laugh at the Godly for mortifying and persecuting themselves with Abstinence and other Acts of Repentance living retir'd and abstracted from the World and despising Humane Delight and Felicity Loose and debauch'd Persons use to ask those of stricter Life What Fruit do ye get by that Mortification by that Solitariness and Fasting wherewith ye torment and destroy your selves Had you not better live merrily and enjoy the Pleasures of the Flesh as we do The Apostle replys What Fruits do we get Twelve heavenly Fruits the Holy Spirit gives us which we would not Exchange for all the Fruits for all the Delights and for all the Pleasures which the World can bestow And we must take notice that he most discreetly forbears to reckon for the present Fruits those Eight Beatitudes with which Christ begins his Sermon upon the Mount for they are Promises of Blessings in the future and though some of them are not without effect even in this Life yet they all chiefly regard the Life to come He says Blessed are they that mourn for they shall be comforted that is with everlasting Comforts Blessed are the meek for they shall possess the earth that is the Land of the Living which is Heaven Blessed are those that hunger and thirst after righteousness that is do earnestly desire to be good for they shall be filled that is shall have most perfect goodness in Glory Blessed are the merciful for they shall obtain mercy that is at the Day of Judgment Blessed are the pure in heart for they shall see God Blessed are the Peace-makers for they shall be called the children of God Blessed are they that are persecuted for righteousness sake for theirs is the kingdom of Heaven St. Paul would not reckon these for the Fruits of the Spirit because our Saviour had spoken of them before in his Gospel and these are not the Fruits of our Banishment but of our Country Those Beatitudes are the Fruits of these other Twelve which St. Paul here nameth That which he meant was to turn the Argument upon those poor deceived Wretches of this World saying Do ye ask us What Fruit we have in mortifying our selves by the power of the Spirit We answer That we not only obtain Eternal Glory as Christ promised us in the Life to come and that proportionable to what we suffer here for he says We shall receive an hundred fold but that even in this Life he gives us Fruits of Glory Comfort Peace and Joy and the Spirit causes such heavenly Effects in us as give our Life the advantage far above all the Feasts and Merriments of yours St. Paul seems to compare Spiritual Delights with Sensual Pleasures and the Recreations of the Good with the Pastimes of the Wicked This appears in that he does not count Eternal Glory for the Fruit of the Spirit but those Effects which the Spirit it self produces in this Life which are Joy Peace Long-suffering c. as if he should have said The Spirit has two sorts of Fruits one for this Life which is an Internal Glory and the other for the Life to come which is both an External Internal and Supernal Glory Two Fruits one of Temporal Peace upon Earth and the other of Eternal Peace in Heaven This Question which sinners make to the righteous seems to correspond to that which St. Paul makes to sinners when he asks them What fruit had you then in those things whereof you are now ashamed and they if they will answer truly can answer nothing but that Grief Misery and Confusion has been the Fruit of them but they answer only with another Question saying And you What Fruit do you get by following of Vertue To which St. Paul answers Not One Fruit but Twelve most savory and pleasant ones which are the cause of Eternal Fruits He likewise implicitly puts the Beatitudes for the Fruit of the Spirit and comprehends them in these Twelve as one that gives the name of the Effect to the Cause for it is as if he had said Do thou assure me that thou enjoyest these Twelve Fruits of the Spirit in this Life and I will assure thee that thou shalt enjoy those Eight Beatitudes in the other Life Do thou assure me that thou livest here in the Kingdom of Grace and I will assure thee that thou shalt Reign there for ever in the Kingdom of Glory 'T is true one would think that these Twelve Fruits which we now speak of gathering in and storing up for the Harvest of the Spiritual Year seem to be those common Vertues we spoke of in the Second Part but though they be like there is great difference between them for this Peace this Chastity this Charity this Benignity c. are not altogether the same with those there spoken of but these do presuppose those and these are a Supream Habit which God gives by his Holy Spirit whereby he raises facilitates perfects and crowns those Vertues which are there begun and brings them to an