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ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A77976	The eighth book of Mr Jeremiah Burroughs. Being a treatise of the evil of evils, or the exceeding sinfulness of sin. Wherein is shewed, 1 There is more evil in the least sin, than there is in the greatest affliction. 2 Sin is most opposite to God. 3 Sin is most opposite to mans good. 4 Sin is opposite to all good in general. 5 Sin is the poyson, or evil of all other evils. 6 Sin hath a kind of infiniteness in it. 7 Sin makes a man conformable to the Devil. All these several heads are branched out into very many particulars. / Published by Thomas Goodwyn, William Bridge, Sydrach Sympson, William Adderly, [double brace] William Greenhil, Philip Nye, John Yates.	Burroughs, Jeremiah, 1599-1646.; Goodwin, Thomas, 1600-1680.	1654 (1654)	Wing B6063; Thomason E819_1; ESTC R207405	254,421	485

their Choice Many of you when it comes to it wil be loather to loose a groat than commit a sin loather to endure the least shame or a nick-name than to commit a sin Are there not many Servants here or Children wil tel a Lye when they have done an evil rather than suffer a little shame in the Family from their Parents or Masters or fellow Servants and Children What a difference is there between thy heart and the heart of the Martyrs they could endure al tortures on their Bodys that could be devised rather than to commit any known sin against their Consciences and thou wilt venture to commit a known sin against thy Conscience rather than to be found out in some fault and have an angry word or a little shame If it be but to gain two pence they wil tel a Lye and are willing to chuse sin rather than endure the least trouble a mighty difference between thee and them You know how it was with Paul when he speaks of Afflictions these be his Expressions but light and momentary but for a moment but they work an exceeding weight of Glory mark light Afflictions what were they you would account them heavie if they were upon you Blessed Paul that great vessel to bear the name of God as great an instrument of Gods glory as any in the world except Christ himself and yet this Paul was whipt up down as if he had been a Rogue put into the Stocks had not Cloaths to cover his nakedness had not Bread to eat and was accounted the off scouring of the world and yet he accounts all this but Light But when he comes to Sin that is heavie Oh wretched man that I am Thus he gives a dreadful shreek at sin see what a difference he makes between Affliction and Sin and accounts it abundantly more evil to be in sin than in affliction And so Christ himself that is the Wisdom of the Father and therfore could not chuse but judge right and yet he was content for the sake of poor Souls to come and under go al kind of Affliction and Pain and Sorrow so as to be made a man of Sorrows according as the Scripture speaks How was he content to have his Body whipt and scourged was laughed at and scorned and though he was possessor of Heaven and Earth yet had not a house to put his head in yea to bear the wrath of God for the Sin of man to be made a Curse for man under the Curse of ●he Law and to be under that pain extremity through the wrath of his Father when he sweat great drops of Bloud all this Christ would endure But now if it had been to have committed the least sin to have saved al the World Christ would never have done it though Christ could be content to suffer all kind of Miseries yea the wrath of his Father yet had it been to have committed the least sin Christ would have let al the World be Damned eternally rather than he would have done that there is so much evil in it Afflictions taken in the strength and latitude of them yet they have no greater evil in them then Christ is capable of I say take them in the strength and latitude of them certainly there was never any Affliction since the world began endured like Christs and yet these be no other than Christ God and Man is capable of and it may stand with the blessedness of his Divinity That that person both God and Man could be under such Afflictions Christ was content with these He made his Soul an offering for Sin But sin is so great an evil that Christ is not capable of it Christ never entertained the least thought of it but cast it off if it came to him therfore certainly there is more evil in the least Sin than there is in the greatest Affliction The Afflictions that Christ indured though they were not every way the same with the damned in hell yet certainly there was the wrath of God as really and truly upon Christ as truly as upon the damned in hell as really though I say not in every kind in the same way and manner and therefore see Christ was Capable of that evil of the wrath of the Almighty upon his Soul and yet not capable of Sin he was willing to undergo that and