forced to yield, are therefore busy, troublesome fellows? What is it for, but for your deliverance, that are satan's captives at his will? 2 Tim. ii. 25, 26.

3. And might you not on this ground also account Christ himself the troubler of the world, as much, and a thousand times more than us?. For he doth more to disturb men in their sins than any of us and he doth more for holiness than all the world besides. And in this sense he confesseth and foretels us, that he came not to send peace but division into the world, into towns, and countries, and families; Luke xii. 51-53. If we can have no peace with you, unless we will disobey our Lord, and serve the devil and the flesh, and damn our own souls, and suffer you to do the like, then keep your peace among yourselves; we will none of that peace; we have no mind to buy your friendship and good words at such a rate! If your peace will stand with our peace with God, and peace of conscience, we will gladly accept of it: if it will not, we can be without it. Your souls are like sores that may not be searched, or a broken bone that must not be set, for fear of hurting you. You are like men that must have that which would kill them; or like children, that will cry if they be but taken out of their dung, or kept from fire, or from knives. If we do but cross you in the way to hell, we trouble you, and we break the peace. Yea, and if we will not cast away our souls everlastingly for company! And is this the case? Is this the breaking of your peace? The Lord will shortly be a righteous Judge between you and us, and tell you who it was that was the troubler of the towns and countries, and of the world.

You find Ahab and Elijah at this contest. Ahab takes him for the troubler of Israel when a heavy famine was among them. Elijah saith, No; but it was Ahab and his father's house that had troubled Israel by their wickedness, 1 Kings xviii. 17, 18. And which think you was in the right, the prophet or the king?

Why sirs, what is it that godliness doth, that it should be taken for the troubler of the world, when ungodliness is taken for your peace? Is it our persuading or hindering you from sin that troubleth you? And will not the everlasting fruit of it trouble you more? Then even say, that washing you, or sweeping your houses, or curing your sores, or sickness, or persuading you not to kill yourselves, is a

troubling of you! Or is it (as the Lord hath told us it will be, Matt. v. 10, 11. John xv. 18, 19. 1 Pet. iv. 4, 5.) because we are not such as you, and will not do as you do, and be of your opinion, and forsake our Lord to keep you company? Is it not with good reason? When we know you cannot save us harmless, and will not answer for us before the Lord? We know that every man must answer for himself, and therefore we durst not trust to you, if you would promise us to bring us off: it is best for you to study better how to answer for yourselves. But if you are resolved on it, that ungodly you will be, and that you will venture on hell to escape a holy life, why should you not give us leave to pity you, and to forbear your folly, and to save ourselves? Will it do you any harm that others should be saved, or that others should be godly? Your own sanctification indeed cannot stand with your lusts and fleshly pleasures; but another man's may. It will take none of your vainglory, or wealth, or sensual delights from you, that another man is sanctified or devoted unto God. And therefore be not angry with us, if we obey the Holy Ghost, that calleth to us, "Save yourselves from this untoward generation;" Acts ii. 40.

Object. O but (saith the ungodly crew) it was never a good world since there was so much religion, and preaching, and preciseness, and so much ado about serving God! It was a better world, when we had but a short service read on Sundays, and played, and merrily talked together the rest of the day! There was more love and good neighbourhood then amongst men than there is now. There was not then so much deceit, and cozening, and oppressing, and covetousness in the world, there was more peace, and plenty, and a better world it was than now.'

Matters of peace and plenty change often in the same age. And certainly you have as little hindrance now, from being as good as you have a mind to be, as ever your forefathers had. Two things I have to say to your objection.

1. If this be true that the world is so bad, which part is it of the world that you mean? Is it all, or some? Not all sure; that were too horrible censoriousness to say. Then God would presently destroy the world. Sodom had one Lot, and his family in it. Well! it is but some then that are so bad. And which part is it? Is it the godly, or the un

godly? If godliness be naught, then heaven is naught, where there is nothing else; and then take it not ill to be shut out. If it be the ungodly that are naught, that is it that I am saying. It is time then to leave it, and to turn to God. Is it not you yourselves that make the complaint that are the men that make the world so bad? Is it not you that are so covetous and worldly that you have nothing for the poor, and no time to spare for the work that you were made for; nor scarce any room, to think or speak of the life to come? Is it not you that have so little charity that you even hate men for loving and serving God, and seeking diligently to save their souls? It is true that there was never greater wickedness in the world than since there hath been so much preaching. But what is that wickedness and in whom? It is the despising and disobeying the calls of God, and the hating and neglecting of a holy life. Those that are saved by the Gospel, may say that it was a happy message unto them; but those that slight it, and wilfully sin in the openest light, may well say that it is a bad world with them; and worse it is, and will be for ever, if they be not converted, than if they had never heard the Gospel. It is you, and such as you, that despise the mercies of the Lord, that make it a bad world; and then you impudently complain of it, and charge it on them that will not be as bad as yourselves; and take away the candle and shut the windows, that the light may not trouble you.

