First, then. It may be observed (as it was, by the way, in the foregoing discourse), that notwithstanding the promises of persever- ance which are given to the saints, yet many there are who are not enabled all their days to mix them with faith, although their interest and portion lie in them no less than theirs who through grace attain the greatest assurance ; and on that account they do never all their days get free from some bondage, by reason of the fear of death and destruction. And in respect of such as these, the comminations and threatenings insisted on may have much of that end accomplished which by Mr Goodwin is assigned to them; not that such a frame is directly aimed at in them, Christ dying to deliver them who by reason of death were in bondage all their days, from that bondage which the fear of death for sin doth keep the souls of men in and under, but that it follows, and will follow, upon their darkness and weakness of faith.
Secondly, That the promises of perseverance being of the effecting and accomplishment of it by and in the use of means, do not, nor will, give deliverance to them to whom they are made from fear of death and hell, but only whilst they conscientiously use the means appointed for them to walk in; so that upon their deflection from the rule which is attended with mercy and peace, the threatenings of God to sin and sinners, to apostasy and apostates, do lay hold on them in their full force and efficacy, especially to the ingenerating in them "a terror of the Lord," as the apostle speaks, and an abhor- rency of their ways, a loathing of them as not good, that would cause them to "fall into the hands of the living God." So that all Mr Good- win's arguings, not being levied against the certainty of per sever ancey but men's certainty that they shall persevere (which some never attain unto, some lose either in whole or in part oftentimes), are not to the business in hand.
Thirdly, That eternal death and destruction is not the only sub- ject of God's threatenings, nor all the evil that they may have a fear of whom he deals withal by them. Desertion, rejection, rebukes, sharp and keen arrows, blows of God's hand, temporal death itself, with the like, are also threatened; yea, and so often, in an eminent and dreadful manner, have been inflicted, that though they might be sup- posed to have always some comfortable assurance of deliverance from
470 DOCTRINE OF TUE SAINTS' PERSEVERANCE. [CIIAP.
the wrath that is to come, yet the threatenings of God may be suited to beget in them this fear of evil to such a height as may make their " bowels to flow like water, rottenness to enter into their bones, and all their joints to tremble."
Fourthly, That the end of the threatenings of God being to dis- cover to men the connection that is, by his appointment, between the sins exagitated and the punishment threatened, whence the fear mentioned doth consequently ensue, they may obtain their full and primary effect though that fear be not ingenerated, if they be pre- vailed on by any other considerations, so that the sin be avoided.
Fifthly, That when the saints do walk orderly, regularly, and closely with God, in the use of means by him appointed, and so doing, from the promises of perseverance, do receive a comfortable assurance that they shall be " kept by the power of God through faith unto salvation," the begetting in them of fears of death and hell is neither useful in itself nor are they intended of God to be their por- tion. But if at any time they "turn aside from the holy command- ment," and thereby fail of the persuasion of their perseverance (as their faith will be by such means impaired), though the certainty of the thing itself be no less infallible than formerly, yet by the threat- enings of God to them it may be needful to rouse them (by "the terror of the Lord " in them) from the condition whereinto they have cast themselves.
I doubt not but that from the light of these and the like consider- ations, which might farther be insisted on, it will appear that there may be, and is, an harmonious consistency between the promises and threatenings of the Scripture, notwithstanding the mist that is raised in a long and tedious discourse to interrupt the evidence thereof.
In the 13th section, under pretence of answering an objection, a long discourse is drawn forth farther to varnish over what was before spoken. Nothing of importance, to my best observation, being added, it may be reduced to these four heads: —
First, An assertion, "That the threats against apostasy do not belong to hypocrites, — that is, to them that are not really regene- rate, let their profession be what it will ; for hypocrites ought not to persevere in the way wherein they are to the end, and therefore there is no danger of their falling away from it;" — which is a ridi- culous piece of sophistry ; for though they may not be exhorted to continue in their hypocrisy, Avhich corrupts and vitiates their pro- fession, yet they may in their j^^'ofession, which in itself is good. And though there is no danger of leaving their hypocrisy, yet there is of their waxing worse and worse, by falling from the beginnings of grace whicli they have received, the profession which they have made, and the regular conversation which they have entered upon. So that, notwithstanding any thing said to the contrary, the com-