the leaven of Popery for you need not make auricular confession to a Priest nor seek Popish absolution from a Confessor nor expect their injunction of some tedious or ridiculous penance nor esteem penance a Sacrament nor undertake a fruitless or idolatrous pilgrimage or think to satisfie God by some good works for any sin past nor be at cost to purchase an indulgence or to buy a pardon from that man of sinne Onely be faithfull and just in confession to God 1 Joh. 1.9 Psal 38.13.32.5 Isa 33.24 and he will be faithful to forgive Yea as soon as thou resolvest in thine heart with David no longer to conceal thy transgressions but to acknowledge them to God he will forgive Renew this practice as often and with as much sorrow and contrition as you can and the Father of mercies will surely heare thee bemoaning thy self Jer. 31.18 wil remember thine iniquity no more And therefore abound in secret mourning Psal 85.8 Isa 32.6 till thou hearest what God will speak he will speak peace to his people but let them not return again to folly Make it therefore thy chief aim in repenting to be renewed in the inner parts to have a new heart Ezek. 36.26 2 Cor. 5.17 Eph. 4.24 and a new spirit that so all old things may passe away and all things become new Whereas if you spend never so much time and strength in confession lamentation and supplication and yet your heart unchanged you will notwithstanding return with the swine to her wallowing in the mire How many such penitents hath the Church been pestered with many men in sickness many women when neer their travel have seemed serious converts and have uttered many penitential desires and purposes both to God and man but when once they are delivered they forget their obligations to God and suffer seven Worse devils to enter Mat. is 45 And therefore make as sure work with your deceitful hearts as you can by mournful confession severe mortification more holy conversation c. (a) Thus should good women make amends for their first offence Eve no sooner received an ill motion but she delivers it to Adam so they should no sooner receive good but they should impart it Bish Hall's Contemplation lib. 10 p. 195. Communicate your zeal to others reprove rebuke exhort and warn your family night and day with tears bring forth fruit meet for repentance that others may see you have been with Jesus This do and continue doing while you yet are upon your legs and while you have breath in your nostrils and then you shall find your labour not in vain in the Lord but a means to support you under bodily labour Then you shall see of the travel of your soul when God shall assist you in the hour of travel Therefore gird up the loyns of your mind be intent and sedulous in this great work of making peace with God and he will deliver you in that critical hour Psal 50. â—â— and raise you up that you may glorifie him CHAP. IV. Reading of Scriptures the duty of women with child (a) Qui valt cum Dee semper esse semper debet erare legere Ang de â—emp Ser. â— GOd gave no small gift to the world in giving the light of the Sun which among visible creatures is the highest emblem of his own Essence and glory without which the whole earth would languish and be worse then a howling wilderness But it was a greater to give to our souls understanding and immortality whereby we transcend all sublunary creatures and are capable of communion with God and his Angels without which we could never aspire to Heaven above but must have been slaves to the meanest creatures upon earth And yet it was a far richer benefit to mankind to give us the written Word and the greatest next to Jesus Christ the essential Word which the Father of Lights could have bestowed on the world in comparison of its greater glory the light of the Sun hath no glory By this our understandings are made wise and our immortality made happy The Scriptures are the mysteries of Gods eternal counsel the protraicture of those infinite perfections that lay hidden in his breast from all eternity the written copy of that Law God which was originally written in the heart of Adam the onely supreme rule of good and evil They contain such knowledge as will enlarge ravish and transform a teachable and studious soul In the volumn of this book it is written of Christ that God of Gods Psal 40. â—â— that Head of Angels that King of Kings whose Incarnation is the Mysterie of Mysteries and whose work of Redemption is the summe of all Mercies In a word in them is an exact map of the heavenly Canaan an exact delineation of the way thereunto and a full account of the deeds and evidences of our inheritance therein How abominable then is the blasphemy of the apostate Papists (a) B. Jewels reply to Hard. Art 15. fol. 518. who equal the Pope or a Councel or Traditions with the Scripture and speak dishonourably of the authorityand sufficiency of the sacred Volumn Doctor Jackson on the Creed lib. 2. sect 1. ch 1. pag. 238. ad 405. And how intolerable is that bloudy crew Alphonsus Castrens de punit haeret lib. 3. Cap. 6. which will inflict the most cruel deaths on those of the Laity that procure a Bible in their vulgar tongue (b) Scripta divina haereticorum fraudes convincit furta detegir Tertul. lib. de Trin. unwilling they are that their folly should be made manifest to all men and women knowing that ignorance is the mother of their idolatrous devotions But to leave controversies let me go on and remember those women to whom I speak that it is their duty to read their happiness to enjoy 1 Basil by his Nurse Macrina Bas cp 74. 