self into so evil a condition and state of things: and not to be moved with sad apprehensions is nothing else but not to have considered, or to have promised to himself pardon upon easier conditions than God hath promised. Therefore, let the penitent often meditate of the four last things, death and the day of judgment; the portion of the godly, and the sad, intolerable portion of accursed souls; of the greatness and extension of the duty of repentance, and the intention of its acts, or the spirit and manner of its performance; of the uncertainty of pardon in respect of his own secret, and sometimes undiscerned defects; the sad evils that God hath inflicted sometimes even upon penitent persons; the volatile nature of pleasure, and the shame of being a fool in the eyes of God and good men: the unworthy usages of ourselves, and evil returns to God for his great kindnesses; let him consider, that the last night's pleasure is not now at all, and how infinite a folly it is to die for that which hath no being; that one of the greatest torments of hell will be the very indignation at their own folly, for that foolish exchange which they have made; and there is nothing to allay the misery, or to support the spirit, of a man, who shall so extremely suffer, for so very a nothing: that it is an unspeakable horror, for a man eternally to be restless in the vexations of an everlasting fever, and that such a fever is as much short of the eternal anger of God, as a single sigh is of that fever; that a man cannot think what eternity is, nor suffer with patience, for one minute, the pains which are provided for that eternity; and to apply all this to himself, for aught every great sinner knows, this shall be in his lot; and if he dies before his sin is pardoned, he is too sure it shall be so: and whether his sin is pardoned or no, few men ever know till they be dead; but very many men presume; and they commonly, who have the least reason. He that often and long considers these things, will not have cause to complain of too merry a heart: but when men repent only in feasts, and company, and open house, and carelessness, and inconsideration, they will have cause to repent that they have not repented.

89. IV. Every true penitential sorrow is rather natural than solemn; that is, it is the product of our internal apprehensions, rather than outward order and command. He that

repents only by solemnity, at a certain period, by the expectation of to-morrow's sun, may indeed act a sorrow, but cannot be sure that he shall then be sorrowful. Other acts of repentance may be done in their proper period, by order, and command, upon set days, and indicted solemnities; such as. is, fasting, and prayer, and alms, and confession, and disciplines, and all the instances of humiliation: but sorrow is not to be reckoned in this account, unless it dwells there before. When there is a natural abiding sorrow for our sins, any public day of humiliation can bring it forth, and put it into activity; but when a sinner is gay and intemperately merry upon Shrove-Tuesday, and resolves to mourn upon AshWednesday; his sorrow hath in it more of the theatre than of the temple, and is not at all to be relied upon by him, that resolves to take severe accounts of himself.

90. V. In taking accounts of our penitential sorrow, we must be careful that we do not compare it with secular sorrow, and the passions effected by natural or sad accidents. For he that measures the passions of the mind by disproportionate objects, may as well compare music and a rose, and measure weights by the bushel, and think that every great man must have a great understanding, or that an ox hath a great courage, because he hath a great heart. He that finds fault with his repentance, because his sorrow is not so great in it, as in the saddest accidents of the world, should do well to make them equal if he can; if he can, or if he cannot, his work is done. If he can, let it be done, and then the inquiry and the scruple are at an end. If he cannot, let him not trouble himself; for what cannot be done, God never requires of us to do.

91. VI. Let no man overvalue a single act of sorrow, and call it repentance, or be at rest as soon as he hath wiped his eyes. For to be sorrowful (which is in the commandment) is something more than an act of sorrow; it is a permanent effect, and must abide as long as its cause is in being; not always actual and pungent, but habitual and ready, apt to pass into its symbolical expressions upon all just occasions, and it must always have this signification, viz.

92. VII. No man can be said ever truly to have grieved for his sins, if he, at any time after, does remember them with pleasure. Such a man might indeed have had an act of sor

and will prevail over it." But this is to be applied so as to cure only the wounds of a conscience that ought to be healed, that is, so as to advance the reputation and glories of the divine mercy: but, at no hand, to create confidences in persons incompetent. If the man be worthy, and capable, and yet tempted to a prevailing and excessive sorrow; to him, in this case, and so far, the application is to be made. In other cases there is no need, but some danger.

