and to what we lay before Confcience to anfwer its chap lenges, whether we bring our good mind, our prayers, external performances, and our following of ordinances, to flop the mouth of it, and to filence the challenges, and quench the fire (to fay fo) of Confcience ; or whether we bring the blood of Jefus Chrift, that blood of fprinkling If we compare lieb. io. 2. with verfe, zz. and Heb. 9. 9, with verfe z4. we will find this latter way,and not the for- mer to be the only fafe way ; Thefe facrifices that are offered year by year continually, can never make the comers thereúnto perfect : But having a high. Pri f over the houfe of God, we may draw near with a true heart, and full affurance of faith, having our hearts fprinkled from an evil Confci- enee, and our bodies wafhed with pure water. cThefe gifts and facrifices could not make them that did the fervice perfect, as pertaining to the Confcience ; but the blood of Ghri1, who through the eternal Spirit offered himfelf with- out fpot to God, purgeth the Confcience from dead works to ferve the living God: And tho' the Confcience will chal- lenge a believer., where there are defe &s in the former rules ; yet it is quieted and fatisfied,where 'there, is ferious and fuitable application made to, and of the fufferings and fatisfa &ion of the Redeemer, if fo be he difpenfe not, with himfelf as to his ihortcoming in them,' and if the ufe that he makes of his holinefs, in the largeft extent and higheft degree of it,be not to found his righteoufnefs there- on, but to honour God thereby, in gratitude to him, to edify others, and to evidence to himfelf the foundnefs and realityof his believing and gracious Rate. This Phew eth the vall extent of holinefs, and what it is that men are called to ; and thereby we may alto fee, that many fadly miftake religion, and what that perfe& walk is that a Chriftian ought to have before God ; and we may fay on the whole, If this be to walk according to Confcience, then certainly not many, but very few, walk according to it ; which is a lamentation, and thould be for a lamenta- tion. The zd U/e is for trial, If a believer, when he is in cafe, and right, will have it for his exercife, to walk fo, as he may have a Confcience void of offence toward God, and toward men ; then this will be a differencing mark, E 4 betwixt
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