〈◊〉 Polycarp ad Philippenses Origen in Levit hom 9. August in Psal 33. Heron. in Coloss 3. Chrysost in Joh. â—om 1. â—libi saepiùs and should be their delight to peruse the holy Scriptures Certain we are that God commanded all Parents to teach their children the words of his Law and that accordingly Solomon was instructed by his Mother Apollos by Priscilla Timothy by his Grandmother Lois 2 Both the Greek and Latine Fathers did use with all vehemency to exhort their hearers to get them Bibles and read the Scriptures at home and to talke of them to each other without exception of sex or age Yea saith a Popish writer lest women should be thought to be excluded from the study of the Scriptures there is a tradition that (a) M. Maâ—ulus Spalatens de vitâ per exempla religiose instit l. 2. cap. 5. Trap. on Luk. 1 51. And doubtlesse the elect Lady to whom St. John wrot an Epistle might as lawfully read other Scriptures as that Ep. the Mother of our Lord
well I could relate sad instances of some whom I have known who after the commission of some foul sin have in my presence expressed as credible serious repentance as ever I could desire yea have to my seeming been in utter despair for the present so that I have been not a little troubled to get them to believe that their sins were pardonable and their souls not past remedy when at last they began to apprehend any hope they have upon a sudden ere I was aware made vows Never more to come near such and such companions and places of temptation yea have also seconded these their vowes with immediate earnest prayer to God in secret for his assistance and yet have to my knowledge risen from their knees and gone immediately to the same wicked practice and been as deeply plunged as before and then been in the same trouble again make the like vows again and relapsed in like manner again This I say I have known and seriously considering of the matter I cannot assign any other cause thereof then this That those vowes were unwarrantable Tileni syntag disp 43 in tertium praeceptum p. 267. and God would not be intreated to give his blessing to that for which he had never given his command For though in the Old Testament there is as clear examples of paying Vowes as of offering a Sacrifice yet in the New Testament he who commissioned his Ministers to teach us to observe whatsoever he had cōmanded though he is graciously pleased to condescend to many particulars that might seem of less concernment yet gave no instruction to his Apostles or Ministers to prescribe making Vowes as a help to holiness or a remedy against sin or temptation So that unless it were agreeable to his will it will hardly conduce to his glory Besides when we vow any thing it must be either a thing commanded and necessary or uncommanded To vow to do a thing commanded of God is needless For his command layes a greater obligation upon us already And if the thing vowed be uncommanded then it is not necessary and consequently it must be dangerous to lay our selves under a necessity of doing that which our great Law-giver never made necessary For this vow of unnecessary things must be either absolute or conditional An absolute vow layes us under the snare of impossibilities yea under the danger of sin a conditional vow carries with it the danger of inconstancy such vows being seldome held of much force because circumstances may so often vary that they may quickly seem discharged of their vowes As for instance Suppose you make a vow If God shall recover you to give so much to the poor to read so many chapters a day to pray so often or the like This is an absolute vow And now if Providence render it impossible to give so much without great prejudice to your family-necessities or to read or pray so often without danger of your health or omitting some more necessary and seasonable good in this case you cannot possibly keep your vow without sin If your vow be conditional to give so much if you can spare it to read and pray so much if you have leisure and strength this is needlesly vowed for you are already bound by your vow in Baptism and by the common bonds of Religion to give what you can to the poor and to serve God with all your might and to redeem your time for him And t is better to doe what we do for God out of