Direct. 6. Condemn not tliyself presently for an hypocrite, upon tlie discoveries of thy many weaknesses and imperfections in obe- dience; tliese should humble, but not discourage thee; it is not thine inevitable weaknesses, thy sensible dulness, thy lamented rov- ings, thine opposed distractions, thy mistaken unbelief (as one well notes) that argues thee christless, or excludes thee from the pro- mises, Numb. XV. 27, 28, 29, 30. Heb. v. 2. These break not the bond of the covenant : the Lord expects no angelical perfec- tion from you in this estate, but looks at your sincerity, and knows, as a father, how to pity your lamented infirmities, Psal. ciii, 11, 12, 13, 14.
And now I have given you my best advice and counsel, to pre- serve you from the snares and evils that are, and are coming upon the world ; what use you will make of it, I know not. I doubt not but it will find a welcome reception among humble and hun- gry souls, though the full and wanton soul despise it. " He that *' hearkeneth unto counsel (saith Solomon) is wise," Prov. xii. 15. And if thy heart be shut by pride or interest against it, it is an ominous sign to thy soul^ 2 Chron. xxv. 16. and presages ruin^ Which sad event, I shall beg the Lord in mercy to avert.
Tidings from ROME : or, England's Alarm.
VERY faithful minister of Christ sustains the relation of a watchman unto the nation wherein he lives *, as well as of a pas- tor to the particular flock over which the Holy Ghost hath set him ; and, therefore, not only ought to be of a public spirit, to ob- serve the first approaches of national calamities ; but also of a cour- ageous and faithful spirit, to give warning of them. Being thus a debtor to my dear native country, and hearing round about me the noise of bloody Papists rallying together, and preparing them- selves to make a slaughter ; and finding the fears and jealousies of the nation (lately awakened by ihe flames of London, and the instruments of cruelty there discovered) beginning to abate, though their dangers are still increasing upon them ; I could not but pre- sent to the public view, these awakening considerations and coun- sels following ; if haply, thereby, true zeal for the protestant
* Ezelc. iii. 17. Acts xxviii. 28.
558 TIDINGS F]10M ROME ; OR,
interest might be provoked, and the growing design of the common enemy detected and retarded. For alas ! * " How can I endure '<■ to see the evil that shall come upon my people and kindred ?" As Esther said in a like case of common danger : were I sure of personal safety in such a day of slaughter and desolation, yet how terrible a thing would it l3e to stand upon the shore, and see so glorious a vessel as England is, to be cast aAvay ! The golden can- dlestick removed, and the doctrines of devils preached and pro- fessed in those places where Jesus Christ hath been so purely and sweetly worshipped !
O England! God hath set watchmen f upon thy walls, who will not hold their peace day nor night : and though men have en- deavoured to muzzle and gag them, yet, like Croesus's dumb son, they will cry out when they see thee in danger.
If thou enquire of thy watchmen in this night of thy trouble, as it is Isa. xxi. 11, 12. "*| Watchmen, what of the night .^'' they all with one voice return thee the same answer, " The morning com- " eth, and also the night." There is indeed a glorious morning of salvation and mercy, which will shortly dawn upon thee, Eng- land; but before that, there will be a night of dismal darkness and distress upon thy children § : " For we have heard a voice of trem- <' bling, of fear, and not of peace ; we see every man with his " hands upon his loins, as a woman in travail, and all faces are " turned into paleness : alas ! for that day is great, so that none is " like it ; it is even the day of Jacob's trouble ; but he shall be '* delivered out of it." They speak unto thee as Elijah spake to Ahab. II " Arise, get thee up, for there is a sound of abundance " of rain :" and there came a shower indeed ; and that there is a sound of judgment and wrath coming upon us will appear, if you have any regard either, First, to the predictions of friends; or, Se~ c&ndhj, to the preparations of enemies ; or Thirdly, to the present state and posture of things among ourselves at this day.
1. As for the predictions of friends, you have had many, both ordinary and extraordinary.
First, Ordinary, upon the observations which the messengers of God have made of your barrenness, wantonness, and unchristian divisions, under the fullest gospel-light and liberty, that ever were enjoyed by an unthankful nation ; amongst which I cannot omit what a grave and worthy^ divine, upon the grounds forc-men-
* Esth. viii. 6. | Isa. Ixii. 6.
\ He makes the watchmen to veturu answer to the troubled or desponding citizens, and to increase their grief. Lvther.
§ T!ie morning indeed cometh, but at the same time after it there is coming a night of thick darkness and tenor. Muschul. on the jdace,
[j 1 Kings xviii. 41.
^ Gurnai's Christian armour, part 2. p3ge 429.
i:>: gland's alarm. 559
lionecl, for divefs years past, gave us warning of. And O tliat v/e had been so wise and happy to have improved sucli a reasonable admonition! his words were these:
« Consider where you are, and among whom ; are you not in ^ your enemies quarters? If you fall out, what do you but kindle ' a fire for them to warm their hands by ? Aha I so would ice have
* it^ say they : the sea of their rage will weaken this bank fast
* enough, you need not cut it for them. The unseasonableness
* of the strife between Abraham''s herdsmen and I.(jf s, is aggra- ' vated by the near neighboiu'hood of the heathens to them, Gen.
* xiii. 7. " And there was a strife betwixt them, and the Canaanites ' and Perizzites dwelt in the land." To fall out when these idola- ' ters look on, this would be town-talk presently, and put them- ' selves and their religion both to shame. And, I pray, who have ' been in our land all the while the people of God have been scuf-
* fling ? Those that have curiously observed every uncomely beha-
* viour among them, and told all the world of it ; such as have
* wit and malice enough to make use of it for their wicked pur-
* poses ; they stand on tip-toe to be at work, only we are not yet
* quite laid up and disabled (by the soreness of those our wounds
* which we have given ourselves) from with-standing their fury ;
* they hope it will come to that, and then they will cure us of our
* own wounds, by giving one if they can, that shall go deep enough
* to the heart of our life, gospel and all. O Christians ! shall He-
* rod and Pilate put you to shame ^ They clapt up a peace to
* strengthen their hands against Christ ; and will you not unite ^ against your common enemy ? It is an ill time for mariners to
* be fighting, when an enemy is boring a hole at the bottom of the ' ship.'