yet not to have the least guilt of Sin applied to him and therefore certainly there is more evil in the least Sin than in the greatest Affliction CHAP. III. There is some good in Affliction but none in Sin First no good of Entitie Secondly No good of Causality Thirdly No good principle from whence Sin can come Fourthly No Good anexed as is to Afflictions viz. 1 Of Promise 2 Of Evid●nce 3 Of Blessing Also Five different workings of the hearts of the Saints under Sin and under Affliction Fifthly It 's not capable of any Good 1 Adde all the good to sin that all the Creatures in heaven and earth have yet it cannot make sin good 2 Good ends though 1. to help against temptation 2. to do good to others 3. to glorifie God cannot make sin good 4 God can not make sin good Sixthly It 's not comparitively good WEL for further Arguments though this one thing were enough to stop all mouths in the world and make every Soul subscribe and acknowledg that there is greater Evil in the least Sin than in any Affliction I shal be large in this Argument because it is of wonderful Concernment to stop men in their course of Sin and to humble them for sin and make them resolve against sin and to see their miserable estate in sin and so see their need of Christ First I shall fully make it out That Affliction is to be chosen rather than sin 1 First Because there is some good in Affliction but none in Sin 2 Because Sin hath more Evil in it than Affliction This Second I shal shew in the following Chapters First Affliction hath some good in it but sin hath none You know what David saith Ps 119 71. It is good for me that I have been Afflicted thus he spake of Affliction But when St. Paul speaks of Sin he saith In me that is in my flesh dwelleth no good Rom. 7. as if he should say So far as I am Unregenerate in my Unregenerate part there is no good at all he cals sin by the name of flesh there is no good at all in Sin First There is no good of Entity or Being all things that have a Being there is some good in them for God hath a Being and every thing that hath a being hath some good in it because it is of God but Sin is a Non Entity a no being It s rather the deprivation of a Being then any being at al here is a great mystery of Iniquity That that which is a Non-entity in it self yet should have such a mighty efficacy to trouble heaven

is the first Your Sin is opposite to al Good spoils al Good Secondlie Sin brings a Curse upon all I opened before how it puts man under a Curse but now I am to shew how it brings a Curse upon the whol World Gen. 3. Cursed shall the Earth be for thy sake and so by the same reason upon the whol World that thou hast to do withal not only the Sinner but through mans sin the world is under a Curse and therefore it is a most dangerous thing for any man or woman to seek after happiness in the things of the world when as the whol world is under a Curse and wilt thou seek thy happiness in that which is under a Curse no mervail though the Devil himself be called the god of this World why because the world is accursed through the Sin of man Sin brings a Curse upon the whol World Thirdly Sin is a burden to Heaven and Earth to all Creatures Rom. 8. 22. The whol Creation groans and travels in pain to be delivered and that through the Sin of man Now what is the evil of Sin when it is so weightie that it makes the whol frame of Heaven and Earth to groan to bear the burden of it It may be thy Sin is light to thy Soul thou earriest it lightlie but as light as it is to thee it is such a heavie burden to Heaven and Earth and the whol Frame of the Creation that if God did not hold it by his mightie Power it would make it not only shake but fall down Fourthly Sin turns the greatest Good into the greatest Evil therefore opposite to all Good As thus Take the greatest good of man in prosperitie the more prosperitie thou hast though a fruit of Gods Bountie yet thy Sin turns it to the greatest evil to thee As if Poyson get in Wine it works more strongly than in Water so Sin in a prosperous Estate usually works more strongly to turn it to a greater evil than Sin in a lower Estate Poor men by Sin have their Water poysoned and rich men by Sin have their Wine poysoned Now poysoned Wine hath more strength than poysoned Water And it turns not only prosperitie but the best means not only the means of grace but the better any means is thou injoyest the more evil it is turned into to thee except the means take away the sinfulness of thy heart if thou retainest the sinfulness of thy heart the more powerful Sermons thou hearest and the more glorious Truths laid open the worse will be thy condition and thou wilt one day curse the time that ever thou hadst such means Yea Sin turns God to be the greatest evil and makes him the greatest evil in all his Attributes And Christ himself though infinitely good to be the greatest evil Christ is a stumbling stone to wicked men and laid by God a stumbling stone What! Christ the precious Corner stone that hath infinite Treasures of all Excellencie in whom the Fulness of the God head dwels bodilie yet this Christ a stumbling stone and the greatest evil through sin to wicked men so that one day they will curse the time that ever they heard of Christ So Sin is opposite to all good because it turns the greatest good to the greatest evil Fifthly and Lastly Sin is the greatest evil Because if let alone it would bring all things to Confusion Therfore it is said by Christ all things subsists were it not for Christ who sets himself against the evil of sin al things would be brought to Confusion 1 Joh. 5. 