high and heroical Perfection The Reason upon which I ground my self is That those Vertues though they be serviceable for the Exercise of Grace yet they are not called the Fruits of the Spirit but Vertues which conduce to the Spirit and with which we begin and proceed in the Spiritual Life but these Fruits which St. Paul here mentions are more than Vertues they are Gifts and Fruits which grow from the Spirit and as a Tree after having been digged about manur'd prun'd and taken care of all the Year does by gathering an inward Sap beget the generative vertue of its Fruit defends it by its Bark in the Winter shelters it with its Leaves in the Summer seasons it with the Sun and the Air in the Autumn and lastly offers up its Fruit to be gathered by the owner which is the best of all his Labours So also these Twelve Fruits of the Holy Spirit are the best of the Spiritual Life and much more excellent than those Vertues wherewith Men begin and go on in it at the first and these grow from them into a Fruit which by and through their means the Holy Spirit ripens and makes more fragrant more savoury and more substantial than all those Vertues of the beginning We will go on discoursing of these Twelve Fruits in the remaining Weeks of this Spiritual Year to the end that thou mayest rejoyce in finding That Blessedness is not only the Reward of Vertue but that Vertue it self is Blessedness already and that thou mayest see and know and feel within thy self that whatsoever is not Spirit and Vertue and the Love of God is nothing but Sadness Pain and Misery Of Charity the first Fruit of the Holy Spirit Here St. Paul the great Master of Souls seems in these Fruits and Gifts of the Holy Spirit to joyn the beginning with the end and the Root with the Fruit for he says that the two first Fruits which the Holy Ghost gives to a Spiritual Man are Charity and
Preachers daily call upon thee from their Pulpits 3. What canst thou say for having neglected the Directions of thy Spiritual Guides those internal Physicians of Souls and Consciences What canst thou say for having so often turned away from God who by them called upon thee daily intreating thee and offering thee eternal Life What for following his and thine own Enemy that offer'd thee nothing but eternal Death What canst thou say to quit thy self from so many Accusations What Evasion canst thou find to so full an Evidence Or how wilt thou get off from so weighty a Charge wherein thou wilt not be able to answer so much as one of Ten thousand If the Charge be true how will it be possible for thee to oppose the Truth thy Judge being also the Truth it self What deceit will be able to prevail before so great a Light and such a manifest Conviction Dost thou think O simple Creature to over-reach that infinite Wisdom Doth thy Ignorance think to circumvent him who sees the time present the time past and the time to come all at one instant Or does thy foolish proud Presumption hope to escape his all-seeing Eye Thou deceivest thy self and not him in so silly a conceit his Judgments are Evidences his Sentences Truths and his Execution Justice and doest thou think there can be forgetfulness of thy faults in that eternal Comprehension that beholds all things There is not the lightest Thought the suddenest Motion the inconsiderablest Word nor the smallest Action which is not punctually registred there That eternal Justice has all Sins counted weighed and measured in his presence from the first bitter Fruit of Adam's Apple to the last and slightest Sin of all Mankind till the end of the World That which was only known to thy Chamber to the secretest Corner of thy House or of thy Heart that which is unknown to thy most favoured Servant or most intimate Friend is all publick and manifest before the Face of thy Creator The Leaves of all the Trees in the World the Sand of all the Seas all the Stars of the Sky and the Atoms of the Sun with whatsoever is created are all numbered and present to him and canst thou believe he will forget thy Sins 4. Wouldst thou know what the Judgment is that thou mayest live with Judgment before thou comest to Judgment 5. It is an exact and particular Register of thy loose and wretched Life all that thou hast said seen done and thought in seventy Years of thine age is perfectly seen to God in that instant as if thou wert but then in doing of it 6. O Jesus my Lord and my God is it then all one thing with thee to behold and to judge And is thy Judgment the perfect and particular Sight of all the Sins and Transgressions of our whole Life Alas Alas What then shall become of me at that Day Is it possible O my great God that thou shouldst then see all my Crimes and soul Misdeeds That thou shouldest then see all