known what influence it hath into the great truths concerning the person of christ , his mediation , the fruits and effects of it , with all the benefits that we are made partakers of thereby . without a supposition of it , not any of them can be truly known , or savingly believed . for this cause hath it been largely treated of by many holy and learned men , both of old and of latter dayes . some have laboured in the discovery of its nature , some of its guilt and demerit ; by whom also the truth concerning it hath been vindicated from the opposition made unto it , in the past and present ages . by most these things have been considered in their full extent and latitude , with respect unto all men by nature , with the estate and condition of them who are wholly under the power and guilt of it . how thereby men are disenabled and incapacitated in themselves to answer the obedience required either in the law , or the gospel , so as to free themselves from the curse of the one or to make themselves partakers of the blessing of the other , hath been by many also fully evinced . moreover , that there are remainders of it abiding in believers after their regeneration and conversion to god , as the scripture abundantly testifies ; so it hath been fully taught and confirmed ; as also how the guilt of it is pardoned unto them , and by what means the power of it is weakened in them . all these things i say have been largely treated on , to the great benefit and edification of the church . in what we have now in design , we therfore take them all for granted , and endeavour only farther to carry on the discovery of it in its actings and oppositions to the law and grace of god in believers . neither do i intend the discussing of any thing that hath been controverted about it . what the scripture plainly revealeth & teacheth concerning it , what believers evidently find by experience in themselves , what they may learn from the examples and acknowledgments of others , shall be represented in a way suited unto the capacity of the meanest and weakest who is concerned therein . and many things seem to render the handling of it at this season , not unnecessary . the effects and fruits of it which we see in the apostasies and backslidings of many , the scandalous sins and miscarriages of some , and the course and lives of the most , seem to call for a due consideration of it . besides of how great concernment a full and clear acquaintance with the power of this indwelling-sin ( the matter design'd to be opened ) is unto believers , to stir them up to watchfulness and diligence , to faith and prayer , to call them to repentance , humility , & self-abasement , will appear in our progress . these in general were the ends aimed at in the ensuing discourse , which being at first composed and delivered for the use and benefit of a few , is now by the providence of god made publick . and if the reader receive any advantage by these weak endeavours , let him know that it is his duty , as to give glory unto god , so to help them by his prayers , who in many temptations and afflictions are willing to labour in the vineyard of the lord , unto which work they are called . chap. i. indwelling-sin in believers , treated of by the apostle , rom. 7. 21. the place explained . it is of indwelling-sin , and that in the remainders of it in persons after their conversion to god , with its power , efficacy , and effects , that we intend to treat . this also is the great design of the apostle , to manifest and evince in c. 7. of the epistle to the romans . many indeed are the contests about the principal scope of the apostle in that chapter , and in what state the person is , under the law , or under grace whose condition he expresseth therein . i shall not at present enter into that dispute , but take that for granted , which may be undeniably proved and evinced ; namely , that it is the condition of a regenerate person , with respect unto the remaining power of indwelling-sin , which is there proposed , and exemplified by , and in the person of the apostle himself . in that discourse therefore of his , shall the foundation be laid of what we have to offer upon this subject . not that i shall proceed in an exposition of his revelation of this truth , as it lies in its own contexture , but only make use of what is delivered by him , as occasion shall offer it self . and here first occurreth , that which he affirms , ver . 21. i find then a law , that when i would do good , evil is present with me . there are four things observable in these words . first , the appellation he gives unto indwelling-sin , whereby the expresseth its power and efficacy , it is a law. for that which he terms a law , in this verse , he calls in the foregoing , sin that dwelleth in him . secondly , the way whereby he came to the discovery of this law , not absolutely , and in its own nature , but in himself , he found it ; i find a law. thirdly , the frame of his soul and inward man with this law of sin , and under its discovery , he would do good . fourthly , the state and activity of this law , when the soul is in that frame , when it would do good , it is present with him . for what ends and purposes we shall shew afterwards . the first thing observable is the compellation here used by the apostle , he calls indwelling-sin a law. it is a law. a law is taken either properly , for a directive rule ; or improperly , for an operative effective principle , which seems to have the force of a law. in its first sense , it is a moral rule which directs and commands , and sundry wayes moves and regulates the mind , and the will , as to the things which it requires , or forbids . this is evidently the general nature and work of a law. some things it commands , some things it forbids , with rewards and penalties , which move and impel men to do the one , and avoid the other . hence in a secondary sense , an inward principle , that moves and enclines constantly unto any actions , is called a law. the principle that is in the nature of every thing , moving and carrying it towards its own end and rest , is called the law of nature . in this respect every inward principle that inclineth and urgeth unto operations or actings suitable to it self , is a law. so rom. 8. 2. the powerful and effectual working of the spirit and grace of christ in the hearts of believers , is called the law of the spirit of life . and for this reason doth the apostle here call indwelling-sin a law. it is a powerful and effectual indwelling-principle , inclining and pressing unto actions agreeable and suitable unto its own nature . this and no other is the intention of the apostle in this expression . for although that term , a law , may sometimes intend a state and condition , and if here so used , the meaning of the words should be , i find that this is my condition , this is the state of things with me , that when i would do good evil is present with me , which makes no great alteration in the principal intendment of the place ; yet properly it can denote nothing here , but the chief subject treated of . for although the name of a law be variously used by the apostle in this chapter ; yet when it relates unto sin , it is nowhere applyed by him to the condition of the person , but only to express either the nature , or the power of sin it self : so ver . 23. i see another law in my members , warring against the law of my mind , and bringing me into captivity unto the law of sin which is in my members . that which he here calls the law of his mind , from the principal subject and seat of it , is in it self no other but the law of the spirit of life , which is in christ jesus , chap. 8. 2. or the effectual power of the spirit of grace , as was said . but the law as applyed unto sin , hath a double sense ; for as in the first place , i see a law in my members , it denotes the being and nature of sin ; so in the latter , leading into captivity to the law of sin which is in my members , it signifies its power & efficacy . and both these are comprised in the same name singly used , ver . 20. now that which we observe from this name , or term of a law attributed unto sin , is , that there is an exceeding efficacy and power in the remainders of indwelling-sin in believers , with a constant working towards evil . thus it is in believers , 't is a law even in them , though not to them . though its rule be broken , its strength weakned and impaired , its root mortified , yet it is a law still of great force and efficacy . there where 't is least felt , it is most powerful . carnal men in reference unto spiritual & moral duties , are nothing but this law , they do nothing but from it , and by it . it is in them a ruling and prevailing principle of all moral actions , with reference unto a supernatural and eternal end . i shall not consider it in them in whom it hath most power , but in them in whom its power is chiefly discovered and discerned , that is in believers , in the others only in order to the farther conviction and manifestation thereof . 2dly , the apostle proposeth the way whereby he discovered this law in himself , 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 , i find then , or therefore a law. he found it ; it had been told him there was such a law , it had been preached unto him . this convinced him , that there was a law of sin. but it is one thing for a man to know in general , that there is a law of sin : another thing for a man to have an experience of the power of this law of sin in himself . it is preached to all ; all men that own the scripture acknowledge it , as being declared therein ; but they are but few that know it in themselves , we should else have more complaints of it than we have , and more contendings against it , and less fruits of it in the world . but this is that which the apostle affirms ; not that the doctrine of it had been preached unto him , but that he found it by experience in himself . i find a law ; i have experience of its power and efficacy . for a man to find his sickness and danger thereon from its effects , is another thing than to hear a discourse about a disease from its causes . and this experience is the great preservative of all divine truths in the soul. this it is to know a thing indeed , in reality , to know it for our selves , when as we are taught it from the word , so we find it in our selves . hence we observe , secondly , believers have experience of the power and efficacy of indwelling-sin . they find it in themselves , they find it as a law. it h●th a self-evidencing efficacy to them that are alive to discern it : they that find not its power , are under its dominion . whosoever contend against it , shall know and find , that it is present with them , that it is powerful in them . he shall find the stream to be strong , who swims against it , though he who rouls along with it , be insensible of it . thirdly , the general frame of believers notwithstanding the inhabitation of this law of sin , is here also expressed . they would do good . this law is present 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 . the habitual inclination of their will is unto good . this law in them , is not a law unto them , as it is to unbelievers . they are not wholly obnoxious to its power , nor morally unto its commands . grace hath the soveraignty in their souls ; this gives them a will unto good ; they would do good , that is , alwayes and constantly , 1 john 3. 9. 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 , to commit sin , is to make a trade of sin , to make it a mans business to sin ; so it is said , a believer doth not commit sin . and so 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 , to do that which is good ; to will to do so ; is to have the habitual bent and inclination of the will set on that which is good , that is , morally and spiritually good , which is the proper subject treated of ; whence is our third observation . there is , and there is through grace kept up in believers , a constant and ordinarily prevailing wil of doing good , notwithstanding the power and efficacy of indwelling-sin to the contrary . this in their worst condition , distinguisheth them from unbelievers in their best . the will in unbelievers is under the power of the law of sin . the opposition they make to sin , either in the root , or branches of it , is from their light , and their consciences ; the will of sinning in them is never taken away ▪ take away all other considerations & hinderances , whereof we shall treat afterwards , and they would sin willingly always . their faint endeavours to answer their convictions , are far from a will of doing that which is good . they will plead indeed , that they would leave their sins , if they could , and they would fain do better than they do . but it is the working of their light and convictions , not any spiritual inclination of their wills , which they intend by that expression . for where there is a will of doing good , there is a choice of that which is good for its own excellency sake , because it is desirable and suitable to the soul , and therefore to be preferred before that which is contrary . now this is not in any unbelievers ; they do not , they cannot so chuse that which is spiritually good , nor is it so excellent or suitable unto any principle that is in them : only they have some desires to attain that end , whereunto that which is good doth lead , and to avoid that evil which the neglect of it tends unto . and these also are for the most part so weak and languid in many of them , that they put them not upon any considerable endeavours ; witness that luxury , sloth , worldliness and security , that the generality of men are even drowned in . but in believers there is a will of doing good , an habitual disposition and inclination in their wills unto that which is spiritually good . and where this is , it is accompanied with answerable effects . the will is the principle of our moral actions , and therefore unto the prevailing disposition thereof , will the general course of our actings be suited . good things will proceed from the good treasures of the heart . nor can this disposition be evidenced to be in any but by its fruits . a will of doing good , without doing good , is but pretended . fourthly , there is yet another thing remaining in these words of the apostle , arising from that respect that the presence of sin hath unto the time and season of duty : when i would do good , ( saith he ) evils is present with me . there are two thing to be considered in the will of doing good , that is in believers . first , there is its habitual residence in them . they have always an habitual inclination of will unto that which is good . and this habitual preparation for good is always present with them , as the apostle expresses it , ver . 18. of this chapter . secondly , there are special times and seasons for the exercise of that principle . there is a , when i would do good , a season wherein this or that good , this or that duty is to be performed and accomplished , suitably unto the habitual preparation and inclination of the will. unto these two , there are two things in indwelling-sin opposed . to the gracious principle residing in the will , inclining unto that which is spiritually good , it is opposed as it is a law that is a contrary priciple inclining unto evil , with an aversation from that which is good . unto the second , or the actual willing of this or that good in particular , unto this , when i would do good , is opposed the presence of this law , evil is present with me , 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 ; evil is at hand and ready to oppose the actual accomplishment of the good aimed at . whence , fourthly , indwelling-sin is effectually operative in rebelling and inclining to evil , when the will of doing good is in a particular manner active , and inclining unto obedience . and this is the description of him who is a believer , and a sinner , as every one who is the former , he is the latter also . these are the contrary principles , and the contrary operations that are in him . the principles are a will of doing good on the one hand , from grace , and a law of sin on the other . their adverse actings and operations are insinuated in those expressions , when i would do good , evil is present with me . and these both are more fully expressed by the apostle , gal. 5. 17. for the flesh lusteth against the spirit , and the spirit against the flesh , and these are contrary the one to the other ; so that i cannot do the things that i would . and here lie the springs of the whole course of our obedience . an acquaintance with these several principles , and their actings , is the principal part of our wisdom . they are , upon the matter , next to the free grace of god in our justification by the blood of christ , the only things wherein the glory of god and our own souls are concern'd . these are the springs of our holiness , and our sins , of our joys and troubles , of our refreshments and sorrows . it is then all our concernments to be throughly acquainted with these things , who intend to walk with god , or to glorifie him in this world . and hence we may see what wisdom is required , in the guiding & management of our hearts & ways before god. where the subjects of a ruler are in fewds & oppositions one against another , unless great wisdom be used in the government of the whole , all things will quickly be ruinous in that state. there are these contrary principles in the hearts of believers , and if they labour not to be spiritually wise , how shall they be able to steer their course aright ? many men live in the dark to themselves all their days ; what ever else they know , they know not themselves . they know their outward estates , how rich they are , and the condition of their bodies as to health and sickness they are careful to examine ; but as to their inward man , and their principles as to god and eternity , they know little or nothing of themselves . indeed few labour to grow wise in this matter , few study themselves as they ought , are acquainted with the evil of their own hearts as they ought , on which yet the whole course of their obedience , and consequently of their eternal condition doth depend . this therefore is our wisdom , and it is a needful wisdom , if we have any design to please god , or to avoid that which is a provocation to the eyes of his glory . we shall find also in our inquiry hereinto , what diligence and watchfulness is required unto a christian conversation . there is a constant enemy unto it in every ones heart : and what an enemy it is we shall afterwards show , for this is our design to discover him to the uttermost . in the mean time we may well bewail the woful sloth and negligence that is in the most , even of professors . they live and walk as though they intended to go to heaven hood-wink● , and asleep , as though they had no enemy to deal withall . their mistake therefore and folly will be fully laid open in our progress . that which i shall principally fix upon , in reference unto our present design , from this place of the apostle , is that which was first laid down , namely , that there is an exceeding efficacy and power in the remainder of indwelling-sin in believers , with a constant inclination and working towards evil . awake therefore , all of you in whose hearts are any thing of the ways of god. your enemy is not only upon you , as on sampson of old , but is in you also . he is at work by all ways of force and craft , as we shall see . would you not dishonour god and his gospel , would you not scandalize the saints and ways of god , would you not wound your consciences , and endanger your souls , would you not grieve the good and holy spirit of god , the author of all your comforts ; would you keep your garments undefiled , and escape the woful temptations and pollutions of the days wherein we live ; would you be preserved from the number of the apostates in these latter days ? awake to the consideration of this cursed enemy , which is the spring of all these and innumerable other evils , as also of the ruine of all the souls that perish in this world . chap. ii. indwelling●sin a law. in what sense it is so called . what kind of law it is . an inward effective principle called a law. the power of sin thence evinced . that which we have proposed unto consideration is the power and efficacy of indwelling-sin . the ways whereby it may be evinced are many . i shall begin with the appellation of it in the place before mentioned , it is a law ; i find a law , saith the apostle . it is because of its power and efficacy that it is so called ; so is also the principle of grace in believers the law of the spirit of life , as we observed before , rom. 8. 3. which is the exceeding greatness of the power of god in them , ephes. 1. 19. where there is a law ▪ there is power . we shall therefore shew both what belongs unto it , as it is a law in general , and also what is peculiar or proper in it , as being such a law as we have described . there are in general two things attending every law , as such . first , dominion . rom. 7. 1. the law hath dominion over a man whilst he liveth ; 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 , it lordeth it over a man. where any law takes place , 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 , it hath dominion . it is properly the act of a superiour , and it belongs to its nature to exact obedience by way of dominion . now there is a two-fold dominion , as there is a two-fold law. there is a moral authoritative dominion over a man , and there is a real effective dominion in a man. the first is an affection of the law of god , the latter of the law of sin . the law of sin hath not in it self a moral dominion , it hath not a rightful dominion or authority over any man , but it hath that which is equivalent unto it ; whence it is said 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 , to reign as a king , rom. 6. 12. and 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 , to lord it , or have dominion , ver . 14. as a law in general is said to have , chap. 7. 1. but because it hath lost its complete dominion , in reference unto believers , of whom alone we speak , i shall not insist upon it in this utmost extent of its power . but even in them it is a law still , though not a law unto them ; yet , as was said , it is a law in them . and though it have not a complete , and as it were a rightful dominion over them , yet it will have a domination as to some things in them . it is still a law , and that in them , so that all its actings are the actings of a law ; that is , it acts with power , though it have lost its complete power of ruling in them . though it be weakened , yet its nature is not changed . it is a law still , and therefore powerful . and as its particular workings ( which we shall afterwards consider ) are the ground of this appellation , so the term it self teacheth us in general , what we are to expect from it , and what endeavours it will use for dominion , to which it hath been accustomed . secondly , a law , as a law , hath an efficacy to provoke those that are obnoxious unto it unto the things that it requireth . a law hath rewards and punishments accompanying of it . these secretly prevail on them to whom they are proposed , though the things commanded be not much desirable , and generally all laws have their efficacy on the minds of men from the rewards and punishments that are annexed unto them . nor is this law without this spring of power : it hath its rewards and punishments . the pleasures of sin are the rewards of sin ; a reward that most men lose their souls to obtain . by this the law of sin , contended in moses against the law of grace , heb. 11. 25 , 26. he chose rather to suffer afflictions with the people of god , than to enjoy the pleasures of sin for a season ; for he looked unto the recompence of reward . the contest was in his mind between the law of sin , and the law of grace . the motive on the part of the law of sin , wherewith it sought to draw him over , and wherewith it prevails on the most , was the reward that it proposed unto him , namely that he should have the present enjoyment of the pleasures of sin , by this it contended against the reward annexed unto the law of grace , called the recompence of reward . by this sorry reward doth this law keep the world in obedience to its commands . and experience shew us , of what power it is to influence the minds of men . it hath also punishments that it threatens men with , who labour to cast off its yoke . what ever evil , trouble or danger in the world attends gospel obedience ; what ever hardship or violence is to be offered to the sensual part of our natures in a strict course of mortification , sin makes use of as if they were punishments attending the neglect of its commands . by these it prevails on the fearful , who shall have no share in life eternal , rev. 21. 8. and it is hard to say by whether of these , its pretended rewards , or pretended punishments , it doth most prevail , in whether of them its greatest strength doth lie . by its rewards it inticeth men to sins of commission , as they are called , in ways and actions tending to the satisfaction of its lusts . by its punishments it induceth men to the omitting of duties , a course tending to no less a pernicious event than the former . by which of these the law of sin hath its greatest success in and upon the souls of men , is not evident , and that because they are seldom or never separated , but equally take place on the same persons . but this is certain , that by tenders and promises of the pleasures of sin on the one hand , by threats of the deprivation of all sensual contentments ; and the infliction of temporal evils on the other , it hath an exceeding efficacy on the minds of men , oftentimes of believers themselves . unless a man be prepared to reject the reasonings that will offer themselves from the one and the other of these , there is no standing before the power of this law. the world falls before them every day , with what deceit and violence they are urged and imposed on the minds of men , we shall afterwards declare ; as also what advantages they have to prevail upon them . look on the generality of men , and you shall find them wholly by these means at sins disposal . do the profits and pleasures of sin lie before them , nothing can withhold them from reaching after them . do difficulties and inconveniencies attend the duties of the gospel , they will have nothing to do with them , and so are wholly given up to the rule and dominion of this law. and this l●ght in general we have into the power and efficacy of indwelling-sin from the general nature of a law , whereof it is partaker . we may consider nextly what kind of law in particular it is , which will farther evidence that power of it , which we are enquiring after . it is not an outward , written , commanding , directing law , but an inbred , working , impelling , urging law. a law proposed unto us , is not to be compared for efficacy to a law inbred in us . adam had a law of sin proposed to him in his temptation , but because he had no law of sin inbred and working in him , he might have withstood it . an inbred law must needs be effectual . let us take an example from that law , which is contrary to this law of sin. the law of god , was at first inbred and natural unto man , it was concreated with his faculties , and was their rectitude both in being and operation in reference to his end of living unto god , and glorifying of him . hence it had an especial power in the whole soul , to enable it unto all obedience , yea , and to make all obedience easie and pleasant . such is the power of an inbred law. and though this law as to the rule and dominion of it , be now by nature cast out of the soul , yet the remaining sparks of it , because they are inbred , are very powerful and effectual , as the apostle declares , rom. 2. 14 , 15. afterwards god renews this law , and writes it in tables of stone ; but what is the efficacy of this law ; will it now as it is external , and proposed unto men , enable them to perform the things that it exacts and requires ? not at all . god knew it would not , unless it were turned to an internal law again ; that is untill of a moral outward rule , it be turned into an inward real principle . wherefore god makes his law internal again , and implants it on the heart as it was at first , when he intends to give it power to produce obedience in his people , jer. 31. 31 , 32 , 33. i will put my law in their inward parts , and write it in their hearts . this is that which god fixeth on , as it were upon a discovery of the insufficiency of an outward law leading men unto obedience . the written law , saith he , will not do it ; mercies and deliverances from distress will not effect it ; trials and afflictions will not accomplish it ; then saith the lord , will i take another course ; i will turn the written law , into an internal living principle , in their hearts , and that will have such an efficacy , as shall assuredly make them my people , and keep them so . now such is this law of sin , it is an indwelling-law , rom. 7. 17. it is sin that dwelleth in me , ver . 20. sin that dwelleth in me , ver . 21. it is present with me , ver . 23. it is in my members ; yea , it is so far in a man , as in some sense it is said to be the man himself , ver . 18. i know that in me , that is in my flesh there dwelleth no good thing . the flesh , which is the seat and throne of this law , yea , which indeed is this law , is in some sense the man himself , as grace also is the new man. now from this consideration of it , that it is an indwelling-law inclining and moving to sin , as an inward habit or principle , it hath sundry advantages increasing its strength and farthering its power . as , first , it alwayes abides in the soul , it is never absent . the apostle twice useth that expression , it dwelleth in me . there is its constant residence and habitation . if it came upon the soul only at certain seasons , much obedience might be perfectly accomplished in its absence . yea , and as they deal with usurping tyrants , whom they intend to thrust out of a city , the gates might be sometimes shut against it , that it might not return . the soul might fortifie it self against it . but the soul is its home , there it dwells , and is no wanderer . where ever you are , whatever you are about , this law of sin is alwayes in you . in the best that you do , and in the worst . men little consider what a dangerous companion is alwayes at home with them . when they are in company , when alone , by night or by day , all is one , sin is with them . there is a living coal continually in their houses , which if i● be not looked unto , will fire them , and it may be consume them . o the woful security of poor souls ! how little do the most of men think of this inbred enemy , that is never from home ! how little for the most part doth the watchfulness of any professors answer the danger of their state and condition . secondly , it is alwayes ready to apply it self to every end and purpose that it serves unto . it doth not only dwell in me , saith the apostle , but when i would do good , it is present with me : there is somewhat more in that expression , than meer indwelling . an inmate may dwell in an house , and yet not be alwayes m●dling with what the good man of the house hath to do , ( that so we may keep to the allusion of indwelling , used by the apostle . ) but it is so with this law , it doth so dwell in us , as that it will be present with us in every thing we do , yea , oftentimes when with most earnestness we desire to be quit of it , with most violence it will put it self upon us : when i would do good , it is present with me . would you pray , would you hear , would you give alms , would you meditate , would you be in any duty acting faith on god , and love towards him , would you work righteousness , would you resist temptations , this troublesome perplexing indweller will still more or less put it self upon you , and be present with you ; so that you cannot perfectly and compleatly accomplish the thing that is good , as our apostle speaks , ver . 18. sometimes men by hearkning to their temptations , do stir up , excite and provoke their lusts ; and no wonder if then they find them present and active . but it will be so , when with all our endeavours we labour to be free from them . this law of sin dwells in us , that is , it adheres as a depraved principle unto our minds in darkness , and vanity , unto our affections in sensuality , unto our wills in a loathing of , and aversation from that which is good , and by some , more , or all of these , is continually putting it self upon us , in inclinations , motions , or suggestions to evil , when we would be most gladly quit of it . thirdly , it being an indwelling-law , it applyes it self to its work with great facility and easiness , like the sin that doth so easily beset us , heb. 12. 1. it ●ath a great facility and easiness in the application of it self unto its work ; it needs no doors to be opened unto it , it needs no engines to work by . the soul cannot apply it self to any duty of a man , but it must be by the exercise of those faculties wherein this law hath its residence . is the understanding or the mind to be applyed unto any thing ? there it is in ignorance , darkness , vanity , folly , madness . is the will to be engaged , there it is also in spiritual deadness , stubborness , and the roots of obstinacy ? is the heart and affections to be set on work , there it is in inclinations to the world , and present things , and sensuality , with proneness to all manner of defilements ? hence it is easie for it to insinuate it self into all that we do , and to hinder all that is good , and to further all sin and wickedness . it hath an intimacy , an inwardness with the soul , and therefore in all that we do , doth easily beset us . it possesseth those very faculties of the soul , whereby we must do , what we do , what ever it be , good or evil . now all these advantages it hath as it is a law , as an indwelling-law which manifests its power and efficacy . it is alwayes resident in the soul , it puts its self upon all its actings , and that with easiness and facility . this is that law which the apostle asfirms , that he found in himself , this is the title that he gives unto the powerful and effectual remainders of indwelling-sin , even in believers , and these general evidences of its power from th●t appellation have we . many there are in the world , who find not this law in them , who whatever they have been taught in the word , have not a spiritual sense and experience of the power of indwelling-sin , and that because they are wholly under the dominion of it . they find not that there is darkness and folly in their minds , because they are darkness it self , and darkness will discover nothing . they find not deadness and an indisposition in their hearts and wills to god , because they are dead wholly in trespasses and sins . they are at peace with their lusts , by being in bondage unto them . and this is the state of most men in the world , which makes them wofully despise all their eternal concernments . whence is it that men follow and pursue the world with so much greediness , that they neglect heaven , and life , and immorrality for it every day ? whence is it that some pursue their sensuality with delight , they will drink , and revel , and have their sports , let others say what they please ? whence is it that so many live so unprofitably under the word , that they understand so little of what is spoken unto them , that they practise less of what they understand , and will by no means be stirred up to answer the mind of god in his calls unto them ? it is all from this law of sin , and the power of it that rules and bears sway in men , that all these things do proceed ; but it is not such persons of whom at present we particularly treat . from what hath been spoken , it will ensue , that if there be such a law in believers , it is doubtless their duty to find it out , to find it so to be . the more they find its power , the less they will feel its effects . it will not at all advantage a man to have an hectical distemper , and not to discover it ; a fire lying secretly in his house , and not to know it . so much as men find of this law i● them , so much they will abhor it and themselves , and no more . proportionably also to their discovery of it , will be their earnestness for grace ; not will it rise higher . all watchfulness and diligence in obedience will be answerable also thereunto . upon this one hinge , or finding out , and experiencing the power and the efficacy of this law of sin , turns the whole course of our lives . ignorance of it breeds senslesness , carelesness , sloth , security and pride , all which the lords soul abhors . eruptions into great , open , conscience-wasting , scandalous sins , are from want of a due spiritual consideration of this law. enquire then how it is with your souls , what do you find of this law , what experience have you of its power and efficacy ? do you find it dwelling in you , alwayes present with you , exciting it self , or putting forth its poison with facility and easiness , at all times , in all your duties , when you would do good ? what humiliation , what self-abasement , what intensness in prayer , what diligence , what watchfulness doth this call for at your hands ? what spiritual wisdom do you stand in need of ? what supplies of grace , what assistance of the holy ghost will be hence also discovered ? i fear we have few of us a diligence proportionable to our danger . chap. iii. the seat or subject of the law of sin. the heart , what meant thereby . properties of the heart as possessed by sin . unsearchable . deceitful . whence that deceit ariseth . improvements of these considerations . having manifested indwelling-sin whereof we treat in the remainders of it in believers , to be a law , and evinced in general , the power of it from thence , we shall now proceede to give particular instances of its efficacy and advantages , from some things that generally relate unto it as such . and these are three . first , its seat and subject : secondly , it s natural properties ; and thirdly , its operations and the manner thereof , which principally we aim at , and shall attend unto . first , for the seat and subject of this law of sin , the scripture every where assigns it to be the heart . there indwelling-sin keeps its especial residence . it hath invaded and possessed the throne of god himself , eccles. 9. 3. madness is in the heart of men whilest they live . this is their madness , or the root of all that madness which appears in their lives , matth. 15. 19. out of the heart proceed evil thoughts , murders , adulteries , fornications , thefts , false witness , blasphemies , &c. there are many outward temptations and provocations that befall men , which excite and stir them up unto these evils . but they do but as it were , open the vessel , and let out what is laid up and stored in it . the root , rise , and spring of all these things is in the heart . temptations and occasions put nothing into a man , but only draw out what was in him before . hence is that summary description of the whole work and effect of this law of sin , gen. 6. 5. every imagination of the thoughts of mans heart is only evil continually ; so also , chap. 8. 21. the whole work of the law of sin , from its first rise , its first coyning of actual sin , is here described , and its seat , its work-house , is said to be the heart . and so it is called by our saviour , the evil treasure of the heart , luke 6. 45. an evil man , out of the evil treasure of his heart , bringeth forth evil things . this treasure is the prevailing principle of moral actions that is in men . so in the beginning of the verse , our saviour calls grace the good treasure of the heart of a good man , whence that which is good doth proceed . it is a principle constantly and abundantly inciting and stirring up unto , and consequently bringing forth actions conformable , and like unto it , of the same kind and nature with its self . and it is also called a treasure for its abundance . it will never be exhausted , it is not wasted by mens spending on it : yea , the more lavish men are of this stock , the more they draw out of this treasure , the more it grows and abounds : as men do not spend their grace , but increase it by its exercises , no more do they their indwelling-sin . the more men exercise their grace in duties of obedience , the more it is strengthened and encreased . and the more men exert and put forth the fruits of their lust , the more is that enraged and encreased in them . it feeds upon its self , swallows up its own poyson , and grows thereby . the more men sin , the more are they inclined unto sin . it is from the deceitfulness of this law of sin , whereof we shall speak afterwards at large , that men perswade themselves , that by this or that particular sin , they shall so satisfie their lusts , as that they shall need to sin no more . every sin increaseth the principle , and fortifieth the habit of sinning . it is an evil treasure that increaseth by doing evil . and where doth this treasure lye ? it is in the heart , there it is laid up , there it is kept in safety . all the men in the world , all the angels in heaven , cannot dispossess a man of this treasure , it is so sa●ely stored in the heart . the heart in the scripture is variously used . sometimes for the mind and understanding ; sometimes for the will ; sometimes for the affections ; sometimes for the conscience ; sometimes for the whole soul. generally it denotes the whole soul of man , and all the faculties of it , not absolutely , but as they are all one principle of moral operations , as they all concurr in our doing good or evil . the mind as it enquireth , discerneth , and judgeth what is to be done , what refused ; the will , as it chuseth , or refuseth , and avoids ; the affections as they like or dislike , cleave to , or have an aversation from that which is proposed to them ; the conscience as it warns , and determines , are all together called the heart . and in this sense it is that we say the seat and subject of this law of sin is the heart of man. only we may add , that the scripture speaking of the heart , as the principle of mens good or evil actions , doth usually insinuate together with it two things belonging unto the manner of their performance . first , a suitableness and pleasingness unto the soul in the things that are done . when men take delight , and are pleased in and with what they do , they are said to do it heartily with their whole hearts . thus when god himself blesseth his people in love and delight , he sayes , he doth it with his whole heart , and his whole soul , jer. 32. 41. secondly , resolution and constancy in such actions . and this also is denoted in the metaphorical expression before used of a treasure , from whence men do constantly take out the things which either they stand in need of ; or do intend to use . this is the subject , the seat , the dwelling place of the law of sin. the heart as it is the entire principle of moral operations , of doing good or evil , as out of it proceed good or evil . here dwells our enemie : this is the fort , the cittadel of this tyrant , where it maintains a rebellion against god all our dayes . sometimes it hath more strength , and consequently more success ; sometimes less of the one , and of the other , but is alwayes in rebellion whilest we live . that we may in our passage take a little view of the strength and power of sin from this seat and subject of it , we may consider one or two properties of the heart that exceedingly contribute thereunto . it is like an enemy in war , whose strength and power , lye not only in his numbers , and force of men or arms , but also in the unconquerable forts that he doth possess . and such is the heart to this enemy of god and our souls , as will appear from the properties of it , whereof one or two shall be mentioned . first , it is unsearchahle . jer. 17. 9 , 10. who can know the heart ? i the lord search it . the heart of man is pervious to god only ; hence he takes the honour of searching the heart to be as peculiar to himself , and as fully declaring him to be god , as any other glorious attribute of his nature . we know not the hearts of one another , we know not our own hearts as we ought . many there are that know not their hearts as to their general bent and disposition , whether it be good or bad , sincere and sound , or corrupt and naught ; but no one knoweth all the secret intrigues , the windings and turnings , the actings and aversations of his own heart . hath any one the perfect measure of his own light and darkness ? can any one know what actings of chusing or aversation his will will bring forth , upon the proposal of that endless variety of objects that it is to be exercised with ? can any one traverse the various mutability of his affections ? do the secret springs of acting and refusing in the soul , lie before the eyes of any man ? doth any one know what will be the motions of the mind or will , in such and such conjunctions of things ? such a suiting of objects , such a pretension of reasonings , such an appearance of things desirable ? all in heaven and earth but the infinite all-seeing god , are utterly ignorant of these things . in this unsearchable heart dwells the law of sin , and much of its security , and consequently of its strength , lies in this , that it is past our finding out . we fight with an enemy whose secret strength we cannot discover , whom we cannot follow into its retirements . hence oftentimes , when we are ready to think sin quite ruined , after a while we find it was but out of fight . it hath coverts and retreats in an unsearchable heart , whither we cannot pursue it . the soul may perswade it self all is well , when sin may be safe in the hidden darkness of the mind , which 't is impossible that he should look into , for what ever makes manifest is light . it may suppose the will of sinning is utterly taken away , when yet there is an unsearchable reserve for a more suitable object , a more vigorous temptation than at present it is tried withal . hath a man had a contest with any lust , and a blessed victory over it by the holy ghost , as to that present trial ; when he thinks it is utterly expelled , he ere long finds that it was but retired out of fight . it can lie so close in the minds darkness , in the wills indisposition , in the disorder and carnality of the affections , that no eye can discover it . the best of our wisdom is but to watch its first appearances , to catch its first under-earth heavings and workings and to set our selves in opposition to them ; for to follow it into the secret corners of the heart , that we cannot do . it is true , there is yet a relief in this case , namely that he to whom the work of destroying the law of sin , and body of death in us is principally committed , namely the holy ghost , comes with his ax to the very root , neither is there any thing in an unsearchable heart that is not open and naked unto him , heb. 4. 12. but we in a way of duty may hence see what an enemy we have to deal withall . secondly , as it is unsearchable , so it is deceitful , as in the place above mentioned ; it is deceitful above all things , incomparably so . there is great deceit in the dealings of men in the world , great in their counsels and contrivances in reference to their affairs private and publick ; great deceit in their words and actings : the world is full of deceit and fraud . but all this is nothing to the deceit that is in mans heart towards himself , for that is the meaning of the expression in this place , and not towards others . now incomparable deceitfulness , added to unsearchableness , gives a great addition and encrease of strength of the law of sin , upon the account of its seat and subject . i speak not yet of the deceitfulness of sin it self , but the deceitfulness of the heart where it is seated . prov. 26. 25. there are seven abominations in the heart ; that is , not only many , but an absolute complete number , as seven denotes : and they are such abominations as consist in deceitfulness ; so the caution fore-going insinuates , trust him not ; for it is only deceit that should make us not to trust in that degree and measure which the object is cabable of . now this deceitfulness of the heart , whereby it is exceedingly advantaged in its harbouring of sin , lies chiefly in these two things . first , that it abounds in contradictions , so that it is not to be found and dealt withall according to any constant rule , and way of procedure . there are some men that have much of this from their natural constitution , or from other causes in their conversation . they seem to be made up of contradictions ; sometimes to be very wise in their affairs , sometimes very foolish ; very open , and very reserved ; very facile , and very obstinate ; very easie to be entreated , and very revengeful , all in a remarkable height . this is generally accounted a bad character , and is seldom found but when it proceeds from some notable predominant lust . but in general , in respect of moral good or evil , duty or sin , it is so with the heart of every man ; flaming hot , and key cold ; weak , and yet stubborn ; obstinate , and facile . the frame of the heart is ready to contradict it self every moment . now you would think you had it all for such a frame , such a way ; anon it is quite otherwise : so that none know what to expect from it . the rise of this is the disorder that is brought upon all its faculties by sin . god created them all in a perfect harmony and union . the mind and reason were in perfect subjection and subordination to god , and his will ; the will answered in its choice of good , the discovery made of it by the mind ; the affections constantly and evenly followed the understanding and will. the minds subjection to god was the spring of the orderly and harmonious motion of the soul , and all the wheels in it . that being disturbed by sin , the rest of the faculties move cross and contrary one to another ; the will chuseth not the good which the mind discovers , the affections delight not in that which the will chuseth , but all jar and interfere , cross and rebel against each other . this we have got by our falling from god. hence sometimes the will leads , the judgment follows . yea , commonly the affections that should attend upon all , get the sovereignty , and draw the whole soul captive after them . and hence it is , as i said , that the heart is made up of so many contradictions in its actings . sometimes the mind retains its sovereignty , and the affections are in subjection , and the will ready for its duty . this puts a good face upon things . immediately the rebellion of the affections , or the obstinacy of the will take place and prevail , and the whole scene is changed . this , i say , makes the heart deceitful above all things ; it agrees not at all in it self , is not constant to it self , hath no order that it is constant unto , is under no certain conduct that is stable , but if i may so say , hath a rotation in it self , where oft-times the feet lead and guide the whole . secondly , its deceit lies in its full promisings upon the first appearance of things . and this also proceeds from the same principle with the former . sometimes the affections are touched and wrought upon , the whole heart appears in a fair frame , all promiseth to be well . within a while the whole frame is changed ; the mind was not at all affected or turned ; the affections a little acted their parts and are gone off , and all the fair promises of the heart are departed with them . now add this deceitfulness to the unsearchableness before mentioned , and we shall find , that at least the difficulty of dealing effectually with sin in its seat and throne , will be exceedingly encreased . a deceiving and a deceived heart , who can deal with it ? especially considering that the heart imploys all its deceits unto the service of sin , contributes them all to its furtherance . all the disorder that is in the heart , all its false promises , and fair appearances , promote the interest and advantages of sin . hence god cautions the people to look to it , left their own hearts should entice and deceive them . who can mention the treacheries and deceits that lie in the heart of man ? it is not for nothing that the holy ghost so expresseth it , it is deceitful above all things ; uncertain in what it doth , and false in what it promiseth . and hence moreover it is , amongst other causes , that in the pursuit of our war against sin , we have not only the old work to go over and over , but new work still while we live in this world ; still new stratagems and wiles to deal withall , as the manner will be where unsearchableness and deceitfulness are to be contended with . there are many other properties of this feat and subject of the law of sin , which might be insisted on to the same end and purpose , but that would too far divert us from our particular design ; and therefore i shall pass these over with some few considerations . never let us reckon that our work in contending against sin , in crucifying , mortifying , and subduing of it , is at an end . the place of its habitation is unsearchable ; and when we may think that we have throughly won the field , there is still some reserve remaining that we saw not , that we knew not o● . many conquerors have been ruined by their carelesness after a victory ; and many have been spiritually wounded after great successes against this enemy . david was so , his great surprizal into sin was after a long profession , manifold experiences of god , and watchful keeping himself from his iniquity . and hence in part hath it come to pass , that the profession of many hath declined in their old age , or riper time , which must more distinctly be spoken to afterwards . they have given over the work of mortifying of sin , before their work was at an end . there is no way for us to pursue sin in its unsearchable habitation , but by being endless in our pursuit . and that command of the apostle which we have , colos. 3. 5. on this account is as necessary for them to observe , who are towards the end of their race , as those that are but at the beginning of it . mortifie therefore your members that are on the earth ; be always doing it whilst you live in this world . it is true , great ground is obtained , when the work is vigorously and constantly carried on ; sin is much weakened , so that the soul presseth forwards towards perfection . but yet the work must be endless , i mean whilst we are in this world . if we give over , we shall quickly see this enemy exerting it self with new strength and vigour . it may be , under some great affliction , it may be in some eminent enjoyment of god , in the sense of the sweetness of blessed communion with christ , we have been ready to say , that there was an end of sin , that it was dead and gone for ever : but have we not found the contrary by experience ? hath it not manifested that it was only retired into some unsearchable recesses of the heart , as to its in-being and nature , though it may be greatly weakened in its power ? let us then reckon on it , that there is no way to have our work done , but by always doing of it ; and he who dies fighting in this warfare , dies assuredly ▪ a conqueror . secondly , hath it its residence in that which is various , inconstant , deceitful above all things , this calls for perpetual watchfulness against it . an open enemy that deals by violence only , always gives some respite ; you know where to have him , and what he is doing , so as that sometimes you may sleep quietly without fear : but against adversaries that deal by deceit and treachery , ( which are long swords , and reach at the greatest distance ) nothing will give security but perpetual watchfulness . it is impossible we should in this case be too jealous , doubtful , suspicious , or watchful . the heart hath a thousand wiles and deceits , and if we are in the least off from our watch , we may be sure to be surprised . hence are those reiterated commands and cautions given for watching , for being circumspect , diligent , careful , and the like . there is no living for them who have to deal with an enemy deceitful above all things , unless they persist in such a frame . all cautions that are given in this case are necessary , especially that , remember not to believe . doth the heart promise fair , rest not on it , but say to the lord christ , lord , do thou undertake for me . doth the sun shine fair in the morning , reckon not therefore on a fair day ; the clouds may arise and fall : though the morning give a fair appearance of serenity and peace , turbulent affections may arise , and cloud the soul with sin and darkness . thirdly then , commit the whole matter with all care and diligence unto him who can search th● heart to the uttermost , and knows how to prevent all its treacheries and deceits . in the things before mentioned lies our duty , but here lies our safety . there is no treacherous corner in our hearts , but he can search it to the uttermost ; there 's no deceit in them but he can disappoint it . this course david takes , psal. 139. after he had set forth the omnipresence of god , and his omniscience , vers . 8 , 9 , 10. he makes improvement of it , verse 23. search me , o lord , and try me . as if he had said , it is but a little that i know of my deceitful heart , only i would be sincere , i would not have reserves for sin retained therein ; wherefore do thou , who art present with my heart , who knowest my thoughts long before , undertake this work , perform it throughly , for thou alone art able so to do . there are yet other arguments for the eviden●ing of the power and strength of indwelling-sin from whence it is termed a law , which we must pass through according to the order wherein before we laid them down . chap. iv. indwelling sin enmity against god. thence its power . admits of no peace nor rest : is against god himself , acts it self in aversation from god ; and propensity to evil. is universal . to all of god. in all of the soul. cons●ant . we have seen the seat and subject of this law of sin. in the next place we might take a view of its nature in general , which also will manifest its power and efficacy . but this i shall not enlarge upon ; it being not my business to declare the nature of indwelling-sin , it hath also been done by others . i shall therefore only in reference unto our special design in hand , consider one property of it , that belongs unto its nature : and this alwayes where ever it is . and this is that which is expressed by the apostle , rom. 8. 7. the carnal mind is enmity against god ; that which is here called , 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 , the wisdom of the flesh , is the same with the law of sin , which we insist on . and what sayes he hereof ? why it is 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 , enmity against god it is not only an enemy , for so possibly some reconciliation of it unto god might be made , but it is enmity it self , and so not capable of accepting any terms of peace . enemies may be reconciled , but enmity cannot . yea , the only way to reconcile enemies , is to destroy the enmity . so the apostle in another case tells us , rom. 5. 10. we who were enemies , are reconciled unto god ; that is , a work compassed and brought about by the blood of christ ; the reconciling of the greatest enemies . but when he comes to speak of enmity , there is no way for it , but it must be abolished and destroyed , eph. 2. 