96. X. Although sorrow for sin must be constant and habitual, yet to particular acts of sin, when a special sorrow is apportioned, it cannot be expected to be of the same manner and continuance, as it ought to be in general repentances, for our many sins, and our evil habits. For every single folly of swearing rashly, or vainly, or falsely, there ought to be a particular sorrow, and a special deprecation; but, it may be, another will intervene, and a third will steal in upon you, or you are surprised in another instance; or you are angry with yourself for doing so, and that anger transports you to some indecent expression; and as a wave follows a wave, we shall find instances of folly crowd in upon us. If we observe strictly, we shall prevent some, but we shall observe too many to press us; if we observe not, they will multiply without notice and without number. But in either case, it will be impossible to attend to every one of them with a special, lasting sorrow and yet one act of sorrow is too little for any one chosen sin, as I have proved formerly. In this case, when we have prayed for pardon of each, confessed it, acknowledged the folly of it, deprecated the punishment, suffered the shame, and endured the sorrow, and begged for aids against it, and renewed our force; it will fall into the heap of the state and generality of repentance: that is, it will be added to the portentous number of follies, for which, in general and indefinite comprehensions, we must beg for pardon, humbly and earnestly, all the days of our life. And I have no caution to be added here, but this only: viz. That we be not too hasty to put it into the general heap, but according to the greatness, or the danger, or its mischief, or its approach towards a habit, so it is to be kept in fetters by itself alone. For he that quickly passes it into the general heap, either cares too little for it, or is too soon surprised by

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a new one; which would not so easily have happened, if he

had been more severe to the first.

97. XI. It is a great matter, that, in our inquiries concerning our penitential sorrow, we be able to discern what is the present motive and incentive of it: whether fear or love, whether it be attrition or contrition. For by this we can tell best, in what state or period of pardon we stand. I do not say, we are to inquire what motive began our sorrow: for fear begins most commonly; but we are to regard what is the present inducement, which continues the hatred; that is, whither our first fears have borne us? If fear only be the agent, at the best it is still imperfect; and our pardon a great way off from being finished; and our repentance, or state of reformation, nothing promoted. But of these things I have, in the former doctrine, given accounts. To which I only add this, as being an advice or caution flowing from the former discourses.

98. XII. He that, upon any pretence whatsoever, puts off his repentance to the last or the worst of his days, hath just reason to suspect, that even when he doth repent, he hath not the grace of contrition, that is, that he repents for fear, not for love: and that his affections to sin remain. The reason is, because what proceeds from an intolerable and a violent cause, as repentance in sickness and danger of death, or in the day of our calamity, does,-is, of itself for the present, defective in a main part, and cannot arrive at pardon, till the love of God be in it: so Christ said of Mary Magdalen; "Much hath been forgiven her, because she loved much;" but from a great fear to pass into love is a work of time, the effect of a long progression in repentance, and it is not easy to be done in those straitnesses of time and grace, which is part of the evil portion of dying sinners. Therefore, besides those many and great considerations, which I have before represented, upon this account alone, repentance must not be put off to our death-bed, because our fear must pass into love, before our sins are taken off by pardon.

proponimus illuc

Ire, fatigatas ubi Dædalus exuit alas h.

We have a great way to go, a huge progression to make, a

h Juv. 3, 25.

and will prevail over it." But this is to be applied so as to cure only the wounds of a conscience that ought to be healed, that is, so as to advance the reputation and glories of the divine mercy: but, at no hand, to create confidences in persons incompetent. If the man be worthy, and capable, and yet tempted to a prevailing and excessive sorrow; to him, in this case, and so far, the application is to be made. In other cases there is no need, but some danger.

96. X. Although sorrow for sin must be constant and habitual, yet to particular acts of sin, when a special sorrow is apportioned, it cannot be expected to be of the same manner and continuance, as it ought to be in general repentances, for our many sins, and our evil habits. For every single folly of swearing rashly, or vainly, or falsely, there ought to be a particular sorrow, and a special deprecation; but, it may be, another will intervene, and a third will steal in upon you, or you are surprised in another instance; or you are angry with yourself for doing so, and that anger transports you to some indecent expression; and as a wave follows a wave, we shall find instances of folly crowd in upon us. If we observe strictly, we shall prevent some, but we shall observe too many to press us; if we observe not, they will multiply without notice and without number. But in either case, it will be impossible to attend to every one of them with a special, lasting sorrow and yet one act of sorrow is too little for any one chosen sin, as I have proved formerly. In this case, when we have prayed for pardon of each, confessed it, acknowledged the folly of it, deprecated the punishment, suffered the shame, and endured the sorrow, and begged for aids against it, and renewed our force; it will fall into the heap of the state and generality of repentance: that is, it will be added to the portentous number of follies, for which, in general and indefinite comprehensions, we must beg for pardon, humbly and earnestly, all the days of our life. And I have no caution to be added here, but this only viz. That we be not too hasty to put it into the general heap, but according to the greatness, or the danger, or its mischief, or its approach towards a habit, so it is to be kept in fetters by itself alone. For he that quickly passes it into the general heap, either cares too little for it, or is too soon surprised by

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