on As z4. 16. a renges at all ; as it is alto an evil token to offer to main- tain peace by íhifting challenges, or to give over preffing and maintaining of peace, by giving way to chal- lenges : But it is a good token, when Confcience can take kindly with, and be humbled under challenges, and yet debate againff them, fo as to keep and maintain peace, and can give a warrant for its doing fo, which is indeed a great pra &ick in religion : We may fee a clear inftance of this in yob, who faith, Chap. 7.2o. Ihave finned, what .hall I do unto thee, O thou Prejerver of men? Where he ac- knowledgeth that he hath finned, and cannot make a- mends ; and yet, Chap. 27. 4, 5. he faith with holy bold - nefs and peremptorinefs, My lips (hall not fpeak wíckednefs, nor my tongue utter deceit. God forbid that I fhould jujlify you: Till I die, I will not remove my integrity from me. When God fpeaketh or feemeth to fpeak wrath, his an- gry countenance driveth him not away from him, Though (faith he, Chap. 13. i5.) he fbould kill me, yet will I trufl in him, but I will maintain mine own ways before him ;° and, y. 16. An hypocrite fhall not come before bim. The hypo- crite or legal man giveth it over, when he is thus out hard to it ; tho' it be eafy for him to prefiime while the law and wrath break not in, yet, when the law cometh, fin reviveth, and he dieth ; as it is, Rom. 7. 9. it is eafy to have peace fo long as God fpeaketh not downright againff it but, when he cometh to let all a man's fins in order before him, he will with rudas run and hang himfelf, ra- ther than abide that tormenting Confcience of his, terribly denouncing war and wrath from God againff him. A 4th Chara&ïer is, That a good Confcience will love to entertain and welcome a challenge, but an ill Confcience cannot abide nor endure a challenge ; and, if it could, it would have Confcience always filent and quiet, when yet it should not be quiet, neither bath it any ground to be fo : He who hath a good Confcience,, is glad to have fin dif: covered, and Confcience kept waking ; he thinketh a fan -- ¿ified conviecion of fin a valuable mercy ; and the rea- fon is,, becaufe he airneth not fo much at this, to have peace in himfeif, as to have a good and folid ground of peace betwixt God and him, and to remove what may mar it Whereas the hypocrite's great defign is, to bave F
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