19. The whole world lies in wickedness Just as a Carrion lies in slime and filth and there rots so the whol world would be in the same case that the Carrion is that lies in filth and brought to confusion were it not that God hath his number of Elect and they keep the world from confusion Now put all these together sin spoils all brings a Curse upon all is a burthen to heaven and earth turns the greatest good to the greatest evil and would bring all things to Confusion if let alone This is the evil of sin in Opposition to all good There be but Three more and they be 1 To shew how sin is the evil of all evils whatsoever 2 Hath a kind of infiniteness in it And 3 It hath Reference to the Devil But these I cannot come to in this Chapter but shall in the following to conclude all much you have read of the evil of sin and how it is above all afflictions afflictions are of a lower nature Oh Brethren This is that we should seek for and prise to injoy those means that may lessen sin and oppose wickedness among us And of all others these be the two great means to crush sin and bring down or make it less in all places the great Ordinance of the Magistracy and the great Ordinance of the Ministry Now as I told you before Reproach hath come to our Nation through sin and from whence is it sin hath grown to that height it hath but because there hath been corruption in both great Corruption in Magistracy and Ministery among us As we read of Dan and Bethel two Calves set up there Dan signifieth Judgement and Bethel The house of God So there was great Corruption in Dan and Bethel places of Judgement Magistracy and Bethel the house of God in the Ministry Now it hath pleased God of late to begin to be merciful to us this way through that great Ordinance of good he hath appointed for us The Assembly of Parliament to purge both Dan and Bethel Magistracy and Ministry to cast out Corruption from places of Judgement and the House of God And as we are to bless God for this so we are to further this work of theirs and stand by them to the utmost that we are able in all good wayes those Worthies of God in that great Assembly for the finishing of that Work which they have begun and that our sins and wickedness may be done away from among us And for that which hath been done certainly God hath received much praise and we have cause to bless God for it And those that have gone on in a good way according to what the Law doth permit them they are to be incouraged And in a more especial manner you that be the especial means of good to this Land I mean in regard of Safety and your imployment the Marriners in whom much of the Strength of this Nation consists for our Walls be Water and Wooden Walls Seas and Ships be the Walls of this Land and therefore much of the Good and of the Safety and Prosperity of this State depends upon those And if God stir up their hearts to the maintainance of their Protestation and Parliament and Liberties and to set themselves against Popery and Superstition and to incourage the Parliament in their good way this is that we be to bless God for and incourage you in We

had need take heed to our selves and think certainly there is more evil in my heart more opposition in my heart against God than I have been aware of What say you now Will you venture to commit sin for a groat or six pence if there be so much opposition against God in it Were it not better to be under any Affliction than under the guilt of Sin if there be in it such opposition to God This is the First general Head nothing is so opposite to God as Sin I say Sin is most opposite to God CHAP. VIII The workings of Sin is alwayes against God The Scripture calls it 1 Enmity 2 Walking contrary 3 Fighting 4 Resisting 5 Striving 6 Rising against God SEcondly As the nature of Sin is opposite to God so in the workings of Sin there is a continual working against God A sinful heart that is alwayes stirring and working is alwayes working againk God And therefore you shall observe these several Expressions the Holy Ghost hath concerning Sin 1 The holy Ghost calls it Enmity to God Rom. 8. 