,transcribed from the #ahie ,oliphant1  
,anderson and ,ferrier edition by ,david
  ,price1 email ccx#jgd;coventry4ac4uk  
,,bunyan ,,characters--,,third ,,series 
,lectures ,delivered in ,st4 ,george's  
,free ,church ,edinburgh  ,by ,alexander
 ,whyte1 ,d4,d4      ,,chapter ,i--,,the
 ,,book         '--the book of the wars 
of the ,lord4'--,moses4    ,john        
,bunyan's ,holy ,war was first published
 in #afhb1 six years before  its        
illustrious author's death4  ,bunyan    
wrote this great book when he was  still
 in all the fulness of his intellectual 
power and in all the  ripeness of his   
spiritual experience4  ,the ,holy ,war  
is not the  ,pilgrim's ,progress--there 
is only one ,pilgrim's ,progress4  ,at  
the  same time1 we have ,lord           
,macaulay's word for it that if the     
,pilgrim's  ,progress did not exist the 
,holy ,war would be the best allegory   
that  ever was written3 and even ,mr4   
,froude admits that the ,holy ,war alone
  would have entitled its author to rank

 high up among the acknowledged  masters
 of ,english literature4  ,the          
intellectual rank of the ,holy ,war  has
 been fixed before that tribunal over   
which our accomplished and  competent   
critics preside2 but for a full         
appreciation of its religious  rank and 
value we would need to hear the glad    
testimonies of tens of  thousands of    
,god's saints1 whose hard-beset faith   
and obedience have been  kindled and    
sustained by the study of this noble    
book4  ,the ,pilgrim's  ,progress sets  
forth the spiritual life under the      
scriptural figure of a  long and an     
uphill journey4  ,the ,holy ,war1 on the
 other hand1 is a  military history2 it 
is full of soldiers and battles1 defeats
 and  victories4  ,and its devout author
 had much more scriptural suggestion and
  support in the composition of the     
,holy ,war than he had even in the      
composition of the ,pilgrim's ,progress4
  ,for ,holy ,scripture is full of  wars
 and rumours of wars3 the wars of the   

,lord2 the wars of ,joshua and  the     
,judges2 the wars of ,david1 with his   
and many other magnificent battle-      
songs2 till the best known name of the  
,god of ,israel in the ,old ,testament  
is the ,lord of ,hosts2 and then in the 
,new ,testament we have ,jesus ,christ  
described as the ,captain of our        
salvation4  ,paul's powerful use of     
armour  and of armed men is familiar to 
every student of his epistles2 and then 
the whole ,bible is crowned with a book 
all sounding with the  battle-cries1 the
 shouts1 and the songs of soldiers1 till
 it ends with  that city of peace where 
they hang the trumpet in the hall and   
study war  no more4  ,military metaphors
 had taken a powerful hold of our       
author's  imagination even in the       
,pilgrim's ,progress1 as his portraits  
of  ,greatheart and ,valiant-for-truth  
and other soldiers sufficiently show2   
while the conflict with ,apollyon and   
the destruction of ,doubting ,castle    
are so many sure preludes of the coming 

,holy ,war4  ,bunyan's early            
experiences in the great ,civil ,war had
 taught him many memorable things  about
 the military art2 memorable and        
suggestive things that he  afterwards   
put to the most splendid use in the     
siege1 the capture1 and  the subjugation
 of ,mansoul4    ,the ,divine ,comedy is
 beyond dispute the greatest book of    
personal and  experimental religion the 
world has ever seen4  ,the consuming    
intensity  of its author's feelings     
about sin and holiness1 the keenness and
 the  bitterness of his remorse1 and the
 rigour and the severity of his         
revenge1 his superb intellect and his   
universal learning1 all set ablaze  by  
his splendid imagination--all that      
combines to make the ,divine  ,comedy   
the unapproachable masterpiece it is4   
,john ,bunyan1 on the other  hand1 had  
no learning to be called learning1 but  
he had a strong and a  healthy ,english 
understanding1 a conscience and a heart 
wholly given up  to the life of the best

 religion of his religious day1 and     
then1 by sheer  dint of his sanctified  
and soaring imagination and his         
exquisite style1  he stands forth the   
peer of the foremost men in the         
intellectual world4  ,and thus it is    
that the great unlettered religious     
world possesses in  ,john ,bunyan all   
but all that the select and scholarly   
world possesses in  ,dante4  ,both      
,dante and ,bunyan devoted their        
splendid gifts to the noblest  of       
services--the service of spiritual1 and 
especially of personal  religion2 but   
for one appreciative reader that ,dante 
has had ,bunyan has  had a hundred4     
,happy in being so like his ,master in  
so many things1  ,bunyan is happy in    
being like his unlettered ,master in    
this also1 that  the common people hear 
him gladly and never weary of hearing   
him4    ,it gives by far its noblest    
interest to ,dante's noble book that we 
have  ,dante himself in every page of   
his book4  ,dante is taken down into    

,hell1  he is then led up through       
,purgatory1 and after that still up and 
up  into the very ,paradise of ,god4    
,but that hell all the time is the hell 
that ,dante had dug and darkened and    
kindled for himself4  ,in the           
,purgatory1 again1 we see ,dante working
 out his own salvation with fear  and   
trembling1 ,god all the time working in 
,dante to will and to do of ,his  good  
pleasure4  ,and then the ,paradise1 with
 all its sevenfold glory1 is  just that 
place and that life which ,god hath     
prepared for them that love  ,him and   
serve ,him as ,dante did4  ,and so it is
 in the ,holy ,war4  ,john  ,bunyan is  
in the ,pilgrim's ,progress1 but there  
are more men and other  men than its    
author in that rich and populous book1  
and other experiences  and other        
attainments than his4  ,but in the ,holy
 ,war we have ,bunyan  himself as fully 
and as exclusively as we have ,dante in 
the ,divine  ,comedy4  ,in the first    
edition of the ,holy ,war there is a    

frontispiece  conceived and executed    
after the anatomical and symbolical     
manner which  was so common in that day1
 and which is to be seen at its         
perfection in  the ,english edition of  
,jacob ,behmen4  ,the frontispiece is a 
full-length  likeness of the author of  
the ,holy ,war1 with his whole soul laid
 open  and his hidden heart             
'anatomised4'  ,why1 asked ,wordsworth1 
and ,matthew  ,arnold in our day has    
echoed the question--why does ,homer    
still so live  and rule without a rival 
in the world of letters8  ,and they     
answer that  it is because he always    
sang with his eye so fixed upon its     
object4  ',homer1 to thee ,i turn4'     
,and so it was with ,dante4  ,and so it 
was with  ,bunyan4  ,bunyan's ,holy ,war
 has its great and abiding and          
commanding  power over us just because  
he composed it with his eye fixed on his
 own  heart4       ,my readers1 ,i have 
somewhat else to do1     ,than with vain
 stories thus to trouble you2     ,what 

here ,i say some men do know so well    
,they can with tears and joy the story  
tell 4 4 4     ,then lend thine ear to  
what ,i do relate1     ,touching the    
town of ,mansoul and her state3     ,for
 my part1 ,i 7myself7 was in the town1  
,both when 'twas set up and when pulling
 down4     ,let no man then count me a  
fable-maker1     ,nor make my name or   
credit a partaker     ,of their         
derision3 what is here in view     ,of  
mine own knowledge1 ,i dare say is true4
    ,the characters in the ,holy ,war   
are not as a rule nearly so clear-cut or
  so full of dramatic life and movement 
as their fellows are in the  ,pilgrim's 
,progress1 and ,bunyan seems to have    
felt that to be the case4  ,he shows all
 an author's fondness for the children  
of his imagination in  the ,pilgrim's   
,progress4  ,he returns to and he       
lingers on their doings  and their      
sayings and their very names with all a 
foolish father's fond  delight4  ,while1
 on the other hand1 when we look to see 

him in his  confidential addresses to   
his readers returning upon some of the  
military  and municipal characters in   
the ,holy ,war1 to our disappointment he
 does  not so much as name a single one 
of them1 though he dwells with all an   
author's self-delectation on the        
outstanding scenes1 situations1 and     
episodes of his remarkable book4        
,what1 then1 are some of the more       
outstanding scenes1 situations1 and     
episodes1 as well as military and       
municipal characters1 in the book now   
before us8  ,and what are we to promise 
ourselves1 and to expect1 from the      
study and the exposition of the ,holy   
,war in these lectures8  ,well1 to      
begin with1 we shall do our best to     
enter with mind1 and heart1 and         
conscience1 and imagination into        
,bunyan's great conception of the human 
soul as a city1 a fair and a delicate   
city and corporation1 with its          
situation1 surroundings1 privileges and 
fortunes4  ,we shall then enter  under  

his guidance into the famous and stately
 palace of this  metropolitan city2 a   
palace which for strength might be      
called a castle1  for pleasantness a    
paradise1 and for largeness a place so  
copious as to  contain all the world4   
,the walls and the gates of the city    
will then  occupy and instruct us for   
several ,sabbath evenings1 after which  
we shall  enter on the record of the    
wars and battles that rolled time after 
time  round those city walls1 and surged
 up through its captured gates till     
they quite overwhelmed the very palace  
of the king itself4  ,then we shall     
spend1 ,god willing1 one ,sabbath       
evening with ,loth-to-stoop1 and another
  with old ,ill-pause1 the devil's      
orator1 and another with ,captain       
,anything1 and another with ,lord       
,willbewill1 and another with that      
notorious villain ,clip-promise1 by     
whose doings so much of the king's  coin
 had been abused1 and another with that 
so angry and so  ill-conditioned churl  

old ,mr4 ,prejudice1 with his sixty deaf
 men under  him4  ,dear ,mr4 ,wet-eyes1 
with his rope upon his head1 will have a
 fit  congregation one winter night1 and
 ,captain ,self-denial another4  ,we    
shall  have another painful but         
profitable evening before a communion   
season  with ,mr4 ,prywell1 and so we   
shall eat of that bread and drink of    
that  cup4  ,emmanuel's livery will     
occupy us one evening1 ,mansoul's ,magna
  ,charta another1 and her annual       
,feast-day another4  ,her ,established  
,church  and her beneficed clergy will  
take up one evening1 some ,skulkers in  
,mansoul another1 the devil's last prank
 another1 and then1 to wind up  with1   
,emmanuel's last speech and charge to   
,mansoul from his chariot-step  till ,he
 comes again to accomplish her rapture4 
,all that we shall see and  take part   
in2 unless1 indeed1 our ,captain comes  
in anger before the time1  and spears us
 to the earth when ,he finds us asleep  
at our post or in the  act of sin at it1

 which may ,his abounding mercy forbid6 
,and now take these three forewarnings  
and precautions4    #a4  ,first3--,all  
who come here on these coming ,sabbath  
evenings will not  understand the ,holy 
,war all at once1 and many will not     
understand it at  all4  ,and little     
blame to them1 and no wonder4  ,for1    
fully to understand  this deep and      
intricate book demands far more mind1   
far more experience1  and far more      
specialised knowledge than the mass of  
men1 as men are1 can  possibly bring to 
it4  ,this so exacting book demands of  
us1 to begin  with1 some little         
acquaintance with military engineering  
and  architecture2 with the theory of1  
and if possible with some practice in1  
attack and defence in sieges and storms1
 winter campaigns and long drawn-  out  
wars4  ,and then1 impossible as it      
sounds and is1 along with all that  we  
would need to have a really profound1   
practical1 and at first-hand            
acquaintance with the anatomy of the    

human subject1 and especially with      
cardiac anatomy1 as well as with all the
 conditions1 diseases1 regimen  and     
discipline of the corrupt heart of man4 
,and then it is enough to  terrify any  
one to open this book or to enter this  
church when he is told  that if he comes
 here he must be ready and willing to   
have the whole of  this terrible and    
exacting book fulfilled and experienced 
in himself1 in  his own body and in his 
own soul4    #b4  ,and1 then1 you will  
not all like the ,holy ,war4  ,the mass 
of men  could not be expected to like   
any such book4  ,how could the vain and 
blind citizen of a vain and blind city  
like to be wakened up1 as ,paris  was   
wakened up within our own remembrance1  
to find all her gates in the  hands of  
an iron-hearted enemy8  ,and how could  
her sons like to be  reminded1 as they  
sit in their wine gardens1 that they are
 thereby fast  preparing their city for 
that threatened day when she is to be   
hung up on  her own walls and bled to   

the white8  ,who would not hate and     
revile the  book or the preacher who    
prophesied such rough things as that8   
,who could  love the author or the      
preacher who told him to his face that  
his eyes  and his ears and all the      
passes to his heart were already in the 
hands of  a cruel1 ruthless1 and        
masterful enemy8  ,no wonder that you   
never read  the ,holy ,war4  ,no wonder 
that the bulk of men have never once    
opened  it4  ,the ,downfall is not a    
favourite book in the night-gardens of  
,paris4    #c4  ,and then1 few1 very    
few1 it is to be feared1 will be any    
better of  the ,holy ,war4  ,for1 to be 
any better of such a terrible book as   
this  is1 we must at all costs lay it1  
and lay it all1 and lay it all at once1 
to heart4  ,we must submit ourselves to 
see ourselves continually in its        
blazing glass4  ,we must stoop to be    
told that it is all1 in all its  terrors
 and in all its horrors1 literally true 
of ourselves4  ,we must  deliberately   

and resolutely set open every gate that 
opens in on our  heart--,ear-gate and   
,eye-gate and all the gates of sense and
 intellect1  day and night1 to ,jesus   
,christ to enter in2 and we must shut   
and bolt and  bar every such gate in the
 devil's very face1 and in the face of  
all his  scouts and orators1 day and    
night also4  ,but who that thinks1 and  
that  knows by experience what all that 
means1 will feel himself sufficient for 
all that8  ,no man3 no sinful man4      
,but1 among many other noble and        
blessed things1 the ,holy ,war will show
 us that our sufficiency in this        
impossibility also is all of ,god4      
,who1 then1 will enlist8  ,who will risk
  all and enlist8  ,who will matriculate
 in the military school of ,mansoul8    
,who will submit himself to all the     
severity of its divine discipline8  ,who
  will be made willing to throw open and
 to keep open his whole soul1 with  all 
the gates and doors thereof1 to all the 
sieges1 assaults1  capitulations1       

submissions1 occupations1 and such like 
of the war of  gospel holiness8  ,and   
who will enlist under that banner now8  
',set down my name1 sir1' said a man of 
a very stout countenance to him  who had
 the inkhorn at the outer gate4  ,at    
which those who walked upon  the top of 
the palace broke out in a very pleasant 
voice1       ',come in1 come in2        
,eternal glory thou shalt win4'    ,we  
have no longer1 after what we have come 
through1 any such stoutness in  our     
countenance1 yet will we say to-night   
with him who had it1 ,set down  my name 
also1 sir6          ,,chapter           
,,ii--,,the ,,city ,,of ,,mansoul ,,and 
,,its ,,cinque ,,ports         '--a     
besieged city4'--,isaiah4    ,our       
greatest historians have been wont to   
leave their books behind them  and to   
make long journeys in order to see with 
their own eyes the ruined  sites of     
ancient cities and the famous fields    
where the great battles of  the world   
were lost and won4  ,we all remember how

 ,macaulay made a long  winter journey  
to see the ,pass of ,killiecrankie      
before he sat down to  write upon it2   
and ,carlyle's magnificent battle-pieces
 are not all  imagination2 even that    
wonderful writer had to see ,frederick's
  battlefields with his own eyes before 
he could trust himself to describe      
them4  ,and he tells us himself how     
,cromwell's splendid generalship all    
came up before him as he looked down on 
the town of ,dunbar and out upon  the   
ever-memorable country round about it4  
,john ,bunyan was not a great           
historian2 he was only a common soldier 
in the great ,civil ,war of the         
seventeenth century2 but what would we  
not give for a description from  his    
vivid pen of the famous fields and the  
great sieges in which he took  part8    
,what a find ,john ,bunyan's ',journals'
 and ',letters ,home from the  ,seat of 
,war' would be to our historians and to 
their readers6  ,but1 alas6  such       
journals and letters do not exist4      

,bunyan's complete silence in all  his  
books about the battles and the sieges  
he took his part in is very  remarkable1
 and his silence is full of             
significance4  ,the ,puritan soldier    
keeps all his military experiences to   
work them all up into his ,holy  ,war1  
the one and only war that ever kindled  
all his passions and filled  his every  
waking thought4  ,but since ,john       
,bunyan was a man of genius1  equal in  
his own way to ,cromwell and ,milton    
themselves1 if ,i were a  soldier ,i    
would keep ever before me the great book
 in which ,bunyan's  experiences and    
observations and reflections as a       
soldier are all worked  up4  ,i would   
set that classical book on the same     
shelf with ,caesar's  ,commentaries and 
,napier's ,peninsula1 and ,carlyle's    
glorious battle-  pieces4  ,even ,caesar
 has been accused of too great dryness  
and coldness  in his ,commentaries1 but 
there is neither dryness nor coldness in
 ,john  ,bunyan's ,holy ,war4  ,to read 

,bunyan kindles our cold civilian blood 
like  the waving of a banner and like   
the sound of a trumpet4    ,the         
situation of the city of ,mansoul       
occupies one of the most beautiful      
pages of this whole book4  ,the opening 
of the ,holy ,war1 simply as a  piece of
 ,english1 is worthy to stand beside the
 best page of the  ,pilgrim's ,progress 
itself1 and what more can ,i say than   
that8  ,now1 the  situation of a city is
 a matter of the very first importance4 
,indeed1  the insight and the foresight 
of the great statesmen and the great    
soldiers of past ages are seen in       
nothing more than in the sites they     
chose for their citadels and for their  
defenced cities4  ,well1 then1 as  to   
the situation of ,mansoul1 'it lieth1'  
says our military author1 'just  between
 the two worlds4'  ,that is to say3 very
 much as ,germany in our day  lies      
between ,france and ,russia1 and very   
much as ,palestine in her day lay       
between ,egypt and ,assyria1 so does    

,mansoul lie between two immense        
empires also4  ,and1 surely1 ,i do not  
need to explain to any man here who  has
 a man's soul in his bosom that the two 
armed empires that besiege his  soul are
 ,heaven above and ,hell beneath1 and   
that both ,heaven and ,hell  would give 
their best blood and their best treasure
 to subdue and to  possess his soul4    
,we do not value our souls at all as    
,heaven and ,hell  value them4  ,there  
are savage tribes in ,africa and in     
,asia who inhabit  territories that are 
sleeplessly envied by the expanding and 
extending  nations of ,europe4  ,ancient
 and mighty empires in ,europe raise    
armies1  and build navies1 and levy     
taxes1 and spill the blood of their     
bravest  sons like water in order to    
possess the harbours1 and the rivers1   
and the  mountains1 and the woods amid  
which their besotted owners roam in     
utter  ignorance of all the plots and   
preparations of the ,western world4     
,and  ,heaven and ,hell are not unlike  

those ancient and over-peopled nations  
of  ,europe whose teeming millions must 
have an outlet to other lands4  ,their  
life and their activity are too large   
and too rich for their original         
territories1 and thus they are compelled
 to seek out colonies and  dependencies1
 so that their surplus population may   
have a home4  ,and1 in  like manner1    
,heaven is too full of love and of      
blessedness to have all  that for ever  
shut up within itself1 and ,hell is too 
full of envy and ill-  will1 and thus   
there continually come about those      
contentions and  collisions of which the
 ,holy ,war is full4  ,and1 besides1 it 
is with  ,mansoul and her neighbour     
states of ,heaven and ,hell just as it  
is with  some of our great ,european    
empires in this also4  ,there is no     
neutral  zone1 no buffer state1 no      
silver streak between ,mansoul and her  
immediate  and military neighbours4     
,and thus it is that her statesmen1 and 
her  soldiers1 and even her very        

common-soldier sentries must be for ever
 on  the watch2 they must never say     
peace1 peace2 they must never leave for 
one moment their appointed post4    ,and
 then1 as for the wall of the city1 hear
 our excellent historian's own  words   
about that4  ',the wall of the town was 
well built1' so he says4  ',yea1 so fast
 and firm was it knit and compact       
together that1 had it not  been for the 
townsmen themselves1 it could not have  
been shaken or broken  down for ever4   
,for here lay the excellent wisdom of   
,him that builded  ,mansoul1 that the   
walls could never be broken down nor    
hurt by the most  mighty adverse        
potentate unless the townsmen gave their
 consent thereto4'  ,now1 what would the
 military engineers of ,chatham and     
,paris and ,berlin1  who are now at     
their wits' end1 not give for a secret  
like that6  ,a wall  impregnable and    
insurmountable and not to be sapped or  
mined from the  outside3 a wall that    
could only suffer hurt from the inside6 

,and then  that wonderful wall was      
pierced from within with five           
magnificently  answerable gates4  ,that 
is to say1 the gates could neither be   
burst in  nor any way forced from       
without4  ',this famous town of ,mansoul
 had five  gates1 in at which to come1  
out of which to go2 and these were made 
likewise answerable to the walls2 to    
wit1 impregnable1 and such as could     
never be opened or forced but by the    
will and leave of those within4  ,the   
names of the gates were these3          
,ear-gate1 ,eye-gate1 ,mouth-gate2 in   
short1  'the five senses1' as we say4   
,in the south of ,england1 in the time  
of ,edward the ,confessor and after  the
 battle of ,hastings1 there were five   
cities which had special  immunities and
 peculiar privileges bestowed upon them1
 in recognition of  the special dangers 
to which they were exposed and the      
eminent services  they performed as     
facing the hostile shores of ,france4   
,owing to their  privileges and their   

position1 the ',cinque ,ports' came to  
be cities of  great strength1 till1 as  
time went on1 they became a positive    
weakness  rather than a strength to the 
land that lay behind them4  ,privilege  
bred  pride1 and in their pride the     
,cinque ,ports proclaimed wars and      
formed  alliances on their own account3 
piracies by sea and robberies by land   
were hatched within their walls2 and it 
took centuries to reduce those  pampered
 and arrogant ports to the safe and     
peaceful rank of ordinary  ,english     
cities4  ,the ,revolution of #afhh did  
something1 and the ,reform  ,bill of    
#ahcb did more to make ,dover and her   
insolent sisters like the  other free   
and equal cities of ,england2 but to    
this day there are  remnants of public  
shows and pageantries left in those old 
towns  sufficient to witness to the     
former privileges1 power1 and pride of  
the  famous ,cinque ,ports4  ,now1      
,mansoul1 in like manner1 has her cinque
 ports4  ,and the whole of the ,holy    

,war is one long and detailed history of
 how  the five senses are clothed with  
such power as they possess2 how they    
abuse and misuse their power2 what      
disloyalty and despite they show to     
their sovereign2 what conspiracies and  
depredations they enter into2 what      
untold miseries they let in upon        
themselves and upon the land that lies  
behind them2 what years and years of    
siege1 legislation1 and rule it  takes  
to reduce our bodily senses1 those proud
 and licentious gates1 to  their true   
and proper allegiance1 and to make their
 possessors a people  loyal and         
contented1 law-abiding and happy4       
,the ,apostle has a terrible passage to 
the ,corinthians1 in which he treats  of
 the soul and the senses with tremendous
 and overwhelming power4  ',your  bodies
 and your bodily members1' he argues1   
with crushing indignation1  'are not    
your own to do with them as you like4   
,your bodies and your  souls are both   
,christ's4  ,he has bought your body and

 your soul at an  incalculable cost4    
,what6 know ye not that your body is    
nothing less than  the temple of the    
,holy ,ghost which is in you1 and ye are
 not any more  your own8 know ye not    
that your bodies are the very members of
 ,christ8'  ,and then he says a thing so
 terrible that ,i tremble to transcribe 
it4  ,for  a more terrible thing was    
never written4  ',shall ,i then1' filled
 with  shame he demands1 'take the      
members of ,christ and make them the    
members  of an harlot8'  ,o ,god1 have  
mercy on me6  ,i knew all the time that 
,i was  abusing and polluting myself1   
but ,i did not know1 ,i did not think1  
,i was  never told that ,i was abusing  
and polluting ,thy ,son1 ,jesus ,christ4
  ,oh1  too awful thought4  ,and yet1   
stupid sinner that ,i am1 ,i had often  
read  that if any man defile the temple 
of ,god and the members of ,christ1 him 
shall ,god destroy4  ,o ,god1 destroy me
 not as ,i see now that ,i deserve4     
,spare me that ,i may cleanse and       

sanctify myself and the members of      
,christ  in me1 which ,i have so often  
embruted and defiled4  ,assist me to    
summon  up my imagination henceforth to 
my sanctification as ,thine apostle has 
here taught me the way4  ,let me        
henceforth look at my whole body in all 
its senses and in all its members1 the  
most open and the most secret1 as  in   
reality no more my own4  ,let me        
henceforth look at myself with ,paul's  
deep and holy eyes4  ,let me henceforth 
seat ,christ1 my ,redeemer and my       
,king1 in the very throne of my heart1  
and then keep every gate of my body  and
 every avenue of my mind as all not any 
more mine own but ,his4  ,let me  open  
my eye1 and my ear1 and my mouth1 as if 
in all that ,i were opening  ,christ's  
eye and ,christ's ear and ,christ's     
mouth2 and let me thrust in  nothing on 
,him as ,he dwells within me that will  
make ,him ashamed or  angry1 or that    
will defile and pollute ,him4  ,that    
thought1 ,o ,god1 ,i feel  that it will 

often arrest me in time to come in the  
very act of sin4  ,it  will make me     
start back before ,i make ,christ cruel 
or false1 a  wine-bibber1 a glutton1 or 
unclean4  ,i feel at this moment as if  
,i shall  yet come to ask ,him at every 
meal1 and at every other opportunity and
  temptation of every kind1 what ,he    
would have and what ,he would do before 
,i go on to take or to do anything      
myself4  ,what a check1 what a          
restraint1 what an awful scrupulosity   
that will henceforth work in me6  ,but1 
through that1 what a pure1 blameless1   
noble1 holy and heavenly life  ,i shall 
then lead6  ,what bodily pains1         
diseases1 premature decays2 what  mental
 remorses1 what shames and scandals1    
what self-loathings and what            
self-disgusts1 what cups bitterer to    
drink than blood1 ,i shall then  escape6
  ,yes1 ,o ,paul1 ,i shall henceforth   
hold with thee that my body is  the     
temple of ,christ1 and that ,i am not my
 own1 but that ,i am bought with  a     

transporting price1 and can1 therefore1 
do nothing less than glorify  ,god in my
 body and in my spirit which are ,god's4
  ',this place1' says the  ,pauline     
author of the ,holy ,war--',this place  
the ,king intended but for  ,himself    
alone1 and not for another with ,him4'  
,but1 my brethren1 lay this well1 and as
 never before1 to heart--this1  namely1 
that when you thus begin to keep any    
gate for ,christ1 your ,king  and       
,captain and ,better-self1--,ear-gate1  
or ,eye-gate1 or ,mouth-gate1 or  any   
other gate--you will have taken up a    
task that shall have no end with  you in
 this life4  ,till you begin in dead    
earnest to watch your heart1  and all   
the doors of your heart1 as if you were 
watching ,christ's heart  for ,him and  
all the doors of ,his heart1 you will   
have no idea of the  arduousness and the
 endurance1 the sleeplessness and the   
self-denial1 of  the undertaking4       
',mansoul6  ,her wars seemed endless in 
her eyes2     ,she's lost by one1       

becomes another's prize4     ,mansoul6  
,her mighty wars1 they did portend      
,her weal or woe and that world without 
end4     ,wherefore she must be more    
concern'd than they     ,whose fears    
begin and end the self-same day4'       
',we all thought one battle would decide
 it1' says ,richard ,baxter1 writing    
about the ,civil ,war4  ',but we were   
all very much mistaken1' sardonically   
adds ,carlyle4  ,yes2 and you will be   
very much mistaken too if you enter  on 
the war with sin in your soul1 in your  
senses and in your members1  with powder
 and shot for one engagement only4      
,when you enlist here1 lay  well to     
heart that it is for life4  ,there is no
 discharge in this war4  ,there are no  
ornamental old pensioners here4  ,it is 
a warfare for eternal  life1 and nothing
 will end it but the end of your evil   
days on earth4          ,,chapter       
,,iii--,,ear-,,gate         ',take heed 
what ye hear4'--,our ,lord in ,mark4    
',take heed how you hear4'--,our ,lord  

in ,luke4    ,this famous town of       
,mansoul had five gates1 in at which to 
come1 out at  which to go1 and these    
were made likewise answerable to the    
walls--to  wit1 impregnable1 and such as
 could never be opened nor forced but by
 the  will and leave of those within4   
',the names of the gates were these1    
,ear-  gate1 ,eye-gate1' and so on4     
,dr4 ,george ,wilson1 who was once      
,professor of  ,technology in our       
,university1 took this suggestive       
passage out of the  ,holy ,war and made 
it the text of his famous lecture in the
  ,philosophical ,institution1 and then 
he printed the passage on the fly-  leaf
 of his delightful book ,the ,five      
,gateways of ,knowledge4  ,that is a    
book to read sometime1 but this evening 
is to be spent with the master4    ,for1
 after all1 no one can write at once so 
beautifully1 so quaintly1 so            
suggestively1 and so evangelically as   
,john ,bunyan4  ',the ,lord             
,willbewill1' says ,john ,bunyan1 'took 

special care that the gates should  be  
secured with double guards1 double      
bolts1 and double locks and bars2  and  
that ,ear-gate especially might the     
better be looked to1 for that was  the  
gate in at which the ,king's forces     
sought most to enter4  ,the ,lord       
,willbewill therefore made old ,mr4     
,prejudice1 an angry and ill-conditioned
  fellow1 captain of the ward at that   
gate1 and put under his power sixty     
men1 called ,deafmen2 men advantageous  
for that service1 forasmuch as they     
mattered no words of the captain nor of 
the soldiers4  ,and first the  ,king's  
officers made their force more          
formidable against ,ear-gate3 for  they 
knew that unless they could penetrate   
that no good could be done  upon the    
town4  ,this done1 they put the rest of 
their men in their  places2 after which 
they gave out the word1 which was1 ,ye  
must be born  again6  ,and so the battle
 began4  ,now1 they in the town had     
planted upon  the tower over ,ear-gate  

two great guns1 the one called          
,high-mind and the  other ,heady4  ,unto
 these two guns they trusted much2 they 
were cast in  the castle by ,diabolus's 
ironfounder1 whose name was ,mr4        
,puff-up1 and  mischievous pieces they  
were4  ,they in the camp also did       
stoutly1 for  they saw that unless they 
could open ,ear-gate it would be in vain
 to  batter the wall4'  ,and so on1     
through many allegorical1 and1 if       
sometimes  somewhat laboured1 yet always
 eloquent1 pungent1 and heart-exposing  
pages4    ,with these for our text let  
us now take a rapid glance at what some 
of  the more ,bunyan-like passages in   
the prophets and the psalms say about   
the ear2 how it is kept and how it is   
lost2 how it is used and how it is      
abused4    #a4  ,the ,psalmist uses a   
very striking expression in the #idth   
,psalm when  he is calling for justice1 
and is teaching ,god's providence over  
men4  ',he  that planted the ear1' the  
,psalmist exclaims1 'shall he not hear8'

  ,and1  considering his church and his 
day1 that is not a bad remark of        
,cardinal  ,bellarmine on that          
psalm1--'the ,psalmist's word planted1' 
says that  able churchman1 'implies     
design1 in that the ear was not         
spontaneously  evolved by an act of     
vital force1 but was independently      
created by ,god  for a certain object1  
just as a tree1 not of indigenous       
growth1 is of set  purpose planted in   
some new place by the hand of man4'     
,the same thing is  said in ,genesis1   
you remember1 about the ,garden of      
,eden1--the ,lord  planted it and put   
the man and the woman1 whose ears he had
 just planted  also1 into the garden to 
dress it and keep it4  ,how they dressed
 the  garden and kept it1 and how they  
held the gate of their ear against him  
who squatted down before it with his    
innuendoes and his lies1 we all know  to
 our as yet unrepaired1 though not      
always irreparable1 cost4    #b4  ,one  
would almost think that the scornful    

apostle had the ,garden of  ,eden in his
 eye when he speaks so bitterly to      
,timothy of a class of  people who are  
cursed with 'itching ears4'  ,eve's ears
 itched  unappeasably for the devil's   
promised secret2 and we have all        
inherited  our first mother's miserable 
curiosity4  ,how eager1 how restless1   
how  importunate1 we all are to hear    
that new thing that does not at all     
concern us2 or only concerns us to our  
loss and our shame4  ,and the more      
forbidden that secret is to us1 and the 
more full of inward evil to  us--insane 
sinners that we are--the more determined
 we are to get at it4  ,let any         
forbidden secret be in the keeping of   
some one within earshot of  us and we   
will give him no rest till he has shared
 the evil thing with  us4  ,let any     
specially evil page be published in a   
newspaper1 and we will  take good care  
that that day's paper is not thrown into
 the waste-basket2  we will hide it     
away1 like a dog with a stolen bone1    

till we are able to  dig it up and chew 
it dry in secret4  ,the devil has no    
need to blockade  or besiege the gate of
 our ear if he has any of his good      
things to offer  us4  ,the gate that can
 only be opened from within will open at
 once of  itself if he or any of his    
newsmongers but squat down for a moment 
before  it4  ,shame on us1 and on all of
 us1 for our itching ears4    #c4       
,isaiah speaks of some men in his day   
whose ears were 'heavy' and  whose      
hearts were fat1 and the ,psalmist      
speaks of some men in his day  whose    
ears were 'stopped' up altogether4  ,and
 there is not a better thing  in ,bunyan
 at his very best than that surly old   
churl called ,prejudice1 so             
ill-conditioned and so always on the    
edge of anger4  ,by the devil's plan  of
 battle old ,prejudice was appointed to 
be warder of ,ear-gate1 and to  enable  
him to keep that gate for his master he 
had sixty deaf men put  under him1 men  
most advantageous for that post1        

forasmuch as it mattered  not to them   
what ,emmanuel and ,his officers said4  
,there could be no  manner of doubt who 
composed that inimitable passage4       
,there is all the  truth and all the    
humour and all the satire in ,old       
,prejudice that our  author has         
accustomed us to in his best pieces4    
,the common people always  get the best 
literature along with the best religion 
in ,john ,bunyan4  ',they are like the  
deaf adder that stoppeth her ear1 and   
which will not  hearken to the voice of 
charmers charming never so wisely1' says
 the  ,psalmist1 speaking about some bad
 men in his day4  ,now1 ,i will not     
stand  upon ,david's natural history    
here1 but his moral and religious       
meaning is  evident enough4  ,david is  
not concerned about adders and their    
ears1 he  is wholly taken up with us and
 our adder-like animosity against the   
truth4  ,against what teacher1 then2    
against what preacher2 against what     
writer2 against what doctrine1 reproof1 

correction1 has your churlish  prejudice
 adder-like shut your ear8  ,against    
what truth1 human or divine1  have you  
hitherto stopped up your ear like the   
,psalmist's serpent8  ,to  ask that     
boldly1 honestly1 and in the sight of   
,god1 at yourself to-night1  would end  
in making you the lifelong friend of    
some preacher1 some  teacher1 some      
soul-saving truth you have up till      
to-night been prejudiced  against with  
the rooted prejudice and the sullen     
obstinacy of sixty deaf  men4  ,o ,god1 
help us to lay aside all this adder-like
 antipathy at men  and things1 both in  
public and in private life4  ,help us to
 give all men  and all causes a fair    
field and no favour1 but the field and  
the favour  of an open and an honest    
mind1 and a simple and a sincere heart4 
,he that  hath ears1 let him hear6      
#d4  ,as we work our way through the    
various developments and vicissitudes   
of the ,holy ,war we shall find         
,ear-gate in it and in ourselves passing

  through many unexpected experiences2  
now held by one side and now by         
another4  ,and we find the same         
succession of vicissitudes set forth in 
,holy ,scripture4  ,if you pay any      
attention to what you read and hear1 and
  then begin to ask yourselves fair in  
the face as to your own prejudices1     
prepossessions1 animosities1 and        
antipathies1--you will at once begin to 
reap your reward in having put into your
 possession what the ,scriptures  so    
often call an 'inclined' ear4  ,that is 
to say1 an ear not only  unstopped1 not 
only unloaded1 but actually prepared and
 predisposed to  all manner of truth and
 goodness4  ,around our city there are  
the remains1  the still visible tracks1 
of roads that at one time took the      
country  people into our city1 but which
 are now stopped up and made wholly     
impassable4  ,there is no longer any    
road into ,edinburgh that way4  ,there  
are other roads still open1 but they are
 very roundabout1 and at best  very     

uphill4  ,and then there are other roads
 so smooth1 and level1 and  broad1 and  
well kept1 that they are full of all    
kinds of traffic2 in the  centre carts  
and carriages crowd them1 on the one    
side horses and their  riders delight to
 display themselves1 and on the other   
side pedestrians  and perambulators     
enjoy the sun4  ,and then there are     
still other roads  with such a sweet and
 gentle incline upon them that it is a  
positive  pleasure both to man and beast
 to set their foot upon them4  ,and so  
it is  with the minds and the hearts of 
the men and the women who crowd these   
roads4  ,just as the various roads are1 
so are the ears and the  understandings1
 the affections and the inclinations of 
those who walk and  ride and drive upon 
them4  ,some of those men's ears are    
impassably  stopped up by self-love1    
self-interest1 party-spirit1 anger1     
envy1 and  ill-will1--impenetrably      
stopped up against all the men and all  
the truths  of earth and of heaven that 

would instruct1 enlighten1 convict or   
correct  them4  ,some men's minds1      
again1 are not so much shut up as they  
are  crooked1 and warped1 and narrow1   
and full of obstruction and opposition4 
,whereas here and there1 sometimes on   
horseback and sometimes on foot2        
sometimes a learned man walking out of  
the city to take the air1 and  sometimes
 an unlettered countryman coming into   
the city to make his  market1 will have 
his ear hospitably open to every good   
man he meets1 to  every good book he    
reads1 to every good paper he buys at   
the street  corner1 and to every good   
speech1 and report1 and letter1 and     
article he  reads in it4  ,and how happy
 that man is1 how happy his house is at 
home1  and how happy he makes all those 
he but smiles to on his afternoon walk1 
and in all his walk along the roads of  
this life4  ,never see an ,i  incline'  
on a railway or on a driving or a       
walking road without saying on  it      
before you leave it1 ',i waited         

patiently for the ,lord1 and ,he        
inclined  ,his ear unto me and heard my 
cry4  ,because ,he hath inclined ,his   
ear unto  me1 therefore will ,i call    
upon ,him as long as ,i live4  ,incline 
not my  heart to any evil thing1 to     
practise wicked works with them that    
work  iniquity4  ,incline my heart unto 
,thy testimonies1 and not to            
covetousness4  ,i have inclined mine    
heart to perform ,thy statutes alway1   
even unto the end4'    #e4  ,shakespeare
 speaks in ,richard the ,second of 'the 
open ear of  youth1' and it is a        
beautiful truth in a beautiful passage4 
,young men1  who are still young men1   
keep your ears open to all truth and to 
all duty  and to all goodness1 and shut 
your ears with an adder's determination 
against all that which ruined           
,richard--flattering sounds1 reports of 
fashions1 and lascivious metres4  ',our 
souls would only be gainers by the      
perfection of our bodies were they      
wisely dealt with1' says ,professor     

