Hooker - BT780 H7 1637

Thesouks effetirsallea.ingro Chriff. I judgement the foule hath in time of extremity, for marke force paílàges ofthisnature. It is poili - bie oat of felfe-love for the prefervation of a mans felfe, todelire cafe and quietnetfe 3 but bee cares not bywhom, ifGod, or Chrift, or Holi- neffe, or Prayer, will cafehim,ler themdoe ir,and all this may bee for meere fife-love, not forany love ofChrift or holineffe at all. But tohave the foulecarried withdelire toa fupernaturall good, toholineffe in the beauty thereof, that it mayen-. joy it, and bepoiTeß'ed ofit ; corrupt nature can- not, corrupt nature will not come tothis, it is the Spirit ofthe Lordonely that can enable a man to doe it. Suffer met to expref)"e a paffage or two this way : theextremityofGods indignation is a farre greater evill thanall the good things in the world can becomfortable; it is a farregreater ev ill than any thing here below, better to bee in beggery, better tobee inprifon, better tobee perfecuted, than tobe tormented, than to be fèt upona con- tinuall wracke by the horrour of confcience Now as the indignationof the Lord is a far grea- terpunifhment than rhefe ; fo thecafe from this isa greater good than canproceed fromthe things here below, the cafe is anfwerably good, as the indignation is evil). Awicked man wonld have eafe for his finnes; therefore his finnes are a grea- ter good than his cafe. But a gracious heart de- fires holineffe beyond cafeand fin,and all,though bee were in the greateft extremity. I expreffe it thus : A gracious heart ifhe had all thecafe in the world,

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