15. having abolished in his flesh the enmity : there is no way to deal with any enmity whatever , but by its abolition or destruction . and this also lyes in it as it is enmity , that every part and parcel of it , if we may so speak , the least degree of it that can possibly remain in any one , whilest , and where there is any thing of its nature , is enmity still . it may not be so effectual and powerful in operation , as where it hath more life and vigour , but it is enmity still . as every drop of poyson , is poyson , and will infect , and every spark of fire , is fire , and will burn ; so is every thing of the law of sin , the last , the least of it , it is enmity , it will poyson , it will burn . that which is any thing in the abstract is still so ; whilst it hath any being at all . our apostle who may well be supposed to have made as great a progress in the subduing of it , as any one on the earth , yet after all cryes out for deliverance , as from an irreconcileable enemy , rom. 7. 24. the meanest acting , the meanest and most imperceptible working of it , is the acting and working of enmity . mortification abates of its force , but doth not change its nature . grace changeth the nature of man , but nothing can change the nature of sin . what ever effect be wrought upon it , there is no effect wrought in it , but that it is enmity still , sin still . this then by it is our astate and condition , god is love , 1 john. 4. 8. he is so in himself , eternally excellent and desirable above all . he is so to us , he is so in the blood of his son , and in all the inexpressible fruits of it , by which we are what we are , and wherein all our future hopes and expectations are wrapped up . against this god we carry about us an enmity , all our dayes . an enmity that hath this from its nature , that it is incapable of cure or reconciliation . destroyed it may be it shall be , but cured it cannot be . if a man hath an enemy to deal withal that is too mighty for him , as david had with saul , he may take the course that he did ; consider what it is that provoked his enemy against him , & so address himself to remove the cause and make up his peace , 1 sam. 26. 19. if the lord have stirred thee up against me , let him accept an offering , but if they be the children of men , cursed be they of the lord ; come it from god or man , there is yet hopes of peace . but when a man hath enmity it self to deal withal , nothing is to be expected but continual fighting to the destruction of the one party . if it be not overcome and destroyed , it will overcome and destroy the soul. and herein lyes no small part of its power which we are enquiring after ; it can admit of no terms of peace , of no composition . there may be a composition , where there is no reconciliation . there may be a truce where there is no peace . but with this enemy we can obtain neither the one , nor the other . it is never quiet conquering , nor conquered , which was the only kind of enemy that the famous warriour complained of , of old . it is in vain for a man to have any expectation of rest from his lust , but by its death , of absolute freedom , but by his own . some in the tumultuating of their corruptions , seek for quietness by labouring ●o satisfie them , making provision for the flesh to fulfill the lusts thereof ; as the apostle speaks , rom. 13. 14. this is to aslake fire by wood and oyle . as all the fuel in the world , all the fabrick of the creation that is combustible , being cast into the fire , will not at all satisfie it , but increase it ; so is it with satisfaction given to sin by sinning , it doth ●ut inflame and increase . if a man will part with some of his goods unto an enemy , it may satisfie him ; but enmity will have all , and is not one whit the more satisfied , that if he had received nothing at all . like the lean cattle that were never the less hungry , for having devoured the fat . you cannot bargain with the fire to take but so much of your houses , ye have no way but to quench it . it is in this case , as it is in the contest between a wise man and a fool , prov. 29. 9. whether he rage or laugh , there is no rest . what ever frame or temper he be in , his importunate folly makes him troublesome . it is so with this indwelling-sin , whether it rage or laugh , whether it violently tumultuate , as it will do on provocations and temptations , it will be outragious in the soul , or whether ●t seem to be pleased and contented , to be satisfied , all is one , there is no peace , no rest to be had with it , or by it . had it then been of any other nature , some other way might have been fixed on , ●ut being it consists in enmity , all the relief the soul ●ath must lye in its ruine . secondly , it is not only said to be enmity , but it is said to be enmity against god. it hath chosen a great enemy indeed . it is in sundry places proposed as our enemy , 1 pet. 2. 11. abstain from fleshly lusts , which warr against the soul. they are enemies to the soul , that is , to our selves . sometimes as an enemy to the spirit that is in us , the flesh lusteth or fighteth against the spirit , gal. 5. 17. it fights against the spirit , or the spiritual principle that is in us , to conquer it ▪ it fights against our souls to destroy them . it hath special ends and designs against our souls , and against the principle of grace that is in us ; but its proper formal object is god , it is enmity against god. it is its work to oppose grace , it is a consequent of its work to oppose our souls , which follows upon what it doth , more than what it intends ; but its nature and formal design is to oppose god ; god as the law-giver , god as holy , god as the author of the gospel , a way of salvation by grace , and not by works , is the direct object of the law of sin. why doth it oppose duty , so that the good we would do , we do not , either as to matter or manner ? why doth it render the soul carnal , indisposed , unbelieving , unspiritual , weary , wandring ? it is because of its enmity to god , whom the soul aims to have communion withal in duty . it hath as it were that command from satan , which the assyrians had from their king , fight neither with small nor great , save only with the king of israel , 1 kings 22. 31. it is neither great nor small , but god himself , the king of israel , that sin sets it self against . there lyes the secret formal reason of all its opposition to good , even because it relates unto god. may a road , a trade , a way of duties be set up , where communion with god is not aimed at , but only the duty it self , as is the manner of men in most of their superstitious worship , the opposition that will lye against it from the law of sin will be very weak , easie and gentle . or as the assyrians because of his shew of a king , assaulted jehosaphat , but when they found that it was not ahab , they turned back from pursuing of him . because there is a shew and appearance of the worship of god , sin may make head against it at first , but when the duty cryes out in the heart , that indeed god is not there ; sin turns away to seek out its proper enemy , even god himself elsewhere . and hence do many poor creatures spend their dayes in dismal tiring superstitions , without any great reluctancy from within , when others cannot be suffered freely to watch with christ in a spiritual manner one hour . and it is no wonder that men fight with carnal weapons for their superstitious worship without , when they have no fighting against it within . for god is not in it ; and the law of sin makes not opposition to any duty , but to god in every duty . this is our state and condition , all the opposition that ariseth in us unto any thing that is spiritually good , whether it be from darkness in the mind , or aversation in the will , or sloth in the affections , all the secret arguings and reasonings that are in the soul in pursuit of them , the direct object of them is god himself . the enmity lyes against him , which consideration surely should influence us to a perpetual constant watchfulness over our selves . it is thus also in respect of all propensity unto sin , as well as aversation from god. it is god himself that is aimed at . it is true , the pleasures , the wages of sin do greatly influence the sensual carnall affections of men ; but it is the holiness and authority of god , that sin it self rises up against : it hates the yoke of the lord ; thou hast been weary of me , saith god to sinners , and that during their performance of abundance of duties . every act of sin is a fruit of being weary of god. thus job tells us , what lyes at the bottom in the heart of sinners ; they say to the lord , depart from us ; it is enmity against him and aversation from him . here lyes the formal nature of every sin , it is an opposition to god , a casting off his yoke , a breaking off the dependance which the creature ought to have on the creator . and the apostle , rom. 8. 7. gives the reason why he affirms the carnal mind to be enmity against god ; namely , because it is not subject to the will of god , nor indeed can be . it never is , nor will , nor can be subject to god , its whole nature consisting in an opposition to him . the soul wherein it is , may be subject to the law of god , but this law of sin sets up in contrariety unto it , and will not be in subjection . to manifest a little farther the power of this law of sin from this property of its nature , that it is enmity against god ; one or two inseparable adjuncts of it may be considered , which will farther evince it . first , it is universal ; some contentions are bounded unto some particular concernments , this is about one thing , that about another . it is not so here ; the enmity is absolute and universal , as are all enmities that are grounded in the nature of the things themselves . such enmity is against the whole kind of that which is its object . such is this enmity ; for first , it is vniversal to all of god ; and secondly , it is vniversal in all of the soul. first , it is universal to all of god. if there were any thing of god , his nature , properties , his mind or will , his law or gospel , any duty of obedience to him , of communion with him , that sin had not an enmity against , the soul might have a constant shelter and retreat within it self , by applying it self to that of god , to that of duty towards him , to that of communion with him , that sin would make no opposition against . but the enmity lyes against god , and all of god , and every thing wherein or whereby we have to do with him . it is not subject to the law , nor any part nor parcel , word or tittle of the law. whatever is opposite to any thing as such , is opposite unto all of it . sin is enmity to god as god , and therefore to all of god. not his goodness , not his holiness , not his mercy , not his grace , not his promises : there is not any thing of him , which it doth not make head against ; nor any duty , private , publick , in the heart , in external works , which it opposeth not . and the nearer ( if i may so say ) any thing is to god , the greater is its enmity unto it . the more of spirituality and holiness is in any thing , the greater is its enmity . that which hath most of god , hath most of its opposition . concerning them in whom this law is predominant , god sayes , ye have set at naught all my counsel , and you would have none of my reproof , prov. 1. 25. not this or that part of gods counsel , his mind or will is opposed , but all his counsel ; whatever he calleth for , or guideth unto , in every particular of it , all is set at naught , and nothing of his reproof attended unto . a man would think it not very strange that sin should maintain an enmity against god in his law , which comes to judge it , to condemn it ; but it raiseth a greater enmity against him in his gospel , wherein he tenders mercy and pardon , as a deliverance from it , and that meerly because more of the glorious properties of god nature , more of his excellencies and condescension , is manifested therein , than in the other . secondly , it is universal in all of the soul. would this law of sin have contented it self to have subdued any one faculty of the soul , would it have left any one at liberty , any one affection free from its yoke and bondage , it might possibly have been with more ease opposed , or subdued . but when christ comes with his spiritual power upon the soul to conquer it to himself , he hath no quiet landing place . he can set foot on no ground but what he must fight for and conquer . not the mind , not an affection , not the will , but all is secured against him . and when grace hath made its entrance ; yet sin will dwell in all its coasts . were any thing in the soul at perfect freedom and liberty , there a stand might be made to drive it from all the rest of its holds : but it is universal , and wars in the whole soul. the mind hath its own darkness and vanity to wrestle with ; the will its own stubborness , obstinacy and perversness , every affection it s own frowardness and aversation from god , and its sensuality to deal withal ; so that one cannot yield relief unto one another , as they ought ; they have as it were , their hands full at home . hence it is that our knowledge is imperfect , our obedience weak , love not immixed , fear not pure , delight not free and noble . but i must not insist on these particulars , or i could abundantly shew how diffused this principle of enmity against god is through the whole soul. secondly , hereunto might be added its constancy . it is constant unto it self , it wavers not , it hath no thoughts of yielding or giving over , notwithstanding the powerful opposition that is made unto it both by the law and gospel , as afterwards shall be shewed . this then is a third evidence of the power of sin , taken from its nature and properties , wherein i have fixed but on one instance for its illustration , namely , that it is enmity against god , and that universal and constant . should we enter upon a full description of it , it would require more space and time than we have allotted to this whole subject . what hath been delivered might give us a little sense of it , if it be the will of god , and stir us up unto watchfulness . what can be of a more sad consideration than that we should carry about us constantly that which is enmity against god , and that not in this or that particular , but in all that he is , and in all wherein he hath revealed himself . i cannot say it is well with them who find it not . it is well with them indeed in whom it is weakned , and the power of it abated . but yet for them who say it is not in them , they do but deceive themselves , and there is no truth in them . chap. v. nature of sin farther discovered as it is enmity against god. its aversation from all good , opened . means to prevent the effects of it prescribed . we have considered somewhat of the nature of indwelling-sin , not absolutely , but in reference unto the discovery of its power . but this more cleary evidenceth it self in its actings and operations . power is an act of life , and operation is the only discoverer of life . we know not that any thing lives , but by the effects and works of life . and great and strong operations discover a powerful and vigorous life . such are the operations of this law of sin , which are all demonstrations of its power . that which we have declared concerning its nature , is that it consists in enmity . now there are two general heads of the working or operation of enmity . first , aversation . secondly , opposition . first , aversation . our saviour describing the enmity that was between himself and the theachers of the jews , by the effects of it , saith in the prophet , my soul loathed them , and their soul also abhorred me , zach. 7. 8. where there is mutual enmity , there is mutual aversation , loathing , and abomination . so it was between the jews and the samaritans , they were enemies , and abhorred one another ; as joh. 4. 9. secondly , opposition , or contending against one another , is the next product of enmity , isa. 63. 10. he was turned to be their enemy , and he fought against them ; speaking of god towards the people . where there is enmity , there will be fighting , it is the proper and natural product of it . now both these effects are found in this law of sin . first , for aversation , there is an aversation in it unto god , and every thing of god , as we have in part discovered in handling the enmity it self , and so shall not need much to insist upon it again . all indisposition unto duty , wherein communion with god is to be obtained , all weariness of duty , all carnality or formality under duty , it all springs from this root . the wise man cautions us against this evil , eccles. 5. 1. when thou goest to the house of god , keep thy foot . hast thou any spiritual duty to perform , and dost thou design the attaining of any communion with god ? look to thy self , take care of thy affections , they will be gadding and wandring , and that from their aversation to what thou hast in hand . there is not any good that we would do , wherein we may not find this aversation exercising it self . when i would do good , evil is present with me ; at any time , at all times , when i would do any thing that is spiritually good , it is present ; that is , to hinder me , to obstruct me in my duty , because it abhors and loaths the thing which i have in hand , it will keep me off from it if it be possible . in them in whom it prevails , it comes at length unto that frame which is expressed , ezech. 33. 31. it will allow an outward bodily presence unto the worship of god , wherein it is not concerned , but it keeps the heart quite away . it may be some will pretend , they find it not so in themselves , but they have freedom and liberty in and unto all the duties of obedience that they attend unto . but i fear , this pretended liberty will be found upon examination to arise from one or both of these causes . first , ignorance of the true state and condition of their own souls , of their inward man and its actings towards god. they know not how it is with them , and therefore are not to be believed in what they report . they are in the dark and neither know what they do , nor whither they are going . it is like the pharisee knew little of this matter , which made him boast of his duties to god himself . or , secondly , it may be what ever duties of worship or obedience such persons perform , they may through want of faith , and an interest in christ , have no communion with god in them . and if so , sin will make but little opposition unto them therein . we speak of them whose hearts are exercised with these things , and if under their complaints of them , and groanings for deliverance from them , others cry out unto them , stand off , we are holier than ye , they are willing to bear their condition , as knowing that their way may be safe , though it be troublesome , and being willing to see their own dangers , that they may avoid the ruine which others fall into . let us then a little consider this aversation in such acts of obedience , as wherein there is no concernment but that of god and the soul. in publick duties there may be a mixture of other considerations ; they may be so influenced by custom and necessity , that a right judgment cannot from them be made of this matter . but let us take into consideration the duties of retirement , as private prayer and meditation , and the like ; or else extraordinary duties , or duties to be performed in an extraordinary manner . first , in these will this aversation and loathing oftentimes discover it self in the affections . a secret striving will be in them about close and cordial dealing with god. unless the hand of god in his spirit be high and strong upon the soul , even when convictions , sense of duty , dear and real esteem of god , and communion with him , have carried the soul into its closet , yet if there be not the vigour and power of a spiritual life constantly at work , there will be a secret lothness in them unto duty ; yea , sometimes there will be a violent inclination to the contrary ; so that the soul had rather do any thing , embrace any diversion , though it would it self thereby , than vigorously apply it self unto that which in the inward man it breaths after . it is weary before it begins , and says , when will the work be over ? here god and the soul are immediately concerned , and it is a great conquest to do what we would , though we come exceedingly short of what we should do . secondly , it discovers it self in the mind also : when we address our selves to god in christ , we are , as job speaks , to fill our mouths with arguments , job 23. 4. that we may be able to plead with him , as he calls upon us to do , isa. 43. 26. put me in remembrance , let us plead together . whence the church is called upon to take unto it self words or arguments in going to god , hos. 14. 2. the sum is , that the mind should be furnished with the considerations that are prevailing with god , and be in readiness to plead them , and to manage them in the most spiritual manner to the best advantage . now is there no difficulty to get the mind into such a frame , as to lay out it self to the utmost in this work ? to be clear , steady , and constant in its duty ? to draw out , and make use of its stores and furniture of promises and experiences ? it starts , wanders , flags all from this secret aversation unto communion with god , which proceeds from the law of indwelling-sin . some complain that they can make no work of meditation , they cannot bend their minds unto it . i confess there may be a great cause of this , in their want of a right understanding of the duty it self , and of the ways of manageing the soul in it , which therefore i shall a little speak to afterwards . but yet this secret enmity hath its hand in the loss they are at also , and that both in their minds and in their affections . others are forced to live in family and publick duties , they find such little benefit and success in private . and here hath been the beginning of the apostasie of many professors , and the source of many foolish sensual opinions . finding this aversation in their minds and affections from closeness and constancy in private spiritual duties , not knowing how to conquer and prevail against these difficulties through him who enables us , they have at first been subdued to a neglect of them , first partial , then total , until having lost all conscience of them , they have had a door opened unto all sin and licentiousness , and so to a full and utter apostasie . i am perswaded there are very few that apostatize from a profession of any continuance , such as our days abound withall , but their door of entrance into the folly of back-sliding , was either some great and notorious sin that bloodied their consciences , tainted their affections , and intercepted all delight of having any thing more to do with god ; or else it was a course of neglect in private duties , arising from a weariness of contending against that powerful aversation which they found in themselves unto them . and this also through the craft of satan hath been improved into many foolish and sensual opinions , of living unto god without , and above any duties of communion . and we find , that after men have for a while choaked and blinded their consciences with this pretence , cursed wickedness or sensuality hath been the end of their folly . and the reason of all this is , that the giving way to the law of sin in the least , is the giving strength unto it : to let it alone is to let it grow , not to conquer it is to be conquered by it . as it is in respect of private , so it is also in respect of publick duties , that have any thing extraordinary in them . what strivings , struglings , and pleadings are there in the heart about them , especially against the spirituality of them ? yea , in and under them , will not the mind and affections sometimes be intangled with things uncouth , new and strange unto them , such as at the time of the least serious business , a man would not deign to take into his thoughts . but if the least loose , liberty or advantage be given unto indwelling-sin , if it be not perpetually watched over , it will work to a strange and an unexpected issue . in brief , let the soul uncloath any duty what ever , private or publick , any thing that is called good , let a man divest it of all outward respects which secretly insinuate themselves into the mind , and give it some complacency in what it is about , but do not render it acceptable unto god , and he shall assuredly find somewhat of the power , and some of the effects of this aversation . it begins in lothness and indisposition , goes on with intangling the mind and affections with other things , and will end , if not prevented , in weariness of god , which he complains of in his people , isa. 43. 22. they ceased from duty because they were weary of god. but this instance being of great importance unto professors in their walking with god , we must not pass it over without some intimations of directions for them in their contending against it , and opposition to it . only this must be premised , that i am not giving directions for the mortifying of indwelling-sin in general , which is to be done alone by the spirit of christ , by vertue of our union with him , rom. 8. 13. but only of our particular duty , with reference unto this especial evil or effect of indwelling-sin that we have a little insisted on , or what in this single case the wisdom of faith seems to direct unto , and call for ; which will be our way and course in our process upon the consideration of other effects of it . first , the great means to prevent the fruits and effects of this aversation , is the constant keeping of the soul in an universally holy frame . as this weakens the whole law of sin , so answerably all its properties ; and particulary this aversation . it is this frame only that will enable us to say with the psalmist , psal. 57. 7. my heart is fixed , o god , my heart is fixed . it is utterly impossible to keep the heart in a prevailing holy frame in any one duty , unless it be so in and unto all and every one . if sin intanglements get hold in any one thing , they will put themselves upon the soul in every thing . a constant even frame and temper in all duties , in all ways , is the only preservative for any one way . let not him who is neglective in publick perswade himself , that all will be clear and easie in private or on the contrary . there is an harmony in obedience , break but one part and you interrupt the whole . our wounds in particular arise generally from negligence as to the whole course . so david informs us , psal. 119. 6. then shall i not be ashamed , when i have a respect unto all thy commandements . an universal respect to all gods commandements , is the only preservative from shame . and nothing have we more reason to be ashamed of , than the shameful miscarriages of our hearts in point of duty , which are from the principle before mentioned . secondly , labour to prevent the very beginnings of the workings of this aversation ; let grace be before-hand with it in every duty . we are directed , 1 pet. 4. 7. to watch unto prayer ; and as is is unto prayer , so unto every duty ; that is , to consider and take care that we be not hindered from within , nor from without , as to a due performance of it . watch against temptations to oppose them , watch against the aversation that is in sin to prevent it . as we are not to give place to satan , no more are we to sin . if it be not prevented in its first attempts , it will prevail . my meaning is , whatever good , as the apostle speaks , we have to do , and find evil present with us , as we shall find it present , prevent its parlying with the soul , its insinuating of poison into the mind and affections , by a vigorous , holy , violent stirring up of the grace , or graces that are to be acted and set at work peculiary in that duty . let jacob come first into the world , or if prevented by the violence of esau let him lay hold on his heel to overthrow him , and obtain the birth-right . upon the very first motion of peter to our saviour , crying , master , spare thy self , he immediately replyes , get thee behind me satan . so ought we to say , get thee gone thou law of sin , thou present evil , and it may be of the same use unto us . get grace then , up betimes unto duty , and be early in the rebukes of sin . thirdly , though it do its worst , yet be sure it never prevail to a conquest . be sure you be not wearied out by its pertinacy , nor driven from your hold by its importunity ; do not faint by its opposition . take the apostles advice heb. 6. 11. we desire that every one of you , do shew the same diligence to the full assurance of hope unto the end that ye be not slothful . still hold out in the same diligence . there are many wayes whereby men are driven from a constant holy performance of duties , all of them dangerous , if not pernicious to the soul. some are diverted by business , some by company , some by the power of temptations , some discouraged by their own darkness ; but none so dangerous as this , when the soul gives over in part , or in whole , as wearied by the aversation of sin unto it , or to communion with god in it . this argues the souls giving up of it self unto the power of sin , which unless the lord break the snare of satan therein , will assuredly prove ruinous . our saviours instruction is , that we ought alwayes to pray , and not to faint , luke 18. 1. opposition will arise , none so bitter and keen as that from our own hearts ; if we faint we perish . take heed lest you be wearied , saith the apostle , and faint in your minds , heb. 12. 3. such a fainting as is attended with a weariness and that with a giving place to the aversation working in our hearts , is to be avoided , if we would not perish . the caution is the same with that of the same apostle , rom. 12. 12. rejoycing in hope , patient in tribulation , continuing instant in prayer . and in general with that of chap. 6. 12. let not sin therefore reign in your mortal body , that ye should obey it in the lust thereof . to cease from duty , in part , or in whole , upon the aversation of sin unto its spirituality , is to give sin the rule , and to obey it in the lust thereof . yield not then unto it , but hold out the conflict ; wait on god and ye shall prevail , isa. 40. 31. they that wait upon the lord shall renew their strength , they shall mount up with wings as eagles , they shall run and not be weary , and they shall walk and not faint . but that which is now so difficult , will increase in difficulty if we give way unto it . but if we abide in our station , we shall prevail , the mouth of the lord hath spoken it . fourthly , carry about a constant humbling sense of this close aversation unto spiritualness that yet lyes in our nature . if men find the efficacy of it , what should , what consideration can be more powerful to bring them unto humble walking with god. that after all the discoveries that god hath made of himself unto them , all the kindness they have received from him , his doing of them good and not evil in all things , there should yet be such an heart of unkindness and unbelief , still abiding , as to have an aversation lying in it to communion with him : how ought the thoughts of it to cast us into the dust , to fill us with shame and self-abhorrency all our days ? what have we found in god in any of our approaches or addresses unto him , that it should be thus with us ? what iniquity have we found in him ? hath he been a wilderness unto us , or a land of darkness ? did we ever lose any thing by drawing nigh unto him ? nay , hath not therein lyen all the rest and peace which we have obtained ? is not he the fountain and spring of all our mercies , of all our desirable things ? hath he not bid us welcome at our coming ? have we not received from him more than heart can conceive , or tongue express ? what ails then our foolish and wretched hearts , to harbour such a cursed secret dislike of him and his ways ? let us be ashamed and astonished at the consideration of it , and walk in ●n humbling sense of it all our dayes . let us carry it about with us in the most secret of our thoughts . and as this is a duty in it self acceptable unto god , who delights to dwell with them that are of an humble and contrite spirit ; so it is of exceeding efficacy to the weakening of the evil we ●reat of . fifthly , labour to possess the mind with the beauty and excellency of spiritual things , that so they may be presented lovely and desirable to the ●oul , and this cursed aversation of sin will be weakned thereby . it is an innate acknowledged principle , that the soul of man will not keep up chearfully unto the worship of god , unless it have a discovery of a beauty and comeliness in it . hence when men had lost all spiritual sense and savour of the things of god , to supply the want that was in their own souls , they invented outwardly pom●ous and gorgeous wayes of worship , in images , paintings , pictures , and i know not what carnal ornaments which they have called the beauties of holiness . thus much however was discovered therein , that the mind of man must see a beauty , a desirableness in the things of gods worship , or it will not delight in it , aversation will prevail . let then the soul labour to acquaint it self with the spiritual beauty of obedience , of communion with god , and of all duties of immediate approach to him , that 〈◊〉 may be filled with delight in them . it is not my present work to discover the heads and springs of that beauty and desirableness which is in spiritual duties , in their relation to god , the eternal spring ●f all beauty , to christ , the love , desire , and hope of all nations , to the spirit the great beautifier of souls , rendering them by his grace all glorious within , in their suitableness to the souls of men , as to their actings towards their last end , in the rectitude and holiness of the rule in attendance whereunto they are to be performed ; but i only say at present in general , that to acquaint the soul throughly with these things is an eminent way of weakening the aversation spoken of . chap. vi. the work of this enmity against god , by way of opposition . first , it lusteth . wherein the lusting of sin consisteth . it surprizing of the soul. readiness to close with temptations . it s fighting and warring . ( 1. ) in rebellion against the law of grace . ( 2. ) in assaulting the soul. how this enmity worketh by way of aversation hath been declared , as also the means that the soul is to use for the preventing of its effects and prevalency . the second way whereby it exerts its self is opposition . enmity will oppose and contend with that wherewith it is at enmity . it is so in things natural and moral . as light and darkness , heat and cold , so vertue and vice oppose each other . so is it with sin and grace , saith the apostle , these are contrary one to the other , gal. 5. 17. 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 , they are placed and set in mutual opposition , and that continually and constantly , as we shall see . now there are two wayes whereby enemies mannage an opposition . first , by force : and secondly , by fraud and deceit . so when the egyptians became enemies to the children of israel , and mannaged an enmity against them , exod. 1. 10. pharaoh saith , let us deal wisely , or rather cunningly and subtilly with this people ; for so stephen with respect to this word , expresseth it , acts 7. 19. by 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 ; he used all manner of fraudulent sophistry . and unto this deceit they added force , in their grievous oppressions . this is the way and manner of things where there is a prevailing enmity . and both these are made use of by the law of sin in its enmity against god , and our souls . i shall begin with the first ; or its actings as it were in a way of force , in an open down-right opposition to god and his law , or the good that a believing soul would do in obedience unto god , and his law. and in this whole matter , we must be careful to stear our course aright , taking the scripture for our guide , with spiritual reason and experience for our companions . for there are many shelves in our course , which must diligently be avoided , that none who consider these things be troubled without cause , or comforted without a just foundation . in this first way , whereby this sin exerts its enmity in opposition , namely , as it were by force or strength , there are four things expressing so many distinct degrees in its progress and procedure in the pursuit of its enmity . first , it s general inclination , it lusteth , gal. 5. 17. secondly , it s particular way of contending , it fights or wars , rom. 7. 23. james 4. 1. 1 pet. 2. 11. thirdly , its success in this contest , it brings the soul into captivity to the law of sin , rom. 7. 23. fourthly , its growth and rage upon success , it comes up to madness , as an enraged enemy will do , eccles. 9. 3. all which we must speak to in order . first , in general it is said to lust , gal. 5. 17. the flesh lusteth against the spirit . this word expresseth the general nature of that opposition which the law of sin maketh against god , and the rule o● his spirit or grace in them that believe , and therefore the least degree of that opposition is expressed hereby . when it doth any thing it lusteth . as because burning is the general acting of fire , what ever it doth else , it doth also burn . when fire doth any thing , it burns : and when the law of sin doth any thing , it lusts . hence all the actings of this law of sin are called the lusts of the flesh , gal. 5. 16. ye shall not fulfil the lusts of the flesh , rom. 13. 14. make no provision for the flesh to fulfil the lusts thereof . nor are these lusts of the flesh those only whereby men act their sensuality in riot , drunkènness , uncleaness , and the like , but they comprehend all the actings of the law of sin whatever in all the faculties and affections of the soul. thus ephes. 2. 3. we have mention of the desires , or wills , or lusts of the mind , as well as of the flesh . the mind the most spiritual part o● the soul hath its lusts , no less than the sensual appetite , which seems sometimes more properly to be called the flesh . and in the products of these lusts , there are defilements of the spirit , as well as of the flesh , 2 cor. 7. 1. that is , of the mind and understanding , as well as of the appetite and affections , and the body that attends their service . and in the blamelesness of all these consists our holiness , 2 thess. 5. 23. the god of peace , sanctifie you wholly , and i pray god your whole spirit , and soul , and body be preserved blameless unto the coming of our lord jesus christ. yea , by the flesh in this matter the whole old man , or the law of sin is intended , john 3. 6. that which is born of the flesh is flesh ; that is , it is all so , and nothing else . and what ever remains of the old nature in the new man is flesh still . and this flesh lusteth ; this law of sin doth so , which is the general bottom and foundation of all its opposition unto god. and this 〈◊〉 doth two wayes . first ▪ in an hidden close propensity unto all evil . this lyes in it habitually . whilest a man is in the state of nature , fully under the power and dominion of this law of sin , it is said , that every figment of his heart is evil , and that continually , gen. 6. 5. it can frame , fashion , produce , or act nothing but what is evil : because this habitual propensity unto evil , that is in the law of sin , is absolutely predominant in such a one . it is in the heart like poison that hath nothing to allay its venemous qualities , and so infects whatever it touches . and where the power and dominion of it is broken , yet in its own nature it hath still an habitual propensity unto that which is evil , wherein its lusting doth consist . but here we must distinguish between the habitual frame of the heart , and the natural propensity or habitual inclination of the law of sin in the heart . the habitual inclination of the heart is denominated from the principle that bears chief or soveraign rule in it ; and therefore in believers it is unto good , unto god , unto holiness , unto obedience . the heart is not habitually inclined unto evil by the remainders of indwelling sin , but this sin in the heart hath a constant habitual propensity unto evil in its self , or its own nature . this the apostle intends by its being present with us ; it is present with me , that is , alwayes , and for its own end , which is to lust unto sin . it is with indwelling-sin as with a river ; whilest the springs and fountains of it are open , and waters are continually supplyed unto its streams , set a damm before it , and it causeth it to rise and swell , untill it bear down all , or overflow the banks about it . let these waters b● abated , dryed up in some good measure , in the springs of them , and the remainder may be coerced and restrained . but still as long as there is any running water it will constantly press upon what stands before it , according to its weight and strength , because it is its nature so to do . and if by any means it make a passage , it will proceed . so is it with indwelling-sin : whilest the springs and fountains of it are open , in vain is it for men to set a damm before it by their convictions , resolutions , vowes and promises . they may check it for a while , but it will increase , rise high , and rage at one time or another , until it bears down all those convictions and resolutions , or makes it self an underground-passage by some secret lust that shall give a full vent unto it . but now suppose that the springs of it are much dryed up by regenerating grace , the streams or actings of it abated by holiness , yet whilest any thing remains of it , it will be pressing constantly to have vent , to press forward into actual sin . and this is its lusting . and this habitual propensity in it is discovered two wayes . first , in its unexpected surprizals of the soul into foolish sinful figments and imaginations which it looked not for , nor was any occasion administred unto them . it is with indwelling-sin , as it is with the contrary principle of sanctifying grace . this gives the soul , if i may so say , many a blessed surprizal . it oftentimes ingenerates and brings forth an holy spiritual frame in the heart and mind , when we have had no previous rational considerations to work them thereunto . and this manifests it to be an habitual principle prevailing in the mind : so cant. 6. 12. or ever i was aware my soul made me as the chariots of aminadab ; that is , free , willing and ready for communion with christ. 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 i knew not ; it was done by the power of the spirit of grace , so that i took no notice of it , as it were , until it was done . the frequent actings of grace in this manner , exciting acts of faith , love and complacency in god , are evidences of much strength and prevalency of● in the soul. and thus also is it with indwelling-sin ; ere the soul is aware , without any provocation or temptation , when it knows not , it is cast into a vain and ●oolish frame . s●n produceth its figments secretly in the heart , and prevents the minds consideration of what it is about . i mean hereby those actus primo primi , first acts of the soul , which are thus far involuntary , as that they have not the actual consent of the will unto them ; but are voluntary as far as sin hath its residence in the will. and these surprizals , if the soul be not awake to take speedy care for the prevention of their tendency , do oftentimes set all as it were on fire , and engage the mind and affections into actual sin . for as by grace we are oftentimes ere we are aware made as the chariots of a willing people , and are far engaged in heavenly-mindedness and communion with christ , making speed in it as in a chariot ; so by sin are we oftentimes , ere we are aware , carried into distempered affections , foolish imaginations , and pleasing delightfulness in things that are not good nor profitable . hence is that caution of the apostle , gal. 6. 1. 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 , if a man be surprized at unawares with a fault or in a transgression . i doubt not but the subtilty of satan , and the power of temptation , are there taken into consideration by the apostle , which causeth him to express a mans falling into sin , by 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 , if he be surprized ; so this working of indwelling-sin also hath its consideration in it , and that in the chiefest place without which nothing else could surprize us . for without the help thereof , what●ver comes from without , from satan , or the world , must admit of some parley in the mind before it be received , but it is from within , from our selves that we are surprized . hereby are we disappointed and wrought over to do that which we would not , and hindered from the doing of that which we would . hence it is , that when the soul is oftentimes doing as it were quite another thing , engaged quite upon another design , sin starts that in the heart or imaginations of it , that carryes it away into that which is evil and sinful . yea , to manifest its power , sometimes when the soul is seriously engaged in the mortification of any sin , it will by one means or other lead it away into a dalliance with that very sin whose ruine it is seeking , and whose mortification it is engaged in . but as there is in this operation of the law of sin , a special enticing or entangling , we shall speak unto it fully afterwards . now these surprizals can be from nothing but an habitual propensity unto evil in the principle from whence they proceed . not an habitual inclination unto actual sin in the mind or heart , but an habitual propensity unto evil in the sin that is in the mind or heart . this prevents the soul with its figments . how much communion with god is hereby prevented , how many meditations are disturbed , how much the minds and consciences of men have been defiled by this acting of sin , some may have observed . i know no greater burthen in the life of a believer than these involuntary surprizals of soul involuntary i say , as to the actual consent of the will , but not so in respect of that corruption which is in the will , and is the principle of them . and it is in respect unto these , that the apostle makes his complaint , rom. 7. 24. secondly , this habitual inclination manifests it self in its readiness and promptness , without dispute or altercation to joyn and close with every temptation , whereby it may possibly be excited . as we know it is in the nature of fire to burn , because it immediately lays hold on whatever is combustible . let any temptation whatever be proposed unto a man , the suitableness of whose matter unto his corruptions , or manner of its proposal , makes it a temptation ; immediately he hath not only to do with the temptation as outwardly proposed , but also with his own heart about it . without farther consideration or debate , the temptation hath got a friend in him . not a moments space is given between the proposal , and the necessity there is incumbent on the soul to look to its enemy within . and this also argues a constant habitual propensity unto evil . our saviour said of the assaults and temptations of sathan , the prince of this world cometh , and he hath no part in me , joh. 14. 30. he had more temptations intensively and extensively , in number , quality and fierceness , from sathan and the world , than ever had any of the sons of men : but yet in all of them , he had to deal only with that which came from without . his holy heart had nothing to like them , suited to them , or ready to give them entertainment : the prince of this world had nothing in him . so it was with adam ; when a temptation be fell him , he had only the outward proposal of it to look unto , all was well within , until the outward temptation took place and prevailed . with us it is not so . in a city that is at unity in it self , compact and entire , without divisions and parties , if an enemy approach about it , the rulers and inhabitants have no thoughts at all but only how they may oppose the enemy without , and resist him in his approaches . but if the city be divided in it self , if there be factions and traitors within , the very first thing they do , is to look to the enemies at home , the traitors within ; to cut off the head of sheba , if they will be safe . all was well with adam within doors , when satan came , so that he had nothing to do but to look to his assaults and approaches . but now on the access of any temptation , the soul is instantly to look in , where it shall find this traitor at work , closing with the baits of sathan , and stealing away the heart . and this it doth always , which evinceth an habitual inclination . psal. 38. 17. saith david , i am ready to halt , or for halting ; 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 , i am prepared and disposed unto hallucination , to the slipping of my foot into sin , verse 16. as he expounds the meaning of that phrase , psal. 73. 2 , 3. there was from indwelling-sin a continual disposition in him to be slipping , stumbling , halting on every occasion or temptation . there is nothing so vain , foolish , ridiculous , fond , nothing so vile and abominable , nothing so atheistical or execrable , but if it be proposed unto the soul in a way of temptation , there is that in this law of sin which is ready to answer it , before it be decried by grace . and this is the first thing in this lusting of the law of sin , it consists in its habitual propensity unto evil , manifesting it self by the involuntary surprisals of the soul unto sin , and its readiness without dispute or consideration to joyn with all temptations whatsoever . secondly , its lusting consists in its actual pressing after that which is evil , and actual opposition unto that which is good . the former instances shewed its constant readiness to this work , this now treats of the work it self . it is not only ready , but for the most part always engaged . it lusteth faith the holy ghost , it doth so continually . it stirreth in the soul by one act or other constantly , almost as the spirits in the blood , or the blood in the veins . this the apostle calls its tempting , jam. 1. 14. every man is tempted of his own lust . now what is it to be tempted ? it is to have that proposed to a mans consideration , which if he close withall , it is evil , it is sin unto him . this is sins trade ; 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 , it lusteth . it is raising up in the heart , and proposing unto the mind and affections , that which is evil , trying , as it were , whether the soul will close with its suggestions , or how far it can carry them on , though it do not wholly prevail . now when such a temptation comes from without , it is unto the soul an indifferent thing , neither good nor evil unless it be consented unto . but the very proposal from within , it being the souls own act , is its sin . and this is the work of the law of sin ; it is restlesly and continually raising up , and proposing innumerable various forms and appearances of evil , in this or that kind , indeed in every kind , that the nature of man is capable to exercise corruption in . something or other , in matter , or manner , or circumstance , inordinate , unspiritual , unanswerable unto the rule , it ha●cheth and proposeth unto the soul. and this power of sin to beget figments and idea's of actual evil in the heart the apostle may have respect unto , 1 thess. ● . 22. 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 , keep your selves from every evil figment or idea of sin in the heart ; for the word there used doth not any where signifie an outward form or appearance ; neither is it the appearance of evil , but an evil idea or figment that is intended . and this lusting of sin is that which the prophet expresseth in wicked men , in whom the law of it is predominant , isa. 57. 20. the wicked are like the troubled sea , when it cannot rest , whose waters cast up mire and dirt . a similitude most lively expressing the lustings of the law of sin , restlesly and continually bubling up in the heart , with wicked , foolish and filthy imaginations and desires . this then is the first thing in the opposition that this enmity makes to god , namely in its general inclination , it lusteth . secondly , there is its particular way of contending , it fights or wars ; that is , it acts with strength and violence , as men do in war. first , it lusts stirring and moving inordinate figments in the mind , desires in the appetite and the affections , proposing them to the w●ll . but it rests not there , it cannot rest : it urgeth , presseth and pursueth its proposals with earnestness , strength and vigour , fighting , and contending , and warring to obtain its end and purpose . would it meerly s●●r up and propose things to the soul , and immediately acquiesce in the sentence and judgment of the mind that the thing is evil , against god , and his will , and not farther to be insisted on , much sin might be prevented that is now produced . but it rests not here , it proceeds to carry on its design , and that with earnestness and contention . by this means , wicked men inflame themselves , isa. 57. 5. they are self-inflamers , as the word signifies , unto sin , every spark of sin is cherished in them until it grows into a flame , and so it will do in others where it is so cherished . now this fighting or warring of sin consists in two things . first , in its rebellion against grace , or the law of the mind . secondly , in its assaulting the soul , contending for rule and sovereignty over it . the first is expressed by the apostle , rom. 7. 23. i find , saith he , another law , 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 , rebelling against the law of my mind . there are , it seems , two laws in us , the law of the flesh , or of sin ; and the law of the mind , or of grace . but contrary laws cannot both obtain sovereign power over the same person , at the same time . the sovereign power in believers , is in the hand of the law of grace ; so the apostle declares , verse 22. i delight in the law of god in the inward man. obedience unto this law is performed with delight and complacency in the inward man , because its authority is lawful and good . so more expresly ▪ chap. 6. 14. for sin shall not have dominion over you , for ye are not under the law but under grace . now to war against the law that hath a just sovereignty , is to rebell ; and so 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 signifies ; it is to rebell , and ●ught to have been so translated , reb●lling against the law of my mind . and this rebellion consists in a stubborn obstina●e opposition unto the commands and directions of the law of grace . doth the law of the mind command any thing as duty ? doth it severely rise up against any thing that is evil ? when the lusting of the law of sin rises up to this degree , it contends against obedience with all its might , the effect whereof , as the apostle tells us , is the doing of that which we would not , and the not doing of that which we would , verse 15 , 16. and we may gather a notable instance of the power of sin in this its rebellion from this place . the law of grace prevails upon the will , so that it would do that which is good . to will is present with me , ver . 18. when i would do good , ver . 19. and again , ver . 21. and i would not do evil , ver . 19. 20. and it prevails upon the understanding , so that it approves or disapproves according to the dictates of the law of grace . ver. 16. i consent unto the law that it is good ; and verse 15. the judgment always lies on the side of grace . it prevails also on the affections , ver . 22. i delight in the law of god in the inward man. now if this be so , that grace hath the sovereign power in the understanding , will , and affections , whence is it that it doth not always prevail , that we do not always do that which we would , and abstain from that which we would not ? is it not strange that a man should not do that which he chuseth , willeth , liketh , delighteth in ? is there any thing more required to enable us unto that which is good ? the law of grace doth all as much as can be expected from it , that which in it self is abundantly sufficient for the perfecting of all holiness in the fear of the lord. but here lies the difficulty , in the intangling opposition that is made by the rebellion of this law of sin . neither is it expressible with what vigour and variety sin acts it self in this matter . sometimes it proposeth diversions , sometimes it causeth weariness , sometimes it finds out difficulties , sometimes it stirs up contrary affections , sometimes it begets prejudices , and one way or other intangles the soul , so that it never suffers grace to have an absolute and complete success in any duty . verse 18. 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 , i find not the way perfectly to work out , or accomplish that which is good ; so the word signifies ; and that from this opposition and resistance that is made by the law of sin . now this rebellion appears in two things . first , in the opposition that it makes unto the general purpose and course of the soul. secondly , in the opposition it makes unto particular duties . first , in the opposition it makes to the general purpose and course of the soul. there is none in whom is the spirit of christ , that is his , but it is his general design and purpose to walk in an universal conformity unto him in all things . even from the inward frame of the heart , to the whole compass of his outward actions , so it is with him . this god requires in his covenant , gen. 17. 1. walk before me , and be thou perfect . accordingly his design is to walk before god , and his frame is sincerity and uprightness therein . this is called , cleaving unto the lord with purpose of heart , acts. 11. 23. that is , in all things , and that not with a sloathful , dead , ineffectual purpose , but such as is operative , and sets the whole soul at work in pursuit of it . this the apostle sets forth , phil. 3. 12 , 13 , 14. not as though i had already attained , either were already perfect : but i follow after , if that i may apprehend that for which also i am apprehended of christ jesus . brethren , i count not my self to have apprehended , but this one thing i do , forgetting those things which are behind and reaching forth unto those things which are before , i press toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of god in christ jesus . he useth three words excellently expressing the souls universal pursuit of this purpose of heart in cleaving unto god , first , saith he , 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 , ver . 12. i follow after , prosecute ; the word signifies properly to persecute , which with what earnestness and diligence it is usually done , we know . secondly , 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 , i reach forward , reaching with great intention of spirit and affections . it is a great and constant endeavour that is expressed in that word . thirdly , 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 , say we , i press towards the mark , that is , even as men that are running for a prize . all set forth the vigour , earnestness , diligence and constancy that is used in the pursuit of this purpose . and this the nature of the principle of grace requireth in them in whom it is . but yet we see with what failings , yea fallings , their pursuit of this course is attended . the ●rame of the heart is changed , the heart is stollen away , the affections intangled , eruptions of unbelief and distempered passions discovered , carnal wisdom with all his attendances are set on work ; all contrary to the general principle and purpose of the soul. and all this is from the rebellion of this law of sin , stirring up and provoking the heart unto disobedience , the prophet gives this character of hypocrites , hos. 10. 