Serra V under their Stifferrng.r for Religion. 3 i7 And firfl of all, let this be eftabii(h'd for a firm and undoubted Principle, that God is faithful to his Promife; and therefore we ought much rather to fuppofe i all thefe Cafes, that there is force Default on our Part, than any Failure and Un- faithfulnefs on God's Part. Thus St. Paul, determines in a like Cafe, when the Promife of God feemed not to be made good to the Jews, he lays the Blame of it on their Unbelief, but acquits God of any Unfaithfulnefs in his Promife, Rom. 3. 3, 4. For what iffume did not believe, (halltheir unbeliefmake the Faith (or Fide- lity) of God without ea ? God forbid : Tea, let God be true, but every Man a lyar. ' This I confefs does not anfwer the Difficulty ; but yet it ought to incline and dif- pofe us, to interpret what can fairly be offer'd for the Removal of it, with all the Favour that may be on God's fide. I fay then, Secondly, That when goodMen fall in Cafe of extraordinary Temptation, and recover again by Repentance, and give greater demonflration afterwards of their Conftancy and Refolution, in the Caufe of God and his Truth, the Faithful- nets of God in his Promifes is fufficiently vindicated, as in theCafes I mentioned; becaufe the Promife of God is not abfolute, that good Men (hall be preferv'd from falling ; but that the Temptation /hall have a happy "flue, and that they fhall not fanally mifcarry. For Promifes of this Nature are to be interpreted by us, and un- derftood as we do our Saviour's Prayer for Peter before his Fall, that his faith, fhould notfail finally ; but though he fell through too much Confidence in him- felf, he fhould through the Graceof God affifting him be enabled to recover by Repentance. Thirdly, TheSincerity or Infincerity of Men in the Profeffion of the true Reli- gion, is a thing which we cannot certainly know, becaufe we do not fee into Men's Hearts ; but he who knows the heart, and tryes the Spirits ofMen in a Ballance, cannot be deceived in this Matter ; and where Men are not Encere, the Promife of God is not concerned to hinder them from difcovering themfelves; and the Fall of fuch Perlons, is no Refle&ion upon the Faithfulnefs of God. And it is reafonable enough to prefume, that this may be the Cafe of not a few, and that (like Simon Magus) after they have made a very folemn Profeflion of Chriftiani- ty, their hearts may not beright in the fight ofGod. Fourthly, If we put the Cafe at the hardeft, that fonte that were very fincare, after they have held out agreat while, under the Extremity of Torments, have at laic fainted under them, and yielded to the Malice and Cruelty of their Perfe- cutors, and in this Amazement and Diitra&ion havenot long after expired, with- out any Teftimony of their Repentance ; In this Cafe, broth Reafon and Charity ought to reltrain us from paffing any very pofitive and levere Sentence upon the State of fuch Perfons. For what do we know, but God whole Goodnefs will certainly make all the Allowance to Humane Frailty that Reafon can require; (For he knows whereofwe are made ; and remembers that we are but daft ; he mer- cifully confiders every Man's Cafe, and weighs all the Circumstances of it in an exact Ballance ;) I fay who can tell, but that in fuch a Cafe as I have mentioned, God may gracioufly be pleafed to accept fuch a degree of confiant Suffering of great Torments for fo long a time, for a true Martyrdom, and not expel a more than Humane Patience and Refolution, where he is not pleafed toafford more than Humane Strength and Support ; and whether he may not look upon their failing and mifcarriage at lait, in the fame rank with the indeliberate Actions of Men in a Frenzy, and betides themfelves ? And thus God may be Paid with the temptation to make away to efcape, or, to give a happy ¡fie to it ; fince they were enabled to bear it, 'till being Diftraded by their Torments, their Underfiandings were thrown off the Hinges, and incapable of exercifing any deliberate Ads of Reafon. And without Tome fuch equitable Con- fideration ofthe Cafe of fuch Perfons, it will be very hard to reconcile Tome ap- pearances of Things with the Goodnefs of God, and the Faithfulnefs of his Promife. However, it will become us to abflain from all Uncharitablenefs and peremp- tory Cenfure of the final Elate of fuch Perfons, efpecially till we our felves have given greater and better Teftimony ofour Conftancy ; and in the mean time, to leave
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