The last thing I observe from these words is this, that
Doct. The testunonij and ivitness of conscience is a ground of comfort and joy.
The reason of the joining these two, the witness of a good conscience, and joy, it is that which I said before in the description of conscience ; for
1. Conscience first admonisheth, and then wit)iesseth, and then it excuseth, or accuseth, and then it judgeth, and executeth* Now the inward execution of conscience is joy, if it be good ; for God hath so planted it in the heart and soul, that where conscience doth accuse, or excuse, there is alway execu- tion. There is alway joy or fear. The affections of joy or fear alway fol- low. If a man's conscience excuse him, that he hath done well, then con- science comes to be enlarged, to be a paradise to the soul, to be a jubilee, » In the martrin, ' From the office of conscience.' — G.
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a refreshing, to speak peace and comfort to a man. For rewards are not kept altogether for the life to come. Hell is begun in an ill conscience, and heaven is begun in a good conscience. An ill conscience is a hell upon earth, a good conscience is a heaven upon earth. Therefore the testimony of a good conscience breeds glorying and rejoicing.
2. Again, conscience when it witnesseth, it. comforts, because irlicii it iiit- nesseth, it iriliicsscth with (iod; and where God is, there is his Spirit, and where the Holy Spirit is, there is joy. For even as heat follows the fire, 60 joy and glorying accompany the Spirit of God, ' the Spirit of glory,' 1 Pet. i. 14. Now when conscience witnesseth aright, it witnesseth with God ; and God is alway clothed with joy. He brings joy and glory into the heart. Conscience witnesseth with God that I am his.
3. And it u-itucsseth ivilh )iiijsclf that I hare led vuj life thus, ' Our re- joicing is the witness of our conscience.' It is not the witness of another man's conscience, but my own. Other men may witness, and say I am thus and thus, biit all is to no purpose, if my own conscience tell me I am another man than they take me to be. But when a man's own conscience witnesseth for him, there follows rejoicing. A man cannot rejoice with the testimony of another man's conscience, because another man saith, I am a good man, &c., unless there be the testimony of my o^vIl conscience.
Now it is a sweet benefit, an excusing conscience, when it witnesseth well. Let us see it in all the passages of life, that a good conscience in excusing breeds glorying and joy.
It doth breed joy in life, in death, at the day of judf/ment.
1. In life, in all the passages of life, in all estates, both good and ill.
(1.) In good, the testimony of conscience breeds joy, for it enjoys the pleasures of this life, and the comforts of it with the favour of God. Con- science tells the man that he hath gotten the things well that he enjoys, that he hath gotten the place, and advancement that he hath, well : that he enjoys the comforts of this life with a good conscience, and ' all things are pure to the pure,' Titus i. 15. If he have gotten them ill, conscience up- braids him alway, and therefore he cannot joy in the good estate he hath. If a man had all the contentments in the world, if he had not the testimony of a good conscience, Avhat were all ? What contentment had Adam in paradise, after once by sin he had fallen from the peace of conscience '.' None at all. ' A little that the righteous hath, is better than great riches of the ungodly,' Prov. xvi. 8, because they have not peace of conscience.
(2.) And so for ill estate, when conscience witnesseth well, it breeds rejoicing.
[1.] In false imputations, and slanders, and disgraces, as here, it was insinuated into the Coiinthians by false teachers, and those that followed them, that St Paul was so and so. Saith St Paul, You may say what you will of me, ' my rejoicing is this, the testimony of my conscience,' that I am not the man which they make me to be in your hearts by their false reports. The witness of conscience is a good and sufficient ground of re- joicing in this case. Therefore holy men have retired to their conscience in all times, as St Paul you see doth here.
So Job, his conscience bare him out in all the false imputations of his comfortless friends that were * miserable comforters,' Job xvi. 2. They laboured to take away his sincerity from him, the chief cause of his joy. * You shall not take away my sincerity,' saith he. Job xxvii. 6. You would make me an hypocrite, and thus and thus, but my conscience tells me I am
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otherwise, therefore ' you shall not take away my innoceney from mc.' And in Job xxxi. 35, ' Behold, it is my desire, that the Almighty would answer me, and that my adversaries would write a book against me, I would take it upon my shoulder, I would take it as a crown unto me.' Here was the force of a good conscience in Job's troubles, that if his adversaries should write a book against him, yet he would bind it as a crown about him, xxxi. 86. And so David, in all impiitations this was his joy, when they laid things to his charge that he had never done : he takes this for his joy, the comfort of his conscience. So St Paul, he retires to his conscience, and being raised up with the worthiness of a good conscience, he despiseth all imputations whatsoever. He sets conscience up as a flag of defiance to all false slanders and imputations that were laid against him, as we see in the story of the Acts, and in this place and others. Saith he in one place, * I pass not for man's sentence,' 1 Cor. iv. 3, I pass not for man's day. Man hath his day, man will have his judgment-seat, and will get upon the bench, and judge mo that I am such and such. I care not for man's day. There is another judgment-seat that I look unto, and to the testimony of my conscience, ' My rejoicing is the witness of my conscience.'