my Subtilties Deceits and Falshoods Must all my beastly Vices and filthy Sensualities be seen by thee at that Judgment with the Pride and Presumption wherewith I have despised and trampled upon others with my unjust censurings and rash judgings of my Neighbours and my Vanity and Folly in thinking better of my self then of them Shalt thou then see the Sins not only of my Person but likewise of my Office and Dignity My Sins of Omission as well as those of Commission The Evils I have done the good Actions I have left undone and my suffering others to act those Crimes which I might have hindered Must thy pure Eyes which cannot behold Inquity see and behold and judge all mine Iniquities in that one instant How can I but tremble to think that thy holy and heavenly Eye should see such filthy Impurities and such horrible Abominations What can I hope for in that Sentence What can my Wickedness expect from thy eternal Justice but everlasting Torments All my Bones quake for fear O God and I am ready to wish the Rocks might hide me and the Hills might cover me from thy Presence but I know how vain that is and that even in the Center of the Earth thy Right-hand will find me out I am therefore plainly convinced that there is no refuge for me but from the Bar of thy Justice to the Bowels of thy Mercy Yet how shall I dare take Sanctuary there having so much abused it Now I discover the necessity I stand in of a Mediator to plead there for me yet dare not beg his Intercession having so long neglected it Thou of thy infinite Mercy and Goodness hast given thine own dear Son even the Man Christ Jesus to be that Mediator for all Mankind and in him some beams of Hope begin to comfort me remembring his excessive Love that willingly died upon the Cross to make Satisfaction to thy Justice for the Sins of all But with what confidence can I hope in him whom I have so often crucified afresh by my redoubled Offences This is my sad Condition and when I look only upon my Guilt I am almost ready to despair But Lord I know that that is a greater Sin than any I have yet committed therefore I will hope even against hope and carnestly beg of thee O my dearest Saviour that since thou hast hitherto given me time and now so loudly callest me to Repentance by this terrible Meditation of God's vigorous Judgment I may not delay a Moment longer to lament and bewail the Multitude of my Transgressions Grant I may go to that great Day with Tears of Contrition and that I may depart from it with Songs of Praise Grant I may go to it weeping for having offended thee and that I may come from it with joy for thy having pardoned me And since thou seest my sins which provoked thy Wrath grant thou mayest also see my Repentance to obtain thy Mercy Grant O dear Jesus that since thou seest my Ingratitude thou mayest also see my Heart deeply grieved and afflicted for having been so ungrateful And lastly grant I most earnestly beseech thee that I may see thy infinite Pity interposing the Merit of thy Death thy Blood thy Cross and Passion between thy Father's Justice and my sinful Soul now and ever and most especially in that great and terrible Day and that in the mean while I by thy Grace may so spend the rest of my days in Sorrow and Amendment of Life that at my Death I may be received into thy Glory Amen The Third WEEK Of the Means there are in this Life to prevent the Account and Judgment of the other 1. I Am stricken with amazement stand trembling at the thought of the Judgments of the Lord. I know not what to do nor can find any way how to escape them I am ashamed and confounded to appear in his presence full of so many Miseries and Sins Is it not possible to delay
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
without the support of thy powerful hand O how we abuse those admirable Gifts which thou so graciously bestowest upon us We extinguish the light of Reason within us we banish truth and goodness from us and transform our selves into wild Beasts or worse if we forsake thy Law and give our selves up to the obedience of our own Appetite The Fourth WEEK Of the Miseries and Sins of each Man in particular 1. THese are the Miseries of our Nature lightly and briefly expressed but what kind of ones and how many are they in each one of us individuals seeing they are so great and so considerable in their Root If the Tree be so bitter what bitterness must be in the Fruit How blind are we O God if we do not see that which is so near us How blind are we if we do not see what we are our selves How wretched if such innumerable Miseries do not enlighten us to seek for Mercy How unworthy if we do not bewail the Sins we daily commit 2. Let every one well consider himself and he shall see what is in