,wilson in his ,five ,gateways4  ',and  
for every human being we should aim  at 
securing1 so far as they can be         
attained1 an eye as keen and piercing   
as that of the eagle2 an ear as         
sensitive to the faintest sound as that 
of the hare2 a nostril as far-scenting  
as that of the wild deer2 a tongue  as  
delicate as that of the butterfly2 and a
 touch as acute as that of the  spider4 
,no man ever was so endowed1 and no man 
ever will be2 but all men  come         
infinitely short of what they should    
achieve were they to make their  senses 
what they might be made4  ,the old have 
outlived their opportunity1  and the    
diseased never had it2 but the young1   
who have still an undimmed  eye1 an     
undulled ear1 and a soft hand2 an       
unblunted nostril1 and a tongue  which  
tastes with relish the plainest         
fare--the young can so cultivate  their 
senses as to make the narrow ring1 which
 for the old and the infirm  encircles  
things sensible1 widen for them into an 

almost limitless  horizon4'    ,take    
heed what you hear1 and take heed how   
you hear4          ,,chapter            
,,iv--,,eye-,,gate         ',mine eye   
affecteth mine heart4'--,jeremiah4      
',think1 in the first place1' says the  
eloquent author of the ,five  ,gateways 
of ,knowledge1 'how beautiful the human 
eye is4  ,the eyes of  many of the lower
 animals are1 doubtless1 very beautiful4
  ,you must all  have admired the bold1 
fierce1 bright eye of the eagle2 the    
large1  gentle1 brown eye of the ox2 the
 treacherous1 green eye of the cat1     
waxing and waning like the moon2 the    
pert eye of the sparrow2 the sly eye  of
 the fox2 the peering little bead of    
black enamel in the mouse's head2  the  
gem-like eye that redeems the toad from 
ugliness1 and the  intelligent1         
affectionate expression which looks out 
of the human-like  eye of the horse and 
dog4  ,there are many other animals     
whose eyes are  full of beauty1 but     
there is a glory that excelleth in the  

eye of a man4  ,we realise this best    
when we gaze into the eyes of those we  
love4  ,it is  their eyes we look at    
when we are near them1 and it is their  
eyes we  recall when we are far away    
from them4  ,the face is all but a blank
  without the eye2 the eye seems to     
concentrate every feature in itself4    
,it  is the eye that smiles1 not the    
lips2 it is the eye that listens1 not   
the  ear2 it is the eye that frowns1 not
 the brow2 it is the eye that mourns1   
not the voice4  ,the eye sees what it   
brings the power to see4  ,how true  is 
this6  ,the sailor on the look-out can  
see a ship where the landsman  can see  
nothing4  ,the ,esquimaux can           
distinguish a white fox among the  white
 snow4  ,the astronomer can see a star  
in the sky where to others the  blue    
expanse is unbroken4  ,the shepherd can 
distinguish the face of every  single   
sheep in his flock1' so ,professor      
,wilson4  ,and then ,dr4 ,gould  tells  
us in his mystico-evolutionary1         

,behmen-and-,darwin book1 ,the  ,meaning
 and the ,method of ,life--a book which 
those will read who can and  ought--that
 the eye is the most psychical1 the most
 spiritual1 the most  useful1 and the   
most valued and cherished of all the    
senses2 after which  he adds this       
wonderful and heart-affecting scientific
 fact1 that in death  by starvation1    
every particle of fat in the body is    
auto-digested except  the cream-cushion 
of the eye-ball6  ,so true is it that   
the eye is the  mistress1 the queen1 and
 the most precious1 to ,creator and     
creature  alike1 of all the five senses4
    ,now1 in the ,holy ,war ,john       
,bunyan says a thing about the ear1 as  
distinguished from the eye1 that ,i     
cannot subscribe to in my own           
experience at any rate4  ,in describing 
the terrible war that raged round       
,ear-gate1 and finally swept up through 
that gate and into the streets of  the  
city1 he says that the ear is the       
shortest and the surest road to the     

heart4  ,i confess ,i cannot think that 
to be the actual case4  ,i am  certain  
that it is not so in my own case4  ,my  
eye is very much nearer my  heart than  
my ear is4  ,my eye much sooner affects1
 and much more  powerfully affects1 my  
heart than my ear ever does4  ,not only 
is my eye  by very much the shortest    
road to my heart1 but1 like all other   
short  roads1 it is cram-full of all    
kinds of traffic when my ear stands     
altogether empty4  ,my eye is constantly
 crowded and choked with all kinds  of  
commerce2 whole hordes of immigrants and
 invaders trample one another  down on  
the congested street that leads from my 
eye to my heart4  ,speaking  for myself1
 for one assault that is made on my     
heart through my ear there  are a       
thousand assaults successfully made     
through my eye4  ,indeed1 were  my eye  
but stopped up2 had ,i but obedience and
 courage and  self-mortification enough 
to pluck both my eyes out1 that would be
 half  the cleansing and healing and    

holiness of my evil heart2 or at least1 
the  half of its corruption1 rebellion1 
and abominable wickedness would         
henceforth be hidden from me4  ,i think 
,i can see what led ,john ,bunyan in    
his day and in this book to make that   
too strong statement about the ear  as  
against the eye2 but it is not like him 
to have let such an  over-statement     
stand and continue in his corrected and 
carefully finished  work4  ,the prophet 
,jeremiah1 ,i feel satisfied1 would not 
have subscribed  to what is said in the 
,holy ,war in extenuation of the eye4   
,that heart-  broken prophet does not   
say that it has been his ear that has   
made his  head waters4  ,it is his eye1 
he says1 that has so affected his heart4
  ,the  ,prophet of the ,captivity had  
all the ,holy ,war potentially in his   
imagination when he penned that so      
suggestive sentence4  ,and the ,latin   
poet of experience1 the grown-up man's  
own poet1 says somewhere that the       
things that enter by his eye seize and  

hold his heart much more swiftly  and   
much more surely than those things that 
but enter by his ear4  ,i  shall        
continue1 then1 to hold by my text1     
',mine eye affecteth mine  heart4'      
#a4  ,turning then1 to the prophets and 
proverb-makers of ,israel1 and then  to 
the ,new ,testament for the true        
teaching on the eye1 ,i come1 in the    
first place1 on that so pungent saying  
of ,solomon that 'the eyes of a  fool   
are in the ends of the earth4'  ,look at
 that born fool1 says  ,solomon1 who has
 his eyes and his heart committed to him
 to keep4  ,see  him how he gapes and   
stares after everything that does not   
concern him1  and lets the door of his  
own heart stand open to every entering  
thief4  ,london is a city of three      
million inhabitants1 and they are mostly
 fools1  ,carlyle once said4  ,and let  
him in this city whose eyes keep at home
 cast  the first stone at those foreign 
fools4  ,i will wager on their side that
  many of you here to-night know better 

what went on in ,mashonaland last  week 
than what went on in your own kitchen   
downstairs1 or in your own  nursery or  
schoolroom upstairs4  ,some of you are  
ten times more taken up  with the       
prospects of ,her ,majesty's ,government
 this session1 and with the  plots of   
,her ,majesty's ,opposition1 than you   
are with the prospects of the  good and 
the evil1 and the plots of ,god and the 
devil1 all this winter in  your own     
hearts4  ,you rise early1 and make a    
fight to get the first of  the          
newspaper2 but when the minister comes  
in in the afternoon you blush  because  
the housemaid has mislaid the ,bible4   
,did you ever read of the  stargazer who
 fell into an open well at the street   
corner8  ,like him1 you  may be a great 
astronomer1 a great politician1 a great 
theologian1 a  great defender of the    
faith even1 and yet may be a stark fool 
just in  keeping the doors and the      
windows of your own heart4  ',you shall 
see a  poor soul1' says ,dr4 ,goodwin1  

'mean in abilities of wit1 or           
accomplishments of learning1 who knows  
not how the world goes1 nor upon  what  
wheels its states turn1 who yet knows   
more clearly and  experimentally his own
 heart than all the learned men in the  
world know  theirs4  ,and though the    
other may better discourse              
philosophically of the  acts of the     
soul1 yet this poor man sees more into  
the corruption of it  than they all4'   
,and in another excellent place he says3
 ',many who have  leisure and parts to  
read much1 instead of ballasting their  
hearts with  divine truth1 and building 
up their souls with its precious words1 
are  much more versed in play-books1    
jeering pasquils1 romances1 and feigned 
staves1 which are but apes and peacocks'
 feathers instead of pearls and         
precious stones4  ,foreign and foolish  
discourses please their eyes and  their 
ears2 they are more chameleons than men1
 for they live on the east  wind4'      
#b4  ',if thine eye offend thee'--our   

,lord lays down this law to all those   
who would enter into life--'pluck it out
 and cast it from thee2 for it is       
better for thee to enter into life with 
one eye1 rather than1 having two  eyes1 
to be cast into hell-fire4'  ,does your 
eye offend you1 my brethren8  ,does your
 eye cause you to stumble and fall1 as  
it is in the etymology8  ,the right use 
of the eye is to keep you from stumbling
 and falling2 but  so perverted are the 
eye and the heart of every sinner that  
the city  watchman has become a partaker
 with thieves1 and our trusted guide and
  guardian a traitor and a knave4  ,if  
thine eye1 therefore1 offends thee2  if 
it places a stone or a tree in thy way  
in a dark night2 if it digs a  deep     
ditch right across thy way home2 if it  
in any way leads thee astray1  or lets  
in upon thee thine enemies--then1       
surely1 thou wert better to be  without 
that eye altogether4  ,pluck it out1    
then2 or1 what is still  harder to go on
 all your days doing1 pluck the evil    

thing out of it4  ,shut  up that book   
and put it away4  ,throw that paper and 
that picture into the  fire4  ,cut off  
that companion1 even if he were an      
adoring lover4  ,refuse  that           
entertainment and that amusement1 though
 all the world were crowding  upto it4  
,and soon1 and soon1 till you have      
plucked your eye as clean of            
temptations and snares as it is possible
 to be in this life4  ,for this  life is
 full of that terrible but blessed law  
of our ,lord4  ,the life of  all ,his   
people1 that is2 and you are one of     
them1 are you not8  ,you will  know     
whether or no you are one of them just  
by the number of the  beautiful things1 
and the sweet things1 and the things to 
be desired1  that you have plucked out  
of your eye at ,his advice and demand4  
,true  religion1 my brethren1 on some   
sides of it1 and at some stages of it1  
is  a terribly severe and sore business2
 and unless it is proving a terribly    
severe and sore business to you1 look   

out6 lest1 with your two hands and  your
 two feet and your two eyes1 you be     
cast1 with all that your hands  and feet
 and eyes have feasted on1 into the     
everlasting fires6  ,woe unto  the world
 because of offences1 but woe much more 
to that member and  entrance-gate of the
 body by which the offence cometh6      
,wherefore1 if  thine eye offend thee--6
    #c4  ',let thine eyes look right on1
 and let thine eyelids look straight    
before thee4'  ,now1 if you wish both to
 preserve your eyes1 and to escape  the 
everlasting fires at the same time1     
attend to this text4  ,for this is      
almost as good as plucking out your two 
eyes2 indeed1 it is almost the  very    
same thing4  ,solomon shall speak to the
 man in this house to-night  who has the
 most inflammable1 the most             
ungovernable1 and the most  desperately 
wicked heart4  ,you1 man1 with that     
heart1 you know that you  cannot pass up
 the street without your eye becoming a 
perfect hell-gate  of lust1 of hate1 of 

ill-will1 of resentment and of revenge4 
,your eye  falls on a man1 on a woman1  
on a house1 on a shop1 on a school1 on a
  church1 on a carriage1 on a cart1 on  
an innocent child's perambulator  even2 
and1 devil let loose that you are1 your 
eye fills your heart on the  spot with  
absolute hell-fire4  ,your presence and 
your progress poison the  very streets  
of the city4  ,and that1 not as the     
short-sighted and the  vulgar will read 
,solomon's plain-spoken ,scripture1 with
 the poison of  lewdness and            
uncleanness1 but with the still more    
malignant1 stealthy1  and deadly poison 
of social1 professional1 political1 and 
ecclesiastical  hatred1 resentment1 and 
ill-will4  ,whoredom and wine openly    
slay their  thousands on all our        
streets2 but envy and spite1 dislike and
 hatred  their ten thousands4  ,the fact
 is1 we would never know how malignantly
  wicked our hearts are but for our     
eyes4  ,but a sudden spark1 a single    
flash through the eye falling on the    

gunpowder that fills our hearts1  that  
lets us know a hundred times every day  
what at heart we are made of4  ',of a   
verity1 ,o ,lord1 ,i am made of sin1 and
 that my life maketh  manifest1' prays  
,bishop ,andrewes every day4  ,why1 sir1
 not to go to the  street1 the direction
 in which your eyes turn in this house  
this evening  will make this house a    
very 'den1' as our ,lord said--yes1 a   
very den to  you of temptation and      
transgression4  ,my son1 let thine eyes 
look right  on4  ,ponder the path of thy
 feet1 turn not to the right hand nor to
 the  left--remove thy foot from all    
evil6    #d4  ,there is still another   
eye that is almost as good as an eye out
  altogether1 and that is a ,job's eye4 
,job was the first author of that  eye  
and all we who have that excellent eye  
take it of him4  ',i have made  a       
covenant with mine eyes1' said that     
extraordinary man--that  extraordinarily
 able1 honest1 exposed and exercised    
man4  ,now1 you must  all know what a   

covenant is4  ,a covenant is a compact1 
a contract1 an  agreement1 an           
engagement4  ,in a covenant two parties 
come to terms with  one another4  ,the  
two covenanters strike hands1 and       
solemnly engage  themselves to one      
another3 ,i will do this for you if you 
will do that for  me4  ,it is a bargain1
 says the other2 let us have it sealed  
with wax and  signed with pen and ink   
before two witnesses4  ,as1 for         
instance1 at the  ,lord's ,table4  ,i   
swear1 you say1 over the ,body and the  
,blood of the ,son  of ,god1 ,i swear to
 make a covenant with mine eyes4  ,i    
will never let them  read again that    
idle1 infidel1 scoffing1 unclean sheet4 
,i will not let  them look on any of my 
former images or imaginations of        
forbidden  pleasures4  ,i swear1 ,o     
,thou to whom the night shineth as the  
day1 that ,i  will never again say1     
,surely the darkness shall cover me6    
,see if ,i do  not henceforth by ,thy   
grace keep my feet off every slippery   

street4  ,that1  and many other things  
like that1 was the way that ,job made   
his so noble  covenant with his eyes in 
his day and in his land4  ,and it was   
because he  so made and so kept his     
covenant that ,god so boasted over him  
and said1  ,hast thou considered my     
servant ,job8  ,and then1 every covenant
 has its  two sides4  ,the other side of
 ,job's covenant1 of which ,god ,himself
 was  the surety1 you can read and think
 over in your solitary lodgings         
to-night4  ,read ,job xxxi4 #a1 and then
 ,job xl4 to the end1 and then be  sure 
you take covenant paper and ink to ,god 
before you sleep4  ,and let  all        
fashionable young ladies hear what ,miss
 ,rossetti expects for herself1  and for
 all of her sex with her who shall      
subscribe her covenant4  ',true1'  she  
admits1 'all our life long we shall be  
bound to refrain our soul1 and  keep it 
low2 but what then8  ,for the books we  
now refrain to read we  shall one day be
 endowed with wisdom and knowledge4     

,for the music we  will not listen to we
 shall join in the song of the redeemed4
  ,for the  pictures from which we turn 
we shall gaze unabashed on the ,beatific
  ,vision4  ,for the companionship we   
shun we shall be welcomed into angelic  
society and the communion of triumphant 
saints4  ,for the amusements we  avoid  
we shall keep the supreme jubilee4  ,for
 all the pleasures we miss  we shall    
abide1 and for evermore abide1 in the   
rapture of heaven4'    #e4  ,and then   
there is the ,pauline eye4  ,an eye1    
however1 that ,job would  have shared   
with ,paul and with the ,corinthian     
,church had the patriarch  been         
privileged to live in our ,new          
,testament day4  ,ever since the ,holy  
,ghost with ,his anointing oil fell on  
us at ,pentecost1 says the apostle1  we 
have had an eye by means of which we    
look not at the things that are  seen1  
but at the things that are not seen4    
,now1 he who has an eye like  that is   
above both plucking out his eyes or     

making a covenant with them  either4    
,it is like what ,paul says about the   
law also4  ,the law is not  made for a  
righteous man4  ,a righteous man is     
above the law and  independent of it4   
,the law does not reach to him and he is
 not hampered  with it4  ,and so it is  
with the man who has got ,paul's        
splendid eyes for  the unseen4  ,he does
 not need to touch so much as one of his
 eye-lashes  to pluck them out4  ,for   
his eyes are blind1 and his ears are    
deaf1 and  his whole body is dead to the
 things that are temporal4  ,his eyes   
are  inwardly ablaze with the things    
that are eternal4  ,he whose eyes have  
been opened to the truth and the love of
 his ,bible1 he will gloat no more  over
 your books and your papers filled with 
lies1 and slander1 and spite1  and      
lewdness6  ,he who has his conversation 
in heaven does not need to set  a watch 
on his lips lest he take up an ill      
report about his neighbour4  ,he  who   
walks every day on the streets of gold  

will step as swiftly as may  be1 with   
girt loins1 and with a preoccupied eye1 
out of the slippery and  unsavoury      
streets of this forsaken earth4  ,he who
 has fast working out  for him an       
exceeding and eternal weight of glory   
will easily count all  his cups and all 
his crosses1 and all the crooks in his  
lot but as so  many light afflictions   
and but for a moment4  ,my ,lord        
,understanding had  his palace built    
with high perspective towers on it1 and 
the site of it  was near to ,eye-gate1  
from the top of which his lordship every
 day looked  not at the things which are
 temporal1 but at the things which are  
eternal1 and down from his palace towers
 he every day descended to  administer  
his heavenly office in the city4        
,your eye1 then1 is the shortest way    
into your heart4  ,watch it well1       
therefore2 suspect and challenge all    
outsiders who come near it4  ,keep  the 
passes that lead to your heart with all 
diligence4  ,let nothing  contraband1   

let nothing that even looks suspicious1 
ever enter your  hearts2 for1 if it once
 enters1 and turns out to be evil1 you  
will never  get it all out again as long
 as you live4  ',death is come up into  
our  windows1' says our prophet in      
another place1 'and is entered into our 
palaces1 to cut off our children in our 
houses and our young men in our         
streets4'  ,make a covenant1 then1 with 
your eyes4  ,take an oath of your  eyes 
as to which way they are henceforth to  
look4  ,for1 let them look  this way1   
and your heart is immediately full of   
lust1 and hate1 and envy1  and ill-will4
  ,on the other hand1 lead them to look 
that way and your  heart is as          
immediately full of truth and beauty1   
brotherly kindness and  charity4  ,the  
light of the body is the eye2 if1       
therefore1 thine eye be  single1 thy    
whole body shall be full of light2 but  
if thine eye be evil1  thy whole body is
 full of darkness4  ,if1 therefore1 the 
light that is in  thee be darkness1 how 

great is that darkness6                 
,,chapter ,v--,,the ,,king',s ,,palace  
',the palace is not for man1 but for the
 ,lord ,god4'--,david4    ',now1 there  
is in this gallant country a fair and   
delicate town1 a  corporation1 called   
,mansoul3 a town for its building so    
curious1 for its  situation so          
commodious1 for its privileges so       
advantageous1 that ,i may  say of it1   
there is not its equal under the whole  
heaven4  ,also1 there  was reared up in 
the midst of this town a most famous and
 stately palace3  for strength1 it might
 be called a castle2 for pleasantness1 a
 paradise2  and for largeness1 a place  
so copious as to contain all the world4 
,this  place the ,king intended for     
,himself alone1 and not for another with
 ,him1  so great was ,his delight in    
it4'  ,thus far1 our excellent          
allegorical  author4  ,but there are    
other authors that treat of this great  
matter now  in hand besides the         
allegorical authors4  ,you will hear    

tell sometimes  about a class of authors
 called the ,mystics4  ,well1 listen at 
this stage  to one of them1 and one of  
the best of them1 on this present       
matter--the  human heart1 that is4      
',our heart1' he says1 'is our manner of
 existence1  or the state in which we   
feel ourselves to be2 it is an inward   
life1 a  vital sensibility1 which       
contains our manner of feeling what and 
how we  are2 it is the state of our     
desires and tendencies1 of inwardly     
seeing1  tasting1 relishing1 and feeling
 that which passes within us2 our heart 
is  that to us inwardly with regard to  
ourselves which our senses of seeing1   
hearing1 feeling1 and such like are with
 regard to things that are  without or  
external to us4  ,your heart is the best
 and greatest gift of  ,god to you4  ,it
 is the highest1 greatest1 strongest1   
and noblest power of  your nature4  ,it 
forms your whole life1 be it what it    
will4  ,all evil and  all good come from
 your heart4  ,your heart alone has the 

key of life and  death for you4'  ,i was
 just about to ask you at this point    
which of our  two authors1 our          
allegorical or our mystical author upon 
the heart1 you  like best4  ,but that   
would be a stupid and a wayward question
 since you  have them both before you1  
and both at their best1 to possess and  
to  enjoy4  ,to go back then to ,john   
,bunyan1 and to his allegory of the     
human  heart4    #a4  ,to begin with1   
then1 there was reared up in the midst  
of this town of  ,mansoul a most famous 
and stately palace4  ,and that palace   
and the town  immediately around it were
 the mirror and the glory of all that   
its  founder and maker had ever made4   
,his palace was his very top-piece4  ,it
  was the metropolitan of the whole     
world round about it2 and it had        
positive commission and power to demand 
service and support of all  around4     
,yes4  ,and all that is literally1      
evidently1 and actually true of  the    
human heart4  ,for all other earthly    

things are created and upheld1  are     
ordered and administered1 with an eye to
 the human heart4  ,the human  heart is 
the final cause1 as our scholars would  
say1 of absolutely all  other earthly   
things4  ,earth1 air1 water2 light and  
heat2 all the  successively existing    
worlds1 mineral1 vegetable1 animal1     
spiritual2  grass1 herbs1 corn1         
fruit-trees1 cattle and sheep1 and all  
other living  creatures2 all are upheld 
for the use and the support of man4     
,and1 then1  all that is in man himself 
is in him for the end and the use of his
  heart4  ,all his bodily senses2 all   
his bodily members2 every fearfully  and
 wonderfully made part of his body and  
of his mind2 all administer to  his     
heart4  ,she is the sovereign and sits  
supreme4  ,and she is worthy and  is    
fully entitled so to sit4  ,for there is
 nothing on the earth greater  or better
 than the heart1 unless it is the       
,creator ,himself1 who planned  and     
executed the heart for ,himself and not 

for another with ,him4  ',the  body     
exists1' says a philosophical biologist 
of our day1 'to furnish the  cerebral   
centres with prepared food1 just as the 
vegetable world1 viewed  biologically1  
exists to furnish the animal world with 
similar food4  ,the  higher is the last 
formed1 the most difficult1 and the most
 complex2 but  it is just this that is  
most precious and significant--all of   
which shows  ,his unrolling purpose4    
,it is the last that alone explains all 
that went  before1 and it is the coming 
that will alone explain the present4    
,god  before all1 through all1          
foreseeing all1 and still preparing all2
 ,god in  all is profoundly evident4'   
,yes1 profoundly evident to profound    
minds1  and experimentally and sweetly  
evident to religious minds1 and to      
renewed  and loving and holy hearts4    
#b4  ,for fame and for state a palace1  
while for strength it might be  called a
 castle4  ,in sufficiently ancient times
 the king's palace was  always a castle 

also4  ,david's palace on ,mount ,zion  
was as much a  military fortress as a   
royal residence2 and ,king ,priam's     
palace was the  protection both of      
itself and of the whole of the country  
around4  ,in  those wild times great men
 built their houses on high places1 and 
then  the weak and endangered people    
gathered around the strongholds of the  
powerful1 as we see in our own city4    
,our own steep and towering rock        
invited to its top the castle-builder of
 a remote age1 and then the  exposed    
country around began to gather itself   
together under the shelter  of the      
bourg4  ,and thus it is that the        
military engineering of the ,holy  ,war 
makes that old allegorical book most    
excellent to read1 not only for  common 
men like you and me1 who are bent on the
 fortification and the  defence of our  
own hearts1 but for the military        
historians of those old  times also1 for
 the experts of to-day also1 and for all
 good students of  fortification4  ,and 

the ,new ,testament of the ,divine peace
 itself1 as well  as the ,old ,testament
 so full of the wars of the ,lord--they 
both support  and serve as an           
encouragement and an example to our     
spiritual author in  the elaboration of 
his military allegory4  ,every good     
soldier of ,jesus  ,christ has by heart 
the noble paradox of ,paul to the       
,philippians--that  the peace of ,god   
which passeth all understanding shall   
keep their hearts  and minds through    
,christ ,jesus4  ,let ,god's peace1 he  
says1 be your man of  war4  ,let ,his   
surpassing peace do both the work of war
 and the work of  peace also in your    
hearts and in your minds4  ,let that    
peace both fortify  with walls1 and     
garrison with soldiers1 and watch every 
gate1 and hold  every street and lane of
 your hearts and of your minds all      
around your  hearts4  ,and all through  
the ,prince of ,peace1 the ,captain of  
all ,holy  ,war1 ,jesus ,christ         
,himself4  ,no wonder1 then1 that in a  

strength--in a  kind and in a degree of 
strength--that passeth all              
understanding1 this  stately palace of  
the heart is also here called a         
well-garrisoned castle4    #c4  ,and    
then for pleasantness the human heart is
 a perfect paradise4  ,for  pleasantness
 the human heart is like those famous   
royal parks of ,nineveh  and ,babylon   
that sprang up in after days as if to   
recover and restore the  ,garden of     
,eden that had been lost to those       
eastern lands4  ,but even  ,adam's own  
paradise was but a poor outside         
imitation in earth and water1  in       
flowers and fruits1 of the far better   
paradise ,god had planted within  him4  
,take another ,mystic at this point upon
 paradise4  ',my dear man1'  exclaims   
,jacob ,behmen1 'the ,garden of ,eden is
 not paradise1 neither does  ,moses say 
so4  ,paradise is the divine joy1 and   
that was in their own  hearts so long as
 they stood in the love of ,god4        
,paradise is the divine  and angelical  

joy1 pure love1 pure joy1 pure gladness1
 in which there is  no fear1 no misery1 
and no death4  ,which paradise neither  
death nor the  devil can touch4  ,and   
yet it has no stone wall around it2 only
 a great  gulf which no man or angel can
 cross but by that new birth of which   
,christ spoke to ,nicodemus4  ,reason   
asks1 ,where is paradise to be found8   
,is it far off or near8  ,is it in this 
world or is it above the stars8  ,where 
is that desirable native country where  
there is no death8  ,beloved1  there is 
nothing nearer you at this moment than  
paradise1 if you incline  that way4     
,god beckons you back into paradise at  
this moment1 and calls  you by name to  
come4  ,come1 ,he says1 and be one of   
,my paradise children4  ,in paradise1'  
the ,teutonic ,philosopher goes on1     
'there is nothing but  hearty love1 a   
meek and a gentle love2 a most friendly 
and most courteous  discourse3 a        
gracious1 amiable1 and blessed society1 
where the one is  always glad to see the

 other1 and to honour the other4  ,they 
know of no  malice in paradise1 no      
cunning1 no subtlety1 and no sly deceit4
  ,but the  fruits of the ,spirit of    
,god are common among them in paradise1 
and one  may make use of all the good   
things of paradise without causing      
disfavour1 or hatred1 or envy1 for there
 is no contrary affection there1  but   
all hearts there are knit together in   
love4  ,in paradise they love  one      
another1 and rejoice in the beauty1     
loveliness1 and gladness of one         
another4  ,no one esteems or accounts   
himself more excellent than another  in 
paradise2 but every one has great joy in
 another1 and rejoices in  another's    
fair beauty1 whence their love to one   
another continually  increases1 so that 
they lead one another by the hand1 and  
so friendly  kiss one another4'  ,thus  
the blessed ,behmen saw paradise and had
 it in  his heart as he sat over his    
hammer and lapstone in his solitary     
stall4  ,for of such as ,jacob ,behmen  

and ,john ,bunyan is the kingdom of     
heaven1 and  all such saintly souls have
 paradise restored again and improved   
upon in  their own hearts4    #d4  ,and 
for largeness a place so copious as to  
contain all the world4  ,over against   
the word 'copious' ,bunyan hangs for a  
key1 ,ecclesiastes  third and eleventh2 
and under it ,miss ,peacock adds this as
 a  note--',copious1 spacious4  ,old    
,french1 copieux2 ,latin1 copiosus1     
plentiful4'  ,the human heart1 as we    
have already read to-night1 is the      
highest1 greatest1 strongest1 and       
noblest part of human nature4  ,and so  
it is4  ,fearfully and wonderfully made 
as is the whole of human nature1  that  
fear and that wonder surpass themselves 
in the spaciousness and the  copiousness
 of the human heart4  ,for what is it   
that the human heart has  not space for1
 and to spare8  ,after the whole world  
is received home into  a human heart1   
there is room1 and1 indeed1 hunger1 for 
another world1 and  after that for still

 another4  ,the sun is--,i forget how   
many times bigger  than our whole world1
 and yet we can open our heart and take 
down the sun  into it1 and shut him out 
again and restore him to his            
immeasurable  distances in the heavens1 
and all in the twinkling of an eye4  ,as
 for  instance4  ,as ,i wrote these     
lines ,i read a report of a lecture by  
,sir  ,robert ,ball in which that       
distinguished astronomer discoursed on  
recent  solar discoveries4  ,a globe of 
coal1 ,sir ,robert said1 as big as our  
earth1 and all set ablaze at the same   
moment1 would not give out so much  heat
 to the worlds around as the sun gives  
out in a thousandth part of a  second4  
,well1 as ,i read that1 and ere ever ,i 
was aware what was going  on1 my heart  
had opened over my newspaper1 and the   
sun had swept down  from the sky1 and   
had rushed into my heart1 and before ,i 
knew where ,i was  the cry had escaped  
my lips1 ',great and marvellous are ,thy
 works1 ,lord  ,god ,almighty6  ,who    

shall not fear ,thee and glorify thy    
name8'  ,and then  this reflection as   
suddenly came to me3 ,how good it is to 
be at peace  with ,god1 and to be able  
and willing to say1 ,my ,father6  ,that 
the whole  of the surging and flaming   
sun was actually down in my straitened  
and  hampered heart at that idle moment 
over my paper is scientifically         
demonstrable2 for only that which is in 
the heart of a man can kindle the       
passions that are in the heart of that  
man2 and nothing is more sure to  me    
than that the great passions of fear and
 love1 wonder and rapture were  at that 
moment at a burning point within me4    
,there is a passage well on  in the     
,holy ,war1 which for terror and for    
horror1 and at the same time  for truth 
and for power1 equals anything either in
 ,dante or in ,milton4  ,lucifer has    
stood up at the council board to second 
the scheme of  ,beelzebub4  ',yes1' he  
said1 amid the plaudits of his          
fellow-princes--',yes1  ,i swear it4    

,let us fill ,mansoul full with our     
abundance4  ,let us make of  this       
castle1 as they vainly call it1 a       
warehouse1 as the name is in some  of   
their cities above4  ,for if we can only
 get ,mansoul to fill herself  full with
 much goods she is henceforth ours4  ,my
 peers1' he said1 'you  all know ,his   
parable of how unblessed riches choke   
the word2 and1 again1  we know what     
happens when the hearts of men are      
overcharged with  surfeiting and with   
drunkenness4  ,let us give them all     
that1 then1 to  their heart's desire4'  
,this advice of ,lucifer1 our history   
tells us1 was  highly applauded in hell1
 and ever since it has proved their     
masterpiece  to choke ,mansoul with the 
fulness of this world1 and to surfeit   
the heart  with the good things thereof4
  ,but1 my brethren1 you will outwit    
hell  herself and all her counsellors   
and all her machinations1 if1 out of all
  the riches1 pleasures1 cares1 and     
possessions1 that both heaven and earth 

and hell can heap into your heart1 those
 riches1 pleasures1 cares1 and          
possessions but produce corresponding   
passions and affections towards ,god    
and man4  ,only let fear1 and love1 and 
thankfulness1 and helpfulness be        
kindled and fed to all their fulness in 
your heart1 and all the world and  all  
that it contains will only leave the    
more room in your boundless  heart for  
,god and for your brother4  ,all that   
,god has made1 or could make  with all  
,his counsel and all ,his power laid    
out1 will not fill your  boundless and  
bottomless heart4  ,he must come down   
and come into your  boundless and       
bottomless heart ,himself4  ,himself3   
your ,father1 your  ,redeemer1 and your 
,sanctifier and ,comforter also4  ,let  
the whole universe  try to fill your    
heart1 ,o man of ,god1 and after it all 
we shall hear you  singing in famine and
 in loneliness the doleful ditty3       
',o come to my heart1 ,lord ,jesus1     
,there is room in my heart for ,thee4   

#e4  ',madame1' said a holy solitary to 
,madame ,guyon in her misery--',madame1 
you are disappointed and perplexed      
because you seek without what you have  
within4  ,accustom yourself to seek for 
,god in your own heart and you will     
always find ,him there4'  ,from that    
hour that gifted woman was a ,mystic4   
,the secret of the interior life flashed
 upon her in a moment4  ,she had  been  
starving in the midst of fulness2 ,god  
was near and not far off2 the  kingdom  
of heaven was within her4  ,the love of 
,god from that hour took  possession of 
her soul with an inexpressible          
happiness4  ,prayer1 which  had before  
been so difficult1 was now delightful   
and indispensable2 hours  passed away   
like moments3 she could scarcely cease  
from praying4  ,her  domestic trials    
seemed great to her no longer2 her      
inward joy consumed  like a fire the    
reluctance1 the murmur1 and the sorrow1 
which all had  their birth in herself4  
,a spirit of comforting peace1 a sense  

of  rejoicing possession1 pervaded all  
her days4  ,god was continually with    
her1 and she seemed continually yielded 
up to ,god4  ',madame1' said the        
solitary1 'you seek without for what you
 have within4'  ,where do you seek  for 
,god when you pray1 my brethren8  ,to   
what place do you direct your  eyes8    
,is it to the roof of your closet8  ,is 
it to the east end of your  consecrated 
chapel8  ,is it to that wooden table in 
the east end of your  chapel8  ,or1     
passing out of all houses made with     
hands and consecrated  with holy oil1 do
 you lift up your eyes to the skies     
where the sun and  the moon and the     
stars dwell alone8  ',what a folly6'    
exclaims ,theophilus1  in the golden    
dialogue1 'for no way is the true way to
 ,god but by the way  of our own heart4 
,god is nowhere else to be found4  ,and 
the heart itself  cannot find ,him but  
by its own love of ,him1 faith in ,him1 
dependence upon  ,him1 resignation to   
,him1 and expectation of all from ,him4'

  ',you have  quite carried your point  
with me1' answered ,theogenes after he  
had heard  all that ,theophilus had to  
say4  ',the ,god of meekness1 of        
patience1 and  of love is henceforth the
 one ,god of my heart4  ,it is now the  
one bent  and desire of my soul to seek 
for all my salvation in and through the 
merits and mediation of the meek1       
humble1 patient1 resigned1 suffering    
,lamb of ,god1 who alone has power to   
bring forth the blessed birth of  those 
heavenly virtues in my soul4  ,what a   
comfort it is to think that  this ,lamb 
of ,god1 ,son of the ,father1 ,light of 
the ,world2 this ,glory of  heaven and  
this ,joy of angels is as near to us1 is
 as truly in the midst  of us1 as ,he is
 in the midst of heaven4  ,and that not 
a thought1 look1 or  desire of our heart
 that presses toward ,him1 longing to   
catch one small  spark of ,his heavenly 
nature1 but is as sure a way of finding 
,him1 as the  woman's way was who was   
healed of her deadly disease by longing 

to touch  but the border of ,his        
garment4'    ,to sum up4  ',there is    
reared up in the midst of ,mansoul a    
most famous and  stately palace3 for    
strength1 it may be called a castle2 for
  pleasantness1 a paradise2 and for     
largeness1 a place so copious as to     
contain all the world4  ,this palace the
 ,king intends but for ,himself  alone1 
and not another with ,him1 and ,he      
commits the keeping of that  palace day 
and night to the men of the town4'      
,,chapter ,,vi--,,my ,,lord ,,willbewill
         --'to will is present with     
me4'--,paul    ,there is a large and a  
learned literature on the subject of the
 will4  ,there is a philosophical and a 
theological1 and there is a religious   
and  an experimental literature on the  
will4  ,jonathan ,edwards's well-known  
work stands out conspicuously at the    
head of the philosophical and           
theological literature on the will1     
while our own ,thomas ,boston's         
,fourfold ,state is a very able and     

impressive treatise on the more         
practical and experimental side of the  
same subject4  ,the ,westminster        
,confession of ,faith devotes one of its
 very best chapters to the teaching  of 
the word of ,god on the will of man1 and
 the ,shorter ,catechism touches  on the
 same subject in ,effectual ,calling4   
,outstanding philosophical and          
theological schools have been formed    
around the will1 and both able and      
learned and earnest men have taken      
opposite sides on the subject of the    
will under the party names of           
,necessitarians and ,libertarians4      
,this is  not the time1 nor am ,i the   
man1 to discuss such abstruse subjects2 
but  those students who wish to master  
this great matter of the will1 so far   
as it can be mastered in books1 are     
recommended to begin with ,dr4 ,william 
,cunningham's works1 and then to go on  
from them to a treatise that will       
reward all their talent and all their   
enterprise1 ,jonathan ,edwards's        

perfect masterpiece4    #a4  ,but1 to   
come to my ,lord ,willbewill1 one of the
 gentry of the famous  town of          
,mansoul3--well1 this ,lord ,willbewill 
was as high-born as any man  in         
,mansoul1 and was as much a freeholder  
as any of them were1 if not  more4      
,besides1 if ,i remember my tale aright1
 he had some privileges  peculiar to    
himself in that famous town4  ,now1     
together with these1 he  was a man of   
great strength1 resolution1 and courage2
 nor in his occasion  could any turn him
 away4  ,but whether he was too proud of
 his high  estate1 privileges1 and      
strength1 or what 7but sure it was      
through pride  of something71 he scorns 
now to be a slave in ,mansoul1 as his   
own proud  word is1 so that now1 next to
 ,diabolus himself1 who but my ,lord    
,willbewill in all that town8  ,nor     
could anything now be done but at his   
beck and good pleasure throughout that  
town4  ,indeed1 it will not out of  my  
thoughts what a desperate fellow this   

,willbewill was when full power  was put
 into his hand4  ,all which--how this   
apostate prince lost power  and got it  
again1 and lost it and got it again--the
 interested and  curious reader will    
find set forth with great fulness and   
clearness in  many powerful pages of the
 ,holy ,war4    ,john ,bunyan was as    
hard put to it to get the right name for
 this head of  the gentry of ,mansoul as
 ,paul was to get the right name for sin
 in the  seventh of the ,romans4  ,in   
that profoundest and intensest of all   
his  profound and intense passages1 the 
apostle has occasion to seek about for  
some expression1 some epithet1 some     
adjective1 as we say1 to apply to sin   
so as to help him to bring out to his   
,roman readers something of the         
malignity1 deadliness1 and unspeakable  
evil of sin as he had sin living  and   
working in himself4  ,but all the       
resources of the ,greek language1  that 
most resourceful of languages1 utterly  
failed ,paul for his pressing  purpose4 

,and thus it is that1 as if in scorn of 
the feebleness and  futility of that    
boasted tongue1 he tramples its grammars
 and its  dictionaries under his feet1  
and makes new and unheard-of words and  
combinations of words on the spot for   
himself and for his subject4  ,he  heaps
 up a hyperbole the like of which no    
orator or rhetorician of ,greece  or    
,rome had ever needed or had ever       
imagined before4  ,he takes sin1 and  he
 makes a name for sin out of itself4    
,the only way to describe sin1 he       
feels1 the only way to characterise sin1
 the only way to aggravate sin1  is just
 to call it sin2 sinful sin2 'sin by the
 commandment became  exceeding sinful4' 
,and1 in like manner1 ,john ,bunyan1 who
 has only his  own mother tongue to work
 with1 in his straits to get a proper   
name for  this terrible fellow who was  
next to ,diabolus himself1 cannot find a
  proud enough name for him but just by 
giving him his own name1 and then       
doubling it4  ,add will to will1        

multiply will by will1 and multiply it  
again1 and after you have done all you  
are no nearer to a proper name for  that
 apostate1 who1 for pride1 and          
insolence1 and headstrongness1 in one   
word1 for wilfulness1 is next to        
,diabolus himself4  ,but as ,willbewill1
 if  he is to be named and described at 
all1 is best named and described by  his
 own naked name2 so ,bunyan is always   
best illustrated out of his own  works4 
,and ,i turn accordingly to the         
,heavenly ,footman for an excellent     
illustration of the wilfulness of the   
will both in a good man and in a  bad2  
as1 thus3 ',your self-willed people1    
nobody knows what to do with  them4  ,we
 use to say1 ,he will have his own will1
 do all we can4  ,if a man  be willing1 
then any argument shall be matter of    
encouragement2 but if  unwilling1 then  
any argument shall give discouragement4 
,the saints of  old1 they being willing 
and resolved for heaven1 what could stop
 them8  ,could fire and fagot1 sword or 

halter1 dungeons1 whips1 bears1 bulls1  
lions1 cruel rackings1 stonings1        
starvings1 nakedness8  ,so willing had  
they been made in the day of ,his power4
  ,and see1 on the other side1 the      
children of the devil1 because they are 
not willing1 how many shifts and        
starting-holes they will have6  ,i have 
married a wife2 ,i have a farm2 ,i      
shall offend my landlord2 ,i shall lose 
my trade2 ,i shall be mocked and        
scoffed at1 and therefore ,i cannot     
come4  ,but1 alas6 the thing is1 they   
are not willing4  ,for1 were they once  
soundly willing1 these1 and a  thousand 
things such as these1 would hold them no
 faster than the cords  held ,samson    
when he broke them like flax4  ,i tell  
you the will is all4  ,the ,lord give   
thee a will1 then1 and courage of       
heart4'    #b4  ,let that1 then1 suffice
 for this man's name and nature1 and let
 us  look at him now when his name and  
his nature have both become evil2 that  
is to say1 when ,willbewill has become  

