it Is there no remedy against this Evil nor defence against this Danger 2. The Evil is not in being judged but in going unprepar'd to Judgment This imminent danger hath an easy plain and safe remedy by the Grace of God And that is for a Man to judge himself often times before God judge him once for all Wouldst thou not be afraid of the Judgment nor of that dreadful Sentence Judge thy self before hand examine thy self before thou comest to be examin'd call thy self frequently to a strict account humble thy self amend thy Life and at the sight of thy Sins pray and weep and thou shalt go willingly to Judgment and come off safe with thy account Serve thy Judge love thy Judge and obey him in all things before he come to judge thee and thou shalt go contentedly to his Judgment and find thy Judge to be thy Friend 3. Consider that many Saints have desir'd that their Life might be shorten'd that their Death might be hasten'd and that they might come to Judgment thereby to enjoy God They desir'd to be dissolved and to leave this mortal Tabernacle They desir'd this knot of Life might be untied and to be free from the Prison of this miserable and corruptible Body to see their God their Creator and Redeemer whom they loved served and ador'd while they lived in this World They esteem'd Death as Life because it freed them from a dying Life which delay'd their enjoyment of an eternal Life 4. They could not pass to the beatifical Vision of their God without going by the way of the Judgment and Sentence They did as it were die with an eager desire of dying and joyfully embrac'd that Death which brought them to behold the kind the cheerful and beautiful Countenance of their loving Judge They knew they were to be judged by their Father their God their Creator and Redeemer their faithful Friend and their most gracious Lord. They loved him in their Life they sought him by their Death they ador'd him in the Judgment and with an humble confidence in his infinite Pity they hoped for Mercy in the Sentence They knew their offences were many but they had bewailed them they knew though they were Sinners they had lived desirous to please him diligent to serve him and with care not to offend him They knew they could not put their cause into better hands and that the same Person was to judge them who had shed his Blood for them and given his Life upon the Cross for their Redemption They went to offer their Works their Tears and their Repentance unto God yet without trusting any thing in their Works they relied wholly upon the Goodness of God and the Merits of their Saviour 5. For though it be just that the Judgments of the Lord should be fear'd yet it is as just that they should be loved My Father says the holy Soul is to judge me what am I then afraid of My Lord and my God is my Judge How can I choose but hope and trust in my Lord and my God though he be my Judge If he have a kindness for me and I have a reverence for him What can I look for in the Sentence but Mercy and Compassion What Son is afraid to be judged by his own Father if he hath not lived and acted as an Enemy to his Father or if he hath bewailed the time that he was his Enemy What Wife is afraid to be judged by her tenderly affectionate Husband if she hath not been an Adulteress or hath heartily lamented that Injury and penitently begged pardon of her dearly loving Husband What Friend is afraid to be judged by his Friend if he hath been faithful to him or hath shewed a real grief for the breach of his Fidelity Though I be afraid and wretched says a sick Soul I have been desirous to serve thee O my God thy Precepts have been my Direction and thy Counsels have been my Rule if not in the execution yet at least in my intention and earnest desire I hope for mercy from that eternal goodness of God my Creator and Redeemer who dyed upon a Cross for my Salvation He that was so gracious and so loving in Redeeming me cannot but be a sweet and tender Father in Judging me 6. These are the breathings of a Holy Soul Thus said St. Paul and many others when they desir'd to be dissolved that they might come to the presence of God and for the obtaining of that did not fear to put their Cause and Sentence into his hand They feared his Power and they adored his Power They were afraid by reason of their sins and yet they hoped knowing his mercy and loving-kindness Their love conquered their fear because their hearts were inflam'd with that perfect Charity which casts out fear And thus if thou doest desire to have a holy and assured hope humbly resign'd and yet chearful in the Judgment and in the Sentence do that which the Saints have done and thou shalt hope as they have hoped 7. Make account in thy life-time of that Account thou art to give hereafter I repeat it to thee once again keep a Judgment-seat within thy self every day till thou comest to thy last Judge thy self ten thousand times and consider in what steps thou treadest for according to what thou doest in this World thou shalt be judged in the other Strictly observe thy very thoughts and mend what thou shalt find amiss For by this means thou shalt increase that love which casts out fear Do thou judge thine own Actions before God judges them beg light of him to see and know them and tears to bewail them and so with a holy resignation and with an humble confidence thou mayest appear in the presence of God Take good heed to thy Words Thoughts and Actions and square them by the Rule of the Divine Law and of the Will of that Lord who is to Judge thee and strive in this Life to obtain Mercy and Pardon for thy Sins and Miseries 8. Be careful to purifie thy Understanding and to purge it from evil fill it with honest and spiritual Considerations cleanse thy will from corrupt Desires and fill it with the love of thy Creator Let thy Memory be the Store-house of Holy Meditations and then hope and trust love and adore the Judgment of the Lord. His goodness does more desire to Pardon thee than thou dost to be pardoned He is more desirous of thy Salvation than thou art to be saved He is more desirous to deliver thee from that Infernal Dragon than thou art to be delivered Be careful I warn thee once again on what hand thou livest in this life for on that hand thou shalt find thy self when Death carries thee from hence 9. Fear the Judgment of the Lord for it is very just so to do fear humble thy self and tremble but yet hope and be more afraid of the sins wherewith thou offendest him than thou art of his righteous Judgment
in excessive apprehension of their own unworthiness which has been the Case of some very devout Souls whose Faith hath failed more out of the Timerousness of their own Nature than through any distrust of God's Mercy or of their Saviour's Merits 10. Would'st thou than escape from both these dangers Consider seriously the Shortness of Life and the Certainty of Death that the time of it when come can by no means be prolonged that the Place Manner and Time is utterly unknown to thee that it will come like a Thief in the Night that we can die but once and if we do it ill there is no second time to do it better that as the Tree falleth so it lieth Examine which way it would fall with thee if it should now be cut down Let these thoughts fill thee with the holy Fear of God's Justice which will keep thee from the Gulph of Presumption Bring forth Fruits of Repentance and entertain an humble Hope of God's Mercy whereby thou shalt avoid the Rock of Despair and looking up to Jesus the Author and Finisher of thy Faith with the Arms of that Faith lay fast hold upon the Merit of his Cross and so shalt thou pass safely into the Haven of everlasting Happiness Let not Life deceive thee but let Death undeceive thee See what St. Austin says The Sinner that would not when he might is not able when he would and being asked the Reason he answers Because by his affection to what was evil he lost the power of doing what was good A Man that has spent a whole Life in sinning will not find it easie to die repenting he whose Life is departing and Death seizing on him is but in an ill condition to grieve for his Sins he is not like to lament and bewail his offences which are hastening on his Death it being more probable his Sorrow will then be for the Loss of his Life In that terrible moment the Sinner will want Time he will want Disposition he will want Understanding and all things fitting for that weighty Business and will abound in nothing but Pain Terrour Anguish and Confusion The Third WEEK The dreadful Call of God to the Sinner that defers Repentance till his Death MEN want time to repent because God justly takes it from those that have so long abused his Mercy and gone on delaying their Repentance to such a time as is rather to be called a Moment than a Time Thou hast provoked my Anger says God to the Sinner thou hast forsaken and cast me off during thy whole Life How can'st thou expect to find me kind and loving to thee at thy Death I