himself Let each of us turn the Eye of his Mind to behold himself within Let each of us put our hand in our bosom and he will draw it out full of Leprosie If the just Man falls seven times a day or rather seventy times seven what shall I do that am unjust and wicked Do not judge of this or measure it by others but judge of it and measure it by thy self and me 3. Scarce did the Light of natural Discourse begin to shine in my Child-hood when I embraced Evil it being my Duty to have embraced Good My Reason increas'd with my Age but my Passion increased much faster than it What a grief what a pity to see Reason banished from a Man's Soul by Passion That being set between Evil and Good my Soul should fly from Good to Evil Woe is me how soon I lost the Robe of Grace How soon I made my self an infamous Slave of Sin How soon its snares and nets intangled me How soon its darkness obscur'd all my light How early I began to grow worse and to hasten that approaching Night How early I forsook the Banner of the Redeemer of Souls and flying from the City of God to that of my beastly Appetite I quitted the Holy Jerusalem to take up my dwelling in Babylon How late I recover'd thee O sweet Jesus of my Life How late I know the way to serve thee having so early known the way to offend thee Slow have I been to follow thee O my Jesus but very hasty to persecute thee Who can suffer this This slowness and that haste Crucifie my Soul O Lord and I will bewail them both eternally in my Life till I see thee in the Life eternal by my death 4. How long did I go as a lost and prodigal Son flying from my heavenly Father that sought me How long like a wandring Sheep flying from my Shepherd that ran after me How long did I go astray in the venemous Pasture of worldly Vices taking Poyson and Death to be my nourishment I embraced my Deceits and my Undoings being fond of that which killed me Blindly stumbling I followed after Vanity and in a bold folly I hunted after my own destruction Who called me and brought me back when I was lost laying me gently upon his Shoulders Who was that divine Samaritan that took care of me the Man full of Wounds and that lay half dead as I was going from Jerusalem Who but thou O my Jesus who wert more wounded by thy Love for Man then I by the Love of my Sins Who but thou sweet Jesus that wert more ready to lay down thy Life for me then I was to have my Life saved by thee 5. For me to be lost and wicked and wretched O eternal Glory is natural to me and to my Vices that being properly of my own Stock but for thee who art infinitely good to seek after him that was lost and wicked and wretched thy infinite Justice requiring rather that thou should'st destroy then save such a Person is a Work that belongs only to thy unspeakable Mercy and to the Bowels of thy Compassion Thine infinite Goodness O my Jesus doth still exceed my horrible wickedness and look how vast the distance is between thee and me between finite and infinite So vast is that between my ruine and my remedy Blessed be thou my God for though the one be great the other is unmeasurable in greatness 6. But Oh that being once found and cured by thy hand I had never lost and forsaken thee again Oh that I had but once cost thee the Pains the Sweat the Blood the Torments and the Death which thou paid'st for me But Lord I have often nay numberless times crucified thee again 7. Look not Lord upon my wickedness but upon thine own goodness To offend thee though but once was a great Evil but to do it so many thousand times is an Evil of the highest Magnitude To offend by forgetfulness of thee before I was pardon'd was very ill since to forget thee is a very great Evil but to offend thee after being pardon'd is an ill beyond all ills because it is to be ingrateful and an Enemy to my greatest Benefactor To offend thee before I knew thee was very ill but to offend thee knowing thee and acknowledging thee still to offend thee is a much greater aggravation To offend thee as an open Enemy is a great Crime but to offend thee as a false Friend and a treacherous Disciple is the highest of Treasons To contrive and commit Sins in thine absence without remembring that thou standest looking on is very bad since there is no absence from thee who art in all places but to offend thee in sight of thy Divine Countenance and even while born upon thy Shoulders to betray thee in thy very House and at thy very Table is a degree of Wickedness above all comparison I am utterly lost O Lord unless thy kindness pardon and direct me My Sins deserve a thousand Hells unless thy divine Goodness and Mercy free and defend me 8. How often good God after having been cleansed have I return'd to wallow in the Mire How often after having been cur'd have I renew'd my wounds and like a perjur'd Soldier forsaken the Banners of thy Grace and enter'd my self in pay under thine Enemies Colours How often like thy treacherous Disciple have I sold thee for the vile price of some beastly Pleasure Many a time to satisfie my anger or revenge have I offended thy Meekness Many a time have I by despising and trampling upon others offended thy great Humility Many a time have I by known and wilful Sins fearlesly ventur'd to provoke thy Justice O dear Jesus tye me now fast to thy Cross let not my Lips nor my Soul be parted from thy divine Feet fasten me with thy Nails pierce me with the Launce that wounded thee