,illwill4  ,you can imagine2 no1 you    
cannot imagine unless you already know1 
how evil1 and how set upon evil1        
,illwill was4  ,his whole mind1 we are  
told1 now stood bending itself to  evil4
  ,nay1 so set was he now upon sheer    
evil that he would act it of his  own   
accord1 and without any instigation at  
all from ,diabolus4  ,and that  went on 
till he was looked on in the city as    
next in wickedness to very  ,diabolus   
himself4  ,parable apart1 my ill-willed 
brethren1 our ill-will  has made us very
 fiends in human shape4  ,what a fall1  
what a fate1 what a  curse it is to be  
possessed of a devil of ill-will6  ,who 
can put proper  words on it after ,paul 
had to confess himself silent before it8
  ,who can  utter the diabolical nature1
 the depth and the secrecy1 the subtlety
 and  the spirituality1 the range and   
the reach-out of an ill-will8  ,our     
hearts  are full of ill-will at those we
 meet and shake hands with every day4   
,at  men also we have never seen1 and   

who are totally ignorant even of our    
existence4  ,over a thousand miles we   
dart our viperous hearts at innocent    
men4  ,at great statesmen we have       
ill-will1 and at small2 at great        
churchmen and at small2 at great authors
 and at small2 at great1 and  famous1   
and successful men in all lines of life2
 for it is enough for ill-  will that   
another man be praised1 and well-paid1  
and prosperous1 and then  placed in our 
eye4  ,no amount of suffering will      
satiate ill-will2 the  very grave has no
 seal against it4  ,and1 now and then1  
you have it thrust  upon you that other 
men have the same devil in them as      
deeply and as  actively as he is in you4
  ,you will suddenly run across a man on
 the  street4  ,his face was shining    
with some praise he had just had spoken 
to  him1 or with some recognition he had
 just received from some great one2  or 
with some good news for himself he had  
just heard1 before he caught  sight of  
you4  ,but the light suddenly dies on   

his face1 and darkness  comes up out of 
his heart at his sudden glimpse of you4 
,what is the  matter8 you ask yourself  
as he scowls past you4  ,what have you  
done so to  darken any man's heart to   
you8  ,and as you stumble on in the     
sickening  cloud he has left behind him1
 you suddenly recollect that you were   
once  compelled to vote against that man
 on a public question3 on some question 
of home franchise1 or foreign war1 or   
church government1 or city  business2 or
 perchance1 a family has left his shop  
to do business in  yours1 or his church 
to worship ,god in yours1 or such like4 
,it will be a  certain relief to you to 
recollect such things4  ,but with it all
 there  will be a shame and a           
humiliation and a deep inward pain that 
will escape  into a cry of prayer for   
him and for yourself and for all such   
sinners on  the same street4  ,if you do
 not find an escape from your sharp     
resentment  in ejaculatory prayer and in
 a heart-cleansing great good-will1 your

  heart1 before you are a hundred steps 
on1 will be as black with ill-will  as  
his is4  ,but that must not again be4   
,would you hate or strike back at  a    
blind man who stumbled and fell against 
you on the street8  ,would you          
retaliate at a maniac who gnashed his   
teeth and shook his fist at you on  his 
way past you to the madhouse8  ,or at a 
corpse being carried past you  that had 
been too long without burial8  ,and     
shall you retaliate on a  miserable man 
driven mad with diabolical passion8  ,or
 at a poor sinner  whose heart is as    
rotten as the grave8  ,ill-will is      
abroad in our learned  and religious    
city at all hours of the day and night4 
,he glares at us  under the sun by day1 
and under the street lamps at night4    
,we suddenly  feel his baleful eye on us
 as we thoughtlessly pass under his     
overlooking  windows3 it will be a side 
street and an unfrequented1 where you   
will not  be ashamed and shocked and    
pained at heart to meet him4  ,public   

men2 much  purchased and much praised   
men2 rich and prosperous men2 men high  
in  talent and in place2 and1 indeed1   
all manner of men1--walk abroad in this 
life softly4  ,keep out of sight4  ,take
 the side streets1 and return home      
quickly4  ,you have no idea what an     
offence and what a snare you are to  men
 you know1 and to men you do not know4  
,if you are a public man1 and  if your  
name is much in men's mouths1 then the  
place you hold1 the prices  and the     
praises you get1 do not give you        
one-tenth of the pleasure that  they    
give a thousand other men pain4  ,men   
you never heard of1 and who  would not  
know you if they met you1 gnaw their    
hearts at the mere mention  of your     
name4  ,desire1 then1 to be unknown1 as 
,a ,kempis says4  ,o teach me  to love  
to be concealed1 prays ,jeremy ,taylor4 
,be ambitious to be  unknown1           
,archbishop ,leighton also instructs us4
  ,and the great ,fenelon  took ,ama    
nesciri for his crest and for his motto4

  ,no wonder that an  apostle cried out 
under the agony and the shame of        
ill-will4  ,no wonder  that to kill it  
in the hearts of men the ,son of ,god   
died under it on the  cross4  ,and no   
wonder that all the gates of hell are   
wide open1 day and  night1 for there is 
no day there1 to receive home all those 
who will  entertain ill-will in their   
hearts1 and all the gates of heaven shut
  close to keep all ill-will for ever   
out4    #c4  ,but1 bad enough as all    
that is1 the half has not been told1 and
 never  will be told in this life4      
,butler has a passage that has long     
stumbled  me1 and it stumbles me the    
more the longer ,i live and study him   
and  observe myself4  ',resentment1' he 
says1 in a very deep and a very serious 
passage--',resentment being out of the  
case1 there is not1 properly  speaking1 
any such thing as direct ill-will in one
 man towards another4'  ,well1 great and
 undisputed as ,butler's authority is in
 all these matters1  at the same time he

 would be the first to admit and to     
assert that a  man's inward experience  
transcends all outward authority4       
,well1 ,i am  filled with shame and pain
 and repentance and remorse to have to  
say it1  but my experience carries me   
right in the teeth of ,butler's         
doctrine4  ,i  have dutifully tried to  
look at ,butler's inviting and          
exonerating  doctrine in all possible   
lights1 and from all possible points of 
view1 in  the anxious wish to prove it  
true2 but ,i dare not say that ,i have  
succeeded4  ,the truth for thee--my     
heart would continually call to me--the 
best truth for thee is in me1 and not in
 any ,butler6  ,and when looking as     
closely as ,i can at my own heart in the
 matter of ill-will1 what do ,i         
find--and what will you find8  ,you will
 find that after subtracting all  that  
can in any proper sense come under the  
head of real resentment1 and  in cases  
where real resentment is out of the     
question2 in cases where you  have      

received no injury1 no neglect1 no      
contempt1 no anything whatsoever  of    
that kind1 you will find that there are 
men innocent of all that to  you1 yet   
men to whom you entertain feelings1     
animosities1 antipathies1  that can be  
called by no other name than that of    
ill-will4  ,look within  and see4       
,watch within and see4  ,and ,i am sure 
you will come to subscribe  with me to  
the humbling and heart-breaking truth1  
that1 even where there  is no           
resentment1 and no other explanation1   
excuse1 or palliation of that  kind1 yet
 that festering1 secret1 malignant      
ill-will is working in the  bottom of   
your heart4  ,if you doubt that1 if you 
deny that1 if all that  kind of         
self-observation and self-sentencing is 
new to you1 then observe  yourself1 say1
 for one week1 and report at the end of 
it whether or no  you have had feelings 
and thoughts and wishes in your secret  
heart toward  men who never in any way  
hurt you1 which can only be truthfully  

described  as pure ill-will2 that is to 
say1 you have not felt and thought and  
wished toward them as you would have    
them1 and all men1 feel and think  and  
wish toward you4    #d4  ',to will is   
present with me1 but how to perform ,i  
find not1' says the  apostle2 and again1
 ',ye cannot do the things that ye      
would4'  ,or1 as  ,dante has it1        
',the power which wills     ,bears not  
supreme control2 laughter and tears     
,follow so closely on the passion       
prompts them1     ,they wait not for the
 motion of the will     ,in natures most
 sincere4'    ,now1 just here lies a    
deep distinction that has not been      
enough taken  account of by our popular1
 or even by our more profound1 spiritual
  writers4  ,the will is often          
regenerate and right2 the will often    
bends1  as ,bunyan has it1 to that which
 is good2 but behind the will and       
beneath  the will the heart is still    
full of passions1 affections1           
inclinations1  dispositions that are    

evil2 instinctively1 impulsively1       
involuntarily  evil1 even 'in natures   
most sincere4'  ,and hence arises a     
conflict1 a  combat1 a death-grip1 an   
agony1 a hell on earth1 that every      
regenerate  and advancing soul of man is
 full of ,his will is right4  ,if his   
will is  wrong2 if he chooses evil2 then
 there is no mystery in the matter so   
far  as he is concerned4  ,he is a bad  
man1 and he is so intentionally and     
deliberately and of set purpose2 and it 
is a rule in divine truth that          
'wilfulness in sinning is the measure of
 our sinfulness4'  ,but his will  is    
right4  ,to will is present with him4   
,he is every day like ,thomas  ,boston  
one ,sabbath-day3 ',though ,i cannot be 
free of sin1 ,god ,himself  knows that  
,he would be welcome to make havoc of my
 sins and to make me  holy4  ,i know no 
lust that ,i would not be content to    
part with to-night4  ,my will1 bound    
hand and foot1 ,i desire to lay at ,his 
feet4'  ,now1 is it  not as clear as    

noonday that in the case of such a man  
as ,boston his mind  is one thing and   
his heart another8  ,is it not plain    
that he has both a  good-will and an    
ill-will within him8  ,a will that      
immediately and  resolutely chooses for 
,god1 and for truth1 and for            
righteousness1 and for  love2 and       
another law in his members warring      
against that law of his  mind8  ',before
 conversion1' says ,thomas ,shepard1    
'the main wound of a man  is in his     
will4  ,and then1 after conversion1     
though his will is changed1  yet1 ex    
infirmitate1 there are many things that 
he cannot do1 so strong  is the remnant 
of malignity that is still in his heart4
  ,let him get  ,christ to help him     
here4'  ,in all that ye see your        
calling1 my brethren4    #e4  ',now1 if 
,i do that ,i would not1' adds the      
apostle1 extricating  himself and giving
 himself fair-play and his simple due   
among all his  misery and               
self-accusation--',now1 if ,i do that ,i

 would not1 it is no more  ,i that do   
it1 but sin that dwelleth in me4'  ,or1 
again1 as ,william ,law  has it3 ',all  
our natural evil ceases to be our own   
evil as soon as our  will turns away    
from it4  ,our natural evil then changes
 its nature and  loses all its poison   
and death1 and becomes an holy cross on 
which we die  to self and this life and 
enter the kingdom of heaven4'  ,my dear 
brethren1 tell me1 is your sin your     
cross8  ,is your sinfulness your  cross8
  ,is the evil that is ever present with
 you your holy cross8  ,for1  every     
other cross beside sin is a cross of    
straw1 a cross of feathers1 a           
paste-board and a painted cross1 and not
 a real and genuine cross at all4  ,the 
wood and the nails and the spear all    
taken together were not our  ,lord's    
real cross4  ,his real cross was sin2   
our sin laid on ,his hands1  and on ,his
 heart1 and on ,his imagination1 and on 
,his conscience1 till it  was all but   
,his very own sin4  ,our sin was so     

fearfully and wonderfully  laid upon    
,christ that ,he was as good as a sinner
 ,himself under it4  ,so  much so that  
all the nails and all the spears1 all   
the thirst and all the  darkness that   
,his body and ,his soul could hold were 
as nothing beside the  sin that was laid
 upon ,him4  ,and so it is with us2 with
 as many of us as  are ,his true        
disciples4  ,our sin is our cross2 not  
our actual  transgressions1 any more    
than ,his2 but our inward sinfulness4   
,and not  the sinfulness of our will2   
that is no real cross to any man2 but   
the  sinfulness of our hearts against   
our will1 and beneath our will1 and     
behind our will4  ,and this is such a   
cross that if ,christ had something  in 
,his cross that we have not1 then we    
have something in ours that ,he had     
not4  ,he made many sad and sore ,psalms
 ,his own2 but even if ,he had lived  on
 earth to read the seventh of the       
,romans1 ,he could not have made it ,his
  own4  ,his true people are beyond ,him

 here4  ,the disciple is above his      
,master here4  ,the ,master had ,his own
 cross1 and it was a sufficient  cross2 
but we can challenge ,him to come down  
and look and say if ,he ever  saw a     
cross like our cross4  ,he was made a   
curse4  ,he was hanged on the  tree4    
,he bore our sins in ,his own body on   
the tree4  ,but his people are  beyond  
,him in the real agony and crucifixion  
of sin4  ,for ,he never in  ,gethsemane 
or on ,calvary either cried as ,paul    
once cried1 and as you and  ,i cry every
 day--,to will is present with me6  ,but
 the good that ,i would ,i  do not6     
,and1 oh6 the body of this death6    #f4
  ,now1 if any total stranger to all    
that shall ask me3 ,what good there  is 
in all that8 and1 ,why ,i so labour in  
such a world of unaccustomed and        
unpleasant things as that8  ,i have many
 answers to his censure4  ,for  example1
 and first1 ,i labour and will continue 
to labour more and more in  this world  
of things1 and less and less in any     

other world1 because here  we begin to  
see things as they are--the deepest     
things of ,god and of man1  that is4    
,also1 because ,i have the precept1 and 
the example1 and the  experience of     
,god's greatest and best saints before  
me here4  ,because1  also1 our full and 
true salvation begins here1 goes on     
here1 and ends  here4  ,because1 also1  
teaching these things and learning these
 things  will infallibly make us the    
humblest of men1 the most contrite1 the 
most  self-despising1 the most          
prayerful1 and the most patient1 meek1  
and  loving of men4  ,and1 students1 ,i 
labour in this because this is science2 
because this is the first in order and  
the most fruitful of all the  sciences1 
if not the noblest and the most glorious
 of all the sciences4  ,there is all    
that good for us in this subject of the 
will and the heart1  and whole worlds of
 good lie away out beyond this subject  
that eye hath  not seen nor ear heard4  
,,chapter ,,vii--,,self-,,love          

',this know1 that men shall be lovers of
 their own selves1 covetous1            
boasters1 proud1 unthankful1 without    
natural affection1     truce-breakers1  
false accusers1 traitors1 heady1        
high-minded3 from all     such turn     
away4'--,paul4    ',pray1 sir1 said     
,academicus1 tell me more plainly just  
what this self of  ours actually is4    
,self1 replied ,theophilus1 is hell1 it 
is the devil1 it  is darkness1 pain1 and
 disquiet4  ,it is the one and only     
enemy of ,christ4  ,it is the great     
antichrist4  ,it is the scarlet whore1  
it is the fiery  dragon1 it is the old  
serpent that is mentioned in the        
,revelation of ,st  ,john4  ,you rather 
terrify me than instruct me by this     
description1 said  ,academicus4  ,it is 
indeed a very frightful matter1 returned
 ,theophilus2  for it contains          
everything that man has to dread and to 
hate1 to resist  and to avoid4  ,yet be 
assured1 my friend1 that1 careless and  
merry as  this world is1 every man that 

is born into this world has all those   
enemies to overcome within himself2 and 
every man1 till he is in the way  of    
regeneration1 is more or less governed  
by those enemies4  ,no hell in  any     
remote place1 no devil that is separate 
from you1 no darkness or pain  that is  
not within you1 no antichrist either at 
,rome or in ,england1 no  furious beast1
 no fiery dragon1 without you or apart  
from you1 can do you  any real hurt4    
,it is your own hell1 your own devil1   
your own beast1 your  own antichrist1   
your own dragon that lives in your own  
heart's blood that  alone can hurt you4 
,die to this self1 to this inward       
nature1 and then  all outward enemies   
are overcome4  ,live to this self1 and  
then1 when this  life is out1 all that  
is within you1 and all that is without  
you1 will be  nothing else but a mere   
seeing and feeling this hell1 serpent1  
beast1 and  fiery dragon4  ,but1 said   
,theogenes1 a third party who stood by1 
,i would1  if ,i could1 more perfectly  

understand the precise nature of self1  
or what  it is that makes it to be so   
full of evil and misery4  ,to whom      
,theophilus  turned and replied3        
,covetousness1 envy1 pride1 and wrath   
are the four  elements of self4  ,and   
hence it is that the whole life of self 
can be  nothing else but a plague and   
torment of covetousness1 envy1 pride1   
and  wrath1 all of which is precisely   
sinful nature1 self1 or hell4  ,whilst  
man lives1 indeed1 among the vanities of
 time1 his covetousness1 his  envy1 his 
pride1 and his wrath1 may be in a       
tolerable state1 and may help  him to a 
mixture of peace and trouble2 they may  
have their gratifications  as well as   
their torments4  ,but when death has put
 an end to the vanity  of all earthly   
cheats1 the soul that is not born again 
of the  supernatural ,word and ,spirit  
of ,god must find itself unavoidably    
devoured  by itself1 shut up in its own 
insatiable1 unchangeable1               
self-tormenting  covetousness1 envy1    

pride1 and wrath4  ,o ,theogenes6 that  
,i had power from  ,god to take those   
dreadful scales off men's eyes that     
hinder them from  seeing and feeling the
 infinite importance of this most       
certain truth6  ,god give a blessing1   
,theophilus1 to your good prayer4  ,and 
then let me  tell you that you have     
quite satisfied my question about the   
nature of  self4  ,i shall never forget 
it1 nor can ,i ever possibly after this 
have  any doubt about the truth of it4' 
#a4  ',all my theology1' said an old    
friend of mine to me not long ago--'all 
my theology is out of ,thomas ,goodwin  
to the ,ephesians4'  ,well1 ,i find     
,thomas ,goodwin saying in that great   
book that self is the very  quintessence
 of original sin2 and1 again1 he says1  
study self-love for a  thousand years   
and it is the top and the bottom of     
original sin2 self is  the sin that     
dwelleth in us and that doth most easily
 beset us4  ,now1  that is just what    
,academicus and ,theophilus and         

,theogenes have been  saying to us in   
their own powerful way in their         
incomparable dialogue4  ,all sin and all
 misery2 all covetousness1 envy1 pride1 
and wrath1--trace  it all back to its   
roots1 travel it all up to its source1  
and1 as sure as  you do that1 self and  
self-love are that source1 that root1   
and that  black bottom4  ,i do not      
forget that ,butler has said in some    
stately pages  of his that self-love is 
morally good2 that self-love is         
coincident with  the principle of virtue
 and part of the idea2 and that it is a 
proper  motive for man4  ,but the deep  
bishop1 in saying all that1 is away back
 at  the creation-scheme and ,eden-state
 of human nature4  ,he has not as yet   
come down to human nature in its present
 state of overthrow1  dismemberment1 and
 self-destruction4  ,but when he does   
condescend and  comes close to the mind 
and the heart of man as they now are in 
all men1  even ,butler becomes as       
outspoken1 and as eloquent1 and as full 

of passion  and pathos as if he were an 
evangelical ,puritan4  ,self-love1      
,butler  startles his sober-minded      
reader as he bursts out--self-love rends
 and  distorts the mind of man6  ,now1  
you are a man4  ,well1 then1 do you feel
  and confess that rending and          
distorting to have taken place in you8  
,butler is a philosopher1 and ,goodwin  
is a preacher1 but you are more3 you    
are a man4  ,you are the owner of a     
human heart1 and you can say whether  or
 no it is a rent and a distorted heart4 
,is your mind warped and  wrenched by   
self-love1 and is your heart rent and   
torn by the same wicked  hands8  ,do you
 really feel that it needs nothing more 
to take you back  again to paradise but 
that your heart be delivered from       
self-love8  ,do  you now understand that
 the foundations of heaven itself must  
be laid in  a heart healed and cleansed 
and delivered from self-love8  ,if you  
do1  then your knowledge of your own    
heart has set you abreast of the        

greatest  of philosophers and           
theologians and preachers4  ,nay1 before
 multitudes of  men who are called such4
  ,it is my meditation all the day1 you 
say4  ,i  have more understanding now   
than all my teachers2 for ,thy          
testimonies are  my meditation4  ,i     
understand more than the ancients2      
because now ,i keep  ,thy precepts4     
#b4  ',self-love has made us all        
malicious1' says ,john ,calvin4  ,we are
  ,calvinists1 were we to call any man  
master4  ,but we are to call no man     
master1 and least of all in the matters 
of the heart4  ,every man must be  his  
own philosopher1 his own moralist1 and  
his own theologian in the  matters of   
the heart4  ,he who has a heart in his  
bosom and an eye in his  head can need  
no ,calvin1 no ,butler1 no ,goodwin1 and
 no ,law to tell him  what goes on in   
his own heart4  ,and1 on the other hand1
 his own heart  will soon tell him      
whether or no ,calvin1 and ,butler1 and 
,goodwin1 and ,law  know anything about 

those matters on which some men would   
set them up as  our masters4  ,well1    
come away all of you who own a human    
heart4  ,come and  say whether or no    
your heart1 and the self-love of which  
it is full1 have  made you a malicious  
man4  ,i do not ask if you are always   
and to  everybody full of maliciousness4
  ,no2 ,i know quite well that you are  
sometimes as sweet as honey and as soft 
as butter4  ,for1 has not even          
,theophilus said that whilst a man still
 lives among the vanities of time1  his 
covetousness1 his envy1 his pride1 and  
his wrath may be in a  tolerable state1 
and may help him to a mixture of peace  
and trouble2  these vices may have their
 gratifications as well as their        
torments4  ,no2  ,i do not trifle with  
you and with this serious matter so as  
to ask if you  are full of malice at all
 times and to all men4  ,no4  ,for1 let 
a man be  fortunate enough to be on your
 side2 let him pass over to your party2 
let  him become profitable to you2 let  

him be clever enough and mean enough to 
praise and to flatter you up to the top 
of your appetite for praise and         
flattery1 and1 no doubt1 you will love  
that man4  ,or1 if that is not  exactly 
love1 at least it is no longer hate4    
,but let that man  unfortunately be led 
to leave your party2 let him cease being
 profitable  to you2 let him weary of   
flattering you with his praise2 let him 
forget  you1 neglect you1 despise you1  
and go against you1 and then look at    
your  own heart4  ,do you care now to   
know what malice is8  ,well1 that is    
malice  that distorts and rends your    
heart as often as you meet that man on  
the  street or even pass by his door4   
,that is malice that dances in your eyes
  when you see his name in print4  ,that
 is malice with which you always  break 
out when his name is mentioned in       
conversation4  ,that is malice  that    
heats your heart when you suddenly      
recollect him in the multitude of  your 
thoughts within you4  ,and you are in   

good company all the time4  ',we1       
ourselves1' says ,paul to ,titus1 'we   
also at one time lived in malice and  in
 envy4  ,we were hateful and we hated   
one another4'  ',hateful1' ,goodwin     
goes on in his great book1 'every man is
 to another man more or less2 he  is    
hated of another and he hateth another  
more or less2 and if his nature  were   
let out to the full1 there is that in   
him1 every man is against  every man1 as
 is said of ,ishmael4  ,homo homini     
lupus1' adds our brave  preacher4  ,and 
,abbe ,grou speaks out with the same    
challenge from the  opposite church     
pole1 and says3 ',yes2 self-love makes  
us touchy1 ready to  take offence1      
ill-tempered1 suspicious1 severe1       
exacting1 easily  offended2 it keeps    
alive in our hearts a certain malignity1
 a secret joy  at the mortifications    
which befall our neighbour2 it nourishes
 our  readiness to criticise1 our       
dislike at certain persons1 our         
ill-feeling1  our bitterness1 and a     

thousand other things prejudicial to    
charity4'    #c4  ',myself is my own    
worst enemy1' says ,abbe ,grou4  ,that  
is to say1 we  may have enemies who hate
 us more than we hate ourselves1 and    
enemies who  would hurt us1 if they     
could1 as much as we hurt ourselves2 but
 the  ,abbe's point is that they cannot4
  ,and he is right4  ,no man has ever   
hurt  me as ,i have hurt myself4  ,there
 are men who hate me so much that they  
would poison my life of all its peace   
and happiness if they could4  ,but  they
 cannot4  ,they cannot2 but let them not
 be cast down on that account1  for     
there is one who can do1 and who will do
 as long as he lives1 what  they cannot 
do4  ,a man's foes1 to be called foes1  
are in his own house3  they are in his  
own heart4  ,let our enemies attend to  
their own peace and  happiness1 and our 
self-love will do all1 and more than    
all1 that they  would fain do4  ,at the 
most1 they and their ill-will can only  
give  occasion to our self-love2 but it 

is our self-love that seizes upon the   
occasion1 and through it rends and      
distorts our own hearts4  ,and were our 
hearts only pure of self-love1 were our 
hearts only clothed with meekness  and  
humility1 we could laugh at all the     
ill-will of our enemies as  leviathan   
laughs at the shaking of a spear4       
',know thou1' says ,a ,kempis  to his   
son1 'that the love of thyself doth do  
thee more hurt than  anything in the    
whole world4'  ,yes2 but we shall never 
know that by  merely reading ,the       
,imitation4  ,we must read ourselves4   
,we must study1  as we study nothing    
else1 our own rent and distorted hearts4
  ,our own  hearts must be our daily    
discovery4  ,we must watch the wounds   
our hearts  take every day2 and we must 
give all our powers of mind to tracing  
all  our wounds back to their true      
causes4  ,we must say3 'that sore blow  
came  on my mind and on my heart from   
such and such a quarter1 from such and  
such a hand1 from such and such a       

weapon2 but this pain1 this rankling1   
poisoned1 and ever-festering wound1 this
 sleepless1 gnawing1 cancerous  sore1   
comes from the covetousness1 the pride1 
the envy1 and the wrath of  my own      
heart4'  ,when we begin to say that1 we 
shall then begin to  understand and to  
love ,thomas2 we shall sit daily at his 
feet and shall  be numbered among his   
sons4    #d4  ,and this suffering at our
 own hands goes on till at last the     
tables  are completely turned against   
self-love1 and till what was once to us 
the  dearest thing in the whole world   
becomes1 as ,pascal says1 the most      
hateful4  ,we begin life by hating the  
men1 and the things1 who hurt us4  ,we  
hate the men who oppose us and hinder   
us2 the men who speak1 and  write1 and  
act1 and go in any way against us4  ,we 
bitterly hate all who  humble us1       
despise us1 trample upon us1 and in any 
way ill-use us4  ,but  afterwards1 when 
we have become men1 men in experience of
 this life1 and1  especially1 of        

ourselves in this life2 after we gain   
some real insight  and attain to some   
real skill in the life of the heart1 we 
come round to  forgive those we once    
hated4  ,we have come now to see why    
they did it4  ,we  see now exactly how  
much they hurt us after all1 and how    
little4  ,and1  especially1 we have come
 to see1--what at one time we could not 
have  believed1--that all our hurt1 to  
be called hurt1 has come to us from     
ourselves4  ,and thus that great        
revolution of mind and that great       
revulsion of feeling and of passion has 
taken place1 after which we are  left   
with no one henceforth to hate1 to be   
called hating1 but ourselves4  ,we may  
still continue to avoid our enemies1 and
 we may do that too long  and too much2 
we may continue to fear them and be on  
the watch against  them far too much2   
but to deliberately hate them is        
henceforth  impossible4  ,all our       
hatred1--all our deliberate1 steady1    
rooted1 active  hatred1--is now at      

ourselves2 at ourselves1 that is1 so far
 and so long  as we remain under the    
malignant and hateful dominion of       
self-love4  ,when  ,butler gets our     
self-love restored to reasonableness1   
and made coincident  with virtue and    
part of the idea2 when our self-love    
becomes uniformly  coincident with the  
principle of obedience to ,god's        
commands1 then we  shall love ourselves 
as our neighbour1 and our neighbour as  
ourselves1  and both in ,god4  ,but1    
till then1 there is nothing and no one  
on earth or  in hell so hateful to us as
 ourselves and our own hateful hearts4  
,and if  in that we are treading the    
winepress alone as far as our fellow-men
 are  concerned1 all the more we have   
,him with us in all our agony who wept  
over the heart of man because ,he knew  
what was in it1 and what must  always   
come out of it4  ,evil thoughts1 ,he    
said1 and fornications1 and  murders1   
and thefts1 and covetousness1 and       
wickedness1 and deceit1 and an  evil    

eye1 and pride1 and folly1 and what not4
  ,and ,paul has the mind of  ,christ   
with him in the text4  ,i do not need to
 repeat again the hateful  words4  ,now1
 what do you say8 was ,pascal beyond the
 truth1 was he deeper  than the truth or
 more deadly than the truth when he said
 with a stab  that self is hateful8  ,i 
think not4    #e4  ',oh that ,i were    
free1 then1 of myself1' wrote ,samuel   
,rutherford from  ,aberdeen in #afcg to 
,john ,ferguson of ,ochiltree4  ',what  
need we all have  to be ransomed and    
redeemed from that master-tyrant1 that  
cruel and  lawless lord1 ourself6  ,even
 when ,i am most out of myself1 and am  
best  serving ,christ1 ,i have a squint 
eye on myself4'  ,and to the ,laird of  
,cally in the same year and from the    
same place3 ',myself is the master  idol
 we all bow down to4  ,every man blameth
 the devil for his sins1 but  the house 
devil of every man that eateth with him 
and lieth in his bosom  is himself4  ,oh
 blessed are they who can deny          

themselves6'  ,and to the  ,irish       
ministers the year after3 ',except men  
martyr and slay the body of  sin in     
sanctified self-denial1 they shall never
 be ,christ's4  ,oh1 if ,i  could but be
 master of myself1 my own mind1 my own  
will1 my own credit1  my own love1 how  
blessed were ,i6  ,but alas6  ,i shall  
die only minting and  aiming at being a 
,christian4'          ,,chapter         
,,viii--,,old ,,mr4 ,,prejudice1 ,,the  
,,keeper ,,of ,,ear-,,gate1 ,,with ,,his
 ,,sixty  ,,deaf ,,men ,,under ,,him    
',are not ,abana and ,pharpar1 rivers of
 ,damascus1 better than all the         
waters of ,israel8'--,naaman4           
',can there any good thing come out of  
,nazareth8'--,nathanael4       ' 4 4    
observe these things without prejudice1 
doing nothing by                        
partiality4'--,paul4    ,old ,mr4       
,prejudice was well known in the wars of
 ,mansoul as an angry1  unhappy1 and    
ill-conditioned old churl4  ,old ,mr4   
,prejudice was placed by  ,diabolus1 his

 master1 as keeper of the ward at the   
post of ,ear-gate1 and  for that fatal  
service he had sixty completely deaf men
 put under him as  his company4  ,men   
eminently advantageous for that fatal   
service4  ,eminently                    
advantageous1--inasmuch as it mattered  
not one atom to them  what was spoken in
 their ear either by ,god or by man4    
#a4  ,now1 to begin with1 this churlish 
old man had already earned for  himself 
a very evil name4  ,for what name could 
well be more full of evil  memories and 
of evil omens than just this name of    
,prejudice8  ,just  consider what       
prejudice is4  ,prejudice1 when we stop 
over it and take it  to pieces and look 
well at it1--prejudice is so bad and so 
abominable  that you would not believe  
it could be so bad till you had looked  
at it  and at how it acts in your own   
case4  ,for prejudice gives judgment on 
your case and gives orders for your     
execution before your defence has  been 
heard1 before your witnesses have been  

called1 before your summons  has been   
served1 ay1 and even before your        
indictment has been drawn out4  ,what a 
scandal and what an uproar a malfeasance
 of justice like that  would cause if it
 were to take place in any of our courts
 of law6  ,only1  the thing is          
impossible2 you cannot even imagine it4 
,we shall have ,magna  ,charta up before
 us in the course of these lectures4    
,well1 ever since  ,magna ,charta was   
extorted from ,king ,john1 such a       
scandal as ,i have  supposed has been   
impossible either in ,england or in     
,scotland4  ,and that  such cases should
 still be possible in ,russia and in    
,turkey places those  two old despotisms
 outside the pale of the civilised      
world4  ,and yet1  loudly as we all     
denounce the ,czar and the ,sultan1     
eloquently as we boast  over ,magna     
,charta1 ,habeas ,corpus1 and what not1 
every day you and ,i are  doing what    
would cost an ,english king his crown1  
and an ,english judge his  head4  ,we   

all do it every day1 and it never enters
 one mind out of a  hundred that we are 
trampling down truth1 and righteousness1
 and fair-  play1 and brotherly love4   
,we do not know what a diabolical       
wickedness we  are perpetrating every   
day4  ,the best men among us are guilty 
of that  iniquity every day1 and they   
never confess it to themselves2 no one  
ever  accuses them of it2 and they go   
down to death and judgment unsuspicious 
of the discovery that they will soon    
make there4  ,you would not steal a     
stick or a straw that belonged to me2   
but you steal from me every day  what   
all your gold and mine can never redeem2
 you murder me every day in  my best and
 my noblest life4  ,you me1 and ,i you4 
#b4  ,old ,mr4 ,prejudice4  ,now1 there 
is a golden passage in ,jonathan        
,edwards's ,diary that all old men      
should lay well to heart and            
conscience4  ',i observe1' ,edwards     
enters1 'that old men seldom have any   
advantage of new discoveries1 because   

these discoveries are beside a way  of  
thinking they have been long used to4   
,resolved1 therefore1 that1 if  ever ,i 
live to years1 ,i will be impartial to  
hear the reasons of all  pretended      
discoveries1 and receive them1 if       
rational1 how long soever ,i  have been 
used to another way of thinking4  ,i am 
too dogmatical2 ,i have  too much of    
egotism2 my disposition is always to be 
telling of my dislike  and my scorn4'   
,what a fine1 fresh1 fruitful1          
progressive1 and peaceful  world we     
should soon have if all our old and all 
our fast-ageing men  would enter that   
extract into their diary6  ,how the     
young would then love  and honour and   
lean upon the old2 and how all the      
fathers would always  abide young and   
full of youthful life like their        
children6  ,then the  righteous should  
flourish like the palm-tree2 he should  
grow like a cedar  in ,lebanon4  ,they  
that be planted in the house of the     
,lord shall flourish  in the courts of  

our ,god4  ,they shall still bring forth
 fruit in old age2  they shall be fat   
and flourishing4  ,what a free scope    
would then be given  to all ,god's      
unfolding providences1 and what a warm  
welcome to all ,his  advancing truths6  
,what sore and spreading wounds would   
then be salved1  what health and what   
vigour would fill all the body          
political1 as well as  all the body     
mystical6  ,may the ,lord turn the heart
 of the fathers to the  children1 and   
the heart of the children to their      
fathers1 lest the earth  be smitten with
 a curse6    #c4  ,mr4 ,prejudice was an
 old man2 and this also has been handed 
down  about him1 that he was almost     
always angry4  ,and if you keep your    
eyes  open you will soon see how true to
 the life that feature of old ,mr4      
,prejudice still is4  ,in every         
conversation1 discussion1 debate1       
correspondence1 the angry man is        
invariably the prejudiced man2 and1     
according to the age and the depth1 the 

rootedness and the intensity of  his    
prejudices1 so is the ferocity and the  
savagery of his anger4  ,he has  already
 settled this case that you are         
irritating and wronging him so  much by 
your still insisting on bringing up4    
,it is a reproach to his  understanding 
for you to think that there is anything 
to be said in that  matter that he has  
not long ago heard said and fully       
answered4  ,has he  not denounced that  
bad man and that bad cause for years8   
,you insult me1  sir1 by again opening  
up that matter in my presence4  ,he will
 have none  of you or of your arguments 
either4  ,you are as bad yourself as    
that bad  man is whose advocate you are4
  ,we all know men whose hearts are full
 of  coals of juniper1 burning coals of 
hate and rage1 just by reason of their  
ferocious prejudices4  ,hate is too     
feeble a word for their gnashing rage   
against this man and that cause1 this   
movement and that institution4  ,there  
is an absolutely murderous light in     

their eye as they work  themselves up   
against the men and the things they     
hate4  ,charity rejoices  not in        
iniquity2 but you will see otherwise    
,christian and charitable men  so       
jockeyed by the devil that they actually
 rejoice in iniquity and do  not know   
what they are doing1 or who it is that  
is egging them on to do  it4  ,you will 
see otherwise and at other times good   
men so full of the  rage and madness of 
prejudice and partiality that they will 
storm at  every report of goodness and  
truth and prosperity in the man1 or in  
the  cause1 or in the church1 or in the 
party1 they are so demented against4    
,jockey is not the word4  ,there is the 
last triumph of pure devilry in the  way
 that the prince of the devils turns old
 ,prejudice's very best  things--his    
love of his fathers1 his love of the    
past1 his love of order1  his love of   
loyalty1 his love of the old paths1 and 
his very truest and  best religion      
itself--into so much fat fuel for the   

fires of hate and  rage that are        
consuming his proud heart to red-hot    
ashes4  ,if the light  that is in us be 
darkness1 how great is that darkness2   
and if the life  that is in us be death1
 how deadly is that death6    #d4  ,old1
 angry1 and ill-conditioned4            
,ill-conditioned is an old-fashioned    
word almost gone out of date4  ,but1 all
 the same1 it is a very  expressive1 and
 to us to-night a quite indispensable   
word4  ,an  ill-conditioned man is a man
 of an in-bred1 cherished1 and confirmed
 ill-  nature4  ,his heart1 which was a 
sufficiently bad heart to begin with1 is
  now so exercised in evil and so       
accustomed to evil1 that1--how can he be
  born again when he is so old and so   
ill-natured8  ,all the qualities1 all   
the passions1 all the emotions of his   
heart are out of joint2 their bent  is  
bad2 they run out naturally to mischief4
  ,now1 what could possibly be  more    
ill-conditioned than to judge and       
sentence1 denounce and execute a  man   

before you have heard his case8  ,what  
could be more ill-conditioned  than     
positively to be afraid lest you should 
be led to forgive1 and  redress1 and    
love1 and act with another man8  ,to be 
determined not to  hear one word that   
you can help in his defence1 in his     
favour1 and in his  praise8  ,could a   
human heart be in a worse state on this 
side hell itself  than that8  ,nay1 that
 is hell itself in your evil heart      
already4  ,let  prejudice and partiality
 have their full scope among the wicked 
passions  of your ill-conditioned heart1
 and lo6 the kingdom of darkness is     
already  within you4  ,not1 lo1 here6   
or1 lo1 there6 but within you4  ,look to
  yourselves1 says ,john to us all1 full
 as we all are of our own               
ill-conditions4  ,look to yourselves4   
,but we have no eyes left with which  to
 see ourselves2 we look so much at the  
faults and the blames of our  neighbour4
  ',publius goes to church sometimes1   
and reads the ,scriptures2  but he knows