2. their heart is divided , therefore shall they be found faulty . now though this be wholly so in respect of the mind and judgment in hypocrites only , yet it is partially so in the best , in the sense described . they have a division , not of the heart , but in the heart ; and thence it is that they are so often found faulty . so saith the apostle , so that we cannot do the things that we would , gal. 5. 17. we cannot accomplish the design of close walking according to the law of grace , because of the contrariety and rebellion of this law of sin . secondly , it rebells also in respect unto particular duties . it raiseth a combustion in the soul against the particular commands and designings of the law of grace : you cannot do the things that you would ; that is , the duties which you judge incumbent on you which you approve and delight in in the inward man , you cannot do them as you would . take an instance in prayer . a man addresseth himself unto that duty , he would not only perform it , but he would perform it in that manner that the nature of the duty , and his own condition do require . he would pray in the spirit , fervently , with sighs and groans that cannot be uttered ; in faith with love and delight , pouring forth his soul unto the lord : this he aims at . now oftentimes he shall find a rebellion , a fighting of the law of sin in this matter . he shall find difficulty to get any thing done , who thought to do all things . i do not say , that it is thus always , but it is so when sin wars and rebells , which expresseth an especial acting of its power . woful intanglements do poor creatures oftentimes meet withall upon this account . instead of that free inlarged communion with god that they aim at , the best that their souls arrive unto , is but to go away mourning for their folly , deadness and indisposition . in a word , there is no command of the law of grace that is known , liked of , and approved by the soul , but when it comes to be observed , this law of sin one way or other makes head and rebels against it . and this is the first way of its fighting . secondly , it doth not only rebel and resist , but it assaults the soul ; it sets upon the law of the mind and grace , which is the second part of its warring , 1 pet. 2. 11. 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 , they fight , or war against the soul. jam. 4. 1. 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 , they fight , or war in your members . peter shews what they oppose and fight against , namely the soul , and the law of grace therein ; james , what they fight with , or by , namely the members , or the corruption that is in our mortal bodies . 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 is to rebel against a superiour ; 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 is to assault or war for superiority . it takes the part of an assailant as well as of a resister . it makes attempts for rule and sovereignty , as well as opposeth the rule of grace . now all war and fighting hath somewhat of violence in it , and there is therefore some violence in that acting of sin , which the scripture calls fighting and warring . and this assailing efficacy of sin , as distinguished from its rebelling before treated of , consists in these things that ensue . first , all its positive actings in stirring up unto sin , belong to this head . oftentimes by the vanity of the mind , or the sensuality of the affections , the folly of the imaginations , it sets upon the soul then , when the law of grace is not actually putting it on duty , so that therein it doth not rebel but assault . hence the apostle cries out , rom. 7. 24. who shall deliver me from it , who shall rescue● me out of its hand , as the word signifies . when we pursue an enemy , and he resists us , we do not cry out , who shall deliver us , for we are the assailants ; but , who shall rescue me , is the cry of one● who is set upon by an enemy . so it is here , a man is assaulted by his own lusts , as james speaks . by the way side , in his employment , under a duty , sin sets upon the soul with vain imaginations , foolish desires , and would willingly employ the soul to make provision for its satisfaction ; which the apostle cautions us against , rom. 13. 14. 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 , do not accomplish the providence or projection of the flesh , for its own satisfaction . secondly , its importunity and urgency seems to be noted in this expression of its warring . enemies● in war are restless , pressing and importunate . so is the law of sin . doth it set upon the soul ? cast off its motions , it returns again ; rebuke them by the power of grace , they withdraw for a while , and return again . set before them the cross of christ , they do as those that came to take him , at sight of him they went backwards , and fell unto the ground , but they arose again and laid hands on him . sin gives places for a season , but returns and presseth on the soul again . mind it of the love of god in christ , though it be stricken , yet it gives not over . present hell-fire unto it , it rusheth into the midst of those flames . reproach it with its ●olly and madness , it knows no shame , but presseth on still . let the thoughts of the mind strive to flie from it , it follows as on the wings of the wind . and by this importunity it wearies and warrs out ●he soul , and if the great remedy , rom 8. 13. come not timely , it prevails to a conquest . there is no●hing more marvellous nor dreadful in the work●ng of sin , than this of its importunity . the soul knows not what to make of it ; it dislikes , ab●ors , abominates the evil it tends unto , it despiseth the thoughts of it , hates them as hell , and yet is by ●t self imposed on with them , as if it were another person , an express enemy got within him . all this the apostle discovers , rom. 7. 15 , 17. the things that i do i hate ; it is not of outward actions , but the inward risings of the mind that he ●reats . i hate them , saith he , i abominate them . but why then will he have any thing more to do with them ? if he hate them , and abhor himself for them , let them alone , have no more to do with them , and so end the matter . alas , saith he , verse 17. it is no more i that do it , but sin that dwelleth in me . i have one within me that is my enemy , that with endless restless importunity puts these things upon me , even the things that i hate and abominate ; i cannot be rid of them , i am weary of my self , i cannot flie from them ; o wretched man that i am , who shall deliver me ? i do not say that this is the ordinary condition of believers , but thus it is often , when this law of sin riseth up to war and fighting . it is not thus with them in respect of particular sins , this or that sin , outward sins , sins of life or conversation ; but yet in respect of vanity of mind , inward and spiritual distempers , it is often so . some i know pretend to great perfection , but i am resolved to believe the apostle before them all and every one . thirdly , it carryes on its war , by entangling of the affections and drawing them into a combination against the mind . let grace be enthroned in the mind and judgement , yet if the law of sin layes hold upon , and entangles the affections , or any of them , it hath gotten a fort from whence it continually assaults the soul. hence the great duty of mortification is chiefly directed to take place upon the affections , col. 3. 5. mortifie therefore your members which are upon the earth , fornication , uncleanness , inordinate affection , concupiscence and covetousness which is idolatry . the members that are upon the earth , are our affections . for in the outward part of the body , sin is not seated : in particular , not covetousness which is there enumerated to be mortified amongst our members that are on the earth . yea , after grace hath taken possession of the soul , the affections do become the principal seat of the remainders of sin . and therefore paul saith , that this law is in our membres , rom. 7. 23. and james , that it wars in our members , chap. 4. 1. that is , our affections . and there is no estimate to be taken of the work of mortification aright , but by the affections . we may every day see persons of very eminent light , that yet visibly have unmortified hearts and conversations . their affections have not been crucified with christ. now then when this law of sin can possess any affection whatever it be , love , delight , fear , it will make from it , and by it , fearful assaults upon the soul. for instance , hath it got the love of any one entangled with the world , or the things of it , the lust of the flesh , the lust of the eyes , or the pride of life : how will it take advantage on every occasion , to break in upon the soul ? it shall do nothing , attempt nothing , be in no place , or company , perform no duty , private or publick , but sin will have one blow or other at it ; it will be one way or other soliciting for it self . this is the summ of what we shall offer unto this acting of the law of sin in a way of fighting and warring against our souls , which is so often mentioned in the scripture . and a due consideration of it is of no small advantage unto us , especially to bring us unto self-abasement , to teach us to walk humbly and mournfully before god. there are two things that are suited to humble the souls of men . and they are , first , a due consideration of god , and then of themselves . of god in his greatness , glory , holiness , power , majesty and authority ; of our selves in our mean , abject , and sinful condition . now of all things in our condition , there is nothing so suited unto this end and purpose , as that which lyes before us ; namely , the vile remainders of enmity against god which are yet in our hearts and natures . and it is no small evidence of a gracious soul , when it is willing to search it self in this matter , and to be helped therein from a word of truth . when it is willing that the word should dive into the secret parts of the heart , and rip open what ever of evil and corruption lyes therein . the prophet sayes of ephraim , hos. 10. 11. he loved to tread out the corn ; he loved to work when he might eat , to have alwayes the corn before him ; but god sayes he , would cause him to plough ; a labour no less needful , though at present not so delightful . most men love to hear of the doctrine of grace , of the pardon of sin , of free love , and suppose they find food therein ; however it is evident that they grow and thrive in the life and notion of them . but to be breaking up the fallow ground of their hearts , to be enquiring after the weeds and briars that grow in them , they delight not so much . though this be no less necessary than the other . this path is not so beaten as that of grace , nor so trod in , though it be the only way to come to a true knowledge of grace it self . it may be some who are wise and grown in other truths , may yet be so little skilled in searching their own hearts , that they may be slow in the perception and understanding of these things . but this sloth and neglect is to be shaken off , if we have any regard unto our own souls . it is more than probable , that many a false hypocrite who have deceived themselves as well as others , because they thought the doctrine of the gospel pleased them , and therefore supposed they believed it , might be delivered from their soul ruining deceits , if they would diligently apply themselves unto this search of their won hearts . or would other professor● walk with so much boldness and security as some do , if they considered a right what a deadly watchful enemy they continually carry about with them and in them ; would they so much indulge as they do to carnal joyes , and pleasures , or pursue their perishing affairs with so much delight and greediness as they do ? it were to be wished , that we would all apply our hearts more to this work , even to come to a true understanding of the nature , power and subtilty of this our adversary , that our souls may be humbled ; and that , first , in walking with god ; his delight is with the humble and contrite ones , those that tremble at his word , the mourners in sion , and such are we only , when we have a due sense of our own vile condition . this will beget reverence of god , sense of our distance from him , admiration of his grace and condescension , a due valuation of mercy , far above those light verbal aiery attainments that some have boasted of . secondly , in walking with others , it layes in provision to prevent those great evils of judging , spiritual unmercifulness , harsh censuring , which i have observed to have been pretended by many , who at the same time , as afterwards hath appeared , have been guilty of greater or worser crimes , than those which they have raved against in others . this , i say , will lead us to meekness , compassion , readiness to forgive , to pass by offences , even when we shall consider what is our state , as the apostle plainly declares , gal. 6. 1. the man that understands the evil of hi sownheart , how vile it is , is the only useful , fruitful and solidly believing and obedient person . others are fit only to delude themselves , to disquiet families , churches , and all relations whatever . let us then consider our hearts wisely , and then go and see if we can be proud of our gifts , our graces , our valuation and esteem amongst professors , our enjoyments . let us go then and judge , condemn , reproach others that have been tempted ; we shall find a great inconsistency in these things . and many things of the like nature might be here added upon the consideration of this woful effect of ▪ indwelling-sin . the way of opposing and defeating its design herein shall be afterwards considered . chap. vii . the captivating power of indwelling-sin , wherein it consisteth . the prevalency of sin , when from it self , when from temptation . the rage and madness that is in sin. the third thing assigned unto this law of sin in its opposition unto god , and the law of his grace , is , that it leads the soul captive , rom. 7. 23. i find a law leading me captive , ( captivating me ) unto the law of sin. and this is the utmost height which the apostle in that place carries the opposition and warring of the remainders of indwelling-sin unto ; closing the consideration of it with a complaint of the state and condition of believers thereby ; and an earnest prayer for deliverance from it , ver . 24. o wretched man that i am , who shall deliver me from this body of death . what is contained in this expression , and intended by it , shall be declared in the ensuing observations . first , it is not directly the power and actings of the law of sin that are here expressed , but its success in and upon its actings . but success is the greatest evidence of power , and leading captive in war is the height of success . none can aime at greater success , than to lead their enemies captive . and it is a peculiar expression in the scripture of great success . so the lord christ on his victory over satan , is said to lead captivity captive , ephes. 4. 8. that is , to conquer him , who had conquered and prevailed upon others . and this he did when by death he destroyed him that had the power of death , that is the devil , heb. 2. 14. here then a great prevalency and power of sin in its warring against the soul is discovered . it so wars , as to lead captive ; which had it not great power , it could not do , especially against that resistance of the soul which is included in this expression . secondly , it is said , that it leads the soul captive unto the law of sin. not to this or that sin , particular sin , actual sin , but to the law of sin. god for the most part ordereth things so , and gives out such supplies of grace unto believers , as that they shall not be made a prey unto this or that particular sin , that it should prevail in them , and compel them to serve it in the lusts thereof , that it should have dominion over them , that they should be captives and slaves unto it . this is that which david prayes so earnestly against , psalm . 19. 12 , 13. cleanse thou me from secret faults , keep back thy servant also from presumptuous sins , let them not have dominion over me , then shall i be upright . he supposeth the continuance of the law of sin in him , ver . 12. which will bring forth errors of life , and secret sins against which he findeth relief in pardoning and cleansing mercy which he prayes for . this saith he will be my condition . but for sins of pride and boldness , such all sins are , that get dominion in a man , that make a captive of a man , the lord restrain thy servant from them . for what sin soever gets such power in a man , be it in its own nature small or great , it becomes in him in whom it is , a sin of boldness , pride , and presumption . for these things are not reckoned from the nature or kind of the sin , but from its prevalency and customariness , wherein its pride , boldness ▪ and contempt● of god doth consist . to the same purpose , if i mistake not , prayes jabez , 1 chron. 4. 10. o that thou wouldst bless me indeed and enlarge my coast , and that thine hand may be with me , and that thou wouldst keep me from evil , that it may not grieve me . the holy man took occasion from his own name to pray against sin that that might not be a grief and sorrow to him by its power and prevalency . i confess sometimes it may come to this with a believer , that for a season he may be lead captive by some particular sin . it may have so much prevalency in him , as to have power over him . so it seems to have been with david when he lay so long in his sin without repentance . and was plainly so with those in isa. 57. 17 , 18. for the iniquity of his covetousness was i wroth , and smote him , i hid me , and was wroth , and he went on frowardly in the way of his heart ; i have seen his wayes , and will heal him . they continued under the power of their covetousness : so that no dealings of god with them , for so long a time could reclaim them . but for the most part when any lust or sin doth so prevail , it is from the advantage and fartherance that it hath got by some powerful temptation of satan . he hath poysoned it , enflamed it , and entangled the soul. so the apostle speaking of such as through sin were fallen off from their holiness sayes , they were in the snare of the devil , being taken captive by him at his will , 2 tim. 2. 26. though it were their own lust , that they served , yet they were brought into bondage thereunto , by being entangled in some snare of satan . and thence they are said to be taken alive , as a poor beast in a toyle . and here , by the way we may a little enquire whether the prevailing power of a particular sin in any , be from it self , or from the influence of temptation upon it , concerning which at present take only these two observations . first , much of the prevalency of sin upon the soul is certainly from satan , when the perplexing and captivating sin hath no peculiar footing , nor advantage in the nature , constitution , or condition of the sinner . when any lust grows high and prevailing more than others upon its own account , it is from the peculiar advantage that it hath in the natural constitution , or the station or condition of the person in the world . for otherwise the law of sin gives an equal propensity unto all evil , an equal vigour unto every lust . when therefore it cannot be discerned , that the captivating sin is peculiary fixed in the nature of the sinner , or is advantaged from his education or employment in the world , the prevalency of it is peculiary from satan . he hath got to the root of it , and hath given it poyson and strength . yea , perhaps sometimes that which may seem to the soul to be the corrupt lusting of the heart , is nothing but satans imposing his suggestions on the imagination . if then a man find an importunate rage from any corruption , that is not evidently seated in his nature : let him as the papists say , cross himself , or fly by faith to the cross of christ , for the devil is nigh at hand . secondly , when a lust is prevalent unto captivity where it brings in no advantage to the flesh , it is from satan . all that the law of sin doth of it self , is to serve the providence of the flesh , rom. 13. 14. and it must bring in unto it somewhat of the profits and pleasures that are its object . now if the prevailing sin do not so act it self , if it be more spiritual and inward , it is much from satan by the imagination , more than the corruption of the heart it self . but this by the way . i say then , that the apostle treats not here , of our being captivated unto this or that sin , but unto the law of sin. that is , we are compelled to bear its presence and burden whether we will or no. sometimes the soul thinks or hopes that it may through grace be utterly freed from this troublesome inmate . upon some sweet enjoyment of god , some full supply of grace , some return from wandering , some deep affliction , some through humiliation , the poor soul begins to hope that it shall now be freed from the law of sin. but after a while it perceives that it is quite otherwise . sin acts again , makes good it s old station , and the soul finds that whether it will or no , it must bear its yoke . this makes it sigh and cry out for deliverance . thirdly , this leading captive argues a prevalency against the renitency or contrary actings of the will. this is intimated plainly in this expression ; namely , that the will opposeth , and makes head as it were against the working of sin . this the apostle declares in those expressions which he uses , ver . 15 , 19 , 20. and herein consists the lusting of the spirit against the flesh , gal. 5. 17. that is , the contending of grace to expell and subdue it . the spiritual habits of grace that are in the will , do so resist and act against it . and the excitation of those habits by the spirit are directed to the same purpose . this leading captive , is contrary i say , to the inclinations and actings of the renewed will. no man is made a captive but against his will. captivity is misery and trouble , and no man willingly puts himself into trouble . men chuse it in its causes , and in the wayes and means leading unto it , but not in it self . so the prophe● informs us , hos. 5. 11. ephraim was not willingly oppressed and broken in judgement ; that was his misery and trouble ; but he willingly walked after the commandement of the idolatrous kings which brought him thereunto . whatever consent then the soul may give unto sin , which is the means of this captivity , it gives none to the captivity it self ; that is against the will wholly . hence these things ensue . first , that the power of sin is great , which is that which we are in the demonstration of ; and this appears in its prevalency unto captivity ; against the actings and contendings of the will for liberty from it . had it no opposition made unto it , or were its adversary , weak , negligent , slothful , it were no great evidence of its power , that it made captives . but its prevailing against diligence , activity , watchfulness , the constant renitency of the will , this evinceth its efficacy . secondly , this leading captive intimates manifold particular successes . had it not success in particular it could not be said at all to lead captive . rebell it might , assail it might , but it cannot be said to lead captive without some successes . and there are several degrees of the success of the law of sin in the soul. sometimes it carries the person unto outward actual sin which is its utmost aim . sometimes it obtaineth the consent of the will , but is cast out by grace , and proceeds no farther . sometimes it wearies and entangles the soul , that it turns aside as it were , and leaves contending which is a success also . one or more , or all of these must be , where captivity takes place . such a kind of course doth the apostle ascribe unto cove●ousness , 1 tim. 6. 9. thirdly , this leading captive manifests this condition to be miserable and wretched . to be thus yoked and dealt withall against the judgment of the mind , the choice and consent of the will , its utmost strivings and contendings , how sad is it ? when the neck is sore and tender with former pressures , to be compell'd to bear the yoke again , this pierces , this grieves , this even breaks the heart . when the soul is principled by grace unto a loathing of sin , of every evil way , to an hatred of the least discrepancy between it self and the holy will of god , then to be imposed on by this law of sin , with all that enmity and folly , that deadness and filth , wherewith it is attended : what more dreadful condition ? all captivity is dreadful in its own nature ; the greatest aggravation of it is from the condition of the tyrant unto whom any one is captivated . now what can be worse than this law of sin ? hence the apostle having once mentioned this captivity , cries out as one quite weary and ready to faint , ver . 24. fourthly , this condition is peculiar to believers . unregenerate men are not said to be led captive to the law of sin . they may indeed be led captive unto this or that particular sin or corruption , that is , they may be forced to serve it against the power of their convictions . they are convinced of the evil of it , an adulterer of his uncleanness , a drunkard of his abomination , and make some resolutions , it may be , against it . but their lust is too hard for them , they cannot cease to sin , and so are made captives or slaves to this or that particular sin . but they cannot be said to be led captive to the law of sin , and that because they are willingly subject thereunto . it hath , as it were , a rightful dominion over them , and they oppose it not , but only when it hath irruptions to the disturbance of their consciences . and then the opposition they make unto it is not from their wills , but is the mee● acting of an affrighted conscience , and a convinced mind . they regard not the nature of sin , but its guilt and consequences . but to be brought into captivity , is that which befalls a man against his will. which is all that shall be spoken unto this degree of the actings of the power of sin , manifesting it self in its success . the fourth and last degree of the opposition made by the law of sin to god , and the law of his will and grace , is in its rage and madness . there is madness in its nature , eccles. 9. 3. the heart of the sons of men is full of evil , and madness is in their heart . the evil that the heart of man is full of by nature , is that indwelling-sin whereof we speak . and this is so in their heart , that it riseth up unto madness . the holy ghost expresseth this rage of sin by a fit similitude which he useth in sundry places , as jer. 2. 24. hos. 8. 9. it maketh men as a wild ass ; she traverseth her ways , and ●●●●●eth up the wind , and runneth whither her mind or lust leads her . and he saith of idolaters enraged with their lusts , that they are mad upon their idols , jer. 5. 38. we may a little consider what lies in this madness and rage of sin , and how it riseth up thereunto . ●●rst , for the nature of it , it seems to consist in a violent , heady , per●inacious pressing unto evil or sin . violence , importunity and pertinacy are in it . it is the tearing and torturing of the soul by any sin to force its consent , and to obtain satisfaction . it riseth up in the heart , is denied by the law of grace , and rebuked ; it returns and exerts its poison again ; the soul is startled , casts it of ; it returns again with new violence and importunity , the soul cries out for help and deliverance , looks round about to all springs of gospel grace and relief , trembles at the furious assaults of sin , and casts it self into the arms of christ for deliverance . and if it be not table to take that course , it is foiled and hurried up and down through the mire and filth of foolish imaginations , corrupt and noisome lusts , which rend and tear it , as if they would devour its whole spiritual life and power . see 1 tim. 6. 9 , 10. 2 pet. 2. 14. it was not much otherwise with them whom we instanced in before , isa. 57. 17. they had an inflamed inraged lust working in them ; even covetousness , or the love of this world , by which , as the apostle speaks , men pierce themselves through with many sorrows . god is angry with them , and discovereth his wrath by all the ways and means that it was possible for them to be made sensible thereof . he was wroth and smo●e them ; but though it may be this staggered them a little , yet they went on . he is angry , and hides himself from them , deserts them as to his gracious assisting comforting presence . doth this work the effect ? no they go on frowardly still , as men mad on their covetousness . nothing can put a stop to their raging lusts . this is plain madness and fury . we need not seek far for instances , we see men mad on their lusts every day : and which is the worst kind● of madness , their lusts do not rage so much in them , as they rage in the pursuit of them . are those greedy pursuits of things in the world , which we see some men engaged in , though they have other pretences , indeed an● thing else but plain madness in the pursuit of their lusts ? god who searcheth the hearts of men , knows , that the most of things that are done with other pretences in the world , are nothing but the actings of men mad● and furious in the pursuit of their lusts . secondly , that sin ariseth not unto this height ordinarily , but when it hath got a double advantage . first , that it be provoked , enraged and h●eightned by some great temptation . though it be a● poison in it self , yet being inbred in nature , it grows not violently outragious without the contribution of some new poison of sathan unto it in a suitable t●mptation . it was the advantage that sathan got against david , by a suitable temptation that raised his lusts to that rage and madness , which it went forth unto in the business of bathsheba and vriah . though sin be always a fire in the bones , yet it flames not , unless sathan come with his bellows to blow it up . and let any one in whom the law of sin ●riseth to this height of rage , seriously consider , and he may find out where the devil stands and puts in the business . secondly , it must be advantaged by some former entertainment and prevalency . sin grows not to this height at its first assault . had it not been suffered to make its entrance , had there not been some yielding in the soul , this had not come about ▪ the great wisdom and security of the soul in dealing with in-dwelling sin , is to put a violent stop unto its beginnings , its first motions and actings . venture all on the first attempt . die rather than yield one step unto it . if through the deceit of sin , or the negligence of the soul , or its carnal confidence , to give bounds to lusts actings at other seasons , it makes any entrance into the soul , and finds any entertainment , it gets strength and power , and insensibly ariseth to the frame under consideration . thou hadst never had the experience of the fury of sin , if thou hadst not been content with some of its dalliances . hadst thou not brought up this servant , this slave delicately , it would not have now presumed beyond a son . now when the law of sin in any particular hath got this double advantage , the furtherance of a vigorous temptation , and some prevalency formerly obtained , whereby it is let into the strengths of the soul , it often riseth up to this frame whereof we speak . thirdly , we may see what accompanies this rage and madness , what are the properties of it , and what effects it produceth . first , there is in it the casting off , for a time at least , of the yoke , rule and government of the spirit and law of grace . where grace hath the dominion , it will never utterly be expell'd from its throne , it will still keep its right and sovereignty . but its influences may for a season be intercepted , and its government be suspended by the power of sin . can we think that the law of grace had any actual influence of rule on the heart of david , when upon the provocation received from nabal , he was so hurried with the desire of self-revenge , that he cryed , gird on your swords , to his companions , and resolved not to leave alive one man of his whole houshold , 1 sam. 25 34. or that asa was in any better frame , when he smote the prophet , and put him in prison , that spake unto him in the name of the lord. sin in this case is like an untamed horse , which having first cast off his rider , runs away with fierceness and rage . it first casts off a present sense of the yoke of christ , and the law of his grace , and then hurries the soul at its pleasure . let us a little consider how this is done . the seat and residence of grace is in the whole soul ; it is in the inner man , it is in the mind , the will , and the affections ; for the whole soul is renewed by it unto the image of god , ephes. 4. 23 , 24. and the whole man is a new creature , 2 cor. 5. 17. and in all these doth it exert its power and efficacy ; its rule or dominion is the pursuit of its effectual working in all the faculties of the soul , as they are one united principle of moral and spiritual operations . so then , the interrupting of its exercise , of its rule and power by the law of sin ▪ must consist in its contrary acting in and upon the faculties and affections of the soul , whereon , and by which grace should exert its power and efficacy . and this it doth . it darkens the mind , partly through innumerable vain prejudices , and false reasonings , as we shall see when we come to consider its deceitfulness ; and partly through the steaming of the affections , heated with the noisome lusts that have laid hold on them . hence that saving light that is in the mind is clouded and stifled , that it cannot put forth its transforming power to change the soul into the likeness of christ discovered unto it , which is its proper work , rom. 12. 2. the habitual inclination of the will to obedience , which is the next way of the working of the law of grace , is first weakned , then cast aside , and rendered useless by the continual solicitations of sin and temptation ; so that the will first lets go its hold , and disputes whether it shall yield or no ; and at last gives up it self to its adversary ; and for the affections commonly the beginning of this evil is in them . they cross one another , and torture the soul with their impetuous violence . by this way is the rule of the law of grace intercepted by the law of sin , even by imposing upon it in the whole seat of its government . when this is done , it is sad work that sin will make in the soul. the apostle warns believers to take heed hereof , rom. 6. 12. let not sin therefore reign in your mortal bodies that you should obey it in the lusts thereof . look to it that it get not the dominion , that it usurp not rule , no not for a moment . it will labour to intrude it self into the throne , watch against it , or a woful state and condition lyes at the door . this then accompanies this rage and madness of the law of sin. it casts off during its prevalency the rule of the law of grace wholly . it speaks in the soul , but is not heard , it commands the contrary , but is not obeyed . it cryes out , do not this abominable thing which the lord hateth , but is not regarded ; that is , not so far as to be able to put a present stop to the rage of sin , and to recover its own rule , which god in his own time restores to it by the power of his spirit dwelling in us . secondly , madness or rage are accompanied with fearlesness and contempt of danger . it takes away the power of consideration , and all that influence that it ought to have upon the soul. hence sinners that are wholly under the power of this rage , are said , to run upon god and the thick bosses of his buckler , job 16. 21. that wherein he is armed for their utter ruine . they despise the utmost that he can do to them , being secretly resolved to accomplish their lusts though it cost them their souls . some few considerations will farther clear this unto us . first , ofttimes when the soul is broken loose from the power of renewing grace , god deals with it to keep it within bounds by preventing grace . so the lord declares that he will deal with israel , h●s . 2. 6. seeing ●hou hast rejected me , i will take another course with thee . i will lay obstacles before thee that thou shalt not be able to pass on whither the fury of thy lusts would drive thee . he will propose that to them from without , that shall obstruct them in their progress . secondly , these hinderances that god laves in the way of sinners , as shall be afterwards at large declared ; are of two sorts . first , rational considerations taken from the consequence of the sin and evil that the soul is solicited unto , and perplexed withal . such are the fear of death , judgement , and hell , falling into the hands of the living god , who is a consuming fire . whilest a man is under the power of the law of the spirit of life , the love of christ constraineth him , 2 cor. 5. 14. the principle of his doing good and abstaining from evil , is faith working by love , accompanied with a following of christ because of the sweet ●avour of his name . but now when this blessed 〈◊〉 yoke is for a season cast off , so as was manifested before , god sets an hedge of terrour before the soul , minds it of death and judgement to come , flashes the flames of hell fire in the face , fills the soul with consideration of all the evil consequence of sin to deter it from its purpose . to this end doth he make use of all threatnings recorded in the law and gospel . to this head also may be referred all the considerations that may be taken from things temporal , as shame , reproach , scandal , punishments , and the like . by the consideration of these things , i say , doth god set an hedge before them . secondly , providential dispensations are used by the lord to the same purpose , and these are of two sorts ; first , such as are suited to work upon the soul , and to cause it to desist and give over in its lustings and pursuit of sin . such are afflictions and mercies , isa. 57. 17. i was wroth and i smote them , i testified my dislike of their wayes by afflictions ; so hos. 2. 9 , 11 , 12. god chastens men with pains on their bodies , saith he , in job , to turn them from their purpose , and to hide sin from them , job 33. 17 , 19. and other wayes he hath to come to them and touch them , as in their names , relations , estates and desirable things . or else he heaps mercies on them that they may consider whom they are rebelling against . it may be signal distinguishing mercies are made their portion for many dayes . secondly , such as actually hinder the soul from pursuing sin , though it be resolved so to do . the various wayes whereby god doth this , we must afterwards consider . these are the wayes i say , whereby the soul is dealt withal , after the law of indwelling-sin hath cast off for a season the influencing power of the law of grace . but now when lust rises up to rage or madness , it will also contemn all these , even the rod and him that hath appointed it . it will rush on shame , reproaches , wrath , and whatever may befall it . that is , though they be presented unto it , it will venture upon them all . rage and madness is fearless . and this it doth two wayes . first , it possess●th the mind , that it suffers not the consideration of these things to dwell upon it , but renders the thoughts of them slight and evanid . or if the mind do force it self to a contemplation of them , yet it interposeth between it and the affections , that they shall not be influenced by it in any proportion to what is required . the soul in such a condition will be able to take such things into contemplation , and not at all to be moved by them . and where they do prevail for a season , yet they are insensibly wrought off from the heart again . secondly , by secret stubborn resolves to venture all upon the way wherein it is . and this is the second branch of this evidence of the power of sin , taken from the opposition that it makes to the law of grace , as it were by the way of force , strength and violence ; the consideration of its deceit doth now follow . chap. viii . indwelling-sin proved powerful from its deceit . proved to be deceitful . the general nature of deceit . jam. 1. 14. opened . how the mind is drawn off from its duty by the deceitfulness of sin. the principal duties of the mind in our obedience . the wayes and means whereby it is turned from it . the second part of the evidence of the power of sin from its manner of operation , is taken from its deceitfulness . it adds in its working , deceit unto power . the efficacy of that must needs be great , and is carefully to be watched against , by all such as value their souls , where power and deceit are combined , especially advantaged and assisted by all the wayes and means before insisted on . before we come to shew wherein the nature of this deceitfulness of sin doth consist , and how it prevaileth thereby , some testimonies shall be briefly given in unto the thing it self , and some light into the general nature of it . that sin , indwelling-sin , is deceitful , we have the express testimony of the holy ghost , as heb. 3. 13. take heed that ye be not hardened by the deceitfulness of sin . deceitful it is , take heed of it , watch against it , or it will produce its utmost effect in hardening of the heart against god. it is on the account of sin , that the heart is said to be deceitful above all things , jer. 17. 9. take a man in other things , and as job speaks , though he would be wise and crafty , he is like the wild asses colt , job 11. 12. a poor , vain , empty , nothing . but consider his heart on the account of this law of sin , it is crafty and deceitful above all things , they are wise to do evil , saith the prophet , but to do good they know not , jer. 4. 22. to the same purpose speaks the apostle , ephes. 4. 2. the old man is corrupt according to deceitful lusts . every lust , which is a branch of this law of sin , is deceitful ; and where there is poyson in every stream , the fountain must needs be corrupt . no particular lust hath any deceit in it , but what is communicated unto it from this fountain of all actual lust , this law of sin. and ( 2 thess. 2. 10. ) the coming of the man of sin , is said to be in and with the deceivableness of unrightcousness . unrighteousness is a thing generally decryed and evil spoken of amongst men , so that it is not easie to conceive how any man should prevail himself of a reputation thereby . but there is a deceivableness in it , whereby the minds of men are turned aside from a due consideration of it ; as we shall manifest afterwards . and thus the account which the apostle gives concerning those who are under the power of sin is , that they are deceived , titus 3. 3. and the life of evil men , is nothing but deceiving and being deceived , 2 tim. 3. 13. so that we have sufficient testimony given unto this qualification of the enemy with whom we have to deal ; he is deceitful , which consideration of all things puts the mind of man to a loss in dealing with an adversary . he knows he can have no security against one that is deceitful , but in standing upon his own guard and defence all his dayes . farther to manifest the strength and advantage that sin hath by its deceit , we may observe that the scripture places it for the most part as the head and spring of every sin , even as though there were no sin followed after , but where deceit went before . so 1 tim. 2. 13 , 14. the reason the apostle gives why adam though he was first formed , was not first in the transgression , is because he was not first deceived . the woman though made last , yet being first deceived , was first in the sin . even that first sin began in deceit , and until the mind was deceived , the soul was safe . eve therefore did truly express the matter , gen. 3. 13. though she did it not to a good end ; the serpent beguiled me , saith she , and i did eat . she thought to extenuate her own crime , by charging the serpent . and this was a new fruit of the sin she had cast her self into . but the matter of fact was true , she was beguiled before she eat ; deceit went before the transgression . and the apostle shews that sin and satan still take the same c●urse , 2 cor. 11. 3. there is saith he , the same way of working towards actual sin , as was of old ; beguiling , deceiving goes before , and sin that is the actual accomplishment of it followeth after . hence all the great works that the devil doth in the world , to stir men up to an opposition unto the lord jesus christ and his kingdom , he doth them by deceit , rev. 12. 9. the devil who deceiveth the whole world . it were utterly impossible men should be prevailed on to abide in his service , acting his designs to their eternal , and sometimes their temporal ruine , were they not exceedingly deceived . see also chap. 20. 10. hence are those manifold cautions that are given us to take heed , that we be not deceived , if we would take heed that we do not sin . see eph. 5. 6. 1 cor. 6. 9. 1 cor. 15. 33. gal. 6. 7. luke 21. 8. from all which testimonies we may learn the influence that deceit hath into sin , and consequently the advantage that the law of sin hath to put forth its power by its deceitfulness . where it prevails to deceive , it fails not to bring forth its fruit . the ground of this efficacy of sin by deceit is taken from the faculty of the soul affected with it . deceit properly affects the mind ; it is the mind that is deceived . when sin attempts any other way of entrance into the soul , as by the affections , the mind retaining its right and soveraignty , is able to give check and controul unto it . but where the mind is tainted , the prevalency must be great . for the mind or understanding is the leading faculty of the soul , and what that fixes on , the will and affections rush after , being capable of no consideration but what that presents unto them . hence it is , that though the entanglement of the affections unto sin be oft-times most troublesome , yet the deceit of the mind is alwayes most dangerous ; and that because of the place that it possesseth in the soul , as unto all its operations . it s office is to guide , direct , choose and lead ; and if the light that is in us be darkness , how great is that darkness . and this will farther appear , if we consider the nature of deceit in general . it consists in presenting unto the soul , or mind , things otherwise than they are , either in their nature , causes , effects , or present respect unto the soul. this is the general nature of deceit , and it prevails many wayes . it hides what ought to be seen and considered , conceals circumstances and consequences , presents what is not , or things as they are not , as we shall afterwards manifest in particular . it was shewed before , that satan beguiled and deceived our first parents ; that term the holy ghost gives unto his temptation and seduction . and how he did deceive them the scripture relates , gen. 3. 4 , 5. he did it by representing things otherwise than they were . the fruit was desirable , that was apparent unto the eye . hence satan takes advantage secretly to insinuate , that it was meerly an abridgement of their happiness , that god aimed at in forbidding them to eat of it . that it was for a tryal of their obedience ▪ that certain though not immediate 〈◊〉 would ensue upon the eating of it , he hides from ●●●m ; only he proposeth the present advantage of knowledge , and so presents the whole case quite otherwise unto them , than indeed it was . this is the ●●●re of deceit ; it is a representation of a matter under disguises , hiding that which is undesirable , proposing that which indeed is not in it , that the mind may make a false judgment of it . so jacob deceived isaac by his brothers raiment , and the skins on his hands and neck . again , deceit hath advantage by that way of management which is inseparable from it . it is always carried on by degrees , by little and little , that the whole of the design and aim in hand be not at once discovered . so dealt satan in that great deceit before-mentioned ; he proceeds in it by steps and degrees . first , he takes off an objection , and tells them they shall not die ; then proposeth the good of knowledge to them , and their being like to god thereby . to hide and conceal ends , to proceed by steps and degrees , to make use of what is obtained , and thence to press on to farther effects , is the true nature of deceit . steven tells us , that the king of egypt dealt subtilly or deceitfully with their kindred , acts 7. 19. how he did it we may see , exod. 1. he did not at first fall to killing and slaying of them , but says , vers . 10. come , let us deal wisely ; beginning to oppress them . this brings forth their bondage , ver . 11. having got this ground to make them slaves , he proceeds to destroy their children , ver . 16. he fell not on them all at once , but by degrees . and this may suffice to shew in general , that sin is deceitful , and the advantages that it hath thereby . for the way , and manner , and progress of sin in working by deceit , we have it fully expressed , james 1. 14 , 15. every man is tempted when he is drawn away of his own lust and enticed , then when lust hath conceived it bringeth forth sin , and sin when it is finished bringeth forth death . this place declaring the whole of what we aim at in this matter , must be particularly insisted on . in the foregoing verse , the apostle manifests that men are willing to drive the old trade , which our first parents at the entrance of sin set up withall , namely of excusing themselves in their sins , and casting the occasion and blame of them on others . it is not , say they , from themselves , their own nature and inclinations , their own designings , that they have committed such and such evils , but meerly from their temptations . and if they know not where to fix the evil of those temptations , they will lay them on god himself , rather than go without an excuse or extenuation of their guilt . this evil in the hearts of men the apostle rebuketh , verse 13. let no man say when he is tempted , i am tempted of god ; for god cannot be tempted of evil , neither tempteth he any man. and to shew the justness of this reproof in the words mentioned , he discovers the true causes of the rise and whole progress of sin , manifesting that the whole guilt of it lies upon the sinner , and that the whole punishment of it , if not graciously prevented , will be his lot also . we have therefore , as was said , in these words the whole progress of lust or indwelling-sin , by the way of subtilty , fraud and deceit , expressed and limited by the holy ghost . and from hence we shall manifest the particular ways and means whereby it puts forth its power and efficacy in the hearts of men by deceitfulness and subtilty ; and we may observe in the words , first , the utmost end aimed at in all the actings of sin , or the tendency of it in its own nature , and that is death : sin when it is finished bringeth forth death ; the everlasting death of the sinner : pretend what it will , this is the end it aims at and tends unto . hiding of ends and designs , is the principal property of deceit . this sin doth to the utmost ; other things innumerable it pleads , but not once declares that it aims at the death , the everlasting death of the soul. and a fixed apprehension of this end of every sin , is a blessed means to prevent its prevalency in its way of deceit or beguiling . secondly , the general way of its acting towards that end , is by temptation ; every man is tempted of his own lust . i purpose not to speak in general of the nature of temptations , it belongs not unto our present purpose , and besides i have done it elsewhere . it may suffice at present to observe , that the life of temptation lies in deceit . so that in the business of sin , to be effectually tempted , and to be beguiled or deceived , are the same . thus it was in the first temptation , it is every where called the serpents beguiling or deceiving , as was manifested before : the serpent beguiled eve , that is , prevailed by his temptations upon her . so that every man is tempted , that is , every man is beguiled or deceived by his own lust , or indwelling-sin , which we have often declared to be the same . the degrees whereby sin proceedeth in this work of tempting or deceiving , are five . for we shewed before , that this belongs unto the nature of deceit that it works by degrees , making its advantage by one step to gain another . the first of these consists in drawing off , or drawing away ; every man is tempted when he is drawn away of his own lust . the second is in enticing ; and is enticed . the third , in the conception of sin ; when lust hath conceived , when the heart is enticed , then lust conceives in it . the fourth is the bringing forth of sin in its actual accomplishment , when lust hath conceived it brings forth sin . in all which there is a secret allusion to an adulterous deviation from conjugal duties , and conceiving or bringing forth children of whoredom and fornication . the fifth is , the finishing of sin , the compleating of it , the filling up of the measure of it , whereby the end originally designed by lust is brought about : sin when it is finished bringeth forth death . as lust conceiving , naturally and necessarily bringeth forth sin , so sin finished , infallibly procureth eternal death . the first of these relates to the mind ; that is drawn off , or drawn away by the deceit of sin . the second unto the affections , they are enticed or intangled . the third to the will , wherein sin is conceived ; the consent of the will being the formal conception of actual sin . the fourth to the conversation , wherein sin is brought forth ; it exerts it self in the lives and courses of men . the fifth respects an obdurate course in sinning , that finisheth , consummates , and shuts up the whole work of sin , whereon ensues death or eternal ruine . i shall principally consider the three first , wherein the main stength of the deceit of sin doth lie , and that because in believers , whose state and condition is principally proposed to consideration , god is pleased , for the most part , graciously to prevent the fourth instance , or the bringing forth of actual sins in their conversations ; and the last alwaies and wholly , or their being obdurate in a course of sin to the finishing of it . what waies god in his grace and faithfulness makes use of to stifle the conceptions of sin in the womb , and to hinder its actual production in the lives of men , must afterwards be spoken unto . the first three instances then we shall insist upon fully , as those wherein the principal concernment of believers in this matter doth lie . the first thing which sin is said to do , working in a way of deceit , is to draw away , or to draw off ; whence a man is said to be drawn off , or drawn away and diverted , namely from attending unto that course of obedience and holiness , which , in opposition unto sin and the law thereof , he is bound with diligence to attend unto . now it is the mind that this effect of the deceit of sin is wrought upon . the mind or understanding , as we have shewed , is the guiding , conducting faculty of the soul ; it goes before in discerning , judging , and determining to make the way of moral actions fair and smooth to the will and affections . it is to the soul , what moses told his father-in-law that he might be to the people in the wilderness , as eyes to guide them , and keep them from wandering in that desolate place . it is the eye of the soul , without whose guidance the will and affections would perpetually wander in the wilderness of this world , according as any object , with an appearing present good , did offer or present it self unto them . the first thing therefore that sin aims at in its deceitful working , is to draw off and divert the mind from the discharge of its duty . there are two things which belong unto the duty of the mind , in that special office which it hath in and about the obedience which god requireth . first , to keep it self and the whole soul in such a frame and posture , as may render it ready unto all duties of obedience , and watchful against all inticements unto the conception of sin . secondly , in particular carefully to attend unto all particular actions , that they be performed as god requireth , for matter , manner , time and season , agreeable unto his will , as also for the obviating all particular tenders of sin in things forbidden . in these two things consists the whole duty of the mind of a believer . and from both of them doth indwelling-sin endeavour to divert it , and draw it off . the first of these is , the duty of the mind , in reference unto the general frame and course of the whole soul ; and hereof two things may be considered . first , that it is founded in a due constant consideration ; 1. of our selves , of sin and its vileness . 2. of god , of his grace and goodness . and both these doth sin labour to draw it off from . secondly , in attending to those duties which are suited to obviate the working of the law of sin , in an especial manner . first , it endeavours to draw it off from a due consideration , apprehension and sensibleness of its own vileness , and the danger wherewith it is attended . this in the first place we shall instance in . a due constant consideration of sin in its nature , in all its aggravating circumstances , in its end and tendency , especially as represented in the blood and cross of christ ought alwaies to abide with us . jer. 2. 19. know therefore and see , that it is an evil thing and a bitter , that thou hast for saken the lord thy god. every sin is a forsaking of the lord our god. if the heart know not , if it consider not , that it is an evil thing and a bitter , evil in it self , bitter in its effects , fruit and event , it will never be secured against it . besides , that frame of heart which is most accepted with god in any sinner , is the humble , contrite , self-abasing frame : isa. 57. 15. thus saith the high and losty one that inhabiteth eternity , whose name is holy , i dwell in the high and holy place , with him also that is of a contrite and humble spirit : to revive the spirit of the humble , to revive the spirit of the contrite ones . see also luk. 18. 13 , 14. this becomes a sinner , no garment sits so decently about him . be cloathed with humility , saith the apostle , 1 pet. 5. 5. it is that which becomes us , and it is the only safe frame . he that walketh humbly walketh safely . this is the design of peters advice , 1 epist. 1. 17. pass the time of your sojourning here in fear . after that he himself had miscarried by another frame of mind , he gives this advice to all believers ; it is not a bondage , servile fear , disquieting and perplexing the soul , but such a fear as may keep men constantly calling upon the father , with reference unto the final judgement , that they may be preserved from sin , whereof they were in so great danger , which he advises them unto . if ye call on the father , who without respect of persons judgeth according to every mans work , pass the time of your sojourning here in fear . this is the humble frame of soul ▪ and how is this obtained ? how is this preserved ? no otherwise but by a constant deep apprehension of the evil , vileness , and danger of sin . so was it wrought , so was it kept up in the approved publican : god be merciful , saith he , to me a sinner : sense of sin kept him humble , and humility made way for his access unto a testimony of the pardon of sin . and this is the great preservative through grace from sin , as we have an example in the instance of joseph , gen. 39. 