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
defence of his Souldiers They hazard their lives for a pitiful Pay which oftentimes they never get but our King and Captain secures us a certain Pay rewarding us with Life and Glory If they fly over to their Enemy 't is out of hope to preserve their lives but if we do so we run to eternal death and fly from eternal life The War of the World is made by wounding hurting and killing others but the War of God against the World is made by receiving Injuries Affronts Wounds and even Death it self if it be necessary The War of the World is to Conquer by destroying others but the War against the World is to Conquer by undergoing Difficulties and Suffering for God's sake In that War it is Force that overcomes in this 't is Patience The Victories of that War are gotten by pulling down and trampling upon others but in this by debasing and humbling our selves The Triumphs of that War are here upon Earth and of a short continuance but those of this War are to be in Heaven above and to endure for ever and ever Fight therefore couragiously have patience and persevere the Battle lasts but for a while thou art already near the Crown that is to be thy Reward Arm us O thou great Captain of our Salvation for this Warfare with the Shield of Faith the Breast-plate of Righteousness the Helmet of Salvation and with the Sword of the Spirit and grant that having our Feet shod with the preparation of the Gospel of Peace we may chearfully withstand all Assaults of our Ghostly Enemies keeping still present in our thoughts the Vow we made to thee in our Baptism to fight manfully under thy Banner against the World the Flesh and the Devil and to continue thy Faithful Souldiers and Servants unto our lives end The Second WEEK Of Repentance and Absolution OUR blessed Redeemer and Saviour of Souls did not stop here He thought it not enough to Arm us for the Spiritual Warfare but has also provided a Remedy to cure our Wounds His Divine Majesty knew our weakness he knew our proneness to Vice he knew that like Cowards we should sometimes throw down our Weapons at the feet of our Enemies and basely fly from his Banner for the sake of some filthy Appetite He would not leave our Souls without help but his Compassion seeing our Frailty and Misery was pleased in the very sight of so great Ingratitude to prepare a Medicine for the cure of our Wounds and an Antidote for the Poyson of our Sins by establishing the Doctrine of Repentance and by giving Power and Commandment to his Ministers to declare and pronounce unto such as are truly Penitent the Absolution and Remission of their sins Great was the Love of our Lord in dying for us upon the Cross nor was it less in giving us this means to make his Sufferings effectual to us To pardon past Offences has been seen and sometimes one man to suffer for another but not at so dear a Price as his own Blood For a Person offended to suffer the sight of his Enemies is much when it is to do them good but 't is much more when he knows that they are not only Enemies but that they are ungrateful and despise his Benefits to shed his very blood to make a Medicine for their Wounds This is a pity exceeding all Humane Understanding That there should be care taken in Armies to cure the Wounded and Hospitals for the Sick it is not strange because they are Faithful Souldiers and venture their Lives in Fighting for their King But in the War of the Spirit that the Saviour of Souls should prepare Remedies not for his Friends that fight on his side but for Enemies and Souldiers that desert him that he should admit them again to be new listed under his Banner is a Mercy beyond comparison To pardon Mutineers has been seen in Armies but yet the Heads are commonly punished and the Companies disbanded but not only to pardon such Enemies and Traytors but to call them back to Love to Cure to Reward to Honour and Sustain them with his own Flesh and Blood can be the effect of nothing but an Infinite Charity and Compassion So great is the Benefit of Repentance which giving