 not what he reads or prays1 his head is
 so full of politics4  ,he is so angry  
at kings and ministers of state that he 
has no time nor  disposition to call    
himself to account4  ,he has the history
 of all  parliaments1 elections1        
prosecutions1 and impeachments by heart1
 and he  dies with little or no         
religion1 through a constant fear of    
,popery4'  ,poor1 old1 ill-conditioned  
,publius6    #e4  ,and1 then1 his sixty 
deaf men under old1 angry1              
ill-conditioned  ,prejudice4  ,we read  
of engines of sixty-horse power4  ,and  
here is a man  with the power of        
resisting and shutting out the truth    
equal to that of  sixty men like        
himself4  ,we all know such men2 we     
would as soon think of  speaking to     
those iron pillars about a change of    
mind as we would to  them4  ,if you     
preach to their prejudices and their    
prepossessions and  their partialities1 
they are all ears to hear you1 and all  
tongues to  trumpet your praise4  ,but  

do not expect them to sit still with    
ordinary  decency under what they are so
 prejudiced against2 do not expect them 
to  read a book or buy a passing paper  
on the other side4  ,sixty deaf men     
hold their ears2 sixty ill-conditioned  
men hold their hearts4  ,habit with     
them is all the test of truth2 it must  
be right1 they've done it from  their   
youth4  ,and thus they go on to the end 
of their term of life1 full  of their   
own fixed ideas1 with their eyes full of
 beams and jaundices and  darkness and  
death4  ,some people think that we take 
up too much of our  time with newspapers
 in our day1 and that1 if things go on  
as they are  going1 we shall soon have  
neither time nor taste for anything else
 but  half a dozen papers a day4  ,but  
all that depends on the conditions with 
which we read4  ,if we would read as    
,jonathan ,edwards read the weekly news-
  letters of his day2 if we read all our
 papers to see if the kingdom of  ,god  
was coming in reply to our prayer2 if we

 read1 observing all things1  like      
,timothy1 without prejudice or          
partiality1 then ,i know no better      
reading for an ill-conditioned heart    
begun to look to itself than just a     
good1 out-and-out party newspaper4  ,and
 if it is a church paper all the  better
 for your purpose4  ,if you read with   
your fingers in your ears2 if  you read 
with a beam in your eye1 you had better 
confine yourself in your  reading2 if   
you feel that your prejudices are       
inflamed and your  partiality is        
intensified1 then take care what paper  
you take in4  ,but if  you read all you 
read for the love of the truth1 for     
justice1 for fair-  play1 and for       
brotherly love1 and all that in         
yourself2 if you read all  the time with
 your eyes on your own ill-conditioned  
heart1 then1 as ,james  says1 count it  
all joy when you fall into divers       
temptations4  ,take up  your political  
and ecclesiastical paper every morning1 
saying to  yourself1 ,go to1 ,o my      

heart1 and get thy daily lesson4  ,go   
to1 and enter  thy cleansing and        
refining furnace4  ,go to1 and come well
 out of thy  daily temptation4--,a      
nobler school you will not find anywhere
 for a  prejudiced1 partial1 angry1 and 
ill-conditioned heart than just the     
party  journals of the day4  ,for the   
abating of prejudice2 for seeing the    
odiousness of partiality1 and for       
putting on every day a fair1 open1      
catholic1 ,christian mind1 commend me to
 the public life and the public         
journals of our living day4  ,and it is 
not that this man may be up and  that   
man down2 this cause victorious and that
 cause defeated2 this truth  vindicated 
and that untruth defeated1 that public  
life rolls on and that  its revolutions 
are reported to us4  ,our own minds and 
our own hearts are  the final cause1 the
 ultimate drift1 and the far-off end and
 aim of it  all4  ,we are not made for  
party and for the partialities and      
prosperities  of party2 party and all   

its passions and all its successes and  
all its  defeats are made1 and are      
permitted to be made for us2 for our    
opportunity of purging ourselves free of
 all our ill-conditions1 of all  our    
prejudices1 of all our partialities1 and
 of all the sin and misery  that come to
 us of all these things4    #f4  ',it is
 the work of a philosopher1' says       
,addison in one of his best             
,spectators1 'to be every day subduing  
his passions and laying aside his       
prejudices4'  ,we are not philosophers1 
but we shall be enrolled in the         
foremost ranks of philosophy if we      
imitate such philosophers in their      
daily work1 as we must do and shall do4 
,well1 are we begun to do it8  ,are  we 
engaged in that work of theirs and ours 
every day8  ,is ,god our witness  and   
our judge that we are8  ,are we so      
engaged upon that inward work1 and  so  
succeeding in it1 that we can read our  
most prejudiced newspaper with  the same
 mind and spirit1 with the same profit  

and progress1 with which  we read our   
,bible8  ,a good man1 a humble man1 a   
man acutely sensible of  his            
ill-conditions1 will look on every day  
as lost or won according as he  has lost
 or won in this inward war4  ,if his    
partialities are dropping off  his mind2
 if his prejudices are melting2 if he   
can read books and papers  with pleasure
 and instruction that once filled him   
with dark passions and  angry outbursts2
 if his ,calvinism lets him read ,thomas
 ,a ,kempis and  ,jeremy ,taylor and    
,william ,law2 if his ,high-,churchism  
lets him delight to  worship ,god in an 
,independent or a ,presbyterian church2 
if his  ,free-,churchism permits him to 
see the ,establishment reviving1 and his
  ,state-,churchism admits that the     
,free ,churches have more to say to him 
than he had at one time thought2 if his 
,toryism lets him take in a  ,radical   
paper1 and his ,radicalism a ,unionist  
paper--then let him thank  ,god1 for    
,god is in all that though he knew it   

not4  ,and when he counts up  his       
incalculable benefits at each return of 
the ,lord's table1 let him  count up as 
not the least of them an open mind and a
 well-conditioned  heart1 an            
unprejudiced mind1 and an impartial     
heart4    #g4  ,and now1 to conclude3   
,take old1 angry1 ill-conditioned       
,prejudice1 his  daily prayer3 ',my     
,adorable ,god and ,creator6  ,thy ,holy
 ,church is by the  wickedness of men   
divided into various communions1 all    
hating1  condemning1 and endeavouring to
 destroy one another4  ,i made none of  
these divisions1 nor am ,i any longer a 
defender of them4  ,i wish  everything  
removed out of every communion that     
hinders the ,common ,unity4  ,the       
wranglings and disputings of whole      
churches and nations have so  confounded
 all things that ,i have no ability to  
make a true and just  judgment of the   
matters between them4  ,if ,i knew that 
any one of these  communions was alone  
acceptable to ,thee1 ,i would do or     

suffer anything to  make myself a member
 of it4  ,for1 my ,good ,god1 ,i desire 
nothing so much  as to know and to love 
,thee1 and to worship ,thee in the most 
acceptable  manner4  ,and as ,i humbly  
presume that ,thou wouldst not suffer   
,thy ,church  to be thus universally    
divided1 if no divided portion could    
offer any  worship acceptable unto      
,thee2 and as ,i have no knowledge of   
what is  absolutely best in these       
divided parts1 nor any ability to put an
 end to  them2 so ,i fully trust in ,thy
 goodness1 that ,thou wilt not suffer   
these  divisions to separate me from    
,thy mercy in ,christ ,jesus2 and that1 
if  there be any better ways of serving 
,thee than those ,i already enjoy1 ,thou
  wilt1 according to ,thine infinite    
mercy1 lead me into them1 ,o ,god of my 
peace and my love4'  ,after this manner 
old1 angry1 ill-conditioned  ,prejudice 
prayed every day till he died1 a little 
child1 in charity with  all men1 and in 
acceptance with ,almighty ,god4         

,,chapter ,,ix--,,captain ,,anything    
',i am made all things to all men 4 4 4 
,i please all men in all                
things4'--,paul    ,captain ,anything   
came originally from the ancient town of
 ,fair-speech4    ,fair-speech had many 
royal bounties and many special         
privileges bestowed  upon it1 and       
,captain ,anything and his family had   
come to many titles and  to great riches
 in that ancient1 loyal1 and honourable 
borough4  ,my ,lord  ,turn-about1 my    
,lord ,time-server1 my ,lord            
,fair-speech 7from whose  ancestors that
 town first took its name71 as also such
 well-known  commoners as ,mr4          
,smooth-man1 ,mr4 ,facing-both-ways1 and
 ,mr4 ,two-tongues  were all sprung with
 ,captain ,anything from the same       
ancient and  long-established ancestry4 
,as to his religion1 from a child young 
,anything had sat under the parson of   
the parish1 the same ,reverend ,two-    
tongues as has been mentioned above4    
,and our budding soldier followed  the  

example of his minister in that he never
 strove too long against wind  or tide1 
or was ever to be seen on the same side 
of the street with  ,religion when she  
was banished from court or had lost her 
silver  slippers4  ,the crest of the    
,anythings was a delicately poised      
weather-  cock2 and the motto engraved  
around the gyrating bird ran thus3 ',our
  judgment always jumps according to the
 occasion4'  ,as a military man1        
,captain ,anything is described in      
military books as a proper man1 and a   
man of courage and skill--to appearance4
  ,he and his company under him  were a 
sort of ,swiss guard in ,mansoul4  ,they
 held themselves open and  ready for any
 master4  ,they lived not so much by    
religion or by loyalty  as by the fates 
of worldly fortune4  ,in his secret     
despatches ,diabolus  was wont to       
address ,captain ,anything as ,my       
,darling2 and be sure you  recruit your 
,switzers well1 ,diabolus would say2 but
 when the real stress  of the war came1 

even ,diabolus cast ,captain ,anything  
off4  ,and thus it  came about that when
 both sides were against this despised  
creature he  had to throw down his arms 
and flee into a safe skulking place for 
his  life4    #a4  ,in that half-papist1
 half-atheistic country called ,france  
there is a  class of politicians known  
by the name of ,opportunists4  ,they are
 a kind  of public men that1 we are     
thankful to say1 are not known in       
,protestant  and ,evangelical ,england1 
but they may be pictured out and        
described to  you in this homely way3   
,an ,opportunist stands well out of the 
sparks of  the fire1 and well in behind 
the stone wall1 till the fanatics for   
liberty1 equality1 and fraternity have  
snatched the chestnuts out of the  fire1
 and then the ,opportunist steps out    
from his safe place and blandly  divides
 the well-roasted tid-bits among his    
family and his friends4  ,as  long as   
there is any jeopardy1 the ,jacobins are
 denounced and held up to  opprobrium2  

but when the jeopardy and the risk are  
well past1 the sober-  minded1 cautious1
 conservative1 and responsible statesmen
 walk off with  the portfolios of place 
and privilege and pay under their honest
 arms4  ,but these are the unprincipled 
papists and infidels of a mushroom      
republic2 and1 thank ,god1 such spurious
 patriotism1 and such sham and  selfish 
statesmanship1 have not yet shown their 
miserable heads among  faithful1        
fearless1 straightforward1 and          
uncalculating ,englishmen4  ,at  the    
same time1 if ever that continental vice
 should attack our national  character1 
we have two well-known essays in our    
ethical and casuistical  literature that
 may with perfect safety be pitted      
against anything that  either ,france or
 ,italy has produced4  ,even if they are
 but a master's  irony1 let all         
ambitious men keep ,of ,cunning and ,of 
,wisdom for a ,man's  ,self under their 
pillow4  ,let all young men who would   
toady a great man2  let all young       

ministers who would tune their pulpit to
 king1 or court1 or  society2 let all   
tradesmen and merchants who prefer their
 profits to  their principles--if they  
have literature enough1 let them soak   
their  honest minds in our great        
,chancellor's sage counsels2 and he who 
promoted  ,anything and dubbed him his  
,darling1 he will1 no doubt1 publish    
both a  post and a title on his birthday
 for you also4    #b4  ',what religion  
is he of8' asks ,dean ,swift4  ',he is  
an ,anythingarian1'  is the answer1 'for
 he makes his self-interest the sole    
standard of his  life and doctrine4'    
,and ,archbishop ,leighton1 a very      
different churchman  from the bitter    
author of the ,polite ,conversations1 is
 equally  contemptuous toward the       
self-seeker in divine things4  ',your   
boasted  peaceableness often proceeds   
from a superficial temper2 and1 not     
seldom1  from a supercilious disdain of 
whatever has no marketable use or value1
  and from your utter indifference to   

true religion4  ,toleration is an herb  
of spontaneous growth in the soil of    
indifference4  ,much of our union of    
minds proceeds from want of knowledge   
and from want of affection to  religion4
  ,many who boast of their church       
conformity1 and that no one  hears of   
their noise1 may thank the ignorance of 
their minds for that  kind of           
quietness4'  ,but by far the most       
powerful assault that ever was  made    
upon lukewarmness in religion and upon  
self-seeking in the ,church  was        
delivered by ,dante in the tremendous   
third canto of his ,inferno3--          
,various tongues1     ,horrible         
languages1 outcries of woe1     ,accents
 of anger1 voices deep and hoarse1      
,with hands together smote that swelled 
the sounds1     ,made up a tumult that  
for ever whirls     ,round through that 
air with solid darkness stain'd1        
,like to the sand that in the whirlwind 
flies4     ,i then1 with error yet      
encompass'd1 cried1     ',o master6     

,what is this ,i hear8  ,what race      
,are these1 who seem so overcome with   
woe8'     ,he then to me3 ',this        
miserable fate     ,suffer the wretched 
souls of those who lived     ,without or
 praise or blame1 with that ill band    
,of angels mixed1 who nor rebellious    
proved1     ,nor yet were true to ,god1 
but for themselves     ,were only4      
,mercy and ,justice scorn them both4    
,speak not of them1 but look and pass   
them by4'     ,forthwith1 ,i understood 
for certain this the tribe     ,of those
 ill spirits both to ,god displeasing   
,and to ,his foes4  ,those wretches who 
ne'er lived1     ,went on in nakedness1 
and sorely stung     ,by wasps and      
hornets1 which bedewed their cheeks     
,with blood1 that mix'd with tears      
dropp'd to their feet1     ,and by      
disgustful worms was gathered there4    
#c4  ,now1 we must all lay it           
continually and with uttermost          
humiliation to  heart that we all have  
,captain ,anything's opportunism1 his   

self-interest1  his insincerity1 his    
instability1 and his secret             
deceitfulness in  ourselves4  ,that man 
knows little of himself who does not    
despise and  hate himself for his secret
 self-seeking even in the service of    
,god4  ,for1  how the love of praise    
will seduce and corrupt this man1 and   
the love of  gain that man6  ,how easy  
it is to flatter and adulate this man   
out of all  his former opinions and his 
deepest principles1 and how an expected 
advantage will make that other man      
forget now an old alliance and now a    
deep antipathy6  ,how often the side we 
take even in the most momentous  matters
 is decided by the most unworthy motives
 and the most contemptible              
considerations6  ,unstable as water1    
,reuben shall not excel4  ,double-minded
  men1 we1 like ,jacob's first-born1 are
 unstable in all our ways4  ,we have  no
 anchor1 or1 what anchor we sometimes   
have soon slips4  ,we have no  fixed    
pole-star by which to steer our life4   

,any will-o'-the-wisp of  pleasure1 or  
advantage1 or praise will run us on the 
rocks4  ,the  searchers of ,mansoul1    
after long search1 at last lighted on   
,anything1 and  soon made an end of him4
  ,seek him out in your own soul also4  
,be you  sure he is somewhere there4    
,he is skulking somewhere there4  ,and1 
having  found him1 if you cannot on the 
spot make an end of him1 keep your eye  
on  him1 and never say that you are safe
 from him and his company as long as    
you are in this soul-deceiving life4    
,and1 that ,anything will not be let    
enter the gates of the city you are set 
on seeking1 that will go largely  to    
make that sweet and clean and truthful  
city your very heaven to you4    #d4    
',i am made all things to all men1 and  
,i please all men in all  things4'  ,one
 would almost think that was ,captain   
,anything himself1 in a  frank1 cynical1
 and self-censorious moment4  ,but if   
you will look it up  you will see that  
it was a very different man4  ,the words

 are the words  of ,anything1 but the   
heart behind the words is the heart of  
,paul4  ,and  this1 again1 teaches us   
that we should be like the ,messiah in  
this also1  not to judge after the sight
 of our eyes1 nor to reprove after the  
hearing of our ears4  ,miserable        
,anything6 outcast alike of heaven and  
hell6  ,but1 ,o noble and blessed       
,apostle6 the man1 says ,thomas         
,goodwin1  who shall be found seated    
next to ,jesus ,christ ,himself in the  
kingdom of  ,god4  ,happy ,paul3 happy  
even on this earth1 since he could say1 
and in  the measure he could say with   
truth and with sincerity1 such          
self-revelations as these3 ',unto the   
,jews ,i am become as a ,jew that ,i    
might gain the ,jews2 to them that are  
under the law1 as under the law1  that  
,i might gain them that are under the   
law4  ,to them that are without  law1 as
 without law1 that ,i might gain them   
that are without law4  ,to the  weak    
became ,i as weak1 that ,i might gain   

the weak2 ,i am made all things  to all 
men1 that ,i might by all means save    
some4  ,giving none offence1  neither to
 the ,jews1 nor to the ,gentiles1 nor to
 the ,church of ,god4  ,even  as ,i     
please all men in all things1 not       
seeking mine own profit1 but the  profit
 of many1 that they may be saved4'      
,noble words1 and inspiring to  read4   
,yes3 but look within1 and think what   
,paul must have passed  through2 think  
what he must have been put through      
before he1--a man of  like selfish      
passions as we are1 a man of like       
selfish passions as  ,anything          
was1--could say all that4  ,let his     
crosses and his thorns2 his  raptures up
 to the third heaven1 and his body of   
death that he bore about  with him all  
his days2 let his magnificent spiritual 
gifts1 and his still  more magnificent  
spiritual graces tell how they all      
worked together to  make the chief of   
sinners out of the blameless ,pharisee1 
and1 at the same  time1 ,christ's own   

chosen vessel and the apostle of all the
 churches4  ,boasting about his patron  
apostle1 ,st4 ,augustine says3 ',far be 
it from so  great an apostle1 a vessel  
elect of ,god1 an organ of the ,holy    
,ghost1 to  be one man when he preached 
and another when he wrote2 one man in   
private  and another in public4  ,he was
 made all things to all men1 not by the 
craft of a deceiver1 but from the       
affection of a sympathiser1 succouring  
the diverse diseases of souls with the  
diverse emotions of compassion2 to  the 
little ones dispensing the lesser       
doctrines1 not false ones1 but the      
higher mysteries to the perfect--all of 
them1 however1 true1 harmonious1  and   
divine4'  ,the exquisite irony of       
,socrates comes into my mind in this    
connection1 and will not be kept out of 
my mind4  ,by instinct as well as  by   
art ,socrates mixed up the profoundest  
seriousness with the humorous           
affectation of qualities of mind and    
even of character the exact opposite  of

 what all who loved him knew to be the  
real ,socrates4  ',intellectually1'     
says ,dr4 ,thomson1 'the acutest man of 
his age1 ,socrates represents  himself  
in all companies as the dullest person  
present4  ,morally the  purest1 he      
affects to be the slave of passion and  
borrows the language  even of the lewd  
to describe a love and a good-will far  
too exalted for  the comprehension of   
his contemporaries4  ,this irony of his 
disarmed  ridicule by anticipating it2  
it allayed jealousy and propitiated     
envy2  and it possibly procured him     
admission into gay circles from which a 
more  solemn teacher would have been    
excluded4  ,but all the time it had for 
its  basis a real greatness of soul1 a  
hearty and an unaffected disregard of   
public opinion1 a perfect               
disinterestedness1 and an entire        
abnegation of  self4  ,he made himself a
 fool in order that fools by his folly  
might be  made wise2 he humbled himself 
to the level of those among whom his    

work  lay that he might raise some few  
among them to his own level2 he was all 
things to all men1 if by any means he   
might save some4  ,till ,alcibiades     
ends the splendid eloge that ,plato puts
 into his mouth with these words1  ,all 
my master's vice and stupidity and      
worship of wealthy and great men  is    
counterfeit4  ,it is all but the        
,silenus-mask which conceals the        
features of the god within2 for if you  
remove the covering1 how shall ,i       
describe to you1 my friends and boon    
companions1 the excellence of the       
beauty you will find within6  ,whether  
any of you have seen ,socrates in  his  
serious mood1 when he has thrown aside  
the mask and disclosed the  divine      
features beneath it1 is more than ,i    
know4  ,but ,i have seen them1  and ,i  
can tell you that they seemed to me     
glorious and marvellous1 and1  truly1   
godlike in their beauty4'    ,well1 now1
 ,i gather out of all that this great   
lesson3 that it is1 to  begin with1 a   

mere matter of temperament1 or what     
,william ,law would call  a mere matter 
of complexion and sensibility1 whether1 
to begin with1 a  man is hard1 and dry1 
and narrow1 and stiff1 and proud1 and   
scornful1 and  cruel2 or again1 whether 
he is soft and tender1 broad and open1  
and full  of sympathy and of the milk of
 human kindness4  ,at first1 and to     
begin  with1 there is neither praise nor
 blame as yet in the matter4  ,a man is 
hard just as a stone is hard2 it is his 
nature4  ,or he is soft as clay is      
soft2 it is again his nature4  ,but1    
inheriting such a nature1 and his       
inherited nature beginning to appear1   
then is the time when the true man      
really begins to be made4  ,the bad man 
dwells in contentment1 and1  indeed1 by 
preference1 at home in his own hard1    
proud1 scornful1  resentful heart2 or1  
again1 in his facile1 fawning1          
tide-waiting1 time-  serving heart2 and 
thus he chooses1 accepts1 and prefers   
his evil fate1  and never seeks the help

 either of ,god or man to enable him to 
rise above  it4  ,paul was not1 when we 
meet him first1 the sweet1 humble1      
affable1  placable1 makeable man that he
 made himself and came to be after a    
lifetime of gospel-preaching and of     
adorning the gospel he preached4  ,and  
all the assistances and all the         
opportunities that came to ,paul are    
still  coming to you and to me2 till1   
whether naturally pliable and           
affectionate  or the opposite1 we at    
last shall come to the temperament1 the 
complexion1 and the exquisite           
sensibility of ,paul himself4  ,are you1
  then1 a hard1 stiff1 severe1          
censorious1 proud1 angry1 scornful man8 
,or  are you a too-easy1 too-facile     
man-pleaser and self-seeker1 being all  
things to all men that you may make use 
of all men8  ,are you8  ,then say  so4  
,confess it to be so4  ,admit that you  
have found yourself out4  ,and  reflect 
every day what you have got to do in    
life4  ,consider what a new  birth you  

need and must have4  ,number your days  
that are left you in  which to make you 
a new heart1 and a new nature1 and a new
 character4  ,consider well how you are 
to set about that divine work4  ,you    
have a  minister1 and your minister is  
called a divine because by courtesy he  
is  supposed to understand that divine  
work1 and to be engaged on it night  and
 day in himself1 and in season and out  
of season among his people4  ,he  will  
tell you how you are to make you a new  
heart4  ,or1 if he does not  and cannot 
do that2 if he preaches about everything
 but that to a people  who will listen  
to anything but that1 then your soul is 
not in his hands  but in your own4  ,you
 may not be able to choose your         
minister1 but you  can choose what books
 you are to buy1 or borrow1 and read4   
,and if there  is not a minister within 
a hundred miles of you who knows his    
right hand  from his left1 then there   
are surely some booksellers who will    
advise you  about the classical books of

 the soul till you can order them for   
yourselves4  ,and thus1 if it is your   
curse and your shame to be as  spongy1  
and soapy1 and oily1 and slippery as    
,anything himself2 if you  choose your  
church and your reading with any        
originality1 sense1 and  insight1 you   
need not fear but that you will be let  
live till you die an  honest1 upright1  
honourable1 fearless gentleman3 no timid
 friend to  unfashionable truth1 as you 
are to-night1 but a man like ,thomas    
,boston's  ,ettrick elder1 who lies     
waiting the last trump under a          
gravestone  engraven with this legend3  
,here lies a man who had a brow for     
every good  cause4  ,only1 if you would 
have that written and read on your      
headstone1  you have no time to lose4   
,if ,i were you ,i would not sit another
 ,sabbath  under a minister whose       
preaching was not changing my nature1   
making my  heart new1 and transforming  
my character2 no1 not though the ,queen 
herself sat in the same loft4  ,and ,i  

would leave the church even of my       
fathers1 and become anything as far as  
churches go1 if ,i could get a  minister
 who held my face close and ever closer 
up to my own heart4  ,nor  would ,i     
spend a shilling or an hour that ,i     
could help on any impertinent           
book1--any book that did not powerfully 
help me in the one remaining  interest  
of my one remaining life3 a new nature  
and a new heart4  ,no1 not  ,i4  ,no1   
not ,i any more4          ,,chapter     
,x--,,clip-,,promise         ' 4 4 4 the
 promise made of none effect4'--,paul   
,toward the end of the thirteenth       
century ,edward the ,first1 the ,english
  ,justinian1 brought a select colony of
 artists from ,italy to ,england and    
gave them a commission to execute their 
best coinage for the ,english  ,mint4   
,deft and skilful as those artists were1
 the work they turned out  was but rude 
and clumsy compared with some of the    
gold and silver and  copper coins of our
 day4  ,the ,florentine artists took a  

sheet of gold or  of silver and divided 
the sheet up with great scissors1 and   
then they  hammered the cut-out pieces  
as only a ,florentine hammerman could   
hammer  them4  ,but1 working with such  
tools1 and working on such methods1     
those  goldsmiths and silversmiths1 with
 all their art1 found it impossible to  
give an absolutely equal weight and     
worth to every piece of money that  they
 turned out4  ,for one thing1 their cut 
and hammered coins had no  carved rims  
round their edges as all our gold and   
silver and even copper  coinage now has4
  ,and1 accordingly1 the clever rogues  
of that day soon  discovered that it was
 far easier for them to take up a pair  
of shears  and to clip a sliver of      
silver off the rough rim of a shilling1 
or a  shaving of gold off a sovereign1  
than it was to take of their coats and  
work a hard day's work4  ,till to clip  
the coin of the realm soon became  one  
of the easiest and most profitable kinds
 of crime4  ,in the time of  ,elizabeth 

a great improvement was made in the way 
of coining the public  money2 but it was
 soon found that this had only made     
matters worse4  ,for  now1 side by side 
with a pure and unimpaired and          
full-valued currency1  and mingled up   
everywhere with it1 there was the old1  
clipped1 debased1  and far too light    
gold and silver money2 till troubles    
arose in  connection with the coinage   
and circulation of the country that can 
only  be told by ,macaulay's            
extraordinarily graphic pen4  ',it may  
well be  doubted1' ,macaulay says1 in   
the twenty-first chapter of his ,history
 of  ,england1 'whether all the misery  
which has been inflicted on the ,english
  nation in a quarter of a century by   
bad ,kings1 bad ,ministers1 bad         
,parliaments1 and bad ,judges was equal 
to the misery caused in a single  year  
by bad crowns and bad shillings4        
,whether ,whigs or ,tories1             
,protestants or ,papists were uppermost1
 the grazier drove his beasts to        

market1 the grocer weighed out his      
currants1 the draper measured out his   
broadcloth1 the hum of buyers and       
sellers was as loud as ever in the      
towns2 the cream overflowed the pails of
 ,cheshire2 the apple juice foamed  in  
the presses of ,herefordshire2 the piles
 of crockery glowed in the  furnaces of 
the ,trent1 and the barrows of coal     
rolled fast along the  timber railways  
of the ,tyne4  ,but when the great      
instrument of exchange  became          
thoroughly deranged all trade and all   
industry were smitten as  with a palsy4 
,nothing could be purchased without a   
dispute4  ,over every  counter there was
 wrangling from morning to night4  ,the 
employer and his  workmen had a quarrel 
as regularly as ,saturday night came    
round4  ,on a  fair day or a market day 
the clamours1 the disputes1 the         
reproaches1 the  taunts1 the curses1    
were incessant4  ,no merchant would     
contract to  deliver goods without      
making some stipulation about the       

quality of the  coin in which he was to 
be paid4  ,the price of the necessaries 
of life1  of shoes1 of ale1 of oatmeal1 
rose fast4  ,the bit of metal called a  
shilling the labourer found would not go
 so far as sixpence4  ,one day  ,tonson 
sends forty brass shillings to ,dryden1 
to say nothing of clipped  money4  ,the 
great poet sends them all back and      
demands in their place  good guineas4   
,i expect1 he says1 good silver1 not    
such as ,i had  formerly4  ,meanwhile1  
at every session of the ,old ,bailey the
 most  terrible example of coiners and  
clippers was made4  ,hurdles1 with four1
  five1 six wretches convicted of       
counterfeiting or mutilating the money  
of  the realm1 were dragged month after 
month up ,holborn ,hill4'  ,but ,i      
cannot  copy the whole chapter1         
wonderful as the writing is4  ,suffice  
it to say  that before the clippers     
could be rooted out1 and confidence     
restored  between buyer and seller1 the 
greatest statesmen1 the greatest        

financiers1 and the greatest            
philosophers were all at their wits'    
end4  ,kings' speeches1 cabinet         
councils1 bills of ,parliament1 and     
showers of  pamphlets were all full in  
those days of the clipper and the       
coiner4  ,all  ,john ,locke's great     
intellect came short of grappling       
successfully with  the terrible crisis  
the clipper of the coin had brought upon
 ,england4  ,carry all that1 then1 over 
into the life of personal religion1     
after the  manner of our ,lord's        
parables1 and after the manner of the   
,pilgrim's  ,progress and the ,holy     
,war1 and you will see what an able and 
impressive use ,john ,bunyan will make  
of the shears of the coin-clippers  of  
his day4  ,macaulay has but made us     
ready to open and understand  ,bunyan4  
',after this1 my ,lord apprehended      
,clip-,promise4  ,now1 because he  was a
 notorious villain1 for by his doings   
much of the king's coin was  abused1    
therefore he was made a public example4 

,he was arraigned and  judged to be set 
first in the pillory1 then to be whipped
 by all the  children and servants in   
,mansoul1 and then to be hanged till he 
was dead4  ,some may wonder at the      
severity of this man's punishment1 but  
those that  are honest traders in       
,mansoul they are sensible of the great 
abuse that  one clipper of promises in  
little time may do in the town of       
,mansoul2  and1 truly1 my judgment is   
that all those of his name and life     
should be  served out even as he4'      
,the grace of ,god is like a bullion    
mass of purest gold1 and then ,jesus    
,christ is the great ingot of that gold1
 and then ,moses1 and ,david1 and       
,isaiah1 and ,hosea1 and ,paul1 and     
,peter1 and ,john are the inspired      
artists  who have commission to take    
both bullion and ingot1 and out of them 
to  cut1 and beat1 and smelt1 and shape1
 and stamp1 and superscribe the         
promises1 and then to issue the promises
 to pass current in the market of       

salvation like so many shekels1 and     
pounds1 and pence1 and farthings1 and   
mites1 as the case may be4  ,and it was 
just these royal coins1 imaged and      
superscribed so richly and so           
beautifully1 that ,clip-,promise so     
mutilated1 abused1 and debased1 till for
 doing so he was hanged by the  neck    
till he was dead4    #a4  ,the very     
house of ,israel herself1 the very      
,mint-house1 ,tower ,hill1  and ,lombard
 ,street of ,israel herself1 was full of
 false coiners and  clippers of the     
promises2 as full as ever ,england was  
at her very worst4  ,israel clipped her 
,messianic promises and lived upon the  
clippings  instead of upon the coin4    
,her coming ,christ1 and ,his salvation 
already  begun1 were the true spiritual 
currency of ,old ,testament times2 while
  round that central ,image of her great
 promise there ran an outside rim of    
lesser promises that all took their true
 and their only value from ,him  whose  
image and superscription stood within4  

,but those besotted and  infatuated men 
of ,israel1 instead of entering into and
 living by the  great spiritual promises
 given to them in their ,messiah1 made  
lands1 and  houses1 and meat1 and drink1
 all the ,messiah they cared for4       
,matthew  ,henry says that when we go to
 the merchant to buy goods1 he gives us 
the  paper and the pack-thread to the   
bargain4  ,well1 those children and     
fools  in ,israel actually threw away   
the goods and hoarded and boasted over  
the  paper and the pack-thread4  ,our   
old ,scottish lawyers have made us      
familiar with the distinction in the    
church between spiritualia and          
temporalia4  ,well1 the ,jews let the   
spiritualia go to those who cared  to   
take such things1 while they held fast  
to the temporalia4  ,and all  that went 
on till ,his disciples had the          
effrontery to clip and coin under  our  
,lord's very eyes1 and even to ask ,him 
to hold the coin while they  sharpened  
their shears4  ',o faithless and        

perverse generation6  ,how long  shall  
,i be with you8  ,how long shall ,i     
suffer you8  ,have ,i been so long  with
 you1 and yet hast thou not known ,me1  
,philip8  ,o fools1 and slow of  heart  
to believe all that the prophets have   
spoken6  ,and beginning at  ,moses and  
all the prophets ,he expounded to them  
in all the ,scriptures the  things      
concerning ,himself4'    #b4  ,but those
 who live in glass houses must take care
 not to throw  stones4  ,and thus the   
greatest fool in ,israel is safe from   
you and me4  ,for1 like them1 and just  
as if we had never read one word about  
them1 we  bend our hearts and our       
children's hearts to things seen and    
temporal1  and then1 after things seen  
and temporal have all cast us off1 we   
begin  to ask if there is any solace or 
sweetness for a cast-off heart in things
  unseen and eternal4  ,there are great 
gaps clipt out of our ,bibles that  not 
,god ,himself can ever print or paste in
 again4  ,look and see if half  the     

,book of ,proverbs1 for instance1 with  
all its noble promises to a  godly      
youth1 is not clipt clean out of your   
dismembered ,bible4  ,that fine  leaf   
also1 ',my son1 give ,me thine heart1'  
is clean gone out of the twenty-  third 
chapter of the ,proverbs years and years
 ago4  ,as is the best part  of the     
noble ,book of ,daniel1 and almost the  
whole of ,second ,timothy4  ',seek ye   
first the ,kingdom of ,god and ,his     
righteousness1 and meat and  drink1 and 
wife and child shall be added unto you4'
  ,your suicidal shears  have cut that  
golden promise for ever out of your     
,sermon on the ,mount4  ,so  much so    
that if any or all of these temporal    
mercies ever come to you1  they will    
come of pure and undeserved mercy1 for  
the time has long passed  when you could
 plead any promise for them4  ,still1   
there are two most  excellent uses left 
to which you can even yet put your      
mangled and  dismembered ,bible4  ,you  
can make a splendid use of its gaps and 

of its  gashes1 and of those waste      
places where great promises at one time 
stood4  ,you can make a grand use even  
of those gaps if you will descend into  
them  and draw out of them humiliation  
and repentance1 compunction1 contrition1
  and resignation4  ,and this use also3 
,when you are moved to take some man    
who is still young into your confidence1
 ask him to let you see his ,bible  and 
then let him see yours1 and point out to
 him the rents and wounds and           
wilderness places in yours4  ,and thus1 
by these two uses of a clipped-up  and  
half-empty ,bible1 you may make gains   
that shall yet set you above  those     
whose ,bibles of promises are still as  
fresh as when they came from  ,god's own
 hand4  ,and ,samson said1 ,i will now  
put forth a riddle unto you3  ,out of   
the eater came forth meat1 and out of   
the strong came forth  sweetness4    #c4
  ',go out1' said the ,lord of ,mansoul1
 'and apprehend ,clip-,promise and      
bring him before me4'  ,and they did so4

  ',go down to ,edinburgh to-night1  and
 go to the door of such and such a      
church1 and1 as he comes out arrest     
,clip-the-,commandments1 for he has     
heard ,my word all this day again but   
will not do it4'  ,where would you be by
 midnight if ,god rose up in anger  and 
swore at this moment that your          
disobedient time should be no longer8   
,you would be speechless before such a  
charge1 for the shears are in your      
pocket at this moment with which you    
have clipped to pieces this ,sabbath-   
day3 shears red with the blood of the   
,fourth ,commandment4  ,for1 when did   
you rise off your bed this resurrection 
morning8  ,and what did you do  when you
 did rise8  ,what has your reading and  
your conversation been this  whole      
,lord's day8  ,how full your heart would
 have been of faith and love  and       
holiness by this time of night had you  
not despised the ,lord of the  ,sabbath1
 and cast all ,his commandments and     
opportunities to you behind  your back8 

,what private exercise have you had all 
day with your ,father  who sees in      
secret8  ,how often have you been on    
your knees1 and where1  and how long1   
and for what1 and for whom8  ,what work 
of mercy have you  done to-day1 or      
determined to do to-morrow8  ,and so    
with all the divine  commandments3      
,mosaic and ,christian1 legal and       
evangelical4  ,such as3 ,a  tenth of all
 ,i have given to thee2 a covenant with 
a wandering eye2 a  mouth once speaking 
evil1 is it now well watched8 not one   
vessel only1  but all the vessels of thy
 body sanctified till every thought and 
imagination is well under the obedience 
of ,christ4  ,lest ,his anger for  all  
that begin to burn to-night1 make your  
bed with ,eli and ,samuel in ,his       
sanctuary to-night1 lest the avenger of 
the blood of the commandments  leap out 
on you in your sleep6    #d4  ,the ,old 
,serpent took with him the great shears 
of hell1 and clipped  ',thou shalt      
surely die' out of the second chapter of

 ,genesis4  ,and the  same enemy of     
mankind will clip all the terror of the 
,lord out of your  heart to-night again1
 if he can4  ,and he will do it in this 
way1 if he  can4  ,he will have some one
 at the church door ready and waiting   
for you4  ,as soon as the blessing is   
pronounced1 some one will take you by   
the arm  and will entertain you with the
 talk you love1 or that you once loved1 
till you will be ashamed to confess that
 there is any terror or turning  to ,god
 in your heart4  ,no6  ,thou shalt not  
surely die1 says the serpent  still4    
,why1 hast thou not trampled ,sabbaths  
and sermons past counting  under thy    
feet8  ,what commandment1 laid on body  
or soul1 hast thou not  broken1 and thou
 art still adding drunkenness to thirst1
 and ,god doth not  know6  ',the woman  
said unto the serpent1 ,we may not eat  
of it1 neither  may we touch it1 lest we
 die4  ,and the serpent said unto the   
woman1 ,ye  shall not surely die4'      
#e4  ,you must all have heard of ,clito1

 who used to say that he desired no     
more time for rising and dressing and   
saying his prayers than about a  quarter
 of an hour4  ,well1 that was clipping  
the thing pretty close1  wasn't it8  ,at
 the same time it must be admitted that 
a good deal of  prayer may be got       
through in a quarter of an hour if you  
do not lose any  moment of it4          
,especially in the first quarter of the 
day1 if you are  expeditious enough to  
begin to pray before you even begin to  
dress4  ,and  prayer is really a very   
strange experience4  ,there are things  
about  prayer that no man has yet fully 
found out or told to any4  ,for one     
thing1 once well began it grows upon a  
man in a most extraordinary and         
unheard-of way4  ,this same ,clito for  
instance1 some time after we find  him  
at his prayers before his eyes are open2
 and then he keeps all  morning making  
his bath1 his soap1 his towels1 his     
brushes1 and his  clothes all one long  
artifice of prayer4  ,and that till     

there is not a  single piece of his     
dressing-room furniture that is not     
ready to swear at  the last day that its
 master long before he died had become a
 man full of  secret prayer4  ,there is 
a fountain filled with blood6 he        
exclaims1 as he  throws himself into his
 bath2 and ,jeremiah second and         
twenty-second he  uses regularly to     
repeat to himself half a dozen times a  
day as he washes  the smoke and dust of 
the city off his hands and face4  ,and  
then  ,revelation third and eighteenth  
till his toilet is completed4  ,nay1    
this  same ,clito has come to be such a 
devotee to that he had at one time been 
so expeditious with1 that ,i have seen  
him forget himself on the street  and   
think that his door was shut4  ,but     
there is really no use telling you  all 
that about ,clito4  ,for1 till you try  
closet-prayer for yourself1 all  that   
,god or man can say to you on that      
subject will be water spilt on the      
ground4  ,all we can say is1 ,try it4   

