5. Satan, who undermines your assent to these things, is forced to give his own : he that tempts you to look on them as fables, liimself knows and is convinced that they are realities ; " The de- " vils also believe and tremble," James ii. 19. they know and feel the truth of these things, though it be their great design and in- terest to shake your assent to them . they know Christ is the Son of God, and that there will be a day in which he will judge the world in righteousness, and that there are torments prepared for themselves, and all whom they seduce from God, Matth. viii. 29. If you ungod God, you must unman yourselves: yea, not only make yourselves less than men, but worse than devils.
6. In a word, let thy own heart, O Atheist, be judge, whether these be real doubts still sticking in your minds, after you have done all that becomes men to do for satisfaction in such important cases. Or whether they be not such principles as you willingly foment and nourish in your hearts as a protection to your sensual lusts, Avhose pleasures yo\i would fain have without interruptions and over- awings by^the fears of a judgment to come, and a righteous retri- bution from a just and terrible God ! Examine your hearts in that point, and you will soon find the cheat to be in that I here point you to : you have not studied the word impartially, nor brought your doubts and scruples with an humble, unbiassed, teachable spirit to those that are wise and able to resolve them, much less prayed for the Spirit of illumination; but willingly entertained whatever atheistical wits invent, or the devil suggests, as a defensa- tive against the checks of conscience and fears of hell in the way of sin. You are loth those things should be true which the scrip- tures speak, and are glad of any colourable argument or pretence to still your own consciences. Is not this the case ? The Lord stop your desperate course ; your paths lead to hell
A TREATISE OF THE SOtL OF MAX.
The ninth icay of losing the precious soul ojjened.
IX. Precious souls are daily plunged into the gulf of perdition hy profaneness and debauchery. How many every where lie wal- lo\\ing in the puddle ? glorying in their shame, and running into all excess of riot ? The hypocrite steals to hell in a private, close way of concealed sin ; but the profane gallop along the public road at noon day ; " They declare their sin as Sodom, and hide it not ;"* Isa. iii. 9. " The shew of their countenance testifieth against them." The hypocrite hath devotion in his countenance, and heaven in his mouth ; you know not by his words and countenance whither he is going ; but the profane hide it not, they are past shame, and above blushing at the most horrid impieties. Look, as God hath some servants more eminent, forward, and courageous in the ways of godhness than others, men that will not hide their principles, or be ashamed of the ways of godliness in the face of danger ; so the devil hath some servants as eminent for wickedness who scorn to sneak to hell by concealment of their wickedness, but avow and owii it, without fear or shame, in the open sight of heaven and earth. Wherever they come, they defile the air they breathe in wdth horrid blasphemies and obscene discourses not to be named, and leave a strong scent of hell behind them.
This age hath brought forth multitudes of these monsters, the reproach and shame of the nation that bred them. I have little hope to stop any of them in their career and full speed to hell. They have lost the sense of sin, the restraints of slunne and ^ear ; and then what is left to check them in their course ? I cannot hope that such a discourse as this shall ever come into their hands, ex- cept it be to sacrifice it to the flames ; yet not knowing the ways of providence, which are unsearchable, and what use God may make upon one occasion or another of these following considerations, I will adventure to drop a few words upon these forlorn sinners, as far as they seem to be gone beyond recovery ; beseeching the Lord to make way for these things to their hands and hearts, and make them the instruments of pulling some of them as brands out of the buniing.
The ninth way to hell, hy prqfaneness^ stopt.
1. And first, let it be laid to heart, that though the case and state of many thousand souls be doubtful and uncertain, so that neither themselves nor any other know what they are, or to whom they belong ! yet thy condition, O profane sinner, is without con- troversy, miserable and forlorn ; all men know whose you are, and
A TREATISE OF THE SOUL OF MAN. 209
whither you are going. The apostle appeals, in this case, to the bar of every man's reason and conscience, as a thing allowed and yielded by all, Eph. v. 5. " For this ye know, (saith he) that no " whoremonger, or unclean person, nor covetous man, who is an " idolater, hath any inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and of " God." This is a clear case, there is no controversy about it. Many there be in a doubtful case, but no doubt of these, they are fast and sure in the power of Satan : and as sure as God is a God of truth, they that die in this condition shall never see his face. And to the same purpose again, 1 Cor. vi. 9. " Know ye not that " the unrighteous shall not inherit the kingdom of God ? be not " deceived, neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor *' effeminate, nor abusers of themselves with mankind, nor thieves, " nor covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor extortioners, shall " inherit the kingdom of God." Knozv ye not ? saith he, q. d. " Sure you cannot be so ignorant and blind to think that there is " any room in heaven for such wretches as these. If the righteous " be scarcely saved, where shall the sinner and ungodly appear ? " If all strictness, holiness, self-denial, diligence, be all little enough '' to win heaven, what hope can there be of those that not only cast " off all duties of religion, but also cast themselves into all the " opposite ways and courses which directly lead to damnation ?^ He that rcfuseth his food endangers his life; but he that drinks poison, certainly and speedily destroys it.