lefs Soul, and excites his Lethargick drowfie Faculties, dozed with Brutishness and Senfuality, and which does, in the Scripture Phrafe, bring him to himself, Luke 15. 17. This is generally done not only by the Grace of God working inwardly upon his Mind, but by fomething elfe alfo at the fame time from without, which touches him to the quick, and enters like Jofeph's Fetters even into his Soul, and with its piercing keenness stimulates, and even forces him to attend and confider, and think, whether he will or no, of his Spiritual state and condition, and then when he looks about him, he fees what a woful State he is in, deep and in the mire of Sin and Guilt; to go forward he is afraid, for he now fees the dreadful precipice before him, which he difcerned not before, when he ran blind-fold into Sin, or without Senfe or Fear of Danger, as the Horfe rushes into the Battle, and how to go back he knows not, 'tis fo difficult, and he is fo plunged in the depth of Wickedness, but he fees he muft perish inevitably if he do not struggle, and do what he can, and endeavour to the utmost to get out of his miferable Condition, fo he Prays to God to help him, and fadly bewails himself, and laments, and weeps over his wretched Cafe which he finds himself in, and has brought himself to : He Repents and Grieves for his paft Folly, and is now willing to Repair and Amend it, and to fnatch himself, if he can, as a brand out of the Fire, and to lay hold upon fome Plank that may fave him from finking in this dreadful ftorm, wherein he finds he has fhip-wreckt his Confcience, and the Waters are gone over his Soul,

and

and he is ready to be fwallowed up of the gulph of Deftruction, then he makes Vows to Heaven, and whilst the fame thoughts continue upon his Mind, refolves to keep them, and if they go not off when the Storm is over, or he do not forget them when he comes to fhore, and is fet upon dry Land, but these ftrong Impreffions laft upon his Mind, and leave a due fenfe abiding upon his Soul, even when the violent Cause is over, and the Affliction is removed, then he is like to be a good Man, and to Repent in earnest, and these thunder-ftrokes of Providence may not only ftartle and rouze him, but as is reported of fome Animals, they may make him conceive and bring forth a New and Holy Life, and be available to his true Converfion and Repentance; and I believe this is God's ufual way by which he begins to effect this upon most Sinners, by thus bringing them to fome ferious thinking and confidering. It is very great Mercy when God thus checks them in their career, and calls to them by the loud Voice of his Judgments, and thus, as he generally does, puts the first flop to them, and makes them bethink themfelves and confider; but then this Method muft not only awaken, but keep their Fyes open, and make them fee and confider thofe other Thoughts and Reasons which are the more proper feminal Principles that will be more likely to produce and beget this true Repentance. Such as are,

2. In the fecond place, a ferious Reflection and thorough conviction of the Evil that is in Sin, and of the real Good of Vertue, as the only thing which can make us truly happy; for

till Men have brought themselves to be fully perfwaded and convinced of this, and to believe it as firmly as they do any truth in Mathematicks, or any other Science, they will never be brought truly to Repent, that is, to dislike, and hate, and renounce the one, and heartily to love, and purfue, and embrace the other; for Men will fill love their Sins, and hanker after them, and be ready to comply and close with them upon every Occafion; if they only fall out with them fometimes, as Lovers do with what they like and admire, and though there may be fome Bickerings between them, and fome Penitential Paffions and Refentments now and then, yet they may ftill have their Heart, if they do not upon wife Obfervations and thorough Convictions, believe them to be enemies to their Welfare and Happiness, to the comfort of their Lives here, and their Eternal Salvation hereafter, and that they get nothing by them but Poor, and Empty, and Sickly Pleafures, but that they bring fubitantial Mifery, and bitter Remorfe and Anguish of Mind, and a thousand Mischiefs and Inconveniencies along with them at prefent, befides the terrible Hazards and Dangers of another World, fo that they are by no means to be loved or chofen, if we love our felves, or choose our own Happinefs For we inuft bring it to this, if we would be fteddy and certain, to the first Principles of Self-prefervation, and a defire of our own Happiness, which lyes at the root of our Nature, and what we fhall always act upon, if we rightly understand it, and do not grofly err and mistake about it, and a few wife Obferva

tions, and a little fober thinking and confider ing will eafily fatisfie us, and fully convince us, that Vice is the certain caufe of mifery to us, and that Vertue is the only way to be truly Eafie and Happy. The Sinner will be convinced of this by his own experience, when he reflects upon his paft Follies, and fees how little he has got by his Sins but Shame and Sorrow, and Trouble of Mind, perhaps a Sickly and Difeafed Body, and a wafted Eftate, and wret ched Beggery, and every thing that fhall make him Miferable in this World, before he goes to the greater Mifery of another. For do we not dayly fee this, how one Man brings himself by his Sins to a morfel of Bread, how he Shipwrecks his Fortunes as well as his Confcience, by Luxury and Prodigality, another confumes his Body as well as his Eftate by Debauchery, Luft and Intemperance; by these they fin, as the Apostle remarks, against their own Bodies as well as against their Souls; they make them bear the Scars and Marks of their Sins upon them, and become Martyrs in the Devils Service, and endure often more torture of Body for their Sins, than other Martyrs have done for their Religion; facrifice their Lives to them, and by living too faft, as they call it, bring an untimely Death upon themselves, and are in fo much hafte fometimes to Dye, that their Bodies often Rot before they come into their Graves. If these Mischiefs do not follow all Sins, yet fome others do, and the greatest of all is infeparable from them, which is Torment and Anguifh of Confcience, and Paint and Uneafinefs of Mind, which every Mart

feels,

feels, unless his Confcience be ftupified and mortified, which is a worfe ftate than the other, upon the commiffion of any great Sin, and this is ten times greater than any fancied pleafure in it: This is a Sting, a Wound, a Prick upon the moft tender part of a Mans Soul, a Dart ftruck through his Liver, a Worm gnawing upon his Vitals; nothing is fo close and fo cutting a Pain and Mifery as a Mans own ill Confcience, when it is let loofe upon him, and like a Fury falls upon him with its utmost Rage, lashes him with its Snaky Whips, and burns him with its fiery Torches, 'tis then a Devil let loofe, and a Hell kindled within his own Bofom. They who have felt but a little of it, know it is more exquifite Pain than any belongs to the Body, and what is it then to endure this for ever, and lye under that, and the further anger of God to all Eternity. Oh Madness and Folly, that wants a name, that will do this for any Sin whatever! Oh the dreadful Evil of Sin, that brings all this, and fo many other Mischiefs upon us! But,

3. Vertue on the contrary, has a thoufand Comforts, Bleffings and Goods, belonging to it, which fhould make us love it as we do our felves, and choose it as heartily and firmly as we do our own Happinefs. When we rightly underfland and confider it, we fhall find Reafon to do fo; that neither disturbs our Mind, nor difeafes our Body, nor fquanders away our Eftate, nor brings any Reproach and Difèredit along with it, ás Vice generally does; and it takes away no real Good, or true Pleasure,

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