consciencious obedience to his Law then out of superstitious observation of voluntary vows For who hath required this at your hands Perkins cas of cons lib. 2. c. 1. qu. 2. page mihi 97. The Papists do exceed all other Sects in variety of Religious vows not onely abounding in the use of them but in the grossest abuse making vows of Continency regular obedience c. to be meritorious above all other good works commanded in the morall Law The very naming of such bold impiety is sufficient to render it ridiculous to all that have the Law of God written in their hearts Wherefore to conclude this businesse of vows I say with a (a) B. Hals contemplat lib. 10. p. mihi 173. reverend Author speaking of the unhappy vow of Jephta The conscience shall never find peace in any way but that which we see before us and which we know safe both in the kind and circumstances There is no comfort in Peradventure I may please God Therefore be very cautelous of making any vows and seriously consider and candidly accept my opinion herein that the safest way is to let them alone But now t is time to shew you what I do mean by these Religious purposes I mean that you should consider seriously how defective you have been in prosecution of those Religious ends that the Gospel and your holy profession doth mind you of and that you would firmly purpose and resolve with your selfe to endeavour to do more for God than yet you have done As for instance suppose your resolutions be of avoiding some evil or some occasion or appearance of evill or somthing that doth hinder that which is good as to resolve supposing you are by your quality concerned herein to abridge your selfe of some of your gallantry to be more frugall in your apparell and not to be a slave to the people of this Generation nor to follow every ridiculous and apish fashion of this World 1 Tim. 2.9.10 To spend lesse time in your tedious deessing and trimming every morning and to redeem some of it Exod. 38.8 for the beholding your sins in the glasse of the Law and Christ in the glasse of the Gospel that you may trim your soul and adorn it after the likenesse of Christ or to spend lesse time and money in gameing or to be more seldome in idle visits Melius est habere malorum odiū quam consortium Bern. de mode bene vivendi serm 60. espeeially of such as will not endure in their company any talke of God whether in good sort or in bad as the Jesuits once prohibited but are wholly addicted to such evil communication as corrupts good manners Or if you would resolve upon any thing positively good or praise worthy and of good report as To be more constant frequent laborious in your closet Devotions Prov. 31.27 to be more carefull of your family that it may not be a cage of nuclean birds and a habitation of Devils but a houshold of faith wherein all wickednesse shall at least hide its head and the duties of Religion and Profession of Godliness have more countenance and reputation or to be more severe to your children I abhor cruelty and passionate hasty corrections I meane to get free of that accursed fondnesse whereby so many children have been curses to their parents on earth and cursed firebrands in hell at their death Remember old Eli and be not partaker of
his sins lest you be partaker of his plagues Or if you resolved to take more notice of your godly neighbours about you who are made as the offscouering of the world and to make it more manifest that your delight is in the Saints and that you hate them that hate the Lord yea hate them with perfect hatred and count them your enemies Or if you would remember who have provoked and offended you by slandering you or otherwise and now shew your selfe courteous and loving to them especially requiting them good for evill and never remembring or upbraiding them with their offensive miscarriages towards you Or if you would resolve to spare somewhat more from your super fluities (a) Divitis â—uperfluae Pauperi sunt necessaria alieâ—a retinet qui ista tenet Aug in Ps 147. and sinfull expences for the preservation of the lives of many starving poor and to that end alway keep a stock by you to lay out as occasion shall require for pious ases (b) R. Bolâ—ons Gen. Direct p. â—62 Exod. 35. â—5 yea if you sought out objects of your charity and sent to some of the more modest poor to know how 't is with them that you might buy or make cloaths for the naked as Dorcas did and every good woman Acts 9 3â— Prov. 31.20 as Solomon describes her should doe and get food for the hungry physick for the sick harbour for the destitute imployment for the diligent c. This was a motive to Peter to raise up Dorcas that she had cloathed the poor widows And this sayes one was the practice of the blessed Virgin who having great gifts from the three wise men (a) Supponendum est quod illa munera pauperibus erogaverat N. Hanap Patr. Hierosul virtutuÌ„ vitiorum exempla cap. 125. p. 166 Levit. 