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viii
he
Epiftle
occafions
frech
believing applications made
to
the
blood
of
fprinkling,
that thereby
the
heart
may
be
fprinkled
from
4n
evil
confcience,
and the
confcience purged
from
dead
works
to
ferve
the
living
God
;
and
endeavours would
be
renewed
in
the
ftrength
of
grace
to walk more
tenderly,
without
offence
toward
God,
and toward
men
:
Toward
which
there
fermons
abound
with
variety
of
choice and
excellent directions and
helps.
Thirdly,
and
more
particularly,We
would fludy
to
have
our
confcience
well
and
throughly informed,
by
intimate
acquaintance with
the
mind and will
of
God,
revealed in
the
fcriptures
of truth,.as
to
all things
that
we
are
called
to
believe and
do;
fo
that
it
may
be in cafe
to
difcharge
its
office
and
duty
aright, whether
in
dictating,
or
in
teflifying,
or
in
judging. An
ill-
informed confcience,
efpe-
cially where
there
is
any zeal
or forwardnefs, ftrongly
pufheth
and furioufly
driveth
men
to
many
dangerous,
diftra&ed
and
deflru
&ive
practices; bath
not this
driven
men
to
kill
the
fervants
of
Chrifl
(as
himfelf foretold)
and in doing
fo
to
think that
they
did God
fervice
?
Did
not
this
hurry
on
Paul, before
his
converfion,
to
perfe-
cute
callers
on
the
name
of
the
Lord
Jefus,
and
to
make
bavock
of
the
Church,by drawing
and
dragging
the
dif
ciplcs, both
men
and women,
bound
to
prifon,
and
by
cruel
perfecuting
of
them
even
to
flrange cities, compel
ling
them
to
blafpheme
?
So
exceedingly
mad
was
he
(as
himfelf
confefï`eth)
againft
them.
O
what
terrible
and
tragical
things
hath this
fet
men
on
to
do,
and what
mad
work
bath
it
made in force places
of
the
world,
befide
many
leffer impertinencies,
extravagancies and
diftur-
bances
in
particular
Chrif}ian focieties!
Fourthly,
We
would
endeavour
to
have
the
confci-
ence deeply impreffed
with
due and
deep
veneration,
awe and
dread
of
the
majefty
of
God, the fupreme
Lord
(If,
and
great Lawgiver
to, the
confcience
;
whole
laws
and
commands
are
only
properly, direftly,
immediate-
ly,
and
of
themfelves
obligatory
thereof
;
becaufe
the
confciences and
fouls
of
men are
properly
fubje& only
to
God
;
and
becaufe
the
law
of
God written
in
the
beans
of
men,
and
in
the fcriptures,
is
the
only
rule
of
confcience
;
and
rnoreoverp
becaufe
men cannot ammedi-
atehy