gave thee the best time and thou givest me the worst Doest thou think it is so easie to regain that best time which thou didst despise with the worst and in the worst till which thou hast delayed to use it When I gave thee Light and Strength thou imployedst it to persecute me and will it be easie for thee without Strength and without Light to seek me and to find me Is it all one thing O presumptuous Sinner whether thou offendest or pleasest me I have called upon thee and wooed thee with many gracious Invitations and with innumerable Benefits ever since thou camest into the World Is it enough for thee having despised them all and wounded me with thy Ingratitude to come to me when thou art just going out of it And canst thou expect that I will then receive thee If thou art rejected then O sinful Man the Fault will not be mine but thine own If the business of thy whole Life has been nothing but a wilful provocation of my Anger Can there be any thing more unreasonable than at thy Death to expect my Favour Is the Grace of Contrition in thy own Power whensoever it pleases thee Wilt thou be able to do that in the instant of Death which thou could'st not do in so many Years of thy Life Wilt thou be able to do that with a disturbed Judgment and a confused Understanding which thou never didst attempt nor wouldst ever learn while thy Understanding and Judgment were clear and found If the whole Custom of thy long Life has been nothing else but sinning canst thou O Man be so sensless as to look that the end of such a wretched Life should be merit and reward How canst thou hope to die a Saint having ever lived a scandalous Sinner If so many repeated acts of Sin have begot in thee a powerful Habit and an inveterate Custom of despising me Which way wilt thou begin to overcome that Custom when thy Life is at an end If thou hast spoken but one Language all thy Life wouldst thou go about the learning of another quite contrary to it in the Moment of thy Death 2. So long as thou didst live in health thou never wert acquainted with sorrow for sin nor knewest what it was to be contrite and penitent will it be easie for thee to learn and practice these things when thou art going out of the World to which thou wert so averse all the time of thy being in it If thou hast spent it all in the deceits and entanglements of sensual Delights How wilt thou be able to get loose from them and free thy self in that short instant when thy Soul is to be separated from thy Body If then thou wouldst leave them they will not leave thee thou holdest them fast and they stick as fast to thee How will you then get loose from one another Canst thou be willing to leave that at thy death which thou never wouldest forsake nay which thou didst ever run after and hug with so much fondess all thy life I shall be willing to pardon thee O Man but thou wilt not be able to ask me pardon the fault will not be in me O Sinner but in thy self 3. Thou wouldst never think of Death much less think how to dye and then thou wilt not know which way to beg for Pardon because thou wouldst never endeavour to learn and that time must then be spent in dying which ought to be spent in bagging forgiveness Thou wilt not be able because thy Will disturbed with fears will fail thee thy Understanding will be darken'd with Anguish thy Memory afflicted with Sins thy Senses dulled and decayed with a mortal Sickness and finally all thy abilities will be meer disabilities Thou hast wasted all thy life as if there were never to be a death and therefore thou wilt not have power to repent thee at thy death which is the death of Eternal Life Thou never in all thy life didst remember that there is a Hell and therefore at thy death thou wilt either forget it or else be so prest with the fear of going thither that thou wilt not be able to pour down Tears nor send up Prayers to escape it Thou hast lived without Judgment as if there were to be no Judgment without calling thy self to Account as if
nor ask Pardon what can we hope for from a Just and an Almighty Lord being offended and provoked Let us cast away and forsake our Evil and then be certain that in God we shall find nothing but Goodness and Pity Let us throw down our Arms and cast away those Weapons wherewith we have fought against him let us fall prostrate at his Feet and not be so foolish as to fight against an Omnipotent God and if we cease to sin against him Repenting and bewailing our former evil ways God who is strict severe and rigorous to the Wicked will be found gracious sweet and merciful to the Penitent It cannot be certainly known in this Life what will become of a Soul in the other but we may well conjecture and I would have thee govern thy Life by that which may probably be conjectured and not weary and distract thy self in seeking after certain Proofs of that which cannot possibly be known If I see a Man that fears God that loves and serves him that frequents the Sacrament that is constant in Prayer that often recollects himself to think of Eternity that is kind to the Poor and forward to relieve them that hears the Word of God with Humility and Delight and who if through frailty he falls sometimes presently seeks to God for Pardon with Penitent Tears humbling himself confessing his sins and flying from the occasions of them I dare be bold to conjecture and to hope nay to be well assured in the Divine Goodness that the Soul of that Man will not fail to be saved But if on the other side I see one forgetful of Eternity regardless of Heavenly things much given to the Pleasures and Honours and Riches of this World full of Vices and Passions without any remembrance of Death or Judgment Heaven or Hell making it his only business to delight and to entertain himself to eat and drink with Curiosity and Excess and that does no right to others nor will suffer any the least wrong done to himself I cannot but fear upon these grounds that he will not escape Damnation and I neither hold that to be Presumption nor this rash Judgment for that is an Holy Hope which we ought to have in the Divine Goodness and Mercy and this a Pious Doubt and Fear which is due to the Divine Justice This manner of Conjecture is taught us by the Holy Scripture and therefore it cannot be an evil thing for I see that Lazarus a poor humble Beggar that bore his Miseries with Patience was sav'd and I see the rich hard-hearted Glutton who fared deliciously and wallowed in his Vices was condemned Now how should I frame my Conjecture but by the Experience of what I have seen I see Judas despairing of God's Mercy after his Fall was condemned and St. Peter after his by weeping and repenting was saved and must I not needs gather from thence that he who distrusts God's Mercy will be condemned and he that begs it and trusts in it will be sav'd I see Saul who made no reckoning of his sins was condemned and I see David who lamented and forsook his was saved Must I not needs collect from hence that he who regards not and is not concerned for an evil Life will most probably have an evil Death and that he will have a good one who turns from his evil ways and amends them during his Life I see Covetous Cain condemned because he was Covetous and repented not himself of his Covetousness and I see Liberal Abel saved because he frankly offered to God of the Fruits of his Flock From hence I must necessarily think that he who denies or grudges to bestow part of those Goods in the Service of God which he received from him is going in the broad Path of Destruction but he that gives chearfully and bountifully to the Poor and by returning that part acknowledges that he has received all from a more Liberal Hand is going in the right and certain way to Heaven where he shall receive an hundred fold and be eternally Crowned In short I see nothing else in the Scripture but Examples of the good that are saved and of the wicked that are damned and that the Gift of final Perseverance is given by God to those at their Death who by their constant Prayers and Good Works have made it their endeavour to obtain it during the course of their Life That Prodigy of the World the good Thief who escap'd from Shipwrack at his Death upon the Plank of the Cross was an instance of the extraordinary Power of Grace and one of those strange Wonders that concurred at the Crucifying of our Saviour It was like the tremblings of the Earth and the cleavings of the Rocks like the tearing of the Vail of the Temple and the Dead breaking out of their Sepulchres to return to life like the darkning of the Sun and the disturbance of the whole Frame of Nature Amongst these and other Prodigies that great Wonder may justly be reckoned that he should die a Saint who had been a Thief during the whole course of his Life till that moment And observe that though there were many Graves that opened and many that arose from the Dead many Rocks that were cleft many Lights that were darkened and many Signs that manifested the