On the Excellency of the Soul. 1'73 wandring in the waies of fin, in the dark, and fo are a con- tinual prey unto the Devil : how many, yea and in many places, the generality of people, they go on continually in blindnefs and darknefs, in the vanity of their converfations, knowing nothing of God, nor of their own fouls ; and the fiat time that the eyes of their fouls are opened and enlight- ned, it is when they are irrecoverably undone ; yea the firfl thing that many fouls- do ever underhand concerning themfelves, it is this, I am loft and undone for ever; it is fo with many, certainly they know nothing about their own fouls, nor about God, till they come to know this, I am call away from God, and have loftmy foul for ever. Secondly, Others, they lofe their fouls by pawning of them away; by pawning of them, what is that you will fay ? why, you know what it is to pawn a thing, when you come and receive from a Broker fuch a thing, you lay fomething elfe to pawn for it, and upon this condition , that within fuch a time you bring them fuch a thing that you bargain for, and if you do not bring it againft that time, then you lofe your pawn Thus many pawn away their fouls ; when there is a temptation to any fin, and they have a mind to it, now upon the commifliota of this fin thou dolt lay thy foul to pawn to the Devil, onely upon this condition, that if thou doh repent and beleeve before God cuts thee off, then thou thait have thy foul again; upon thefe tearms molt peo- ple fin, and in cafe thou doll not bring repentance and be- leef in Chrift, thy foul is gone I appeal to you, there is a temptation to fin, you know it is a fin, and there is a great deal of danger in it, well but you have a mind to it , and you will needs have it, now you will acknowledge this; in- deed if I do not repent,then I thall bee damned, but before I die, I hope to repent, and fo I hope that my foul fhall not perifh; that is as much as -to fay, I will lay my foul in pawn, and if I can bring repentance before I die, I will have my foul again, but if I do not, then my foul is gone; thus upon the commitlion of every fin, thou dolt lay thy foul to pawn , the devil hath it upon fuck rearms as thefe : Now. how -many M m thou-
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