9. upon the urgency of his great temptation , he recoils immediately into this frame of spirit ; how , saith he , can i do this thing , and sin against god ? a constant steady sense of the evil of sin , gives him such preservation , that he ventures liberty and life in opposition to it . to fear sin , is to fear the lord ; so the holy man tells us that they are the same , job 28. 28. the fear of the lord that is wisdom , and to depart from iniquity that is understanding . this therefore in the first place , in general , doth the law of sin put forth its deceit about , namely to draw the mind from this frame , which is the strongest fort of the souls defence and security . it labours to divert the mind from a due apprehension of the vileness , abomination , and danger of sin . it secretly and insensibly insinuates lessening , excusing , extenuating thoughts of it ; or it draws it off from pondering upon it , from being conversant about it in its thoughts so much as it ought , and formerly hath been . and if after the heart of a man hath through the word , spirit and grace of christ been made tender , soft , deeply sensible of sin , it becomes on any account , or by any means whatever to have less , sewer , slighter , or less affecting thoughts of it , or about it , the mind of that man is drawn away by the deceitfulness of sin . there are two wayes amongst others , whereby the law of sin endeavours deceitfully to draw off the mind from this duty , and frame ensuing thereon . first , it doth it by an horrible abuse of gospel-grace . there is in the gospel a remedy provided against the whole evil of sin , the filth , the guilt of it , with all its dangerous consequents . it is the doctrine of the deliverance of the souls of men from sin and death . a discovery of the gracious will of god towards sinners by jesus christ. what now is the genuine tendency of this doctrine , of this discovery of grace , and what ought we to use it and improve it unto ? this the apostle declares , tit. 2. 11 , 12. the grace of god that bringeth salvation , hath appeared to all men , teaching us , that denying ungodliness and worldly lusts , we should live soberly , righteously , and godly in this present world . this it teacheth , this we ought to learn of it , and by it . hence vniversal holiness is called a conversation that becometh the gospel , phil. 1. 27. it becomes it as that which is answerable unto its end , aim , and design , as that which it requires , and which it ought to be improved unto . and accordingly it doth produce this effect where the word of it is received and preserved in a saving light , rom. 12. 2. ephes. 4. 20 , 21 , 22 , 23 , 24. but herein doth the deceit of sin interpose it self . it separates between the doctrine of grace , and the use and end of it . it stayes upon its notions , and intercepts its influences in its proper application . from the doctrine of the assured pardon of sin , it insinuates a regardlesness of sin . god in christ makes the proposition , and satan and sin make the conclusion . for that the deceitfulness of sin is apt to plead unto a regardlesness of it from the grace of god whereby it is pardoned , the apostle declares in his reproof and detestation of such an insinuation , rom. 6. 1. what shall we say then , shall we continue in sin , that grace may abound ? god forbid . mens deceitful hearts , saith he , are apt to make that conclusion ; but far be it from us , that we should give any entertainment unto it . but yet that some have evidently improved that deceit unto their own eternal ruine , jude declares , ver . 4. vngodly men , turning the grace of god into lasciviousness . and we have had dreadful instances of it in the daies of temptation wherein we have lived . indeed in opposition unto this deceit lies much of the wisdom of faith , and power of gospel-grace . when the mind is fully possessed with , and cast habitually and firmly into the mould of the notion and doctrine of gospel-truth about the full and free forgiveness of all sins in the blood of christ , then to be able to keep the heart alwaies in a deep humbling sense of sin , abhorrency of it , and self-abasement for it , is a great effect of gospel-wisdom and grace . this is the tryal and touchstone of gospel light. if it keep the heart sensible of sin , humble , lowly , and broken on that account ; if it teach us to water a free pardon with tears , to detest forgiven sin , to watch diligently for the ruine of that , which we are yet assured , shall never ruine us , it is divine , from above , of the spirit of grace . if it secretly and insensibly make men loose and slight in their thoughts about sin , it is adulterate , selfish , false . if it will be all , answer all ends , it is nothing . hence it comes to pass , that sometimes we see men walking in a bondage-frame of spirit all their daies , low in their light , mean in their apprehensions of grace , so that it is hard to discern whether covenant in their principles they belong unto ; whether they are under the law , or under grace , yet walk with a more conscientious tenderness of sinning , than many who are advanced into higher degrees of light and knowledge than they . not that the saving light of the gospel , is not the only principle of saving holiness and obedience ; but that through the deceitfulness of sin it is variously abused to counteance the soul in manifold neglect of duties , and to draw off the mind from a due consideration of the nature , desert and danger of sin . and this is done several waies . first , the soul having frequent need of relief by gospel-grace against a sense of the guilt of sin , and accusation of the law , comes at length to make it a common and ordinary thing , and such as may be slightly performed . having found a good medicine for its wounds , and such as it hath had experience of its efficacy , it comes to apply it slightly , and rather skinneth over , than cureth its sores . a little less earnestness , a little less diligence serves every time , until the soul it may be begins to secure it self of pardom in course . and this tends directly to draw off the mind from its constant and universal watchfulness against sin . he whose light hath made his way of access plain for the obtaining of pardon , if he be not very watchful , he is far more apt to become overly , formal , and careless in his work , than he who by reason of mists and darkness , beats about to find his way aright to the throne of grace . as a man that hath often travelled a road passed on without regard or enquiry ; but he who is a stranger unto it observing all turnings , and enquiring of all passengers , secures his journey beyond the other . secondly , the deceitfulness of sin takes advantage from the doctrine of grace , by many waies and means to extend the bounds of the souls liberty beyond what god hath assigned unto it . some have never thought themselves free from a legal bondage-frame , until they have been brought into the confines of sensuality , and some into the depths of it . how often will sin plead , this strictness , this exactness , this solicitude is no waies needful ; relief is provided in the gospel against such things . would you live as though there were no need of the gospel ? as though pardon of sin were to no purpose ? but concerning these pleas of sin from gospel-grace , we shall have occasion to speak more hereafter in particular . thirdly , in times of temptation this deceitfulness of sin , will argue expresly for sin from gospel-grace ; at least it will plead for these two things . first , that there is not need of such a tenacious severe contending against it , as the principle of the new creature is fixed on . if it cannot divert the soul or mind wholly from attending unto temptations to oppose them , yet it will endeavour to draw them off , as to the manner of their attendance . they need not use that diligence which at first the soul apprehends to be necessary . secondly , it will be tendering relief as to the event of sin , that it shall not turn to the ruine or destruction of the soul , because it is , it will , or may be pardoned by the grace of the gospel . and this is true , this is the great and only relief of the soul against sin , the guilt whereof it hath contracted already ; the blessed and only remedy for a guilty soul. but when it is pleaded and remembred by the deceitfulness of sin in complyance with temptation unto sin , then it is poyson ; poyson is mixed in every drop of this balsom , to the danger , if not death of the soul. and this is the first way whereby the deceitfulness of sin draws off the mind from a due attendance unto that sense of its vileness , which alone is able to keep it in that humble , self-abased frame that is acceptable with god. it makes the mind careless , as though its work were needless , because of the abounding of grace ; which is a souldiers neglect of his station trusting to a reserve , provided indeed only in case of keeping his own proper place . secondly , sin takes advantage to work by its deceit in this matter of drawing off the mind from a due sense of it , from the state and condition of men in the world . i shall give only one instance of its procedure in this kind . men in their younger daies have naturally their affections more quick , vigorous and active , more sensibly working in them , than afterwards . they do as to their sensible working and operation naturally decay , and many things befall men in their lives , that take off the edge and keenness of them . but as men lose in their affections , if they are not besotted in sensuality , or by the corruptions that are in the world through lust , they grow and improve in their understandings , resolutions , and judgements . hence it is , that if what had place formerly in their affections , do not take place in their minds and judgements , they utterly lose them , they have no more place in their souls . thus men have no regard for , yea , they utterly despise those things which their affections were set upon with delight and greediness in their childhood . but if they are things that by any means come to be fixed in their minds and judgements , they continue a high esteem for them , and do cleave as close unto them , as they did when their affections were more vigorous . only as it were they have changed their seat in the soul. it is thus in things spiritual ; the first and chiefest seat of the sensibleness of sin , is in the affections ; as these in natural youth , are great and large , so are they spiritually in spiritual youth , jer. 2. 2. i remember the kindness of thy youth , the love of thine espousals . besides such persons are newly come off from their convictions , wherein they have been cut to the heart , and so made tender . whatever touches upon a wound is throughly felt . so doth the guilt of sin before the wound given by conviction be throughly cured . but now when affections begin to decay naturally , they begin to decay also as to their sensible actings and motions in things spiritual . although they improve in grace , yet they may decay in sense . at least spiritual sense is not radically in them , but only by way of communication . now in these decayes , if the soul take not care to fix a deep sense of sin on the mind and judgement , thereby perpetually to affect the heart and affections , it will decay . and here the deceit of the law of sin interposeth it self . it suffers a sense of sin to decay in the affections , and diverts the mind from entertaining a due , constant fixed consideration of it . we may consider this a little in persons that never make a progress in the waies of god beyond conviction . how sensible of sin will they be for a season ? how will they then mourn and weep under a sense of the guilt of it ? how will they cordially and heartily resolve against it ? affections are vigorous , and as it were bear rule in their souls . but they are like an herb that will flourish for a day or two with watering , although it have no root . for , a while after we see , that these men the more experience they have had of sin , the less they are afraid of it , as the wise man intimates , eccles. 8. 11. and at length they come to be the greatest contemners of sin in the world . no sinner like him that hath sinned away his convictions of sin . what is the reason of this ? sense of sin was in their convictions fixed on their affections ; as it decayed in them , they took no care to have it deeply and graciously fixed on their minds . this the deceitfulness of sin deprived them of , and so ruined their souls . in some measure it is so with believers . if as the sensibleness of the affections decay , if as they grow heavy and obtuse , great wisdom and grace be not used to fix a due sense of sin upon the mind and judgement , which may provoke , excite , enliven and stir up the affections every day , great decayes will ensue . at first , sorrow , trouble , grief , fear , affected the mind , and would give it no rest . if afterwards the mind do not affect the heart with sorrow and grief , the whole will be cast out , and the soul be in danger of being hardened . and these are some of the waies whereby the deceit of sin diverts the mind from the first part of its safe preserving frame , or draws it off from its constant watchfulness against sin and all the effects of it . the second part of this general duty of the mind , is to keep the soul unto a constant , holy consideration of god and his grace . this evidently lies at the spring-head of gospel-obedience . the way whereby sin draws off the mind from this part of its duty is open and known sufficiently , though not sufficiently watched against . now this the scripture every where declares to be the filling of the minds of men with earthly things . this it placeth in direct opposition unto that heavenly frame of the mind , which is the spring of gospel-obedience , col. 3. 2. set your affections on things above , not on things on the earth , or set your minds . as if he had said , on both together you cannot be set or fixed , so as principally and chiefly to mind them both . and the affections to the one and the other , proceeding from these different principles of minding the one and the other , are opposed as directly inconsistent , 1 joh. 2. 15. love not the world , neither the things that are in the world , if any man love the world , the love of the father is not in him . and actings in a course suitable unto these affections are proposed also as contrary ; you cannot serve god and mammon . these are two masters whom no man can serve at the same time , to the satisfaction of both . every inordinate minding , then , of earthly things , is opposed unto that frame wherein our minds ought to be fixed on god and his grace in a course of gospel-obedience . several waies there are whereby the deceitfulness of sin draws off the mind in this particular , but the chief of them is by pressing these things on the mind under the notion of things lawful , and it may be necessary . so all those who excuse themselves in the parable , from coming in to the marriage-feast of the gospel , did it on the account of their being engaged in their lawful callings . one about his farm , another his oxen , the means whereby he ploughed in this world . by this plea were the minds of men drawn off from that frame of heavenliness which is required to our walking with god , and the rules of not loving the world , or using it as if we used it not , are hereby neglected . what wisdom , what watchfulness , what serious frequent trial and examination of our selves is required , to keep our hearts and minds in an heavenly frame , in the use and pursuit of earthly things , is not my present business to declare . this is evident , that the engine whereby the deceit of sin draws off and turns aside the mind in this matter , is the pretence of the lawfulness of things about which it would have it exercise it self , against which very few are armed with sufficient diligence , wisdom and skill . and this is the first and most general attempt that indwelling-sin makes upon the soul by deceit : it draws away the mind from a diligent attention unto its course in a due sense of the evil of sin , and a due and constant consideration of god and his grace . chap. ix . the deceit of sin in drawing off the mind from a due attendance unto especial duties of obedience , instanced in meditation and prayer . how sin by its deceit endeavours to draw off the mind from attending unto that holy frame in walking with god , wherein the soul ought to be preserved , hath been declared . proceed we now to shew how it doth the same work in reference unto those especial duties , by which the designs , workings and prevalency of it may in an especial manner be obviated and prevented sin indeed maintains an enmity against all duties of obedience , or rather with god in them . when i would do good , saith the apostle , evil is present with me . when ever i would do good , or what good soever i would do , that is spiritually good , good in reference unto god , it is present with me , to hinder me from it , to oppose me in it . and on the other side , all duties of obedience do lie directly against the actings of the law of sin . for as the flesh in all its actings lusteth against the spirit , so the spirit in all its actings lusteth against the flesh . and therefore every duty performed in the strength and grace of the spirit , is contrary to the law of sin . rom. 8. 13. if ye by the spirit do mortifie the deeds of the flesh . actings of the spirit of grace in duties doth this work . these two are contrary . but yet there are some duties , which in their own nature , and by gods appointment , have a peculiar influence into the weakening and subduing the whole law of sin in its very principles , and chiefest strengths . and these the mind of a believer ought principally in his whole course to attend unto . and these doth sin in its deceit endeavour principally to draw off the mind from . as in diseases of the body , some remedies , they say , have a specifick quality against distempers ; so in this disease of the soul , there are some duties that have an especial vertue against this sinful distemper . i shall not insist on many of them , but instance only in two , which seem to me to be of this nature ; namely that by gods designation they have a special tendency towards the ruine of the law of sin . and then we shall shew the waies , methods and means which the law of sin useth to divert the mind from a due attendance unto them . now these duties are , first , prayer , especially private prayer : and , secondly , meditation . i put them together , because they much agree in their general nature and end , differing only in the manner of their performance . for by meditation , i intend meditating upon what respect and suitableness there is between the word and our own hearts , to this end , that they may be brought to a more exact conformity . it is our pondering on the truth as it is in jesus , to find out the image and representation of it in our own hearts ; and so it hath the same intent with prayer , which is to bring our souls into a frame in all things answering the mind and will of god. they are as the blood and spirits in the veins , that have the same life , motion and use . but yet because persons are generally at a great loss in this duty of meditation , having declared it to be of so great efficacy , for the controlling of the actings of the law of sin , i shall in our passage give briefly two or three rules for the directing of believers to a right performance of this great duty , and they are these . first , meditate of god with god ; that is , when we would undertake thoughts and meditations of god , his excellencies , his properties , his glory , his majesty , his love , his goodness , let it be done in a way of speaking unto god , in a deep humiliation and abasement of our souls before him . this , will fix the mind , and draw it forth from one thing to another , to give glory unto god in a due manner , and affect the soul until it be brought into that holy admiration of god and delight in him , which is acceptable unto him . my meaning is , that it be done in a way of prayer and praise , speaking unto god. secondly , meditate on the word in the word : that is , in the reading of it , consider the sense in the particular passages we insist upon , looking to god for help , guidance and direction in the discovery of his mind and will therein , and then labour to have our hearts affected with it . thirdly , what we come short of in evenness and constancy in our thoughts in these things , let it be made up in frequency . some are discouraged because their minds do not regularly supply them with thoughts to carry on their meditations , through the weakness or imperfection of their inventions . let this be supplied by frequent returns of the mind unto the subject proposed to be meditated upon , whereby new senses will still be supplied unto it . but this by the way . these duties , i say , amongst others ( for we have only chosen them for an instance , not excluding some others from the same place , office and usefulness with them ) do make an especial opposition to the very being and life of indwelling-sin , or rather faith in them doth so . they are perpetually designing its utter ruine . i shall therefore upon this instance in the pursuit of our present purpose do these two things . first , shew the suitableness and usefulness of this duty , or these duties , ( as i shall handle them jointly ) unto the ruining of sin . secondly , shew the means whereby the deceitfulness of sin endeavours to draw off the mind from a due attendance unto them . for the first observe , first , that it is the proper work of the soul in this duty , to consider all the secret workings and actings of sin , what advantages it hath got , what temptations it is in conjunction withall , what harm it hath already done , and what it is yet farther ready to do . hence david gives that title unto one of his prayers , psal. 102. a prayer of the afflicted , when he is over-whelmed , and poureth out his complaint before the lord. i speak of that prayer which is attended with a due consideration of all the wants , straits and emergencies of the soul. without this , prayer is not prayer ; that is , what ever shew or appearance of that duty it hath , it is no way useful , either to the glory of god , or the good of the souls of men . a cloud it is without water , driven by the wind of the breath of men . nor was there ever any more present and effectual poison for souls found out , than the binding of them unto a constant form and usage of i know not what words in their prayers and supplications , which themselves do not understand . bind men so in their trades , or in their businesses in this world , and they will quickly find the effect of it . by this means are they disenabled from any due consideration of what a present is good for them , or evil unto them , without which , to what use can prayer serve , but to mock god , and delude mens own souls ? but in this kind of prayer which we insist on , the spirit of god falls in to give us his assistance , and that in this very matter of finding out and discovering the most secret actings and workings of the law of sin . rom. 8. 26. we know not what to pray for as we ought , but he helps our infirmities : he discovers our wants unto us , and wherein chiefly we stand in need of help and relief . and we find it by daily experience , that in prayer , believers are led into such discoveries and convictions of the secret deceitful work of sin in their hearts , as no considerations could ever have led them into . so david , psal. 51. designing the confession of his actual sin , having his wound in his prayer searched by the skilful hand of the spirit of god , he had a discovery made unto him of the root of all his miscarriages in his original corruption , vers . 5. the spirit in this duty is as the candle of the lord unto the soul ▪ enabling it to search all the inward parts of the belly . it gives a holy spiritual light into the mind , enabling it to search the deep and dark recesses of the heart , to find out the subtil and deceitful machinations , figments and imaginations of the law of sin therein . what ever notion there be of it , what ever power and prevalency in it , it is laid hand on , apprehended , brought into the presence of god , judged , condemned , bewailed . and what can possible be more effectual for its ruine and destruction ? for together with its discovery , application is made unto all that relief which in jesus christ is provided against it , all ways and means whereby it may be ruined . hence it is the duty of the mind , to watch unto prayer , 1 pet. 4. 7. to attend diligently unto the estate of our souls , and to deal fervently and effectually with god about it . the like also may be said of meditation , wisely managed unto its proper end . secondly , in this duty there is wrought upon the heart a deep full sense of the vileness of sin , with a constant renewed detestation of it , which , if any thing , undoubtedly tends to its ruine . this is one design of prayer , one end of the soul in it , namely to draw forth sin , to set it in order , to present it unto it self in its vileness , abomination and aggravating circumstances , that it may be loathed , abhorred , and cast away as a filthy thing ; as isa. 30. 22. he that pleads with god for sins remission , pleads also with his own heart for its detestation . hos. 14. 3. herein also sin is judged in the name of god ; for the soul in its confession subscribes unto gods detestation of it , and the sentence of his law against it . there is indeed a course of these duties , which convinced persons do give up themselves unto , as a mere covert to their lusts : they cannot sin quietly , unless they perform duty constantly . but that prayer we speak of , is a thing of another nature , a thing that will allow no composition with sin , much less will serve the ends of the deceit of it , as the other formal prayer doth . it will not be bribed into a secret compliance with any of the enemies of god , or the soul , no not for a moment . and hence it is , that oftentimes in this duty , the heart is raised to the most sincere effectual sense of sin , and detestation of it , that the soul ever obtains in its whole cour●e of obedience . and this evidently tends also to the weakning and ruine of the law of sin . thirdly , this is the way appointed and bless●d of god to obtain strength and power against sin . jam. 1. 5. doth any man lack , let him ask of god. prayer is the way of obtaining from god by christ a supply of all our wants , assistance against all opposition , especially that which is made against us by sin . this , i suppose , need not be insisted on ; it is in the notion and practice clear to every believer . it is that wherein we call , and upon which the lord jesus comes in to our succour , with suitable help in a time of need , heb. 2. 17. fourthly , faith in prayer countermines all the workings of the deceit of sin ; and that because the soul doth therein constantly engage it self unto god to oppose all sin whatsoever . psal. 119. 106. i have sworn , and i will perfom it , that i will keep thy righteous judgments . this is the language of every gracious soul in its addresses unto god : the inmost parts thereof engage themselves to god to cleave to him in all things , and to oppose sin in all things . he that cannot do this , cannot pray . to pray with any other frame , is to flatter god with our lips , which he abhorreth . and this exceedingly helps a believer in pursuing sin unto its ruine . for , first , if there be any secret lust that lies lurking in the heart , he will find it either rising up against this engagement , or using its artifices to secure it self from it . and hereby it is discovered ; and the conviction of the heart concerning its evil furthered and strengthened . sin makes the most certain discovery of it self , and never more evidently than when it is most severely pursued . lusts in men are compared to hurtful and noisome beasts , or men themselves are so because of their lusts , isa. 11. 4 , 5. now such beasts use themselves to their dens and coverts , and never discover themselves , at least so much in their proper nature and rage , as when they are most earnestly pursued . and so it is with sin and corruption in the heart . secondly , if any sin be prevalent in the soul , it will weaken it , and take it off from the universality of this engagement unto god , it will breed a tergiversation unto it , a slightness in it . now when this is observed , it will exceedingly awaken a gracious soul , and stir it up to look about it . as a spontaneous lassitude , or a causeless weariness and indisposition of the body , is looked on as the sign of an approaching feaver , or some dangerous distemper , which stirs up men to use a timely and vigorous prevention , that they be not seised upon by it ; so is it in this case . when the soul of a believer finds in it self an indisposition to make fervent , sincere engagements of universal holiness unto god , it knows that there is some prevalent distemper in it , finds the place of it , and sets it self against it . thirdly , whilst the soul can thus constantly engage it self unto god , it is certain that sin can rise unto no ruinous prevalency . yea , it is a conquest over sin , a most considerable conquest , when the soul doth fully and clearly , without any secret reserve , come off with alacrity and resolution in such an engagement ; as psal. 18. 23. and it may upon such a success triumph in the grace of god , and have good hope through faith , that it shall have a final conquest , and what it so resolves , shall be done ; that it hath decreed a thing , and it shall be established . and this tends to the disappointment , yea , to the ruine of the law of sin . fourthly , if the heart be not deceived by cursed hypocrisie , this engagement unto god will greatly influence it unto a peculiar diligence and watchfulness against all sin . there is no greater evidence of hypocrisie , than to have the hear● like the whorish woman , prov. 7. 14. to say , i have paid my vows , now i may take my self unto my sin . or to be negligent about sin ▪ as being satisfied that it hath prayed against it . it is otherwise in a gracious soul. sense and conscience of engagements against sin made to god , do make it universally watchful against all its motions and operations . on these and sundry other accounts , doth faith in this duty exert it self peculiary , to the weakening of the power , and stopping of the progress of the law of sin . if then the mind be diligent in its watch and charge , to preserve the soul from the efficacy of sin , it will carefully attend unto this duty , and the due performance of it , which is of such singular advantage unto its end and purpose . here therefore sin puts forth its deceit in its own defence : it labours to divert and draw off the mind from attending unto this and the like duties . and there are , among others , three engines , three ways and means , whereby it attempts the accomplishment of its design . first , it makes advantage of its weariness unto the flesh . there is an aversation , as hath been declared in the law of sin unto all immediate communion with god. now this duty is such . there is nothing accompanieth it whereby the carnal part of the soul may be gratified , or satisfied , as there may be somewhat of that nature in most publick duties , in most that a man can do , beyond pure acts of faith and love . no relief or advantage then coming in by it , but what is purely spiritual , it becomes wearisome , burdensome to flesh and blood . it is like travelling alone without companion or diversion , which makes the way seem long , but brings the passenger with most speed to his journeys end . so our saviour declares , when expecting his disciples according to their duty and present distress should have been engaged in this work , he found them fast asleep , matth. 26. 41. the spirit , saith he , indeed is willing , but the flesh is weak : and out of that weakness grew their indisposition unto , and weariness of their duty . so god complains of his people , isa. 43. 22. thou hast been weary of me . and it may come at length unto that height which is mentioned , mal. 1. 13. ye have said , behold what a weariness is it , and ye have snuffed at it , saith the lord of hosts . the jews suppose that it was the language of men when they brought their offerings or sacrifices on their shoulders , which they pretended wearyed them , and they panted and blowed as men ready to faint under them , when they brought only the torn , and the lame , and the sick . but so is this duty oftentimes to the flesh . and this the deceitfulness of sin makes use of , to draw the heart by insensible degrees from a constant attendance unto it . it puts in for the relief of the weak and weary flesh . there is a complyance between spiritual flesh , and natural flesh in this matter ; they help one another , and an aversation unto this duty is the effect of their complyance . so it was in the spouse , cant. 5. 2 , 3. she was asleep drowsing in her spiritual condition , and pleads her natural unfitness to rouse her self from that state . if the mind be not diligently watchful to prevent insinuations from hence , if it dwell not constantly on those considerations which evidence an attendance unto this duty to be indispensible , if it stir not up the principle of grace in the heart to retain its rule and soveraignty , and not to be dallied withal by foolish pretences , it will be drawn off , which is the effect aimed at . secondly , the deceitfulness of sin makes use of corrupt reasonings taken from the pressing and urging occasions of life . should we , sayes it in the heart , attend strictly unto all duties in this kind , we should neglect our principal occasions , and be useless unto our selves and others in the world . and on this general account , particular businesses dispossess particular duties from their due place and time . men have not leisure to glorifie god and save their own souls . it is certain , that god gives us time enough for all that he requires of us in any kind in this world . no duties need to justle one another , i mean constantly . especial occasions must be determined according unto especial circumstances . but if in any thing we take more upon us than we have time well to perform it in without robbing god of that which is due to him , and our own souls , this god calls not unto , this he blesseth us not in . it is more tolerable that our duties of holiness and regard to god , should intrench upon the duties of our callings and employments in this world , than on the contrary ; and yet neither doth god require this at our hands in an ordinary manner or course . how little then will he bear with that which evidently is so much worse upon all accounts whatever . but yet through the deceitfulness of sin , thus are the souls of men beguiled . by several degrees they are at length driven from their duty . thirdly , it deals with the mind to draw it off from its attendance unto this duty by a tender of a compensation to be made in and by other duties . as saul thought to compensate his disobedience by sacrifice . may not the same duty performed in publick , or in the family suffice ? and if the soul be so foolish as not to answer , those things ought to be done , and this not to be left undone , it may be ensnared and deceived . for besides a command unto it , namely that we should personally watch unto prayer , there is as hath been declared sundry advantages in this duty so performed against the deceit and efficacy of sin , which in the more publick attendance unto it , it hath not . these sin strives to deprive the soul of by this commutation which by its corrupt reasonings it tenders unto it . fourthly , i may add here that which hath place in all the workings of sin by deceit , namely , its feeding the soul with promises and purposes of a more diligent attendance unto this duty when occasions will permit . by this means it brings the soul to say unto its convictions of duty , as felix did to paul , go thy way for this time , when i have a convenient season , i will call for thee . and by this means oftentimes the present season and time , which alone is ours , is lost irrecoverably . these are some of the wayes and means whereby the deceit of sin endeavours to draw off the mind from its due attendance unto this duty , which is so peculiarly suited to prevent its progress and prevalency , and which aims so directly and immediately at its ruine . i might instance also in other duties of the like tendency . but this may suffice to discover the nature of this part of the deceit of sin . and this is the first way whereby it makes way for the farther entangling of the affections and the conception of sin . when sin hath wrought this effect on any one , he is said to be drawn away , to be diverted from what in his mind he ought constantly to attend unto , in his walking before the lord. and this will instruct us to see and discern where lyes the beginning of our declensions and failings in the wayes of god , and that either as to our general course , or as to our attendance unto especial duties . and this is of great importance and concernment unto us . when the beginnings and occasions of a sickness or distemper of body are known , it is a great advantage to direct in and unto the cure of it . god to recall sion to himself shews her where was the beginning of her sin , micah 1. 13. now this is that which for the most part is the beginning of sin unto us , even the drawing off the mind from a due attendance in all things unto the discharge of its duty . the principal care and charge of the soul lyes on the mind ; and if that fail of its duty , the whole is betrayed , either as unto its general frame , or as unto particular miscarriages . the failing of the mind , is like the failing of the watch-man in ezekiel , the whole is lost by his neglect . this therefore in that self-scrutiny and search which we are called unto , we are most diligently to enquire after . god doth not look at what duties we perform , as to their number and tale , or as to their nature meerly , but whether we do them with that intention of mind and spirit which he requireth . many men perform duties in a road or course , and do not as it were , so much as think of them . their minds are filled with other things , only duty takes up so much of their time . this is but an endeavour to mock god , and deceive their own souls . would you therefore take the true measure of your selves : consider how it is with you as to the duty of your minds which we have enquired after . consider whether by any of the deceits mentioned , you have not been diverted and drawn away ; and if there be any decayes upon you in any kind , you will find that there hath been the beginning of them . by one way or other your minds have been made heedless , regardless , slothful , uncertain , being beguiled and drawn off from their duty . consider the charge , prov. 4. 23 , 25 , 26 , 27. may not such a soul say , if i had attended more diligently , if i had considered more wisely the vile nature of sin , if i had not suffered my mind to be possessed with vain hopes and foolish imaginations , by a cursed abuse of gospel-grace , if i had not permitted it to be filled with the things of the world , and to become negligent in attending unto especial duties , i had not at this day been thus sick , weak , thriftless , wounded , decayed , defiled . my careless , my deceived mind , hath been the beginning of sin and transgression unto my soul. and this discovery will direct the soul unto a sutable way for its healing and recovery , which will never be effected by a multiplying of particular duties , but by a restoring of the mind , psal. 23. 3. and this also doth hence appear to be the great means of preserving our souls , both as unto their general frame and particular duties according to the mind and will of god ; namely to endeavour after a sound and stedfast mind . it is a signal grace to have the spirit of power and love , and of a sound mind , 2 tim. 1. 7. a stable , solid , resolved mind in the things of god , not easily moved , diverted , changed , not drawn aside , a mind not apt to hearken after corrupt reasonings , vain insinuations , or pretences to draw it off from its duty . this is that which the apostle exhorts believers unto , 1 cor. 15. 38. therefore my beloved brethren , be stedfast , unmoveable , alwayes abounding in the work of the lord. the stedfastness of our minds abiding in their duty , is the cause of all our unmoveableness , and fruitfulness in obedience . and so peter tells us that those who are by any means led away , or enticed , they fall from their own stedfastness , 2 pet. 3. 7. and the great blame that is laid upon backsliders is , that they are not stedfast , psal. 78. 37. their spirit was not stedfast . for if the soul be safe , unless the mind be drawn off from its duty , the soundness and stedfastness of the mind is its great preservative . and there are three parts of this stedfastness of the mind . first , a full purpose of cleaving to god in all things . secondly , a daily renovation and quickning of the heart unto a discharge of this purpose . thirdly , resolutions against all dalliances or parlies about negligencies in that discharge ; which are not here to be spoken unto . chap. x. the deceit of sin in drawing off the mind from its attendance unto particular duties farther discovered . several things required in the mind of believers with respect unto particular duties of obedience . the actings of sin in a way of deceit , to divert the mind from them . we have not as yet brought unto an issue the first way of the working of the deceit of sin , namely , in its drawing away of the mind from the discharge of its duty , which we insist upon the longer upon a double account . first , because of its importance and concernment . if the mind be drawn off , if it be tainted , weakned , turned aside from a due and strict attendance unto its charge and office , the whole soul , will , and affections , are certainly entangled and drawn into sin , as hath been in part declared , and will afterwards farther appear . this we ought therefore to give diligent heed unto , which is the design of the apostles exhortation , heb. 2. 1. therefore we ought to give the more earnest heed to the things which we have heard , lost at any time we should let them slip . it is a failure of our minds , by the deceitfulness of sin , in losing the life , power , sense and impression of the word which he cautions us against . and there is no way to prevent it but by giving of most earnest heed unto the things which we have heard , which expresseth the whole duty of our minds in attending unto obedience . secondly , because the actings and workings of the mind being spiritual , are such as the conscience unless clearly enlightened , and duly excited and stirred up , is not affected withal , so as to take due notice of them . conscience is not apt to exercise reflex acts upon the minds failures , as principally respecting the acts of the whole soul. when the affections are entangled with sin ( of which afterwards ) or the will begins to conceive it by its express consent , conscience is apt to make an uproar in the soul , and to give it no rest or quiet until the soul be reclaimed , or it self be one way or other bribed or debauched . but these neglects of the mind being spiritual , without very diligent attendance , they are seldom taken notice of . our minds are often in the scriptures , called our spirits , as rom. 1. 9. whom i serve in my spirit ; and are distinguished from the soul , which principally intends the affections , in that distribution , 1 thess. 5. 23. sanctifie you wholly , your whole spirit and soul , that is , your mind and affections . it is true where the spirit is used to express spiritual gifts , it is as unto those gifts opposed to our understandings , 1 cor 14. 15. which is there taken for the first act of the mind in a rational perception of things . but as that word is applyed unto any faculty of our souls , it is the mind that it expresseth . this then being our spirit , the actings of it are secret and hidden , and not to be discovered without spiritual wisdom and diligence . let us not suppose then that we dwell too long on this consideration , which is of so great importance to us , and yet so hidden , and which we are apt to be very insensible of ; and yet our carefulness in this matter is one of the best evidences that we have of our sincerity . let us not then be like a man that is sensible , and complains of a cut finger , but not of a decay of spirits tending unto death . there remains therefore as unto this head of our discourse , the consideration of the charge of the mind in reference unto particular duties and sins . and in the consideration of it , we shall do these two things . first , shew what is required in the mind of a believer in reference unto particular duties . secondly , declare the way of the working of the deceit of sin to draw it off from its attendance thereunto . the like also shall be done with respect unto particular sins , and their avoidance . first , for the right performance of any duty , it is not enough that the thing it self required be performed , but that it be universally squared and fitted unto the rule of it . herein lyes the great duty of the mind , namely , to attend unto the rule of duties , and to take care that all the concernments of them be ordered thereby . our progress in obedience , is our edification or building . now it is but a very little fartherance unto a building , that a man bring wood and stones and heap them up together without order . they must be hewed and squared , and fitted by line and rule , if we intend to build . nor is it unto any advantage unto our edification in faith and obedience , that we multiply duties , if we heap them upon one another , if we order and dispose them not according to rule . and therefore doth god expresly reject a multitude of duties when not universally suited unto the rule , isa. 1. 11. to what purpose is the multitude of your sacrifices ; and v. 14. they are a trouble unto me , i am weary to bear them . and therefore all acceptable obedience is called a proceeding according unto rule , gal. 6. 16. it is a canonical , or regular obedience . as letters in the alphabet heaped together signifie nothing , unless they are disposed into their proper order ; no more do our duties without this disposal . that they be so , is the great duty of the mind , and which with all diligence it is to attend unto , ephes. 5. 15. walk circumspectly , exactly , accurately , that is , diligently in all things , take heed to the rule of what you do . we walk in duties , but we walk circumspectly in this attention of the mind . secondly , there are some special things which the rule directs unto , that the mind is to attend in every duty ; as , first , that as to the matter of it , it be full and compleat . under the law , no beast was allowed to be a sacrifice that had any member wanting , any defect of parts . such were rejected as well as those that were lame or blind . duties must be compleat as to the parts , the matter of them . there may be such a part of the price kept back , as may make the tendering of all the residue unacceptable , saul sparing agag and the fattest of the cattle , rendered the destroying of all the rest useless . thus when men will give alms , or perform other services , but not unto the proportion that the rule requireth , and which the mind by diligent attention unto it might discover , the whole duty is vitiated . secondly , as to the principle of it , namely , that it be done in faith , and therein by an actual derivation of strength from christ , ( john 15. 5. ) without whom we can do nothing . it is not enough that the person be a believer , though that be necessary unto every good work , ephes. 2. 10. but also that faith be peculiarly acted in every duty that we do . for our whole obedience is the obedience of faith , rom. 1. 5. that is , which the doctrine of faith requireth , and which the grace of faith beareth or bringeth forth . so christ is expresly said to be our life , col. 3. 4. our spiritual life , that is the spring , author , and cause of it . now as in life natural , no vital act can be performed , but by the actual operation of the principle of life it self ; so in life spiritual , no spiritually vital act , that is , no duty acceptable to god , can be performed but by the actual working of christ , who is our life . and this is no other way derived unto us but by faith . whence saith the apostle , gal. 2. 20. christ liveth in me , and the life which i now lead in the flesh , is by the faith of the son of god. not only was christ his life , a living principle unto him , but he led a life , that is , discharged vital actions in all duties of holiness and obedience , by the faith of the son of god , or in him ; deriving supplies of grace and strength from him thereby . this therefore ought a believer diligently to attend unto , namely , that every thing he doth to god , be done in the strength of christ ; which wherein it consisteth ought diligently to be enquired into by all who intend to walk with god. thirdly , in this respect unto rule , the manner of the performance of every duty is to be regarded . now there are two things in the manner of the performance of any duty which a believer , who is trusted with spiritual light , ought to attend unto . first , that it be done in the way , and by the means that god hath prescribed with respect unto the ou●ward manner of its performance . and this is especially to be regarded in duties of the worship of god ; the matter and outward manner whereof do both equally fall under his command . if this be not regarded , the whole duty is vitiated . i speak not of them who suffer themselves to be deluded by the deceitfulness of sin , utterly to disregard the rule of the word in such things , and to worship god according to their own imaginations ; but of them principally , who although they in general prosess to do nothing but what god requires , and as he requires it , yet do not diligently attend to the rule , to make the authority of god to be the sole cause and reason both of what they do , and of the manner of the performance of it . and this is the reason that god so often calls on his people to consider diligently and wisely , that they may do all according as he had commanded . secondly , the affections of the heart and mind in duties belong to the performance of them in the inward manner . the prescriptions and commands of god for attendance hereunto are innumerable , and the want hereof renders every duty an abomination unto him . a sacrifice without an heart , without salt , without fire , of what value is it ? no more are duties without spiritual affections . and herein is the mind to keep the charge of god ; to see that the heart which he requires be tendered to him . and we find also that god requireth especial affections to accompany special duties . he that gives with chearfulness ; which if they are not attended unto , the whole is lost . fourthly , the mind is to attend unto the ends of duties ; and therein principally the glory of god in christ. several other ends will sin and self impose upon our duties : especially two it will press hard upon us with : first , satisfaction of our convictions and consciences . secondly , the praise of men . for self-righteousness and ostentation are the main ends of men that are fallen off from god in all moral duties whatsoever . in their sins they endeavour for to satisfie their lusts , in their duties , their conviction , and pride . these the mind of a believer is diligently to watch against , and to keep up in all a single eye to the glory of god , as that which answers the great and general rule of all our obedience ; whatever you do , do it all to the glory of god. these and the like things , i say , which are commonly spoken unto , is the mind of a believer obliged to attend diligently and constantly unto , with respect unto all the particular duties of our walking before god. here then lyes no small part of the deceit of sin . namely , to draw the mind off from this watch , to bring an inadvertency upon it , that it shall not in these things keep the watch and charge of the lord. and if it can do so , and thereby strip our duties of all their excellencies which lye in these concernments of them , that the mind is to attend unto it will not much trouble it self nor us about the duties themselves . and this it attempts several wayes . first , by perswading the mind to content it self with generals , and to take it off from attending unto things in particular instances . for example ; it would perswade the soul to rest satisfied in a general aim of doing things to the glory of god , without considering how every particular duty may have that tendency . thus saul thought that he had fulfilled his whole duty , and done the will of god , and sought his glory in his war against amalek , when for want of attendance to every particular duty in that service , he had dishonoured god , and ruined himself and his posterity . and men may perswade themselves , that they have a general design for the glory of god , when they have no active principle in particular duties tending at all that way . but if , instead of fixing the mind by faith on the peculiar advancing the glory of god in a duty , the soul content it self with a general notion of doing so , the mind is already diverted and draw off from its charge by the deceitfulness of sin . if a man be travelling in a journey , it is not only required of him , that he bend his course that way , and so go on , but if he attend not unto every turning , and other occurrences in his way , he may wander and never come to his journeys end . and if we suppose that in general we aim at the glory of god , as we all prosess to do , yet if we attend not unto it distinctly upon every duty that occurs in our way , we shall never attain the end aimed at . and he who satisfies himself with this general purpose , without acting it in every special duty , will not long retain that purpose neither . it doth the same work upon the mind in reference unto the principle of our duties , as it doth unto the end . their principle is , that they be done in faith , in the strength of christ ; but if men content themselves that they are believers , that they have faith , and do not labour in every particular duty to act faith , to lead their spiritual lives in all the acts of them by the faith of the son of god , the mind is drawn off from its duty . it is particular actions wherein we express and exercise our faith and obedience ; and what we are in them , that we are , and no more . secondly , it draws off the mind from the duties before mentioned , by insinuating a secret contentment unto it from the duty it self performed , as to the matter of it . this is a fair discharge of a natural conscience . if the duty be performed , though as to the manner of its performance it come short almost in all things of the rule , conscience and conviction will be satisfied . as saul , upon his expedition against amalek , cries to samuel , come in , thou blessed of the lord , i have done the commandment of the lord. he satisfied himself , though he had not attended as he ought to the whole will of god in that matter . and thus was it with them , isa. 58. 3. wherefore have we fasted , say they , and thou regardest it not ; they had pleased themselves in the performance of their duties , and expected that god also should be pleased with them . but he shews them at large wherein they had failed , and that so far as to render what they had done an abomination . and the like charge he expresseth against them , chap. 48. 1 , 2. this the deceitfulness of sin endeavours to draw the mind unto , namely to take up in the performance of the duty it self . pray thou oughtest , and thou hast prayed , give alms thou oughtest , and thou hast given alms ; quiet then thy self in what thou hast done , and go on to do the like . if it prevail herein , the mind is discharged from farther attendance and watching unto duty , which leaves the soul on the borders of many evils . for , thirdly , hence customariness in all duties will quickly ensue , which is the height of sins drawing off the mind from duty . for mens minds may be drawn from all duties , in the midst of the most abundant performance of them . for in and under them , the mind may be subject unto an habitual diversion from its charge and watch unto the rule . what is done with such a frame , is not done to god , amos 5. 25. none of their sacrifices were to god , although they professed that they were all so . but they attended not unto his worship in faith , and unto his glory , and he despised all their duties . see also hos. 10. 1. and this is the great reason why professors thrive so little under the performance of a multitude of duties . they attend not unto them in a due manner , their minds being drawn off from their circumspect watch , and so they have little or no communion with god in them , which is the end whereunto they are designed , and by which alone they become useful and profitable unto themselves . and in this manner are many duties of worship and obedience performed by a woful generation of hypocrites , formalists , and profane persons , without either life or light in themselves , or acceptation with god ; their minds being wholly estranged from a due attendance unto what they do , by the power and deceitfulness of sin . secondly , as it is in respect of duties , so also it is in respect of sins . there are sundry things in and about every sin that the mind of a believer , by vertue of its office and duty is obliged to attend diligently unto , for the preservation of the soul from it . things they are which god hath appointed and sanctified , to give effectual rebukes and checks to the whole working of the law of sin , and such as in the law of grace , under which we are , are exceedingly suited and fitted unto that purpose . and these the deceit of sin endeavours by all means to draw off the mind from a due consideration of , and attendance unto . some few of them we shall a little reflect upon . first , the first and most general is the sovereignty of god , the great law-giver , by whom it is forbidden . this joseph fixed on in his great temptation , gen. 39. 9. how can i do this great wickedness and sin against god ? there was in it a great evil , a great ingratitude against man , which he pleads also and insists upon , ver . 8 , 9. but that which fixed his heart and resolution against it , was the formality of it , that it was sin against god , by whom it was severely forbidden . so the apostle informs us , that in our dealing in any thing that is against the law , our respect is still to be unto the law-giver and his sovereignty : james 4. 11 , 12. if thou judge the law , thou art not a doer of the law , but a judge ; there is one law-giver who is able to save and to destroy . consider this always , there is one law-giver , holy , righteous , armed with sovereign power and authority ; he is able to save and destroy . hence sin is called a rebellion , a casting off his yoke , a despising of him , and that in his sovereignty , as the great law-giver ; and this ought the mind always practically to attend unto , in all the lustings , actings and suggestions of the law of sin , especially when advantaged by any suitable or vigorous temptation . it is god that hath forbidden this thing , the great law-giver , under whose absolute sovereignty i am , in dependance on whon i live , and by whom i am to be disposed of , as to my present and eternal condition . this eve fixed on at the beginning of her temptation , god hath said , we must not eat of this tree , gen. 3. 