Power and Efficacy of the Death of Christ there was but one of a Conversion at the last gasp And though the Lord Jesus had another Thief as near him to whom he might have shewed the same Mercy yet he suffered him to die in his Impenitency and to go to the Devil The very words which Jesus spake when he saved the good Thief do contain a warning that no Man may venture to delay his Repentance till his Death for he said Verily Verily I say unto thee this day shalt thou be with me in Paradise All which words seem to be full of Limitations Verily Verily I say unto thee is as it were a kind of Oath for a thing so admirable as the saving of a Man at his Death who had all his Life-time been a Thief and a wicked Person seemed to stand in need of an Oath for to make it be believed I say unto thee is added as who should say Do not believe others if they should say it is easie for those to be sav'd who delay their Repentance till their Death No that is no easie matter but I will now at this time make that easie for thee which else doth seem impossible as if he had limited that Grace then unto that Soul because it departed from his Body in the sight of his dying Saviour I say unto thee now for as for others I shall see hereafter how I shall deal with them This day that is this day of so great Mercy this day a day of so many Prodigies this day when I desire to shew how far my Grace and Mercy can extend for other days I shall refer them to my Justice and to
irrevocable leap from the Delights of this World to the Miseries of the other 3. No no there is no remedy that most bitter Potion is forc't not voluntary and it must of necessity be drunk for they will not let thee spill it To die to be judged to have Sentence executed and to conclude all and make an end for ever is but one instant See how thou goest out of this Life for so thou shalt enter into Judgment see in what condition thou art to make thy account for in the same thou shalt come from thy account see well how thy Case stands for according to the Proof so shall the Sentence be There is no mending of Answers no Wrestings nor Perjuries nor Briberies in that high Court of Justice all is dispatched in a moment the Charge the Answer the Judgment the Sentence and the Execution The Sentence is but to look upon the Criminal to come into the Presence of God is to be condemned and even but to come into the Presence of God is a casting off the Wicked from his sight for ever and a receiving of the Good into eternal Joys 4. What and is there then no remedy for a Sinner before God's Tribunal Is there no way to come off from that Judgment and from that account Yes there is a remedy But what I beseech you To judge thy self in this Life and to call thy self daily to strict account Let the Sinner pass Judgment upon himself during his Life and then his Death shall be a Comfort his Account a Blessing that great Day a Day of Mercy then the Sentence shall be Joy and the Execution Glory The Sentence is published there but the Tryal is made here and according as the Case is found the Sentence is fitted to the Tryal God pronounces the Sentence in his Tribunal according to the Tryal but thou and I are here forming and giving Matter to that Tryal by our Thoughts by our Words and by our Actions Take heed what thou doest for there thou shalt find it and take heed what thou sayest for there thou shalt hear it the Tryal I say is of our own making by it that most righteous Judge shall judge us take heed then what thou thinkest for there thou shalt see it and take heed what thou sowest for there thou shalt reap it 5. As thy Life shall be here such shall be thy Death thy Account and thy Sentence at that Tribunal and afterwards the Execution The Judgment is God's Truth the Sentence is his Righteousness and the Execution his Justice It is neither the Judgment nor the Sentence principally which condemns a Person but the wickedness of his Life The Sentence of God's eternal Judgment is rather a Declaration then a Condemnation Thou didst sentence and condemn thy self when thou didst Sin and being already condemned thou goest to be judged by dying in thy sins All that is done there is but to declare that thy Wickedness deserves Hell and thy Life eternal Death 6. And according to this at the last Judgment in the Gospel our Lord says nothing else in pronouncing it but Go ye cursed or Come ye blessed of my Father He does not say My will condemns the Wicked nor my will absolves the Good as he finds them so he judges he finds those cursed and as cursed he casts them from him he finds these blessed and as blessed he calls them he embraces them and takes them to himself The reason of this is because that as God is the eternal Truth he judges according as he finds the Tryal and if that be deadly the Sentence of necessity must be so likewise 7. He that will escape Judgment at the Day of Judgment must begin from this present time to judge himself He that will clear his account at that day of Account must begin in this Life to call himself to an account Let a Man take good heed on what hand he lives in this mortal Life on that hand he shall be placed in the immortal Life if on the Left hand then on the Left if on the Right-hand on the Right In this World which is full of Deceits and Equivocations in Suits and Causes all the danger of the Person condemned is in the Judgment past upon him for his Innocence will little avail to save him if the Sentence condemn him nor if that absolve him will the greatest Crime and the most evidently proved do him any harm but at God's Tribunal the Danger is not in the Sentence but in the Case of the Criminal Hereby amongst many other Reasons God is justified in condemning the Wicked although he be Mercy it self for it is not his Mercy Goodness and Pity but the Sins the Guilt and the Malice of the Wicked that condemns them 'T is they that choose their own Sentence for they make their own process in this Life 'T is they that make Hell their own choice because they wilfully choose those Sins that carry them thither and will not choose Repentance that would free them from it They are the makers of their own Misfortunes and themselves are the Causes of their Death their Hell and their Damnation by not applying Tears and Contrition to their Sins 8. O what a strange Doctrine is this According to it there is nothing to be fear'd at the Day of Judgment but our Lives nothing to be fear'd in the Sentence but our Sins Nay all is to be fear'd for terrible and dreadful are the Judgments of the Lord yet are they just righteous and holy therefore fear Sin which brings thee to be sentenc'd fear Guilt which brings thee for ever to be condemned fear that Sentence which throws thee into eternal Damnation and fear that Judgment which casts thee headlong to everlasting Torments The Second WEEK Of the Rectitude and Severity of the Judgment 1. BUT admit all this be so yet may not some of our faults be forgotten or some of our Sins excused at that Day Thô I go out of this Life in the Judge's disfavour may I not in the other Appeal or reply or beg and obtain his Favour before he pass the Sentence May I not by Gift or Craft or Industry or subtilty of Discourse evade or extenuate or hide or at least disguise the Sins I have committed 2. O how foolishly doest thou argue if thou canst have such a Thought Thou art more blind in thy reasoning than thou art in sinning for that is but weakness but this the highest Ignorance What excuse canst thou possibly have for offending thy God and thy Redeemer who died upon the Cross only to free thee from Death and Sin What excuse for not being willing to take the Benefit of his Sacraments What excuse for rejecting his Helps and holy Inspirations What excuse for the frequent rebelling against his holy Commandments What excuse for refusing his divine Counsels What excuse for stopping thine ears to the Masters of Christian Instruction and to those loud Cries with which his