7. The wisdom of the flesh the best part the flesh hath is enmity against God 2 Yea The holy Ghost saith it is a walking contrary unto God Levit. 26. you shall have it there in many places If you walk contrary unto me 21. and 28. vers and divers others 3 It is a fighting against God Acts 5. 39. and Acts 23. 9. in these two places rejecting of the Gospel is called a fighting against God 4 And in Acts 7. 51. You do alwayes resist the holy Ghost there is a company of men naturally walk contrary resisting and fighting against God We see we had need take heed of opposing the Ministery of the Gospel for while you do that you fight against God You think you do but oppose such and such men but half a dozen in the parish that you oppose but certainly the opposing the Golpel is not a fighting against us men but against God you may turn it off with what names you will and put what pretences you wil upon it let me tell you They that strike upon the lanthorn offer violence to the Candle therein 5 Sin in Scripture is called striving against God Isa 45. 9. Wo unto him that striveth with his Maker Let the potsheard strive with the potsheards of the earth So far as Sin doth prevail in thy heart or in thy life so far thou art guilty of striving with thy Maker 6 A rising against God By Sin the Soul doth rise against God And for that you have an Expression in the 2. Micah 8. Even my people of late are risen up as an Enemy these be strange expressions enmity walking contrary striving fighting resisting rising against God and yet this is in Sin But that I may open it further I shall shew how sin doth fight strive and rise against God CHAP. IX How sin resist God 1 It 's a hating of God 2 It 's rebellion against God 3 It 's a despising of God FIrst Sin doth resist God in his Authority in his Soveraignty in his Dominion over the Creature the language of Sin is God shall not reign It is the setting of the Will of a base wretched Creature against the will of the infinite eternal glorious God And is there not evil in this though it may be thou doest not on purpose do so set thy will against God yet it is so in sin there is the setting of thy will against the will of the infinite eternal God resisting the Soveraignty and Majesty and Dominion of the infinite God Yea thou doest resist-God in his Law thou resisteth and opposeth God in that righteous Law of his which he gave thee to obey Quest But how is this in every Sin It may be in some great and notorious sins this may be but is this fighting against God striving and rising and walking contrary to him and so of the rest is this in every sin Answ For that I Answer 1 That every Sin comes from the same root and look what venom there is in any one sin for the nature of it it is in every sin though not for its degree 'T is true one sin may have a higher degree of evil in it than another but every sin is invenomed with the same evil That which is the venom of any one sin is the venom of all all comes from the same root As in a Tree there is more Sap in an Arm of the Tree than in a little Sprig but the Sprig hath the same Sap for kind that the Arm of the Tree hath and it al comes from the same root So though there be more venom in some gross crying sins than in some others yet there is no sin but hath the same Sap and the same venom for the kind that every sin hath that the worst sin hath 2 Yea Consider further That God doth not account sin only according to mans intentions in sinning what man intends but what the nature of the sin tends unto not what I do aim at in my sinning but what my sin doth aim at There is the end of the agent and the end of the act now t is true though the end of a Sinner be not alwaies to strive against God and f●ght with God yet the end of his Sin is so though not of the Sinner I beseech you observe how God may lay grievous Sins to their charge and that he doth not account of a mans Sins according to his intentions but according to that which is in the nature of his Sin as now you would think it a strange Sin to charge any man in the world with hating of God come to any man though the greatest Sinner in the world the most notorious villain and charge him thus Thou art a vile wretch thou hatest the living God he would revile you and be ready to to spit in your face and yet it is said He hates God In the 1 Rom. the Apostle in the catalogue of Sins when he would shew the state of all men by Nature for the first Seven Chapters of the Epistle to the Romans are to shew the nature of the Jews and Gentiles and among others he tels them there were those that were haters of God among other notorious Sins haters of God is one But I will shew it in a more plainer wav in the Second Commandement the veriest villain in the Nation would spit in vour face if you should say he hates God What say you to him that will seem devoute and worship God in a more glorious way then he hath appointed the Scripture saith he hates God See the Second Commandement Thou shalt not make unto thy self an graven image nor c. Thou shalt not bow down thy self to them nor worship them c. for I will visit the Sin of the Fathers upon the Children unto the third and fourth generation of them that HATE me Why is this set in the Second Commandement rather than