5.7 that followed the star yet bestowed all on the poor and shortly after at her purification had but two turtle Doves or two young Pigeons to offer which was by Gods appointment the manner of the poorer Jews who were not able to buy a lambe Thus I have given divers instances of such particulars as you may make the matter of pious Resolution And if in these or any other of like nature you fix your intentions of abounding more and growing more fruitfull in every good work it will be doubtlesse thank-worthy with God if he see your heart thus firmly bent to observe that precept of his Psal 50.15 Call upon me in the day of trouble and I will deliver thee and thou shalt glorifie me How would you glorifie God when he delivers you What by a meer verbal acknowledgement and not by some signall testimony of your thankefullnesse and some sureable return for so great a mercy Wherefore I say again resolve if God deliver you to be more faithfull to your principles more usefull in your generation more alive to God more affectionate to Christ and his members more dead to the world more eminent in some particular service to God whereby you may shew forth his praise and acknowledge him in your works and shine with your light before men And thus having in some measure dispatched the duties before mentioned you may the more boldly addresse your self to what next follows viz to exercise and strengthen your faith CHAP. XII To labour for faith in Christ or if they have faith to endeavour to exercise it in trust and dependance upon God for pardon of sin is also the duty of Women with child TO get faith and to get an interest in Christ are great words more commonly spoken than understood Know therefore that faith is not a beleeving that I am pardoned or that I have true grace and shall certainly be saved this is not the nature but fruit of justifying faith But Faith is a believing the Gospel which represents and offers Christ to us as the onely all sufficient Saviour and the receiving him as such Faith looks on Christ as revealed in his word to be our Priest Prophet and King or the way the truth and the life Accordingly it causeth us to renounce our own Righteousnesse to renounce our own Reason and to believe all mysteries of godliness upon his bare Word thus becoming fools that we may be wise in him and to deny our selves and renounce our own wills and all things that oppose themselves against Christ and to make his will our supreme rule in all our actions Thus faith receives Christ with all his benefits graces laws yea with his yoke crosse reproach counting the treasures of the world as nothing in comparison of the meanest and poorest things that appertain to Christ and have his name upon theÌ„ So that they who thus receive Christ believe in him are justified by him yield to Christ the chief interest in all that is theirs in their understanding by believing him in their affections by loving him in their wills by obeying him in their time strength estate and all things they are or have by serving him with their whole heart their whole soul and their whole strength all their dayes And such have doubtlesse an interest in Christ Wherefore if you doubt complain and torment your self with such inward feares as would all be removed if you once knew that you believed and had an interest in Christ then stir up your self now to receive him as he is offered be willing to be saved by him in his own way let his interest prevail in you above all other interests and you shall find that faithfull and obedient compliance with him will sooner bring comfort than meer complaints Be not then slothfull in this businesse but fervent in spirit seeking the Lord for increase of faith and help against your infidelity Doe not by a heart of unbelief depart in the least from him upon any termes but lay aside every sin that hath easily beset you else your complaints are not in earnest patiently persevere in well doing and in a way of holiness accept comfort Yet look not presently and too eagerly for a high measure of sensible joy and assurance for that is scarce a promised mercy given to a few who are most eminently holy and with them it doth not alwayes abide neither And if you are wholly without joy or peace in thus believing you are not streightned in God but in your selfe because you either retain some sin which grieves the Spirit or listen to temptations or cherish your fears and refuse to be comforted Wherefore for your further help consider the freenesse fulnesse suitablenesse and multitude of those exceeding great and precious Promises whereby you have all things that pertain to life and godlinesse promises of pardon and promises of deliverance promises to your soul and to your body promises of all needfull good and of all things working together for good in this life and promises of all good in the enjoyment of God who is the chief good and that with life everlasting Search then