,begin it4  ,some desperate day try  it4
  ,stop when you are on the way to the  
pond and try it4  ,stop when you  are   
fastening up the rope and try it4  ,when
 the poison is moving in the  cup1 stop1
 shut your door first4  ,try ,god first4
  ,see if ,he is still  waiting4  ,and1 
always after1 when the steel shears of a
 too early1 too  crowded1 and far too   
exacting day are clipping you out of all
 time for  prayer1 then what should you 
do8  ,what do you do when you simply    
cannot  get your proper fresh air and   
exercise everyday8  ,do you not fall    
back on  the plasticity and pliability  
of nature and take your air and exercise
 in  large parcels8  ,you take a ride   
into the country two or three times a   
week4  ,or1 two afternoons a week you   
have ten miles alone if you cannot  get 
a godly friend4  ,and then two or three 
times a year1 if you can  afford it1 you
 climb an ,alp or a ,grampian every day 
for a week or a  month2 and1 so gracious
 and so adaptable is human nature1 that1

 what  others get daily1 you get weekly1
 or monthly1 or quarterly1 or yearly4   
,and1 though a soul is not to be too    
much presumed upon1 ,clito came to  tell
 his friends that his soul could on     
occasion take in prayer and  praise     
enough for a week in a single morning or
 afternoon1 and1 almost1  for a whole   
year in a good holiday4  ,as ,christ    
,himself did when ,he said3  ,come away 
apart into a desert place and rest a    
while2 for there are so  many people    
coming and going here that we have no   
time so much as to eat4    #f4  ,but ,i 
see ,i must clip off my last point with 
you1 which was to tell  you what you    
already know only too well1 and that is1
 what terrible  shears a bad conscience 
is armed with1 and what havoc she makes 
at all  ages of a poor sinner's ,bible4 
,but you can spare that head4  ,you can 
preach on that text to yourselves far   
better than all your ministers4  ,only1 
take home with you these two lines ,i   
have clipped out of ,fraser of  ,brea   

for you4  ,nothing in man1 he says to   
us1 is to be a ground of  despair1 since
 the whole ground of all our hope is in 
,christ alone4  ,christ's relation is   
always to men as they are sinners and   
not as they  are righteous4  ,i came not
 to call the righteous1 but sinners to  
repentance4  ',tis with sinners1 then1  
,christ has to do4  ,nothing damns  but 
unbelief2 and unbelief is just holding  
back from pressing ,god with  this      
promise1 that ,christ came to save      
sinners4  ,this is a faithful  saying1  
and worthy of all acceptation1 and it is
 still to be found  standing in the most
 clipped-up ,bible1 that ,christ ,jesus 
came into the  world to save sinners2 of
 whom ,i am chief4          ,,chapter   
,,xi--,,stiff ,,mr4 ,,loth-,,to-,,stoop 
',thy neck is an iron sinew4'--,jehovah 
to the house of ,jacob4       ',king    
,zedekiah humbled not himself1 but      
stiffened his neck4'--,the              
,chronicles4       ',he humbled         
himself4'--,paul on our ,lord4    ,all  

,john ,bunyan's ,characters1            
,situations1 and ,episodes are collected
 into  this house to-night4  ,obstinate 
and ,pliable are here2 ,passion and     
,patience2 ,simple1 ,sloth1 and         
,presumption2 ,madame ,bubble and ,mr4  
,worldly-  wiseman2 ,talkative and      
,by-ends2 ,deaf ,mr4 ,prejudice is here 
also1 and1  sitting close beside him1   
stiff ,mr4 ,loth-to-stoop2 while good   
old ,mr4 ,wet-  eyes and young ,captain 
,self-denial are not wholly wanting4    
,it gives this  house an immense and an 
ever-green interest to me to see        
character after  character coming       
trooping in1 ,sabbath evening after     
,sabbath evening1 each  man to see      
himself and his neighbour in ,john      
,bunyan's so truthful and so  fearless  
glass4  ,but it stabs me to the heart   
with a mortal stab to see  how few of us
 out of this weekly congregation are any
 better men after  all we come to see   
and to hear4  ,at the same time1 such a 
constant  dropping will surely in time  

wear away the hardest rock4  ,let that  
so  stiff old man1 then1 stiff old ,mr4 
,loth-to-stoop1 came forward and behold 
his natural face in ,john ,bunyan's     
glass again to-night4  ',lord1 is it    
,i8'  was a very good question1 though  
put by a very bad man4  ,let us1 one and
  all1 then1 put the traitor's question 
to ourselves to-night4  ,am ,i stiff    
old ,loth-to-stoop8--let every man in   
this house say to himself all  through  
this service1 and then at home when     
reviewing the day1 and then  all        
to-morrow when to stoop will be so      
loathsome and so impossible to us  all4 
#a4  ,to begin1 then1 at the very bottom
 of this whole matter1 take stiff  old  
,loth-to-stoop as a guilty sinner in the
 sight of ,god4  ,let us take  this     
stiff old man in this dreadful character
 to begin with1 because it  is in this  
deepest and most dreadful aspect of his 
nature and his  character that he is    
introduced to us in the ,holy ,war4     
,and ,i shall  stand aside and let ,john

 ,bunyan himself describe ,loth-to-stoop
 in the  matter of his justification    
before ,god4  ',that is a great stoop   
for a  sinner to have to take1' says our
 apostolic author in another classical  
place1 'a too great stoop to have to    
suffer the total loss of all his own    
righteousness1 and1 actually1 to have to
 look to another for absolutely         
everything of that kind4  ,that is no   
easy matter for any man to do4  ,i      
assure you it stretches every vein in   
his heart before he will be brought  to 
yield to that4  ,what6 for a man to     
deny1 reject1 abhor1 and throw away  all
 his prayers1 tears1 alms1 keeping of   
,sabbaths1 hearing1 reading1 and  all   
the rest1 and to admit both himself and 
them to be abominable and  accursed1 and
 to be willing in the very midst of his 
sins to throw  himself wholly upon the  
righteousness and obedience of another  
man6  ,i  say to do that in deed and in 
truth is the biggest piece of the cross1
  and therefore it is that ,paul calls  

it a suffering4  ,i have suffered the   
loss of all things that ,i might win    
,christ1 and be found in ,him1 not      
having mine own righteousness4'  ,that  
is ,john ,bunyan's characteristic       
comment on stiff old ,loth-to-stoop as a
 guilty sinner1 with the offer of  a    
full forgiveness set before him4    #b4 
,and then our so truthful and so fertile
 author goes on to give us              
,loth-to-stoop as a half-saved sinner2 a
 sinner1 that is1 trying to make  his   
own terms with ,god about his full      
salvation4  ,through three most         
powerful pages we see stiff old         
,loth-to-stoop engaged in beating down  
,god's unalterable terms of salvation1  
and in bidding for his full  salvation  
upon his own reduced and easy terms4    
,it was the tremendous  stoop of the    
,son of ,god from the throne of ,god to 
the cradle and the  carpenter's shop2   
and then1 as if that were not enough1 it
 was that other  tremendous stoop of    
,his down to the ,garden and the        

,cross1--it was these  two so tremendous
 stoops of ,jesus ,christ that made     
stiff old  ,loth-to-stoop's salvation   
even possible4  ,but1 with all that1 his
 true  salvation was not possible       
without stoop after stoop of his own2   
stoop  after stoop which1 if not so     
tremendous as those of ,christ1 were yet
  tremendous enough1 and too tremendous1
 for him4  ,old ,loth-to-stoop  carries 
on a long and a bold debate with        
,emmanuel in order to lessen the  stoop 
that ,emmanuel demands of him2 and your 
own life and mine1 my  brethren1 at     
their deepest and at their closest to   
our own heart1 are  really at bottom1   
like ,loth-to-stoop's life1 one long    
roup of salvation1  in which ,god tries 
to get us up to ,his terms and in which 
we try to get  ,him down to our terms4  
,his terms are1 that we shall sell      
absolutely all  that we have for the    
salvation of our souls2 and our terms   
are1 salvation  or no salvation1 to keep
 all that we have and to seek every day 

for more4  ,god absolutely demands that 
we shall stoop to the very dust every   
day1  till we become the poorest1 the   
meanest1 the most despicable1 and the   
most hopeless of men2 whereas we meet   
that divine demand with the proud       
reply--,is ,thy servant a dog8  ,it was 
with this offended mind that stiff  old 
,loth-to-stoop at last left off from    
,emmanuel's presence2 he would die      
rather than come down to such degrading 
terms4  ,and as ,loth-to-stoop went     
away1 ,emmanuel looked after him1 well  
remembering the terrible night when  ,he
 ,himself was1 not indeed like          
,loth-to-stoop1 nor near like him1 but  
when ,his own last stoop was so deep    
that it made ,him cry out1 ,father1     
save ,me from this hour6 and again1 ,if 
it be possible let this so  tremendous  
stoop pass from ,me4  ,for a moment     
,emmanuel ,himself was loth to  stoop1  
but only for a moment4  ,for ,he soon   
rose from off ,his face in a  bath of   
blood1 saying1 ,not ,my will1 but ,thine

 be done6  ,when ,thomas ,a  ,kempis is 
negotiating with the ,loth-to-stoops of 
his unevangelical day1  we hear him     
saying to them things like this3 ',jesus
 ,christ was despised  of men1 forsaken 
of ,his friends and lovers1 and in the  
midst of slanders4  ,he was willing1    
under ,his ,father's will1 to suffer and
 to be despised1  and darest thou to    
complain of any man's usage of thee8    
,christ1 thy  ,master1 had enemies and  
back-biters1 and dost thou expect to    
have all men  to be thy friends and     
benefactors8  ,whence shall thy patience
 attain her  promised crown if no       
adversity befall thee8  ,suffer thou    
with ,jesus  ,christ1 and for ,his sake1
 if thou wouldst reign with ,him4  ,set 
thyself1  therefore1 to bear manfully   
the cross of thy ,lord1 who1 out of     
love1 was  crucified for thee4  ,know   
for certain that thou must lead a daily 
dying  life4  ,and the more that thou   
diest to thyself all that the more shalt
  thou live unto ,god4'  ,with many such

 words as these did ,thomas teach the   
saints of his day to stoop to their     
daily cross2 a daily cross then1  which 
has now been for long to him and to them
 an everlasting crown4    #c4  ,and     
speaking of ,a ,kempis1 and having      
lately read some of his most  apposite  
chapters1 such as that on the ,holy     
,fathers and that on ,obedience  and    
,subjection1 leads me on to look at     
,loth-to-stoop when he enters the       
sacred ministry1 as he sometimes does4  
,when a half-converted1  half-subdued1  
half-saved sinner gets himself called to
 the sacred  ministry his office will   
either greatly hasten on his salvation1 
or else  it will greatly hinder and     
endanger it4  ,he will either stoop down
 every  day to deeper and ever deeper   
depths of humility1 or he will tower up 
in  pride of office and in pride of     
heart past all hope of humility1 and    
thus  of salvation4  ,the holy ministry 
is a great nursing-house of pride as we 
see in a long line of popes1 and        

prelates1 and priests1 and other lords  
over ,god's heritage4  ,and our own     
,presbyterian polity1 while it hands    
down to us the simplicity1 the unity1   
the brotherhood1 and the humility  of   
the apostolic age1 at the same time     
leaves plenty of temptation and  plenty 
of opportunity for the pride of the     
human heart4  ,our preaching  and       
pastoral office1 when it is aright laid 
to our hearts1 will always  make us the 
meekest and the humblest of men1 even   
when we carry the most  magnificent of  
messages4  ,but when our own hearts are 
not right the very  magnificence of our 
message1 and the very authority of our  
,master1 become  all so many subtle     
temptations to pride1 pique1            
self-importance1 and  lothness-to-stoop4
  ,with so much still to learn1 how slow
 we ministers  are to stoop to learn6   
,how still we stand1 and even go back1  
when all  other men are going forward6  
,how few of us have made the noble      
resolution of ,jonathan ,edwards3       

',resolved1' he wrote1 'that1 as old men
  have seldom any advantage of new      
discoveries because these are beside a  
way of thinking they have been long used
 to3 resolved1 therefore1 if ever  ,i   
live to years1 that ,i shall be         
impartial to hear the reasons of all    
pretended discoveries1 and to receive   
them1 if rational how long soever ,i    
have been used to another way of        
thinking4'  ,let all ministers1 then1   
young and old1 resolve to stoop with    
,jonathan ,edwards1 who shines1 in his  
life and in his works1 like the cherubim
 with knowledge1 and burns like  the    
seraphim with love4    ,and then1 when1 
not having so resolved1 our thin vein of
 youthful  knowledge and experience has 
been worked to the rock2 when grey hairs
 are  here and there upon us1 how slow  
we are to stoop to that6  ,how unwilling
  we are to let it light on our hearts  
that our time is past2 that we are  no  
longer able to understand1 or interest1 
or attract the young2 and1  besides1    

that that is not all their blame1 no1   
nor ours either1 but  simply the order  
and method of ,divine ,providence4  ,how
 slow we are to see  that ,divine       
,providence has other men standing ready
 to take up our work  if we would only  
humbly lay it down2--how loth we are to 
stoop to see all  that6  ,how unwilling 
we are to make up our minds1 we old and 
ageing  ministers1 and to humble our    
hearts to accept an assistant or to     
submit  to a colleague to stand         
alongside of us in our unaccomplished   
work6    #d4  ,in public life also1 as  
we call it1 what disasters to the state1
 to  the services1 and to society1 are  
constantly caused by this same ,loth-to-
  stoop6  ,when he holds any public     
office2 when he becomes the leader of a 
party2 when he is promoted to be an     
adviser of the ,crown2 when he is put   
at the head of a fleet of ships1 or of  
an army of men1 what untold evils  does 
,loth-to-stoop bring both on himself and
 on the nation6  ,an old  statesman will

 have committed himself to some line of 
legislation or of  administration2 a    
great captain will have committed       
himself to some  manoeuvre of a squadron
 or of a division1 or to some plan of   
battle1 and  some subordinate will have 
discovered the error his leader has     
made1 and  will be bold to point it out 
to him4  ,but stiff old ,loth-to-stoop  
has  taken his line and has passed his  
word4  ,his honour1 as he holds it1 is  
committed to this announced line of     
action2 and1 if the ,crown itself       
should perish before his policy1 he will
 not stoop to change it4  ,how  often   
you see that in great affairs as well as
 in small4  ,how seldom you  see a      
public man openly confessing that he has
 hitherto all along been  wrong1 and    
that he has at last and by others been  
set right4  ,not once in  a generation4 
,but even that once redeems public life2
 it ennobles public  life2 and it saves 
the nation and the sovereign who possess
 such a true  patriot4  ,consistency and

 courage1 independence and dignity1 are 
high-  sounding words2 but openness of  
mind1 teachableness1 diffidence1 and    
humility always go with true nobility as
 well as with ultimate success  and     
lasting honour4          ,,chapter      
,,xii--,,that ,,varlet ,,ill-,,pause1   
,,the ,,devil',s ,,orator         ',i   
made haste and delayed not4'--,david4   
,john ,bunyan shall himself introduce1  
describe1 and characterise this  varlet1
 this devil's ally and accomplice1 this 
ancient enemy of ,mansoul1  whose name  
is ,ill-pause4  ,well1 this same        
,ill-pause1 says our author1 was  the   
orator of ,diabolus on all difficult    
occasions1 nor took ,diabolus any  other
 one with him on difficult occasions1   
but just ,ill-pause alone4  ,and  always
 when ,diabolus had any special plot    
a-foot against ,mansoul1 and  when the  
thing went as ,diabolus would have it   
go1 then would ,ill-pause  stand up1 for
 he was ,diabolus his orator4  ,when    
,mansoul was under siege  of ,emmanuel  

his four noble captains sent a message  
to the men of the town  that if they    
would only throw ,ill-pause over the    
wall to them1 that they  might reward   
him according to his works1 then they   
would hold a parley  with the city2 but 
if this varlet was to be let live in the
 city1 then1  why1 the city must see to 
the consequences4  ,at which ,diabolus1 
who was  there present1 was loth to lose
 his orator1 because1 had the four      
captains once laid their fingers on     
,ill-pause1 be sure his master had  lost
 his orator4  ,and1 then1 in the last   
assault1 we read that ,ill-pause1  the  
orator that came along with ,diabolus1  
he also received a grievous  wound in   
the head1 some say that his brain-pan   
was cracked4  ,this1 at any  rate1 ,i   
have taken notice of1 that never after  
this was he able to do  that mischief to
 ,mansoul as he had done in times past4 
,and then there  was also at ,eye-gate  
that ,ill-pause of whom you have heard  
before4  ,the  same was he that was     

orator to ,diabolus4  ,he did much      
mischief to the  town of ,mansoul1 till 
at last he fell by the hand of the      
,captain ,good-  hope4    #a4  ,well1 to
 begin with1 this ,ill-pause was a      
filthy ,diabolonian varlet2  a          
treacherous and a villainous old varlet1
 the author of the ,holy ,war  calls    
him4  ,now1 what is a varlet8  ,well1 a 
varlet is just a broken-down  old valet4
  ,a varlet is a valet who has come     
down1 and down1 and down1  and down     
again in the world1 till1 from once     
having been the servant and  the trusty 
friend of the very best of masters1 he  
has come to be the ally  and accomplice 
of the very worst of masters4  ,his     
first name1 the name of  his first      
office1 still sticks to him1 indeed2    
but1 like himself1 and  with himself1   
his name has become depraved and        
corrupted till you would  not know it4  
,a varlet1 then1 is just short and sharp
 for a scoundrel who  is ready for      
anything2 and the worse the thing is the

 more ready he is  for it4  ,there are  
riff-raff and refuse always about who   
are ready to  volunteer for any         
filibustering expedition2 and that full 
as much for the  sheer devilry of the   
enterprise as for any real profit it is 
to be to  themselves4  ,wherever        
mischief is to be done1 there your true 
varlet is  sure to turn up4  ,well1 just
 such a land-shark was this ,ill-pause1 
who  was such an ally and accomplice to 
,diabolus that he had need for no       
other4  ,what possible certificate in   
evil could exceed this--that the  devil 
took not any with him when he went out  
on his worst errand but this  same      
,ill-pause1 who was his orator on all   
his most difficult occasions8    #b4    
,ill-pause was a varlet1 then1 and he   
was also an orator4  ,now1 an  orator1  
as you know1 is a great speaker4  ,an   
orator is a man who has the  excellent  
and influential gift of public speech4  
,and on great occasions  in public life 
when people are to be instructed1 and   

impressed1 and  moved1 and won over1    
then the great orator sets up his       
platform4  ,quintilian teaches us in his
 ,institutes that it is only a good man 
who  can be a really great orator4      
,what would that fine writer have said  
had  he lived to read the ,holy ,war1   
and seen the most successful of all     
orators that ever opened a mouth1 and   
who was all the time a diabolical  old  
varlet8  ,what would the author of ,the 
,education of an ,orator have  said to  
that8  ,diabolus did not on every       
occasion bring up his great  orator     
,ill-pause4  ,he did not always come up 
himself1 and he did not  always send up 
,ill-pause4  ,it was only on difficult  
occasions that both  ,diabolus and his  
orator also came up4  ,you do not hear  
your great  preachers every ,sabbath4   
,they would not long remain great       
preachers1 and  you would soon cease to 
pay any attention to them1 if they were 
always in  the pulpit4  ,neither do you 
have your great orators at every street 

corner4  ,their masters only build      
theatres for them when some great       
occasion arises in the land1 and when   
the best wisdom must straightway be     
spoken to the people and in the best    
way4  ,then you bring up ,quintilian's  
orator if you have him at your call4    
,as ,diabolus has done from time to     
time with his great and almost always   
successful orator ,ill-pause4  ,on      
difficult occasions he came himself on  
the scene and ,ill-pause with him4  ,on 
such difficult occasions as in the      
,garden of ,eden2 as when ,noah was     
told to make haste and build an ark2 as 
also when ,abraham was told to  make    
haste and leave his father's house2 when
 ,jacob was bid remember and  pay the   
vow he had made when his trouble was    
upon him2 as also when  ,joseph had to  
flee for what was better than life2 and 
on that memorable  occasion when ,david 
sent ,joab out against ,rabbah1 but     
,david tarried still  at ,jerusalem4    
,on all these essential1 first-class1   

and difficult  occasions the old serpent
 brought up ,ill-pause4  ,as also when  
our ,lord  was in the wilderness2 when  
,he set ,his face to go up to           
,jerusalem2 when  ,he saw certain       
,greeks among them that came up to the  
passover2 as also  again and again in   
the ,garden4  ,as also on crucial       
occasions in your own  life4  ,as when  
you had been told not to eat1 not to    
touch1 and not even  to look at the     
forbidden fruit1 then ,ill-pause1 the   
devil's orator1 came  to you and said   
that it was a tree to be desired4  ,and1
 you shall not  surely die4  ,as also   
when you were moved to terror and to    
tears under a  ,sabbath1 or under a     
sermon1 or at some death-bed1 or on your
 own sick-  bed--,ill-pause got you to  
put off till a more convenient season   
your  admitted need of repentance and   
reformation and peace with ,god4  ,on   
such  difficult occasions as these the  
devil took ,ill-pause to help him with  
you1 and the result1 from the devil's   

point of view1 has justified his        
confidence in his orator4  ,when        
,ill-pause gets his new honours paid him
  in hell2 when there is a new joy in   
hell over another sinner that has not   
yet repented1 your name will be heard   
sounding among the infernal cheers4     
,just think of your baptismal name and  
your pet name at home giving them  joy  
to-night at their supper in hell6  ,and 
yet one would not at first  sight think 
that such triumphs and such toasts1 such
 medals1 and clasps1  and garters were  
to be won on earth or in hell just by   
saying such simple-  sounding and such  
commonplace things as those are for     
which ,ill-pause  receives his          
decorations4  ',take time1' he says4    
',yes1' he admits1 'but  there is no    
such hurry2 to-morrow will do2 next year
 will do2 after you  are old will do    
quite as well4  ,the darkness shall     
cover you1 and your  sin will not find  
you out4  ,christ died for sin1 and it  
is a faithful  saying that ,his blood   

will cleanse you later on from all this 
sin4'  ,everyday and well-known words1  
indeed1 but a true orator is seen in    
nothing more than in this1 that he can  
take up what everybody knows and  says1 
and put it so as to carry everybody     
captive4  ,one of ,quintilian's  own    
orators has said that a great speaker   
only gives back to his hearers  in flood
 what they have already given to him in 
vapour4    #c4  ',i was always pleased1'
 says ,calvin1 'with that saying of     
,chrysostom1  ,the foundation of our    
philosophy is humility2 and yet more    
pleased with  that of ,augustine3 ,as1  
says he1 the rhetorician being asked1   
,what was  the first thing in the rules 
of eloquence8 he answered1              
,pronunciation2  what was the second8   
,pronunciation2 what was the third8 and 
still he  answered1 ,pronunciation4  ,so
 if you would ask me concerning the     
precepts  of the ,christian religion1 ,i
 would answer1 firstly1 secondly1       
thirdly1  and for ever1 ,humility4'     

,and when ,ill-pause opened his         
elocutionary  school for the young      
orators of hell1 he is reported to have 
said this to  them in his opening       
address1 ',there are only three things  
in my school1'  he said2 'three rules1  
and no more to be called rules4  ,the   
first is  ,delay1 the second is ,delay1 
and the third is ,delay4  ,study the art
 of  delay1 my sons2 make all your      
studies to tell on how to make the fools
  delay4  ,only get those to whom your  
master sends you to delay1 and you  will
 not need to envy me my laurels2 you    
will soon have a shining crown  of your 
own4  ,get the father to delay teaching 
his little boy how to  pray4  ,get him  
on any pretext you can invent to put off
 speaking in  private to his son about  
his soul4  ,get him to delegate all that
 to the  minister4  ,and then by hook or
 by crook get that son as he grows up to
  put off the ,lord's ,supper4  ,and    
after that you will easily get him to   
put  off purity and prayer till he is a 

married man and at the head of a  house4
  ,only get the idea of a more          
convenient season well into their       
heads1 and their game is up1 and your   
spurs are won4  ,take their arm in      
yours1 as ,i used to do1 at their church
 door1 if you are posted there1  and say
 to them as they come out that to-morrow
 will be time enough to  give what they 
had thought of giving while they were   
still in their pew  and the minister or 
missionary was still in the pulpit4     
,only1 as you  value your master's      
praises and the applause of all this    
place1 keep  them1 at any cost1 from    
striking while the iron is hot4  ,let   
them fill  their hearts1 and their      
mouths too1 if it gives them any        
comfort1 with  the best intentions2     
only1 my scholars1 remember that the    
beginning and  middle and end of your   
office is by hook or by crook to secure 
delay4'  ,and a great crop of young     
orators sprang up ready for their work  
under  that teaching and out of the     

persuasionary school of ,ill-pause4  ,in
 fine1  ,mansoul desired some time in   
which to prepare its answer4'    ,there 
are many men among ourselves who have   
been bedevilled out of their  best life1
 out of the salvation of their souls1   
and out of all that  constitutes and    
accompanies salvation now for many      
years4  ,and still  their sin-deceived  
hearts are saying to them to-night1     
,take time6  ,for  many years1 every new
 year1 every birthday1 and1 for a long  
time1 every  ,communion-day1 they were  
just about to be done with their        
besetting sin2  and now all the years   
lie behind them1 one long downward road 
all paved1  down to this ,sabbath night1
 with the best intentions4  ,and1 still1
 as if  that were not enough1 that same 
varlet is squat at their ear4  ,well1 my
  very miserable brother1 you have long 
talked about the end of an old year  and
 the beginning of a new year as being   
your set time for repentance and  for   
reformation4  ,let all the weight of    

those so many remorseful years  fall on 
your heart at the close of this year1   
and at last compel you to  take the step
 that should have been taken1 oh6 so    
many unhappy years ago6  ,go straight   
home then1 to-night1 shut your door1    
and1 after so many  desecrated ,sabbath 
nights1 ,god will still meet you in your
 secret  chamber4  ,as soon as you shut 
your door ,god will be with you1 and you
  will be with ,god4  ,with ,,god6      
,think of it1 my brother1 and the thing 
is  done4  ,with ,,god6  ,and then tell 
,him all4  ,and if any one knocks at    
your  door1 say that there is ,some ,one
 with you to-night1 and that you cannot 
come down4  ,and continue till you have 
told it all to ,god4  ,he knows it  all 
already2 but that is one of ,ill-pause's
 sophistries still in your  heart4      
,tell your ,father it all4  ,tell ,him  
how many years it is4  ,tell  ,him all  
that you so well remember over all those
 wild1 miserable1 mad1  remorseful      
years4  ,tell ,him that you have not had

 one really happy1 one  really satisfied
 day all those years1 and tell ,him that
 you have spent  all1 and are now no    
longer a young man2 youth and health and
 self-respect  and self-command are all 
gone1 till you are a shipwreck rather   
than a  man4  ,and tell ,him that if ,he
 will take you back that you are        
to-night at  ,his feet4    #d4  ',we    
seldom overcome any one vice perfectly1'
 complains ,a ,kempis4  ,and1  again1   
',if only every new year we would root  
out but one vice4'  ,well1  now1 what do
 you say to that1 my true and very      
brethren8  ,what do you say  to that8   
,here we are1 by ,god's grace and       
long-suffering to usward1 near  the end 
of another year1 another vicious year2  
and why have we been borne  with through
 so many vicious years but that we      
should now cease from vice  and begin to
 learn virtue8  ,why are we here over   
,ill-pause this ,sabbath  night8  ,why1 
but that we should shake off that varlet
 liar before another  new year4  ,that  

is the whole reason why we have been    
spared to see this  ,sabbath night4     
,god decreed it for us that we should   
have this text and  this discourse here 
to-night1 and that is the reason why you
 and ,i have  been so unaccountably     
spared so long4  ,let us select one vice
 for the axe  then to-night1 and give   
,god in heaven the satisfaction of      
seeing that ,his  long-suffering with us
 has not been wholly in vain4  ,let us  
lay the axe  at one vice from this      
night4  ,and what one from among so many
 shall it  be8  ,what is the mockery of 
preaching if a preacher does not        
practise8  ,and1 accordingly1 ,i have   
selected one vice out of my thicket for 
next  year4  ,will you do the same8     
,the secret of the ,lord is with them   
that  fear ,him4  ,just make your       
selection and keep it to yourself1 at   
least  till you are able this time next 
year to say to us--,come1 all ye that   
fear ,god1 and ,i will tell you what ,he
 hath done for my soul4  ,yes1 come  on1

 and from this day all your days on     
earth1 and all the days of  eternity1   
you will thank ,god for ,john ,bunyan   
and his ,holy ,war and his  ,ill-pause4 
,make your selection1 then1 for your new
 axe4  ,attack some one  sin at this so 
auspicious season4  ,swear before ,god1 
and unknown to all  men--swear sure     
death1 and that without any more delay1 
to that selected  sin4  ,never once1 all
 your days1 do that sin again4          
,determine never once  to do it again4  
,determine that by prayer1 by secret1   
and at the same  time outspoken1 prayer 
on your knees4  ,determine it by faith  
in the  cleansing blood and renewing    
spirit of ,jesus ,christ4  ,determine it
 by  fear of instant death1 and by sure 
hope of everlasting life4  ,determine   
it by reasons1 and motives1 and         
arguments1 and encouragements known to  
no-  one but yourself1 and to be        
suspected by no human being4  ,name the 
doomed  sin4  ,denounce it4  ,execrate  
it4  ,execute it4  ,draw a line across  

your  short and uncertain life1 and say 
to that besetting and presumptuous sin1 
,hitherto1 and no further6  ,do not say 
you cannot do it4  ,you can if you  only
 will4  ,you can if you only choose4    
,and smiting down that one sin  will    
loosen and shake down the whole evil    
fabric of sin4  ,breaking but  that one 
link will break the whole of ,satan's   
snare and evil fetter4  ,here  is ,a    
,kempis's forest of vices out of which  
he hewed down one every year4  ,restless
 lust1 outward senses1 empty phantoms1  
always longing to get1  always sparing  
to give1 careless as to talk1 unwilling 
to sit silent1  eager for food1 wakeful 
for news1 weary of a good book1 quick to
 anger1  easy of offence at my          
neighbour1 and too ready to judge him1  
too merry  over prosperity1 and too     
gloomy1 fretful1 and peevish in         
adversity2 so  often making good rules  
for my future life1 and coming so little
 speed  with them all1 and so on4  ,and1
 in facing even such a terrible thicket 

as  that1 let not even an old man       
absolutely despair4  ,at forty1 at      
sixty1 at  threescore and ten1 let not  
an old penitent despair4  ,only take axe
 in  hand and see if the sun does not   
stand still upon ,gibeon1 and the moon  
in  the valley of ,ajalon till you have 
avenged yourself on your enemies4  ,and 
always when you stop to wipe your brow1 
and to whet the edge of your axe1  and  
to wet your lips with water1 keep on    
saying things like those of  another    
great sinner deep in his thicket of     
vice1 say this3 ,o ,god1 he  said1 ,thou
 hast not cut off as a weaver my life1  
nor from day even to  night hast ,thou  
made an end of me4  ,but ,thou hast     
vouchsafed to me life  and breath even  
to this hour from childhood1 youth1 and 
hitherto even  unto old age4  ,he       
holdeth our soul in life1 and suffereth 
not our feet to  slide1 rescuing me from
 perils1 sicknesses1 poverty1 bondage1  
public  shame1 evil chances2 keeping me 
from perishing in my sins1 and waiting  

patiently for my full conversion4       
,glory be to ,thee1 ,o ,lord1 glory to  
,thee1 for ,thine incomprehensible and  
unimaginable goodness toward me of  all 
sinners far and away the most unworthy4 
,the voices and the concert  of voices  
of angels and men be to ,thee2 the      
concert of all thy saints in  heaven and
 of all ,thy creatures in heaven and on 
earth2 and of me1  beneath their feet an
 unworthy and wretched sinner1 ,thy     
abject creature2  my praise also1 now1  
in this day and hour1 and every day till
 my last  breath1 and till the end of   
this world1 and then to all eternity1   
where  they cease not saying1 ,to ,him  
who loved us1 ,amen6          ,,chapter 
,,xiii--,,mr4                           
,,penny-,,wise-,,and-,,pound-,,foolish1 
,,and ,,mr4                             
,,get-,i'-,,the-,,hundred-,,and-,,lose-,
i'-,,the-,,shire         ',for1 what    
shall it profit a man1 if he shall gain 
the whole world1     and lose his own   
soul8'--,our ,lord4    ,this whole world

 is the penny1 and our own souls are the
 pound4  ,this  whole world is the      
hundred1 while heaven itself is the     
shire4  ,and the  question this evening 
is1 ,are we wise in the penny and       
foolish in the  pound8  ,and1 are we    
getting in the hundred and losing in the
 shire8    #a4  ,well1 then1 to begin at
 the beginning1 we are already begun to 
be  penny-wise and pound-foolish with   
our children when we are so particular  
with them about their saying their      
little prayers night and morning1  while
 all the time we are so inattentive and 
so indolent to explain to  them how they
 are to pray1 what they are to pray for1
 and how they are to  wait and how long 
they are to wait for the things they    
pray for4  ,then1  again1 we are        
penny-wise and pound-foolish with our   
children when we  train them up into all
 the proprieties and etiquettes of      
family and  social life1 and at the same
 time pay so little attention to their  
inward  life of opening thought and     

quickening desire and awakening passion4
  ,when  we are so eager also for our   
children to be great with great people1 
without much regard to the moral and    
religious character of those great      
people1 then again we are like a man who
 may be wise for a penny1 but is        
certainly a fool for a pound4  ,when we 
prefer the gay and the fashionable      
world to the intellectual1 the          
religious1 and the philanthropical world
  for our children1 then we lose both   
the penny and the pound as well4        
,almost as much as we do when we accept 
the penny of wealth and station  and    
so-called connection for a son or a     
daughter1 in room of the pound of       
character1 and intelligence1 and        
personal religion4    ,then1 again1 even
 in our own religious life we are       
ourselves often and  notoriously wise in
 the penny and foolish in the pound4    
,as1 for  instance1 when we are so      
scrupulous and so conscientious about   
forms and  ceremonies1 about times and  

places1 and so on4  ,in short1 the whole
  ritual that has risen up around       
spiritual religion in all our churches1 
from that of the ,pope himself out to   
that of ,george ,fox--it is all the     
penny rather than the pound4  ,this rite
 and that ceremony2 this habit and  that
 tradition2 this ancient and            
long-established usage1 as well as that 
new departure and that threatened       
innovation2--it is all1 at its best1    
always the penny and never the pound4   
,satan busied me about the lesser       
matters of religion1 says ,james ,fraser
 of ,brea1 and made me neglect the  more
 substantial points4  ,he made me tithe 
to ,god my mint1 and my anise  and my   
cummin1 and many other of my herbs1 to  
my all but complete neglect  of justice 
and mercy and faith and love4  ,whether 
there are any of the  things that ,brea 
would call mint and anise and cummin    
that are taking up  too much of the time
 of our controversially-minded men in   
all our  churches1 highland and lowland1

 to-day is a matter for humbling        
thought4  ,labour1 my brethren1 for     
yourselves1 at any rate1 to get         
yourselves into  that sane and sober    
habit of mind that instantly and        
instinctively puts  all mint and all    
cummin of all kinds into the second     
place1 and all the  weightier matters1  
both of law and of gospel1 into the     
first place4  ,i  wasted myself on too  
nice points1 laments ,brea in his deep1 
honest1 clear-  eyed autobiography4  ,i 
did not proportion my religious things  
aright4  ,the  laird of ,brea does not  
say in as many words that he was wise in
 the penny  and foolish in the pound1   
but that is exactly what he means4      
,then1 again1 the narrowness1 the       
partiality1 the sickliness1 and the     
squeamishness of our consciences1--all  
that makes us to be too often           
penny-wise and pound-foolish in our     
religious life4  ,a well-instructed1    
thoroughly wise1 and well-balanced      
conscience is an immense blessing to    

that man who has purchased such a       
conscience for himself4  ,there is an   
immense and a criminal waste of         
conscience that goes on among some of   
our  best ,christian people through the 
want of light and space1 room1 and      
breadth1 and balance in their           
consciences4  ,we are all pestered with 
people every day who are full of all    
manner of childish scrupulosity and     
sickly squeamishness in their           
ill-nourished1 ill-exercised            
consciences4  ,as long as a man's       
conscience is ignorant and weak and     
sickly it will1 it  must1 spend and     
waste itself on the pennyworths of      
religion and' morals  instead of the    
pounds4  ,it will occupy and torture    
itself with points and  punctilios1 jots
 and tittles1 to the all but total      
oblivion1 and to the  all but complete  
neglect1 of the substance and the       
essence of the  ,christian mind1 the    
,christian heart1 and the ,christian    
character4  ,the  washing of hands1 of  

cups1 and of pots1 was all the          
conscience that  multitudes had in our  
,lord's day2 and multitudes in our day  
scatter and  waste their consciences on 
the same things4  ,a good man1 an       
otherwise  good and admirable man1 will 
absolutely ruin and destroy his         
conscience  by points and scruples and  
traditions of men as fatally as another 
will  by a life of debauchery4  ,some   
old and decayed ecclesiastical rubric2  
some absolutely indifferent form in     
public worship2 some small  casuistical 
question about a creed or a catechism2  
some too nice point of  confessional    
interpretation2 the mint and anise and  
cummin of such  matters will fill and   
inflame and poison a man's mind and     
heart and  conscience for months and for
 years1 to the total destruction of all 
that  for which churches and creeds     
exist2 to the total suspense1 if not the
  total and lasting destruction1 of     
sobriety of mind1 balance and breadth   
of judgment1 humility1 charity1 and a   

hidden and a holy life4  ,the penny  of 
a perverted1 partial1 and fanaticised   
conscience has swallowed up the  pound  
of instruction1 and truth1 and justice1 
and brotherly love4    #b4  ',nor is the
 man with the long name at all inferior 
to the other1'  said ,lucifer1 in laying
 his infernal plot against the peace and
  prosperity of ,mansoul4  ,now1 the man
 with the long name was just ,mr4 ,get- 
i'-the-hundred-and-lose-i'-the-shire4   
,a hundred in the old county  geography 
of ,england was a political subdivision 
of a shire1 in which  five score freemen
 lived with their freeborn families4  ,a
 county or a  shire was described and   
enumerated by the poll-sheriff of that  
day as  containing so many enfranchised 
hundreds2 and the total number of       
hundreds made up the political unity of 
the shire4  ,to this day we still  hear 
from time to time of the ',chiltern     
,hundreds1' which is a division of      
,buckinghamshire that belongs1 along    
with its political franchise1 to the    

,crown1 and which is utilised for ,crown
 purposes at certain political          
emergencies4  ,this proverb1 then1 to   
get i' the hundred and lose i' the      
shire1 is now quite plain to us4  ,you  
might canvass so as to get a  hundred1  
several hundreds1 many hundreds on your 
side1 and yet you might  lose when it   
came to counting up the whole shire4    
,you might possess  yourself of a       
hundred or two and yet be poor compared 
with him who  possessed the whole shire4
  ,and then the proverb has been        
preserved out  of the old political life
 of ,england1 and has been moralised and
  spiritualised to us in the ,holy ,war4
  ,and thus after to-night we shall     
always call this shrewd proverb to mind 
when we are tempted to take a  part at  
the risk of the whole2 to receive this  
world at the loss of the  next world2   
or1 as our ,lord has it1 to gain the    
whole world and to lose  our own soul4  
,lot's choice of ,sodom and ,gomorrah1  
and ,esau's purchase of  the mess of    

pottage in the ,old ,testament2 and then
 ,judas's thirty pieces  of silver1 and 
,ananias and ,sapphira's part of the    
price in the ,new  ,testament1 are all  
so many well-known instances of getting 
in the hundred  and losing in the shire4
  ,and not ,esau's and ,lot's only1 but 
our own  lives also have been full up to
 to-day of the same fatal transaction4  
,this house1 as our ,lord again has it1 
this farm1 this merchandise1 this  shop1
 this office1 this salary1 this honour1 
this home--all this on the  one hand1   
and then our ,lord ,himself1 ,his call1 
,his cause1 ,his ,church1  with         
everlasting life in the other--when it  
is set down before us in  black and     
white in that way1 the transaction1 the 
proposal1 the choice is  preposterous1  
is insane1 is absolutely impossible4    
,but preposterous1  insane1 absolutely  
impossible1 and all1 there it is1 in our
 own lives1 in  the lives of our sons   
and daughters1 and in the lives of      
multitudes of  other men and other men's

 sons and daughters besides ours4       
,every day you  will be taken in1 and   
you will stand by and see other men     
taken in with  the present penny for the
 future pound3 and with the poor pelting
 hundred  under your eye for the full1  
far-extending1 and ever-enriching shire4
  ,lucifer is always abroad pressing on 
us in his malice the penny on the  spot1
 for the pound which he keeps out of    
sight2 he dazzles our eyes with  the    
gain of the hundred till we gnash our   
teeth at the loss of the shire4         
',he hath in sooth good cause for       
endless grief1     ,who1 for the love of
 thing that lasteth not1     ,despoils  
himself for ever of ,,that ,,love4'     
#c4  ',what also if we join with those  
two another two of ours1 ,mr4 ,sweet-   
world and ,mr4 ,present-good1 namely1   
for they are two men full of civility   
and cunning4  ,let these engage in this 
business for us1 and let ,mansoul  be   
taken up with much business1 and if     
possible with much pleasure1 and  this  

is the way to get ground of them4  ,let 
us but cumber and occupy and  amuse     
,mansoul sufficiently1 and they will    
make their castle a warehouse  for goods
 instead of a garrison for men of war4' 
,this diabolical advice  was highly     
applauded all through hell till all the 
lesser devils1 while  setting themselves
 to carry it out1 gnashed their teeth   
with envy and  malice at ,lucifer for   
having thought of this masterpiece and  
for having  had it received with such   
loud acclamation4  ',only get them1' so 
went on  that so able1 so well-envied1  
and so well-hated devil1 'let us only   
get  those fribble sinners for a night  
at a time to forget their misery4  ,and 
it will not cost us much to do that4    
,only let us offer them in one          
another's houses a supper1 a dance1 a   
pipe1 a newspaper full of their own     
shame1 a tale full of their own folly1 a
 silly song1 and ,he who loved  them    
with an everlasting love will soon see  
of the travail of ,his soul in  them6'  