take a man that lies as it were scalding in Gods wrath his conscience burning and bringing even Hell to him that he cries and roars in the anguish of his soul for sin one would think certainly this man will never have to do more with sin that is in this horror and anguish and trouble for sin certainly he will never keep company be drunk be unclean or cozen any more But this may be to the admiration of Men and Angels to see how men and womens hearts are set upon sin that notwithstanding al that anguish and horror that they have many times for it yet they will to it again and that as greedily as ever yea and somtimes more greedily for if once a man consider I beseech you what I say hath overcome the trouble of conscience for Sin and fallen to it again he will then be more greedy he will slight conscience then and scorn at conscience then and make nothing of it if once he have out stood conscience As an unruly horse if he have but once cast his Rider then let him come on his back he cares not for him he contemns him he will quickly throw him off again So when the stubborn unruly lusts of a mans heart have once cast off conscience that a man or woman have been once under terrors of conscience for sin and yet fall to it again such a mans condition is very lamentable I● say not wholly desperate I dare not say so for Gods thoughts are higher than ours as high as the Heaven is above the Earth but this mans condition is very lamentable there is this strength in sin in the soul that all the terrors in the world will not breed a devorce between sin and the soul But when once the soul can come to say with David Against thee against thee only have I sinned in my Sins I have gone against that God who is so infinitely above all praise and glorie This is the humiliation if any thing make a devorce between Sin and the Soul this will do it This is the third Corollarie That therefore there be verie few humbled for Sin aright because not thus humbled CHAP. XVIII The Fourth Corollarie Admire the Patience of God in seeing so much Sin in the World and yet bear it FOurthly If this be so that sin is so much against God doth so much wrong God Hence then we have all cause to stand and admire at the infinite patience of the great God that shall behold so much sin in the world from such poor wretched vile Creatures and yet shall bear it 'T is true those that do not know how sin doth make against God strikes at him and wrongs him they are not so much taken with the patience of God and with the long suffering of God But now that man or woman that comes to know how sin wrongs God and comes to understand this such a one cannot but to amazment stand and wonder at Gods infinite patience that such a great God who seeth himself so struck at fought against opposed and wronged by such wretched Creatures that yet he doth forbear crushing them too pieces presently I beseech you Brethren consider do but take along with you what I have said about Sin how it is against God and then consider how all sins that are committed God is present at it stands and looks upon it Do but think somtimes with your selves when you are among a great concourse of people among a company of prophane wretched people as in Markets Fairs Taverns Inns and Ale-houses how is Gods Name blasphemed there What daring of the blessed God what scorning and contemning of his Word and Sacraments and Ordinances well and now carry along that thought how God is wronged in all these struck at in all this and what an infinite God this is and then think how God stands by them heareth every Oath seeth every filthy act of Uncleanness seeth every Drunkard and yet when the least word of his mouth were enough to sink them to the bottomless-pit yet God is patient the first second and third time yea a hundred times Perhaps thou hast been a Blasphemer twenty years forty years a Swearer and when thou comest in company Oh the wicked Oaths that come from thee and hidious Uncleanness and abominable wickedness and yet God stands by and looks upon the Swearer and is patient all the while Certainly Brethren there is no man in all the world that is wronged as God is and yet man is not able to bear wrong from his equal if he have power in his hand to prevent it What! Shall he wrong me I will make him know what it is to wrong me You cannot bear any wrong from your fellow Creature Oh consider what wrong God hath born from you and others stand and admire at the infinite patience and long-suffering of the Lord Truly Brethren when any mans