us a Title to the blood of Christ not only Cures those that are wounded but also raises those that are dead in sins nor is there any thing above the Cure of that Soveraign Medicine unless the Party affected resists the power of it which is so great that it not only cures the Wound but takes away the very Scars and makes those that are recovered more sound and healthful than they were before Behold a Man fallen from a Ship into the Sea and ready to be drowned amidst the Waves see with what eagerness he calls for a Cable with what greediness he catches at the Plank nay the poor wretch would even lay hold on a naked Sword to save his Life though with the loss of his Blood so the Christian who by the Grace of Baptism sails in the Ship of the Church being carried by his Passions throws himself into the World and is sinking in the Tempest of his sins and if he be drowned he perishes to Eternity but as he is sinking he finds this second Plank of Repentance to save him from Shipwrack and by it is drawn up into the Ship again and preserved to arrive in safety at his desired Port. Apply thy self therefore to the use of this Remedy with Humility with an holy Disposition and great sorrow for thy sins and by Faith in the Merits of Christ's Blood and then thou shalt rise up not only cured but crowned Call to remembrance thy sins and make a firm Resolution never to offend thy Lord again Be affected with a sorrow that is pure in its sincerity pious in its intention great in its degree perpetual in its lasting and particular in the enumeration of thy several sins with all the aggravating Circumstances thereof Finally let thy Confession be clear and undissembled with confusion of Face for thy often relapses giving Glory to God and taking Shame to thy self Make use of a Spiritual Guide in all difficulties of Conscience for thy Instruction and Consolation Forgive all Injuries thou hast at any time received which are but a few Pence in comparison of the many Talents which thou hast to be forgiven and remember that Christ says Except ye forgive men their trespasses neither will your Heavenly Father forgive you your trespasses And not only forgive thine Enemies but embrace them with unfeigned Affection for his sake and by his Example who loved thee when thou wast his Enemy Of the Holy Eucharist In this Preparation of Soul wounded both with Love and Grief and thirsting as the Hart for the Water-brooks approach reverently to the Sacrament of thy Saviour's Body and Blood which that gracious Lord instituted at his last Supper for a continual remembrance of the Sacrifice of himself
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
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
was black and cruel Now they bring the Blessed Jesus thus tied and bound at Midnight to the House of Annas who was the Father-in-law of Caiaphas the High-Priest and there without Right or Reason without Justice or Mercy the Universal Judge of Souls is examined as a guilty Person He gives them a modest holy Answer for which they give him a box on the Ear the whole Heaven weeping at that time to see so horrid a Crime committed upon Earth From that day Affronts became honourable Ignominy glorious and that began to be Renown which before had been Contempt The Cross had been accounted shameful till the unspeakable Mysteries of Man's Redemption were celebrated upon it but from the time that God blessed and consecrated Pains and Punishments with his Pains and Punishments to be Merry began to be a great Danger and to Suffer was made to be a great Honour While our Lord suffered these things in the House of Annas the Officers and People gathered themselves together in the House of Caiaphas and they led the most meek and holy Jesus before him because he was the High-Priest for that Year and so the Lamb was brought before a Council of Lions and ravening Wolves There Envy Examines him Injustice Condemns him and the Blasphemers of God pronounce God himself to be a Blasphemer O Folly that exceeds all Folly O Wickedness that surpasses all Wickedness Man condemns God for a Blasphemer when the greatest Blasphemy that Man's Nature could commit was to declare so foolish a Condemnation and so Blasphemous a Sentence But while they are condemning our Blessed Lord his Divine Majesty suffers no less by the Denial of his Loving Disciple than by the Persecution of his bitter Enemies but his merciful Eyes raise him up again since it was the fall of a Lover who came to seek for his Beloved St. Peter fell where no body else durst come His fall was by the frailty of our Nature but his coming thither when all the rest forsook their Master and fled was by the Valour of Grace It was not so with the Impenitent Judas who