2. Well! but say you the world was better when there was less preaching, and less ado about the serving of God, and our salvation. I do not believe you, and I will tell you why, yea, why I am certain that your words are false.

1. Because you contradict the Lord. God saith those times are best when there is most of the light of the Gospel, and most helps for our salvation, and when the people are most holy. The increase of light and holiness is a principal part of the glory of the kingdom of Christ, and of the promises to the Gospel church, as you may see, Isa. ix. 2. xxxvi. 26. xlii. 6. lx. 3. Matt. iv. 16. Luke ii. 32. John iii. 19, 20. The word of God is the greatest blessing under heaven, together with a heart to obey and practise it. "Blessed are they that hear the word of God and keep it;" Luke xi. 28. Psal. i. 1, 2. cvi. 3. cxix. 1. God himself pronounceth them blessed that meditate day and night in his

law, and that make it their whole delight; and because of the increase of light and holiness, extolleth the times of the Gospel far above those of the law, affirming the least in this kingdom of God to be greater as to the honour and privilege of his station, than the prophets, or John Baptist; Matt. xi. 11, 12. And would you wish me to believe such ignorant men as you, before the God of heaven that contradicteth you?

2. I will not believe you, because your objection is nothing but a blasphemous accusation of the living God. If it were true that preaching is bad, it is Christ then that is bad that doth command it. But I am sure that Christ is not bad; and that such as blaspheme him do it to their cost. It is he that hath laid a necessity on us, and woe be unto us if we preach not the Gospel (1 Cor. ix. 16.); and that chargeth us to feed the flock of God; 1 Pet. v. 2. Yea, the Spirit chargeth us" before God and the Lord Jesus Christ, who shall judge the quick and the dead at his appearing and his kingdom, that we preach the word, and be instant in season, out of season, reprove, rebuke, exhort with all long-suffering and doctrine." If any one be to be blamed for all this preaching and stir for heaven, it is Christ that chargeth it so strictly upon us. And if thou dare lay the blame upon the Lord, speak out, and stand to it at judgment.

:

3. I know it is false that you say, that the world is the worse for all this preaching and godliness, because it is against the very office of Christ, and of the Holy Ghost. Christ was a diligent preacher himself, and dare you accuse him for it? He came into the world to bring us the light of heavenly truth and dare you say that it were better be without it? It is the work of the Holy Ghost to illuminate and sanctify men; and do you think that he doth us hurt? Christ died to wash and purify by the word and Spirit, the church which is his body, that he might present it spotless to the Father (Eph. v. 26, 27.); and darest thou say that Christ came to do us harm? By this despising of his benefits, thou shewest that thou hast yet no part in him or in his saving benefits, but art in the gall of bitterness and bond of thy iniquities, and thy heart is not right in the sight of God. 4. Moreover thou art not to be believed, because you speak against the experience of all the prophets and apostles of Christ. David had rather be "a doorkeeper in the house

of God, than dwell in the tents of wickedness ;" and judged "a day in his courts to be better than a thousand ;" (Psal. lxxxiv. 10.) and accounted them the blessed men that might even dwell in the house of God, and be daily taken up in holy praise and worship; Psal. lxv. 4. xcii. 13. xxiii. 6. When he was forced from the house and public worship of God, it was his daily lamentation, and he fainteth, and panteth, and longeth after the house and worship of God again. "How amiable are thy tabernacles, O Lord of Hosts! My soul longeth, yea, even fainteth for the courts of the Lord: my heart and my flesh crieth out for the living God.-Blessed are they that dwell in thy house; they will be still praising thee. Blessed is the man whose strength is in thee, in whose heart are the ways of them;" Psal. xlii. lxxxiv. 2-5. The prophet Isaiah saith, "In the way of thy judgments O Lord have we waited for thee: the desire of our soul is to thy name, and to the remembrance of thee; with my soul have I desired thee in the night; yea, with my spirit within me will I seek thee early." This was the mind of all the prophets and apostles; and God hath told us that it is the practice of all blessed men to "meditate on God's word day and night;" Psal. i. 2. And yet you will say that it was a better world when there was less of this! O self-condemning hypocrites! Why do you so much profess to honour the prophets, apostles, and martyrs of Christ, if you think that they were the troublers of the world, and that their doctrine and practice makes us worse? Why do you honour them with the name of saints, and yet despise both their doctrine and practice in those that do but endeavour seriously to imitate them? Why keep you holidays in remembrance of the dead saints, and say that the world is the worse for the living saints? O horrible hypocrisy! to honour their names, and hate their doctrine and course of life, and say that the world was never good since it was troubled with such as they! Do we trouble you with our preaching, and praying, and our stir for heaven? How would Christ and his apostles have troubled you, that went so far beyond us in all these, and made a greater stir than we, and turned the world (as their enemies charged them) upside down! Acts xvii. 6. So busy was Christ in preaching and doing the work of God, that he neglected to eat his meat for it; John iv. 34. and his fleshly kindred would have laid