Conscience comes to be inlightened and awakened then the greatest wonder in the world to such a Conscience is the Patience and long-suffering of God Oh! that God should be so patient and long-suffering unto me all this time of my life that I am out of Hell he stands and wonders that he is out of Hell and wonders at others that others should not be affected with the patience of God Certainly brethren that wrong is done unto God by sin as that if any one man that had all the patience of all the men and women in the world put into his heart all the patience and meekness that ever was in all the Saints since the beginning of the world if it were all distilled into the heart of one man or woman and suppose that this man or woman were but wronged as God is it were impossible but that that man or woman should break forth with revenge against those wrongs done to him or her it were impossible for such an one to bear so far as he can see himself able I mean to right himself so far he could not bear the wrongs done to him But now God shews himself here to be infinite in patience and long-suffering as well as infinite in any other Attribute of his Brethren it wil be an especial part of the glory of the great day of Judgment that when all the wrong that ever was done to God from the beginning of the world by sinners shal then be opened at the day of Judgment Alas we see but little wrong done to God now we look upon notorious wretches and think they wrong God now we see but little but at the day of Judgment then all the secret villanies and wickedness that ever was committed in secret places since the beginning of the world in all places of the world then shal it all appear And then how will it appear to Men and Angels how God was wronged by his Creature and then there will be the patience of God seen that he should be so patient so many thousand years together notwithstanding

pervers against their acquaintance neighbors family neerest friends we cannot imagine somtimes what is the reason Certainly this is one especial reason there is much guilt upon their consciences and spirits and this doth so disquiet and vex them that they fling out at God and his Word and every one they can have no quiet they be so vexed and gauled with that guilt upon their spirits there is a great deal of cause to suspect much guilt to be upon those that be so outragious and can bear nothing that have their hearts rise against the Word especially Brethren if you see any one that hath any light of Conscience and hath made profession heretofore if such an one shall frowardly flie out against the Word and those that be godlie you may conclude there is some woful guilt upon that mans spirit he is so froward and peevish and disquiet as he is And so we find it in Saul he was a man at first of a very quiet spirit and very moderate but after Saul being a man much enlightened and had forsaken God and had contracted abundance of guilt upon his soul he was a most froward perverse spirit as any we reade of in the Book of God then how froward was he with David and the Priests of God and so outragious as that he slaies them all a bloody man after he had contracted much guilt Do you see men so froward and outragious and bloodie Oh there is much guilt within upon their spirits great breaches between God and their souls and the guilt of sin within grates upon their hearts and that makes them so outragious as they are if guilt be upon the soul it takes away al the comfort of every thing that man or woman that hath an enlightened conscience and hath guilt upon them there 's little comfort such a one can take in any thing they enjoy No affliction in the world can take away the comfort of what we enjoy as guilt can do if you have afflictions one way you have comforts another if a man go abroad and meet with hard dealings he comes home and hath comfort it may be in his wife a comfortable yoke-fellow this rejoyceth him or may be he hath comfort in his Children or in such or such a friend But now let a man or a woman have guilt upon conscience abroad he hath no comfort at home he hath no comfort yea the more comfortable things he doth enjoy the more trouble there is in his spirit As thus Take a guiltie conscience and when he comes and looks upon a comfortable familie comfortable estate means coming in a sweet yoke-fellow good friends Oh but if I had not some guilt upon my soul I could rejoyce in these but that guilt that lies upon his conscience take away all the comfort of these and if he sees others that enjoy these Oh saith he this man may have comfort in a comfortable yoke-fellow children or friends and a good estate but he hath not guilt upon his spirit and that breach between his God and he as I have May be the world knows not where his ●hoo pincheth him and what sadens his spirit many men that have comforts about them though they cannot