at last they might have an end and that there did shine some glimpse of hope though so remote of their being ended it were not absolutely Hell It is no infernal Evil that hath a conclusion nor can that be called the Pain of the Damned which can be seen as it were behind going away from them That ever ever ever eternity eternity eternity is the Torment of all the Torments of Hell To shut the door against all Mercy for ever To bolt and lock the Gates of Hell and to throw the Key into the bottomless Pit so that it shall never be taken out of it again For the Damned to turn their Eyes on every side and find all passages utterly barr'd up to see the Dungeon not inhabitable and yet closed up on every side and to lie burning and suffering in it to eternity this this is the Evil of all the Evils of Hell 3. Never never never to see the Face of God! That the Damned shall never be admitted to the Light of his heavenly Countenance That they shall never have any benefit by the Sacrifice of Jesus Christ which he came to offer for them as well as for the rest of Mankind if they would have made themselves capable of it That the Devils shall never stir from their sides nor cease one moment to torment them That they shall never be able to think one honest thought to speak one vertuous Word nor to do any one Action but what shall be abominably wicked That they shall always go wishing and seeking for Death and yet never find it That neither the Tormentor nor the Tormented nor the Torments themselves nor the place of those Torments shall ever come to an end What is this good Lord what is this but Horror and Astonishment 4. Ah how my Thoughts are disturbed and even distracted and Nature it self is in amazement and in a manner lost in the Meditation of these Things How well was it spoken of him that said there were but two sorts of Punishments to be ordain'd in this World for all those that are the Followers of it and that are deceived by it One for the Heretick if he does not believe and another for the Fool if he believes and does not do accordingly Is there a Hell for ever And yet we do we sin Is there a Hell for ever And yet do we not fear Is there a Hell for ever And yet do we not repent Oh! what a Terror is stricken into my Soul by contemplating the Eternity of those Torments But is it not hard that God should inflict eternal Punishments for temporal Offences Oh take heed of judging thy Judge who has forbidden thee to judge so much as thy Neighbour how much more then thy Creator If thou wilt needs be judging judge thy self for that thou lawfully mayest do but presume not to question his ways for they are unsearchable and his Judgments past finding out Thou mayest as well empty the vastness of the Ocean and pour all the Water of it into an Egg-shell as fathom the Depths of his Proceedings with thy shallow capacity Yet there want not Reasons to convince thee of God's Justice and to vindicate it from Incongruity God sets before thee Blessing and Cursing Life eternal and Death eternal he shews thee the way to obtain the one and to escape the other He calls upon thee often in his Word and by his Ministers to walk in the narrow way that leads to Life but if still thou wilt go in that great Road which thou knowest must of necessity bring thee to eternal Death thou makest it thine own choice and oughtest rather to blame thine own choice and oughtest rather to blame thine own Folly than God's Justice He hath set before thee Heaven and Hell and out of his exceeding love sent his own Son to take Man's Nature upon him on purpose that he might suffer Death to redeem thee from the one and purchase the other for thee He swears As I live I will not the Death of a Sinner but rather that he would turn from his wickedness and live He invites thee earnestly saying Turn ye turn ye from your evil ways and kindly expostulates Why will ye die But if after all this method of Mercy Men will not be wrought upon but will run on to their own destruction which they are forewarn'd must be eternal it is their own will not God's severity that is to be blamed Besides if a Man sin as long as he can even to his Death and would continue to do so for ever if he lived so long which is not unknown to God who searches the secretest corners of his Heart and foresees his most hidden thoughts long before that they are only evil and that continually can it be unjust that he should be condemned to suffer continually He does what he can against God by his Sin and may not God justly correspond with him in punishment He never ceased from Sins while he had power to commit them and God ceases not from punishing while he hath power to inflict it which is for ever Add to this that an offence which may seem very small against an equal becomes an heinous Crime if committed against the Majesty of a King by one of the basest of his Subjects And if David who was a great King calls himself a Worm and no Man humbling himself in the Presence of God how vast must the disproportion be between God's infinite Majesty and such a Worm as thou art being so much inferior to David Therefore even the smallest of thy Sins committed against that infinite Majesty must needs have an infinite guilt and so may justly suffer an infinite punishment More Arguments might be brought to this purpose but to dispute those Points is not the business of this Design This is enough to shew their Error and teach them to beg pardon for it beseeching God to forgive the lightest Thought that can entrench upon his Justice and to give them Grace to make such use of this Representation of those eternal Pains as may make them careful instantly to forsake and lament their Sins and totally to apply themselves to obtain his Mercies 5. If I have struck a Terror by representing the bodily Pains of Hell and the Duration of them how will it move thee seriously to consider how far they are exceeded by the Torments of that Worm of Conscience which gnaws the Souls of the Damned which kills them without suffering them to die and which devours and consumes them without any diminution or bringing them one moment nearer to their end This is Hell in the Abstract The Pains and Torments of the Body shew only the outside of those Vessels of Wrath and of that Hell where they are tortured but the inside of it is that Worm of a Man 's own Conscience and his rage against himself for his Sins and Follies This is the bitterness of that Cup of Gall and Wormwood wherewith those Vessels are filled
as strong and effectual as it was then Grace does not grow old but continues the same or rather increases Strive then fight and persevere for he that without Grace is but meer weakness may by it become a powerful Conquerour The Second WEEK Of the Glory of the Blessed THough the former Doctrine was sad and disconsolate I hope this last has chear'd and comforted thee We must still walk between hope and fear for the doubt of fear restrains us and the light of hope sets us forward To facilitate the way of the Spirit is good and sound Counsel and of possible performance for it is made easie by Grace and therefore a Christian ought not to be afraid of it but to facilitate Salvation and to make it consistent with a loose and licentious Life to make it attainable without seeking Heaven in good earnest without Repentance and Contrition through Grace and without conquering the Passions and banishing them from the Soul to make it easie I say to be sav'd that way is a most plain Fallacy and dangerous Deceit St. Paul tells us That through many tribulations we must enter into the Kingdom of Heaven and therefore the steps that lead to Glory are Tribulations And believe me even so it is purchased at a very cheap rate for all we can suffer in this Life full of Miseries is not worthy of the Glory that shall be revealed which he obtains who suffers willingly for God What can our Sufferings be in comparison of those Enjoyments How light are they all in respect of the eternal weight of Glory What an inexpressible Happiness must it be to see ones self admitted to be one of the Citizens of the Coelestial Jerusalem to see ones self in the ravishing Company of Saints and Angels to see ones self with the Patriarchs Prophets Apostles Martyrs Confessors and Virgins to see all those Just and Holy Spirits singing Hymns and Praises to the Glory of God And yet all this is less though unspeakably great than to see the holy Humanity of our Lord that gracious Countenance those Divine Eyes whose brightness darkeneth the Sun and enlightens all the Creatures those Hands and Feet and that pierced Side from whence as Blood heretofore there now comes forth the Splendour of Glory the Stream of Grace the Joy and Comfort of all the Saints And still this is less than to see God the Father God the Son and God the Holy Ghost Three Persons in One Essence the beginning and the end of all Creatures that ineffable Mystery which exceeds all created Understandings before whom all the Angels and Saints prostrate themselves in Adoration This is that which amazes the Pen and humbles the highest Meditations in contemplation whereof the most lofty Cherubims and Seraphims lose themselves not being able fully to comprehend it From this Fountain and Original of Divinity and Goodness proceed all the Felicities of those holy Citizens in that Triumphant Jerusalem from that Source of Joy and Delights flow all their Delights and Pleasures from that Infinite Omnipotent and Supream Essence which is Incomprehensible in all it's Attributes springs the Original Glory of the Blessed All their Power and Being arises from his Power and Being The sight of that Goodness that Wisdom and Charity is the cause of theirs From that Light proceeds their Light Only to see one of his Attributes whether his Goodness Justice or Mercy though 't is impossible to see any one of them without seeing the rest is enough to give inexpressible Glory to all the Creatures What a blessedness also is it to turn the