3. but she kept not her ground , she abode not by that consideration , but suffered her mind to be diverted from it by the subtilty of sathan , which was the entrance of her transgression ; and so it is unto us all in our deviations from obedience . secondly , the deceit of sin , of every sin , the punishment appointed unto it in the law , is another thing that the mind ought actually to attend unto , in reference unto every particular evil . and the diversions from this , that the minds of men have been doctrinally and practically attended withall , have been an inlet into all manner of abominations . job professeth another frame in himself , chap. 31. 23. destruction from god was a terrour unto me , and by reason of his highness i could not endure . many evils he had mentioned in the fore-going verses , and pleads his innocency from them , although they were such as upon the account of his greatness and power , he could have committed easily without fear of danger from men . here he gives the reason that prevailed with him so carefully to abstain from them , destruction from god was a terrour to me , and by reason of his highness i could not endure . i considered , saith he , that god had appointed death and destruction for the punishment of sin , and that such was his greatness , highness , and power , that he could inflict it unto the uttermost , in such a way as no creature is able to abide or to avoid . so the apostle directs believers always to consider what a fearful thing it is to fall into the hands of the living god , heb. 10. 31. and that because he hath said , vengeance is mine , i will recompence , ver . 30. he is a sin-avenging god , that will by no means acquit the guilty ; as in the declaration of his gracious name , infinitely full of encouragements to poor sinners in christ , he addes that in the close , that he will by no means clear the guilty , exod. 34. 7. that he may keep upon the minds of them whom he pardoneth , a due sense of the punishment that is due from his vindictive justice unto every sin . and so the apostle would have us mind , that even our god is a consuming fire , heb. 12. 29. that is , that we should consider his holiness and vindictive justice , appointing unto sin a meet recompence of reward . and mens breaking through this consideration , he reckons as the height of the aggravation of their sins , rom. 1. 32. they know that it is the judgment of god , that they which commit such things were worthy of death , yet continued to do them : what hope is there for such persons ? there is indeed relief against this consideration for humbled believing souls in the blood of christ ; but this relief is not to take off the mind from it , as it is appointed of god to be a restraint from sin . and both these considerations , even the sovereignty of god , and the punishment of sin , are put together by our saviour , matth. 10. 28. fear not them which kill the body , but are not able to kill the soul ; but rather fear him which is able to destroy both soul and body in hell . thirdly , the consideration of all the love and kindness of god , against whom every sin is committed , is another thing that the mind ought diligently to attend unto . and this is a prevailing consideration , if rightly and graciously managed in the soul. this moses presseth on the people , deut. 32. 6. do you thus requite the lord , o foolish people and unwise ? is not he thy father that bought thee ? hath he not made thee , and established thee ? is this a requital for eternal love , and all the fruits of it ? for the love and care of a father , of a redeemer , that we have been made partakers of ? and it is the same consideration which the apostle manageth to this purpose , 2 cor. 7. 1. having therefore these promises , dearly beloved , let us cleanse our selves from all filthiness of the flesh and spirit , perfecting holiness in the fear of god. the receiving of the promises ought to be effectual , as to stir us up unto all holiness , so to work and effect an abstinence from all sin . and what promises are these ? namely that god will be a father unto us , and receive us , chap. 6. 17 , 18. which compriseth the whole of all the love of god towards us here , and to eternity . if there be any spiritual ingenuity in the soul , whilst the mind is attentive to this consideration , there can be no prevailing attempt made upon it by the power of sin . now there are two parts of this consideration . first , that which is general in it , that which is common unto all believers . this is managed unto this purpose , 1 joh. 3. 1 , 2 , 3. behold what manner of love the father hath bestowed upon us , that we should be called the sons of god ; therefore the world knoweth us not because it knew him not . beloved , now are we the sons of god , and it doth not yet appear what we shall be ; but we know that when he shall appear , we shall be like him for we shall see him as he is . and every man that hath this hope , purifieth himself even as he is pure . consider , saith he , the love of god , and the previledges that we enjoy by it : behold what manner of love the father hath bestowed upon us , that we should be called the sons of god. adoption is an especial fruit of it , and how great a priviledge is this ? such love it is , and such are the fruits of it , that the world knoweth nothing of the blessed condition which we obtain and enjoy thereby : the world knoweth us not . nay , it is such love , and so unspeakably blessed and glorious are the effects of it , that we our selves are not able to comprehend them . what use then ought we to make of this contemplation of the excellent unspeakable love of god ? why saith he , every one that hath this hope purifieth himself . every man who being made partaker of this love , and thereupon an hope of the full enjoyment of the fruits of it , of being made like to god in glory , purifieth himself , that is , in an abstinence from all and every sin , as in the following words is at large declared . secondly , it is to be considered as to such peculiar mercies and fruits of love , as every ones soul hath been made partaker of . there is no believer , but besides the love and mercy which he hath in common with all his brethren , he hath also in the lot of his inheritance , some inclosures , some especial mercies wherein he hath a single propriety . he hath some joy which no stranger intermedleth withall , prov. 14. 10. particular applications of covenant love and mercy to his soul. now these are all provisions laid in by god , that they may be born in mind against an hour of temptation , that the consideration of them may preserve the soul from the attempts of sin . their neglect is an high aggravation of our provocations . 1 king. 11. 9. it is charged as the great evil of solomon , that he had sinned against special mercies , especial intimations of love ; he sinned after god had appeared to him twice . god required that he should have born in mind that especial favour , and have made it an argument against sin . but he neglected● , and is burdened with this sore rebuke . and indeed all especiall mercies , all especial tokens and pledges of love , are utterly lost and mispent upon us , if they are not improved unto this end . this then is another thing , that it is the duty of the mind greatly to attend unto , and to oppose effectually unto every attempt that is made on the soul by the law of sin . fourthly , the considerations that arise from the blood and mediation of christ , are of the same importance . so the apostle declares , 2 cor. 5. 14 , 15. for the love of christ constraineth us , because we thus judge , that if one died for all , then were all dead ; and that he died for all , that they which live should not henceforth live unto themselves , but unto him which died for them , and rose again . there is a constraining efficacy in this consideration , it is great , forcible , effectual , if duly attented unto . but i must not here in particular insist upon these things . nor , fifthly , shall i speak of the inhabitation of the spirit , the greatest priviledge that we are made partakers of in this world . the due consideration how he is grieved by sin , how his dwelling place is defiled thereby , how his comforts are forfeited , lost , despised by it , might also be insisted on . but the instances passed through are sufficient unto our purpose . now herein lies the duty of the mina , in reference unto particular sins and temptations . it is diligently and carefully to attend unto those things , to dwell constantly upon the consideration of them , to have them in a continual readiness to oppose unto all the lustings , actings , warrings , attempts , and rage of sin . in reference hereunto doth sin in an especial manner put forth and act its deceit . it labours by all means to draw off the mind from its due attendance unto these things ; to deprive the soul of this great preservative and antidote against its poison . it endeavours to cause the soul to satisfie it self with general undigested notions about sin , that it may have nothing in particular to betake it self unto in its own defence , against its attempts and temptations . and the wayes whereby it doth this may be also briefly considered . first , it is from the deceit of sin that the mind is spiritually slothful , whereby it becomes negligent unto this duty . the principal discharge of its trust in this matter is expressed by watching , which is the great caution that the lord jesus gave unto his disciples in reference unto all their dangers from sin and satan , mark 14. 37. i say unto all watch . that is , use your utmost diligence and circumspection , that you be not surprised and entangled with temptations . it is called also consideration ; consider your wayes ; consider your latter end ; the want whereof god complains of in his people , dent. 32. 29. now that which is contrary to these indispensible conditions of our preservation , is spiritual slothfulness , as the apostle declares , heb. 6. 11 , 12. and we desire that every one of you , do shew the same diligence to the full assurance of hope unto the end , that you be not slothful . if we shew not diligence , we are slothful , and in danger of coming short to inherit the promises ; see 2 pet. 1. 5 , 9. and besides this giving all diligence , add to your faith vertue , to vertue , knowledge &c. for if these things be in you and abound , that they make you that you shall neither be barren , nor unfruitful in the knowledge of our lord jesus . but he that lacketh these things is blind , and cannot see afar off , and hath forgotten that he was purged from his old sins ; wherefore the rather brethren , give diligence to make your calling and election sure ; for if you do these things you shall never fall ; for so an entrance shall be administred unto you abundantly into the everlasting kingdom of our lord and saviour jesus christ , ver . 9 , 10. all this the mind is turned from , if once by the deceit of sin it be made slothful . now this sloth consists in three things . first , inadvertency ; it doth not set it self to consider and attend unto its special concernments . the apostle perswading the hebrews with all earnestness to attend diligently , to consider carefully that they may not be hardened by the deceitfulness of sin , gives this reason of their danger , that they were dull of hearing , chap. 5. 11. that is , that they were slothful , and did not attend unto the things of their duty . a secret regardlesness is apt to creep upon the soul , and it doth not set it self to a diligent marking how things go with it , and what is continually incumbent on it . secondly , an unwillingness to be stirred up unto its duty , prov. 19. 24. the slothful man hideth his hand in his bosom , and will not so much as bring it to his mouth again . there is an unwillingness in sloth to take any notice of warnings , calls , excitations , or stirrings up by the word , spirit , judgements , any thing that god maketh use of , to call the mind unto a due consideration of the condition of the soul. and this is a perfect evidence that the mind is made slothful by the deceit of sin , when especial calls and warnings , whether in a suitable word , or a pressing judgement , cannot prevail with it to pull its hand out of its bosome , that is , to set about the special duties that it is called unto . thirdly , weak and ineffectual attempts to recover its self unto its duty , prov. 26. 14. as the door turneth it self upon its hinges , so doth the slothful man upon his hed . in the turning of a door upon its hinges , there is some motion , but no progress . it removes up and down , but is still in the place and posture that it was . so is it with the spiritually slothful man on his bed , or in his security . he makes some motions or faint endeavours towards a discharge of his duty , but goes not on . there where he was one day , there he is the next ; yea , there where he was one year , he is the next . his endeavours are faint , cold , and evanid ; he gets no ground by them , but is alwayes beginning and never finishing his work . fourthly , heartlesness upon the apprehensions of difficulties and discouragements , prov. 22. 13. the slothful man saith there is a lyon in the way , i shall be slain in the streets . every difficulty deters him from duty . he thinks it impossible for him to attain to that accuracy , exactness , and perfection which he is in this matter to press after ; & therefore contents himself in his old coldness , negligence , rather than to run the hazard of an universal circumspection . now if the deceit of sin hath once drawn away the mind into this frame , it layes it open to every temptation and incursion of sin . the spouse in the canticles seems to have been overtaken with this distemper , chap. 5. 1 , 2 , 3. and this puts her on various excuses why she cannot attend unto the call of christ , and apply her self unto her duty in walking with him . secondly , it draws away the mind from its watch and duty in reference unto sin by surprisals . it falls in conjunction with some urging temptation , and surprizeth the mind into thoughts quite of another nature than those which it ought to insist upon in its own defence . so it seems to have been with peter ; his carnal fear closing with the temptation wherein satan sought to winnow him , filled his mind with so many thoughts about his own imminent danger , that he could not take into consideration the love and warning of christ ; nor the evil whereunto his temptation led him , nor any thing that he ought to have insisted on for his preservation . and therefore upon a review of his folly in neglecting those thoughts of god , and the love of christ , which through the assistance of the holy ghost might have kept him from his scandalous fall , he wept bitterly . and this indeed is the common way of the working of the deceit of sin , as unto particular evils . it layes hold on the mind suddenly with thoughtfulness about the present sin , possesseth it , takes it up , so that either it recovers not it self at all to the considerations mentioned , or if any thoughts of them be suggested , the mind is so prepossest and filled , that they take no impression on the soul , or make no abode in it . thus doubtless was david surprised in the entrance of his great sin . sin and temptation did so possess and fill his mind with the present object of his lust , that he utterly forgot , as it were , those considerations which he had formerly made use of , when he so diligently kept himself from his iniquity . here therefore lyes the great wisdom of the soul , in rejecting the very first motions of sin , because by parlies with them the mind may be drawn off from attending unto its preservatives , and so the whole rush into evil . thirdly , it draws away the mind by frequency and long continuance of its solicitations , making as it were at last a conquest of it . and this happens not without an open neglect of the soul , in want of stirring up it self to give an effectual rebuke in the strength and by the grace of christ unto sin , which would have prevented its prevalency . but of this , more shall be spoken afterwards . and this is the first way whereby the law of sin acts its deceit against the soul. it draws off the mind from attendance unto its charge and office , both in respect of duty and sin . and so far as this is done the person is said to be drawn away , or drawn off . he is tempted ; every man is tempted , when he is thus drawn away by his own lust , or the deceit of sin dwelling in him . and the whole effect of this working of the deceituflness of sin may be reduced unto these three heads . first , the remission of an universally watchful frame of spirit unto every duty , and against all , even the most hidden and secret actings of sin . secondly , the omission of peculiar attending unto such duties as have an especial respect unto the weakning and ruine of the whole law of sin , and the obviating of its deceitfulness . thirdly , spiritual sloth , as to a diligent regard unto all the especial concernments of duties and sins . when these three things , with their branches mentioned , less or more , are brought about , in , or upon the soul , or so far as they are so , so far a man is drawn off by his own lust , or the deceit of sin . there is no need of adding here any directions for the prevention of this evil , they having sufficiently been laid down in our passage through the consideration both of the duty of the mind , and of the deceit of sin . chap. xi . the working of sin by deceit to entangle the affections . the wayes whereby it is done . means of their prevention . the second thing in the words of the apostle ascribed unto the deceitful working of sin is its enticing . a man is drawn away and enticed . and this seems particularly to respect the affections , as drawing away doth the mind . the mind is drawn away from duty , and the affections are enticed unto sin . from the prevalency hereof a man is said to be enticed , or entangled as with a bait ; so the word imports . for there is an allusion in it unto the bait wherewith a fish is taken on the hook which holds him to his destruction . and concerning this effect of the deceit of sin , we shall briefly shew two things . first , what it is to be enticed , or to be entangled with the bait of sin , to have the affections tainted with an inclin●tion thereunto , and when they are so . secondly , what course sin takes , and what way it proceedeth in , thus to entice , ensnare , or entangle the soul. for the first , first , the affections are certainly entangled when they stir up frequent imaginations about the proposed object which this deceit of sin leadeth and enticeth towards . when sin prevails , and the affections are gone fully after it , it fills the imagination with it , possessing it with images , likenesses , appearances of it continually . such persons devise iniquity and work evil on their beds , which they also practise when they are able , when it is in the power of their hand , mic. 2. 1. as in particular , peter tells us that they have eyes full of an adulteress , and they cannot cease from sin , 2 pet. 2. 14. that is , their imaginations are possest with a continual representation of the object of their lusts . and it is so in part where the affections are in part entangled with sin , and begin to turn aside unto it . john tells us that the things that are in the world , are the lust of the flesh , the lust of the eyes , and the pride of life , 1 ep. 2. 14. the lust of the eyes is that which by them is conveyed unto the soul. now it is not the bodily sense of seeing , but the fixing of the imagination from that sense on such thing , that is intended . and this is called the eyes , because thereby things are constantly represented unto the mind and soul , as outward objects are unto the inward sense by the eyes . and oftentimes the outward sight of the eyes is the occasion of these imaginations . so achan declares how sin prevailed with him , josh. 7. 21. first he saw the wedge of gold , and babylonish garment , and then he coveted them . he rolled them the pleasures , the profit of them , in his imagination , and then fixed his heart upon the obt●ining of them . now the heart may have a setled , fixed detestation of sin ; but yet if a man find that the imagination of the mind is frequently solicited by it ▪ and exercised about it , such a one may know that his affections are secretly enticed and entangled . secondly , this entanglement is heightned , when the imagination can prevail with the mind to lodge vain thoughts in it , with secret delight and complacency . this is termed by casuists , cogitatio morosa cum delectatione , an abiding thought with delight , which towards forbidden objects is in all cases actually sinful . and yet , this may be , when the consent of the will unto sin is not obtained ; when the soul would not for the world do the thing , which yet thoughts begin to lodge in the mind about . this lodging of vain thoughts in the heart the prophet complains of as a thing greatly sinful , and to be abhorred , jer. 4. 14. all these thoughts are messengers that carry sin to and fro between the imagination and the affections , and still encrease it , enflaming the imagination , and more and more entangling the affections . achan thinks upon the golden wedge , this makes him like it , and love it ; by loving of it , his thoughts are infected , and return to the imagination of its worth , and goodly shew , and so by little and little the soul is enflamed unto sin . and here if the will parts with its sovereignty , sin is actually conceived . thirdly , inclinations , or readiness to attend unto extenuations of sin , or the reliefs that are tendered against sin when committed , manifest the affections to be entangled with it . we have shewed , and shall yet farther evidence that it is a great part of the deceit of sin , to tender lessning and extenuating thoughts of sin unto the mind . is it not a little one ? or there is mercy provided , or it shall be in due time relinquished and given over , is its language in a deceived heart . now when there is a readiness in the soul to hearken and give entertainment unto such secret insinuations arising from this deceit , in reference unto any sin , or unapprovable course , it is an evidence that the affections are enticed . when the soul is willing , as it were to be tempted , to be courted by sin , to hearken to its dalliances and solicitations , it hath lost of its conjugal affections unto christ , and is entangled . this is looking on the wine when it is red , when it giveth its colour in the cup , when it moveth it self aright , prov. 33. 21. a pleasing contemplation on the invitations of sin , whose end the wise man gives us , ver . 32. when the deceit of sin hath prevailed thus far on any person , then he is enticed or entangled ; the will is not yet come to the actual conception of this or that sin by its consent , but the whole soul is in a near inclination thereunto . and many other instances i could give as tokens and evidences of this entanglement . these may suffice to manifest what we intend thereby . our next enquiry is , how , or by what means the deceit of sin proceeds thus to entice and entangle the affections ; and two or three of its baits are manifest herein . first it makes use of its former prevalency upon the mind in drawing it off from its watch and circumspection . sayes the wise man , prov. 1. 17. surely in vain is the not spread in the sight of any bird ; or before the eyes of every thing that hath a wing , as in the original . if it hath eyes open to discern the snare , and a wing to carry it away , it will not be caught . and in vain should the deceit of sin spread its snares and nets for the entanglement of the ●●l , whilest the eyes of the mind are intent upon what it doth , and so stir up the wings of its will and affections to carry it away and avoid it . but if the eyes be put out or diverted , the wings are of very little use for escape . and therefore this is one of the wayes which is used by them who take birds or fowls in their nets , they have false lights , or shews of things to divert the sight of their prey ; and when that is done , they take the season to cast their nets upon them . so doth the deceit of sin , it first draws off and diverts the mind by false reasonings and pretences , as hath been shewed , and then casts its net upon the affections for their entanglement . secondly , taking advantage of such seasons , it proposeth sin as desirable , as exceeding satisfactory to the corrupt part of our affections . it gilds over the object by a thousand pretences which it presents unto corrupt lustings . this is the laying of a bait , which the apostle in this verse evidently alludes unto . a bait is some what desirable and suitable , that is proposed to the hungry creature for its satisfaction , and it is by all artifices rendered desirable and suitable . thus is sin presented by the help of the imagination unto the soul ; that is , sinful and inordinate objects , which the affections cleave unto , are 〈◊〉 ●●●sented . the apostle tells us , that there are pleasures of sin , heb. 11. 35. which unless they are despis●d , as they were by moses , there is no escaping of sin it self hence they that live in sin , are said to live in pleasure , james 5. 5. now this pleasure of sin consisteth in its suitableness to give satisfaction to the flesh , to lust , to corrupt affections . hence is that caution , rom. 13. 14. make no provision for the flesh to fulfill the lust thereof . that is , do not suffer your minds , thoughts , or affections to fix upon sinful objects , suited to give satisfaction to the lusts of the flesh , to nouri● and cherish them thereby . to which purpose he speaks again , gal. 5. 16. fulfill ye not the lusts of the flesh . bring not in the pleasures of sin to give them satisfaction . when men are under the power of sin , they are said to fulfill the desires of the flesh and of the mind , eph. 2. 3. thus therefore the deceit of sin endeavours to entangle the affections , by proposing unto them through the assistance of the imagination that suitableness which is in it to the satisfaction of its corrupt lusts , now set at some liberty by the inadvertency of the mind . it presents its wine as sparkling in the cup , the beauty of the adulteress , the riches of the world unto sensual and covetous persons , and somewhat in the like kind , in some degrees to believers themselves . when therefore , i say , sin would entangle the soul , it prevails with the imagination to solicit the heart , by representing this false painted beauty , or pretended satisfactoriness of sin : and then if satan with any peculiar temptation fall in to its assistance , it oftentimes inflames all the affections , and puts the whole soul into disorder . thirdly , it hides the danger that attends sin , it covers it as the hook is covered with the bait , or the net spread over with meat for the fowl to be taken . it is not indeed possible that sin should utterly deprive the soul of the knowledge of the danger of it . it cannot dispossess it of its notion or perswasion that the wages of sin is death ; and that it is the judgment of god , that they that commit sin are worthy of death . but this it will do , it will so take up and possess the mind and affections with the baits and desirableness of sin , that it shall divert them from an actual and practical contemplation of the danger of it . what satan did in and by his first temptation , that sin doth ever since . at first eve guards her self , with calling to mind the danger of sin ; if we eat , or touch it , we shall die , gen. 3. 3. but so soon as satan had filled her mind with the beauty and usefulness of the fruit to make on wise , how quickly did she lay aside her practical prevalent consideration of the danger of eating it , the curse due unto it ; or else relieves her self with a vain hope and pretence that it should not be , because the serpent told her so . so was david beguiled in his great transgression , by the deceit of sin ; his lust being pleased and satisfied , the consideration of the guilt and danger of his transgression was taken away : and therefore he is said to have despised the lord , 2 sam. 12. 9. in that he considered not the evil that was in his heart , and the danger that attended it in the threatning or commination of the law. now sin when it presseth upon the soul to this purpose , will use a thousand wiles to hide from it the terrour of the lord , the end of transgressions , and especially of that peculiar folly which it solicits the mind unto . hopes of pardon shall be used to hide it , and future repentance shall hide it , present importunity of lust shall hide it , occasions and opportunities shall hide it , surprizals shall hide it , extenuation of sin shall hide it , balancing of duties against it shall hide it , fixing the imagination on present objects shall hide it , desperate resolutions to venture the uttermost for the enjoyment of lust in its pleasures and profits , shall hide it . a thousand wiles it hath which cannot be recounted . fourthly , having prevailed thus far , gilding over the pleasures of sin , hiding its end and demerit , it proceds to raise pervers reasonings in the mind , to fix it upon the sin proposed , that it may be conceived and brought forth , the affections being already prevailed upon ; of which we shall speak under the next head of its progress . here we may stay a little , as formerly , to give some few directions for the obviating of this woful work of the deceitfulness of sin . would we not be enticed or entangled , would we not be disposed to the conception of sin , would we be turned out of the road and way which goes down to death ; let us take heed of our affections , which are of so great concernment in the whole course of our obedience , that they are commonly in the scripture called by the name of the heart , as the principal thing which god requires in our walking before him . and this is not slightly to be attended unto . prov. 4. 23. saith the wise man , keep thy heart with all diligence , or as in the original , above or before all keepings ; before every watch , keep thy heart . you have many keepings that you watch unto ; you watch to keep your lives , to keep your estates , to keep your reputations , to keep up your families ; but , saith he , above all these keepings , prefer that , attend to that of the heart , of your affections , that they be not entangled with sin ; there is no safety without it . save all other things and lose the heart , and all is lost , lost unto all eternity . you will say then , what shall we do , or how shall we observe this duty ? first , keep your affections as to their object in general . this advice the apostle gives in this very case , coloss. 3. his advice in the beginning of that chapter is to direct us unto the mortification of sin , which he expresly engageth in , ver . 5. mortifie therefore your members which are on the earth . prevent the working and deceit of sin which wars in your members . to prepare us , to enable us hereunto , he gives us that great direction , ver . 2. set your affections on things above , not on things of the earth . fix your affections on heavenly things , this will enable you to mortifie sin : fill them with the things that are above , let them be exercised with them , and so enjoy the chiefest place in them . they are above , blessed and suitable objects , meet for , and answering unto our affections . god himself , in his beauty and glory ; the lord jesus christ , who is altogether lovely , the chiefest of ten thousand ; grace and glory , the mysteries revealed in the gospel , the blessedness promised thereby . were our affections filled , taken up , and possessed with these things , as it is our duty that they should be , it is our happiness when they are ; what access could sin with its painted pleasures , with its sugred poisons , with its envenomed baits , have unto our souls ? how should we loath all its proposals , and say unto them , get ye hence as an abominable thing ? for what are the vain transitory pleasures of sin , in comparison of the exceeding recompence of reward which is proposed unto us ? which argument the apostle presses , 2 cor. 4. 18. secondly , as to the object of your affections in an especial manner ; let it be the cross of christ , which hath an exceeding efficacy towards the disappointment of the whole work of indwelling-sin . gal. 6. 14. god forbid that i should glory , save in the cross of our lord jesus , whereby the world is crucified unto me , and i unto the world . the cross of christ he gloried and rejoyced in ; this his heart was set upon , and these were the effects of it ; it crucified the world unto him , made it a dead and undesirable thing . the baits and pleasures of sin are taken all of them out of the world , and the things that are in the world , namely the lust of the flesh , the lust of the eyes , and the pride of life . these are the things that are in the world ; from these doth sin take all its baits , whereby it enticeth and entangleth our souls . if the heart be filled with the cross of christ , it casts death and undesirableness upon them all , it leaves no seeming beauty , no appearing pleasure or comeliness in them . again , saith he , it crucifieth me to the world ; makes my heart , my affections , my desires dead unto any of these things . it roots up corrupt lusts and affections , leaves no principle to go forth and make provision for the flesh to fulfill the lusts thereof . labour therefore to fill your hearts with the cross of christ. consider the sorrows he underwent , the curse he bore , the blood he shed , the cries he put forth , the love that was in all this to your souls , and the mystery of the grace of god therein . meditate on the vileness , the demerit , and punishment of sin as represented in the cross , the blood , the death of christ. is christ crucified for sin , and shall not our hearts be crucified with him unto sin ? shall we give entertainment unto that , or hearken unto its dalliances , which wounded , which pierced , which slew our dear lord jesus ? god forbid . fill your affections with the cross of christ , that there may be no room for sin . the world once put him out of the house into a stable , when he came to save us ; let him now turn the world out of doors , when he is come to sanctifie us . secondly , look to the vigour of the affections towards heavenly things ; if they are not constantly attended , excited , directed , and warned , they are apt to decay , and sin lies in wait to take every advantage against them . many complaints we have in the scripture of those who lost their first love , in suffering their affections to decay . and this should make us jealous over our own hearts , lest we also should be over-taken with the like back-sliding frame . wherefore be jealous over them , often strictly examine them , and call them to account , supply unto them due considerations for their exciting and stirring up unto duty . chap. xii . the conception of sin through its deceit . wherein it consisteh . the consent of the will unto sin. the nature thereof . ways and means whereby it is obtained . other advantages made use of by the deceit of sin. ignorance , errours . the third success of the deceit of sin in its progressive work , is the conception of actual sin . when it hath drawn the mind off from its duty , and entangled the affections , it proceeds to conceive sin in order to the bringing of it forth . then when lust hath conceived it bringeth forth sin . now the conception of sin , in order unto its perpetration , can be nothing but the consent of the will : for as without the consent of the will sin cannot be committed , so where the will hath consented unto it , there is nothing in the soul to hinder its actual accomplishment . god doth indeed by various ways and means frustrate the bringing forth of these adulterate conceptions , causing them to melt away in the womb , or one way or other prove abortive , so that not the least part of that sin is committed which is willed or conceived ; yet there is nothing in the soul it self that remains to give check unto it , when once the will hath given its consent . ofttimes when a cloud is full of rain , and ready to fall , a wind comes and drives it away . and when the will is ready to bring forth its sin , god diverts it by one wind or other , but yet the cloud was as full of rain as if it had fallen , and the soul as full of sin as if it had been committed . this conceiving of lust or sin then , is its prevalency in obtaining the consent of the will unto its solicitations . and hereby the soul is deflowered of its chastity towards god in christ , as the apostle intimates , 2 cor. 11. 2 , 3. to clear up this matter we must observe , first , that the will is the principle , the next seat and cause of obedience and disobedience . moral actions are unto us , or in us , so far good or evil as they partake of the consent of the will. he spake truth of old who said , omne peccatum est adeò voluntarium , ut non ●it peccatum nisi sit voluntarium . every sin is so voluntary , that if it be not voluntary ▪ it is not sin . it is most true of actual sins . the formality of their iniquity ariseth from the acts of the will in them , and concerning them , i mean , as to the persons that commit them ; otherwise in it self the formal reason of sin is its aberration from the law of god. secondly , there is a two-fold consent of the will unto sin . first , that which is full , absolute , complete , and upon deliberation . a prevailing consent , the convictions of the mind being conquered , and no principle of grace in the will to weaken it . with this consent the soul goes into sin , as a ship before the wind with all its sails displayed , without any check or stop . it rusheth into sin like the horse into the battel . men thereby , as the apostle speaks , giving themselves over to sin with greediness , ephes. 4. 19. thus ahabs will was in the murthering of naboth , he did it upon deliberation , by contrivance , with a full consent ; the doing of it gave him such satisfaction , as that it cured his malady or the distemper of his mind . this is that consent of the will which is acted in the finishing and compleating of sin , in unregenerate persons , and is not required to the single bringing forth of sin , whereof we speak . secondly , there is a consent of the will , which is attended with a secret renitency and volition of the contrary . thus peter's will was in the denying of his master . his will was in it , or he had not done it ; it was a voluntary action , that which he chose to do at that season . sin had not been brought forth , if it had not been thus conceived . but yet at this very time there was resident in his will a contrary principle of love to christ , yea , and faith in him which utterly failed not . the ecafficy of it was intercepted , and its operations suspended actually , through the violent urging of the temptation that he was under ; but yet it was in his will , and weakned his consent unto sin , though it consented : it was not done with self-pleasing , which such full acts of the will do produce . thirdly , although there may be a predominant consent in the will , which may suffice for the conception of particular sins , yet there cannot be an absolute , total , full consent of the will of a believer unto any sin : for , first , there is in his will a principle fixed on good , on all good , rom. 7. 21. he would do good . the principle of grace in the will , inclines him to all good . and this in general is pravalent against the principle of sin , so that the will is denominated from thence . grace hath the rule and dominion , and not sin , in the will of every believer . now that consent unto sin in the will , which is contrary to the inclination and general prevailing principle in the same will , is not , cannot be total , absolute and complete . secondly , there is not only a general , ●●●ng , prevailing principle in the will against sin , but there is also a secret reluctancy in it against its own act in consenting unto sin . it is true , the soul is not sensible sometimes of this reluctancy , because the present consent carries away the prevailing act of the will , and takes away the sense of the lusting of the spirit , or reluctancy of the principle of grace in the will. but the general rule holdeth in all things at all times , gal. 5. 17. the spirit lusteth against the flesh : it doth so actually , though not always to the same degree , nor with the same success . and the prevalency of the contrary principle in this or that particular act , doth not disprove it . it is so on the other side , there is no acting of grace in the will but sin lusts against it , although that lusting be not made sensible in the soul , because of the prevalency of the contrary acting of grace , yet it is enough to keep those actings from perfection in their kind . so is it in this renitency of grace against the acting of sin in the soul ; though it be not sensible in its operations , yet it is enough to keep that act from being full and complete . and much of spiritual wisdom lies in discerning aright between the spiritual renitency of the principle of grace in the will against sin , and the rebukes that are given the soul by conscience upon conviction for sin . fourthly , observe , that reiterated repeated acts of the consent of the will unto sin , may beget a disposition , and inclineableness in it unto the like acts , that may bring the will unto a proneness and readiness to consent unto sin upon easie sollicitation● which is a condition of soul dangerous , and greatly to be watched against . fifthly , this consent of the will , which we have thus described , may be considered two ways . first , as it is exercised about the circumstances , causes , means and inducements unto sin . secondly , as it respects this or that actual sin . in the first sense , there is a virtual consent of the will unto sin in every inadvertency unto the prevention of it , in every neglect of duty that makes way for it , in every hearkning unto any temptation leading towards it . in a word , in all the diversions of the mind from its duty , and intanglements of the affections by sin before mentioned . for where there is no act of the will formally , or virtually , there is no sin . but this is not that which we now speak of . but in particular the consent of the will unto this or that actual sin , so far as that either sin is committed , or is prevented by other wayes and means not of our present consideration . and herein consists the conceiving of sin . these things being supposed , that which in the next place we are to consider , is the way that the deceit of sin proceedeth in ; to procure the consent of the will , and so to conceive actual sin in the soul. to this purpose observe , first , that the will is a rational appetite ; rational as guided by the mind ; and an appetite as excited by the affections ; and so in its operation or actings hath respect to both , is influenced by both . secondly , it chuseth nothing , consents to nothing but sub ratione boni , as it hath an appearance of good , some present good . it cannot consent to any thing under the notion or apprehension of its being evil in any kind . good is its natural and necessary object , and therefore whatever is proposed unto it for its consent , must be proposed under an appearance of being either good in it self , or good at present unto the soul , or good so circumstantiate as it is ; so that , thirdly , we may see hence the reason why the conception of sin is here placed as a consequent of the minds being drawn away , and the affections being entangled . both these have an influence into the consent of the will , and the conception of this or t●at actual sin thereby . our way therefore here is made somewhat plain . we have seen at large how the mind is drawn away by the deceit of sin , and how the affections are entangled , that which remains is but the proper effect of these things ; for the discovery whereof we must instance in some of the special deceits , corrupt and fallacious reasonings before mentioned , and then shew their prevalency on the will to a consent unto sin . first , the will is imposed upon by that corrupt reasoning , that grace is exalted in pardon ; and that mercy is provided for sinners . this first as hath been shewed , deceives the mind , and that opens the way to the wills consent , by removing a sight of evil which the will hath an aversation unto . and this is carnal hearts prevails so far as to make them think that their liberty consists in being servants of corruption , 2 pet. 2. 19. and the poyson of it doth oftentimes taint and vitiate the minds of believers themselves ; whence we are so cautioned against it in the scripture . to what therefore hath been spoken before , unto the use and abuse of the doctrine of the grace of the gospel , we shall add some few more considerations , and fix upon one place of scripture that will give light unto it . there is a twofold mysterie of grace ; of walking with god , and of coming unto god. and the great design of sin is to change the doctrine and mysterie of grace in reference unto these things , and that by applying those considerations unto the one , which are proper unto the other , whereby each part is hindred , and the influence of the doctrine of grace into them for their fartherance defeated ; see 1 joh. 2. 1 , 2. these things write i unto you that ye sin not ; & if any man sin , we have an advocate with the father , jesus christ the righteous ; and he is the propitiation for our sins . here is the whole design and use of the gospel briefly expressed , these things , saith he , i write unto you ; what things were these ? those mentioned , v. 2. the life was manifested , and we have seen it , and 〈◊〉 witness , and shew unto you that eternal life which was with the father , and was manifested unto us , that is , the things concerning the person and mediations of christ ; and v. 7. that pardon , forgiveness and expiation from sin is to be attained by the blood of christ. but to what end and purpose doth he write these things to them , what do they teach , what do they tend unto ? an universal abstinence from sin ; i write unto you , saith he , that you sin not . this is the proper , only , genuine end of the doctrine of the gospel . but to abstain from all sin , is not our condition in this world . chap. 1. 8. if we say that we have no sin , we deceive our selves , and the truth is not in us . what then shall be done in this case ? in supposition of sin , that we have sinned , is there no relief provided for our souls and consciences in the gospel ? yes , saith he , if any man sin , we have an advocate with the father , jesus christ the righteous , and he is a propitiation for our sins . there is full relief in the propitiation and intercession of christ for us . this is the order and method of the doctrine of the gospel and of the application of it to our own souls : first , to keep us from sin ; and then to relieve us against sin . but here entere●h the dece●t of sin , and puts this new wine into old bottles , whereby the bottles are brok●n , and the wine perisheth as to our benefit by it . it changeth this method and order of the application of gospel-truths . it takes up the last first , and that excludes the use of the first utterly . if any man sin there is pardon provided , is all the gospel that sin would willingly suffer to abide on the minds of men . when we would come to god by believing , it would be pressing the former part of being free from sin , when the gospel proposeth the latter principally , or the pardon of sin for our encouragement . when we are come to god , and should walk with him , it will have only the latter proposed , that there is pardon of sin , when the gospel principally proposeth the former , of keeping our selves from sin . the grace of god bringing salvation having appeared unto us to that end and purpose . now the mind being entangled with this deceit , drawn off from its watch by it , diverted from the true ends of the gospel , doth several wayes impose upon the will to obtain its consent . first , by a sudden surprizal in case of temptation . temptation is the representation of a thing as a present good , a particular good , which is a real evil , a general evil . now when a temptation armed with opportunity and provocation , befalls the soul , the principle of grace in the will riseth up with a rejection and detestation of it . but on a sudden the mind being deceived by sin , breaks in upon the will , with a corrupt fallacious reasoning from gospel-grace and mercy , which first staggers , then abates the wills opposition , and then causeth it to cast the scale by its consent of the side of temptation , presenting evil as a present good ; and sin in the sight of god is conceived , though it be never committed . thus is the seed of god sacrificed to moloch , and the weapons of christ abused to the service of the devil . secondly , it doth it insensibly . it insinuates the poyson of this corrupt reasoning by little and little , untill it hath greatly prevailed . and as the whole effect of the doctrine of the gospel in holiness and obedience , consists in the souls being cast into the frame and mould of it , rom. 6. 17. so the whole of apostasie from the gospel , is principally the casting of the soul into the mould of this false reasoning , that sin may be indulged unto upon the account of grace and pardon . hereby is the soul gratified in sloth and negligence , and taken off from its care , as to particular duties and avoidance of particular sins . it works the soul insensibly off from the mysterie of the law of grace , to look for salvation as if we had never performed any duty , being after we have done all unprofitable servants , with a resting on soveraign mercy ▪ through the blood of christ , and to attend unto duties with all diligence as if we looked for no mercy ; that is with no less care , though with more liberty and freedom . this the deceitfulness of sin endeavoureth by all means to work the soul from , and thereby debaucheth the will when its consent is required unto particular sins . secondly , the deceived mind imposeth on the will to obtain its consent unto sin , by proposing unto it , the advantages that may accrew and arise thereby , which is one medium whereby its self also is drawn away . it renders that which is absolutely evil , a present appearing good . so was it with eve , gen. 3. laying aside all considerations of the law , covenant , and threats of god , she all at once reflects upon the advantages , pleasures and benefits which she should obtain by her sin , and reckons them up to solicit the consent of her will. it is , saith she , good for food , pleasant to the eyes , and to be desired to make one wise . what should she do then but eat it ; her will consented and she did so accordingly . pleas for obedience are laid out of the way , and only the pleasures of sin are taken under consideration . so saith ahab , 1 king. 21. naboth's vineyard is near my house , and i may make it a garden of herbs , therefore i must have it . these considerations a deceived mind imposed on his will ; until it made him obstinate in the pursuit of his covetousness through perjury and murther , to the utter ruine of himself and his family . thus is the guilt and tendency of sin hid under the covert of advantages and pleasures , and so is conceived or resolved on in the soul. secondly , as the mind being withdrawn , so the affections being enticed and entangled , do greatly farther the conception of sin in the soul by the consent of t●e will ; and they do it two waies . first , by s●me hasty impulse and surprisal ; being themselves ●●●●red up , incited , and drawn forth by some violent provocation , or suitable temptation , they put the whole soul as it were into a combustion , and draw the will into a consent unto what they are provoked unto and entangled withal . so was the case of david in the matter of nabal . a violent provocation from the extream unworthy carriage of that foolish churle , stirs him up to wrath and revenge , 1 sam. 25. 13. he resolves upon it , to destroy an whole family , the innocent with the guilty , ver . 33 , 34. self-revenge , and murther , were for the season conceived , resolved , consented unto , until god graciously took him off . his entangled , provoked affections , surprised his will to consent unto the conception of many bloody sins . the case was the same with asa in his anger , when he smote the prophet , and with peter in his fear when he denyed his master . let that soul which would take heed of conceiving sin , take heed of entangled affections . for sin may be suddenly conceived , the prevalent consent of the will may be suddenly obtained , which gives the soul a fixed guilt , though the sin it self be never actually brought forth . secondly , enticed affections procure the consent of the will by frequent solicitations , whereby they get ground insensibly upon it , and enthrone themselves . take an instance in the sons of jacob , gen. 37. 4. they hate their brother , because their father loved him . their affections being enticed , many new occasions fall out to entangle them farther , as his dreams and the like . this lay rankling in their hearts , and never ceased soliciting their wills , until they resolved upon his death . the unlawfulness , the unnaturalness of the action , the grief of their aged father , the guilt of their own souls , are all laid aside ; that hatred and envy that they had conceived against him ceased not until they had got the consent of their wills to his ruine . this gradual progress of the prevalency of corrupt affections to solicite the soul unto sin the wise man excellently describes , prov. 23. 31 , 32 , 33 , 34 , 35. and this is the common way of sins procedure in the destruction of souls which seem to have made some good engagements in the wayes of god. when it hath entangled them with one temptation , and brought the will to some liking of it , that presently becomes another temptation , either to the neglect of some duty , or to the refusal of more light ; and commonly that whereby men fall off utterly from god , is not that wherewith they are first entangled . and this may briefly suffice for the third progressive act of the deceit of sin . it obtains the wills consent unto its conception , and by this means are multitudes of sins conceived in the heart which very little less defile the soul , or cause it to contract very little less guilt , than if they were actually committed . unto what hath been spoken concerning the deceitfulness of indwelling-sin in general , which greatly evidenceth its power and efficacy , i shall adde as a close of this discourse , one or two particular ways of its deceitful actings , consisting in advantages that it maketh use of , and means of relieving it self against that disquisition which is made after it by the word and spirit for its ruine . one head only of each sort we shall here name . first , it makes great advantage of the darkness of the mind , to work out its design and intendments . the shades of a mind totally dark , that is , devoid utterly of saving grace , are the proper working place of sin . hence the effects of it are called , the works of darkness , ephes. 5. 11. rom. 13. 12. as springing from thence . sin works and brings forth by the help of it . the working of lust under the covert of a dark mind , is as it were the upper region of hell ; for it lies at the next door to it for filth , horrour , and confusion . now there is a partial darkness abiding still in believers ; they know but in part , 1 cor. 13. 12. though there be in them all a principle of saving light , the day-star is risen in their hearts , yet all the shades of darkness are not utterly expelled out of them in this life . and there are two parts , as it were , or principal effects of the remaining darkness that is in believers . first , ignorance , or a nescience of the will of god , either juris or facti , of the rule and law in general , or of the reference of the particular fact that lies before the mind unto the law. secondly , errour and mistakes , positively taking that for truth which is falshood , and that for light which is darkness . now of both these doth the law of sin make great advantage for the exerting of its power in the soul. first , is there a remaining ignorance of any thing of the will of god , sin will be sure to make use of it , and improve it to the uttermost . though abimelech were not a believer , yet he was a person that had a moral integrity with him in his ways and actions ; he declares himself to have had so , in a solemn appeal to god the searcher of all hearts , even in that wherein he miscarried , gen. 20. 5. but being ignorant that fornication was a sin , or so great a sin , as that it became not a morally honest man to defile himself with it , lust hurries him into that intention of evil in reference unto sarah , as we have it there related . god complains that his people perished for lack of knowledge , hos. 4. 6. being ignorant of the mind and will of god , they rush'd into evil at every command of the law of sin . be it as to any duty to be performed , or as to any sin to be committed , if there be in it darkness or ignorance of the mind about them , sin will not lose its advantage . many a man being ignorant of the duty incumbent on him for the instruction of his family , casting the whole weight of it upon the publick teaching , is by the deceitfulness of sin brought into an habitual sloth and negligence of duty . so much ignorance of the will of god and duty , so much advantage is given to the law of sin . and hence we may see what is that true knowledge which with god is acceptable ; how exactly doth many a poor soul , who is low as to notional knowledge , yet walk with god ? it seems they know so much , as sin hath not on that account much advantage against them ; when others high in their notions , give advantage to their lusts even by their ignorance , though they know ●itnot . secondly , errour is a worse part or effect of the minds darkness , and gives great advantage to the law of sin . there is indeed ignorance in every error , but there is not error in all ignorance , and so they may be distinguished . i shall need to exemplifie this but with one consideration , and that is , of men , who being zealous for some error , do seek to suppress and persecute the truth . indwelling-sin desires no greater advantage . how will it every day , every hour pour forth wrath , revilings , hard speeches ; breathe revenge , murther , desolation , under the name perhaps of zeal . on this account we may see poor creatures pleasing themselves every day , as if they vaunted in their excellency , when they are foaming out their own shame . under their real darkness and pretended zeal , sin sits securely and fills pulpits , houses , prayers , streets , with as bitter fruits of envy , malice , wrath , hatred , evi●●urmises , false speakings , as full as they can hold . the common issue with such poor creatures , is , the holy blessed meek spirit of god withdraws from them , and leaves them visibly and openly to that evil , froward , wrathful , worldly spirit , which the law of sin hath cherished and heightned in them . sin dwells not any where more secure , than in such a frame . thus i say , it lays hold in particular of advantages to practise upon , with its deceitfulness , and therein also to exert its power in the soul , whereof this single instance of its improving the darkness of the mind unto its own ends , is a sufficient evidence . secondly , it useth means of relieving it self against the pursuit ▪ that is made after it in the heart by the word and spirit of grace . one also of its wiles , in the way of instance , i shall name in this kind , and that i ; the alleviation of its own guilt . it pleads for it self , that it is not so bad , so filthy , so fatal as is pretended ; and this course of extenuation it proceds in two ways . first , absolutely ; many secret pleas it will have that the evil which it tends unto is not so pernicious as conscience is perswaded that it is , it may be ventured on without ruine . these considerations it will strongly urge , when it is at work in a way of surprizal , when the soul hath no leisure or liberty to weigh its suggestions in the ballance of the sanctuary , and not seldom is the will imposed on hereby , and advantages gotten to shift it self from under the sword of the spirit . it is not such but that it may be let alone , or suffered to die of it self , which probably within a while it will do ; no need of that violence which in mortification is to be offered ; it is time enough to deal with a matter of no greater importance hereafter ; with other pleas like those before-mentioned . secondly , comparatively , and this is a large field for its deceit and subtilty to lurk in . though it is an evil indeed to be relinquished , and the soul is to be made watchful against it , yet it is not of the magnitude and degree ; as we may see in the lives of others , even saints of god , much less such as some saints of old have fallen into . by these and the like pretences , i say , it seeks to evade and keep its aboad in the soul when pursued to destruction . and how little a portion of its deceitfulness is it that we have declared ? chap. xiii . several waies whereby the bringing forth of conceived sin is obstructed . before we proceed to the remaining evidences of the power and efficacy of the law of sin , we shall take occasion from what hath been delivered , to divert unto one consideration that offers it self from that scripture , which was made the bottom and foundation of our discourse of the general deceitfulness of sin ; namely james 1. 