be said to enjoy them yet their hearts be troubled and disquieted and no bodie knows the matter Oh there is guilt upon their spirits they think within themselves Oh if it were with me as it is with such a one it would be well sure they have not that guilt I have if they had they could not but be disquieted as I am Again Guilt brings woful fear upon the Conscience no affliction can bring such fear upon the Conscience Though there should be never such troubles and fears and confusions in the world alas this is not so terrible and fearful as that fear the guiltie conscience hath Take a man or woman whose conscience is delivered from the guilt of sin such a one though Heaven and Earth should meet is not so much troubled Certainly Brethren in these great fears amongst us that you be skar'd at everything it is partly because you have not throughly made up your peace between God and your souls and some guilt lies upon your spirits and consciences and this indeed will make every thing terrible to you if that lie there Guilt upon the conscience makes God the thoughts of God seem terrible Now it is a greater evil for the creature not to be able to look upon God to have thoughts of God without being pierced with terror than to be under any affliction in the world sorrows fears and disgrace and persecutions are not so terrible as this that I am in such a condition that I cannot look up to God nor think upon God without having the thoughts of his Majesty to be terrible to me A guilty Conscience cannot endure to have a thought of God it is terrible to him and therefore he labors by going into company and sports and business in the world to take off the thoughts of God because the thoughts of God peirce his heart And so the presence of God is very terrible where guilt is upon the Conscience and the Conscience of such a one cannot endure to come into Gods presence nor into the Communion of Saints where Gods presence is And he cannot endure to pray the thoughts of that strike his heart to go alone to pray the presence of God when alone is extream terrible And this is a sader condition than to be under any affliction better be under any affliction than in such a case as that the presence of God is terrible the presence of God in Prayer and so the presence of God in his Word Oh the Word is terrible to such a one the Word of God speaks nothing but terror so long as guilt remains upon the Conscience This is worse than Affliction that that Word which is a treasure of sweetness and goodness and comfort to those that are gracious and godly should be filled with terror to the soul of one that is full of guilt Yea to such a one all the wayes of Gods Providence are full of terror if there be any Judgment of God abroad Oh the terror that this brings upon his foul Brethren Sin is committed quickly you have a temptation comes and you fall upon the Sin and act it the Sin the act of it is transient and quickly gone the guilt that sticks to you When a man or woman hath satisfied their Iust in a sinful way the guilt sticks behind may be the time is gone for the pleasure of it it was perhaps yesterday or such a night or time thou hadest the pleasure of it but now the sin is gone the pleasure of it but the guilt sticks and that abides upon thy Spirit to all eternity if thou look not to it Nay certainly it must stick upon the Spirit it is not in the power of any Creature in heaven or in earth to deliver

know not the Excellency of man they know not wherein the excellency of the Rational Creature consists and therefore they are not ashamed of that which brings them under the excellency of the Rational Creature Besides They know not Gods infinite Holiness therefore are not ashamed They be now among other sinners and they think though some seem to be Religious yet they think others are as bad as themselves in their hearts at least though not in Practice As Nero because he was bad he thought others were as bad as himself So a wicked man when he cannot see others break out in such great sins as he doth yet he thinks they are as bad some other way and have some other sins as great And because they live among them that are as bad as themselves and live in the same sins therefore they are not ashamed For as a Collier living among Colliers is not ashamed but if he lived among Princes and Noblemen he would be ashamed So wicked men in this world because they live in this world among sinners they conceive to be sinners like themselves they be not ashamed but when God shall come to open what sin means and what the Holiness of God means and they see themselves stand in the presence of the holy God then they will be ashamed But certainly sin is a greater-shame than Affliction none need be ashamed of Affliction any further-than it hath a Connexion to some great sin but sin in the greatest prosperity hath shame with it CHAP. XXXIX He