,yes1 my fellow-sinners1 ,lucifer and   
his infernal crew know us and  despise  
us and entrap us at very little trouble1
 till ,he who travailed  for us on the  
tree covers ,his face in heaven and     
weeps over us4  ,as long  as we remember
 our misery1 all the mind1 and all the  
malice1 and all the  sleeplessness in   
hell cannot touch a hair of our head4   
,but when by any  emissary and          
opportunity either from earth around us 
or from hell beneath  us we for another 
night forget our misery1 it is all over 
with us4  ,and  yet1 to tell the truth1 
we never can quite forget our misery4   
,we are too  miserable ever to forget   
our misery4  ,in the full steam of      
,lucifer's best-  spread supper1 amid   
the shouts of laughter and the clapping 
of hands1 and  all the outward          
appearance of a complete forgetfulness  
of our misery1 yet  it is not so4  ,it  
is far from being so4  ,our misery is   
far too  deep-seated for all the devil's
 drugs4  ,only1 to give ,lucifer his    

due1 we  do sometimes1 under him1 so get
 out of touch with the true consolation 
for our misery that1 night after night1 
through cumber1 through pursuit  of     
pleasure1 through the time being taken  
up with these and other like  things1 we
 do so far forget our misery as to lie  
down without dealing  with it2 but only 
to have it awaken us1 and take our arm  
as its own for  another miserable day4  
,yes2 though never completely           
successful1 yet this  masterpiece of    
hell is sufficiently successful for     
,satan's subtlest  purposes2 which are1 
not to make us forget our misery1 but to
 make us put  it away from us at the    
natural and proper hour for facing it   
and for  dealing with it in the only    
proper and successful way4  ,but1       
wholly1 any  night1 or even partially   
for a few nights at a time1 to forget   
our  misery--no1 with all thy subtlety  
of intellect and with all thy           
hell-filled heart1 ,o ,lucifer1 that is 
to us impossible6  ,forget our  misery6 

,o devil of devils1 no6  ,bless ,god1   
that can never be with us6  ,our misery 
is too deep1 too dreadful1 too acute1   
too all-consuming ever  to be forgotten 
by us even for an hour4  ,our misery is 
too terrible for  thee1 with all thy    
overthrown intellect and all thy        
malice-filled heart1  ever to           
understand6  ,didst thou for one        
midnight hour taste it1 and so          
understand it1 then there would be the  
same hope for thee that1 ,i bless  ,god1
 there still is for me6    ,let us bend 
all our strength and all our wit to     
this1 went on ,lucifer1 to  make their  
castle a warehouse instead of a         
garrison4  ,let us set  ourselves and   
all our allies1 he explained to the     
duller-witted among the  devils1 to make
 their hearts a shop1--some of them1 you
 know1 are  shopkeepers2 a bank1--some  
of them are bankers2 a farm1--some of   
them are  farmers2 a study1--some of    
them are students2 a pulpit1--some of   
them  like to preach2 a table1--some of 

them are gluttons2 a drawing-room1--some
  of them are busybodies who forget     
their own misery in retailing other     
people's misery from house to house4    
,be wise as serpents1 said the old      
serpent2 attend1 each several fallen    
angel of you1 to his own special        
charge4  ,study your man4  ,get to the  
bottom of your man4  ,follow him  about2
 never let him out of your sight2 be    
sure before you begin1 be sure  you have
 the joint in his harness1 the spot in  
his heel1 the chink in his  wall full in
 your eye4  ,i do not surely need to    
tell you not to scatter  our snares for 
souls at random1 he went on4  ,give the 
minister his study  ,bible1 the student 
his classic1 the merchant his ledger1   
the glutton his  well-dressed dish and  
his elect year of wine1 the gossip her  
sweet  secret1 and the flirt her fool4  
,study them till they are all naked and 
open to your sharp eyes4  ,find out what
 best makes them forget even for  one   
night their misery and ply them with    

that4  ,if ,i ever see that soul ,i     
have set thee over on his knees on      
account of his misery ,i shall fling    
thee on the spot into the bottomless    
pit4  ,and if any of you shall  anywhere
 discover a man--and there are such     
men--a man who forgets his  misery      
through always thinking and speaking    
about it1 only keep him in  his pulpit1 
and off his knees1 and no man so safe   
for hell as he4  ,there  are fools1 and 
there are double-dyed fools1 and that   
man is the chief of  them4  ,give him   
his fill of sin and misery2 let him     
luxuriate himself in  sin and misery2   
only1 keep him there1 and ,i will not   
forget thy most  excellent service to   
me4    ,make all their hearts1 so       
,lucifer summed up1 as he dismissed his 
obsequious devils1 make all their       
several hearts each a warehouse1 a      
shop1 a farm1 a pulpit1 a library1 a    
nursery1 a supper-table1 a chamber  of  
wantonness--let it be to each man just  
after his own heart4  ,only1  keep--as  

you shall answer for it1--keep faith and
 hope and charity and  innocence and    
patience and especially prayerfulness   
out of their hearts4  ,and when this my 
counsel is fulfilled1 and when the pit  
closes over thy  charge1 ,i shall pay   
thee thy wages1 and promote thee to     
honour4  ,and  before he was well done  
they were all at their posts4           
,,chapter ,,xiv--,,the ,,devil',s ,,last
 ,,card         ',satan himself is      
transformed into an angel of            
light'--,paul4    ,wodrow has an        
anecdote in his delightful ,analecta    
which shall introduce  us into our      
subject to-night4  ,mr4 ,john ,menzies  
was a very pious and  devoted pastor2 he
 was a learned man also1 and well seen  
in the ,popish  and in the ,arminian    
controversies4  ,and to the end of his  
life he was  much esteemed of the people
 of ,aberdeen as a foremost preacher of 
the  gospel4  ,and yet1 ',oh to have one
 more ,sabbath in my pulpit6' he cried  
out on his death-bed4  ',what would you 

then do8' asked some one who sat  at his
 bedside4  ',i would preach to my people
 on the tremendous  difficulty of       
salvation6' exclaimed the dying man4    
#a4  ,now1 the first difficulty that    
stands in the way of our salvation is   
the stupendous mass of guilt that has   
accumulated upon all of us4  ,our  guilt
 is so great that we dare not think of  
it4  ,it is too horrible to  believe    
that we shall ever be called to account 
for one in a thousand of  it4  ,it      
crushes our minds with a perfect stupor 
of horror1 when for a  moment we try to 
imagine a day of judgment when we shall 
be judged for  all the deeds that we    
have done in the body4  ,heart-beat     
after  heart-beat1 breath after breath1 
hour after hour1 day after day1 year    
after year1 and all full of sin2 all    
nothing but sin from our mother's  womb 
to our grave4  ,sometimes one           
outstanding act of sin has quite        
overwhelmed us4  ,but before long that  
awful sin fell out of sight and out  of 

mind4  ,other sins of the same kind     
succeeded it4  ,our sense of sin1  our  
sense of guilt was soon extinguished by 
a life of sin1 till1 at the  present    
moment the accumulated and tremendous   
load of our sin and guilt  is no more   
felt by us than we feel the tremendous  
load of the atmosphere4  ,but1 all the  
time1 does not our great guilt lie      
sealed down upon us8  ,because we are   
too seared and too stupefied to feel it1
 is it therefore  not there8  ,because  
we never think of it1 does that prove   
that both ,god  and man have forgiven   
and forgotten it8  ,shall the ,judge of 
all the earth  do right in the matter of
 all men's guilt but ours8  ,does the   
apostle's  warning not hold in our      
case8--his awful warning that we shall  
all stand  before the judgment-seat8    
,and is it only a strong figure of      
speech that  the books shall be opened  
till we shall cry to the mountains to   
fall on  us and to the rocks to cover   
us8  ,oh no6 the truth is1 the half has 

not  been told us of the speechless     
stupefaction that shall fall on us when 
the trumpet shall sound and when ,alp   
upon ,alp of aggravated guilt shall     
rise up high as heaven between us and   
our salvation4  ,difficulty is not  the 
name for guilt like ours4               
,impossibility is the better name we    
should  always know it by4    #b4       
,another difficulty or impossibility to 
our salvation rises out of the  awful   
corruption and pollution of our hearts4 
,but is there any use  entering on that 
subject8  ,is there one man in a hundred
 who even knows  the rudiments of the   
language ,i must now speak in8  ,is     
there one man in a  hundred in whose    
mind any idea arises1 and in whose heart
 any emotion or  passion is kindled1 as 
,i proceed to speak of corruption of    
nature and  pollution of heart8  ,i do  
not suppose it4  ,i do not presume upon 
it4  ,i  do not believe it4  ,that most 
miserable man who is let down of ,god's 
,holy  ,spirit into the pit of          

corruption that is in his own heart1--to
 him his  corruption1 added to his      
guilt1 causes a sadness that nothing in 
this  world can really relieve2 it      
causes a deep and an increasing         
melancholy1  such as the ninety and nine
 who need no repentance and feel no     
pollution  know nothing of4  ,all living
 men flee from the corruption of an     
unburied  corpse4  ,the living at once  
set about to bury their dead4  ',i am a 
stranger and a sojourner among you1'    
said ,abraham to the children of  ,heth2
 'give me a possession of a             
burying-place among you that ,i may bury
  my dead out of my sight4'  ,but ,paul 
could find no grave in the whole  world 
in which to bury out of his sight the   
body of death to which he was  chained  
fast2 that body of sin and death which  
always makes the holiest  of men the    
most wretched of men1--till the loathing
 and the disgust and  the misery that   
filled the apostle's heart are to be    
understood by but  one in a thousand    

even of the people of ,god4    #c4  ,and
 then1 as if to make our salvation a    
very hyperbole of  impossibility1 the   
all but almighty power of indwelling sin
 comes in4  ,have you ever tried to     
break loose from the old fetter of an   
evil habit8  ,have you ever said on a   
,new ,year's ,day with ,thomas ,a       
,kempis that this  year you would root  
that appetite1--naming it1--out of your 
body1 and  that vice1--naming it1--out  
of your heart8  ,have you ever sworn at 
the  ,communion table that you would    
watch and pray1 and set a watch on your 
evil heart against that envy1 and that  
revenge1 and that ill-will1 and  that   
distaste1 dislike1 and antipathy8  ,then
 your minister will not need  to come   
back from his death-bed to preach to you
 on the difficulty of  salvation4    #d4
  ,and yet such is the grace of ,god1   
such is the work of ,christ1 and  such  
is the power and the patience of the    
,holy ,ghost that1 if we had only  an   
adequate ministry in our pulpits1 and an

 assisting literature in our  homes1    
even this three-fold impossibility would
 be overcome and we would  be saved4    
,but if the ministry that is set over us
 is an ignorant1  indolent1 incompetent1
 self-deceived ministry2 if our own     
chosen1 set-up1  and maintained minister
 is himself an uninstructed1            
unspiritual1  unsanctified man2 and if  
the books we buy and borrow and read are
 all  secular1 unspiritual1 superficial1
 ephemeral1 silly1 stupid1 impertinent  
books1 then the impossibility of our    
salvation is absolute1 and we are as    
good as in hell already with all our    
guilt and all our corruption for  ever  
on our heads4  ,now1 that was the exact 
case of ,mansoul in the  allegory of the
 ,holy ,war at one of the last and      
acutest stages of that  war4  ,or1      
rather1 that would have been her exact  
case had ,diabolus got  his own deep1   
diabolical way with her4  ,for what did 
her ancient enemy do  but sound a parley
 till he had played his last card in    

these glozing and  deceitful words2--',i
 myself1' he had the face to say to     
,emmanuel1 'if  ,thou wilt raise ,thy   
siege and leave the town to me1 ,i will1
 at my own  proper cost and charge1 set 
up and maintain a sufficient ministry1  
besides lecturers1 in ,mansoul1 who     
shall show to ,mansoul that             
transgression stands in the way of life2
 the ministers ,i shall set up  shall   
also press the necessity of reformation 
according to ,thy holy law4'  ,and even 
now1 with the two pulpits1 ,god's and   
the devil's1 and the two  preachers1 and
 the two pastors1 in our own city1--how 
many of you see any  difference1 or     
think that the one is any worse or any  
better than the  other8  ,or1 indeed1   
that the ministry of the last card is   
not the better  of the two to your      
interest and to your taste1 to the state
 of your mind  and to the need of your  
heart8  ,let us proceed1 then1 to look  
at  ,mansoul's two pulpits and her two  
lectureships as they stand portrayed on 

the devil's last card and in ,emmanuel's
 crowning commission2 that is1 if  our  
eyes are sharp enough to see any        
difference4    #e4  ,the first thing1   
then1 on the devil's last card was this1
 ',a  sufficient ministry1 besides      
lecturers1 in ,mansoul4'  ,now1 a       
sufficient  ministry has never been seen
 in the true ,church of ,christ since   
her  ministry began4  ,and yet she has  
had great ministers in her time4  ,after
  ,christ ,himself1 ,paul was the       
greatest and the best minister the      
,church of  ,christ has ever had4  ,but 
such was the transcendent greatness of  
his  office1 such were its tremendous   
responsibilities1 such were its         
magnificent opportunities and its       
incessant demands1 such were its        
ceaseless calls to consecration1 to     
cross-bearing1 to crucifixion1 to  more 
and more inwardness of holiness1 and to 
higher and higher heights of            
heavenly-mindedness1 that the apostle   
was fain to cry out continually1  ,who  

is sufficient for these things6  ,but so
 well did ,paul learn that  gospel which
 he preached to others that amid all his
 insufficiency he was  able to hear his 
,master saying to him every day1 ,my    
grace is sufficient  for thee1 and1 ,my 
strength is made perfect in thy         
weakness6  ,and to come  down to the    
truly ,pauline succession of ministers  
in our own lands and in  our own        
churches1 what preachers and what       
pastors ,christ gave to  ,kidderminster1
 and to ,bedford1 and to ,down and      
,connor1 and to ,sodor and  ,man1 and to
 ,anwoth1 and to ,ettrick1 and to ,new  
,england1 and to ,st4  ,andrews1 and    
places too many to mention4  ,with all  
its infirmity and all  its inefficiency1
 what a truly heavenly power the pulpit 
is when it is  filled by a man of ,god  
who gives his whole mind and heart1 his 
whole time  and thought to it1 and to   
the pastorate that lies around it4  ,his
 mind  may be small1 and his heart may  
be full of corruption2 his time may be  

full of manifold interruptions1 and his 
best study may yield but a poor  result2
 but if ,heaven ever helps those who    
honestly help themselves1 then  that is 
certainly the case in the ,christian    
ministry4  ,let the choicest  of our    
children1 then1 be sought out and       
consecrated to that service2 let  our   
most gifted and most gracious-minded    
sons be sent to where they shall  be    
best prepared for the pulpit and the    
pastorate1--till by the blessing  of her
 ,head all the congregations and all the
 parishes1 all the pulpits  and all the 
lectureships in the ,church1 shall be   
one garden of the ,lord4  ,and then we  
shall escape that last curse of a       
ministry such as ,john  ,bunyan saw all 
around him in the ,england of his day1  
and which1 had he  been alive in the    
,england and ,scotland of our day1 he   
would have painted  again in colours we 
have neither the boldness nor the skill 
to mix nor to  put on the canvas4  ,but 
let all ministers put it every day to   

themselves  to what descent and         
succession they belong4  ,let those even
 who believe  that they have within     
themselves the best seal and evidence   
attainable  here that they have been    
ordained of ,emmanuel1 let them all the 
more look  well every day and every     
,sabbath day how much of another        
master's  doctrine and discipline1      
motives1 and manners still mixes up with
 their  best ministry4  ,and the surest 
seal that1 with all our insufficiency1  
we  are still the ministers of ,christ  
will be set on us by this1 that the     
harder we work and the more in secret we
 pray1 the more and ever the more  shall
 we discover and confess our shameful   
insufficiency1 and the more  shall we1  
till the day of our death1 every day    
still begin our ministry  of labour and 
of prayer anew4  ,let us do that1 for   
the devil1 with all  his boldness and   
all his subtilty1 never threw a card    
first or last like  that4    #f4  ,after
 offering a sufficient ministry to      

,mansoul1 and that1 too1 at  his own    
proper cost and charge1 ,diabolus       
undertook also to see that the  absolute
 necessity of a reformation should be   
preached and pressed from  the pulpit he
 set up4  ,now1 reformation is all good 
and necessary1 in its  own time and     
place and order1 but ,god sent ,his ,son
 not to be a ,reformer  but to be a     
,redeemer4  ,john came to preach        
reformation1 but ,jesus came to  preach 
regeneration4  ,except a man be born    
again1 ,jesus persistently  preached to 
,nicodemus4  ',did it begin with        
regeneration8' was ,dr4  ,duncan's reply
 when a sermon on sanctification was    
praised in his  hearing4  ,and like so  
much else that the learned and profound 
,dr4 ,john  ,duncan said on theology and
 philosophy1 that question went at once 
to the  root of the matter4  ,for       
sanctification1 that is to say1         
salvation1 is no  mere reformation of   
morals or refinement of manners4  ,it is
 a maxim in  sound morals that the      

morality of the man must precede the    
morality of  his actions4  ,and much    
more is it the evangelical law of ,jesus
 ,christ4  ,make the tree good1 our     
,lawgiver aphoristically said4          
,reformation and  sanctification differ1
 says ,dr4 ,hodge1 as clean clothes     
differ from a  clean heart4  ,now1      
,diabolus was all for clean clothes when
 he saw that  ,mansoul was slipping out 
of his hands4  ,he would have all the   
drunkards  to become moderate drinkers1 
if not total abstainers2 and all the    
sensualists to become1 if need be1      
ascetics2 and all those who had sowed   
out their wild oats to settle down as   
heads of houses1 and members1 if  not   
ministers and elders1 in his set-up     
church4  ,but we are too well  taught1  
surely2 we have gone too long to another
 church than that which  ,diabolus ever 
sets up1 to be satisfied with his       
superficial doctrine and  his skin-deep 
discipline4  ,we know1 do we not1 that  
we may do all that  his last card asks  

us to do1 and yet be as far1 ay1 and far
 farther from  salvation than the       
heathen are who never heard the name4   
,a hundred  ,scriptures tell us that2   
and our hearts know too much of their   
own plague  and corruption ever now to  
be satisfied short of a full            
regeneration and  a complete            
sanctification4  ',create in me a clean 
heart and renew a right  spirit within  
me4  ,the sacrifices of ,god are a      
broken spirit4  ,and the  very ,god of  
peace sanctify you wholly4  ,and ,i pray
 ,god your whole spirit  and soul and   
body be preserved blameless unto the    
coming of our ,lord  ,jesus ,christ4'   
,the last card has many ,scriptures     
cunningly copied upon  it2 but not      
these4  ,its pulpit orators handle many 
,scripture texts1 but  never these4     
#g4  ,yes1 the devil comes in even here 
with that so late1 so subtle1 and  so   
contradicting card of his4  ,where is it
 in this world that he does not  come in
 with some of his cards8  ,and he comes 

in here as a very angel of  evangelical 
light4  ,he puts on the gown of ,geneva 
here1 and he ascends  ,emmanuel's own   
maintained pulpit here1 and from that   
pulpit he preaches1  and where he so    
preaches he preaches nothing else but   
the very highest  articles of the       
,reformed faith4  ,carnal-security was  
strong on assurance1  no other man in   
,mansoul was so strong2 and the devil   
will let us  preachers be as strong and 
as often on election1 and justification1
 and  indefectible grace1 and the       
perseverance of the saints as we and our
  people like1 if we but keep in season 
and out of season on these  transcendent
 subjects and keep off morals and       
manners1 walk and  conversation1 conduct
 and character4  ,in ,hooker's and      
,travers' day1  ,thomas ,fuller tells   
us1 the ,temple pulpit preached pure    
,canterbury in the  morning and pure    
,geneva in the afternoon4  ,and you will
 get the highest  ,calvinism off the    
last card in one pulpit1 and the        

strictest and most  urgent morality off 
the same card in another2 but never1 if 
the devil can  help it1 never both in   
one and the same pulpit2 never both in  
one and the  same sermon2 and never both
 in one and the same minister4  ,you    
have all  heard of the difficulty the   
voyager had in steering between ,scylla 
and  ,charybdis in the ,latin adage4    
,well1 the true preacher's difficulty is
  just like that4  ,indeed1 it is beyond
 the wit of man1 and it takes all  the  
wit of ,god1 aright to unite the        
doctrine of our utter inability with    
the companion doctrine of our strict    
responsibility2 free grace with a  full 
reward2 the cross of ,christ once for   
all1 with the saint's continual         
crucifixion2 the ,saviour's blood with  
the sinner's2 and atonement with        
attainment2 in short1 salvation without 
works with no salvation without  works4 
,deft steersman as the devil is1 he     
never yet took his ship clear  through  
those ,charybdic passages4    ,one thing

 there is that ,i must have preached    
continually in all my  pulpits and      
expounded and illustrated and enforced  
in all my  lectureships1 said ,emmanuel1
 and that is1 my new example and my new 
law  of motive4  ,my own motives always 
made me in all ,i said and did to be    
well-pleasing in ,my ,father's eyes1 and
 at any cost ,i must have preachers  and
 lecturers set up in ,mansoul who shall 
assist ,me in making ,mansoul as        
well-pleasing in ,my ,father's sight as 
,i was ,myself4       ',for ,i am ware  
it is the seed of act     ,god holds    
appraising in ,his hollow palm1     ,not
 act grown great thence as the world    
believes1     ,leafage and branchage    
vulgar eyes admire4'    ,motives6       
gnashed ,diabolus4  ,and he tore his    
last card into a thousand  shreds and   
cast the shreds under his feet in his   
rage and exasperation4  ,motives6  ,new 
motives6  ,truly ,thou art the          
threatened ,seed of the woman6  ,truly  
,thou art the threatened ,son of        

,god6--,let all our preachers1 then1    
preach much on motive to their people4  
,the commonplace crowd of their  people 
will not all like that preaching any    
more than ,diabolus did2 but  their best
 people will all afterwards rise up in  
their salvation and  bless them for it4 
,on reformation also1 let them every    
,sabbath preach1  but only on the       
reformation that rises out of a reformed
 motive1 and that  again out of a       
reformed heart4  ,and if a reformed     
motive1 a reformed  heart1 and a        
reformed life are found both by preacher
 and hearer to be  impossible2 if all   
that only brings out the hopelessness of
 their  salvation by reason of the guilt
 and the pollution and power of sin2    
then  all that will only be to them that
 same ever deeper entering of the law   
into their hearts which led ,paul to an 
ever deeper faith and trust in  ,jesus  
,christ4  ,with a guilt1 and a          
pollution1 and a slavery to sin like    
ours1 salvation from sin would be       

absolutely impossible4  ,absolutely     
impossible1 that is1 but for our        
,saviour1 ,jesus ,christ4  ,but with    
,his  atoning blood and ,his ,holy      
,spirit all things are possible--even   
our  salvation4    ,let us choose1 then1
 a minister like ,mr4 ,john ,menzies4   
,let us read the  great books that make 
salvation difficult4  ,let us work out  
our own  salvation1 day and night1 with 
fear and trembling1 and when ,wisdom is 
justified in her children1 we shall be  
found justified among them4  ,we  shall 
be openly acknowledged and acquitted in 
the day of judgment1 and  made perfectly
 blessed in the full enjoying of ,god to
 all eternity4          ,,chapter       
,,xv--,,mr4 ,,prywell         ',search  
me1 ,o ,god1 and know my                
heart4'--,david4       ',let a man      
examine himself4'--,paul4       ',look  
to yourselves4'--,john4       ',know    
thyself4'--,apollo4    ,the year #affh  
saw the publication of one of the       
deepest books in the  whole world1 ,dr4 

,john ,owen's ,remainders of ,indwelling
 ,sin in ,believers4  ,the              
heart-searching depth2 the clear1       
fearless1 humbling truth1 the  intense  
spirituality1 and the massive and       
masculine strength of ,john  ,owen's    
book have all combined to make it one of
 the acknowledged  masterpieces of the  
great ,puritan school4  ,had ,john      
,owen's style been at  all equal to his 
great learning1 to the depth and the    
grasp of his mind1  and to the lofty    
holiness of his life1 ,john ,owen would 
have stood in the  very foremost and    
selectest rank of apostolical and       
evangelical  theologians4  ,but in all  
his books ,owen labours under the fatal 
drawback  of a bad style4  ,a fine      
style1 a style like that of ,hooker1 or 
,taylor1 or  ,bunyan1 or ,howe1 or      
,leighton1 or ,law1 is such a winning   
introduction to  their works and such an
 abiding charm and spell4  ,the full    
title of ,dr4  ,owen's great work runs  
thus3 ,the ,nature1 ,power1 ,deceit1 and

 ,prevalency  of the ,remainders of     
,indwelling ,sin in ,believers--a title 
that will tell  all true students what  
awaits them when they have courage and  
enterprise  enough to address themselves
 to this supreme and all-essential      
subject4  ,fourteen years after the     
publication of ,dr4 ,owen's epoch-making
 book1  ,john ,bunyan's ,holy ,war first
 saw the light4  ,equal in scriptural   
and in  experimental depth1 as also in  
their spiritual loftiness and intensity1
  those two books are as different as   
any two books1 written in the same      
language1 and written on the same       
subject1 could by any possibility be4   
,john ,owen's book is the book of a     
great scholar who has read the ,fathers 
and the ,schoolmen and the ,reformers   
till he knows them by heart1 and till   
he has been able to digest all that is  
true to ,scripture and to  experience in
 them into his rich and ripe book4  ,a  
powerful reasoner1 a  severe1 bald1     
muscular writer1 ,john ,owen in all     

these respects stands at  the very      
opposite pole to that of ,john ,bunyan4 
,the author of the ,holy  ,war had no   
learning1 but he had a mind of immense  
natural sagacity1  combined with a habit
 of close and deep observation of human 
life1 and  especially of religious life1
 and he had now a lifetime of most      
fruitful  experience as a ,christian man
 and as a ,christian minister behind    
him2  and1 all that1 taken up into      
,bunyan's splendid imagination1 enabled 
him  to produce this extraordinarily    
able and impressive book4  ,a model of  
,english style as the ,holy ,war is1 at 
the same time it does not attain  at all
 to the rank of the ,pilgrim's          
,progress2 but then1 to be second to    
the ,pilgrim's ,progress is reward and  
honour enough for any book4  ,let  all  
genuine students1 then1 who would know  
the best that has been written  on      
experimental religion1 and who would    
preach to the deepest and  divinest     
experience of their best people1 let    

them keep continually  within their     
reach ,john ,owen's ,temptation1 his    
,mortification of ,sin in  ,believers1  
his ,nature and ,power of ,indwelling   
,sin1 and ,john ,bunyan's  ,holy ,war   
made for the ,regaining of the          
,metropolis of this ,world4    ,well1   
then1 as ,he who dwells on high would   
have it1 there was one whose  name was  
,mr4 ,prywell1 a great lover of         
,mansoul4  ,and he1 as his manner  was1 
did go listening up and down in ,mansoul
 to see and hear1 if at any  time he    
might1 whether there was any design     
against it or no4  ,for he was  always a
 jealous man1 and feared some mischief  
would befall it1 either  from within or 
from some power without4  ,mr4 ,prywell 
was always a lover  of ,mansoul1 a sober
 and a judicious man1 a man that was no 
tattler1 nor a  raiser of false reports1
 but one that loves to look into the    
very bottom  of matters1 and talks      
nothing of news but by very solid       
arguments4  ,and  then1 after our       

historian has told us some of the       
eminent services that  ,mr4 ,prywell was
 able to perform both for the ,king and 
for the city1 he  goes on to tell us how
 the captains determined that public    
thanks should  be given by the town of  
,mansoul to ,mr4 ,prywell for his so    
diligent  seeking of the welfare of the 
town2 and1 further1 that1 forasmuch as  
he  was so naturally inclined to seek   
their good1 and also to undermine their 
foes1 they gave him the commission of   
,scoutmaster-general for the good of    
,mansoul4  ,and ,mr4 ,prywell managed   
his charge and the trust that ,mansoul  
had put into his hands with great       
conscience and good fidelity2 for he    
gave himself wholly up to his employ1   
and that not only within the town1  but 
he also went outside of the town to pry1
 to see1 and to hear4  ,now1  that being
 so1 it may interest and perhaps        
instruct you to-night to look  for a    
little at some of the features and at   
some of the feats of the                

,scoutmaster-general of the ,holy ,war1 
,mr4 ,prywell1 of the town of ,mansoul4 
#a4  ',well1 now1 as ,he who dwells on  
high would have it1 there was one  whose
 name was ,mr4 ,prywell1 a great lover  
of the town of ,mansoul4'  ,in  other   
words3 self-observation1                
self-examination1 strict1 jealous1      
sleepless self-examination1 is of ,god4 
,our ,god who searches our hearts  and  
tries our reins would have it so4  ,and 
if ,he does not have it so in  us1 our  
souls are not as our ,god would have    
them to be4  ',bunyan employs  pry1'    
says ,miss ,peacock in her excellent    
notes1 'in a more favourable  sense than
 it now bears4  ,as1 for instance1 it is
 said in another part of  this same book
 that the men of ,mansoul were allowed  
to pry into the  words of the ,holy     
,ghost and to expound them to their best
 advantage4  ,honest anxiety for the    
welfare of his fellow-townsmen was ,mr4 
,prywell's  chief characteristic4  ,pry 
is another form of peer--to look        

narrowly1  to look closely4'  ,and ,god1
 says ,john ,bunyan1 would have it so4  
#b4  ',a great lover of ,mansoul1'      
'always a lover of ,mansoul'2 again and 
again that is testified concerning ,mr4 
,prywell4  ,it was not love for the     
work that led ,mr4 ,prywell to give up  
his days and his nights as his  history 
tells us he did4  ,mr4 ,prywell ran     
himself into many dangerous  situations 
both within and without the city1 and he
 lost himself far more  friends than he 
made by his devotion to his thankless   
task4  ,but  necessity was laid upon    
him4  ,and what held him up was the sure
 and  certain knowledge that his ,king  
would have that service at his hands4   
,that1 and his love for the city1 for   
the safety and the deliverance of  the  
city1--all that kept ,mr4 ,prywell's    
heart fixed4  ,am ,i therefore your     
enemy8 he would say to some who would   
have had it otherwise than the ,king    
would have it4  ,but it is a good thing 
to be zealously affected in a work  like

 mine1 he would say1 in self-defence and
 in self-encouragement4  ,and  then1    
though not many1 there were always some 
in the city who said1 ,let  him smite me
 and it shall be a kindness2 let him    
reprove me and it shall  be an excellent
 oil which shall not break my head4  ,it
 was in ,mansoul  with ,mr4 ,prywell as 
it was in ,kidderminster with ,richard  
,baxter1 when  some of his people said  
to one another1 ',we will take all      
things well  from one that we know doth 
entirely love us4'   ',love them1' said 
,augustine1 'and then say anything you  
like to them4'  ,now1 that was ,mr4     
,prywell's way4  ,he loved ,mansoul1 and
 then he said many things to her  that a
 false lover and a flatterer would never
 have dared to say4    #c4  ,then1 as   
the saying is1 it goes without saying   
that ',mr4 ,prywell was  always a       
jealous man4'  ,great lovers are always 
jealous men1 and ,mr4  ,prywell showed  
himself to be a great lover by the great
 heat of his  jealousy also4            

',vigilant1' says the excellent editress
 again2 'cautious  against dishonour1   
reasonably mistrustful--low ,latin      
zelosus1 full of  zeal4  ,and he said1  
,i have been very jealous for the ,lord 
,god of  hosts4'  ,now1 it so happened  
that some of ,mr4 ,prywell's most       
private and  not at all professional    
papers--papers evidently1 and on the    
face of  them1 connected with the state 
of the spy's own soul--came into my     
hands  as good lot would have it just   
the other night4  ,the moth-eaten chest 
was  full of his old papers1 but the    
pieces that took my heart most were1 as 
it looked to me1 actually gnashed       
through with his remorseful teeth1 and  
soaked and sodden past recognition with 
his sweat and his tears and his         
agonising hands4  ,but after some late  
hours over those remnants ,i managed  to
 make some sense to myself out of them4 
,there are some parts of the  parchments
 that pass me2 but1 if only to show you 
that this arch-spy's so  vigilant       

jealousy was not all directed against   
other people's bad hearts  and bad      
habits1 ,i shall copy some lines out of 
the old box4  ',have ,i  penitence8' he 
begins without any preface4  ',have ,i  
grief1 shame1 pain1  horror1 weariness  
for my sin8  ,do ,i pray and repent1 if 
not seven times a  day as ,david did1   
yet at least three times1 as ,daniel8   
,if not as  ,solomon1 at length1 yet    
shortly as the publican8  ,if not like  
,christ1 the  whole night1 at least for 
one hour8  ,if not on the ground and in 
ashes1  at least not in my bed8  ,if not
 in sackcloth1 at least not in purple   
and  fine linen8  ,if not altogether    
freed from all1 at least from immoderate
  desires8  ,do ,i give1 if not as      
,zaccheus did1 fourfold1 as the law     
commands1 with the fifth part added8    
,if not as the rich1 yet as the  widow8 
,if not the half1 yet the thirtieth     
part8  ,if not above my power1  yet up  
to my power8'  ,and then over the page  
there are some illegible  pencillings   

from old authors of his such as this    
from ,augustine3 ',a good  man would    
rather know his own infirmity than the  
foundations of the earth  or the heights
 of the heavens4'  ,and this from       
,cicero3 ',there are many  hiding-places
 and recesses in the mind4'  ,and this  
from ,seneca3 ',you must  know yourself 
before you can amend yourself4  ,an     
unknown sin grows worse  and worse and  
is deprived of cure4'  ,and this from   
,cicero again3 ',cato  exacted from     
himself an account of every day's       
business at night'2 and  also           
,pythagoras1       ',nor let sweet sleep
 upon thine eyes descend     ,till thou 
hast judged its deeds at each day's     
end4'    ,and this from ,seneca again3  
',when the light is removed out of      
sight1 and  my wife1 who is by this time
 aware of my practice1 is now silent1 ,i
 pass  the whole of my day under        
examination1 and ,i review my deeds and 
my  words4  ,i hide nothing from myself3
 ,i pass over nothing4'  ,and then in   

,mr4 ,prywell's boldest and least       
trembling hand3 ',o yes6 many shall come
  from the east and the west and shall  
sit down with ,abraham and ,isaac and   
,jacob in the kingdom of heaven1 when   
many of the children of the kingdom     
shall be cast out4  ,o yes4'  ,now1 this
 ',o yes6' ,miss ,peacock tells us1 is  
the ,anglicised form of a ,french word  
for our ,lord's words1 ,take heed how   
ye hear6    #d4  ',a sober and a        
judicious man' it is said of ,mr4       
,prywell also4  ,to a  certainty that4  
,it could not be otherwise than that4   
,for ,mr4 ,prywell's  office1 its       
discoveries and its experiences1 would  
sober any man4  ',i am  sprung from a   
country1' says ,abelard1 'of which the  
soil is light1 and  the temper of the   
inhabitants is light4'  ,so was it with 
,mr4 ,prywell to  begin with4  ,but even
 ,abelard was sobered in time1 and so   
was ,mr4  ,prywell4  ,life sobered      
,abelard1 and ,mr4 ,prywell too2 life's 
crooks and  life's crosses1 life's      

duties and life's disappointments1      
especially ,mr4  ,prywell4  ',the more  
narrowly a man looks into himself1' says
 ,a ,kempis1  'the more he sorroweth4'  
,not sober-mindedness alone comes to him
 who  looks narrowly into himself1 but  
great sorrow of heart also4  ,and if you
  are not both sobered in your mind and 
full of an unquenchable sorrow in  your 
heart1 ,o yes6 attend to it1 for you are
 not yet begun to be what ,god  would   
have you to be4  ,dr4 ,newman1 with all 
his mistakes and all his  faults1 was a 
master in two things3 his own heart and 
the ,english  language4  ,and in writing
 home to his mother a confidential      
letter from  college on his birthday1 he
 confides to her that he often 'shudders
 at  himself4'  ',no1' he answered to   
his mother's fears and advices about    
food  and air and exercise3 ',no1 ,i am 
neither nervous1 nor in ill-health1 nor 
do ,i study too much4  ,i am neither    
melancholy1 nor morose1 nor austere1    
nor distant1 nor reserved1 nor sullen4  