14. the apostle tells us that lust conceiving brings forth sin ; seeming to intimate , that look what sin is conceived , that also is brought forth . now placing the conception of sin , as we have done , in the consent of the will unto it , and reckoning , as we ought , the bringing forth of sin to consist in its actual commission , we know that these do not necessarily follow one another . there is a world of sin conceived in the womb of the wills and hearts of men , that is never brought forth . our present business then shall be to enquire whence that comes to pass . i answer then ; first , that this is not so , is no thanks to sin , nor the law of it . what it conceives , it would bring forth ; and that it doth not , is for the most part but a small abatement of its guilt . a determinate will of actual sinning , is actual sin . there is nothing wanting on sins part , that every conceived sin is not actually accomplished . the obstacle and prevention lies on another hand . secondly , there are two things that are necessary in the creature that hath conceived sin , for the bringing of it forth . first , power . secondly , continuance in the will of sinning , until it be perpetrated and committed . where these two are , actual sin will unavoidably ensue . it is evident therefore , that that which hinders conceived sin from being brought forth , must affect either the power or the will of the sinner . this must be from god. and he hath two waies of doing it . first , by his providence , whereby he obstructs the power of sinning . secondly , by his grace , whereby he diverts or changes the will of sinning . i do not mention these waies of gods dispensations thus distinctly , as though the one of them were alwaies without the other ; for there is much of grace in providential administrations , and much of the wisdom of providence seen in the dispensations of grace . but i place them in this distinction , because they appear most eminent therein . providence in outward acts respecting the power of the creature , grace common or special in internal efficacie , respecting his will. and we shall begin with the first . first , when sin is conceived , the lord obstructs its production by his providence in taking away , or taking short that power which is absolutely necessary for its bringing forth or accomplishment . as , first , life is the foundation of all power , the principle of operation . when that ceaseth , all power ceaseth with it . even god himself , to evince the everlasting stability of his own power , gives himself the title of the living god. now he frequently obviates the power of exerting sin actually , by cutting short and taking away the liv●s of them that have conceived it . thus he dealt with the army of senacherib , when according as he had purposed , so he threatned that the lord should not deliver jerusalem out of his hand , 2 kings 18. 35. god threatens to cut short his power , that he should not execute his intendment , chap. 19. 28. which he performs accordingly , by taking away the lives of his souldiers , ver . 35. without whom it was impossible that his conceived sin should be brought forth . this providential dispensation in the obstruction of conceived sin , moses excellently sets forth in the case of pharaoh , exod. 15. 9. 19. the enemy said , i will pursue , i will overtake , i will divide the spoil , my lusts shall be satisfied upon them : i will draw my sword , my hand shall destroy them . thou didst blow with thy wind , the sea covered them , they sank as lead in the mighty waters . sins conception is fully expressed , and as full a prevention is annexed unto it . in like manner he dealt with the companies of fifties and their captains , who came to apprehend elijah , 2 kings 1. 10 , 11. fire came down from heaven and consumed them , when they were ready to have taken him . and sundry other instances of the like nature might be recorded . that which is of universal concernment , we have in that great providential alteration , which put a period to the lives of men . men living hundreds of years , had a long season to bring forth the sins they had conceived ; thereupon the earth was filled with violence , injustice , and rapine , and all flesh corrupted their waies , gen. 6. 12 , 19. to prevent the like inundation of sin , god shortens the course of the pilgrimage of men in the earth , and reduces their lives to a much shorter measure . besides this general law , god daily thus cuts off persons , who had conceived much mischief and violence in their hearts , and prevents the execution of it . blood-thirsty and deceitful men do not live out half their days . they have yet much work to do , might they have but space given them to execute the bloody and sinful purposes of their minds . the psalmist tells us , psal. 146. 4. in the day that the breath of man goeth forth , his thoughts perish : he had many contrivances about sin , but now they are all cut off . so also , eccles. 8. 12 , 13. though a sinner do evil an hundred times , and his days be prolonged ; yet surely i know that it shall be well with them that fear god , which fear before him ; but it shall not be well with the wicked , neither shall he prolong his daies , which are as a shadow , because he feareth not before god. how long soever a wicked man lives , yet he dies judicially , and shall not abide to do the evil he had conceived . but now seeing we have granted , that even believers themselves may conceive sin through the power and the deceitfulness of it , it may be enquired whether god ever thus obviates its production and accomplishment in them , by cutting off and taking away their lives , so as that they shall not be able to perform it : i answer , first , that god doth not judicially cut off and take away the life of any of his , for this end and purpose , that he may thereby prevent the execution , or bringing forth of any particular sin that he had conceived , and which without that taking away he would have perpetrated . for , first , this is directly contrary to the very declared end of the patience of god towards them , 2 pet. 3. 9. this is the very end of the long-suffering of god towards believers , that before they depart hence , they may come to the sense , acknowledgment , and repentance of every known sin . this is the constant and unchangeable rule of gods patience in the covenant of grace ; which is so far from being in them an incouragement unto sin , that it is a motive to universal watchfulness against it , of the same nature with all gospel-grace , and of mercy in the blood of christ. now this dispensation whereof we speak , would lie in a direct contradiction unto it . secondly , this also flows from the former , that whereas conceived sin contains the whole nature of it , as our saviour at large declares , matth. 5. and to be cut off under the guilt of it , to prevent its farther progress , argues a continuance in the purpose of it without repentance ; it cannot be but they must perish for ever who are so judicially cut off . but god deals not so with his , he casts not off the people whom he did fore-know . and thence david prays for the patience of god before-mentioned , that it might not be so with him , psa. 39. 13. o spare me that i may recover strength , before i go hence and be no more . but yet , secondly , there are some cases wherein god may , and doth take away the lives of his own to prevent the guilt that otherwise they would be involved in ; as , first , in the coming of some great temptation and tryal upon the world . god knowing that such and such of his would not be able to withstand it , and hold out against it , but would dishonour him , and defile themselves , he may , and doubtless often doth take them out of the world , to take them out of the way of it . isa. 57. 1. the rig●teous is taken away from the evil to come ; not only the evil of punishment and judgement , but the evil of temptations and trials , which oftentimes proves much the worse of the two . thus a captain in war will call off a souldier from his watch and guard , when he knows that he is not able , through some infirmity to bear the stress and force of the enemy that is coming upon him . secondly , in case of their engagement into any way not acceptable to him , through ignorance , or not knowing of his mind and will. this seems to have been the case of josiah . and doubtless the lord doth oftentimes thus proceed with his . when any of his own are engaged in waies that please him not , through the darkness and ignorance of their minds , that they may not proceed to farther evil or mischief , he calls them off from their station and employment , and takes them to himself , where they shall erre and mistake no more . but in ordinary cases , god hath other waies of diverting his own from sin , than by killing of them , as we shall see afterwards . secondly , god providentially hinders the bringing forth of conceived sin , by taking away , and cutting short the power of them that had conceived it ; so that though their lives continue , they shall not have that power , without which it is impossible for them to execute what they had intended , or to bring forth what they had conceived . hereof also we have sundry instances . thus was the case with the builders of babel , gen. 11. what ever it were in particular that they aimed at , it was in the pursuit of a design of apostasie from god. one thing requisite to the accomplishing of what they aimed at , was the oneness of their language ; so god sayes , v. 6. they have all one language , and this they begin to do , and now nothing will be restrained from them that they have imagined to do . in an ordinary way they will accomplish their wicked design . what course doth god now take to obviate their conceived sin ? doth he bring a flood upon them to destroy them , as in the old world sometime before ? doth he send his angel to cut them off , like the army of senacherib afterwards ? doth he by any means take away their lives ? no , their lives are continued , but he confounds their language , so that they cannot go on with their work , ver . 7. takes away that wherein their power consisted . in like manner did he proceed with the sodomites , gen. 19. 11. they were engaged in , and set upon the pursuit of their filthy lusts . god smites them with blindness , so that they could not find the door where they thought to have used violence for the compassing of their ends ; their lives were continued , and their will of sinning , but their power is cut short and abridged . his dealing with jeroboam , 1 king. 13. 4. was of the same nature . he stretched out his hand to lay hold of the prophet , and it withered and became useless . and this is an eminent way of the effectual acting of gods providence in the world , for the stopping of that inundation of sin , which would overflow all the earth were every womb of it opened . he cuts men short of their moral power , whereby they should effect it . many a wretch that hath conceived mischief against the church of god , hath by this means been divested of his power , whereby he thought to accomplish it . some have their bodies smitten with diseases , that they can no more serve their lusts , nor accompany them in the perpetrating of folly . some are deprived of the instruments whereby they would work . there hath been for many daies , sin and mischief enough conceived , to root out the generation of the righteous from the face of the earth , had men strength and ability to their will , did not god cut off and shorten their power , and the daies of their prevalency . psa. 64. 6. they search out iniquities , they accomplish a diligent search , both the inward thought of every one of them and the heart is deep . all things are in a readiness , the design is well laid , their counsels are deep and secret . what now shall hinder them from doing what ever they have imagined to do ? v. 7 , 8. but god shall shoot at them with an arrow , suddenly shall they be wounded : so they shall make their own tongue to fall upon themselves . god meets with them , brings them down , that they shall not be able to accomplish their d●sign . and this way of gods preventing sin , seems to b●at e●st ordinarily , peculiar to the men of the world ; god deals thus with them every day , and leaves them to pine away in their sins . they go all their daies big with the iniquity they have conceived , and are greatly burdened that they ●anno● be delivered of it . the prophet tells us , that they practise iniquity that they had conceived , because it is in the power of their hand , micah 2. 1. if they have power for it , they will accomplish it ; ezek. 22. 6. to their power they shed blood . this is the measure of their sinning , even their power . they do many of them , no more evil , they commit no more sin than they can . their whole restraint lies in being cut short in power in one kind or another . their bodies will not serve them for their contrived uncleannesses ; nor their hands for their revenge and rapine , nor their instruments for persecution ; but they go burdened with conceived sin , and are disquieted and tortured by it all their daies . and hence they become in themselves , as well as unto others , a troubled sea that cannot rest , isa. 57. 20. it may be also in some cases , under some violent temptations , or in mistakes , god may thus obviate the accomplishment of conceived sin in his own . and there seems to be an instance of it in his dealing with jehosaphat , who had designed against the mind of god to joyn in affinity with ahab , and to send his ships with him to tarshish ; but god breaks his ships by a wind , that he could not accomplish what he had designed . but in gods dealing with ●is in this way , there is a difference from the same dispensation towards others ; for , first , it is so onl● in cases of exraordinary temptation . when through the violence of temptation , and craft of satan , they are hurryed from under the conduct of the law of grace , god one way or other takes away their power , or may do so , that they shall not be able to execute what they had designed . but this is an ordinary way of dealing with wicked men . this hook of god is upon them in the whole course of their lives ; and they struggle with it , being as a wild bull in a net , isa. 51. 20. gods net is upon them , and they are filled with fury that they cannot do all the wickedness that they would . secondly , god doth it not to leave them to wrestle with sin , and to attempt other waies of its accomplishment upon the failure of that which they were ingaged in , but by their disappointment awakens them to consider their condition , and what they are doing , and so consumes sin in the womb by the waies that shall afterwards be insisted on . some mens deprivation of power for the committing of conceived contrived sin , hath been sanctified to the changing of their hearts from all dalliances with that or other sins . thirdly , god providentially hinders the bringing forth of conceived sin , by opposing an external hindering power unto sinners . he leaves them their lives , and leaves them power to do what they intend , only he raiseth up an opposite power to coerce , forbid , and restrain them . an ●●stance hereof we have , 1 sam. 14. 35. saul had sworn that jonathan should be put to death , and as far as appears went on resolutely to have slain him ; god stirs up the spirit of the people , they oppose themselves to the wrath and fury of saul , and jonathan is delivered . so also 2 chron. 26. 7 , 8 , 19. when king vzziah would have in his own person offered incense contrary to the law , eighty men of the priests resisted him , and drove him out of the temple . and to this head are to be referred all the assistances which god stirreth up for deliverance of his people against the fury of persecutors . he raiseth up saviours or believers on mount sion , to judge the mount of edom ; so rev. 12. 16. the dragon , and those acting under him , spirited by him , were in a furious endeavour for the destruction of the church ; god stirs up the earth to her assistance , even men of the world , not engaged with others in the design of satan , and by their opposition hinders them from the execution of their designed rage . of this nature , seems to be that dealing of god with his own people , hos. 2. 6 , 7. they were in the pursuit of their iniquities , following after their lovers ; god leaves them for a while to act in the folly of their spirits , but he sets a hedge , and a wall before them that they shall not be able to fulfill their designs and lusts . fourthly , god obviates the accomplishment of conceived sin , by removing , or taking away the ob●ects on whom , or about whom , the sin conceived was to be committed . acts 12. 11. yields us a signal instance of this issue of providence : when the day was coming wherein herod thought to have slain peter who was shut up in prison , god sends and takes him away from their rage and lying in wait . so also was our saviour himself taken away from the murderous rage of the jews before his hour was come , joh. 8. 59. chap. 10 , 39. both primitive and latter times are full of stories to this purpose : prison-doors have been opened , and poor creatures appointed to die have been frequently rescued from the jaws of death . in the world it self amongst the men thereof , adulterers and adulteresses , the sin of the one is often hindred and stifled by the taking away of the other . so wings were given to the woman to carry her into the wilderness and to disappoint the world in the execution of their rage , rev. 12. 14. fifthly , god doth this by some eminent diversions of the thoughts of men who had conceived sin ; gen. 37. 24. the brethren of joseph cast him into a pit , with an intent to famish him there ; whilest they were as it seems , pleasing themselves with what they had done , god orders a company of merchants to come by , and diverts their thoughts with that new object from the killing , to the selling of their brother , vers . 26 , 27. and how far therein they were subservient to the infinitely wise counsel of god , we know . thus also when saul was in the pursuit of david , and was even ready to prevail against him to his destruction . god stirs up the philistins to invade the land , which both diverted his thoughts , and drew the course of his actings another way , 1 sam. 27. 27. and these are some of the waies whereby god is pleased to hinder the bringing forth of conceived sin , by opposing himself and his providence to the power of the sinning creature . and we may a little in our passage take a brief view of the great advantages to faith , and the church of god , which may be found in this matter . as , first , this may give us a little insight into the ever to be adored providence of god , by these and the like waies in great variety obstructing the breaking forth of sin in the world. it is he who makes those dams , and shuts up those flood-gates of corrupted nature , that it shall not break forth in a deluge of filthy abominations to overwhelm the creation with confusion and disorder . as it was of old , so it is at this day ; every thought and imagination of the heart of man is evil , and that continually . that all the earth is not in all places filled with violence , as it was of old , is meerly from the mighty hand of god working effectually for the obstructing of sin . from hence alone it is , that the high-waies , streets and fields , are not all filled with violence , blood , rapine , uncleanness , and every villany that the heart of man can conceive . o the infinite beauty of divine wisdom and providence in the government of the world ! for the conservation of it asks daily no less power and wisdom than the first making of it did require . secondly , if we will look to our own concernments , they will in a special manner inforce us to adore the wisdom and efficacy of the providence of god , in stopping the progress of conceived sin . that we are at peace in our houses , at rest in our beds , that we have any quiet iu our enjoyments , is from hence alone : whose person would not be defiled , or destroyed ? whose habitation would not be ruined ? whose blood almost would not be shed , if wicked men had power to perpetrate all their conceived sin ? it may be the ruine of some of us hath been conceived a thousand times . we are beholding to this providence of obstructing sin , for our lives , our families , our estates , our liberties , for whatsoever is , or may be dear unto us . for may we not say sometimes with the psalmist , psal. 57. 4. my soul is among lyons , and i lie even among them that are set on fire , even the sons of men , whose teeth are spears and arrows , and their tongue a sharp sword . and how is the deliverance of men contrived from such persons , psal. 58. 6. god breaks their teeth in their mouths , even the great teeth of the young lyons . he keeps this fire from burning , or quencheth it when it 's ready to break out into a flame . he breaks their spears and arrows , so that sometimes we are not so much as wounded by them : some he cuts off and destroyes , some he cuts short in their power , some he deprives of the instruments whereby alone they can work , some he prevents of their desired opportunities , or diverts by other objects for their lusts , and oftentimes causeth them to spend them among themselves one upon another . we may say therefore with the psalmist , psal. 104. 24. o lord , how manifold are thy works , in wisdom hast thou made them all , the earth is full of thy riches ; and with the prophet , hos. 14. 9. who is wise and he shall understand these things , prudent and he shall know them ; all the waies of the lord are right , and the just shall walk in them , but the transgressors shall fall therein . thirdly , if these and the like are the ways whereby god obviates the bringing forth of conceived sin in wicked men , we may learn hence how miserable their condition is , and in what perpetual torment for the most part they spend their daies : they are like a troubled sea , saith the lord , that cannot rest . as they endeavour that others may have no peace , so it is certain that themselves have not any ; the principle of sin is not impaired nor weakned in them , the will of sinning is not taken away : they have a womb of sin that is able to conceive monsters every moment . yea , for the most part they are forging and framing folly all the day long : one lust or other they are contriving how to satisfie ; they are either devouring by malice and revenge , or vitiating by uncleanness , or trampling on by ambition , or swallowing down by covetousness all that stand before them . many of their follies and mischiefs they bring to the very birth , and are in pain to be delivered ; but god every day fills them with disappointment ▪ and shuts up the womb of sin . some are filled with hatred of gods people all their daies , and never once have an opportunity to exercise it . so david describes them , psal. 59. 6. they return at evening , they make a noise like a dog , and go round about the city . they go up and down and belch out with their mouths , swords are in their lips ; vers. 7. and yet are not able to accomplish their designs : what torture do such poor creatures live in ? envy , malice , wrath , revenge , devour their hearts by not getting vent . and when god hath exercised the other acts of his wise providence in cutting short their power , or opposing a greater power to them when nothing else will doe , he cuts them off in their sins , and to the grave they go full of purposes of iniquity . others are no less hurryed and diverted by the power of other lusts which they are not able to satisfie : this is the sore travail they are exercised with , all their dayes . if they accomplish their designs , they are more wicked and hellish than before ; and if they do not , they are filled whith vexation and discontentment . this is the portion of them who know not the lord , nor the power of his grace . envy not their condition , notwithstanding their outward glittering shew , their hearts are full of anxiety trouble and sorrow . fourthly , do we see sometimes the flood-gates of mens lusts and rage set open against the church , and interest of it , and doth prevalency attend them , and power is for a season on their side , let not the saints of god despond . he hath unspeakably various and effectual wayes for the stifling of their conceptions to give them dry breasts and a miscarrying womb . he can stop their fury when he pleaseth ; surely , saith david , the wrath of man shall praise thee , the remainder of wrath shalt thou restrain , psal. 76. 10. when so much of their wrath is let out as shall exalt his praise , he can when he pleaseth set up a power greater than the combined strength of all sinning creatures , and restrain the remainder of the wrath that they had conceived . he shall cut off the spirit of princes , he is terrible to the kings of the earth , v. 12. some he will cut off and destroy , some he will terrifie and affright , and prevent the rage of all . he can knock them on the head , or break out their teeth , or chain up their wrath , and who can oppose him ? fifthly , those who have received benefit by any of the waies mentioned , may know to whom they owe their preservation , and not look on it as a common thing . when you have conceived sin , hath god weakened your power for sin , or denied you opportunity , or took away the object of your lusts , or diverted your thoughts by new providences , know assuredly that you have received mercy thereby . though god deal not these providences alwaies in a subserviency to the covenant of grace , yet there is always mercy in them , always a call in them to consider the author of them . had not god thus dealt with you , it may be this day you ha● been a terrour to your selves , a shame to your relations , and under the punishment due to some notorious sins which you had conceived . besides , there is commonly an additional guilt in sin brought forth , above what is in the meer conception of it . it may be others would have been ruined by it here , or drawn into a partnership in sin by it , and so have been eternally ruined by it , all which are prevented by these providences , and eternity will witness , tha● there is a singularity of mercy in them . do not look then on any such things as common accidents , the hand of god is in them all ; and that a merciful hand if not despised : if it be , yet god doth good to others by it , the world is the better , and you are not so wicked as you would be . sixthly , we may also see hence the great use of magistracie in the world , that great appointment of god. amongst other things , it is peculiarly subservient to this holy providence , in obstructing the bringing forth of conceived sin ; namely by the terrour of him that bears the sword . god fixes that on the hearts of evil men which he expresseth , rom. 13. 4. if thou do that which is evil , be afraid , for the power beareth not the sword in vain , for he is the minister of god , a revenger to execute wrath on them that do evil . god fixes this on the hearts of men , and by the dread and terrour of it closeth the womb of sin , that it shall not bring forth . when there was no king in israel , none to put to rebuke , and none of whom evil men were afraid , there was woful work and havock amongst the children of men made in the world ; as we may see in the last chapters of the book of judges . the greatest mercies and blessings that in this world we are made partakers of , next to them of the gospel and covenant of grace , come to us through this channel and conduit . and indeed , this whereof we have been speaking , is the proper work of magistracy , namely to be subservient to the providence of god in obstructing the bringing forth of conceived sin . these then are some of the waies whereby god providentially prevents the bringing forth of sin , by opposing obstacles to the power of the sinner . and by them sin is not consumed , but shut up in the womb . men are not burthened for it , but with it ; not laden in their hearts and consciences with its guilt , but perplexed with it power , which they are not able to exert and satisfie . the way that yet remains for consideration whereby god obviates the production of conceived sin , is his working on the will of the sinners , so making sin to consume away in the womb . there are two waies in general whereby god thus prevents the bringing forth of conceived sin , by working on the will of the sinner ; and they are , first , by restraining grace : secondly , by renewing grace . he doth it sometimes the one way , sometimes the other . the first of these is common to regenerate and unregenerate persons , the latter peculiar to believers ; and god doth it variously as to particulars by them both . we shall begin with the first of them . first , god doth this in the way of restraining grace by some arrow of particular conviction , fixed in the heart and conscience of the sinner , in reference unto the particular sin which he had conceived . this staggers and changes the mind , as to the particular intended , causeth the hands to hang down , and the weapons of lust to fall out of them . hereby conceived sin proves abortive . how god doth this work , by what immediate touches , strokes , blows , rebukes of his spirit ; by what reasonings , arguments , and commotions of mens own consciences , is not for us throughly to find out . it is done , as was said , in unspeakable variety , and the works of god are past finding out . but as to what light may be given unto it from scripture instances , after we have manifested the general way of gods procedure , it shall be insisted on . thus then god dealt in the case of esau and jacob. esau had long conceived his brothers death , he comforted himself with the thoughts of it , and resolutions about it , gen. 27. 41. as is the manner of profligate sinners . upon his first opportunity he comes forth to execute his intended rage , and jacob concludes that he would smite the mother with the children , gen. 32. 11. an opportunity is presented unto this wicked and profane person , to bring forth that sin that had laid in his heart now twenty years ; he hath full power in his hand to perform his purpose . in the midst of this posture of things , god comes in upon his heart with some secret and effectual working of his spirit and power , changeth him from his purpose , causeth his conceived sin to melt away , that he falls upon the neck of him with embraces , whom he thought to have slain . of the same nature , though the way of it was peculiar , was his dealing with laban the syrian , in reference to the same jacob , gen. 31. 24. by a dream , a vision in the night , god hinders him from so much as speaking roughly to him . it was with him as in micah 2. 1. he had devised evil on his bed , and when he thought to have practised it in the morning , god interposed in a dream , and hides sin from him , as he speaks , job ●● , 15 , 16 , 17. to the same purpose is that of the psalmist concerning the people of god , psal. 106. 46. he made them to be pitied of all those who carried them captives . men usually deal in rigour with those whom they have taken captive in war. it was the way of old to rule captives with force and cruelty . here god turns and changes their hearts , not in general unto himself , but to this particular of respect to his people . and this way in general doth god every day prevent the bringing forth of a world of sin . he sharpens arrows of conviction upon the spirits of men , as to the particular that they are engaged in . their hearts are not changed as to sin , but their minds are altered as to this or that sin . they break , it may be , the vessel they had fashioned , and go to work upon some other . now that we may a little see into the waies whereby god doth accomplish this work , we must premise the ensuing considerations . first , that the general medium wherein the matter of restraining grace doth consist , whereby god thus prevents the bringing forth of sin , doth lie in certain arguments and reasonings , presented to the mind of the sinner , whereby he is induced to desert his purpose , to change and alter his mind , as to the sin he had conceived . reasons against it are presented unto him , which prevail upon him to relinquish his design , and give over his purpose . this is the general way of the working of restraining grace , it is by arguments and reasonings rising up against the perpetration of conceived sin . secondly , that no arguments or reasonings , as such , materially considered , are sufficient to stop or hinder any purpose of sinning , or to cause conceived sin to prove abortive , if the sinner have power and opportunity to bring it forth . they are not in themselves , and on their own account restraining grace ; for if they were , the administration and communication of grace , as grace , were left unto every man who is able to give advice against sin . nothing is nor can be called grace , though common , and such as may perish , but with respect unto its peculiar relation to god. god by the power of his spirit making arguments and reasons effectual and prevailing , turns that to be grace , i mean of this kind , which in it self , and in its own nature was bare reason . and that efficacy of the spirit , which the lord puts forth in these perswasions and motives is that which we call restraining grace . these things being premised , we shall now consider some of the arguments which we find that he hath made use of to this end and purpose . first , god stops many men in their waies upon the conception of sin , by an argument taken from the difficulty , if not impossibility of doing that they aim at . they have a mind unto it , but god sets an hedge and a wall before them , that they shall judge it to be so hard and difficult to accomplish what they intend , that it is better for them to let it alone and give over . thus herod would have put john baptist to death upon the first provocation , but he feared the multitude , because they accounted him as a prophet , matth. 14. 5. he had conceived his murder , and was free for the execution of it . god raised this consideration in his heart , if i kill him , the people will tumultuate , he hath a great party amongst them , and sedition will arise that may cost me my life , or kingdom . he feared the multitude , and durst not execute the wickedness he had conceived , because of the difficulty he fore-saw he should be entangled withal . and god made the argument effectual for the season ; for otherwise we know that men will venture the utmost hazards for the satisfaction of their lusts ; as he also did afterwards . the pharisees were in the very same state and condition , matth. 21. 26. they would fain have decried the ministry of john , but durst not for fear of the people : and ver . 46. of the same chapter , by the same argument were they deterred from killing our saviour , who had highly provoked them by a parable , setting out their deserved and approaching destruction . they durst not do it for fear of a tumult among the people , seeing they looked on him as a prophet . thus god over-awes the hearts of innumerable persons in the world everyday , and causeth them to desist from attempting to bring forth the sins which they had conceived . difficulties they shall be sure to meet withal , yea , it is likely , if they should attempt it , it would prove impossible for them to accomplish . we owe much of our quiet in this world , unto the efficacy given to this consideration in the hearts of men by the holy ghost : adulteries , rapins , murders , are obviated and stifled by it . men would engage into them daily , but that they judge it impossible for them to fulfill what they aim at . secondly , god doth it by an argument taken ab incommodo , from the inconveniencies , evils , and troubles that will befall men in the pursuit of sin . if they follow it , this or that inconvenience will ensue ; this trouble , this evil , temporal or eternal . and this argument , as managed by the spirit of god , is the great engine in his hand whereby he casts up banks , and gives bounds to the lusts of men , that they break not out to the confusion of all that order and beauty which yet remains in the works of his hands . paul gives us the general import of this argument , rom. 2. 14 , 15. for when the gentiles which have not the law , do by nature the things contained in the law , these having not the law , are a law unto themselves , which shew the work of the law written in their hearts , their conscience also bearing witness , and their thoughts the mean while accusing , or else excusing one another . if any men in the world may be thought to be given up to pursue and fulfill all the sins that their lusts can conceive , it is those that have not the law , to whom the written law of god doth not denounce the evil that attends it . but though they have it not , saith the apostle , they shew forth the work of it , they do many things which it requireth , and forbear or abstain from many things that it forbiddeth , and so shew forth its work and efficacy . but whence is it that they so do ? why their thoughts accuse or excuse them . it is from the consideration and arguings that they have within themselves about sin , and its consequents , which prevail upon them to abstain from many things that their hearts would carry them out unto . for conscience is a mans prejudging of himself , with respect unto the future judgement of god. thus 〈◊〉 was staggered in his pursuit of sin , when he 〈◊〉 at pauls preaching of righteousness and judgement to come , act. 24. 25. so job tells us , that the consideration of punishment from god , hath a strong influence on the minds of men to keep them from sin , chap. 31. 1 , 2 , 3. how the lord makes use of that consideration , even towards his own , when they have broken the cords of his love , and cast off the rule of his grace for a season , i have before declared . thirdly , god doth this same work , by making effectual an argument , ab inutili , from the unprofitableness of the thing that men are engaged in . by this were the brethren of joseph stayed from slaying him , gen. 37. 26 , 27. what profit is it , say they , if we slay our brother and conceal his blood ? we shall get nothing by it , it will bring in no advantage or satisfaction unto us . and the heads of this way of gods obstructing conceived sin , or the springs of these kinds of arguments , are so many and various , that it is impossible to insist particularly upon them . there is nothing present , or to come , nothing belonging to this life , or another , nothing desirable or undesirable , nothing good or evil , but at one time or another , an argument may be taken from it for the obstructing of sin . fourthly , god accomplisheth this work by arguments taken ab honesto , from what is good and honest , what is comely , praise-worthy , and acceptable unto himself . this is the great road wherein he walks with the saints under their temptations , or in their conceptions of sin . he recovers effectually upon their minds a consideration of all those springs and motives to obedience , which are discovered and proposed in the gospel , some at one time , some at another . he minds them of his own love , mercy , and kindness ; his eternal love , with the fruits of it , whereof themselves have been made partakers . he minds them of the blood of his son , his cross , sufferings , tremendous undertaking in the work of mediation , and the concernment of his heart , love , honour , name , in their obedience . minds them of the love of the spirit , with all his consolations which they have been made partakers of , and priviledges wherewith by him they have been entrusted . minds them of the gospel , the glory and beauty of it as revealed unto their souls . minds them of the excellency and comeliness of obedience , of their performance of that duty they owe to god , that peace , quietness , and serenity of mind that they have enjoyed therein . on the other side , he minds them of being a provocation by sin unto the eyes of his glory , saying in their hearts , do not that abominable thing which my soul hateth . minds them of their wounding the lord christ , and putting him to shame ; of their grieving the holy spirit , whereby they are sealed to the day of redemption ; of their defiling his dwelling place . minds them of the reproach , dishonours , scandal which they bring on the gospel and the profession thereof . minds them of the terrours , darkness , wounds , want of peace , that they may bring upon their own souls . from these and the like considerations doth god put a stop to the progress of the law of sin in the heart , that it shall not go on to bring forth the evil which it hath conceived . i could give instances in arguments of all these several kinds recorded in the scripture , but it would be too long a work for us , who are now engaged in a design of another nature . but one or two examples may be mentioned . joseph resists his first temptation on one of these accounts , gen. 39. 9. how can i do this great wickedness and sin against god ? the evil of sinning against god , his god , that consideration alone detains him from the least inclination to his temptation . it is sin against god to whom i owe all obedience , the god of my life , and of all my mercies , i will not do it . the argument wherewith abigail prevailed on david , 1 sam. 25. 31. to with-hold him from self-revenge and murder , was of the same nature , and he acknowledgeth that it was from the lord , ver . 32. i shall add no more , for all the scripture motives which we have to duty , made effectual by grace , are instances of this way of gods procedure . sometimes , i confess , god secretly works the hearts of men by his own finger , without the use and means of such arguments as those insisted on , to stop the progress of sin . so he tells abimelech , gen. 20. 6. i have with-held thee from sinning against me . now this could not be done by any of the arguments which we have insisted on , because abimelech knew not that the thing which he intended was sin ; and therefore he pleads that in the integrity of his heart and innocency of his hands he did it , ver . 5. god turned about his will and thoughts , that he should not accomplish his intention ; but by what waies or means is not revealed . nor is it evident what course he took in the change of esaus heart , when he came out against his brother to destroy him , gen. 33. 4. whether he stirr'd up in him a fresh spring of natural affections , or caused him to consider what grief by this means he should bring to his aged father , who loved him so tenderly ; or whether being now grown great and wealthy , he more and more despised the matter of difference between him and his brother , and so utterly slighted it , it is not known . it may be god did it by an immediate powerful act of his spirit upon his heart , without the actual intervening of any of these or the like considerations . now though the things mentioned are in themselves at other times feeble and weak , yet when they are managed by the spirit of god to such an end and purpose , they certainly become effectual , and are the matter of his preventing grace . secondly , god prevents the bringing forth of conceived sin by real spiritual saving grace , & that either in the first conversion of sinners , or in the following supplies of it . this is one part of the mysterie of his grace and love . he meets men sometimes in their highest resolutions for sin , with the highest efficacy of his grace . hereby he manifests the power of his own grace , and gives the soul a farther experience of the law of sin , when it takes such a fare-well of it , as to be changed in the midst of its resolutions to serve the lusts thereof . by this he melts down the lusts of men , causeth them to wither at the root , that they shall no more strive to bring forth what they have conceived , but be filled with shame and sorrow at their conception . an example and instance of t●is proceeding of god , for the use and instruction of all generations we have in paul. his heart was full of wickedness , blasphemy , and persecution ; his conception of them was come unto rage and madness , and a full purpose of exercising them all to the utmost ; so the story relates it , acts 9. so himself declares the state to have been with him , acts 26. 9 , 10 , 11 , 12. 1 tim. 1. 13. in the midst of all this violent pursuit of sin , a voice from heaven shuts up the womb , and dries the breasts of it , and he cries , lord , what wilt thou have me to do ? acts 9. 6. the same person seems to intimate , that this is the way of gods procedure with others , even to meet them with his converting grace in the height of their sin and folly , 1 tim. 1. 16. for he himself , he saies , was a pattern of gods dealing with others ; as he dealt with him , so also would he do with some such like sinners . for this cause i obtained mercy , that in me first jesus christ might shew forth all long-suffering , as a pattern to them which should here after believe on him to life everlasting . and we have not a few examples of it in our own daies . sundry persons on set purpose going to this or that place , to deride and scoff at the dispensation of the word , have been met withal in the very place wherein they designed to serve their lusts and satan , and have been cast down at the foot of god. this way of gods dealing with sinners is at large set forth , job 33. 15 , 16 , 17 , 18. dionysius the areopagite is another instance of this work of gods grace and love . paul is dragged either by him , or before him , to plead for his life , as a setter forth of strange gods , which at athens was death by the law. in the midst o● this frame of spirit god meets with him by converting grace , sin withers in the womb , and he● cleaves to paul and his doctrine , acts 17. 18 - 34. the like dispensation towards israel we have , hos. 11. 7 , 8 , 9 , 10. but there is no need to insist on more instances of this observation . god is pleased to leave no generation unconvinced of this truth , if they do but attend to their own experiences , and the examples of this work of his mercy amongst them . every day , one or other , is taken in the fulness of the purpose of his heart to go on in sin , in this or that sin , and is stopt in his course by the power of converting grace . secondly , god doth it by the same grace in the renewed communications of it , that is , by special assisting grace . this is the common way of his dealing with believers in this case . that they also through the deceitfulness of sin , may be carryed on to the conceiving of this or that sin , was before declared . god puts a stop to their progress , or rather to the prevalency of the law of sin in them , and that by giving in unto them special assistances needful for their preservation and deliverance . as david saies of himself , psa. 73. 2. his feet were almost gone , his steps had well nigh slipt ; he was at the very brink of unbelieving , despairing thoughts , and conclusions about gods providence in the government of the world ; from whence he was recovered , as he afterwards declares . so is it with many a believer , he is oftentimes at the very brink , at the very door of some folly or iniquity , when god puts in by the efficacy of actually assisting grace , and recovers them to an obediential frame of heart again . and this is a peculiar work of christ , wherein he manifests and exerts his faithfulness towards his own . heb. 2. 18. he is able to succour them that are tempted . it is not an absolute power , but a power cloathed with mercy , that is intended . such a power as is put forth from a sense of the suffering of poor believers under their temptations . and how doth he exercise this merciful ability towards us ? chap. 4. 16. he gives forth , and we find in him grace to help in a time of need ; seasonable help and assistance for our deliverance , when we are ready to be over-powered by sin and temptation . when lust hath conceived , and is ready to bring forth , when the soul lies at the brink of some iniquity , he gives in seasonable help , relief , deliverance , and safety . here lies a great part of the care and faithfulness of christ towards his poor saints : he will not suffer them to be worried with the power of sin , nor to be carried out unto waies that shall dishonour the gospel , or fill them with shame and reproach , and so render them useless in the world ; but he steps in with the saving relief and assistance of his grace , stops the course of sin , and makes them in himself more than conquerors . and this assistance lies under the promise , 1 cor. 10. 13. there hath no temptation taken you but such as is common to man , but god is faithful who will not suffer you to be tempted above that you are able , but will with the temptation also make a way to escape , that you may be able to bear it . temptation shall try us , it is for our good ; many holy ends doth the lord compass and bring about by it . but when we are tried to the utmost of our ability , so that one assault more would over-bear us , a way of escape is provided . and as this may be done several waies , as i have else-where declared , so this we are now upon is one of the most eminent , namely by supplies of grace , to enable the soul to bear up , resist , and conquer . and when once god begins to deal in this way of love with a soul , he will not cease to add one supply after another , until the whole work of his grace and faithfulness be accomplished . an example hereof we have , isa. 57. 17 , 18. poor sinners there are so far captivated to the power of their lusts that the first and second dealings of god with them are not effectual for their delivery ; but he will not give over , he is in the pursuit of a design of love towards them , and so ceaseth not until they are recovered . these are the general heads of the second way whereby god hinders the bringing forth of conceived sin , namely by working on the will of the sinner . he doth it either by common convictions , or special grace , so that of their own accord they shall let go the purpose and will of sinning , that they are risen up unto . and this is no mean way of his providing for his own glory , and the honour of his gospel in the world , whose professors would stain the whole beauty of it , were they left to themselves to bring forth all the evil that is conceived in their hearts . besides these general waies , there is one yet more special , that at once worketh both upon the power and will of the sinner ; and this is the way of afflictions , concerning which one word shall close this discourse . afflictions , i say , work by both these ways , in reference unto conceived sin . they work providentially on the power of the creature . when a man hath conceived a sin , and is in full purpose of the pursuit of it , god oftentimes sends a sickness and abates his strength ; or a loss cuts him short in his plenty , and so takes him off from the pursuit of his lusts , though it may be his heart is not weaned from them . his power is weakned , and he cannot do the evil he would . in this sense it belongs to the first way of gods obviating the production of sin . great afflictions work sometimes , not from their own nature immediately and directly , but from the gracious purpose and intendment of him that sends them . he insinuates into the dispensation of them that of grace and power , of love and kindness , which shall effectually take off the heart and mind from sin . psal. 119. 67. before i was afflicted i went astray , but now have i learned thy commandments . and in this way because of the predominancy of renewing and assisting grace , they belong unto the latter means of preventing sin . and these are some of the ways , whereby it pleaseth god to put a stop to the progress of sin , both in believers and unbelievers , which at present we shall instance in ; and if we would endeavour farther to search out his ways unto perfection , yet we must still conclude that it is but a little portion which we know of him . chap. xiv . the power of sin farther demonstrated by the effects it hath had in the lives of professors . first in actual sins . secondly in habitual declensions . we are now to proceed unto other evidences of that sad truth which we are in the demonstration of . but the main of our work being past through , i shall be more brief in the management of the arguments that do remain . that then which in the next place may be fixed upon , is the demonstration which this law of sin hath in all ages given of its power and efficacy , by the woful fruits that it hath brought forth , even in believers themselves . now these are of two sorts . first , the great actual eruptions of sin in their lives . secondly , their habitual declensions from the frames , state and condition of obedience and communion with god , which they had obtained , both which by the rule of james before unfolded , are to be laid to the account of this law of sin , and belong unto the fourth head of its progress , and are both of them convincing evidences of its power and efficacy . first , consider the fearful eruptions of actual sins that have been in the lives of believers , and we shall find our position evidenced . should i go through at large with this consideration , i must recount all the sad and scandalous failings of the saints that are left on record in the holy scripture . but the particulars of them are known to all ; so that i shall not need to mention them , no● the many aggravations that in their circumstances they are attended with : only some few things tending to the rendring of our present consideration of them useful , may be remarked . as , first , they are most of them in the lives of men that were not of the lowest form or ordinary sort of believers , but of men that had a peculiar eminency in them on the account of their walking with god in their generation . such were noah , lot , david , hezekiah , and others . they were not men of an ordinary size , but higher than their brethren by the shoulders and upwards in profession , yea in real holiness . and surely that must needs be of a mighty efficacy that could hurry such giants in the wayes of god into such abominable sins as they fell into . an ordinary engine could never have turned them out of the course of their obedience . it was a poyson that no athletick constitution of spiritual health , no antidote could withstand . secondly , and these very men , fell not into their great sins at the beginning of their profession , when they had had but little experience of the goodness of god , of the sweetness and pleasantness of obedience , of the power and craft of sin , of its impulsions , solicitations and surprizals , but after a long course of walking with god , and acquaintance with all these things ; together with innumerable motives unto watchfulness . noah according to the lives of men in those dayes of the world , had walked uprightly with god some hundreds of years before he was so surprised as he was , gen. 9. righteous lot seems to have been towards the end of his days , ere he defiled himself with the abominations recorded . david in a short life , had as much experience of grace and sin , and as much close spiritual communion with god as ever had any of the sons of men , before he was cast to the ground by this law of sin . so was it with hezekiah in his degree , which was none of the meanest . now to set upon such persons , so well acquainted with its power and deceit , so armed and provided against it , that had been conquerours over it for so many years , and to prevail against them , it argues a power and efficacy too mighty for every thing but the spirit of the almighty to withstand . who can look to have a greater stock of inherent grace than those men had ; to have more experience of god , and the excellency of his wayes , the sweetness of his love , and of communion with him than they had ; who hath either better furniture to oppose sin withal , or more obligation so to do , than they ? and yet we see how fearfully they were prevailed against . thirdly , as if god had permitted their falls on set purpose , that we might learn to be wary of ●his powerful enemy , they all of them fell out when they had newly received great & stupendious mercies from the hand of god , that ought to have been strong obligations unto diligence and watchfulness in close obedience . noah was but newly come forth of that world of waters wherein he saw the ungodly world perishing for their sins , and himself preserved by that astonishable miracle which all ages must admire : whilest the worlds desolation , was an hourly remembrancer unto him of his strange preservation by the immediate care and hand of god , he falls into drunkenness . lot had newly seen that which every one that thinks on cannot but tremble . he saw , as one speaks , hell coming out of heaven upon unclean sinners , the greatest evidence , except the cross of christ ; that god ever gave in his providence of the judgment to come . he saw himself and children delivered by the special care and miraculous hand of god ; and yet whilest these strange mercies were fresh upon him , he fell into drunkenness and incest . david was delivered out of all his troubles and had the necks of his enemies given him round about , and he makes use of his peace from a world of tryals and troubles to contrive murder and adultery . immediately , it was , after hezekiahs great and miraculos deliverance that he falls into his carnal pride and boasting . i say , their falls in such seasons , seem to be permitted on set purpose , to instruct us all in the truth that we have in hand ; so that no persons , in no seasons , with wht● furniture of grace soever , can promise themselves security from its prevalency , any other wayes , than by keeping close constantly to him , who hath supplies to give out that are above its reach and efficacy . methinks this should make us look about us . are we better than noah , who had that testimony from god , that he was a perfect man in his generation , and walked with god ? are we better than lot , whose righteous soul was vexed with the evil deeds of ungodly men , and is thereof commended by the holy ghost ? are we more holy , wise , and watchful than david , who obtained this testimony , that he was a man after gods own heart ? or better than hezekiah , who appealed to god himself , that he had served him uprightly with a perfect heart ? and yet what prevalency this law of sin wrought in and over them , we see . and there is no end of the like examples ; they are all set up as buoys to discover unto us the sands , the shelves , the rocks , whereupon they made their shipwrack , to their hazard , danger , loss , yea and would have done to their ruine , had not god been pleased in his faithfulness graciously to prevent it . and this is the first par● of this evidence of the power of sin , from its effects . secondly , it manifests its power in the habitua● declensions from zeal & holiness , from the frame ▪ state and condition of obedience and communion with god , whereunto they had attained , which are found in many believers . promises of growt● and improvement are many , and precious ; th● means excellent and effectual ; the benefits grea● and unspeakable : yet it often falls out , that instead hereof , decays and declensions are found upon professors , yea in and upon many of th● saints of god. now whereas this must nee● principally and chiefly be from the strength an● efficacy of indwelling sin , and is therefore a grea● evidence thereof ; i shall first evince the observation it self to be true ; namely , that some of the saints themselves do oftentimes so decline from that growth & pimrovement in faith , grace , & holiness which might justly be expected from them ; and then shew that the cause of this evil lies in that , that we are treating of . and that it is the cause of total apostasie in unsound professors , shall be after declared . but this is a greater work which we have in hand . the prevailing upon true believers unto a sinful declension & gradual apostasie , requires a putting forth of more strength and efficacy , than the prevailing upon unsound professors unto total apostasie . as the wind which will blow down a dead tree that hath no root , to the ground , will scarcely shake or bow a living well-rooted tree . but this it will do . there is mention made in the scripture of the first wayes of david , and they are commended above his later , 2 chron. 