that Sins wrongeth dispiseth and hateth his own Soul Use 1. Then see the malitiousness that is in Sin Use 2. To pitty those that go on in sinful wayes Use 3. Let Sin be dealt hardly with THus we have Discovered how Sin makes more against our good than Affliction doth Now there be divers things which follow hence as Consequences I spake of one or two before I will name them no more But only thus far Hence we see that sin makes more against our selves than any thing else Therefore it is the worst way for any to provide for themselves by giving way to live in any sinful course And for this I shall ad Two or Three Scriptures I spake not of before to shew how men go against themselves and those men that think to provide best for themselves the truth is in the wayes of sin they go most against themselves You have these Three notable Expressions for this in Scripture First That men by Sin wrong their own Souls Secondly That they Dispise their own Souls Thirdly They Hate their own Souls If I should Charge these Three things upon the most vile sinner at this present before the Lord Oh thou dost wrong thy own soul Thou dost despise thy own soul Thou hatest thy own soul he would be loth to yeild to it and yet the Scripture chargeth this upon sinners Prov. 8. 36. He that sins against me wrongs his own soul he doth not only wrong God that was in the first thing we opened but by sin he wrongs his own soul You will say somtimes I do no body wrong I thank God none can say I wrong them but thou wrongest thine own soul and certainly it is as great an evil to wrong thy own soul as to wrong the Body of another and a great deal more Nay further mark All they that hate me that is Wisdom and Instruction the Rule of Lise they love death It is a strange expression if any Minister should say thus to you you love death you would think it a rash speech from us the Holy Ghost saith so of al that hate Instruction if there be any Truth of God revealed against sin and thy heart rise against it thou lovest death thy own ruine and thy own destruction And what pitie is it for men and women to die who can pitie them that die eternally when as they love death if they love death they must have it So the Holy Ghost saith they wrong their souls and they love death and Prov. 15. 32. He that refuseth Instruction destiseth his own soul when you come and hear any Instruction against any sinful way and refuse it you despise your own souls as if your own souls were worth little Hence it is that men and women though they hear Sin tends to the death of their souls to their eternal ruine yet if they have but any temptation but to get a groat or sixpence they will venture upon it what is this but to despise thy soul that is to despise a thing to account it little worth though thy soul be worth a whol world There is none so poor in this place the meanest boy servant or girl but hath a soul more worth than Heaven and Earth but though the meanest here hath a soul more worth than the World yet we see it ordinarie that to get twopence or a groat they will venture the ruine of their souls Is not this to despise their souls as if they were not worth a groat or sixpence and they will lye or steal to get that which is less Nay not onlie so but they are haters of their own souls and this you have Prov. 29. 24. He that is partner with a Thief hates his own soul there is an instance in that one sin but it is true of everie sin for this must be taken as a rule to help you to understand the evil of sin Know what is said of any one sin is vertually true of all that evil which is in any one sin is vertually in any sin he hates his own soul that goes on in anie one sin therefore if you will provide for your own good you must abandon sin Object But it may be said Is that Lawful for a man to abstain from sin out of self respects for this I am upon I am shewing how sin is against our selves and therfore urge you to abandon and take heed of sin as it is against our selves then this Question ariseth What should we abstain from sin out of self respects what good is in this is that from grace To that I answer three things Answ 1. That at first when God doth begin to work upon the soul God doth usually move us from self most and these self grounds works most to take men and women off from the acts of their sin from outward acts at least and to stop them from the commission of sin and bring them to the means of grace self motives God makes use of at first but yet the work is not done till the soul goeth beyond these it is good for men and women to abstain from sin upon any grounds there is so much evil in sin that upon any grounds men and women abstaining from sin it is well but only except it be such a ground that the ground it self be a greater sin than the sin I abstain from But yet the work is not done Therefore 2. Know That though when grace is come