166 THE DUTY OF GOD'S PEOPLE Little know you what many a soul may now be feel- ing in hell, who died in their sins, for want of your faithful admonition. Consider what Christ did to- ward the saving of souls. He thought them worth his blood: and shall we not think them worth- our breath ? Will you not do a little, where Christ bath done so much ? Consider what fit objects of pity un- godly people are. They are dead in trespasses and sin, have not hearts to feel their miseries, nor to pity themselves. If others do not pity them, they will have no pity ; for it is the nature of their disease to make them pitiless to themselves, yea, their own most cruel destroyers. Consider it was once thy own case. It was God's argument to the Israelites, to be kind to strangers, because themselves had been strangers in the land of Egypt. So should you pity them that are strangers to Christ, and to the hopes and comforts of the saints, because you were once strangers to them yourselves. Consider your relation to them. It is thy neighbour, thy brother, whom thou art bound to love as thyself. He that loveth not his brother whom he seeth daily, doth not love God whom he never saw. And doth he love his bröther, that will see him go to hell, and never hinder him ? § 11. Consider what a load of guilt this neglect lays upon thy own soul. Thou art guilty of the murder and damnation of all those souls whom thou dost thus neglect; and of every sin they now commit, and of all the dishonour done to God thereby ; and of all, those judgments which their sins bring upon the town or country where they live. Consider what it will be, to look upon your poor friends in eternal flames, and to think that your neglect was a great cause of it. If you should there perish with them, it would be no small aggravation of your torment. If you be in heaven, it would surely be a sad thought, were it possible that any sorrow could dwell there, to hear a multitude of poor souls cry out for ever, 6C O, if you would but have told me plainly of my
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