17. 3. the last wayes even of david were tainted with the power of in-dwelling sin. though we have mention only of the actual eruption of sin , yet that uncleanness , and pride which was working in him in his numbring of the people ; were certainly rooted in a declension from his first frame . those rushes did not grow without mire . david would not have done so in his younger days , when he followed god in the wilderness of temptations and tryals , full of faith , love , humility , brokenness of heart , zeal , tender affection unto all the ordinances of god , all which were eminent in him . but his strength is impaired by the efficacy and deceitfulness of sin ; his locks cut , and he becomes a prey to vile lusts and temptations . we have a notable instance in most of the churches that our saviour awakens to the consideration of their condition , in the revelations : we may single out one of them : many good things there were in the church of ephesus , chap. 2. 2 , 3. for which it is greatly commended ; but yet it is charged with a decay , a declension , a gradual falling off and apostasie , ver . 4 , 5. thou hast left thy first love , remember therefore whence thou art fallen , and do thy first works . there was a decay both inward in the frame of heart , as to faith , and love , and outward as to obedience and works , in comparison of what they had formerly , by the testimony of christ himself . the same also might be shewed concerning the rest of those churches , only one or two of them excepted . five of them are charged with decays and declensions . hence there is mention in the scripture of the kindness of youth , of the love of espousals , with great commendation , jer. 2. 2 , 3. of our first faith , 1 tim. 5. 12. of the beginning of our confidence , heb. 3. 14. and cautions are given , that we lose not the things that we have wrought , 2 john 8. but what need we look back or search for instances to confirm the truth of this observation ? an habitual declension from first ingagements unto god , from first attainments of communion with god , from first strictness in duties of obedience , is ordinary and common amongst professors ▪ might we to this purpose take a general view of the professors in these nations , among whom the 〈◊〉 of the 〈◊〉 of us will be found in part or in whole , in somewhat or in all , to fall , we might be plentifully convinced of the truth of this observation . is their zeal for god as warm , living , vigorous , effectual , solicitous , as it was in their first giving themselves unto god ? or rather , is there not a common , slight , selfish frame of spirit in the room of it come upon most professors ? iniquity hath abounded , and their love hath waxed cold . was it not of old a burthen to their spirits to hear the name , and wayes , and worship of god blasphemed and profaned ? could they not have said with the psalmist , ps. 119. 136. rivers of water run down our eyes because men keep not thy law ? were not their souls solicitous about the interest of christ in the world , like eli's about the ark ? did they not contend earnestly for the truth once delivered to the saints , and every parcel of it ? especially wherein the grace of god , and the glory of the gospel was especially concerned : did they not labour to judge and condemn the world by an holy and separate conversation ? and do now the generality of professors abide in this frame ? have they grown , and made improvement in it ? or is there not a coldness and indifferency grown upon the spirits of many in this thing ? yea , do not many despise all these things , and look upon their own former zeal , as folly ? may we not see many who have formerly been of esteem in ways of profession , become daily a scorn and reproach through their miscarriages , and that justly , to the men of the world ? is it not with them as it was of old with the daughters of sion , ( isa. 3. 24. ) when god judged them for their sins and wantonness ? hath not the world , and self utterly ruined their profession ? and are they not regardless of the things wherein they have formerly declared a singular concernment ? yea , are not some come partly on one pretense , partly on another , to an open enmity unto , and hatred of the wayes of god ? they please them no more , but are evil in their eyes . but not to mention such open apostates any farther , whose hypocrisie the lord jesus christ will ●●ortly judge ; how is it with the best ? are not almost all men grown cold and slack as to these things ? are they not less concerned in them than formerly ? are they not grown weary , selfish in their religion , and so things be indifferent well at home , scarce care how thy go abroad in the world ? at least do they not prefer their ease , credit , safety , secular advantages before these things ? a frame that christ abhors , and declares , that those in whom it prevails are none of his : some indeed seem to retain a good zeal for truth , but wherein they make the fairest appearance , therein will they be found to be most abominable : they cry out against errors , not for truth , but for parties and interests sake . let a man be on their party , and promote their interest , be he never so corrupt in his judgment , he is embraced , and it may be admired . this is not zeal for god , but for a mans self . it is not the zeal of thine house hath eaten me up , but , master , forbid them because they follow not with us . better it were doubtless for men never to pretend unto any zeal at all , than to substitute such warthful selfishness in the room of it . secondly , is mens delight in the ordinances & worship of god the same as in former days ? do they find the same sweetness and relish in them as they have done of old ? how precious hath the word been to them formerly ? what joy and delight have they had in attendance thereon ? how would they have run and gone to have been made partakers of it , where it was dispenced in its power and purity , in the evidence and demonstration of the spirit ? did they not call the sabbath their delight , and was not the approach of it a real joy unto their souls ? did they not long after the converse and communion of saints ? and could they not undergo manifold perils for the attainment of it ? and doth this frame still abide upon them ? are there not decays and declensions to be found amongst them ? may it not be said , gray hairs are here and there upon them , and they perceive it not ? yea , are not men ready to say with them of old , what a weariness is it ? mal. 1. 3. it is even a burthen and a weariness to be tied up to the observation of all these ordinances . wha● need we be all out so strict in the observation of the sabbath ? what need we hear so often ? what need this distinction in hearing ? insensibly a great disrespect , yea , even a contempt of the pleasant and excellent ways of christ and his gospel , is fallen upon many professors . thirdly , may not the same conviction be farther carried on , by an enquiry into the universal course of obedience , and the performance of duties that men have been engaged in . is there the same conscientious tenderness of sinning abiding in many as was in dayes of old ? the same exact performance of private duties ? the same love to the brethren ? the same readiness for the cross ? the same humility of mind and spirit ? the same self-denial ? the steam of mens lusts , wherewith the air is tainted , will not suffer us so to say . we need then go no farther than this wretched generation wherein we live , to evince the truth of the observation laid down , as the foundation of the instance insisted on , the lord give repentance before it be too late . now all these declensions , all these decays that are found in some professors , they all proceed from this root and cause , they are all the product of indwelling sin , and all evince the exceeding power and efficacy of it . for the proof whereof i shall not need to go farther than the general rule which out of james we have already considered ; namely that lust or indwelling sin , is the cause of all actual sin , and all habitual declensions in believers . this is that which the apostle intends in that place to teach and declare . i shall therefore handle these two things , and shew , first , that this doth evince a great efficacy and power in sin . secondly , declare the ways and means whereby it brings forth or brings about this cursed effect ; all in design of our general end , in calling upon and cautioning believers to avoid it , to oppose it . first , it appears to be a work of great power and efficacy , from the provision that is made against it , which it prevails over . there is in the covenant of grace plentiful provision made , not only for the preventing of declensions and decays in believers , but also for their continual carrying on towards perfection . as , first , the word it self , and all the ordinances of the gospel , are appointed and given unto us for this end , eph. 4. 11 , 12 , 13 , 14 , 15. that which is the end of giving gospel officers to the church is the end also of giving all the ordinances to be administred by them . for they are given for the work of the ministry , that is , for the administration of the ordinances of the gospel . now what is , or what are these ends ? they are all for the preventing of decays and declensions in the saints , all for the carrying them onto perfection , so it is said , ver . 12. in general it is for the perfecting of the saints , carrying on the work of grace in them , and the work of holiness and obedience by them ; or for the edifying of the body of christ , their building up in an-encrease of faith and love , even of every true member of the mystical body . but how far are they appointed thus to carry them on , thus to build them up ? hath it bounds fixed to its work ? doth it carry them so far , and then leave them ? no , saith the apostle , verse 13. the dispensation of the word of the gospel , and the ordinances thereof , is designed for our help , assistance , and furtherance , until the whole work of faith and obedience is consummate . it is appointed to perfect and compleat that faith , knowledge , and growth in grace and holiness , which is allotted unto us in this world . but what and if oppositions and temptations do lie in the way , satan and his instruments working with great subtilty and deceit ? why verse 14. these ordinances are designed for our safe-guarding and deliverance from all their attempts and assaults , that so being preserved in the use of them , or speaking the truth in love , we may grow up unto him in all things who is the head , even christ jesus . this is in general the use of all gospel ordinances , the chief and man end for which they were given and appointed of god ; namely to preserve believers from all decays of faith and obedience , and to carry them on still towards perfection . these are means which god , the good husbandman , makes use of , to cause the vine to thrive and bring forth fruit . and i could also manifest the same to be the especial end of them distinctly . briefly , the word is milk and strong meat , for the nourishing and strengthning of all sorts , and all degrees of believers . it hath both seed and water in it , and manuring with it , to make them fruitful . the ordinance of the supper is appointed on purpose for the strengthning of our faith in the remembrance of the death of the lord , and the exercise of love one towards another . the communion of saints is for the edifying each other in faith , love , and obedience . secondly , there is that which adds weight to this consideration . god suffers us not to be unmindful of this assistance he hath afforded us , but is continually calling upon us to make use of the means oppointed for the attaining of the end proposed . he shews them unto us , as the angel shewed the water-spring to hagar● commands , exhortations , promises , threatnings , are multiplied to this purpose ; see them summed up , heb. 2. 1. he is continually saying to us , why will you die ? why will you wither and decay ? come to the pastures provided for you , and your souls shall live . if we see a lamb run from the fold into the wilderness , we wonder not if it be torn and rent of wild beasts : if we see a sheep leaving its green pastures and water-courses , to abide in dry barren heaths , we count it no marvel , nor enquire farther , if we see him lean and ready to perish . but if we find lambs wounded in the fold , we wonder at the boldness and rage of the beasts of prey , that durst set upon them there . if we see sheep pining in full pastures , we judge them to be diseased and unsound . it is indeed no marvel that poor creatures , who for sake their own mercies , and run away from the pasture and fold of christ in his ordinances , are rent and torn with divers lusts , and do pine away with hunger and famine . but to see men living under , and enjoying all the means of spiritual thriving , yet to decay , not to be fat and flourishing , but rather daily to pine and wither , this argues some secret powerful distemper , whose poisonous and noxious qualities hinder the vertue and efficacy of the means they enjoy . this is indwelling-sin . so wonderfully powerful , so effectually poisonous it is , that it can bring leanness on the souls of men in the midst of all precious means of growth and flourishing . it may well make us tremble to see men living under , and in the use of the means of the gospel , preaching , praying , administration of sacrameats , and yet grow colder every day than other in zeal for god , more selfish and worldly , even habitually , to decline as to the degrees of holiness which they had attained unto . thirdly , together with the dispensation of the outward means of spiritual growth or improvement , there are also supplies of grace continually afforded the saints from their head , christ jesus . he is the head of all the saints . and he is a living head , and so a living head , as that he tells us , that because he liveth , we shall live also , joh. 14. 19. he communicates of spiritual life to all that are his . in him is the fountain of our life , which is therefore said to be hid with him in god , col. 3. 3. and this life he gives unto his saints , by quickning of them by his spirit , rom. 9. 11. and he continues it unto them , by the supplies of living grace which he communicates unto them . from these two , his quickning of us , and continually giving out supplies of life unto us , he is said to live in us , gal. 2. 20. i live , yet not i , but christ liveth in me . the spiritual life which i have is not mine own , not from my self was it educed , not by my self is it maintained , but it is meerly and solely the work of christ ; so that it is not i that live , but he lives in me , the whole of my life being from him alone . neither doth this living head communicate only a bare life unto believers , that they should meerly live & no more a poor , weak , dying life , as it were , but he gives out sufficiently to afford them a strong , vigorous , thriving , flourishing life , joh. 10. 10. he comes not only that his sheep may have life , but that they may have it more abundantly ; that is , in a plentiful manner , 〈◊〉 as that they may flourish , be fat and fruitful● thus is it with the whole body of christ and every member thereof , eph. 4. 15 , 16. whereby it grows up into him in all things , which is the head , even christ ; from whom the whole body fitly joyned together , and compacted , by that which every joynt supplieth , according to the effectual working in the measure of every part , maketh increase of the body unto the edifying of it self in love . the end of all communications of grace , and supplies of life from this living and blessed head , is the increase of the whole body , and every member of it , and the edifying of it self in love . his treasures of grace are unsearchable , his stores inexhaustible . his life , the fonutain of ours , full and eternal , his heart bounteous and large , his hand open and liberal ; so that there is no doubt but that he communicates supplies of grace for their increase in holiness abundantly unto all his saints . whence then is it that they do not all flourish and thrive accordingly ? as you may see it oftentimes in a natural body , so is it here . though the seat and rise of the blood and spirits in head and heart be excellently good and sound , yet there may be a withering member in the body ; somewhat intercepts the influences of life unto it . so that though the heart and head do perform their office , in giving of supplies no less to that , than they do to any other member , yet all the effect produced , is meerly to keep it from utter perishing ; it grows weak and decaies every day . the withering and decaying of any member in christs mystical body , is not for the want of his communication of grace for an abundant life , but from the powerful interception that is made of the efficacy of it , by the interposition and opposition of in-dwelling sin. hence it is that where lust grows strong , a great deal of grace will but keep the soul alive , and not give it any eminency in fruitfulness at all . oftentimes christ gives very much grace , where not many of its effects do appear . it spends its strength , and power , in withstanding the continual assaults of violent corruptions and lusts , so that it cannot put forth its proper vertue towards farther fruitfulness . as a vertuous medicine , that is fit both to check vitious and noxious humours , and to comfort , refresh and strengthen nature , if the evil humour be strong and greatly prevailing , spends its whole strength and vertue in the subduing and correcting of it , contributing much less to the relief of nature than otherwise it would do , if it met not with such oppositions : so is it with the eye-salve , and the healing grace which we have abundantly from the wings of the sun of righteousness . it is forced oftentimes , to put forth its vertue to oppose and contend against , and in any measure subdue prevailing lusts and corruptions : that the soul receiveth not that strengthening unto duties and fruitfulness which otherwise it might receive by it , is from hence . how sound , healthy , and flourishing , how fruitful and exemplary in holiness , might many a soul be , by and with that grace which is continually communicated to it from christ , which now by reason of the power of in-dwelling sin is only not dead ▪ but weak , withering and useless . and this , if any thing , is a notable evidence of the efficacy of in-dwelling sin , that it is able to give such a stop , and check to the mighty and effectual power of grace , so that notwithstanding the blessed and continual supplies that we receive from our head , yet many believers do decline and decay , and that habitually , as to what they had attained unto ; their last waies not answering their first . this makes the vineyard in the very fruitful hill to bring forth so many wilde grapes . this makes so many trees barren in fertile fields . fourthly , besides the continual supplies of grace that constantly according to the tenure of the covenant are communicated unto believers , which keeps them that they thirst no more as to a total indigence , there is moreover a readiness in the lord christ to yield peculiar succour to the souls of his , according as their occasions shall require . the apostle tells us , that he is a merciful high-priest and able , ( that is ready prepared and willing ) to succour them that are tempted , heb. 2. 18. and we are on that account , invited to come with boldness to the throne of grace , that we may obtain mercy , and find grace to help in time of need ; that is , grace sufficient , seasonable , suitable unto any special tryal or temptation that we may be exercised withal . our merciful high-priest is ready to give out this especial seasonable grace , over and above those constant communications of supplies of the spirit , which we mentioned before . besides the never-failing springs of ordinary covenant grace , he hath also peculiar refreshing showers for times of drought . and this is exceedingly to the advantage of the saints , for their preservation and growth in grace ; and there may very many more of the like nature be added . but now i say notwithstanding all these , and the residue of the like importance , such is the power and efficacy of indwelling-sin , so great its deceitfulness and restlesness , so many its wiles and temptations , it often falls out that many of them for whose growth and improvement all this provision is made , do yet as was shewed , go back and decline , even as to their course of walking with god. sampsons strength fully evidenced it self when he brake seven new wit hs , and seven new cords , wherewith he was bound , as burning tow , and as thred . the noxious humour in the body which is so stubborn , as that no use of the most soveraign remedies can prevail against it , ought to be regarded . such is this indwelling-sin if not watched over : it breaks all the cords made to binde it ; it blunts the instruments appointed to root it up ; it resists all healing medicines though never so soveraign , and is therefore assuredly of exceeding efficacy . besides , believers have innumerable obligations upon them from the love , the command of god , to grow in grace , to press forward towards perfection , as they have abundant means provided for them so to do . their doing so , is a matter of the greatest advantage , profit , sweetness , contentment unto them in the world : it is the burden , the trouble of their souls , that they do not so do , that they are not more holy , more zealous useful , fruitful ; they desire it above life it self ; they know it is their duty to watch against this enemy , to fight against it , to pray against it , and so they do . they more desire his destruction , than the enjoyment of all this world ▪ and all that it can afford . and yet notwithstanding all this such is the subtilty , and fraud , and violence , and fury , and urgency , and importunity of this adversary , that it frequently prevails to bring them into the woful condition mentioned . hence it is with believers sometimes as it is with men in some places at sea ; they have a good and fair gale of wind , it may be all night long ; they ply their tackling , attend diligently their business , and it may be take great contentment to consider how they proceed in their voyage : in the morning , or after a season coming to measure what way they have made , and what progress they have had , they find that they are much backward of what they were , instead of getting one step forward ; falling into a swift tide , or current against them , it hath frustrated all their labours , and rendered the wind in their sails almost useless ; somewhat thereby they have born up against the stream , but have made no progress . so is it with believers : they have a good gale of supplies of the spirit from above , they attend duties diligently , pray constantly , hear attentively , and omit nothing that may carry them in their voyage towards eternity . but after a while , coming seriously to consider by the examination of their hearts and waies , what progress they have made , they find that all their assistance , and duties , have not been able to bear them up against some strong tide or current of indwelling-sin . it hath kept them indeed that they have not been driven and split on rocks and shelves ; it hath preserved ●hem from gross , scandalous sins , but yet they have lost in their spiritual frame , or gone backwards , and are intangled under many woful decayes ; which is a notable evidence of the life of sin , about which we are treating . now because the end of our discovering this power of sin , is , that we may be careful to obviate and prevent it in its operation , and because of all the effects that it produceth there is none more dangerous or pernicious than that we have last insisted on , namely , that it prevails upon many professors unto an habitual declension from their former wayes and attainments , notwithstanding all the sweetness and excellency which their souls have found in them , i shall , as was said , in the next place consider by what waies and means , and through what assistance it usually prevails in this kind , that we may the better be instructed to watch against it . chap. xv. decayes in degrees of grace caused by indwelling sin. the waies of its prevalency to this purpose . the waies and means whereby in-dwelling sin prevaileth on believers unto habitual declensions and decaies , as to degrees of grace and holiness , is that now which comes under consideration , and are many . first , upon the first conversion and calling of sinners unto god and christ , they have usually many fresh springs breaking forth in their souls , and refreshing showers coming upon them , which bear them up to an high rate of faith , love , holiness , fruitfulness and obedience . as upon a land-flood when many lesser streams run into a river , it swells over its bounds , and rouls on with a more than ordinary fulness . now if these springs be not kept open , if they prevail not for the continuance of these showers , they must needs decay and go backwards . we shall name one or two of them . first , they have a fresh , vigorous sence of pardoning mercy . according as this is in the soul , so will its love and delight in god , so will its obedience be . as , i say , is the sence of gospel-pardon , so will be the life of gospel-love . luke 7. 47. i say unto thee , saith our saviour of the poor woman , her sins , which were many , are forgiven , for she loved much , but to whom little is forgiven , the same loveth little . her great love was an evidence of great forgiveness ; and her great sence of it . for our saviour is not rendring a reason of her forgiveness , as though it were for her love , but of her love , that it was because of her forgiveness . having in the foregoing parable from verse 38. and onwards , convinced the pharisees with whom he had to do , that he to whom most was forgiven would love most , as verse 43. he thence gives an account of the great love of the woman springing from the sence she had of the great forgiveness which she had so freely received . thus sinners at their first conversion are very sensible of great forgiveness : of whom i am chief , lies next their heart . this greatly subdues their hearts and spirits unto all in god , and quickens them unto all obedience ; even that such poor cursed sinners as they were , should so freely be delivered and pardoned . the love of god and of christ in their forgiveness , highly conquers and constrains them to make it their business to live unto god. secondly , the fresh taste they have had of spiritual things , keeps up such a favour and relish of them in their souls , as that worldly contentments whereby men are drawn off from close walking with g●d , are rendred sapless and undesireable unto them . having tasted of the wine of the gospel they desire no other , for they say , this is best . so was it with the apostles upon that option offered them as to a departure from christ , upon the apostasie of many false professors ; will ye go away also ? joh. 6. 67. they answer by peter , lord , to whom shall we go , thou hast the words of eternal life ? vers. 68. they had such a fresh savour and relish of the doctrine of the gospel , and the grace of christ upon their souls , that they can entertain no thoughts of declining from it . as a man that hath been long kept in a dungeon , if brought forth on a sudden into the light of the sun , finds so much pleasure and contentment in it , in the beauties of the old creation , that he thinks he can never be weary of it , nor shall ever be contented on any account to be under darkness again . so is it with souls when first transl●ted into the marvellous light of christ , to behold the beauties of the new creation . they see a new glory in him , that hath quite sullied the desireableness of all earthly diversions . and they see a new guilt and filth in sin , that gives them an utter abhorrency of its old delights and pleasures ; and so of other things . now whilest these and the like springs are kept open in the souls of converted sinners , they constrain them to a vigorous active holiness . they can never do enough for god ; so that oftentimes their zeal , as saints , suffers them not to escape without some blots on their prudence as men , as might be instanced in many of the martyrs of old . this then is the first , at least one way whereby indwelling-sin prepares men for decayes and declensions in grace and obedience : it endeavours to stop or taint these springs . and there are several waies whereby it bringeth this to pass . first , it works by sloth and negligence . it prevails in the soul to a neglect of stirring up continual thoughts of , or about the things that so powerfully influence it unto strict and fruitful obedience . if care be not taken , if diligence and watchfulness be not used , and all means observed that are appointed of god , to keep a quick and living sense of them upon the soul , they will dry up and decay , and consequently that obedience that should spring from them will do so also . isaac digged wells , but the philistins stopt them , and his flocks had no benefit by them . let the heart never so little di●use it self to gracious soul-affecting thoughts of the love of god , the cross of christ , the greatness and excellency of gospel mercy , the beauties of holiness , they will quickly be as as much estranged to a man , as he can be to them . he that shuts his eyes for a season in the sun , when he opens them again can see nothing at all . and so much as a man loseth of faith towards these things , so much will they lose of power towards him . they can do little or nothing upon him , because of his unbelief , which formerly were so exceedingly effectual towards him . so was it with the spouse in the canticles , chap. 5. 2. christ calls unto her , ver . 1. with a marvellous loving and gracious invitation unto communion with himself . she who had formerly been ravished at the first hearing of that joyful sound , being now under the power of sloth and carnal ease , returns a sorry excusing answer to his call , which ended in her own signal loss and sorrow . indwelling-sin , i say , prevailing by spiritual sloth upon the souls of men unto an inadvertency of the motions of gods spirit in their former apprehensions of divine love , and a negligence of stirring up continual thoughts of faith about it , a decay grows insensibly upon the whole soul. thus god oft complains that his people had forgotten him , that is , grew unmindful of his love and grace , which was the beginning of their apostasie . secondly , by unframing the soul , so that it shall have formal , weary , powerless thoughts of those things , which should prevail with it unto diligence in thankful obedience . the apostle cautions us , that in dealing with god , we should use reverence and godly fear , because of his purity , holiness , and majesty , heb. 12. 28 , 29. and this is that which the lord himself spake in the destruction of nadab and abihu , i will be sanctified in them that come to me , lev. 10. 3. he will be dealt withal ●in an awful , holy , reverent manner . so are we to deal with all the things of god , wherein , or whereby we have communion with him . the soul is to have a great reverence of god in them . when men begin to take them into slight and common thoughts , not using and improving them unto the utmost for the ends whereunto they are appointed , they lose all their beauty , and glory , and power towards them . when we have any thing to do wherein faith and love towards god is to be exercised , we must do it with all our hearts , with all our minds , strength and souls , not slightly and perfunctorily , which god abhors ; he doth not only require that we bear his love and grace in remembrance , but that , as much as in us lyeth , we do it according to the worth and excellency of them . it was the sin of hezekiah , that he rendred not again according to the benefits done to him , 2 chron. 32. 25. so whilst we consider gospel truths , the uttermost endeavour of the soul ought to be , that we may be changed into the same image or likeness , 2 cor. 3. 18. that is , that they may have their full power and effect upon us . otherwise james tells us what our beholding the glory of the lord in a glass , there mentioned by the apostle , that is , reading or hearing the mind of god in christ revealed in the gospel , comes unto , chap. 1. vers . 23 , 24. it is but like unto a man beholding his natural face in a glass , for he beholdeth himself and goeth away , and streight way forgetteth what manner of man he was . it makes no impression upon him , begets no idea nor image of his likeness in his imagination , because he doth it only slightly , and with a transient look . so is it with men that will indeed think of gospel truths , but in a slight manner , without endeavouring with all their hearts , minds , and strength , to have them ingrafted upon their souls , and all the effects of them produced in them . now this is the way of sinners , in their first engagements unto god. they never think of pardoning mercy , but they labour to affect their whole souls with it , and do stir up themselves unto suitable affections and returns of constant obedience . they think not of the excellency of christ , and spiritual things , now newly discovered unto them in a saving light , but they press with all their might after a farther , a fuller enjoyment of them . this keeps them humble and holy , this makes them thankful and fruitful . but now if the utmost diligence and carefulness be not used to improve and grow in this wisdom , to keep up this frame , indwelling-sin working by the vanity of the minds of men ; will insensibly bring them to content themselves with slight and rare thoughts of these things , without a diligent sedulous endeavour to give them their due improvement upon the soul. as men decay herein , so they will assuredly decay and decline in the power of holiness , and close walking with god. the springs being stopt or tainted , the streams will not run so swiftly , at least not so sweetly as formerly . some by this means under an uninterrupted profession , insensibly wither almost into nothing . they talk of religion and spiritual things as much as ever they did in their lives , and perform duties with as much constancy as ever they did , but yet have poor lean starvling souls , as to any real and effectual communion with god. by the power and subtilty of indwelling-sin they have grown formal , and learned to deal about spiritual things in an overly manner , whereby they have lost all their life , vigour , favour , and efficacy towards them . be alwaies serious in spiritual things , if ever you intend to be bettered by them . thirdly , indwelling-sin oftentimes prevailes to the stopping of these springs of gospel obedience , by false and foolish opinions , corrupting the simplicity of the gospel . false opinions are the works of the flesh . from the vanity and darkness of the minds of men , with a mixture more or less of corrupt affections , do they mostly proceed . the apostle was jealous over his corinthians in this matter , he was afraid lest their minds should by any means be corrupted from the simplicity that is in christ , 2 cor. 11. 2 , 3. which he knew would be attended by a decay and declension in faith , love , and obedience . and thus matters in this case often fall out . we have seen some , who after they have received a sweet taste of the love of god in christ , of the excellency of pardoning mercy , and have walked humbly with god for many years , in the faith and apprehension of the truth , have by the corruption of their minds from the simplicity that is in christ by false and foolish opinions , despised all their own experiences , and rejected all the efficacy of truth , as to the fartherance of their obedience . hence john cautions the elect lady and her children to take heed they were not seduced , lest they should lose the things that they had wrought , 2 epist. v. 8. lest they should themselves cast away all their former obedience as lost , and a thing of no value . we have innumerable instances hereof in the daies wherein we live . how many are there , who not many years since put an unspeakable value on the pardon of sin in the blood of christ , who delighted in gospel discoveries of spiritual things , and walked in obedience unto god on the account of them , who being beguiled and turned aside from the truth as it is in jesus , do despise these springs of their own former obedience ? and as this is done grosly and openly in some , so there are more secret and more plausible insinuations of corrupt opinions , tainting the springs and fountains of gospel obedience , and through the vanity of mens minds , which is a principal part of indwelling-sin , getting ground upon them . such are all those that tend to the extenuation of special grace in its freedom , and efficacy , and the advancement of the wills or the endeavours of men in their spiritual power and ability : they are all works of the flesh , and howsoever some may pretend an usefulness in them to the promotion of holiness , they will be found to taint the springs of true evangelical obedience , insensibly to turn the heart from god , and to bring the whole soul into a spiritual decay . and this is one way whereby indwelling-sin produceth this pernicious effect , of drawing men off from the power , purity , and fruitfulness attending their first conversion , and engagements unto god , bringing them into habitual declension , at least as unto degrees of their holiness and grace . there is not any thing we ought to be more watchful against , if we intend effectually to deal with this powerful and subtile enemy . it is no small part of the wisdom of faith , to observe whether gospel truths continue to have the same savour unto , and efficacy upon the soul , as formerly they have had ; and whether an indeavour be maintained to improve them continually as at the first . a commandment that is alwaies practised , is alwaies new , as john speaks of that of love. and he that really improves gospel truths , though he hears them a thousand times , they will be alwaies new and fresh unto him , because they put him on newness of practice . when to another that grows common under them , they are burthensome and common unto him ; and he even loaths the manna that he is so accustomed unto . secondly , indwelling-sin doth this , by taking men off from their watch against the returns of satan . when our lord christ comes first to take possession of any soul for himself , he binds that strong man and spoils his goods ; he deprives them of all his power , dominion and interest . satan being thus dispossest and frustrated in his hopes and expectations , leaves the soul , as finding it newly mortified to his baits . so he left our saviour upon his first fruitless attempts . but it is said , he left him only for a season , luk. 4. 13. he intended to return again , as he should see his advantage . so is it with believers also . being cast out from his interest in them , he leaves them for a season , at least comparatively he doth so . freed from his assaults and perplexing temptations , they proceed vigorously in the course of their obedience , and so flourish in the waies of god. but this holds not ; satan returns again , and if the soul stands not continually upon his guard against him , he will quickly get such advantages , as shall put a notable interruption upon his fruitfulness and obedience . hence some , after they have spent some time , it may be some years in cheerful exemplary walking with god , have upon satans return , consumed all their latter daies in wrestling with perplexing temptations , wherewith he hath intangled them . others have plainly fallen under the power of his assaults . it is like a man , who having for a while lived usefully amongst his neighbours , done good , and communicated according to his ability , distributing to the poor , and helping all round about him , at length falling into the hands of vexatious , wrangling oppressive men , he is forced to spend his whole time and revenue in defending himself against them at law , and so becomes useless in the place where he lives . so is it with many a believer ; after he hath walked in a fruitful course of obedience to the glory of god , and edification of the church of christ , being afresh set upon by the ret●rn of satan in one way or other , he hath enough to do all the remainder of his life to keep himself a●ive ; in the mean time a to many graces , wofully decaying and going backward . now this also , though satan hath an hand in it , is from indwelling-sin : i mean , the success is so which satan doth obtain in his undertaking . this encourageth him , maketh way for his return , and gives entrance to his temptations . you know how it is with them , out of whom he is cast only by gospel conviction ; after he hath wandred and waited awhile , he saith , he will return to his house from whence he was ejected . and what is the issue ? carnal lusts have prevailed over the mans convictions , and made his soul fit to entertain returning devils . it is so as to the measure of prevalency , that satan obtains against believers , upon advantages administred unto him , by sins disposing the soul unto an obnoxiousness to his temptations . now the way and means whereby indwelling-sin doth give advantage to satan for his return , are all those which dispose them towards a declension which shall afterwards be mentioned . satan is a diligent , watchful , and crafty adversary , he will neglect no opportunity , no advantage that is offered unto him . wherein then soever our spiritual strength is impaired by sin , or which way soever our lusts press , satan falls in with that weakness , and presseth towards that ruine . so that all the actings of the law of sin are subservient to this end of satan . i shall therefore only at present mention one or two , that seem princicipally to invite satan to attempt a return . first , it intangleth the soul in the things of the world , all which are so many purveyors for satan . when pharaoh had let the people go , he heard after a while that they were intangled in the wilderness and supposeth that he shall therefore now overtake them and destroy them . this stirs him up to pursue after them . satan finding those whom he hath been cast out from , intangled in the things of the world , by which he is sure to find an easie access unto them , is encouraged to attempt upon them afresh ; as the spider to come down upon the strongest flie that is entangled in his web . for he comes by his temptations only to impel them unto that whereunto by their own lusts they are enclined , by adding poison to their lusts , and painting to the objects of them . and oftentimes by this advantage he gets so in upon the souls of men , that they are never well free of him more whilst they live . and as mens diversions increase from the world , so do their entanglements from satan . when they have more to do in the world than they can well manage , they shall have more to do from satan than they can well withstand . when men are made spiritually faint , by dealing in and with the world , satan sets on them a● amalek did on the faint and weak of the people that came out of egypt . secondly , it produceth this effect by making the soul negligent , and taking it off from its watch . we have before shew'd at large that it is one main part of the effectual deceitfulness of indwelling sin , to make the soul inadvertent , to turn it off from the diligent watchful attendance unto its duty , which is required . now there is not any thing in reference whereunto diligence and watchfulness is more strictly enjoyned ; than the returning assau●ts of satan , 1 pet. 5. 8. be sober , be vigilant ; and why so ? because of your adversary the devil . unless you are exceeding watchful , at one time or other he will surprize you . and all the injunctions of our blessed saviour , to watch , are still with reference unto him , and his temptations . now when the soul is made careless and inadvertent , forgetting what an enemy it hath to deal withal , or is lifted up with the successes it hath newly obtained against him , then in satans time to attempt a re-entrance of his old habitation ; which if he cannot obtain , yet he makes their lives uncomfortable to themselves , and unfruitful to others , in weakening their root , and withering their fruit through his poisoning temptations . he comes down upon our duties of obedience , as the fowls upon abrahams sacrifice , that if we watch not , as he did , to drive them away , [ for by resistance he is overcome and put to flight ] he will devour them . thirdly , indwelling-sin takes advantage to put forth its efficacy and deceit , to with-draw men from their primitive zeal and holiness , from their first faith , love , and works by the evil examples of professors amongst whom they live . when men first engage into the ways of god , they have a reverent esteem of those whom they believe to have been made partakers of that mercy before themselves ; these they love and honour , as it is their duty . but after a while they find many of them walking in many things unevenly , crookedly , & not unlike the men of the world . here sin is not wanting to its advantage . insensibly it prevails with men to a compliance with them . this way , this course of walking , doth well enough with others , why may it not do so with us also ? such is the inward thought of many , that works effectually in them . and so through the craft of sin , the generation of professors corrupt one another . as a stream arising from a clear spring or fountain , whilst it runs in its own peculiar channel , and keeps its water unmixed , preserves its purity and cleanness , but when it falls in its course with other streams that are turbid and foul , though running the same way with it , it becomes muddy and discoloured also . so is it in this case . believers come forth from the spring of the new birth with some purity and cleanness , this for a while they keep in the course of their private walking with god ; but now when they come sometimes to fall into society with others , whose profession flows & runs the same way with theirs , even towards heaven , but yet are mudded and sullied with sin and the world , they are often corrupted with them , and by them , and so decline from their first purity , faith , and holiness . now lest this may have been the case of any who shall read this discourse , i shall add some few cautions that are necessary to preserve men from this infection . first , in the body of professors there is a great number of hypocrites . though we cannot say of this or that man , that he is so , yet that some there are , is most certain . our saviour hath told us that it will be so to the end of the world . all that have oyl in their lamps , have it not in their vessels . let men take heed how they give themselves up unto a conformity to the professors they meet withal , lest instead of saints and the best of men , they sometimes propose for their example hypocrites , which are the worst , and when they think they are like unto them who bare the image of god , they conform themselves to those , who bare the image of satan . secondly , you know not what may be the present temptations of those whose ways you observe . it may be they are under some peculiar desertion from god , and so are withering for a season , untill he send them some refreshing powers from above . it may be they are intangled with some special corruptions , which is their burthen , tat you know not of ; and for any voluntarily to fall into such a frame , as others are cast into by the power of their temptations , or to think that will suffice in them , which they see to suffice in others whose distempers they know not , is folly and presumption . he that knows such or such a person to be a living man , and of an healthy constitution , if he see him go crawling up and down about his affairs , feeble and weak , sometimes falling , sometimes standing , and making small progress in any thing , will he think it sufficient for himself to do so also ? will he not inquire whether the person he sees , have not lately fallen into some distemper or sickness , that hath weakened him , and brought him into that condition ? assuredly he will so do . take heed , christians , many of the professors with whom ye do converse are sick , and wounded ; the wounds of some of them do stink , and are corrupt because of their folly . if you have any spiritual health , do not think their weak and uneven walking will be accepted at your hands ; much less ●●ink it will be well for you to become sick and to be wounded also . thirdly , remember that of many of the best christians , the worst only is known and seen . many who keep up precious communion with god , do yet oftentimes by their natural temper● of freedom or passion , not carry so glorious appearances as others , who perhaps come short of them in grace and the power of godliness . in respect of their outward conversation it may seem they are scarcely saved , when in respect of their faith and love they may be eminent . they may , as the kings daughter , be all glorious within , though their cloaths be not alwayes of wrought gold. take heed then that you be not infected with their worst , when ye are not able it may be to imitate them in their best ; but to return . fourthly , sin doth this work by cherishing some secret particular lust in the heart . this the soul contends against faintly , it contends against it upon the account of sincerity , it cannot but do so ; but it doth not make through-work vigorously to mortifie it by the strength and power of grace . now where it is thus with the soul , an habitual dec●ension as to holiness will assuredly ensue . david shews us how in his first days he kept his heart close unto god , psal 18. 23. i was upright before him , 〈◊〉 i kept my self from mine iniquity . his great care was lest any one lust should prevail in him , or upon him , that might be called his iniquity in s● peculiar manner . the same course steer'd paul also ● cor. 9. 27 ▪ he was in danger to be lifted up by his spiritua●●evelations and enjoyments . this makes him keep his body in subjection , that no carnal reasonings or vain imagination might take place in him . but where indwelling sin hath provoked , irritated , and given strength unto a special lust , it proves assuredly a principal means of a general declension . for as an infirmity and weakness in any one vital part , will make the whole body consumptive , so will the weakness in any one grace , which a perplexing lust brings with it , make the soul. it every way weakens spiritual strength . it weakens confidence in god in faith and prayer . the knees will be feeble , and the hands will hang down in dealing with god , where a galling and unmortified lust lies in the heart . it will take such hold upon the soul , that it shall not be able to look up , psal. 40. 12. it darkens the mind by innumerable foolish imaginations , which it stirs up to make provision for its self . it galls the conscience with those spots and stains , which in and by its actings it brings upon the soul. it contends in the will for rule and dominion : an active stirring corruption would have the commanding power in the soul , and it is ever and anon ready to take the throne . it disturbs the thoughts , and sometimes will even frighten the soul from dealing with it by meditation , lest corrupt affections being entangled by it , grace loses ground instead of prevailing . it breaks out oftentimes into scandalous sins , as it did in david and hezekiah , and loads the sinner with sorrow and discouragemen . by these and the like means it becomes to the soul like a moth in a garment , to eat up and devour the strongest threeds of it , so that though the whole hang loose together , it is easily torn in pieces . though the soul with whom it is thus , do for a season keep up a fair profession , yet his strength is secretly devoured ; and every temptation tears and rents his conscience at pleasure . it becomes with such men as it is with some who have for a many years been of a sound strong athletick constitution . some secret hectical distemper seizeth on them : for a season they take no notice of it ; or if they do , they think they shall do well enough with it , and easily shake it off when they have a little leasure to attend unto it : but for the present they think as sampson with his locks cut , they will do as at other times . sometimes it may be they complain that they are not well , they know not what aileth them , and it may be rise violently in an opposition to their distemper ; but after a while strugling in vain , the vigour of their spirits and strength failing them , they are forced to yield to the power of a consumption . and now all they can do is little enough to keep them alive . it is so with men brought into spiritual decays by any secret perplexing corruption . it may be they have had a vigorous principle of obedience and holiness : indwelling sin watching its opportunities , by some temptation or other , hath kindled and inflamed some particular lust in them . for a while it may be they take little notice of it . somtimes they complain , but think they will do as in former times , untill being insensibly weakned in their spiritual strength , they hav● work enough to do in keeping alive what remains and is ready to dye , hos. 5. 13. i shall not add any thing here as to the prevention and obviating this advantage of indwelling-sin , having elsewhere treated of it peculiarly and apart . fifthly , it works by negligence of private conmunion with god in prayer and meditation . i have shewed before how indwelling sin puts forth its deceitfulness in diverting the soul from watchfulness in and unto these duties . here if it prevails , it will not fail to induce an habitual declension in the whole course of obedience . all neglect of private duties is principled by a weariness of god as he complaineth , isa. 43. 22. thou hast not called upon me , thou hast been weary of me. neglect of invocation proceeds from weariness . and where there is weariness , there will be withdrawing from that whereof we are weary . now god alone being the fountain and spring of spiritual life , if there be a weariness of him , and withdrawing from him , it is impossible but that there will a decay in the life ensue . indeed what men are in these● duties , i mean as to faith and love in them , that they are and no more . here lies the root of their obedience , and if this fail all fruit will quickly fail . you may sometimes see a tree flourishing with leaves and fruit goodly and pleasant . after a while the leaves begin to decay , the fruit to wither , the whole to droop . search , and you shall find the root , whereby it should draw in moisture and fatness from the earth to supply the body and branches with sap and juice for growth and fruit , hath received a wound , is some way perished , and doth not perform its duty , so that though the branches are flourishing a while with what they had received their sustenance being intercepted they must decay . so it is here . these duties of private communion with god , are the means of receiving supplies of spiritual strength from him ; of sap & fatness from christ the vine and olive . whilest they do so , the conversation and course of obedience flourisheth and is fruitful , all outward duties are chearfully and regularly performed . but if there be a wound , a defect , a failing in that which should first take in the spiritual radical moisture , that should be communicated unto the whole , the rest may for a season maintain their station and appearance , but after a while profession will wither , fruits will decay , and the whole be ready to die . hence our saviour lets us know , matth. 6. 6. what a man is in secret , in these private duties , that he is in the eyes of god , and no more . and one reason amongst others is , because they have a more vigorous acting of unmixed grace than any other duties whatever . in all or most particular duties , besides the influence that they may have from carnal respects , which are many , and the wayes of their insinuation subtile , and imperceptible , there is an allay of gifts , which sometime even devours the pure gold of grace which should be the chief and principal in them . in these , there is immediate entercourse between god , and that which is of himself in the soul. if once sin by its deceits and treacheries , prevail to take off the soul from diligent attendance unto communion with god , and constancy in these duties , it will not fail to effect a declining in the whole of a mans obedience . it hath made its entrance , and will assuredly make good its progress . sixthly , growing in notions of truth without answerable practice , is another thing that indwelling-sin makes use to bring the souls of believers under a decay . the apostle tells us , that knowledge puffeth up , 1 cor. 8. 