' They saw them afar off.'
428 FAITH TRIUMPHANT.
* They were persuaded of them.'
It was such a sight of the things as was with convincing, with persua- sion. And indeed this follows well upon sight, for sight of all other senses persuades hest. Hearing is not so persuasive as sight (c). Supernatural sight brings forth supernatural persuasion. Sight is a convincing sense, even outward sight. So inward sight it is a convincing thing ; it per- suades and sets down the soul that a thing is so, when a man sees it. All the men in the world cannot persuade the weakest man in the world when it is day or night, when the sun shines or it is dark, that it is not so. When he sees it, he will believe his own eyes more than all the world besides. And as it is in sensible things we believe our own eyes, 80 much more in spiritual things we believe our eyes. When there is a spiritual light of revelation in the word discovering such things, and also to spiritual light a spiritual eye, when the Spirit puts an eye into the soul to see supernatural things that reason cannot attain to, then there is per- suasion. Though all the world should persuade the soul that such a thing were not so, it would say it is so, it will believe its own eyes. If all the world should persuade a Christian that there is no such excellency in religion, that his ways are not good, that he is but foolish, &c., he knows the contrary, and will not be scorned out of his religion, and driven out of it by any contrary persuasion of men whom he pities — though perhaps they are otherwise beyond him — in the state of nature, for sight it is a con- vincing thing.
Especially when there is some taste with sight, for taste together with sight convinceth of the goodness of things ; as we see in those that lead their life by tasting and feeling. The creatures maintain their life by tasting some proportionable food fit for them; so a Christian, when once he hath tasted of spiritual things, the proper food of his soul, when he hath seen and tasted of them, he will never be driven out of his religion and his course by any means ; when he hath seen and tasted, he is thoroughly persuaded. A man must not dispute against taste. When he hath tasted a thing to be so, talk to him otherwise, he saith, I have tasted, and feel, and see it to be so ; and therefore we see that after sight comes persuasion.
Now, this persuasion is a supernatural persuasion, and it is general and particular.
A general persuasion of the things, of the general truths, and a parti- cular personal persuasion of our interest in them. When we are per- suaded that the truths are so, generally, that are revealed in the word of God, and when we are persuaded, by the help of the Spirit, that we have a particular interest in them, a portion in them; and both are here meant. 'They saw them afar off, and were persuaded of them;' they were con- vinced both of the truth and goodness of them, and of the truth and good- ness to them in particular.
Now, persuasion is a settled kind of knowledge. Persuasion comes divers ways. There be divers degrees tending to persuasion.
1. First, The poorest degree of the apprehension of things is conjecture, a guessing that such a thing may be so or otherwise, but I guess it rather to be so.
2. Beyond conjecture there is o2nnion, when a man thinks it is so, upon more reasons swaying him one way ; and yet in opinion there is fear on the contrary, that it may be otherwise.
_ 3. And the third degree beyond opinion is certain knowledge; when a
FAITH TEIUMPHANT. 429
man is not only conceited* that the thing is so, his opinion is so upon some reasons inducing him, but he knows it by arguments and reasons. That is science and knowledge when the mind is persuaded by arguments. But that is not so much here meant, the persuasion by argument.
4. There is another degree then of knowledge, which is hy the authority of the speaker, a persuasion from thence. When I know not the thing by the light of the thing so much, because I see the reason of the thing, but because I know such a one saith it, that is the persuasion of faith ; when one is persuaded of a thing not so much out of his own knowledge, out of the principles of the thing, setting out the causes of the thing, as out of the credit of the person that speaks. Now, this persuasion riseth out of faith in the authority of the person. When I believe a thing for the authority of the speaker, it ariseth from the knowledge of him that speaks, that he is able, and that he is true, and that he is honest, and good ; that he will not deceive because he is good, and he will not be deceived because he is wise. We conceive that he is wise, and holy, and able withal ; one that we trust. If together with this knowledge and persuasion from the authority, and truth, and goodness, and wisdom of the speaker, there be joined sense and experience, we see it proved ; and when there is experi- ence, there is reason why we should believe that he saith, because we have found the thing to be so. So when there is both the authority of the speaker and some inward sense — some sight, and taste, and feeling, and experience of the thing spoken — here comes that settled persuasion, for he is undoubtedly true that hath spoken it, and I have found in some degree the thing true that he hath spoken. Now, both are here meant in some degrees, ' they saw the things afar off,' both by the authority of the promise, as likewise by their own sight, and some taste they had.