will dearly repent it, and then as it was with Esau when the blessing was gone, so it will be with them when their blessing is gone, repentance, and cries, and tears will be too late: for the Gospel hath its justice and terrors as well as the law. This is all in the text, but there is no intimation that our day of grace is as short as Esau's hope of the blessing was.

Obj. IV. Saul had but his time, which when he lost he was forsaken of God.'

Answ. Saul's sin provoked God to reject him from being king of Israel, and to appoint another in his stead: but if Saul had repented he had been saved after that, though not restored to the crown: and it is true, that as God withdrew from him the spirit of government, so many before death by the greatness of their sins, cause God to forsake them so far as to withhold those motions, and convictions, and fears, and disquietments in sin, which sometimes they had, and to give them over to a "reprobate mind," to commit " all uncleanness with greediness," and glory in it as being "past feeling." If it be thus with you, you would be no better, you would not be recovered, you thinksin is best for you, and hate all that would reform you.

Obj. v. 'It is said, 2 Cor. vi. 2. “Behold now is the accepted time, behold now is the day of salvation." And Heb. iii. 7. 12, 13. "To-day if ye will hear his voice, harden not your hearts- lest any of you be hardened by the de

ceitfulness of sin."

Answ. This saith no more than that the present time is the best, yea, the only certain time; and we are not sure that the day of salvation will continue any longer, because death may cut us off: but if it do not, yet sin is a hardening thing, and the longer we sin the more it hardeneth! yea God may withhold the motions of his Spirit, and leave us to ourselves, to the hardness of our hearts: and thus he doth by thousands of wicked persons, who are left in impenitency and hatred of the truth: but most certainly if those men repented they might be saved, and the very reason why they have not Christ and life is still because they will

not consent.

Direct. 6. Understand by what help and strength it is that the obedience to the gospel must be performed; not e Rom. i. 28. Eph. iv. 18, 19.

merely by your own strength, but by the help of grace, and strength of Christ: if he have but made you willing, he will help you to perform the rest.' You are not by this covenant to be a saviour and sanctifier to yourselves; but to consent that Christ be your Saviour, and the Holy Spirit your Sanctifier. You might else despair indeed if you were left to that which you are utterly unable to do. Though you must "work out your own salvation with fear and trembling, it is he that worketh in you to will and to do of his good pleasure "."

Direct. 7. Understand well the difference between mortal sins and infirmities, that you may not think that every sin is a sign of death or gracelessness; but may know the difference between those sins which should make you think yourselves unjustified, and those sins which only call for particular humiliation, being such as the justified themselves commit.' Though in the Popish sense we take no sin to be venial, that is, which in itself is properly no sin, nor deserveth death according to the law of works; yet the distinction between mortal and venial sin, is of very great necessity that is, between sins which prove a man in a state of death, or unjustified, and sins which consist with a state of grace and justification: between sins which the gospel pardoneth not, and those which it pardoneth, that is, all that stand with true repentance d. There are some sins which every one that repenteth of them, doth so forsake as to cease committing them: and there are some lesser sins, which they that repent of them do hate indeed, but yet frequently renew, as our defective degrees in the exercise of repentance itself, faith, love, trust, fear, obedience: our vain thoughts and words; some sinful passions, omissions of many duties of thought, affection, word or deed towards God or man; some minutes of time overslip us; prayer and other duties have a sinful coldness or remissness in them, and such like. Many such sins are fitly called infirmities and venial, because they consist with life and are forgiven: it is of great use to the peace of our consciences to discern the difference between these two, for one sort require a conversion to another state, and the other require but a parti

e Phil. ii. 13.

d De quà vide Tract. Rob. Baronii, of Mortal and Venial Sin.

eular repentance, and where they are unknown, are forgiven without particular repentance, because our general repentance is virtually, though not actually, particular as to them. One sort are cause of judging ourselves ungodly; and the other sort are only cause of filial humiliation. Any one may see the great need of discerning the difference; but yet it is a matter of very great judgment doctrinally to distinguish them, much more actually to discern them in every instance in yourselves. The way is to know first, what is the condition of the new covenant, and of absolute necessity to salvation or justification: and then every sin that is inconsistent with that condition is mortal, and the rest that are consistent and do consist with it are venial, or but infirmities: as venial signifieth only that sort of sin which is pardonable, and may consist with true grace, so a venial sin may be in an unsanctified person materially, where it is not pardoned; that is, e. g. his wandering thought, or passion, is a sin of that sort that in the godly is consistent with true grace: but as venial signifieth a sin that is pardoned, or pardonable without a regeneration, or conversion into a state of life from a state of death, so venial sin is in no unregenerate, unjustified person, but it is only the infirmities of the saints; and thus I here speak of it. In a word, that sin which actually consisteth with habitual repentance, and with the hatred of it, so far that you had rather be free from it than commit or keep it, and which consisteth with an unfeigned consent to the covenant, that God be your father, saviour, and sanctifier, and with the love of God above all, is but an infirmity or venial sin. But to know from the nature of the sin, which those are, requireth a volume by itself to direct you only.