1. if it be alone , not improved in practice , it swells men beyond a due proportion . like a man that hath a dropsie , we are not to expect that he hath strength to his bigness . like trees that are continually running up an head , which keeps them from bearing fruit . when once men have attained to this , that they can entertain and receive evangelical truths in a new and more glorious light , or more clear discovery than formerly , or new manifestations of truth which they knew not before , and please themselves in so doing , without diligent endeavors to have the power of those truths and notions upon their hearts and their souls made conformable unto them , they generally learn so to dispose of all truths formerly known , which were sometimes inlaid in their hearts with more efficacy and power . this hath proved , if not the ruine , yet the great impairing of many in these days of light wherein we live . by this means from humble close walking , many have withered into an empty , barren , talking profession . all things almost have in a short season become alike unto them : have they been true or false , so they might be debating of them , and disputing about them , all is well . this is food for sin , it hatcheth , increaseth it , and is increased by it . a notable way it is for the vanity that is in the mind , to exert it self without a rebuke from conscience . whilst men are talking , and writing , and studying about religion , and hearing preaching , it may be , with great delight , as those in ezekiel chap. 33. 32. conscience . unless throughly awake and circumspect , and furnished with spiritual wisdom and care , will be very well pacified , and enter no rebukes or pleas against the way that the soul is in . but yet all this may be nothing but the acting of that natural vanity which lies in the mind , and is a principal part of the sin we treat of . and generally this is so , when men content themselves , as was said , with the notions of truth , without labouring after an experience of the power of them in their hearts , and the bringing forth the fruit of them in their lives , on which a decay must needs ensue . seventhly , growth in carnal wisdom is another help to sin in producing this sad effect . thy wisdom and thy knowledge , saith the prophet , hath perverted thee , isa. 47. 10. so much as carnal wisdom increaseth , so much faith decays . the proper work of it is to teach a man to trust to and in himself , of faith to trust wholly in another . so it labours to destroy the whole work of faith , by causing the soul to return into a deceiving fulness of his own . we have woful examples of the prevalency of this principle of declension in the days werein we live . how many a poor , humble , broken hearted creature , who followed after god in simplicity and integrity of spirit , have we seen , through the observation of the ways and walkings of others , and closing with the temptations to craft and subtilty , which opportunities in the world have administred unto them , come to be dipt in a worldly carnal frame , and utterly to wither in their profession . many are so sullied hereby , that they are not to be known to be the men they were . eightly , some great sin lying long in the heart and conscience unrepented of , or not repented of as it ought , and as the matter requires , furthers indwelling-sin in this work . the great turn of the life of david , whence his first ways carried the reputation , was in the harbouring his great sin in his conscience without suitable repentance . it was otherwise we know with peter , and he had another issue . a great sin will certainly give a great turn to the life of a professor . if it be well cured in the blood of christ , with that humiliation which the gospel requires , it often proves a means of more watchfulness , fruitfulness , humility , and contentation , than ever the soul before obtained . if it be neglected , it certainly hardens the heart , weakens spiritual strength , enfeebles the soul , discouraging it unto all communion with god , and is a notable principle of a general decay . so david complains , ps. 38. 5. my wounds stink and are corrupt because of my foolishness . his present distemper was not so much from his sin , as his folly , not so much from the wounds he had received , as from his neglect to make a timely application for their cure . it is like a broken bone , which being well set , leaves the place stronger than before ; if otherwise , makes the man a cripple all his days . these things we do but briefly name , and sundry other advantages of the like nature that sin makes use of to produce this effect , might also be instanced in ; but these may suffice unto our present purpose . what ever it useth , it self is still the principle ; and this is no small demonstration of its efficacy and power . chap. xvi . the strength of indwelling-sin , manifested from its power and effects in persons unregenerate . it is of the power and efficacy of indwelling-sin , as it remains in several degrees in believers that we are treating . now i have else-where shewed , that the nature and all the natural properties of it do still remain in them . though therefore we cannot prove directly what is the strength of sin in them , from what its power is in those , in whom it is only checked and not at all weakned ; yet may we from an observation thereof caution believers of the real power of that mortal enemy with whom they have to do . if the plague do violently rage in one city , destroying multitudes , and there be in another an infection of the same kind , which yet arises not unto that height and fury there , by reason of the correction that it meets withal from a better air , and remedies used ; yet a man may demonstrate unto the inhabitants the force and danger of that infection got in among them , by the effects that it hath and doth produce among others , who have not the benefit of the preventives and preservatives which they enjoy ; which will both teach them to value the means of their preservation , and be the more watchful against the power of the infection that is among them . it is so in this case . believers may be taught what is the power and efficacy of that plague of sin , which is in and among them , by the effects the same plague produceth in and among others , who have not those corrections of its poyson , and those preservatives from death which the lord jesus hath furnished them withal . having then fixed on the demonstration of the power of sin , from the effects it doth produce , and having given a double instance hereof in believers themselves , i shall now farther evidence the same truth , or pursue the same evidence of it , by shewing somewhat of the power that it acteth in them who are unregenerate , and so have not the remedies against it which believers are furnished withal . i shall not handle the whole power of sin in unregenerate persons , which is a very large field , and not the business i have in hand ; but only by some few instances of its effects in them , intimate , as i said , unto believers , what they have to deal withal . first then , it appears in the violence it offers to the nature of man , compelling them unto sins , fully contrary to all the principles of the reasonable nature wherewith they are endued from god. every creature of god hath in its creation , a law of operation implanted in it , which is the rule of all that proceedeth from it , of all that it doth of its own accord . so the fire ascends upwards , bodies that are weighty and heavy descend ; the water flows , each according to the principles of their nature , which give them the law of their operation . that which hinders them in their operation is force and violence , as that which hinders a stone from descending , or the fire from going upwards . that which forceth them to move contrary to the law of their nature , as a stone to go upwards , or the fire to descend , is in its kind the greatest violence , of which the degrees are endless . now that which should take a great milstone , and fling it upwards into the air , all would acknowledge to be a matter of wonderful force , power , and efficacy . man also hath his law of operation and working concreated with him . and this may be considered two ways ; either , first , as it is common to him with other creatures ; or as peculiar , with reference unto that special end for which he was made . some things are , i say , in this law of nature common to man with other creatures ; as to nourish their young , to live quietly with them of the same kind and race with them ; to seek and follow after that which is good for them in that state and condition wherein they are created . these are things which all bruit living creatures have in the law of their nature , as man also hath . but now besides these things , man being creaated in an especial manner to give glory to god by rational and moral obedience , and so to obtain a reward in the enjoyment of him ; there are many things in the law of his creation that are peculiar to him ; as to love god above all , to seek the enjoyment of him as his chiefest good and last end , to enquire after his mind and will , and to yield obedience , and the like . all which are part of the law of his nature . now these things are not distinguished so , as though a man might perform the actions of the law of his nature which are common to him with other creatures , meerly from the principles of his nature as they do ; but the law of his dependance upon god , and doing all things in obedience unto him , passeth on them all also . he can never be considered as a meer creature , but as a creature made for the glory of god , by rational moral obedience ; rational , because by him chosen , and performed with reason ; and moral , because regulated by a law whereunto reason doth attend . for instance ; it is common to man with other creatures , to take care for the nourishing of his children , of the young helpless ones that receive their being by him . there is implanted in him , in the principles of his nature concreated with them , a love and care for them ; so is it with other living creatures . now let other creatures answer this instinct & inclination , and be not hardned against them like the foolish ostrich , unto whom god hath not imparted this natural wisdom , job 59. 16 , 17. they fully answer the law of their creation . with man it is not so ; it is not enough for him to answer the instinct and secret impulse and inclination of his nature and kind , as in the nourishing of his children ; but he must do it also in subjection to god , and obey him therein , and doing it unto his glory ; the law of moral obedience passing over all his whole being & all his operations ; but in these things lie , as it were , the whole of a man , namely in the things which are implanted in his nature as a creature , common to him with all other living creatures , seconded by the command or will of god , as he is a creature capable of yielding moral obedience , and doing all things for his glory . that then , which shall drive and compel a man to transgress this law of his nature , which is not only as to throw milstones upward , to drive beasts from taking care of their young , to take from cattle of the same kind the hearding of themselves in quietness , but moreover , to cast off what lies in him his fundamental dependance on god , as a creature made to yield him obedience , must needs be esteemed of great force and efficacy . now this is frequently done by indwelling-sin , in persons unregenerate . let us take some few instances . first , there is nothing that is more deeply inlaid in the principles of the natures of all living creatures , and so of man himself , than a love unto , and a care for the preservation and nourishing of their young : many bruit creatures will die for them , some feed them with their own flesh and blood ; all deprive themselves of that food which nature directs them to as their best , to impart it to them ; and acting in their behalf to the utmost of their power . now such is the efficacy , power , and force of indwelling-sin in man , an infection that the nature of other creatures knows nothing of , that in many it prevails to stop this fountain , to beat back the stream of natural affections , to root up the principles of the law of nature , and to drive them unto a neglect , a destruction of the fruit of their own loins . paul tells us of the old gentiles , they were 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 , rom. 1. 31. without natural affection ; that which he aims at is that barbarous custom among the romans , who oft-times to spare the trouble in the education of their children , and to be at liberty to satisfie their lusts , destroyed their own children from the womb . so far did the strength of sin prevail to obliterate the law of nature , and to repel the force and power of it . examples of this nature are common in all nations ; amongst our selves , of women murdering their own children , through the deceitful reasoning of sin . and herein sin turns the strong current of nature , darkens all the light of god in the soul , controuls all natural principles , influenced w●th the power of the command & will of god. but yet this evil hath , through the efficacy of sin , received a fearful aggravation . men have not only slain , but cruelly sacrificed their children to satisfie their lusts . the apostle reckons idolatry , & so consequently all superstition , among the works of the flesh , gal. 5. 20. that is , the fruit & product of indwelling sin . now from hence it is that men have offered that horrid and unspeakable violence to the law of nature mentioned . so the psalmist tells us , psal. 106. 37 , 38. the same is again mentioned , psal. 7. 31. and in sundry other places . the whole manner of that abomination i have elsewhere declared . for the present it may suffice to intimate , that they took their children and burnt them to ashes in a soft fire ; the wicked priests that assisted in the sacrifice affording them this relief , that they made a noise and clamour , that the vile wretches might not hear the woful moans and cries of the poor dying tormented infants . i suppose in this case we need no farther evidence . naturalists can give no rational account , they can only admire the secret force of that little fish , which , they say , will stop a ship in full sail in the midst of the sea. and we must acknowledge , that it is beyond our power to give an account of that secret force , and unsearchable deceit that is in this inbred traitor , sin ; that cannot only stop the course of nature , when all the sails of it that carry it forward are so filled , as they are in that of affections to children ; but also drive it backward with such a violence & force , as to cause men so to deal with their own children , as a good man would not be hired with any reward to deal with his dog . and it may not be to the disadvantage of the best , to know and consider , that they carry that about them , in them , which in others hath produced these effects . the like may be spoken of all other sins against the prime dictates of the law of nature , that mankind is or hath been stained and defamed withal . murder of parents and children , of wives and husbands , sodomy , incest , and the like enormities ; in all which , sin prevails in men against the whole law of their being and dependance upon god. what should i reckon up the murders of cain and abel , the treason of judas , with their aggravations ; or remind the filth and villany of nero , in whom sin seemed to design an instance of what it could debase the nature of man unto : in a word , all the studied , premeditated perjuries ; all the designed , bloody revenges ; all the filth and uncleanness ; all the enmity to god and his ways that is in the world , is fruit growing from this root alone . secondly , it evidences its efficacy in keeping men off from believing under the dispensation of the gospel . this evidence must be a little further cleared . first , under the dispensation of the gospel , there are but few that do believe . so the preachers of it complain , isa. 53. 1. who hath believed our report ? which the apostle interprets of the paucity of believers , joh. 12. 38. our saviour christ himself tells us , that many are called , the word is preached unto many , but few are chosen . and so the church complains of its number , mic. 6. 1. few there be who enter the narrow gate , daily experience confirms this woful observation . how many villages , parishes , yea , towns may we go unto , where the gospel , it may be , hath been preached many years , and perhaps scarce meet a true believer in them , & one who shews forth the death of christ in his conversation . in the best places , and most eminent for profession , are not such persons like the berries after the shaking of an olive-tree , two or three in the top of the upmost boughs , and 4 or 5 in the highest branches ? secondly , there is proposed to men in the preaching of the gospel , as motives unto believing every thing in conjunction , that severally prevail with men to do what ever else they do in their lives . what ever any one doth with consideration , he doth it either because its reasonable & good for him so to do , or profitable & advantagious , or pleasant , or lastly , necessary for the avoidance of evil ; whatever , i say , men do with consideration , whether it be good or evil , whether it be in the works of this life , or in things that lead to another ; they do it from one or other of the reasons or motives mentioned . and , god knows , oft-times they are very poor and mean in their kind , that men are prevailed upon by . how often will men for a very little pleasure , a very little profit , be induced to do that which shall imbitter their lives , and damn their souls . and what industry will they use to avoid that which they apprehend evil or grievous to them . and any one of these is enough to oil the wheels of mens utmost endeavours , and set men at work to the purpose . but now all these things centre in the proposal of the gospel , and the command of believing ; and every one of them in a kind , that the whole world can propose nothing like unto it . it is the most reasonable thing that can be proposed to the understanding of a man ; that he who thr●ough his own default hath lost that way of bringiug glory of god , and saving his own soul , ( for which ends he was made ) that he was first placed in , should accept of , and embrace , that other , blessed , easie , safe , excellent way , for the attaining the ends mentioned , which god in infinite grace , love , mercy , wisdom , and righteousness hath found out , and doth propose unto him . and , secondly , it is the profitablest thing that a man can possibly be invited unto ; if there be any profit , or benefit , any advantage in the forgiveness of sins , in the love and favour of god , in a blessed immortality , in eternal glory . and , thirdly , it is most pleasant also ; surely it is a pleasant thing to be brought out of darkness into light , out of a dungeon unto a throne , from captivity and slavery to satan and cursed lusts , to the glorious liberty of the children of god , with a thousand heavenly sweetnesses not now to be mentioned . and , fourthly , it is surely necessary , and that not only from the command of god , who hath the supreme authority over us , but also indispensibly so for the avoidance of eternal ruine of body and soul , mat. 16. 16. it is constantly proposed under these terms , believe , or you perish under the weight of the wrath of the great god , and that for evermore . but now notwithstanding that all these considerations are preached unto men , and pressed upon them in the name of the great god from day to day , from one year to another ; yet , as was before observed , very few there are who set their hearts unto them , so as to embrace that which they lead unto . tell men ten thousand times , that this is wisdom , yea , riches , that all their profit lies in it , that they will assuredly and eternally perish , & that it may be within a few hours , if they receive not the gospel , assure them that it is their only interest and concernment , let them know that god himself speaks all this unto them ; yet all is one , they regard it not , set not their hearts unto it , but , as it were , plainly say , we will have nothing to do with these things ; they will rather perish in their lusts than accept of mercy . thirdly , it is indwelling-sin that both disenableth men unto , and hinders them from believing , & that alone . blindness of mind , stubbornness of the will , sensuality of the affections , all concur to keep poor perishing souls at a distance from christ. men are made blind by sin , and cannot see his excellencies , obstinate and will not lay hold of his righteousness senseless and take no notice of their own eternal concernments . now certainly that which can prevail with men wise and sober , and prudent in other things , to neglect and despise the love of god , the blood of christ , the eternal welfare of their own souls , upon weak and worthless pretences , must be acknowledged to have an astonishable force and efficacy accompanying it . whose heart , who hath once heard of the ways of god , can but bleed to see poor souls eternally perishing under a thousand gracious invitations , to accept of mercy and pardon in the blood of christ ? and can we but be astonished at the power of that principle from whence it is , that they run headlong to their own destruction ? and yet all this befals them from the power and deceit of sin that dwelleth in them . 3. it is evident in their total apostasies . many men not really converted , are much wrought upon by the word . the apostle tells us , that they do clean escape them that live in error , as 2 pet. 2. 18. they separate themselves from idolatry and false worship , owning and professing the truth ; and they also escape the pollution of the world , ver . 20. that is , the corruption that is in the world , through lust , as he expresseth it , chap. 1. verse 4. those filthy corrupt and unclean ways , which the men of the world , in the pursuit of their lusts , do walk and live in ; these they escape from , in the amendment of their lives , and ordering of their conversation according to the convictions which they have from the word . for so he tells us , that all this is brought about , through the knowledge of the lord and saviour jesus christ ; that is , by the preaching of the gospel ; they are so far wrought upon , as to forsake all ways of false worship , to profess the truth , to reform their lives , and to walk answerable to the convictions that are upon them . by this means do they gain the reputation of professors , they have a name to live , rev. 3. 1. and are made partakers of some , or all of those priviledges of the gospel , that are numbred by the apostle , heb. 6. 4 , 5. it is not my present business to shew how far , or wherein a man may be effectually wrought upon by the word , and yet not be really wrought over to close with christ ; or what may be the utmost bounds and limits of a common work of grace upon unregenerate men ; it is on all hands confessed , that it may be carryed on so far , that it is very difficult to discern between its effects and productions , and those of that grace which is special and saving . but now , notwithstanding all this , we see many of these daily fall off from god , utterly and wickedly some into debaucherie and uncleanness , some to worldliness and covetousness , some to be persecutors of the saints , all to the perdition of their own souls . how this comes about , the apostle declares in that place mentioned ; they are , saith he , entangled again ; to entice and entangle as i have shewed before from james 1. 14 , 15. is the proper work of indwelling sin ; it is that alone which entangles the soul ; as the apostle speaks v. 18. they are allured from their whole profession , into cursed apostasie through the lusts of the flesh . it prevails upon them through its deceit and power to an utter relinquishment of their profession ; and their whole engagement unto god : and this several ways evinces the greatness of its strength and efficacy : 1. in that it giveth stop or control unto that exceeding greatness of power which is put forth in the word , in their conviction and reformation . we see it by experience , that men are not easily wrought upon by the word ; the most of men can live under the dispensation of it all the dayes of their lives , and continue as sensless and stupid as the seats they sit upon , or the flint in the rock of stone . mighty difficulties , and prejudices must be conquered , great stroaks must be given to the conscience before this can be brought about . it is as the stopping of a river in his course , and turning his streams another way ; the hindering of a stone in his falling downwards , or the turning away of the wild ass , when furiously set to pursue his way , as the prophet speaks , jer. 2. 24. to turn men from their corrupt ways , sins and pleasures , to make them pray , fast , hear , and do many things contrary to the principle of flesh , which is secretly predominant in them , willingly and gladly ; to cause them to profess christ and the gospel , it may be under some tryals and reproaches , to give them light to see into sundry mysteries , and gifts for the discharge of sundry duties ; to make dead , blind , sensless men , to walk , and talk , and do all the outward offices and duties of living and healthy men ; with the like attendencies of conviction and reformation , are the effects and products of mighty power and strength . indeed the power that the holy ghost puts forth by the word , in the staggering and conviction of sinners , in the wakning of their consciences , the enlightening of their minds , the changing of their affections , the awing of their hearts , the reforming of their lives , and compelling them to duties , is unexpressible . but now , unto all these is there check and control given by indwelling sin. it prevails against this whole work of the spirit by the word , with all the advantages of providential dispensations , in afflictions and mercies , wherewith it is attended . when sin is once enraged , all these things become but like the wit hs & cords wherewith sampson was bound before his head was shaven : cry but to it , the philistines are upon thee , here is a subtle , a suitable temptation , now shew thy strength and efficacy , all these things become like towe that have smelt the fire . conscience is stifled , reputation in the church of god despised , light supplanted , the impressions of the word cast off , convictions digested , heaven and hell are despised ; sin makes its way through all , and utterly turns the soul from the good and right ways of god. sometimes it doth this subtilly by imperceptible degrees , taking off all force of former impressions from the spirit , by the word , sullying conscience by degrees , hardning the heart , and making sensual the affections by various workings , that the poor backslider in heart scarce knows what he is doing , until he be come to the very bottom of all impiety , profaneness , and enmity against god. sometimes falling in conjunction with some vigorous temptation , it suddenly , and at once plunges the soul into a course of alienation from god , and the profession of his ways . 2. it takes them off from those hopes of heaven , which upon their convictions , obedience , and temporary faith or believing , they had attained . there is a general hope of heaven , or at least of the escaping of hell , of an untroublesome immortality in the most sottish and stupid souls in the world , who either by tradition or instruction from the word , are perswaded that there is another state of things to come after this life ; but it is in unconvinced , unenlightened persons , a dull , senseless , unaffecting thing , that hath no other hold upon them , nor power in them , but only to keep them free from the trouble and perplexity of contrary thoughts and apprehensions . the matter is otherwise with them who by the word are so wrought upon as we have before declared ; their hope of heaven and a blessed immortality is oft-times accompanied with great joyes , and exultations , and is a relief unto them , under and against the worst of their fears and trials ; it is such , as they would not part withal for all the world ; and upon all occasions they retreat in their minds unto it , for comfort and relief . now all this by the power of sin are they prevailed withal to forgo . let heaven go if it will , a blessed immortality with the enjoyment of god himself , sin must be served , and provision made to fulfil the lusts thereof . if a man , in the things of this world , had such a hope of a large inheritance , of a kingdom , as wherein he is satisfied that it will not fail him ▪ but that in the issue he shall surely enjoy it , and lead an happy and a glorious life in the possession of it many dayes ; if one should go to him and tell him , it is true , the kingdom you look for is an ample and honourable dominion , full of all good things desirable , and you may attain it ; but come , cast away all hopes and expectations of it , and come joyn with me in the service and slavery of such or such an oppressing tyrant . you will easily grant ; he must have some strange bewitching power with him , that should prevail with a man in his wits to follow his advice . yet thus it is , and much more so in the case we have in hand . sin it self cannot deny , but that the kingdom of heaven which the soul is in hope and expectation of , is glorious and excellent , nor doth it go about to convince him , that his thoughts of it are vain , and such as will deceive him , but plainly prevails with him to cast away his hopes , to despise his kingdom that he was in expectation of , and that upon no other motive but that he may serve some worldly , cruel , or filthy and sensual lust ; certainly here lies a secret efficacy , whose depths cannot be fathomed . 3. the apostle manifests the power of the entanglements of sin in and upon apostates , in that it turns them off from the way of righteousness after they have known it , 2 pet. 2. 21. it will be found at the last day an evil thing and a bitter , that men live all their days in the service of sin , self , and the world , refusing to make any trial of the ways of god whereunto they are invited ; though they have no experience of their excellency , beauty , pleasantness , safety , yet having evidence brought unto them from god himself , that they are so , the refusal of them will , i say , be bitterness in the latter end . but their condition is yet far worse , who as the apostle speaks , having known the way of righteousness , are by the power of indwelling sin turned aside from the holy commandment . to leave god for the devil , after a man hath made some trial of him and his service ; heaven for hell ; after a man hath had some chearing , refreshing thoughts of it , the fellowship of the saints , for an alehouse or a brothel-house ; after a man hath been admitted unto their communion , and tasted of the pleasantness of it , to leave walking in pure , clear , streight paths , to wallow in mire , draughts and filth , this will be for a lamentation ; yet this doth sin prevail upon apostates unto ; and that against all their light , conviction , experiences , professions , engagements , or whatever may be strong upon them to keep them to the known ways of righteousness . 4. it evinces its strength in them by prevailing with them unto a total renunciation of god as revealed in christ , and the power of all gospel-truth , in the sin against the holy ghost . i do not now precisely determine what is the sin against the holy ghost ; nor wherein it doth consist . there are different apprehensions of it ; all agree in this ; that by it an end is put to all dealings between god and man in a way of grace . it is a sin unto death . and this doth the hardness and blindness of many mens hearts bring them to ; they are by them at length set out of the reach of mercy . they chuse to have no more to do with god ; and god swears that they shall never enter into his rest. so sin brings forth death . a man by it , is brought to renounce the end for which he was made ; wilfully to reject the means of his coming to the enjoyment of god , to provoke him to his face ; and so to perish in his rebellion . i have not mentioned these things , as though i hoped by them to set out to the full the power of indwelling sin in unregenerate men ; only by a few instances i thought to give a glimpse of it . he that would have a fuller view of it , had need only to open his eyes , to take a little view of that wickedness which reigneth , yea rageth all the world over . let him consider the prevailing flood of the things mentioned by paul to be the fruits of the flesh , gal. 5. 19 , 20 , 21. that is , among the sons of men , in all places , nations , cities , towns , parishes ; and then let him add thereunto but this one consideration , that the world , which is full of the steam , filth , and blood of these abominations , as to their outward actings of them , is a pleasant garden , a paradise , compared to the heart of man , wherein they are all conceived , and hourly millions of more vile abominations , which being stifled in the womb , by some of the wayes before insisted on , they are never able to bring forth to light . let a man i say using the law for his light and rule , take this course , and if he have any spiritual discerning , he may quickly attain satisfaction in this matter . and i shewed in the entrance of this discourse , how this consideration doth fully confirm the truth proposed . chap. xvii . the strength of sin evidenced from its resistance unto the power of the law. the measure of the strength of any person , or defenced city , may be well taken from the opposition that they are able to withstand , and not be prevailed against . if we hear of a city that hath endured a long siege from a potent enemy , and yet is not taken or conquered , whose walls have endured great batteries , and are not demolished , though we have never seen the place , yet we conclude it strong , if not impregnable . and this consideration will also evidence the power and strength of indwelling-sin ; it is able to hold out , and not only to live , but also to secure its reign and dominion against very strong opposition that is made unto it . i shall instance only in the opposition that is made unto it , by the law , which is oft-times great and terrible , alwayes fruitless ; all its assaults are born by it , and it is not prevailed against . there are sundry things wherein the law opposeth it self to sin , and the power of it . as , first , it discovers it ; sin in the soul is like a secret hectical distemper in the body ; it s being unknown and unperceived , is one great means of its prevalency . or as traytors in a civil state , whilest they lye hid , they vigorously carry on their design . the greatest part of men in the world , know nothing of this sickness , yea death of their souls . though they have been taught somewhat of the doctrine of it , yet they know nothing of its power . they know it not so , as to deal with it as their mortal enemy . as a man , whatever he be told , cannot be said to know , that he hath an● hectical feaver , if he love his life , and set no● himself to stop its progress . this then the law doth , it discovers this enemy ; it convinceth the soul that there is such a traitor harbouring in his bosome , rom. 7. 7. i had no● known sin but by the law , for i had not known lust , except the law had said , thou shalt non covet . i had not known it , that is , fully , clearly , distinctly . conscience will somewhat tumultuate about it ; bu● a man cannot know it clearly and distinctly from thence . it gives a man such a sight of it , as the blind man had in the gospel upon the first touch of his eyes , he saw men like trees walking , obscurely , confusedly ; but when the law comes , th●● gives the soul a distinct sight of this indwelling-sin ▪ again , i had not known it , that is , the depths o● it , the root , the habitual inclination of my nature to sin , which is here called lust ; as it is by james , chap. 1. 14. i had not known it , or not known it to be sin , but by the law. this then the law doth , it draws out this traitor from its secret lurking places , the intimate recesses of the soul. a man when the law comes , is no more ignorant of his enemy ; if the will now perish by him , it is openly and knowingly ; he cannot but say that the law warned him of him , discovered him unto him , yea , and raised a concourse about him in the soul of various affections , as an officer doth , that discovers a thief or robber , calling out ●or assistance to apprehend him . secondly , the law not only discovers sin , but discovers it to be a very bad inmate , dangerous , yea , pernicious to the soul. rom. 7. 13. was then that which is good ( that is , the law ) made death unto me ? god forbid . but sin , that it might appear sin , working death in me by that which is good , that sin by the commandment might become exceeding sinful . there are many things in this verse wherein we are not at present concerned ; that which i only aim at , is , the manifestation of sin by the law ; it appears to be sin ; and the manifestation of it in its own colours ; it appears to be exceeding sinful . the law gives the soul to know the filth and guilt of this indwelling-sin , how great they are , how vile it is ; what an abomination , what an enmity to god , how hated of him , the soul shall never more look upon it as a small matter , what thoughts soever it had of it before , whereby it is greatly surprized . as a man that finds himself somewhat distempered , sending for a physician of skill , when he comes , requires his judgement of his distemper . he considering his condition , tells him , alas , i am sorry for you , the case is far otherwise with you than you imagine , your disease is mortal , and it hath proceeded so far pressing upon your spirits , and infecting the whole mass of your blood , that i doubt unless most effectual remedies be used , you will live but a very few hours . so is it in this case , a man may have some trouble in his mind and conscience about indwelling-sin ; he finds all not well , as it should be with him , more from the effects of sin , and its continual eruptions ▪ than the nature of it , which he hopes to wrestle withall : but now when the law comes , that lets the soul know , that its disease is deadly and mortal , that it is exceding sinful , as being the root and cause of all his alienation from god ; and thus also the law proceeds against it . thirdly , the law judgeth the person , or lets the sinner plainly know what he is to expect upon the account of this sin . this is the laws proper work , its discovering property is but preparative to its judging . the law is it self , when it is in the throne . here it minceth not the matter with sinners , as we use to do one with another , but tells him plainly , thou art the man , in whom this exceeding sinful sin doth dwell , and you must answer for the guilt of it . and this , methinks , if any thing , should rouze up a man to set himself in opposition to it , yea , utterly to destroy it . the law lets him know that upon the account of this sin , he is obnoxious to the curse and wrath of the great god against him ; yea , pronounceth the sentence of everlasting condemnation upon him upon that account : abide in this state and perish , is its language . it leaves not the soul without this warning in this world , and will leave it without excuse on that account in the world to come . fourthly , the law so follows on its sentence , that it disquiets and affrights the soul , and suffers in not to enjoy the least rest or quietness in harbouring its sinful inmate . when ever the soul hath indulged to its commands , made provision for it , immediately the law flies upon it , with the wrath and terrour of the lord , makes it quake and tremble : it shall h●ve no rest , but is like a poor beast th●t hath a deadly arrow sticking in its sides , that makes it restless where ever it is , and whatever it doth . fifthly , the law stays not here , but also it slays the soul , rom. 7. 3. that is , by its conviction of the nature , power , and desert of this indwelling-sin , it deprives him in whom it is of all that life of self-righteousness and hope , which formerly he sustained himself withall : it leaves him as a poor , dead , helpless , hopeless creature . and all this in the pursuit of that opposition that it makes against this sin . may we not now expect , that the power of it will be quelled , and its strength broken ; that it will die away before these strokes of the law of god ; but the truth is , such is its power and strength , that it is quite otherwise ; like him whom the poets feign to be born of the earth , when one thought to slay him by casting him on the ground , by every fall he recovered new strength , and was more vigorous than formerly : so is it with all the falls and repulses that are given to indwelling-sin by the law. for , first , it is not conquered . a conquest infers two things in respect of the conquered : first , loss of dominion ; and , secondly , loss of strength . where ever any one is conquered , he is dispoiled of both these . he loseth both his authority and his power . so the strong man armed , being prevailed against , he is bound , and his goods are spoiled . but now neither of these befalls indwelling-sin by the assaults of the law ; it loseth not one jot of its dominion nor strength by all the blows that are given unto it . the law cannot do this thing , rom. 8. 3. it cannot deprive sin of its power and d●minion ; for he that is under the l●w is also 〈◊〉 sin ; that is , what ever power the law gets upon the conscience of a man , so that he fears to sin , lest the sentence and curse of it should befall him , yet sin still reigns and rules in his heart . therefore saith the apostle , rom. 6. 14. sin shall not have dominion over you , for you are not under the law but under grace ; intimating plainly that though a person be in never so much subjection to the authority of the law , yet that will not exempt and acquit him from the dominion of sin . yea , the law by all its work upon the soul , instead of freeing and acquitting it from the reign of sin , and bondage unto it , doth accidentally greatly increase its misery and bondage ; as the sentence of the judge on the bench against a malefactor adds to his misery . the soul is under the dominion of sin , and it may be , abides in its wofull condition in much security ; fearing neither sin nor judgement . the law setting upon him in this condition by all the wayes forementioned , brings him into great trouble and perplexity , fear and terrour , but delivers him not at all . so that it is with the soul , as it was with the israelites when moses had delivered his message unto pharaoh , they were so far from getting liberty by it , that their bondage was increased , and they found that they were in a very evil case ; exod. 5. 17. yea and we shall see , that sin doth like pharaoh ; finding its rule disturbed , it grows more outragiously oppressive , and doubles the bondage of their souls . this is not then the work of the law to destroy sin , or deprive it of that dominion which it hath by nature . nor doth it by all these stroaks of the law lose any thing of its strength . it continues both its authority and its force ; it is neither destroyed , nor weakned . yea , secondly , it is so far from being conquered , that it is only enraged . the whole work of the law , doth only provoke and enrage sin ; and cause it as it hath opportunity , to put out its strength with more power and vigour and force than formerly . this the apostle shews at large , rom. 7. 9 , 10 , 11 , 12 , 13. but you will say , do we not see it by experience ; that many are wrought upon by the preaching of the law to a relinquishment of many sins , and amendment of their lives , and to a great contending against the eruptions of those other corruptions which they cannot yet mortifie ; and it cannot be denyed , but that great is the power and efficacy of the law , when preached and applyed to the conscience in a due manner : i answer , first , it is acknowledged , that very great and effectual is the power of the law of god. great are the effects that are wrought by it ; and it shall surely accomplish every end for which of god it is appointed . but yet the subduing of sin , is none of its work ; it is not designed of god unto that purpose ; and therefore it is no dishonour , if it cannot do that which is not its proper work , rom. 8. 3. secondly , whatever effects it have upon some , yet we see that in the most , such is the power and prevalency of sin , that it takes no impression at all upon them . may you not see every where men living many years in congregations where the law is powerfully preached , and applyed unto the consciences as to all the ends and purposes for which the lord is pleased to make use of it , and not once be moved by it ; that receive no more impression from the stroaks of it , than blows with a straw would give to an adamant . they are neither convinced by it , nor terrifyed , nor awed , nor instructed , but continue deaf , ignorant , senless , secure , as if they had never been told of the guilt of sin , or terrour of the lord. such as these are congregations full of , who proclaim the triumphing power of sin , over the dispensation of the law. thirdly , when any of the effects mentioned are wrought , it is not from the power of the letter of the law , but from the actual efficacy of the spirit of god , putting forth his vertue & power for that end and purpose ; and we deny not but that the spirit of the lord is able to restrain and quell the power of lust when he pleaseth ; and some wayes whereby he is pleased so to do we have formerly considered . but , fourthly , notwithstanding all that may be observed of the power of the law upon the souls of men , yet it is most evident that lust is not conquered , nor subdued , nor mortified by it . for , first , though the course of sin may be repelled for a season by the dispensation of the law , yet the spring and fountain of it , is not dryed up thereby , though it withdraws and hides it self for a season , it is as i have elsewhere shewed , but to shift out of a storm , and then to return again . as a travailer , in his way meeting with a violent storm of thunder and rain , immediately turns out of his way , to some house or tree for his shelter ; but yet this causeth him not to give over his journey ; so soon as the storm is over , he returns to his way and progress again . so is it with men in bondage unto sin : they are in a course of pursuing their lusts ; the law meets with them in a storm of thunder and lightning from heaven , terrifies and hinders them in their way ; this turns them for a season out of their course , they will run to prayer or amendment of life , for some shelter from the storm of wrath which is feared coming upon their consciences . but is their course stopped , are their principles altered ? not at all ; so soon as the storm is over , that they begin to wear out that sense and the terrour that was upon them , they return to their former course , in the service of sin again . this was the state with pharaoh once and again . secondly , in such seasons sin is not conquered but diverted . when it seems to fall under the power of the law , indeed it is only turned into a new channell , it is not dryed up . if you go and set a damm against the streams of a river , that you suffer no water to pass in the old course and channel , but it breaks out another way , and turns all its streams in a new course , you will not say you have dryed up that river ; though some that come and look into the old channel may think perhaps that the waters are utterly gone ; so is it in this case ; the streams of sin it may be run in open sensuality , and profaneness ; in drunkenness and vitiousness ; the preaching of the law sets a damm against these course ; conscience is terrified , and the man dares not walk in the wayes wherein he hath been formerly ingaged ; his companions in sin not finding him in his old wayes begin to laugh at him , as one that is converted and growing precise ; professors themselves begin to be perswaded , that the work of god is upon his heart , because they see his old streams dryed up ; but if there have been only a work of the law upon him , there is a damm put to his course , but the spring of sin is not dryed up , only the streams of it are turned another way : it may be the man is fallen upon other more secret , or more spiritual sins ; or if he be beat from them also , the whole strength of lust and sin will take up its residence in self-righteousness , and pour out thereby as filthy streams as in any other way whatever . so that notwithstanding the whole work of the law upon the souls of men , indwelling-sin will keep alive in them still , which is another evidence of its great power and strength . i shall yet touch upon some other evidences of the same truth , that i have under consideration ; but i shall be brief in them : in the next place then , the great endeavours of men ignorant of the righteousness of christ for the subduing and mortifying of sin , which are all fruitless , do evidence the great strength and power of it . men who have no strength against sin , may yet be made sensible of the strength of sin . the way whereby for the most part they come to that knowledge , is by some previous sense that they have of the guilt of sin . this men have by the light of their consciences ; they cannot avoid it : this is not a thing in their choyce , whether they will or no , they cannot but know sin to be evil , and that such an evil that renders them obnoxious to the judgement of god. this galls the minds and consciences of some so far , as that they are kept in awe , and d●re not sin as they would . being awed with a sense of the guilt of sin , and the terrour of the lord , men begin to endeavour to abstain from sin , at least from such sins as they have been most terrified ●bout . whilest they have this design in hand , the strength and power of sin begins to discover it self unto them ; they begin to finde that there is something in them , that is not in their own power ; for notwithstanding their resolutions and purposes , they sin still ; and that so , or in such a manner , as that their consciences inform them that they must therefore perish eternally . this puts them on self-endeavours to suppress the eruption of sin , because they cannot be quiet unless so they do ; nor have any rest or peace within . now being ignorant of that only way whereby sin is to be mortified , that is by the spirit of christ , they fix on many wayes in their own strength to suppress it , if not to slay it ; as being ignorant of that only way whereby consciences burthened with the guilt of sin may be pacified , that is by the blood of christ ; they endeavour by many other wayes to accomplish that end in vain ; for no man by any self-endeavours can obtain peace with god. some of the wayes whereby they endeavour to suppress the power of sin , which casts them into an unquiet condition , and their insufficiency for that end , we must look into . first , they will promise and bind themselves by vows from those sins , which they have been most liable unto , and so have been most perplexed withall . the psalmist shews this to be one great engine whereby false and hypocritical persons do endeavour to extricate and deliver themselves out of trouble and perplexity ; they make promises to god ; which he calls , flutering him with the lips , psal. 78. 36. so is it in this case ; being freshly galled with the guilt of any sin , that by the power of their temptations , they , it may be , have frequently been overtaken in , they vow and promise , that at least for some such space of time as they will limit , they will not commit that sin again , and this course of proceeding is prescribed unto them by some who pretend to direct their consciences in this duty . conscience of this , now makes them watch over themselves as to the outward act of the sin that they are galled with ; and so it hath one of these two effects ; for either they do abstain from it for the time they have prefixed ; or they do not : if they do not , as seldom they do , especially if it be a sin that hath a peculiar root in their nature and constitution , and is improved by custom into an habit , if any suitable temptation be presented unto them ; their sin is increased , and therewith their terrour , and they are wofully discouraged in making any opposition to sin ; and therefore for the most part after one or two vain attempts , or more it may be , knowing no other way to mortifie sin , but this of vowing against it , and keeping of that vow in their own strength , they give over all contests , and become wholly the servants of sin , being bounded only by outward considerations , without any serious endeavours for a recovery . or secondly , suppose that they have success in their resolutions , and do abstain from actual sins their appointed season ; commonly one of these two things ensue ; either they think that they have well discharged their duty , and so may a little now , at least for a season , indulge to their corruptions , and lusts , and so are entangled again in the same snares of sin as formerly ; or else they reckon that their vow and promise hath preserved them , and so sacrifice to their own net and drag , setting up a righteousness of their own against the grace of god ; which is so far from weakning indwelling-sin , that it strengthens it in the root and principle , that it may hereafter reign in the soul in security . or at the most , the best success that can be imagined unto this way of dealing with sin , is but the restraining of some outward eruptions of it , which tends nothing to the weakning of its power ; and therefore such persons by all their endeavours are very far from being freed from the inward toyling , burning , disquieting , perplexing power of sin . and this is the state of most men that are kept in bondage under the power of conviction ; hell , death , and the wrath of god are continually presented unto their consciences ; this makes them labour with all their strength against that in sin which most enrageth their consciences , and most increaseth their fears ; that is the actual eruption of it ; for , for the most part while they are freed from that , they are fafe ; though in the mean time , sin lye tumultuating in and defiling of the heart continually . as with running fores , outward repelling medicines may skin them over , and hinder their corruption from coming forth ; but the issue of them is , that they cause them to fester inwardly , and so prove , though it may be not so noysome and offensive as they were before , yet far more dangero●● so is it with this repelling of the power of co●●●ption by mens vows , and promises against it ; external eruptions are it may be restrained for a season ; but the inward root and principle is not weakned in the least . and most commonly this is the issue of this way ; that sin having gotten more strength , and being enraged by its restraint , breaks all its bounds , and captivates the soul unto all filthy abominations ; which is the principle as was before observed of most of the visible apostasies which we have in the world , 2 pet. 2. 19 , 20. the holy ghost compares sinners , because of the odious , fierce , poysonous nature of this indwelling-sin , unto lyons , bears , and asps , isa. 11. 6 , 7 , 8 , 9. now this is the excellency of gospel-grace , that it changes the nature and inward principles of these otherwise passionate and untamed beasts , making the wolf as the kid , the lyon as the lan● , and the bear as the cow. when this is effected , they may safely be trusted in ; a little childe may lead them : but these self-endeavours do not 〈◊〉 all change the nature , but restrain their outwar● violence : he that takes a lyon , or a wolf , and shuts him up from ravening , whilest yet his inward violence remains , may well expect that 〈◊〉 one time or other they will break their bonds , and fall to their former wayes of rapine and violence . however , shutting them up , doth not as we see , change their natures , but only restrain their rag● from doing open spoyl . so it is in this case ; it is grace alone that changeth the heart , and takes away that poyson and fiercerness that is in them by nature ; mens self-endeavours do b●● coerce them as to some outward eruptions . but , secondly , beyond bare vows and promises with some watchfulness to observe them in a rational use of ordinary means , men have put , and some do yet put themselves on extraordinary wayes of mortifying sin . this is the foundation of all that hath a shew of wisdom and religion in the papacy ; their hours of prayer , fastings , their immuring and cloystering themselves , their pilgrimages , penances , and self-torturing discipline , spring all from this root . i shall not speak of the innumerable evils that have attended these self-invented wayes of mortification , and how they all of them have been turned into means , occasions , and advantages of sinning ; nor of the horrible hypocrisie which evidently cleaves unto the most of their observers ; nor of that superstition which gives life to them all , being a thing riveted in the natures of some , and their constitutions , fixed on others by inveterate prejudices ; and the same by others taken up for secular advantages ; but i will suppose the best that can be made of it , and it will be found to be a self-invented design of men ignorant of the righteousness of god , to give a check to this power of indwelling-sin whereof we speak . and it 's almost incredible , what fearfull self-macerations , and horrible sufferings this design hath carryed men out unto : and undoubtedly their blind zeal and superstition will rise in judgement , and condemn the horrible sloth and negligence of the most of them to whom the lord hath granted the saving light of the gospel . but what is the end of these things ? the apostle in brief gives us an account ; rom. 9. 31 , 32. they attain not the righteousness aimed at ; they come not up unto a conformity to the law ; sin is not mortified ; no nor the power of it weakned ; but what it loseth in sensual , in carnal pleasures , it takes up with great advantage , in blindness , darkness , superstition , self-righteousness , and soul-pride , contempt of the gospel , and the righteousness of it , and reigns no less , than in the most proffigate sinners in the world. lastly , the strength , efficacy and power of this law of sin , may be farther evidenced from its life and in-being in the soul , notwithstanding the wound that is given unto it , in the first conversion of the soul to god ; and the continual opposition that is made unto it by grace . but this is the subject and design of another endeavour . it may now be expected , that we should here adde the especial vses of all this discovery that hath been made of the power , deceit , prevalency and success , of this great adversary of our souls . but as for what concerns that humility , self-abasement , watchfulness , diligence , and application unto the lord christ for relief , which will become those who find in themselves by experience the power of this law of sin , have been occasionally mentioned and inculcated through the whole preceding discourse , so for what concerns the actual mortification of it , i shall only recommend unto the reader for his direction , another small treatise written long since unto that purpose , which i suppose he may do well to consider together with this , if he find these things to be his concernment . to the only wise god our saviour , be glory and majesty , dominion , and power , both now and ever . amen . finis .