sinners could have resisted God, and saved themselves from the stroke of justice, the church-yard would not have been so full of graves, nor hell so full of damned souls as it is at this day." But who hath hardened himself against him, and hath prospered?" Name me the man, and tell me where he dwells, that hardened his heart against the Lord, and sped well by it in the latter end? I tell you again, if sermons cannot make you feel; if mercies and warning, if threatening and affliction cannot make you feel, judgment and hell shall make you feel. Say not, but thou wast told so, and remember this when thou seest not me. Remember that I foretold thee that God will not be always jested with, or abused, and that thou canst not make so light of hell, as thou didst of the warnings of God and man. If thou be turned into a rock, God hath a hammer that can batter and dash in pieces that rock.

Object. But if God will harden my heart, how can I help it? It is he that hardened Pharaoh's heart, and so he did the Jews. And if he will do it, what remedy?'

Answ. 1. Dost thou think to have any excuse or comfort by accusing the righteous and holy God? O what a foolish thing is sin, and how it bereaveth poor sinners of their understanding! Thou mightest better have laid the blame upon any one in the world, than upon the righteous and most holy God. For never sin came from him, nor was caused by him. Dost thou think he will not be justified in his judging? God's hardening men is but his leaving them to themselves, to go on in that hardness that he found them in, and denying them that grace which he no way oweth them. 2. And God doth not this neither, till thou abusest his grace, and strivest against the light, and castest away thy own mercy; and is it not just then that he should take his mercy from thee? If children will play with their meat, or cast it to the dogs, and tread it under feet, it is time to take it away. This is God's hardening of the hearts of sinners; he leaveth them as he found them, after they have abused and refused his grace. And withal, he letteth loose the tempter upon them, that seeing they will be wicked, they may be taken in their own wickedness, and destroy themselves by it; as you will lay a purse in the way to catch a

thief by, when you do not make him thievish; so God will try and catch a sinner when yet he never gives him any inclination to the sin. But when he seeth that they are and will be such, it is just with him to let them take their course, and smart by their folly. And as, if you see a thief that is running into a pit, you are not bound to keep him out; no more is God to keep a sinner from destroying of himself, especially when he hath so often refused his assistance.

Quest. But what can I do for the softening of my own heart?'

which is

Answ. O that thou wert but willing to do what thou shouldst and mightest do. If thou be willing; 1. Get alone and consider of the misery of thy condition; and of the time when thou shalt feel whether thou wilt or no. 2. Keep under the most powerful preaching of the word, God's ordinary means for the melting of the heart. 3. Keep in the company of those that will remember thee of those holy truths which have a softening nature, and will bring everlasting things into thy mind. 4. Keep out of the company of foolish and ungodly men, who by their words and practices will harden thee more. 5. Resolve that thou go not on in the practice of thy known sin; no, not once more. For sinning against knowledge doth harden the heart, and tempt the Lord to leave thee to thyself. If thou wilt be drunk when thou knowest it to be a sin; and wilt be worldly, and wilt be fleshly, when God and conscience speak against it; this will desperately harden thy heart. 6. Beg daily of God that he would soften thy heart. Beseech him upon thy knees to pardon those sins by which thou hast hardened it, and to give thee his Spirit which must deliver thee from this misery and follow him hard with these requests from day to day; for if thou prevail not, thou art undone and lost for ever. For, saith the Holy Ghost, "he that covereth his sins shall not prosper, but he that confesseth and forsaketh them, shall have mercy. Happy is the man that feareth always, but he that hardeneth his heart shall fall into mischief." "He that being often reproved, hardeneth his neck, shall suddenly be destroyed, and that without remedy","

Hindrance 7. Another hindrance of conversion, is, The
Prov. xxix. 1.

f Prov. xxviii. 13, 14.