Eyes upon the Order and Beauty of that whole Coelestial Court To see the Martyrs crown'd with Ensigns of their own Valour to see the Holy Confessors adorn'd with their Vertues to see the Virgins with their Palms and Crowns only to see the Order wherein they are rank'd and wherewith they Adore and Praise the Lord to see the Nine Quires of Angels with the Three admirable Hierarchies only to see the great number of beatified Souls and Spirits every one in his Place and Employment serving their Creator and the Author of all their Happiness with unspeakable Contentment What a wonderful and high Felicity is this Then what Peace what Contentment what Joy what Quiet what Sweetness what Union what Conformity what Ardent love of God and of his Creatures is there in that blessed City Finally wouldst thou see what Heaven is Look what all the Delights of this World are freed from any mixture of Disgust and thou shalt find that in respect of them they are but Pains and Torments Think what it is to hear the sweetest Voices to smell the sweetest Perfumes and to enjoy whatever can delight the rest of the Senses think of an Heart full of Joy and Contentment an Understanding with all the Powers of the Soul fill'd with all the Delights and Pleasures that this World can afford it is all but Sadness and Affliction Pain and Anguish in the highest degree in comparison of those Eternal Joys Wouldst thou know what Glory is Then consider who it is that gives it to the Saints Think how Infinite the Power of God is it 's his Power that gives that Glory Think how Infinite is his Wisdom 't is that Wisdom which gives that Glory Think how Infinite is his Goodness 't is that Goodness which gives that Glory If then an Infinite Power an Infinite Wisdom and an Infinite Goodness joyn together to give Glory what must that Glory be which is the effect of such a Power of such a Wisdom and of such a Goodness If God gives to every one of his Saints in his just proportion according to his Love his Power and his Wisdom what Riches shall he give who is infinitely Rich What Wisdom and Light shall he give who is Infinitely Wise And what Joy shall he give who is Infinitely Good and Happy If the necessitous Person measures his hopes by the Power and Hand of the Liberal what shall the Joy be that is given by an Infinite Power which is willing to give that which is Infinite Wouldst thou see what Joys those are which God will give to the Blessed in Heaven Think how great the Punishments are that are inflicted upon the Damned in Hell If those are so sharp and intolerable for the pain of them to the wicked how sweet and superabundant will be the Enjoyments of the good Though his Justice and his Mercy are Essentially equal yet in the effects his Mercy is greater than his Justice for he punishes in Hell less than Sinners deserve and rewards in Heaven more than the Saints deserve What Glory shall he give in Heaven who punisheth so terribly in Hell with everlasting Fire Wouldst thou see the Joys which he confers upon the Elect who serve him in this Life Think what he suffered for them and what he did to save them If he gave his Blood and Life upon the Cross for the bad as well as for the good
glorious promise which at Pentecost was verified He by his Omnipotency raised his Body from the Dead and enlivened it according to that Prediction of his Destroy this Temple and in three days I will build it up again What more pregnant evidence could possibly be afforded of his being the Son of God than this sublime Miracle This one would think were enough to conquer the most inveterate Infidelity and to banish the least doubt or suspicion of our Saviour's Divinity O my Soul do thou endeavour herein to resemble Christ As he died and rose again for thee so do thou die from Sin and rise again unto Righteousness and Newness of Life seeking those things that are above where Christ is ascended and praying to him to quicken thy sinful and earthly Heart with holy Desires and heavenly Affections That Infinite Power which did so solemnly triumph over Death and the Grave can much more easily roll away the Stone of a customary Sin and subdue and mortifie the most powerful Lust though of never so long continuance and enable thee to live henceforward to God in a careful observance of all Christian Duties which will at length bring thee to the end of thy Hopes to those Glories which being the Portion of Angels and Saints and the nearest Communications with God are infinitely above what we see for hear or understand After the Miracles of our Saviour succeed his Parables which way of Expression was abundantly useful and recommended it self chiefly upon this account That whatsoever was represented in this Figurative manner was apt to insinuate more closely and to work more powerfully upon the Affections Forasmuch as in this case the mind was not only addressed to by the meer dint of Reason but Truth was in a manner made Visible and set off in such lively Colours that the Imagination being Impregnated the Passions were easily carried along too Hereby also the memory was exceedingly fortified for such things as we feel and see or which our Imaginations have an express Image of and our Affections relish those things always stick by us And further this way of Parables which our Saviour made so frequent use of in many cases came more home to Mens Consciences and carried more Conviction than any other more express and direct way of speaking And had it not been that the Jews were filled with Intollerable Prejudices against him they must of necessity have had his Wisdom in great Veneration For though under his Parables were hid mysterious Senses yet they were not so mysterious but that they were easily intelligible to Minds unprejudiced honest and desirous of Instruction The Truth shines through the Veil and the Shadow does itself guide to the Body and Substance How excellently did our Lord represent the great Efficacy of Repentance under the Gospel-state and its acceptableness with God from the vilest Sinners under the Parable of the Prodigal Son The Pharisees who were hardened in Infidelity for the sake of this Doctrine accounted him a Friend of Vicious and Lewd Persons They knew that the Law gave hopes of Pardon only to some smaller Offences excluding all great and notorious Offenders and shutting them up under Wrath and they not being elevated above this literal Dispensation would not believe that God would exercise Mercy upon any other Terms than what he therein proclaimed and therefore our Saviour Preaching Repentance and giving hopes of Pardon to the greatest Sinners upon condition of an hearty and thorough Reformation these demure Hypocrites were offended and insinuated a suspicion of our Saviour That he was a favourer of wicked Persons In answer to this unjust Imputation and to silence the murmuring of these hard-hearted Jews our Saviour makes use of this Parable with two others of the like nature wherein he plainly sets forth this great Doctrine and shews that as it is the common course of Men to express most Joy upon the recovery of any thing lost so God to whom the Souls of Men are infinitely valuable is highly pleas'd with the recovery of lost Sinners and upon their returning to him will mercifully accept them as the Indulgent Father here embraced his returning Son who had been so long engaged in the most wild Extravagancies and in the greatest Disobedience to his Paternal Authority O the merciful Compassion of God to Mankind O Love that surpassest all Understanding That the worst of Sinners should be received into favour and be made capable of Pardon only by repenting of their Wickedness and being sorry for their Sins In another Parable to wit that of the Talents how forcibly does our Lord instruct us in the Duties of Industry Diligence and Spiritual Husbandry How plainly does he teach us the necessity of improving those Gifts and Graces which God communicates to us for that purpose and to encrease those Talents which he entrusts us with and which he will call us to an account for how we have used them and what we have gained by them He sets before us the Reward of a careful employing of them to the Uses designed and the Punishment of a neglectful management of them Those that had gained by their Talents were pronounced good and faithful Servants and commanded to enter into their Masters Joy but he that had hid his Talent in the Earth and made no advantage of it was branded with the infamous name of wicked and slothful Servant and commanded to be cast into outer Darkness In like manner God will require an account of us how we have used all those Gifts and Endowments which he has bestowed upon us whether they be Goods of Fortune or of Grace We are mistaken if we think them given meerly for our sakes Have we the Blessing of a plentiful Fortune God entrusts us therewith to make us capable to do good and to relieve the necessities of our poor Brethren and unless we thus use it it will prove a Curse to us Are we favoured with extraordinary Endowments of Mind It is that we may instruct the Ignorant and employ them to the Glory of God and to the good of others which are destitute of so great a benefit Is God pleased to infuse his Grace into our Hearts it must then be our daily endeavour to grow therein and to add one Vertue to another We must faithfully employ and husband the first beginnings to the end that we may obtain still greater degrees God will Reward or Punish us according to the good or ill Employment of his Goods which he makes us Stewards of If we give diligence to add to those Talents of whatsoever nature they be which he deposits with us then no doubt God will honour us with the Title of faithful Servants and abundantly recompense our Industry but if through Idleness and Sloth we so employ our Talents as to bring in no gain to our Lord we must expect nothing but that dismal Sentence denounced against the slothful Servant Cast ye the unprofitable Servant into outer darkness there
shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth Another most useful and profitable Doctrine is taught us in the Parable of the Ten Virgins going forth to meet the Bridegroom which is that of Vigilance or Watchfulness and a timely preparation for Death and Judgment As the exact time of the Bridegrooms coming was unknown to them so is our latter end to us And as the Door was shut against the foolish Virgins and they excluded from the Marriage for their unpreparedness at the Bridegrooms coming so the Door of Mercy will for ever be shut upon us if we suffer ourselves to be surpriz'd by Death without making a due preparation for it The coming of the Lord to Judgment will be as a Snare on all them that dwell on the Face of the whole Earth Let us Watch therefore and Pray always that we may be found worthy to stand before the Son of Man We are likewise taught to pray instantly and perseveringly by the Parable of the Importunate Widow whom the unjust Judge that feared not God nor regarded Man did yet condescend to avenge of her Adversaries meerly because of her Importunity and constant Entreaties that he might not be wearied by her continual coming If this unjust Judge could by this means be mov'd to do right and to hearken to the Petition of the oppressed Widow How much more will God hear thy Prayers if thou continuest instant in soliciting his Divine Majesty If at the first thy requests be not granted yet cease not thy Addresses nor give over praying but contend and wrestle as it were with God till thou gainest a hearing God loves such an holy Violence First see that the matter of thy Petitions be just lawful and convenient and then thou mayest be sure to obtain them or something better if thou perseverest with Faith and Patience Another most necessary Duty is very strongly enforc'd in the Parable of the King which would take Account of his Servants I mean the Duty of forgiving Offences and Injuries When he began to reckon with them one was brought to him which owed him ten thousand Talents but being utterly uncapable of ever discharging so vast a Debt he fell down before his Lord and with great Humility and Earnestness entreated him to have patience with him whereupon he freely forgave him the whole Sum. But this same Servant afterwards severely exacting a far less considerable Debt of an hundred Pence of one of his fellow-servants and notwithstanding all entreaties casting him into Prison till Payment should be made his Lord thus expostulates with him O thou wicked servant I forgave thee all that debt because thou desiredst me shouldest not thou also have had compassion on thy fellow-servant even as I had pity on thee And his Lord was wroth and delivered him to the Tormentors till he should pay all that was due to him This is our case as the Servant's Debt to his Master was great and important and that of his fellow-servant to him but trivial and inconsiderable So our Offences against God are infinite and of a provoking Nature and the Injuries of our fellow-Creatures to us are but few and of small importance if therefore we desire God to pardon our hainous and often-repeated sins against him how can we refuse to pardon the petty and small Affronts of our Brethren With what Modesty canst thou who denyest to forgive thy Brother one single Trespass expect that God should forgive thee ten thousand Or how canst thou hope for the Mercy of God who art most cruel and unmerciful to others Revenge as it is an unchristian Principle so it tends directly to unqualifie us for forgiveness and is uncapable of the least rational defence for no man ever did or can forgive his Neighbour so many Provocations and Offences as he himself has need to be forgiven by God which is an eternal Reason and Motive to incite us to the exercise of Charity and Mercy and cannot fail to work upon ingenuous and considering Minds Can there be a greater Argument devis'd to make us easie and willing to pardon Offences than the consideration of that absolute necessity we our selves stand in of God's Pardon without which we must eternally perish Especially since our Saviour has plainly revealed to us that unless we from our hearts forgive every one his Brother their Trespasses our Heavenly Father will not forgive us our Trespasses Consider this attentively and thou canst not but perceive the great unreasonableness and sinfulness of Revenge Think seriously how much thou dependest upon the Mercy of God for thy Salvation and then thou wilt not fail to be merciful to thy Brethren Finally see what an infinite multitude of sins must be forgiven thee by God if thou escapest Damnation and thou wilt find great cause to pass by without the least thoughts of Revenge all the Injuries and Wrongs that can possibly be done thee by thy Fellow-Creatures And many more useful Doctrines may we find couch'd under these Figurative Speeches and Parables which our Saviour delivered Thus by the Parable of the Tares permitted to grow amongst the Wheat he intimated the Toleration of Dissenting Opinions not destructive of Piety or Civil Societies By the three Parables Of the Seed growing insensibly of the grain of Mustard-seed growing up to a Tree and of a little Leven qualifying the whole Lump he signified the increase of the Gospel and the Blessing of God upon the Apostolical Sermons By the Parable of the Sower scattering his Seed by the way-side some on stony some on thorny and some on good Ground he intimated the several Capacities and Indispositions of mens hearts the carelesness of some the frowardness and levity of others the easiness and softness of a third and how they are spoil'd with Worldliness and Cares and how many ways there are to miscarry and that but one sort of Men receive the Word and bring forth the Fruits of an Holy Life Thus plentifully did the Saviour of Souls provide for the winning of mens hearts or else if they were Stubborn and Contumacious and would not be wrought upon for the hardening of them by such pleasing Discourses which to pursue in particular were endless for Without a Parable spake he not unto them The Second WEEK The Eve of the Passion NOW it will be needful for thee to prepare thy Mind for great Tribulations because thou drawest near the Passion of our Lord whose Holy Imitation is the Joy and the Glory of Suffering How well does a Souldier fight seeing the Courage of his General How well the Subject in the sight of his King that is ready to lose his Life for him The Disciple is not to be above his Master nor the Servant above his Lord. The Son is not to fare better than his Father nor the Creature better than his Creator Embarque thy self in the vast Gulf of thy Saviour's Passion In that Stormy Sea of his Sufferings thou wilt sail more safely than in the Haven of thine own