,i am always cheerful1 ready and  eager 
to join in any merriment4  ,i am not    
clouded with sadness1 nor  absent in    
mind1 nor deficient in action4  ,no2    
take me when ,i am most  foolish at home
 and extend mirth into childishness2 yet
 all the time ,i am  shuddering at      
myself4'  ,there spake the future author
 of the immortal  sermons4  ,there spake
 a mind and a heart that have deepened  
the minds and  the hearts of ,christian 
men more than any other influence of the
 century2  a mind and a heart1 moreover1
 that will shine and beat in our best   
literature and in our deepest devotion  
for centuries to come4  ,you must  all  
know by this time another classical     
passage from the pen of another         
spiritual genius in the ,church of      
,england1 that greatly gifted church4   
,let me repeat it to illustrate how     
sober-mindedness and great sorrow of    
heart always come to the best of men4   
',let any man consider that if the      
world knew all that of him which he     

knows of himself2 if they saw what      
vanity and what passions govern his     
inside1 and what secret tempers sully   
and corrupt his best actions2 and he    
would have no more pretence to be       
honoured and admired for his goodness   
and wisdom than a rotten and            
distempered body is to be loved and     
admired for its beauty and  comeliness4 
,and1 perhaps1 there are very few people
 in the world who  would not rather     
choose to die than to have all their    
secret follies1 the  errors of their    
judgments1 the vanity of their minds1   
the falseness of  their pretences1 the  
frequency of their vain and disorderly  
passions1  their uneasinesses1 hatreds1 
envies1 and vexations made known to the 
world4  ,and shall pride be entertained 
in a heart thus conscious of its  own   
miserable behaviour8'  ,no wonder that  
,mr4 ,prywell was sober-minded6  ,no    
wonder that ,dr4 ,newman shuddered at   
himself6  ,and no wonder that  ,william 
,law chose strangling and the pond      

rather than that any other man  should  
see what went on in his heart6    #e4   
,and as if all that were not enough1 and
 more than enough1 to commend  ,mr4     
,prywell to us--to our trust1 to our    
confidence1 and to our  imitation--his  
royal certificate continues1 ',one that 
looks into the very  bottom of matters1 
and talks nothing of news1 but by very  
solid  arguments4'  ,the very bottom of 
matters--that is1 the very bottom of his
  own and other men's hearts4  ,mr4     
,prywell counts nothing else worth a    
wise  man's looking at4  ,let fools and 
children look at the painted and        
deceitful surface of things1 but let    
men1 men of matters1 and especially  men
 of divine matters1 look only at their  
own and other men's hearts4  ,the  very 
bottom of all matters is there4  ,all   
wars1 all policies1 all  debates1 all   
disputes1 all good and all evil         
counsels1 all the much weal  and all the
 multitudinous woe of ,mansoul--all have
 their bottom in the  heart2 in the     

heart of ,god1 or in the heart of man1  
or in the heart of  the devil4  ,the    
heart is the root of absolutely every   
matter to ,mr4  ,prywell4  ,he would not
 waste one hour of any day1 or one watch
 of any  night1 on anything else4  ,and 
it was this that made him both the      
extraordinarily successful scout he was1
 and the extraordinarily sober  and     
thoughtful and judicious man he was4  ,o
 yes1 my brethren1 the bottom  of       
matters1 when you take to it1 will work 
the same change in you4  ',two  things1'
 says one who had long looked at his own
 matters with ,mr4  ,prywell's          
eyes--'two things1 ,o ,lord1 ,i         
recognise in myself3 nature1 which      
,thou hast made1 and sin1 which ,i have 
added4'  ,my brethren1 that             
recognition1 that discovery in          
yourselves1 when it comes to you1 will  
sober you as it has sobered so many men 
before you3 when it comes to you1  that 
is1 about yourselves4  ,that discovery  
made in yourselves will make  you       

deep-thinking men4  ,it will make common
 men and unlearned men among  you to be 
philosophers and theologians and saints4
  ,it will work in you a                
thoughtfulness1 a seriousness1 a depth1 
an awe1 a holy fear1 and a great  desire
 that will already have made you new    
creatures4  ,when1 in examining         
yourselves and in characterising        
yourselves1 you come on what some clear-
  eyed men have come on in themselves1  
and what one of them has described  as  
'the diabolical animus of the human     
mind'--when you make that  discovery in 
yourselves1 that will sober you1 that   
will humble you and  fill you full of   
remorse and compunction4  ,and if in    
,god's grace to you1  that were to begin
 to be wrought in you this week1 there  
would be one1 at  any rate1 eating of   
that bread next ,lord's day1 and        
drinking of that cup  as ,god would have
 it4    #f4  ',a man that is no tattler1
 nor raiser of false reports1 and that  
talks nothing of news1 but by very solid

 arguments4'  ,mr4 ,prywell was  more   
taken up with his own matters at home1  
far more than the greatest  busybodies  
are with other men's matters abroad4    
,his name1 ,i fear1 will  still sound   
somewhat ill in your ears1 but ,i can   
assure you all the ill  for you lies in 
the sound4  ,mr4 ,prywell would not hurt
 a hair of your  head3 the truth is1 he 
does not know whether there is a hair on
 your head  or no4  ,this man's name    
comes to him and sticks to him1 not     
because he  pries into your affairs1 for
 he does not1 and never did1 but because
 he  is so drawn down into his own4     
,mr4 ,prywell has no eye for your       
windows  and he has no ear for your     
doors4  ,if your servant is a leaky     
slave1  ,prywell1 of all your           
neighbours1 has no ear for his idle     
tales4  ,this man  is no eavesdropper2  
your evil secrets have only a sobering  
and a  saddening and a silencing effect 
upon him4  ,your house might be full of 
skeletons for anything he would ever    

discover or remember4  ,the beam in  his
 own eye is so big that he cannot see   
past it to speak about your  small mote4
  ',the inward ,christian1' says ,a     
,kempis1 'preferreth the care  of       
himself before all other cares4  ,he    
that diligently attendeth to  himself   
can easily keep silence concerning other
 men4  ,if thou attendest  unto ,god and
 unto thyself1 thou wilt be but little  
moved with what thou  seest abroad4'    
,at the same time1 ,mr4 ,prywell was no 
fool1 and no coward1  and no hoodwinked 
witness4  ,he could tell his tale1 when 
it was demanded  of him1 with such      
truth1 and with such punctuality1 and on
 such ample  grounds1 that a conviction 
of the truth instantly fell on all who  
heard  him4  ',sirs1' said those who    
heard him break silence1 'it is not     
irrational for us to believe it1' with  
such solid arguments and with such  an  
absence of mere suspicion and of all    
idle tales did he speak4  ,on one       
occasion1 on a mere 'inkling1' he woke  

up the guard2 only1 it was so true  an  
inkling that it saved the city4  ,but ,i
 cannot follow ,mr4 ,prywell any        
further to-night4  ,how he went up and  
down ,mansoul listening2 how he kept    
his eyes and his ears both shut and     
open2 what splendid services he         
performed in the progress1 and specially
 toward the end1 of the war2 how  the   
thanks of the city were voted to him2   
how he was made ,scoutmaster-  general  
for the good of the town of ,mansoul1   
and the great conscience and  good      
fidelity with which he managed that     
great trust--all that you will  read for
 yourselves under this marginal index1  
',the story of ,mr4  ,prywell4'    ,now1
 my brethren1 as the outcome of all     
that1 we must all examine  ourselves as 
before ,god all this week4  ,we must    
wait on ,his word and on  ,his          
providences while they examine us all   
this week4  ,we must pry well  into     
ourselves all this week4  ,come1 let us 
compel ourselves to do it4  ,let us     

search and try our ways all this week as
 we shall give an account4  ,let us ask 
ourselves how many ,communion tables we 
have sat at1 and at how  many more we   
are likely to sit4  ,let us ask why it  
is that we have got so  little good out 
of all our ,communions4  ,let us ask who
 is to blame for  that1 and where the   
blame lies4  ,let us go to the bottom of
 matters with  ourselves1 and compel    
ourselves to say just what it is that is
 the cause  of ,god's controversy with  
us4  ,what vow1 what solemn promise1    
made when  trouble was upon us1 have we 
completely cast behind our back8  ,what 
about  secret prayer8  ,at what times1  
for what things1 and for what people do 
we  in secret pray8  ,what about secret 
sin8  ,what is its name1 and what does  
it deserve1 and what fruit are we       
already reaping out of it8  ,what is our
  besetting sin1 and what steps do we   
take1 as ,god knows1 to crucify it8  ,do
  we love money too much8  ,do we love  
praise too much8  ,do we love eating    

and drinking too much8  ,does envy make 
our heart a very hell8  ,let us  name   
the man we envy1 and let us keep our    
,communion eye upon him4  ,let us  mix  
his name with all the psalms and prayers
 and sermons of this  ,communion season4
  ,or is it diabolical ill-will8  ,or is
 it a wicked  tongue against an         
unsuspecting friend8  ,let us examine   
ourselves as ,paul  did1 as ,prywell    
did1 and as ,god would have us do it1   
and we shall  discover things in        
ourselves so bad that if ,i were to put 
words on them  to-night1 you would stop 
your ears in horror and flee out of the 
church4  ,let a man see himself at least
 as others see him2 and then he will be 
led  on from that to see himself as ,god
 sees him2 and then he will judge       
himself so severely as that he shall not
 need to be judged at the  ,judgment    
,day1 and will condemn himself so       
sufficiently as that he shall  not be   
condemned with a condemned world at the 
last4          ,,chapter ,,xvi--,,young 

,,captain ,,self-,,denial         ',if  
any man will come after ,me1 let him    
deny himself and take up his     cross  
daily and follow ,me4'--,our ,lord4     
',now the siege was long1 and many a    
fierce attempt did the enemy make  upon 
the town1 and many a shrewd brush did   
some of the townsmen meet with  from the
 enemy1 especially ,captain             
,self-denial1 to whose care both ,ear-  
gate and ,eye-gate had been intrusted4  
,this ,captain ,self-denial was a  young
 man1 but stout1 and a townsman in      
,mansoul4  ,this young captain1         
therefore1 being a hardy man1 and a man 
of great courage to boot1 and  willing  
to venture himself for the good of the  
town1 he would now and  then sally out  
upon the enemy2 but you must think this 
could not easily  be done1 but he must  
meet with some sharp brushes himself1   
and1 indeed1  he carried several of such
 marks on his face1 yea1 and some on    
some other  parts of his body4'  ,thus1 
,bunyan4  ,i shall now go on to-night to

 offer  you some annotations and some   
reflections on this short but excellent 
history of young ,captain ,self-denial4 
#a4  ,well1 to begin with1 this ,captain
 ,self-denial was still a young man4    
',and1 now1 it comes into my mind1 said 
,goodman ,gains after supper1 ,i will   
tell you a story well worth the hearing1
 as ,i think4  ,there were two men  once
 upon a time that went on pilgrimage2   
the one began when he was young  and the
 other began when he was old4  ,the     
young man had strong  corruptions to    
grapple with1 whereas the old man's     
corruptions were  decayed with the      
decays of nature4  ,the young man trod  
his steps as even  as did the old one1  
and was every way as light as he2 who1  
now1 or which  of them1 had their graces
 shining clearest1 since both seemed to 
be  alike8  ,why1 the young man's1      
doubtless1 answered ,mr4 ,honest4  ,for 
that  which heads against the greatest  
opposition gives best demonstration that
  it is strongest4  ,a young man1       

therefore1 has the advantage of the     
fairest discovery of a work of grace    
within him4  ,and thus they sat  talking
 till the break of day4'    ,now1 ,i    
have taken up ,captain ,self-denial     
to-night because the young men  and ,i  
are to begin a study to-night to which  
,i was first attracted  because it      
taught me lessons about myself1 and     
about self-denial1 and  thus about both 
a young man's and an old man's deepest  
and most  persistent                    
corruptions--lessons such as ,i have    
never been taught in any  other school4 
,in all my philosophical1 theological1  
moral1 and  experimental reading1 so to 
describe it1 ,i have never met with any 
school  of authors for one moment to be 
compared with the great evangelical     
mystics1 especially when they treat of  
self1 self-love1 self-denial1 the  daily
 cross1 and all suchlike lessons4  ,take
 the great doctrinal and  experimental  
,puritans1 such as ,john ,owen1 ,thomas 
,goodwin1 ,richard ,baxter1  ,john      

,howe1 and ,jonathan ,edwards1 and add  
on to them the greatest and best        
mystics1 such as ,jacob ,behmen1 ,thomas
 ,a ,kempis1 ,francis ,fenelon1 ,jeremy 
,taylor1 ,samuel ,rutherford1 ,robert   
,leighton1 and ,william ,law1 and you   
will  have the profoundest1 the most    
complete1 the most perfect1 and1 ,i will
  add1 the most fascinating and         
enthralling of spiritual teaching in all
  the world4  ,and ,i will be bold      
enough to promise you that if you will  
but  join our ,young ,men's ,class      
to-night1 and will buy and read our     
mystical  books1 and will resolve to put
 in practice what you hear and read in  
the  class1 ,i will promise you1 ,i say1
 that by the end of our short session   
you will not only be ten times more open
 and hospitably-minded men1 but  also   
ten times more spiritually-minded men1  
ten times more ,christ-like  men1 and   
with your joy in ,christ and ,his joy in
 you all but full4    #b4  ,the ,captain
 ,self-denial was a young man1 and he   

was also a townsman  in ,mansoul4       
,young ,self-denial and one other were  
all of ,emmanuel's  captains who were   
townsmen in ,mansoul4  ,all his other   
captains ,emmanuel  had brought with    
him2 but the ,captains ,self-denial and 
,experience were  both born and reared  
to their full manhood in that besieged  
city4  ',a  townsman4'  ,how much there 
is for us all in that one word6  ,how   
much  instruction6  ,how much           
encouragement6  ,how much caution and   
correction6  ,our greatest grace2 our   
most essential and indispensable grace2 
our most  experimental and evidential   
grace2 that grace1 indeed1 without which
 all  our other graces are but specious 
shows and painted surfaces of graces2   
that grace into which our ,lord here    
gathers up all our other graces2--that  
greatest of graces cannot be imputed1   
imported1 or introduced2 it must be     
born1 bred1 exercised1 reared up to its 
full maturity1 and sent forth to  fight 
and to conquer1 and all within the walls

 of its own native town2 in  short1 our 
self-denial must have its beginning and 
middle and end in our  own heart4       
,antinomians there were1 as our ,puritan
 fathers nicknamed all  those persons   
who glorified ,christ by letting ,him do
 all things for them1  both ,his own    
things and their things too1 both their 
justification and  their sanctification 
too4  ,and there are many good but      
ill-instructed men  among ourselves who 
have just this taint of that old heresy 
cleaving to  them still--this taint1    
namely1 that they are tempted to carry  
over the  suretyship and substitutionary
 work of ,christ into such regions1 and 
to  carry it to such lengths in those   
regions1 as1 practically1 to make       
,christ to minister to their soft and   
sinful living1 and to their excuse  and 
indulgence of themselves4  ,i will put  
it squarely and plainly to some  of my  
very best friends here to-night4  ,is it
 not the case1 now1 that you  do not    
like this direction into which this     

text1 and the truth of this  text1 are  
now travelling8  ,is it not so that you 
shift back in your seat  from the       
approaching cross8  ,is it not the very 
and actual fact that you  have secret   
ways of sin1 secret habits of           
self-indulgence in your body  and in    
your soul1 in your mind and in your     
heart1 secret sins that you  mantle over
 with the robe of ,christ's             
righteousness8  ,his spotless and       
imputed righteousness8  ,in your present
 temper you would have disliked  deeply 
the ,sermon on the ,mount had you heard 
it2 and ,i see you shaking  your head   
over your ,sabbath-day dinner at this   
text when it was first  spoken4  ,lay   
this down for a law1 all my brethren1--a
 ,new ,testament and a                  
never-to-be-abrogated law1--that the    
best and the safest religion for you  is
 that way of religion that is hardest on
 your pride1 on your  self-importance1  
on your self-esteem1 as well as on your 
purse and on  your belly4  ,you are not 

likely to err by practising too much of 
the  cross4  ,you may very well have too
 much of the cross of ,christ preached  
to you1 and too little of your own4     
,why6 did not ,christ die for me8 you   
indignantly say4  ,yes2 so ,he did4     
,but only that you might die too4  ,he  
was crucified1 and so must you be       
crucified every day before one single   
drop of ,his sin-atoning blood shall    
ever be wasted on ,you4  ,be not        
deceived3 the cross is not mocked2 for  
only as a man nails himself1 body  and  
soul1 to the cross every day shall he   
ever be saved from sin and  death and   
hell by means of it4  ,and1 exactly as a
 man denies himself--no  more and no    
less--his appetites1 his passions1 his  
thoughts and words and  deeds1 every day
 and every hour of every day1 just so   
much shall ,he who  searches our hearts 
and sees us in secret1 acknowledge us1  
both every day  now1 and at the last day
 of all4    #c4  ,this same ,captain    
,self-denial1 his history goes on1 was  

stout1 he was  an hardy man also1 and a 
man of great courage4  ,stout and hardy 
and of  great courage at home1 that is2 
in his own mind and heart1 soul and     
body1  that is4  ,young ,captain        
,self-denial was a perfect hero at      
saying ,no6 and  at saying ,no6 to      
himself4  ,it is a proverb that there is
 nothing so  difficult as to say that   
monosyllable4  ,and the proverb is      
,scripture  truth if you try to say ,no6
 to yourself4  ,it takes the very       
stoutest of  hearts1 the most noble1 the
 most manly1 the most soldierly1 and the
 most  saintly of hearts to say ,no6 to 
itself1 and to keep on saying ,no6 to   
itself to the bitter end of every trial 
and temptation and opportunity4  ,i     
remember reading long ago a page or two 
of a medical man's diary4  ,and in  it  
he made a confession and an appeal ,i   
have never forgot2 though1 to my  loss1 
,i have not always acted upon it4  ,he  
said that for many years he  had never  
been entirely well4  ,he had constant   

headaches and depressions1  and it was  
seldom that he was not to some extent   
out of sorts4  ,but1 all  the time1 he  
had a shrewd guess within himself as to 
what was the matter  with him4  ,he felt
 ashamed to confess it even to himself  
that he over-ate  himself every day at  
table2 till1 at last1 summoning up all  
divine and  human help1 he determined   
that1 however hungry he was1 and however
  savoury the dish was1 and however     
excellent the wine was1 he would never  
either ask for or accept a second       
helping4  ,and this was his testimony1  
that from that stout and hardy day he   
grew better in health daily2 'my  head  
became clear1 my eye bright1 my         
complexion pure1 my mind and  feelings  
were redeemed from all clouds and       
depressions4  ,and to-day ,i am  a      
younger man at fifty than ,i was at     
thirty4'  ,now1 if just saying ,no6 to  
himself and to the waiter at table did  
work such a new birth in a  confirmed   
gourmand of middle life1 what would it  

not have wrought for him  had he carried
 his answer stoutly and courageously    
through all the other  parts of his body
 and soul8--as perhaps he did4          
,perhaps1 having tasted  the sweet      
beginnings of salvation1 he carried his 
short and sure regimen  through4  ,if he
 has done so1 let him give us his full  
autobiography4  ,what  a blessed1 what a
 priceless book it would be6    #d4     
,stout ,captain ,self-denial was        
commanded to begin his life as an       
officer in ,emmanuel's army by taking   
especial watch over ,ear-gate and ,eye- 
gate2 and at our last accounts of our   
abstemious doctor he had only got  the  
length of ,mouth-gate4  ,but having     
begun so well with those three  great   
outposts of the soul1 if those two      
trusty officers only held on1  and      
played the man courageously enough1 they
 would soon be promoted to  still more  
important1 still more central1 and1 if  
more difficult and  dangerous1 then also
 much more honourable and remunerative  

posts4  ,appetite1 deep and deadly as   
its evils are1 is1 after all1 only an   
outwork of the soul2 and the same sharp 
knife that the epicure and the  sot in  
all their stages must put to their      
throat1 that same knife must be  made to
 draw blood in all parts of their mind  
and their heart1 in their  will and in  
their imagination1 till a perfect chorus
 of self-denials  rings like noblest    
martial music through all the gates1 and
 streets1 and  fortresses1 and          
strongholds1 and very palaces and       
temples of the soul4  ,i  shall here    
stand aside and let the greatest of the 
,english mystics speak  to you on this  
present point4  ',when we speak of      
self-denial1' he says1  in his          
,christian ,perfection1 'we are apt to  
confine it to eating and  drinking3 but 
we ought to consider that1 though a     
strict temperance be  necessary in these
 things1 yet that these are the easiest 
and the  smallest instances of          
self-denial4  ,pride1 vanity1 self-love1

  covetousness1 envy1 and other         
inclinations of the like nature call for
 a  more constant and a more watchful   
self-denial than the appetites of       
hunger and thirst4  ,and till we enter  
into this course of universal self-     
denial we shall make no progress in real
 piety1 but our lives will be a         
ridiculous mixture of ,i know not what2 
sober and covetous1 proud and  devout1  
temperate and vain1 regular in our forms
 of devotion and  irregular in all our  
passions1 circumspect in little modes of
 behaviour  and careless and negligent  
of tempers the most essential to piety4 
,and  thus it will necessarily be with  
us till we lay the axe to the root of   
the tree1 till we deny and renounce the 
whole corruption of our nature1  and    
resign ourselves up entirely to the     
,spirit of ,god1 to think and speak  and
 act by the wisdom and the purity of    
religion4'    #e4  ,stout as ,captain   
,self-denial was1 and notable alarms and
 some brisk  execution as he did upon   

the enemy1 yet he must meet with some   
brushes  himself2 indeed1 he carried    
several of the marks of such brushes on 
his  face as well as on some other parts
 of his body4  ,if ,i had read in his   
history that ,young ,captain            
,self-denial had left his mark upon his 
enemies1 ,i would have said1 ,well done1
 and ,i would have added that ,i  always
 expected as much4  ,but it is far more 
to my purpose to read that  he had not  
always got himself off without wounds   
that left lasting scars  both where they
 were seen of all1 and where they were  
seen and felt only  by ,self-denial     
himself4  ,and not ,self-denial only1   
but even ,paul1 in our  flesh1 and with 
like passions with us1 had the same     
experience and has  left us the same    
record4  ',i keep my body under'3 so our
 emasculated  ,english version makes us 
read it4  ,but the visual image in the  
masterly  original ,greek is not so     
mealy-mouthed4  ,i box and buffet myself
 day and  night1 says ,paul4  ,i play   

the truculent tyrant over a lewd and    
lazy  slave4  ,i hit myself blinding    
blows on my tenderest part4  ,i am      
ashamed  to look at myself in the glass1
 for all under my eyes ,i am black and  
blue4  ,if ,david1 after the matter of  
,uriah1 had done that to himself1 and   
even more than that1 we would not have  
wondered2 we would have expected  it1   
and we would have said1 ,it is no more  
than we would have done  ourselves4     
,but that a spotless1 gentle1 noble soul
 like ,paul should so  have mangled     
himself1--that quite dumfounders us4    
,if ,paul1 then1 who1  touching the     
righteousness which is in the law1 was  
blameless1 had to  handle himself in    
that manner in order to keep himself    
blameless1 shall  any young man here    
hope to escape temptation without such  
blows at  himself as shall leave their  
mark on him all his days8  ,nay1 not    
only so1  but after ,self-denial had    
thus exercised himself and subdued      
himself1  still his enemy sometimes got 

such an advantage over him as left him  
as  his history here describes him4     
,all which is surely full of the most   
excellent heartening to all who read1 in
 earnest and for an example1 his  fine  
history4    #f4  ,the last and crowning 
exploit of our matchless captain was to 
capture1 and execute1 and quarter1 and  
hang up on a gallows at the market-     
cross1 the head and the hands and the   
feet of his oldest1 most sworn1 and     
most deadly enemy1 one ,self-love4  ,so 
stout and so insufferable was our       
captain in the matter of ,self-love that
 when it was proposed by some of  his   
many influential friends and            
high-in-place relations in the city that
  the judgment of the court-martial on  
,self-love should be deferred1 our      
stout soldier with the cuts on his face 
and in some other parts of his  body    
stood up1 and said that the city and the
 army must make up their  mind either to
 relieve him of his sword1 hacked and   
broken off as it was1  or else to       

execute the law upon ,self-love on the  
spot4  ,i will lay down  my commission  
this very day1 he said1 with an         
extraordinary indignation4  ,many rich  
men in the city1 and many men deep in   
the ,king's service1  muttered mutinous 
things when their near relative was     
hurried to the open  cause-way1 but by  
that time the soldiers of ,self-denial's
 company had  brained ,self-love with   
the butts of their muskets4  ,and it was
 the stand  that our captain made in the
 matter of ,self-love that at last      
lifted the  young soldier where many had
 felt he should have been lifted long   
ago4  ,from that day he was made a lord1
 a military peer1 and an adviser of the 
crown and the crown officers in all the 
deepest counsels concerning  ,mansoul4  
,only1 with the cloak and the coronet of
 ,self-denial the present  history all  
but comes to an end4  ,for1 before the  
outcast remains of ,self-  love had     
mouldered to their dust on the city     
gate1 the ,king's chariot had  descended

 into the street1 had ascended up to the
 palace at the head of  the street1 and 
a new age of the city life had begun1   
the full history of  which has yet to be
 told4    ,remain behind1 then1 and     
begin with us to-night1 all you young   
men4  ,you  cannot begin this lifelong  
study and this lifelong pursuit of      
self-denial  too early4  ,for1 even if  
you begin to read our books and to      
practise our  discipline in your very   
boyhood1 when you are old men and very  
saints of  ,god you will feel that your 
self-love is still so full of life and  
power1  that your self-denial has       
scarcely begun4  ,ah1 me6 men3 both old 
and  young men4  ,ah1 me6 what a life's 
task set us of ,god it is to make us a  
new heart1 to cleanse out an unclean    
heart1 to lay in the dust a proud       
heart1 and to keep a heart at all times1
 and in all places1 and toward  all     
people1 with all diligence6  ,who is    
sufficient for these things8    ',now   
was ,christian somewhat in a maze4  ,but

 at last1 when every man  started back  
for fear1 ,christian saw a man of a very
 stout countenance  come up to him that 
sat there with the inkhorn to write1    
saying1 ,set down  my name1 sir6  ,at   
which there was a pleasant voice heard  
from those that  were within1 even of   
those who walked upon the top of that   
place1 saying1       ,come in1 come in3 
,eternal glory thou shalt win4    ,then 
,christian smiled1 and said3 ,i think1  
verily1 that ,i know the meaning  of all
 this now4'          ,,chapter          
,,xvii--,,five ,,pickt ,,men         ',i
 took wise men and known and made them  
captains4'--,moses4    ,john ,bunyan    
never lost his early love for a         
soldier's life any more than  he ever   
forgot the rare delights of his         
bell-ringing days4  ,john ,bunyan1  all 
his days1 never saw a bell-rope that his
 fingers did not tingle1 and  he never  
saw a soldier in uniform without        
instinctively shouldering his  youthful 
musket4  ,bunyan was one of those rare  

men who are of imagination  all compact2
 and consequently it is that all his    
books are full of the  scenes1 the      
occupations1 and the experiences of his 
early days4  ,not that  he says very    
much1 in as many words1 about what      
happened to him in the  days when he was
 a soldier2 it is only once in all his  
many books that he  says that when he   
was a soldier such and such a thing     
happened to him4  ,at  the same time1   
all his books bear the impress of his   
early days upon  them2 and as for this  
special book of ,bunyan's now open      
before us1 it is  full from board to    
board of the strife and the din of his  
early battles4  ,the ,holy ,war is just 
,john ,bunyan's soldierly life          
spiritualised--spiritualised and so     
worked up into this fine ,english       
,classic4    ,well1 then1 after ,mansoul
 was taken and reduced1 the victorious  
,prince  determined so to occupy the    
town with ,his soldiers that it should  
never  again either be taken by force   

from without1 or ever again revolt by   
weakness or by fear from within4  ,and  
with this view ,he chose out five of    
,his best captains--,my five pickt men1 
,he always called them--and placed      
those five captains and their thousands 
under them in the strongholds of  the   
town4  ,on the margin of this page our  
versatile author speaks of that  step of
 ,emmanuel's in the language of a       
philosopher1 a moralist1 and a  divine4 
',five graces1' he says1 'pickt out of  
an abundance of common  virtues4'  ,this
 summing-up sentence stands on his stiff
 and dry margin4  ,but in the rich and  
living flow of the text itself our      
author goes on  writing like the man of 
genius he is4  ,with all the warmth and 
colour and  dramatic movement of which  
this whole book is full1 this great     
writer  goes on to set those five choice
 captains of our salvation before us in 
a  way that we shall never forget4      
#a4  ',the first was that famous        
captain1 the noble ,captain ,credence4  

,his  were the red colours1 and ,mr4    
,promise bare them4  ,and for a         
scutcheon he  had the ,holy ,lamb and   
the golden shield2 and he had ten       
thousand men at  his feet4'  ,now1 this 
same ,captain ,credence from first to   
last of the war  always led the van both
 within and around ,mansoul4  ,in       
ordinary and  peaceful days2 in days of 
truce and parley2 when the opposite     
armies were  laid up in their winter    
quarters1 or were1 for any cause1 drawn 
off from  one another1 some of the other
 captains might be more in evidence4    
,but  in every exploit to be called an  
exploit2 in every single enterprise of  
danger2 when any new position was to be 
taken up1 or any forlorn hope was  to be
 led1 there1 in the very van of labour  
and of danger1 was sure to be  seen     
,captain ,credence with his blood-red   
colours in his own hand4  ,you          
understand your ,bunyan by this time1 my
 brethren8  ,captain ,credence1 your    
little boy at school will tell you1 is  

just the soldier-like faith of  your    
sanctification4  ,credo1 he will tell   
you1 is ',i believe'2 it is to  have    
faith in ,god and in the word of ,god4  
,you will borrow your ,latin  from your 
little boy1 and then you will pay him   
back by telling him how  ,captain       
,credence has always led the van in your
 soul4  ,you will tell him  and show him
 what a wonderful writer on the things  
of the soul ,john  ,bunyan is1 till you 
make ,john ,bunyan one of your son's    
choicest authors  for all his days4     
,you will do this if you will tell him  
how and when  this same ,captain        
,credence with his crimson colours first
 led the van in  your salvation4  ,you  
will tell him this with more and more   
depth and more  and more plainness as   
year after year he reads his ,holy ,war1
 and better  and better understands it1 
till he has had it all fulfilled in     
himself as  a pickt captain and good    
soldier of ,jesus ,christ4  ,you will   
tell him  about yourself1 till1 at this 

forlorn hope in his own life1 and at    
that  sounded advance1 in some new      
providence and in some new duty2 in this
  commanded attack on an inwardly       
entrenched enemy1 and in that resolute  
assault on some battlement of evil      
habit1 he recollects his noble1         
confiding1 and loving father and plays  
the man again1 and that all the  more if
 only for his father's sake4  ,ask your 
son what he knows and what  you do not  
know1 and then as long as his heart and 
his ear are open tell  him what you know
 and what you have by faith come        
through1 and that will  be a priceless  
possession to him1 especially when he is
 put in possession  of it by you4       
,well on toward the end of the war1 the 
,captain ,credence had so acquitted     
himself that he was summoned one day to 
the ,prince's quarters1 when the        
following colloquy ensued3 ',what hath  
my ,lord to say to ,his servant8'  ,and 
then1 after a sign or two of favour1 it 
was said to him3 ',i have made  thee    

lieutenant over all the forces in       
,mansoul2 so that1 from this day        
forward1 all men in ,mansoul shall be at
 thy word2 and thou shalt be he  that   
shall lead in and that shall lead out   
,mansoul4  ,and at thy command  shall   
all the rest of the captains be4'  ,my  
brethren1 you will have the  whole key  
to all that in yourselves if this same  
war has gone this length  in you4       
,faith1 your faith in ,god1 and in the  
word of ,god1 will1 as this  inward war 
goes on1 not only lead the van in your  
heart and in your life1  but just       
because your faith so leads in all      
things1 and is so fitted to  lead in all
 things1 it will at last be lifted up   
and set over your soul1  and all the    
things of your soul1 till nothing shall 
be done in any of the  streets1 or      
gates1 or walls thereof that faith in   
,god and in ,his word  does not first   
allow and admit4  ,and then1 when it has
 come to that  within you1 that is the  
best mind1 that is the safest1 the      

happiest1 and  the most heavenly mind   
that you can attain to in this present  
life2 and  when faith shall thus lead   
and rule over all things in thy soul1 be
 thou  always ready1 for thy speedy     
translation to a still better life is   
just  at the door4    #b4 ',the second  
was that famous captain1 ,good-hope4    
,his were the blue  colours4  ,his      
standard-bearer was ,mr4 ,expectation1  
and for a scutcheon he  had three golden
 anchors2 and he had ten thousand men at
 his feet4'  ,the  time was1 my         
brethren1 when all your hopes and mine  
were as yet anchored  without the veil4 
,but all that is now changed4  ,we still
 hope1 in a mild  kind of way1 for this 
thing and for that in this present life2
 but only  in a mild kind of way4  ,it  
would not be right in us not to look    
forward1  say1 from spring-time to      
summer1 and from summer to harvest4  ,if
 the  husbandman had not hope in the    
former and in the latter rain he would  
not  sow2 and as it is with the         

husbandman so it is with us all3 so     
ought it  to be1 and so it must be4     
,but we say ,god willing6 all the time  
that we  plot and plan and hope4  ,and  
we say ,god willing6 no longer with a   
sigh1  but1 now1 always with a smile4   
,in ,his will is our tranquillity1 we   
say1  and we know that if it is not ,his
 will that this and that slightly       
anchored hope should be fulfilled1 then 
that only means that all our  hopes1 to 
be called hopes1 are soon to be         
realised4  ,our green and salad  days in
 the matter of hope are for ever past4  
,if we had it all  absolutely secured to
 us that this world is still promising  
to its salad  dupes1 it would not come  
within a thousand miles of satisfying   
our  hearts4  ,whether the hopes of our 
hearts are to be fulfilled within the   
veil or no1 that remains to be seen2 but
 all the things without the veil  taken 
together do not any longer even pretend 
to promise a hope to hearts  like ours4 
,our ,forerunner has carried away our   

hearts with ,him4  ,we have  no heart   
left for any one but ,him1 or for       
anything without or within the  veil    
that ,he is not and is not in4  ,and    
till that hope also has made us         
ashamed1--till ,he and ,his promises    
have failed us like all the rest1--we   
are going to anchor our hearts on that1 
and on that only1 which we  believe is  
with ,him within the veil4  ,if our     
,forerunner also disappoints  us2 if we 
enter where ,he is1 only to find that   
,he is not there2 or that1  though      
there1 ,he is not able to satisfy our   
hope in ,him1 and make us like          
,himself1 then we shall be of all men   
the most miserable4  ,but not till      
then4  ,no2 not till then4  ,and thus it
 is that ,captain ,good-hope has his    
billet in our heart2 thus it is that his
 blue colours float over our  house2 and
 thus it is that his three golden       
anchors are blazing out in  all their   
beauty on the best wall of our earthly  
house4    #c4  ',the third was that     

valiant captain1 the ,captain ,charity4 
,his  standard-bearer was ,mr4 ,pitiful1
 and for his scutcheon he had three     
naked  orphans embraced in his bosom2   
and he also had ten thousand men at his 
feet4'  ,o ,charity6  ,o valiant and    
pitiful ,charity6  ,divine-natured and  
heavenly-minded ,charity6  ,when wilt   
thou come and dwell in my heart8  ,when1
 by thine indwelling1 shall ,i be able  
to love my neighbour1 and all  my       
neighbours1 as myself8  ,when1 in thy   
strength1 shall ,i cease from  repining 
at my neighbour's good2 and when shall  
,i cease secretly  rejoicing over his   
evil8  ,when shall ,i by thee renewing  
me1 be made able  to cease in everything
 from seeking first my own will and my  
own way2 my  own praise and my own      
glory8  ,when shall it be as much my new
 nature to  love my neighbour as it is  
now my old nature to hate him8  ,when   
shall ,i  cease to be so soon angry1 and
 hard1 and bitter1 and scornful1 and    
unrelenting1 and unforgiving8  ,when    

shall my neighbour's presence1 his      
image1 and his name always call up only 
love and honour1 good-will and          
affectionate delight8  ,when and where  
shall ,i1 under thee1 feel for the  last
 time any evil of any kind in my heart  
against my brother8  ,oh6 to  see the   
day when ,i shall suffer long and be    
kind6  ,when ,i shall never  again vaunt
 myself or be puffed up6  ,when ,i shall
 bear all things1  believe all things1  
hope all things1 endure all things6  ,o 
blessed1  blessed ,charity6 with thy    
divine heart1 with thy dove-like eyes1  
and with  thy bosom full of pity1 when  
wilt thou come into my sinful heart and 
bring all heaven in with thee6  ,o      
,charity6 till thou so comest ,i shall  
wait for thee4  ,and1 till thou comest1 
thy standard-bearer shall be my  door   
porter1 and thy scutcheon shall hang    
night and day at my door-post6    #d4   
',the fourth captain was that gallant   
commander1 the ,captain ,innocent4  ,his
 standard-bearer was ,mr4 ,harmless2 his

 were the white colours1 and for  his   
scutcheon he had three golden doves4'   
,my brethren1 how well it would  have   
been with us to-day if we had always    
lived innocently6  ,had we only  been   
innocent of that man's1 and that man's1 
and that man's1 and that  man's hurt6   
7,let us name all the men to ourselves47
  ,how many men have  we1 first and     
last1 hurt6  ,some intentionally1 and   
some unintentionally2  some             
deliberately1 and some only by accident2
 some of malice1 and some  only of      
misfortune2 some innocently and         
unknowingly1 and whom we never  properly
 hurt4  ,some1 also1 by our mere        
existence2 some by our best  actions2   
some because we have helped and not hurt
 others2 and some out of  nothing else  
but the pure original devilry of their  
own evil hearts4  ,and  then1 when we   
take all these men home to our hearts1  
what hearts all  these men give us6     
,who1 then1 is the man here who has done
 to other men  the most hurt8  ,who has 

caused or been the occasion of most     
hurt8  ,let  that so unhappy man just   
think that the gallant commander1 the   
,captain  ,innocent himself1 with his   
white colours and with his golden doves1
 is  standing and knocking at your evil 
door4  ,o unhappy man6  ,by all the hurt
  and harm you have ever done--by all   
that you can never now undo--by those   
spotless colours that are still snow and
 not yet scarlet as they wave  over     
you--by those three golden doves that   
are an emblem of the life that  still   
lies open before you1 as well as an     
invitation to you to enter on  that     
life--why will you die of remorse and   
despair8  ,open the door of  your heart 
and admit ,captain ,innocent4  ,he knows
 that of all hurtful men  on the face of
 the earth you are the most hurtful1 but
 he is not on that  account afraid at   
you2 indeed1 it is on that account that 
he has come so  near to you4  ,by       
admitting him1 by enlisting under him1  
by serving under  him1 some of the most 

hurtful and injurious men that ever     
lived have  lived after to be the most  
innocent and the most harmless of men1  
with  their hands washed every day in   
innocency1 and with three golden doves  
as  the scutcheon of their new nature   
and their ,christian character4  ,oh    
come  into my heart1 ,captain ,innocent2
 there is room in my heart for thee6    
#e4  ',and then the fifth was that truly
 royal and well-beloved captain1  the   
,captain ,patience4  ,his               
standard-bearer was ,mr4 ,suffer-long1  
and for a  scutcheon he had three arrows
 through a golden heart4'  ,three arrows
  through a golden heart6  ,most        
eloquent1 most impressive1 and most     
instructive of emblems6  ,first1 a heart
 of gold1 and then that heart of  gold  
pierced1 and pierced1 and then pierced  
again with arrow after arrow4  ,patience
 was the last of ,emmanuel's pickt      
graces4  ,captain ,patience with  his   
pierced heart always brought up the rear
 when the army marched4  ,but  when     