too great esteem that men have of this world, and the great interest that it hath gotten in their hearts. By this it is that God is shut out, that Christ is so neglected, that heavenly things are so much undervalued; because men have that in their hands already, or at least in their eyes, which they like better. God and mammon cannot be loved; these two masters cannot be both served. While the world is leaned to, Christ will be made light of. The glory to come can never be obtained, but by the hearty forsaking of this present world. It is this that stole the heart from God; and it is this that possesseth it, till grace recovereth it to God again and therefore it is the work of grace to cast out the world, and to set up God; to dethrone this usurper, and to give God again the possession of his own. As truly as darkness goeth out of the room when light comes in, so truly doth the love of the world depart where the love of God doth enter into the soul. For "if any man (predominantly) love the world, the love of the Father is not in him h❞ Men cannot make God their end, and the world their end too. They cannot love God above all, and the world above all too. They cannot set their hearts on heaven, nor make it their treasure and their chiefest good, while they set their hearts on earth, and make it their treasure, "For where their treasure is, their hearts will be." When men are drowned in worldly cares, and taken up so much with worldly contrivances and businesses, there is then no room for the matters of their salvation. If they would go to consider of their sin and misery, and think of these things that might further their conversion, their worldly matters step in, and turn away their thoughts; so that, when they are alone, and have opportunity for such considerations, yet they have no hearts to such a work. When they are considering, and begin to perceive that they must either change or perish, and that this life will not serve the turn, presently the world doth turn their minds, and telleth them of other matters to be minded, and so all is forgotten again. If their hearts be a little wakened and troubled for sin, the pleasure or business of the world doth quiet them, and while it maketh them forget their misery, they live as if it were cured, and all their trouble vanisheth away. If they are moved to set up the worship of God in

their families, to read, and pray, and instruct those that are under them, the world will not give them leave, they have somewhat else to mind, which it seemeth they think of greater necessity. And thus the world is an enemy to God, and the love of it keepeth out the love of God, and the serving of it excludeth his service, and they that are friends of it, are certainly his enemies." And this is a grievous hin

drance of conversion.

Direct. 7. Let go the world then, if ever you would be converted. You renounced it in your baptism, see that your hearts now unfeignedly renounce it, unless you will renounce your part in Christ and the world to come. Think not to keep both, and make up a felicity to yourselves between them. It is now become your enemy, and as an enemy it must be affected and used, or else as an enemy it will effectually destroy you. It is a killing, conquering enemy, to those that take it not heartily for their enemy. But it is only a troubling, but a conquered enemy to them that take it and use it as an enemy. O that poor worldlings did but know what a feather, what a shadow, what an empty un profitable thing they do pursue. You run after it eagerly, but when you overtake it, you will befool yourselves, and say, 'What have I gotten? Is this all that I have cared and toiled for? Is this all that I forsook God and my salvation for? For your souls' sake, sinners, forsake not God till you know for what. Neglect not heaven till you have somewhat better to regard. Renounce not your salvation till you know such reason for it as you dare own, and stand to at death and judgment. Is a little plenty of wealth and worldly trifles a matter for a man to sell his soul for? You think, I know, that you do not sell your salvation for it, because you hope that you may have both but this is but your wilful delusion. If you will not believe God now that telleth you you cannot have two portions, two treasures, two ends, or two masters, you will find it true when your deceit hath undone you. Doth God tell you that you cannot love both, and that the world and he cannot both have your hearts, and will you not believe him? If the world be better than God, then take it, and let him go. If it be more durable than heaven, then follow it and spare not. But,

* James iv. 8.

alas! what a dream, what a shadow is it. How soon will it be gone! Will you always dwell in these houses? or will your friends and riches stay with you for ever? Will you carry your lands and wealth, and fleshly provision to another world? Alas, that men should wilfully undo themselves! There is not a worldling, but will confess all this to be true that I say, and yet their hearts are still the same, and the world hath their love, and care, and pleasure, and worldlings they will be still. O what a self-condemning sinner is a worldling, and how much against his knowledge doth he sin! He knows that he mis-placeth his affections, and yet he will do it. He foreseeth that the world will deceive him at the last, and yet he will follow it, to the neglect of his salvation. Christ hath made but "one thing necessary." Do that and do all: get that and get all. But they needlessly incumber themselves about many things,and make themselves more work than God hath made them; and will not see that they have lost their labour, till they find that they have lost their souls. O poor foolish sinners, that now are so busy for you know not what, and rejoicing in your possessions as if you were happy, when “ you were happy, when " your souls shall be required of you, whose then shall these things be "?" When death and judgment shall awaken you to your account, and help you better to understand your reckoning, then make your boast of the world, and boast of your gain, if you find it worth your boasting of. Then tell us who was the wiser merchant, he that sold all for the pearl of grace and glory, or he that let go that treasure for the world. Then tell us whether a heavenly or an earthly conversation was the wiser course; and who it was that choose the better part.

Hindrance 8. Another great impediment to conversion, is, When custom in sinning hath given it the mastery, and made the flesh the ruler of your reason, and made men think that they have a kind of necessity to sin. Nature as corrupted, doth bring forth sin in too great strength; but custom doth make it stronger, and blotteth out the remnants of moral wisdom and honesty from the soul. When men have long taken a custom of sinning, they grow hardened nd senseless, as the hign way doth by being often trod