Therefore of all those Vertues thou oughtest to follow and exercise in this Spiritual Life there is none thou shouldest so deeply meditate upon nor so earnestly beg that God would give thee as that of holy Humility Though Humility be a Vertue as it is exercis'd yet it is a Gift as it is bestow'd and therefore it is needful to beg it of God with earnestness constancy and humbleness So great is our Pride and so great is our Vanity that without a particular succour and favour of our good Master Jesus we are not capable of true holy and perfect Humility Pride is so natural to us and so rooted in us that even when we exercise our selves in Employments of Humility we are wont unless God by Grace prevent it to make them the matter of our Vanity How mischievous must that needs be which turns our Remedy into a Mischief How great is my Pride if when I prostrate my self meekly and humbly I often rise up again proud insolent and disdainful Even in the midst of Humility there may spring up a Vanity of being Humble and an inward Pride may grow out of a Conceit of my Humility which is worse than an outward Pride cloath'd with Vanity for that when it hurts does undeceive but this both hurts and deceives together O Lord of Mercy and Pity that my Vanity should be so excessive as to make me unless thou prevent it grow vain and proud in the very Temple of Humility That I should profane those holy Walls and upon the Altar of the Lord set up the Idol of Dagon and that I should adore my self in that place where I ought to adore none but God alone Therefore beg Humility of God without ceasing and whatsoever thou shalt do that is orderly right honest good holy or perfect still beg of God Humility If thou wert able to give sight to the Blind strength to the Lame Ears to the Deaf nay even to raise the Dead yet tremble and pray to God for Humility If thou could'st speak as an Angel and do Works that might become a Seraphim If thou drawest all the World after thee and that for God if thou convertest Souls if thou art a Master in Spirit and Perfection and that all thou goest about succeeds to thy desires yet tremble and pray to God for Humility Believe me between Hell and those Successes Miracles and Perfections there is not the breadth of a finger I say not so much since all the distance between them is but thine own Will which is weaker and of less power than thy finger Dost thou work Miracles Why so did Judas Dost thou know much Lucifer knew more Art thou good Adam was much better Are thy Writings heavenly Those of David were much more so Hast thou Divine Revelations So had Solomon Yet some of these fell and others of them were lost for ever Humility I say Humility Stick close to that for thereby all things shall redound to thy profit and without it any thing may be thy ruine and destruction Go with humble confidence into the presence of the Lord with humbleness because thou art wicked and with confidence because he is infinitely good Go with contrition because he sees thy wickedness and go with cheerfulness because thou fixest thy eyes upon his goodness Never place the end of thy remedy in thy self nor believe in thy Works alone that thou shalt go to Heaven for them or that thine own hands and feet shall carry thee thither Thou shalt not enter there without them but neither shalt thou enter for them It is God that carries us to Heaven and his Grace his Goodness his Pity his Merits his Death Passion and Mercy for without these let us do what we can and take never so much pains we shall never be able to get thither It is a better Phrase to say God has taken him up to Heaven than to say He is gone to Heaven God carries us guides us helps us God calls pardons and crowns us and all this because he loves us Lazarus that holy Beggar was carried by Angels to Abraham's bosom but the rich Glutton went to Hell of himself God carries us to Heaven if we be sav'd and we condemn our selves if we be damned Dost thou look upon thy good works Thou owest them all to God Dost thou see the Repentance that reformes thee the Chastity that adorns thee and the Charity that enflames thee Thou art endebted for them all to God The Pot dress'd up with Flowers is not proud of them for it is but a little Earth and Dung honour'd by the hand of the Gardiner What hast thou that thou hast not received And if thou hast received it why dost thou foolishly boast as if thou hadst not received it They are the words of the Apostle of the Gentiles He that has wrought best in the Spiritual Life he that has been a Martyr of Perfection he that has liv'd so as to strike all the World with admiration of his Spirit and Fervour he that has most exercised himself in all Verrtues the most generous Martyr the glorious Apostles St. John the Baptist the most holy Virgin and all the Saints and just Persons at their entring and being crown'd in Glory do not give thanks to their own Excellencies nor ascribe their Salvation to themselves but unto God and to his Mercy Goodness Blood and precious Merits which gave them those Excellencies and Vertues They liv'd humbly they entred with humbleness into Heaven and they are crowned for their Humility Therefore be thou humble and do not think thy self the Author of thy Fortune when it is good but when it is bad acknowledge that thou art so Depend for all thy Fortune upon God Those hands that made and fashioned thee will preserve inform and reform thee Believe that of thy self thou art nothing but a source of misery and that thou hast no goodness nor any stability in thee but what is given thee by his Goodness Grace and Mercy Attribute all that is good and holy in thee to God to whom it all belongs but all that is evil wretched and imperfect to thy self for that only is thine own Labour sweat persevere exercise thy self in what is good and with care and diligence avoid all that is evil But in doing all this rely nothing upon thy self without God but trust all to him who is thy Helper within thee above thee and round about thee Then let the Humility which thou embracest inwardly shoot forth also outwardly in all thy Actions for it is not easie to believe that internal Humility can dwell with external Vanity Let thy words and actions suit with an humble heart for to praise and applaud ones self openly and pretend to be esteemed and respected does not make it very probable that Humility is lodged within The Humility of that Mind comes very short that cannot reach from the inside to the outside the distance being so little between one and the other
be safe look upon the danger of a Mischief with the same fear and with the same hatred that thou lookest upon the Mischief itself How wise and cautious were the Recabites who being forbidden by their fore-fathers to drink Wine would never so much as eat Raisins and why Because Raisins are made of Grapes and of those Grapes Wine and they fear'd that by eating dry Grapes they might be tempted to eat ripe Grapes and so by degrees to squeeze out the Juice to make Wine and from making Wine at last to come to the drinking of it Thus it concerns thee to be careful never to turn back from the way of God neither with thy Sight no nor with thy Hearing nor with any other of thy Senses or Faculties Walk still forward without stopping for not to go forward is to go backward If thou givest but one of thy Senses up to danger by that it will gain thy whole Soul with all its Senses Powers and Faculties David did not give up his Heart to the danger nor his Understanding Will and Memory nor his Hearing with the rest of his Senses and Faculties No no he gave only a Glance he did but look upon Bathsheba and having only allowed that nimble Sense to the hazard by it the Devil caught him and so gain'd his Understanding Will and Memory with all the rest of his Senses Powers and Faculties and triumphed a whole Year together over that poor King who afterwards did no small matter to make his escape out of that Slavery and to rescue himself by the force of Penitential Tears after the suffering of many great Afflictions To God all must be given all that thou hast without reserving any thing whatsoever for he is the Lord of all from whom thou hast received all thou hast To the Common Enemy allow not so much as the smallest share imaginable for if any thing be given him how little soever it be that may be the occasion of very great Mischiefs When Moses contended with Pharaoh about letting the Children of Israel go that Barbarous King seeing his Power contented himself with less and less in every Capitulation and came lower and lower from one demand to another only that something might remain in his possession that belonged to the People of God hoping by that means to find out an Excuse to keep them still his Captives but Resolute Moses stood firmly to his first demand and would not make him the least abatement telling him finally That there should not remain so much as a hoof of the smallest Beast that belonged to any Israelite but that all absolutely all should go out of Egypt This Example thou must follow leave nothing nothing at all to the Devil but give all all is little enough to be given to God The Tyrant contents himself with a very little at first knowing how probable it is that from such small beginnings he shall make himself Master of all at last In his first attempt he seems very modest and makes as if he thought all were too much but in the end he thinks all too little How many Cities have been lost and taken by their Enemies at the entrance of a very small Breach or of some little hole or narrow passage that has been neglected or less carefully guarded We have often seen that at some little Wicket or Cleft in a Wall where a Man could hardly put in his hand the Enemies with very little Industry have made Passages for whole Armies to enter Therefore after so many Vertues which I have set before thine Eyes I especially recommend these two Vigilance and Diligence for they are the most serviceable for the obtaining the Gift of Perseverance Consider well what it is that may separate thee from God observe it with Vigilance and fly from