Direct. VIII. Understand how necessary a faithful minister of Christ is, in such cases of danger and difficulty, to be a guide to your consciences; and open your case truly to them, and place so much confidence in their judgment of your state as their office, and abilities, and faithfulness do require, and set not up your timorous, darkened, perplexed judgments above theirs, in cases where they are fitter to judge.' Such a guide is necessary, both as appointed by Christ who is the author of his office, and in regard of the greatness, and danger, and difficulty of your case. Do you

not feel that you are insufficient for yourselves, and that you have need of help? sure a soul that is tempted to despair may easily feel it. You are very proud, or blindly selfconceited if you do not. And you may easily know that Christ that appointed them their office, requireth that they both be used and trusted in their office, as far as reason will allow. And where there is no office, yet ability and faithfulness deserve and require credit of themselves. Why else do you trust physicians and lawyers, and all artificers, in their several professions and arts, as far as they are reputed able and faithful? I know no man is to be believed as infallible as God is; but man is to be believed as man; and if you will use and trust your spiritual guide but so far as you use and trust your physician or lawyer, you will find the great benefit, if you choose aright.

Direct. Ix. Remember when you have sinned, how sure, and sufficient, and ready a remedy you have before you, in Jesus Christ and the covenant of grace; and that it is God's design in the way of redemption, not to save any man as innocent, that none may glory, but to save men that were first in sin and misery, and fetch them as from the gates of hell, that love and mercy may be magnified on every one that is saved, and grace may abound more by the occasion of sin's abounding. Not that any should" continue in sin because grace hath abounded: God forbid." But that we may magnify that grace and mercy which hath abounded above our sins; and turn the remembrance of our greatest sins to the admiration of that great and wonderful mercy. To magnify mercy when we see the greatness of our sin, and to love much because much is forgiven, this is to please God, and answer the very design and end of our redemption: but to magnify sin, and extenuate mercy, and to say, My sin is greater than can be forgiven, this is to please the devil, and cross God's design in the work of our redemption. Is your disease so great that no other can cure it? It is the fitter for Christ to honour his office upon, and God to honour his love and mercy on. Do but " come to him that you may have life," and you shall find that no greatness of sin past, will cause him to refuse you, nor any infirmities which you are willing to be rid of, shall cause him to disown you, or

cast you out. The prodigal is not so much as upbraided with his sins, but finds himself before he is aware, in his fa ther's arms, clothed with the best robes, the ring and shoes, and joyfully entertained with a feast. Remember that there is enough in Christ, and the promise to pardon and heal all sins which thou art willing to forsake.

Direct. x. Take heed of being so blind or proud in thy humility, as to think that thou canst be more willing to be a servant of Christ, than he is to be thy Saviour, or more willing to have grace than God is to give it thee, or more willing to come home to Christ, than he is to receive and welcome thee.' Either thou art willing or unwilling to have Christ and grace, to be sanctified and freed from sin : if thou be willing Christ and his grace shall certainly be thine: indeed if thou wouldst have pardon without holiness, this cannot be, nor is there any promise of it: but if thou wouldst have Christ to be thy saviour and king, and his Spirit to be thy sanctifier, and hadst rather be perfect in love and holiness than to have all the riches of the world, then art thou in sincerity that which thou wouldst be in perfection: understand that God accounteth thee to be what thou truly desirest to be. The great work of grace lieth in the renewing of the will: if the will be sound, the man is sound. I mean not the conquered, uneffectual velleity of the wicked, that wish they could be free from pride, sensuality, gluttony, drunkenness, lust, and covetousness, without losing any of their beloved honour, wealth, or pleasure; that is, when they think on it as the way to hell they like not their sin, but wish they were rid of it, but when they think of it as pleasing their fleshly minds, they love it more, and will not leave it, because this is the prevailing thought and will. So Judas was unwilling to sell his Lord, as it was the betraying of the innocent, and the way to hell, but he was more willing as it was the way to get his hire. So Herod was unwilling to kill John Baptist, as it was the murder of a prophet: but his willingness was the greater, as it was the pleasing of his damsel, and freeing himself from a troublesome reprover. But if thy willingness to have Christ and perfect holiness be more than thy unwillingness, and more than thy willingness to keep thy sin, and enjoy the honour, wealth, and pleasures of the world, then thou hast an un