because the ignorant Peafant fneers at him? Will a Tradesman leave his Calling, because fuch a man makes Songs and Ballads upon't? If you are perfwaded that Confideration, and looking after your Spiritual concerns, is the way to real happines, will you be miferable, becaufe another man would not have you to be happy? Will that man who laughs at you for defpifing the world, fave you harmless at the day of Judg ment? Will he bail you out, when God's thunder fhall break out upon all difobedient finners? Will he undertake for you, when God will be abused and mocked no longer, and the day of his wrath doth come? Will he be your Advocate, when you fhall have your Confciences pleading against you? Alas, poor forlorn Wretches! he will not be able to answer for himself, how then should he plead your cause ? and if he can do you no fervice, cannot secure you against the anger of the Almighty, why will you be perfwaded by the anger or difpleafure of a man, though never fo great and powerful, to omit that, on which your Eternal welfare doth depend?

Sinner, as light as thou makest now of this ferious reflexion on thy Spiritual concerns, thou must confider them one time or other; if thou wilt not here, God will force thee to do it in Hell, whether thou wilt or no: here Confideration may do good, but there it will but aggravate thy torments; here it may snatch thee like a brand out of the fire, there it will increase

increase thy flames; here it may be a means to enlighten thee, there it will be a means to confound thee for ever. Proud, felf-conceited man, who can't find no time for serious confideration here! in Hell thou wilt have time enough, and Oh how many fad hours will it caufe to confider, how thou haft mif-fpent thy time,how thou haft flung away fo many precious hours upon thy unlawful pleasures, how thou haft derided fuch a Sermon,harden'd thy heart upon fuch a discourse, flighted God's motions to repentance, fmother'd the checks of thine own Confcience, preferr'd the World before Heaven, obey'd Man more than thy Creator, fuffer'd every trivial outward respect to call thee away from Devotion, miftrufted God's Providence, taken his Name in vain, laugh'd at the wholefome Counfels of thy Parents and Teachers, defpis'd thy Neighbours, cenfur'd their actions more than thy own, taken thy fill of fin, been weary of following Chrift, backward to any thing that's good, delighted with nothing but vanity and folly, difhonoured God, difgraced Religion, expofed it to contempt and fcorn, drawn others into vice, laugh'd men into folly, dragg'd them into Hell, murther'd their Souls as well as thine own, neglected thy Prayers, difregarded the Poor, oppreffed the Needy, been greedy after the World, and undervalu'd the pains and coft God did bestow to entice thee to enter into his Rest! At this time thou'lt be forc'd to confider, how great a bleffing thou haft refus'd, what com

fort

fort thou haft depriv'd thy self of, what a wife course those took, that would not be perfwaded by the vain careless World to caft God's Law behind them. But alas! thefe Confiderations will then be too late; time was when thou might'st have confider'd the odioufnefs of fin, and turn'd from thy evil ways; time was, when thou might'ft have confider'd the abfolute neceffity of defpifing the World, and dedicated thy felf, thy Children, thy Life and Wealth to God's fervice; time was, when thou might'st have confider'd, that God's Mercy and Patience did lead thee to Repentance, and fo have turn'd to God with all thy heart, and this had been to fecure God's favour, and to enter thy name in the Book of Life; but in Hell, such thoughts do but gnaw and fting thee more, there they do but augment thy forrow and indignation against thy felf; there they do but make thee weary of thy life, and the worst of it is, that there thou canst not be rid of these confiderations, they'l come into thy mind against thy will: here thou didst take pains to keep them out, there thou canst not hinder them from burthening and oppreffing thy Soul; here business and mirth diverted them, there thou canst not shake them off with all the industry and labour thou canst use; thou need'st no accuser there, these confiderations will be fufficient witnesses against thee; there, there thou'lt wish, O that I had believ'd the Prea chers of the Word! I find thofe men were

in

in the right, I find they faw more than I did, I find they were not mistaken; if I had followed their advice, I had built my House upon a Rock; I find they fpoke no more but reason, I find they exhorted me to nothing but what was fafe and beneficial to my Soul. Forgive me, ye men of God, pardon my contempt of your zeal and fervency; O fend me fome Lazarus, that he may dip the tip of his finger in water, and cool my tongue: if your Prayers, if your Tears, if your Entreaties, if your Interceffions can prevail with God, O help, help, for I perish in this gulph! Plead with your God, folicite for me at the Throne of Grace, double, treble your cryes and fupplications; try whe ther God will have mercy on me, who have had no mercy on my felf. I am frighted, I am troubled on every fide; I would stab my self, and cannot; dye, and muft not; escape, and dare not: Pity, pity a poor miferable Worm! Will none relieve me? do all forfake me? do Men and Angels leave me? is there no body to fpeak comfort to me? is there no door for Confolation open? are all the avenues to mercy fhut? Hear, hear ye inhabitants of Heaven! are you deaf to my groans? are you grown strangers to compaffion? where is your wonted clemency? will no repentance touch the heart of God? will no forrow move him? will no anguifh melt him? Dull Citizens of that Ce leftial Commonwealth! Are you fo bufie with Hallelujah's as not to hear these cryes? Are you

not

not frighted by these sobs in your chearful me lodies? Are you fo taken up, that none of can look down into these dismal Vaults?

this worm,

you

Look! yonder is the bright Mofes, the man whofe face did fine, that with his Prayer dif comfited Amalek, and when the Almighty would have destroy'd the Host of Ifrael, ftood in the gap, and blunted the consuming Angels Sword! Is all his power gone? Is the virtue of his Prayer loft? Ab! will be not pray, that this wretch, this poor malefactor, who would fain repent, may be fet free? Where is that Jofoua that prayed for the Sun's standing still, and it stood still in the midst of Heaven? Hath he no Prayer left to stop my calamity, and to give a truce to my torments? Where is that Elijah, that prayed that there might be no rain, and there came no rain for three years and fix months? And cannot he pray that this fire may go out?

A thousand fuch cryes will then be in vain; Confideration now would most certainly prevent thofe cryes; this would reprefent the groans of those Wretches in that dismal prison, in fuch lively characters to thy mind, that thou wouldft be restless, till thou didst get into the strait way that leads to life; and art thou not ready to embrace it? What Fiend, what Enemy, what Devil, what Charm quenches the Fire of thy resolutions? Dost thou owne God for thy Creator and Governour, one that hath greater reason to command thee than thy Prince, or Ma

fter,