it with Diligence Be not negligent do not sleep for then thou wilt be encompass'd with Enemies and with that roaring Lion as St. Peter calls him who goes about seeking whom he may devour Pray still for by Prayer thou shalt obtain Perseverance That important Gift depends wholly upon God it is he that gives it to him thou must owe it and it cannot be merited in this Life though in it it may be obtained By how much the more this Gift of Perseverance depends upon God with so much the greater and the more repeated Instances oughtest thou to beg it of him and to strive to win him by fervent Love by Prayers Tears and Contrition O Father that I could but know whether or no I shall Persevere in the Spiritual Life O that I were sure that I should be so happy as never to turn back from it With what Comfort and with what Joy and Gladness should I serve God But do not desire nor search to know what thy end shall be Be careful to learn thy Duty and to perform it be careful to serve and to please God and if thou dost so hope assuredly for if thy Life be Vertuous and Pious the end of it will be Perseverance Endeavour to spend thy days in Holy and Vertuous Employments and thou mayest confidently trust in the Divine Goodness that thy Death shall be such as thy Life hath been What canst thou get by knowing what will become of thee in the other Life To presume and grow careless if they tell thee thou shalt be saved or to be discouraged and despair if they say thou shalt be damned In which desperate condition it is impossible thou shouldst be saved and in the other by Pride and Negligence thou must necessarily be damned Wilt thou have me tell thee what will become of thee and me in the other Life and whether we shall be damned or saved Then let us both observe how we live and what our Actions are in this Life for according to them it shall befal us in the other This is most certain no good Man was ever condemned nor evil Man saved while they continued to be such If thou livest well hope and trust in God that he will save thee but if ill and dost not amend thou mayest be certainly assured thou shalt be condemned All thou shalt desire to know beyond this will bring thee into great danger either of Distrust or Vanity but can no ways be profitable unto thy Soul Believe and think worthily of God for he is Goodness itself Canst thou possibly think that his Infinite Mercy will let thee perish if thou servest him Canst thou think if thou beggest of him that he will deny to Pardon thee who dost confess and adore him during thy Life He that at his Death begged Pardon for those that were Crucifying of him If thou and I do all we can to please him though we are weak though we are ungrateful what will not God who is Soveraign Goodness and Super-abundant in Mercy do for those that strive all they can to please him But on the contrary if we offend and provoke him to wrath and do neither humble our selves
the Occasion Thou shalt be with me thou that dyest with me shalt go with me but if thou hadst not kept me Company in Death thou shouldst not have kept me Company in Paradise All which are rare Singularities which if they do not shorten the Power of God and his Grace towards others yet St. Austin notes that they may well make Man's Presumption tremble Finally we have more reason to fear in this case God's Justice for that the other Thief was not sav'd though he was so near our Saviour because he had delayed his Repentance till Death than to be too confident of his Mercy who saved the good Thief with so many limitations What is all this but to warn us to do well while we live and enjoy our Youth our Health and our Strength and not to defer our Amendment till the hour of our Death And to make us observe that good living and good dying go together and that evil living and evil dying do so too and that to expect those Miracles when we die which only happened at the Death of our Saviour will instead of making him our Friend while we live most certainly provoke him to be our Enemy at our Death and Judgment Thus Good Works are the probable Signs of a good Death to follow and an ill Death is the sign of Evil Works which went before FINIS A Catalogue of Books Printed for Samuel Smith at the Prince's Arms in St. Paul's Church-yard 1692. THE Meditations of Marcus Aurelius Antoninus the Roman Emperour concerning himself Treating of a Natural Man's Happiness wherein it consisteth and of the means to attain unto it Translated out of the Original Greek with Notes By Meric Causabon D. D. The Fifth Edition To which is added The Life of Antoninus with some select Remarks upon the whole by Monsieur and Madam Dacier Never before in English In 8o. 1692. The Wisdom of God manifested in the Works of the Creation In two Parts viz. The Heavenly Bodies Elements Meteors Fossils Vegetables Animals Beasts Birds Fishes and Insects more particularly in the Body of the Earth its Figure Motion and Consistency and in the Admirable Structure of the Bodies of Man and other Animals as also in their Generation c. By John Ray Fellow of the Royal Society The Second Edition very much enlarged In 8o. 1692. Three Discourses concerning the Changes and Dissolution of the World The First of the Creation and Chaos The Second of the General Deluge Fountains formed Stones Subterraneous Beds of Shells Earthquakes and other Changes in our Terraqueous Globe The Third of the General Conflagration Dissolution and means of bringing them to pass Of the Future State c. The Second Edition Corrected and very much enlarged and Illustrated with Copper Plates By John Ray Fellow of the Royal Society In 8o. 1692. A Treatise of Church-Government Or A Vindication of Diocesan Episcopacy against the Objections of the Dissenters in Answer to some Letters lately Printed concerning the same Subject By Robert Burscough M. A. In 8o. 1692. Several Books Written by the Reverend Dr. Rich. Lucas Vicar of St. Stephen's Coleman-street Practical Christianity Or An Account of the Holiness which the Gospel enjoyns with Motives to it and the Remedies it proposes against Temptations with a Prayer concluding each distinct Duty In 8o. 1685. Enquiry after Happiness in several Parts c. The Second Edition enlarged In 8o. 1692. The Duty of Apprentices and Servants 1. The Parents Duty how to Educate their Children that they may be sit to be employed and trusted 2. What Preparation is needful for such as enter into Service with some Rules to be observed by them how to make a wise and happy Choice of a Service 3. Their Duty in Service towards God their Master and themselves with suitable Prayers to each Duty and some Directions peculiarly to Servants for the Worthy Receiving the Holy Sacrament Published for the Benefit of Families In 8o. A Sermon Preached at the Funeral of Mr. Tho. Lamb July 23d 1686. In 4o. A Sermon Preached at the Assizes held at Horsham in Sussex August 23. 1691. Christian Thoughts for every day of the Month with a Prayer wherein is represented the Nature of Unfeigned Repentance and of Perfect Love towards God In 12o. 1692. The Plain Man's Guide to Heaven Containing First his Duty towards God Secondly towards his Neighbour With proper Prayers Meditations and Ejaculations Designed chiefly for the Country-man Tradesman Labourer and such like In 12o. 1691. Devotion and Charity A Sermon Preached before the Lord Mayor March 30. 1692. The Christan Race A Sermon Preached before the Queen July 31. 1692. Mr. Thornton's Sermon at the Assizes held at Chelmsford in Essex September 2d 1691. Mr. Gee's Sermon before the Queen Aug. 7. 1692. Dr. Stanley's Sermon at the Consecration of Thomas Lord Bishop of Lincoln January 10. 1691 2. The History of the Roman Conclave Containing the Rites and Ceremonies used and observed at the Death Election and Coronation of the Pope As also an Exact Description of the State of Rome during the Vacancy of that Chair Together with a brief Account of the Life of this present Pope Innocent XII By W. B. M. A. 1691. Medicinal Experiments Or A Collection of Choice Remedies for the most part Simple and easily prepared which being cheap may be made Serviceable to poor Country People By the Honourable Robert Boyle Esq late Fellow of the Royal Society Licensed Nov. 18. 1691. by Sir Robert Southwell President of the Royal Society and the major part thereof Printed before the Author's Death who Deceased Decemb. 30th 1691. To which is annexed a Catalogue of all his Theological and Philosophical Works together with the Order of Time wherein each of them hath been Published respectively In 12o. 1692. Of the Reconcileableness of Specifick Medicines to the Corpuscular By the Honourable Robert Boyle Esq Fellow of the Royal Society In 8o. 1686. Miracles Works above and contrary to Nature Or an Answer to a late Translation out of Spinosa's Tractatus Theologico-Politicus Mr. Hobs's Leviathan c. In 4o. 1683. History of the Original and Progress of Ecclesiastical Revenues By the Learned P. Simon 1685.