Fenner - Houston-Packer Collection BX5133.A1 F37 1657

ATre4tife ofthe, flffeEiion,r. as I-le wrote fyllabi.s, he could hardly write for wetting the paper with teares which he wrote on, O that we who are Gods Minifters could bé fo affe&ed ! TheLord lay it not to our charge that we are not : hut 0 that our heads were water, andour eyes were a fountain of tearer, thatw might weep day and night for thefe things, Ye thinke your foules are fate, alas,we know they arc defperate. Weknowthat your drunkenneffe will damneyou ; and yourfroearing,'and lying,,and company keeping will undoe you. We knowyour pride and your hardn,eje ofheart are fymptomes and idfal,- lible marks of fuch as are yet no better than reprobares,Ye hope your crying Gods mercies will helpyou, we know they cannot. Ye hope that Gods naerr tics will relieve you,we know they will not, unleffe ye benewCreatures :Ye truft God wil;notbe fo aria as we fay,we know lie wil,Ye imagineyeare not led bytheDevill, though ye fin thus and thus,weknow ye be,-and the Devil; theGodof this world,rules in your minds,and your confciences. Neitherare ye ablc,unieile yé be Atheifls and Devils incarnate, to deny God to be God, and his Scripture to be Scripture,yeare not able todeny it. O that we could figh, andfob, andgroan inour pulpits, O that we couldeven wet our cufhions with tears, and yearnover your fouls as we preach ; I befeech you confider, will ye never beleeve,norbe affected till ye feele it ? . Lord, when thy hand is lifted up, they willnotfee, but theyfhallfee andbe "Thorned, and thefire (hall de= . vour them,lfa,z6.i t.I proteft unto you)Icould finde in my heart to fall down on my knees to every one ofyou all,were it profitable,to befeech you to con- fider this, nowGods Hand is lifted up, andhe calls to you,and ye will. not heare, he fh,ewes youyour finnes,. and ye will not fee, you (hall fee fayes he, andbe afhamed, and the fire of Hell [hall devour you. Takeheedye fee not roo Iatc.O that thouhad known at leaft in this thy day, before they be hid from thine eyes. God will hidehis grace from thineeyes, and his fpirit from thyheart, ifnothing can move thee. I pray God affe& our hearts with their things,that wee who are your M.nifters, maybe möre touched our felves. this isthe fecond;manes whereby we might-{Hove you,-ifwe were affcc`Ied our felves. Thirdly, By beeng godly our felves. As we rtiuft be affe&ed our felves4gMin er fo if ever wemeane to ftirre upaffe&ions in ;the learn we muft be godly may fair up the our felves. Ariftetle requires this in an Orator, that bee be a good man; affeaions ofo- %ugtorcl7ito:tiz rlsiv rò goodmanners and the life of the fpeaker have thers by being the greateft power to perfwade the affe&ions. Hence is that ufuall Paying i Ily erelf=. of the vulgar, He that preaches well , and, lives ill, pulls that downe withone hand which he built with theother.Nay commonlya man loathes agoodPaying out ofe faille mouth. Let a drunken. Mini fi-er exhort to fobriety,for' the moft part the people doloath it. Let an adulterous, or covetous.Minifier exhort tobe godly and religious, for themoft part theyAbhor it. Let a loofe GGratthse&c<' Minifter preach offtric`lneffe of lifeand converfation, and zeale and puritiej juvenal. Solomon fayes it is likea lame mansleggs, when one is (hotter than theocher,: I'rov,26,y, that is an ill fight : Awicked Minifter can never ftir up the af- fe&ionsof thep ople aright. Gregory Naz,ianzen would have a M ¡Differ, µà `t J.°+ J\ td4aeXHUTc'í,rç;Either not preach at all,or preach byagoad andgod-, L ly life,Otherwife the people will have littleaffe&ion to heat him : nay,which rírual. tare.' is lamentable, it is ufuall in the world, not onely to fet their affe&ionsagain(t. 4. a wicked Minifters preaching, but alto to loath the venie Ordinance it "felfé- 'when Eli his fonswere wicked, and fons ofBelial, the Text fayes, the people loathed Gods offerings. The finne of the young men was venie great before,tha Lord, for men abhorred the offering of the Lord, i Sam. 2, I7.: At the belt; the people, though never fo greedy ocherwite for to heare, yet if the Minifter doe not as he (ayes, they have frnall affe&ion to heare liitn: I-í 2 One

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