besides his being a Covetous Traitor was also distrustful of Mercy for he having made Restitution of his ill-gotten Money did with a worse kind of Repentance seek his Remedy in Despair Behold Jesus being condemn'd to Death by the Jew they deliver him up to the Gentile and having loaded him with Injuries Affronts Buffetings and a thousand other sorts of Punishment they present him to Pilate By him he is examined again and the Idolater less partial acknowledges the Malice of the Sons of Israel and the Vertue and Holiness of the Son of God Yet what does that help if Envy and Cruelty be more powerful in Persecuting than Truth and Innocency in Defending But to the end that the pains of our Redeemer might be the greater he finds him very slack and remiss in his Defence and them very fierce vigorous and constant in his Prosecution but at last the violent and importunate Accuser always gets the better of a weak and unconcern'd Judge so Pilate not to give himself the trouble of defending Innocency delivers it up bound into the hands of Malice yet having some little scruple to commit so great a wickedness he would fain have shuffled it off to another and remits him to Herod to see if he could ease himself of so troublesome a Cause and avoid so foul a Crime as that which those fierce Tygers would have had him to commit They bring the Saviour of Souls to the House of Herod and that sensual Incestuous King would have had him to work some Miracle for his Diversion not having been willing to believe those he had wrought for his Salvation Our Blessed Lord gives him no Answer for he that had beheaded John Baptist and silenced the voice of his Holy Forerunner did not deserve to hear the voice of the Eternal Word In the end the Eternal Wisdom being despised as a Fool Herod disdains to be the Judge of his Cause and so being cloathed in a Robe of Scorn they bring him back again to Pilate Thither the cruel Multitude follow him with their Clamours and being impatient to see Injustice so backward to Condemn Innocency they with loud cries entreat the Gentile that he might be Crucified because the Superstitious Jew would not defile himself by his death in the time of the Passover thinking that provided he kept but an outward Purity it was no matter though he had a thousand Impurities and bloody stains in his Soul How well did our Saviour tell them that they were Cups washed clean on the outside but that within they were full of Riot and Excess and whited Sepulchres whose inside was full of Rottenness and Corruption The President makes still some resistance and for an expedient of Pity Condemns the Holy Jesus to be scourged believing that at the sight of his Scourging and Crowning with Thorns his fierce Accusers would be softened and satisfied O Pity more cruel than Cruelty itself Are five thousand lashes a merciful means to save the Innocent Behold O my Soul what sort of Compassion was used in the dolorous Passion of the Redeemer of Souls since they took it for a kind of Pity to tear his Flesh with so great a number of Stripes and how justly it is said That the mercies of the wicked are cruel Thus shedding Rivers of Blood crowned with Thorns having put a Reed in his hand and an infamous Robe of Purple on his back he brings forth the Lord Jesus to be seen by that ungratâ—ful People bidding them behold the man but they still fierce and barbarous cry out to have him crucified How soft are Rocks how gentle are Lions and Tygers in comparison of such Monsters Behold our Savage hardness since God suffers in this manner for Man and Man still continues cruel and obdurate towards God! Is it possible that so many wounds and sufferings should not work upon them nor at all abate their fury Is it possible so doleful so miserable a Spectacle should not soften Humane hearts There is no Anger no Rage nor Fury so violent against a Criminal which does not relent to some tenderness at the sight of his Punishment but here at the sight of Innocency itself tormented abused and affronted with all kinds of Mockery and Derision they become more hardened more furious and more enraged Sure they were Statues of Brass since all this could not move them or if they had the flesh at least it was impossible they should have the hearts of Men. But O Lord how much more reason have we to condemn our selves For if our sinful and obdurate Souls are not chang'd and soften'd by thy Pains and Sufferings believing and confessing thee what wonder is it if those cruel Murtherers persisted in their bloody purpose since they denied and rejected thee The President seeing that his Expedient had been fruitless and that the People were grown but the more furious by
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