,captain ,patience and ,mr4 ,suffer-long
 did enter and take up their  quarters  
in any house in ,mansoul1--then was     
there no house more safe1  more         
protected1 more peaceful1 more quietly1 
sweetly1 divinely happy than  just that 
house where this loyal and well-beloved 
captain bore in his  heart4  ,entertain 
patience1 my brethren4  ,practise       
patience1 my brethren4  ,make your house
 at home a daily school to you in which 
to learn patience4  ,be sure that you   
well understand the times1 the          
occasions1 the  opportunities1 and the  
invitations of patience1 and take profit
 out of  them2 and thus both your profit
 and that of others also will be great4 
,tribulation worketh patience4  ,endure 
tribulation1 then1 for the sake of  its 
so excellent work4  ,nothing worketh    
patience like tribulation1 and          
therefore it is that tribulation so     
abounds in the lives of ,god's people4  
,so much does tribulation abound in the 
lives of ,god's people that they  are   

actually known in heaven and described  
there by their experience of            
tribulation4  ',these are they which    
came out of great tribulation1 and      
therefore are they before the throne4'  
,these are they with the three  sharp   
arrows shot through and through their   
hearts of gold4          ,,chapter      
,,xviii--,,mr4 ,,desires-,,awake        
',one thing have ,i desired4'--,david4  
,mr4 ,desires-awake dwelt in a very mean
 cottage in ,mansoul4  ,there were  two 
very mean cottages in ,mansoul1 and     
those two cottages stood beside  one    
another and leaned upon one another and 
held one another up4  ,mr4              
,desires-awake dwelt in the one of those
 cottages and ,mr4 ,wet-eyes in the     
other4  ,and those two mendicant men    
were wont to meet together for secret   
prayer1 when ,mr4 ,desires-awake would  
put a rope upon his head1 while ,mr4    
,wet-eyes would not be able to speak for
 wringing his hands in tears all  the   
time4  ,many a time did those two       

meanest and most despised of men        
deliver that city1 according to the     
proverb of the ,preacher3 ,wisdom is    
better than strength1 and the words of  
wisdom are to be heard in secret        
places1 where wisdom is far better than 
weapons of war4  ,why should ,i not  do 
all for them and the best ,i can8 said  
,mr4 ,desires-awake when the men  of    
,mansoul came to him in their extremity4
  ,i will even venture my life  again   
for them at the pavilion of the ,prince4
  ,and accordingly this mean  man put   
his rope upon his head1 as was his wont1
 and went out to the  ,prince's tent and
 asked the reformades if he might see   
their ,master4  ,then  the ,prince1     
coming to the place where the petitioner
 lay on the ground1  demanded what his  
name was and of what esteem he was in   
,mansoul1 and why  he1 of all the       
multitudes of ,mansoul1 was sent out to 
,his ,royal tent on  such an errand4    
,then said the man to the ,prince       
standing over him1 he  said3 ,oh let not

 my ,lord be angry2 and why inquirest   
,thou after the name  of such a dead dog
 as ,i am8  ,pass by1 ,i pray ,thee1 and
 take not notice of  who ,i am1 because 
there is1 as ,thou very well knowest1 so
 great a  disproportion between ,thee   
and me4  ,for my part1 ,i am out of     
charity with  myself2 who1 then1 should 
be in love with me8  ,yet live ,i would1
 and so  would ,i that my townsmen      
should2 and because both they and myself
 are  guilty of great transgressions1   
therefore they have sent me1 and ,i have
  come in their names to beg of my ,lord
 for mercy4  ,let it please ,thee1      
therefore1 to incline to mercy2 but ask 
not who ,thy servant is4  ,all  this1   
and how ,mr4 ,desires-awake and ,mr4    
,wet-eyes sped in their petition1  is to
 be read at length in the ,holy         
,history4  ,and now let us take down    
the key that hangs in our author's      
window and go to work with it on the    
sweet mystery of ,mr4 ,desires-awake4   
#a4  ,well1 then1 to begin with1 this   

poor man's name need not delay us  long 
seeking it out4  ,in shorter time1 and  
with surer success than ,i  could give  
you the dictionary root of his name1 if 
you will look within  you will all see  
the visual image of this poor man's name
 in your own  heart4  ,for our hearts   
are all as full as they can hold of all 
kinds of  desires2 some good and some   
bad1 some asleep and some awake1 some   
alive  and some dead1 some raging like a
 hundred hungry lions1 and some         
satisfied as a sleeping child4  ,well1  
then1 this mean man was called ,mr4     
,desires-awake1 and what his desires    
were awake after and set upon we have   
already seen in his head-dress and heard
 in his prayer4  ,his house1 on  the    
other hand1 will not be so well known4  
,for it was less a house than  a hut--a 
hut hidden away out of sight and back   
behind ,mr4 ,wet-eyes' hut4  ,mr4       
,desires-awake's cottage was so mean and
 meagre that no one ever came  to visit 
him unless it was his next-door         

neighbour4  ,they never left  their     
cottages1 those two poor men1 unless it 
was to see one another2 or1  strange to 
tell1 unless it was to go out at the    
city gate to see and to  speak with     
their ,prince4  ,and at such times their
 venturesomeness both  astonished       
themselves and amused their ,prince4    
,sometimes he laughed to  see them back 
at his door again2 but more often he    
wept to see and hear  them2 all which   
made the guards of his pavilion to      
wonder who those two  strange men might 
be4  ,and thus it was that if at any    
long interval of  time any of the men of
 the city desired to see ,mr4           
,desires-awake1 he was  sure to be found
 at the pavilion door of his ,prince1 or
 else in his  neighbour's cottage1 or   
else at home in his own4  ,from year's  
end to  year's end you might look in    
vain for either of those two poor men in
 the  public resorts of ,mansoul4  ,when
 all the town was abroad on holidays and
  fair-days and feast-days1 those two   

mean men were then closest at home4     
,and when the booths of the town were   
full of all kinds of wares and          
merchandise1 and all the greens in the  
town were full of games1 and  plays1 and
 cheats1 and fools1 and apes1 and       
knaves1 only those two  penniless men   
would abide shut up at home4  ,at home2 
or else together  they would go to a    
market-stance set up by their ,prince   
outside the walls  where one was        
stationed to stand and to cry3 ',ho6    
every one that  thirsteth1 come ye to   
the waters1 and he that hath no money4  
,wherefore  do ye spend money for that  
which is not bread1 and your labour for 
that  which satisfieth not8  ,incline   
your ear and come to me2 hear1 and your 
soul shall live4'  ,and sometimes the   
,prince would go out in person to  meet 
the two men with nothing to pay1 and    
would ,himself say to them1 ,i  counsel 
thee to buy of ,me gold tried in the    
fire1 and white raiment1 and  anoint    
thine eyes with eye-salve1 till the two 

men1 ,mr4 ,desires-awake and  ,mr4      
,wet-eyes1 would go home to their huts  
laden with their ,prince's free  gifts  
and royal bounties4    #b4  ,but1 with  
all that1 ,mr4 ,desires-awake never went
 out to his ,prince's  pavilion till he 
had again put his rope upon his head4   
,and1 however  laden with royal presents
 he ever returned to his mean cottage1  
he never  laid aside his rope4  ,he ate 
in his rope1 he slept in his rope1 he   
visited his next-door neighbour in his  
rope1 till the only instruction he  left
 behind him was to bury him in a ditch1 
and be sure to put his rope  upon his   
head4  ,the men and the boys of the town
 jeered at ,mr4 ,desires-  awake as he  
passed up their streets in his rope1 and
 the very mothers in  ,mansoul taught   
their children in arms to run after him 
and to cry1 ,go up1  thou roped head6   
,go up1 thou roped head6  ,we be free   
men1 the men of the  town called after  
him2 and we never were in bondage to any
 man'4  ,out  with him2 out with him6   

,he is beside himself4  ,much repentance
 hath made  him mad6  ,but through all  
that ,mr4 ,desires-awake was as one that
 heard  them not4  ,for ,mr4            
,desires-awake was full of louder voices
 within4  ,the  voices within his bosom 
quite drowned the babel around him4     
,the voices  within called him far worse
 names than the streets of the city ever
  called him2 till all he could do was  
to draw his rope down upon his head  and
 press on again to the ,prince's        
pavilion4  ,you understand about that   
rope1 my brethren1 do you not8  ,mr4    
,desires-awake's continual rope8  ,in   
old days when a guilty man came of his  
own accord to the judge to confess      
himself deserving of death1 he would put
 a rope upon his head4  ,and that  rope 
as much as said to the judge and to all 
men--the miserable man as  good as said3
 ,this is my desert4  ,this is the wages
 of my sin4  ,i justify  my judge4  ,i  
judge myself4  ,i hereby do myself to   
death4  ,and it was this  that so       

angered the happy holiday-makers of     
,mansoul4  ,for they forgave            
themselves4  ,they justified themselves4
  ,they put a high price upon           
themselves4  ,humiliation and sorrow for
 sin was not in all their  thoughts2 and
 they hated and hunted back into his hut
 the humble man  whose gait and garb    
always reminded them of their past life 
and of their  latter end4  ,but for all 
they could do1 ,mr4 ,desires-awake would
 wear his  rope4  ,my soul chooseth     
strangling rather than sin1 he would    
say4  ,my sin  hath found me out1 he    
would say2 ,i hate myself1 he would say1
 because of  my sin4  ,i condemn and    
denounce myself4  ,i hang myself up with
 this rope  on the accursed tree4  ,and 
thus it was that while other men were   
crucifying their ,prince afresh1 ,mr4   
,desires-awake was crucifying himself   
with and after his ,prince4  ,and thus  
it was that while the men and the  women
 of the town so hated and so mocked ,mr4
 ,desires-awake1 his ,prince so  loved  

and so honoured him4    #c4  ',oh let   
not my ,lord be angry2 and why inquirest
 ,thou after the name  of such a dead   
dog as ,i am8' said ,desires-awake to   
his ,prince4  ',behold1  now1 ,i have   
taken upon me to speak unto the ,lord   
which am but dust and  ashes1' said     
,abraham4  ',if ,i wash myself with snow
 water1 and make my  hands never so     
clean1 yet shalt thou plunge me into the
 ditch1 and mine  own clothes shall     
abhor me1' said ,job4  ',my wounds stink
 and are corrupt2  my loins are filled  
with a loathsome disease1 and there is  
no soundness  in my flesh1' said ,david4
  ',but we are all as an unclean thing1'
 said  ,isaiah1 'and all our            
righteousnesses are as filthy rags4'    
',i am the  chief of sinners1' said the 
apostle4  ',hold your peace2 ,i am a    
devil and  not a man1' said ,philip     
,neri to his sons4  ',i am a sinner1 and
 worse than  the chief of sinners1 yea1 
a guilty devil1' said ,samuel           
,rutherford4  ',i  hated the light2 ,i  

was a chief--the chief of sinners1' said
 ,oliver  ,cromwell4  ',i was more      
loathsome in my own eyes than a toad1'  
said ,john  ,bunyan4  ',sin and         
corruption would as naturally bubble out
 of my heart as  water would bubble out 
of a fountain4  ,i could have changed   
hearts with  anybody4  ,i thought none  
but the devil himself could equal me for
  wickedness and pollution of mind4'    
',o ,despise me not1' said ,bishop      
,andrewes1 'an unclean worm1 a dead dog1
 a putrid corpse4  ,the just  falleth   
seven times a day2 and ,i1 an exceeding 
sinner1 seventy times  seven4  ,me1 ,o  
,lord1 of sinners chief1 chiefest1 and  
greatest4'  ,and  ,william ,law1 ',an   
unclean worm1 a dead dog1 a stinking    
carcass4  ,drive1 ,i  beseech ,thee1 the
 serpent and the beast out of me4  ,o   
,lord1 ,i detest and  abhor myself for  
all these my sins1 and for all my abuse 
of ,thine  infinite mercy4'  ,from all  
this1 then1 you will see that this dead 
dog of  ours with the rope upon his head

 was no strange sight at ,emmanuel's    
pavilion4  ,and you and ,i shall still  
be in the same saintly succession if  we
 go continually with his words in our   
mouth1 and with his instrument in  our  
hands and on our heads4    #d4  ',the   
,prince to whom ,i went1' said ,mr4     
,desires-awake1 'is such a one  for     
beauty and for glory that whoso sees    
,him must ever after both love  and fear
 ,him4  ,i1 for my part1' he said1 'can 
do no less2 but ,i know not  what the   
end will be of all these things4'  ,what
 made ,mr4 ,desires-awake  say that last
 thing was that when he was prostrate in
 his prayer the  ,prince turned ,his    
head away1 as if ,he was out of humour  
and out of  patience with ,his          
petitioner2 while1 all the time1 the    
overcome ,prince  was weeping with love 
and with pity for ,desires-awake4  ,only
 that poor  man did not see that1 and   
would not have believed that even if he 
had  seen it4  ',i cannot tell what the 
end will be1' said ,desires-awake2 'but 

one thing ,i know1 ,i shall never be    
able to cease from both loving and      
fearing that ,prince4  ,i shall always  
love ,him for ,his beauty and fear ,him 
for ,his glory4'  ,can you say anything 
like that1 my brethren8  ,have you  been
 at ,his seat with sackcloth1 and a     
rope1 and ashes1 and tears1 and         
prayers1 like ,abraham1 and ,david1 and 
,isaiah1 and ,paul1 and ,john ,bunyan1  
and ,bishop ,andrewes8  ,and1 whatever  
may be the end1 do you say that         
henceforth and for ever you must both   
love and fear that ,prince8  ',though   
,he slay me1' said ,job1 'yet ,i shall  
both love and trust ,him4'  ,well1 the  
,prince is the ,prince1 and ,he will    
take both ,his own time and ,his own way
  of taking off your rope and putting a 
chain of gold round your neck1 and  a   
new song in your mouth1 as ,he did to   
,job4  ,there may be more weeping  yet1 
both on your side and on ,his before ,he
 does that2 but ,he will do it1  and ,he
 will not delay an hour that ,he can    

help in doing it4  ,only1 do you        
continue and increase to love ,his      
beauty1 and to fear ,his glory4  ,and   
that of itself will be reward and       
blessing enough to you4  ,nay1 once you 
have seen both ,his beauty and ,his     
glory1 then to lie a dog under ,his     
table1 and to beg at ,his door with a   
rope on your head to all eternity  would
 be a glorious eternity to you4  ,samuel
 ,rutherford said that to see  ,christ  
through the keyhole once in a thousand  
years would be heaven  enough for him4  
,christ wept in heaven as ,rutherford   
wrote that letter in  ,aberdeen1 and if 
you make ,him weep in the same way ,he  
will soon make you  to laugh too4  ,he  
will soon make you to laugh as ,samuel  
,rutherford and  ,mr4 ,desires-awake are
 laughing now4  ,only1 my brethren1     
answer this--,are  your desires awakened
 indeed after ,jesus ,christ8  ,you know
 what a desire  is4  ,your hearts are   
full to the brim of desires4  ,well1 is 
there one  desire in a day in your heart

 for ,christ8  ,in the multitude of your
  desires within you1 what share and    
what proportion go out and up to        
,christ8  ,you know what beauty is4     
,you know and you love the beauty of a  
child1 of a woman1 of a man1 of nature1 
of art1 and so on4  ,do you know1  have 
you ever seen1 the ineffable beauty of  
,christ8  ,is there one saint  of ,god  
here1--and ,he has many saints here--is 
there one of you who can  say with      
,david in the text1 ,one thing do ,i    
desire8  ,there should be many  so      
desiring saints here2 for ,christ's     
beauty is far better and far  fairer1   
far more captivating1 far more          
enthralling1 and far more  satisfying to
 us than it could be to ,david4  ,shall 
we call you ,desires-  awake1 then1     
after this8  ,can you say--do you say1  
,one thing do ,i desire1  and that is no
 thing and no person1 no created beauty 
and no earthly  sweetness1 but my one   
desire is for ,god3 to be ,his1 and to  
be like ,him1  and to be for ever with  

,him8  ,then1 it shall soon all be4     
,for1 what you  truly desire1--all that 
you already are2 and what you already   
are1--all  that you shall soon          
completely and for ever be4  ,whom have 
,i in heaven  but ,thee8  ,and there is 
none upon earth that ,i desire beside   
,thee4  ,my  flesh and my heart faileth2
 but ,god is the strength of my heart1  
and my  portion for ever4    ',as for   
me1' says the great-hearted1 the        
hungry-hearted ,psalmist1 ',i  shall be 
satisfied1 when ,i awake1 with ,thy     
likeness4'  ,one would have  said that  
,david had all that heart could desire  
even before he fell  asleep4  ,for he   
had a throne1 the throne of ,israel1 and
 a son1 a son like  ,solomon to sit upon
 it4  ,a long life also1 full to the    
brim of all kinds  of temporal and      
spiritual blessings4  ,bless the ,lord1 
,o my soul1 and  forget not all ,his    
benefits2 who forgiveth all thine       
iniquities2 who  healeth all thy        
diseases2 who redeemeth thy life from   

destruction2 who  crowneth thee with    
loving-kindness and tender mercies2 who 
satisfieth thy  mouth with good things1 
so that thy youth is renewed like the   
eagle's4  ,all that1 and yet not        
satisfied6  ,o ,david6 ,david6 surely   
,desires-awake is  thy new name6  ,one  
of our own poets has said3--       ',all
 thoughts1 all passions1 all delights1  
,whatever stirs this mortal frame1      
,all are but ministers of ,love1        
,and feed ,his sacred flame4'    ,now1  
if that is true1 as it is true1 even of 
earthly and ephemeral love1  how much   
more true is it of the love that is in  
the immortal soul of man  for the       
everlasting ,god8  ,and what a blessed  
life that already is when  all things   
that come to us--joy and sorrow1 good   
and evil1 nature and  grace1 all        
thoughts1 all passions1 all             
delights--are all but so many  ministers
 to our soul's desire after ,god1 after 
the ,divine ,likeness and  for the      
,beatific ,vision4       ',oh6  ,christ1

 ,he is the ,fountain1        ,the deep 
sweet ,well of ,love6     ,the streams  
on earth ,i've tasted1        ,more deep
 ,i'll drink above2     ,there1 to an   
ocean fulness1        ,his mercy doth   
expand2     ,and glory--glory dwelleth  
,in ,emmanuel's land4'                  
,,chapter ,,xix--,,mr4 ,,wet-,,eyes     
',oh that my head were                  
waters6'--,jeremiah4       ',tears gain 
everything4'--,teresa4    ,now ,mr4     
,desires-awake1 when he saw that he must
 go on this errand1  besought that they 
would grant that ,mr4 ,wet-eyes might go
 with him4  ,now  this ,mr4 ,wet-eyes   
was a near neighbour of ,mr4            
,desires-awake1 a poor man1  and a man  
of a broken spirit1 yet one that could  
speak well to a  petition2 so they      
granted that he should go with him4     
,wherefore the two  men at once         
addressed themselves to their serious   
business4  ,mr4 ,desires-  awake put his
 rope upon his head1 and ,mr4 ,wet-eyes 
went with his hands  wringing together4 

,then said the ,prince1 ,and what is he 
that is become  thy companion in this so
 weighty a matter8  ,so ,mr4            
,desires-awake told  ,emmanuel that this
 was a poor neighbour of his1 and one of
 his most  intimate associates4  ,and   
his name1 said he1 may it please your   
most  excellent ,majesty1 is ,wet-eyes1 
of the town of ,mansoul4  ,i know that  
there are many of that name that are    
naught1 said he2 but ,i hope it will  be
 no offence to my ,lord that ,i have    
brought my poor neighbour with me4      
,then ,mr4 ,wet-eyes fell on his face to
 the ground1 and made this apology  for 
his coming with his neighbour to his    
,lord3--    ',oh1 my ,lord1' quoth he1  
'what ,i am ,i know not myself1 nor     
whether my  name be feigned or true1    
especially when ,i begin to think what  
some have  said1 and that is that this  
name was given me because ,mr4          
,repentance was  my father4  ,but good  
men have sometimes bad children1 and the
 sincere do  sometimes beget hypocrites4

  ,my mother also called me by this name
 of  mine from my cradle2 but whether   
she said so because of the moistness of 
my brain1 or because of the softness of 
my heart1 ,i cannot tell4  ,i see  dirt 
in mine own tears1 and filthiness in the
 bottom of my prayers4  ,but  ,i pray   
,thee 7and all this while the gentleman 
wept7 that ,thou wouldst not  remember  
against us our transgressions1 nor take 
offence at the  unqualifiedness of ,thy 
servants1 but mercifully pass by the sin
 of  ,mansoul1 and refrain from the     
magnifying of ,thy grace no longer4'    
,so at  ,his bidding they arose1 and    
both stood trembling before ,him4    #a4
  ',his name1 may it please your        
,majesty1 is ,wet-eyes1 of the town of  
,mansoul4  ,i know1 at the same time1   
that there are many of that name that   
are naught4'  ,naught1 that is1 for this
 great enterprise now in hand4  ,and    
thus it was that ,mr4 ,desires-awake in 
setting out for the ,prince's  pavilion 
besought that ,mr4 ,wet-eyes might go   

with him4  ,mr4 ,desires-awake  felt    
keenly how much might turn on who his   
companion was that day1 and  therefore  
he took ,mr4 ,wet-eyes with him4  ,david
 would have made a most  excellent      
associate for ,mr4 ,desires-awake that  
day4  ',i am weary with my  groaning2   
all the night make ,i my bed to swim2 ,i
 water my couch with my  tears4'  ,and  
again1 ',rivers of waters run down mine 
eyes1 because they  keep not ,thy law4' 
,this1 then1 was the only manner of man 
that ,mr4  ,desires-awake would stake   
his life alongside of that day4  ',i    
have seen  some persons weep for the    
loss of sixpence1' said ,mr4            
,desires-awake1 'or  for the breaking of
 a glass1 or at some trifling accident4 
,and they  cannot pretend to have their 
tears valued at a bigger rate than they 
will  confess their passion to be when  
they weep4  ,some are vexed for the     
dirtying of their linen1 or some such   
trifle1 for which the least passion  is 
too big an expense4  ,and thus it is    

that a man cannot tell his own  heart   
simply by his tears1 or the truth of his
 repentance by those short  gusts of    
sorrow4'  ,well1 then1 my brethren1 tell
 me1 ,do you think that  ,mr4           
,desires-awake would have taken you that
 day to the pavilion door8  ,would his  
head have been safe with you for his    
associate8  ,your  associates see many  
gusts in your heart4  ,do they ever see 
your eyes red  because of your sin8     
,did you ever weep so much as one good  
tear-drop for  pure sin8  ,one true     
tear3 not because your sins have found  
you out1 but  for secret sins that you  
know can never find you out in this     
world8  ,and1  still better1 do you ever
 weep in secret places not for sin1 but 
for  sinfulness--which is a very        
different matter8  ,do you ever weep to 
yourself and to ,god alone over your    
incurably wicked heart8  ,if not1 then  
weep for that with all your might1 night
 and day4  ,no mortal man has so  much  
cause to weep as you have4  ,go to ,god 

on the spot1 on every spot1  and say    
with ,bishop ,andrewes1 who is both ,mr4
 ,desires-awake and ,mr4 ,wet-  eyes in 
one1 say with that deep man in his      
,private ,devotions1 say3 ',i  need more
 grief1 ,o ,god2 ,i plainly need it4  ,i
 can sin much1 but ,i cannot            
correspondingly repent4  ,o ,lord1 give 
me a molten heart4  ,give me tears2     
give me a fountain of tears4  ,give me  
the grace of tears4  ,drop down1 ye     
heavens1 and bedew the dryness of my    
heart4  ,give me1 ,o ,lord1 this saving 
grace4  ,no grace of all the graces were
 more welcome to me4  ,if ,i may not    
water my couch with my tears1 nor wash  
,thy feet with my tears1 at least  give 
me one or two little tears that ,thou   
mayest put into ,thy bottle and  write  
in ,thy book6'  ,if your heart is hard1 
and your eyes dry1 make  something like 
that your continual prayer4    #b4  ',a 
poor-man1' said ,mr4 ,desires-awake1    
about his associate4  ',mr4 ,wet-  eyes 
is a poor man1 and a man of a broken    

spirit4'  ',let ,oliver take  comfort in
 his dark sorrows and melancholies4     
,the quantity of sorrow he  has1 does it
 not mean withal the quantity of        
sympathy he has1 and the  quantity of   
faculty and of victory he shall yet     
have8  ,our sorrow is the  inverted     
image of our nobleness4  ,the depth of  
our despair measures what  capability   
and height of claim we have to hope4    
,black smoke1 as of  ,tophet1 filling   
all your universe1 it can yet by true   
heart-energy become  flame1 and the     
brilliancy of heaven4  ,courage6'       
',this is the angel of the earth1       
,and she is always weeping4'    #c4  ',a
 poor man1 and a man of a broken spirit1
 and yet one that can speak  well to a  
petition4'  ,yes2 and you will see how  
true that eulogy of ,mr4  ,wet-eyes is  
if you will run over in your mind the   
outstanding instances  of successful    
petitioners in the ,scriptures4  ,as you
 come down the ,old  and the ,new       
,testaments you will be astonished and  

encouraged to find how  prevailing a    
fountain of tears always is with ,god4  
,david with his  swimming bed2 ,jeremiah
 with his head waters2 ,mary ,magdalene 
over ,his feet  with her welling eyes2  
,peter's bitter cry all his life long as
 often as  he heard a cock crow1 and so 
on4  ,so on through a multitude whose   
names  are written in heaven1 and who   
went up to heaven all the way with      
inconsolable sorrow because of their    
sins4  ,they took words and turned to   
the ,lord2 but1--better than the best   
words1--they took tears1 or rather1     
their tears took them4  ,the best words1
 the words that the ,holy ,ghost        
,himself teacheth1 if they are without  
tears1 will avail nothing4  ,even       
inspired words will not pass through2   
while1 all the time1 tears1 mere  tears1
 without words1 are omnipotent with     
,god4  ,words weary ,him1 while  tears  
overcome and command ,him4  ,he inhabits
 the tears of ,israel4  ,therefore1     
also1 now1 saith the ,lord1 turn ye unto

 ,me with all your  heart1 and with     
weeping and with mourning4  ,and rend   
your heart1 and not  your garments1 and 
turn unto the ,lord your ,god1 for ,he  
is gracious and  merciful1 slow to      
anger1 and of great kindness1 and       
repenteth ,him of the  evil4  ,it is the
 same with ourselves4  ,tears move us4  
,tears melt us4  ,we  cannot resist     
tears4  ,even counterfeit tears1 we     
cannot be sure that they  are not true4 
,and that is the main reason why our    
,lord is so good at  speaking to a      
petition4  ,it is because ,his whole    
heart1 and all the  moving passions of  
,his heart1 are in ,his intercessory    
office4  ,it is  because ,he still      
remembers in the skies ,his tears1 ,his 
agonies1 and  cries4  ,it is because ,he
 is entered into the holiest with ,his  
own tears  as well as with ,his own     
blood4  ,and it is because ,he will     
remain and  abide before the ,father the
 ,man of ,sorrows till our last petition
 is  answered1 and till ,god has wiped  

the last tear from our eyes4  ,when ,he 
was in the coasts of                    
,caesarea-,philippi1 our ,lord felt a   
great curiosity  to find out who the    
people thereabouts took ,him to be4     
,and it must have  touched ,his heart to
 be told that some men had insight      
enough to insist  that ,he was the      
prophet ,jeremiah come back again to    
weep over ,jerusalem4  ,he is ,elias1   
said some4  ,no2 ,he is ,john the       
,baptist risen from the dead1  said     
others4  ,no1 no2 said some men who saw 
deeper than their neighbours4  ,his head
 is waters1 and ,his eyes are a fountain
 of tears4  ,do you not see  that ,he so
 often escapes into a lodge in the      
wilderness to weep for our  sins8  ,no2 
,he is neither ,john nor ,elijah2 ,he is
 ,jeremiah come back again  to weep over
 ,jerusalem6  ,and even an apostle1     
looking back at the  beginning of our   
,lord's priesthood on earth1 says that  
,he was prepared  for ,his office by    
prayers and supplications1 and with     

strong crying and  tears4  ,from all    
that1 then1 let us learn and lay to     
heart that if we  would have one to     
speak well to our petitions1 the ,man of
 ,sorrows is that  one4  ,and then1 as  
,his remembrancers on our behalf1 let us
 engage all  those among our friends who
 have the same grace of tears4  ,but1   
above  all1 let us be men of tears      
ourselves4  ,for all the tears and all  
the  intercessions of our great ,high   
,priest1 and all the importunings of our
  best friends to boot1 will avail us   
nothing if our own eyes are dry4  ,let  
us1 then1 turn back to ,bishop          
,andrewes's prayer for the grace of     
tears1  and offer it every night with   
him till our head1 like his1 is holy    
waters1 and till1 like him1 we get      
beauty for ashes1 the oil of joy for    
mourning1 and the garment of praise for 
the spirit of heaviness4    #d4  ',clear
 as tears' is a ,persian proverb when   
they would praise their  purest spring  
water4  ,but ,mr4 ,wet-eyes has from    

henceforth spoiled the  point of that   
proverb for us4  ',i see1' he said1     
'dirt in mine own tears1  and filthiness
 in the bottom of my prayers4'  ,mr4    
,wet-eyes is hopeless4  ,mr4 ,wet-eyes  
is intolerable4  ,mr4 ,wet-eyes would   
weary out the patience  of a saint4     
,there is no satisfying or pacifying or 
ever pleasing this  morbose ,mr4        
,wet-eyes4  ,the man is absolutely      
insufferable4  ,why1 prayers  and tears 
that the most and best of ,god's people 
cannot attain to are  spurned and spat  
upon by ,mr4 ,wet-eyes4  ,the man is    
beside himself with  his tears4  ,for1  
tears that would console and assure us  
for a long season  after them1 he will  
weep over them as we scarce weep over   
our worst sins4  ,his closet always     
turns all his comeliness to corruption4 
,he comes out  of his closet after all  
night in it with his psalm-book wrung to
 pulp1  and with all his righteousnesses
 torn to filthy rags2 till all men      
escape  ,mr4 ,wet-eyes' society--all men

 except ,mr4 ,desires-awake4  ,i will go
 out  on your errand now1 said ,mr4     
,desires-awake1 if you will send ,mr4   
,wet-eyes  with me4  ,and thus the two  
twin sons of sorrow for sin and hunger  
after  holiness went out arm in arm to  
the great pavilion together1 ,mr4       
,desires-  awake with his rope upon his 
head1 and ,mr4 ,wet-eyes with his hands 
wringing together4  ,thus they went to  
the ,prince's pavilion4  ,i gave you  a 
specimen of one of ,mr4 ,wet-eyes'      
prayers in the introduction to this     
discourse1 and you did not discover much
 the matter with it1 did you8  ,you  did
 not discover much filthiness in the    
bottom of that prayer1 did you8  ,i  am 
sure you did not4  ,ah6 but that is     
because you have not yet got ,mr4       
,wet-eyes' eyes4  ,when you get his     
eyes2 when you turn and employ upon     
yourselves and upon your tears and upon 
your prayers his always-wet  eyes1--then
 you will begin to understand and love  
and take sides with  this inconsolable  

soul1 and will choose his society rather
 than that of  any other man--as often1 
at any rate1 as you go out to the       
,prince's  pavilion door4    #e4  ',mr4 
,repentance was my father1 but good men 
sometimes have bad  children1 and the   
most sincere do sometimes beget great   
hypocrites4  ,but1  ,i pray ,thee1 take 
not offence at the unqualifiedness of   
,thy servant4'  ,take good note of that 
uncommon expression1 'unqualifiedness1' 
in ,mr4 ,wet-  eyes' confession1 all of 
you who are attending to what is being  
said4  ,lay  'unqualifiedness' to heart4
  ,learn how to qualify yourselves      
before you  begin to pray4  ,in his fine
 comment on the #acgth ,psalm1 ,matthew 
,henry  discourses delightfully on what 
he calls 'deliberate tears4'  ,look up  
that raciest of commentators1 and see   
what he there says about the  deliberate
 tears of the captives in ,babylon4  ,it
 was the lack of  sufficient            
deliberation in his tears that condemned
 and alarmed ,mr4 ,wet-  eyes that day4 

,he felt now that he had not deliberated
 and qualified  himself properly before 
coming to the ,prince's pavilion4  ,do  
not take up  your time or your thoughts 
with mere curiosities1 either in your   
,bible or  in any other good book1 says 
,a ,kempis4  ,read such things rather as
 may  yield compunction to your heart4  
,and again1 give thyself to compunction1
  and thou shalt gain much devotion     
thereby4  ,mr4 ,wet-eyes1 good and true 
soul1 was afraid that he had not        
qualified himself enough by compunctious
  reading and self-recollection4  ,the  
sincere1 he sobbed out1 do often  beget 
hypocrites6  ',our hearts are so        
deceitful in the matter of  repentance1'
 says ,jeremy ,taylor1 'that the masters
 of the spiritual life  are fain to     
invent suppletory arts and stratagems to
 secure the duty4'  ,take not offence at
 the lack of all such suppletory arts   
and stratagems  in thy servant1 said    
poor ,wet-eyes4  ,all which would mean  
in the most of  us3 ,take not offence at

 my rawness and ignorance in the        
spiritual life1  and especially in the  
life of inward devotion4  ,do not count 
up against  me the names and the numbers
 and the prices of my poems1 and plays1 
and  novels1 and newspapers1 and then   
the number of my devotional books4      
,compare not my outlay on my body and on
 this life with my outlay on my  soul   
and on the life to come4  ,oh1 take not 
mortal offence at the  shameful and     
scandalous unqualifiedness of ,thy      
miserable servant4  ,my  father and my  
mother read the books of the soul1 but  
they have left  behind them a dry-eyed  
reprobate in me6  ,say that to-night as 
you look  around on the grievous famine 
of the suppletory arts and stratagems of
  repentance and reformation in your    
heathenish bedroom4    ,spiritual       
preaching2 real face to face1 inward1   
verifiable1 experimental1  spiritual    
preaching2 preaching to a heart in the  
agony of its  sanctification2 preaching 
to men whose whole life is given over to

 making  them a new heart--that kind of 
preaching is scarcely ever heard in our 
day4  ,there is great intellectual      
ability in the pulpit of our day1 great 
scholarship1 great eloquence1 and great 
earnestness1 but spiritual  preaching1  
preaching to the spirit--'wet-eyed'     
preaching--is a lost art4  ,at the same 
time1 if that living art is for the     
present overlaid and  lost1 the         
literature of a deeper spiritual day    
abides to us1 and our                   
spiritually-minded people are not       
confined to us1 they are not dependent  
on us4  ,well1 this is the ,communion   
week with us yet once more4  ,will you  
not1 then1 make it the beginning of some
 of the suppletory arts and  stratagems 
of the spiritual life with yourselves8  
,i cannot preach as ,i  would like on   
such subjects1 but ,i can tell you who  
could1 and who1  though dead1 yet speak 
by their immortal books4  ,you have the 
wet-eyed  psalms2 but they are beyond   
the depth of most people4  ,their       

meaning  seems to us on the surface1 and
 we all read and sing them1 but let us  
not  therefore think that we understand 
them4  ,i cannot compel you to read the 
books1 and to read little else but the  
books1 that would in time1 and by       
,god's blessing1 lead you into the      
depths of the psalms2 but ,i can wash my
  hands so far in making their names so 
many household words among my  people4  
,the ,way to ,christ1 the ,imitation of 
,christ1 the ,theologia  ,germanica1    
,tauler's ,sermons1 the ,mortification  
of ,sin1 and  ,indwelling ,sin in       
,believers1 the ,saint's ,rest1 the     
,holy ,living and  ,dying1 the ,privata 
,sacra1 the ,private ,devotions1 the    
,serious ,call1  the ,christian         
,perfection1 the ,religious ,affections1
 and such like4  ,all that1 and you     
still unqualified6  ,all that1 and your 
eyes still dry6          ,,chapter      
,,xx--,,mr4 ,,humble ,,the ,,juryman1   
,,and ,,miss ,,humble-,,mind ,,the      
,,servant-,,maid         ',learn of ,me1

 for ,i am meek and lowly in            
heart4'--,our ,lord4       ',be clothed 
with humility4'--,peter4       ',god's  
chiefest saints are the least in their  
own eyes4'--,a ,kempis4       ',without 
humility all our other virtues are but  
vices4'--,pascal4       ',humility does 
not consist in having a worse opinion of
 ourselves than     we deserve4'--,law4 
',humility lies close upon the heart1   
and its tests are exceedingly           
delicate and subtle4'--,newman4    ,our 
familiar ,english word 'humility' comes 
down to us from the ,latin root  humus1 
which means the earth or the ground4    
,humility1 therefore1 is  that in the   
mind and in the heart of a man which is 
low down even to the  very earth4  ,a   
humble-minded man may not have learning 
enough to know the  etymology of the    
name which best describes his character1
 but the divine  nature which is in him 
teaches him to look down1 to walk meekly
 and  softly1 and to speak seldom1 and  
always in love4  ,for humility1 while it

  takes its lowly name from earth1 all  
the time has its true nature from       
heaven4  ,humility is full of all       
meekness1 modesty1 submissiveness1      
teachableness1 sense of inability1 sense
 of unworthiness1 sense of ill-  desert4
  ,till1 with that new depth and new    
intensity that the ,scriptures  and     
religious experience have given to this 
word1 as to so many other  words1       
humility1 in the vocabulary of the      
spiritual life1 has come to be  applied 
to that low estimate of ourselves which 
we come to form and to  entertain as we 
are more and more enlightened about ,god
 and about  ourselves2 about the        
majesty1 glory1 holiness1 beauty1 and   
blessedness of  the divine nature1 and  
about our own unspeakable evil1         
vileness1 and  misery as sinners4  ,and1
 till humility has come to rank in ,holy
  ,scripture1 and in the lives and      
devotions of all ,god's saints1 as at   
once  the deepest root and the ripest   
fruit of all the divine graces that     

enter  into1 and1 indeed1 constitute the
 life of ,god in the heart of man4      
,humility1 evangelical humility1 sings  
,edwards in his superb and seraphic     
poem the ,religious                     
,affections1--evangelical humility is   
the sense that  the true ,christian has 
of his own utter insufficiency1         
despicableness1  and odiousness1 a sense
 which is peculiar to the true saint4   
,but to  compensate the true saint for  
this sight and sense of himself1 he has 
revealed to him an accompanying sense of
 the absolutely transcendent  beauty of 
the divine nature and of all divine     
things2 a sight and a sense  that quite 
overcome the heart and change to        
holiness all the dispositions  and      
inclinations and affections of the      
heart4  ,the essence of evangelical     
humility1 says ,edwards1 consists in    
such humility as becomes a creature  in 
himself exceeding sinful1 but at the    
same time1 under a dispensation  of     
grace1 and this is the greatest and most

 essential thing in all true  religion4 
#a4  ,well1 then1 our ,mr4 ,humble was a
 juryman in ,mansoul1 and his name and  
his nature eminently fitted him for his 
office4  ,i never was a juryman2  but1  
if ,i were1 ,i feel sure ,i would come  
home from the court a far  humbler man  
than ,i went up to it4  ,i cannot       
imagine how a judge can  remain a proud 
man1 or an advocate1 or a witness1 or a 
juryman1 or a  spectator1 or even a     
policeman4  ,i am never in a criminal   
court that ,i do  not tremble with      
terror all the time4  ,i say to myself  
all the  time1--there stands ,john      
,newton but for the preventing grace of 
,god4  ',i  will not sit as a judge to  
try ,general ,boulanger1 because ,i hate
 him1'  said ,m4 ,renault in the ,french
 ,senate4  ,mr4 ,humble himself could   
not have  made a better speech to the   
bench than that when his name was called
 to  be sworn4  ,let us all remember    
,john ,newton and ,m4 ,renault when we  
would  begin to write or to speak about 

any arrested1 accused1 found-out man4   
,let other men's arrests1 humiliations1 
accusations1 and sentences only  make us
 search well our own past1 and that will
 make us ever humbler and  ever humbler 
men ourselves2 ever more penitent men1  
and ever more  prayerful men4    #b4    
,and then ,miss ,humble-mind1 his only  
daughter1 was a servant-maid4  ,there is
 no office so humble but that a humble  
mind will not put on still  more        
humility in it4  ,what a lesson in      
humility1 not ,peter only got that      
night in the upper room1 but that happy 
servant-maid also who brought in  the   
bason and the towel4  ,would she ever   
after that night grumble and  give up   
her place in a passion because she had  
been asked to do what was  beneath her  
to do8  ,would she ever leave that house
 for any wages8  ,would  she ever see   
that bason without kissing it8  ,would  
that towel not be a  holy thing ever    
after in her proud eyes8  ,how happy    
that house would ever  after that night 

be1 not so much because the ,lord's     
,supper had been  instituted in it1 as  
because a servant was in it who had     
learned humility  as she went about the 
house that night4  ,let all our servants
 hold up  their heads and magnify their 
office4  ,their ,master was once a      
servant1  and ,he left us all1 and all  
servants especially1 an example that    
they  should follow in ,his steps4      
,peter1 whose feet were washed that     
night1  never forgot that night1 and his
 warm heart always warmed to a servant  
when he saw her with her bason and her  
towels1 till he gave her half a  chapter
 to herself in his splendid ,first      
,epistle4  ',servants1 be  subject1' he 
said1 till his argument rose to a height
 above which not  even ,paul himself    
ever rose4  ,servant-maids1 you must all
 have your own  half-chapter out of     
,first ,peter by heart4    #c4  ,but ,i 
have as many students of one kind or    
other here to-night as ,i  have         
maid-servants1 and they will remember   

where a great student has said  that    
knowledge without love but puffeth a    
student up4  ,now1 the best  knowledge  
for us all1 and especially so for a     
student1 is to know  himself3 his own   
ignorance1 his own foolishness1 his     
blindness of mind1  and1 especially1 his
 corruption of heart4  ,for that        
knowledge will both  keep him from being
 puffed up with what he already knows1  
and it will  also put him and keep him  
in the way of knowing more4             
,self-knowledge  will increase humility1
 and all the past masters both of       
science and of  religion will tell him  
that humility is the certain note of the
 true  student4  ,you who are students  
all know ,the ,advancement of ,learning1
  just as the servants sitting beside   
you all know the second chapter of      
,first ,peter4  ,well1 your master      
,verulam there tells you1 and indeed on 
every page of his1 that it is only to a 
humble1 waiting1 childlike temper  that 
nature1 like grace1 will ever reveal up 

her secrets4  ',there is  small chance  
of truth at the goal when there is not a
 childlike humility  at the             
starting-post4'  ,well1 then1 all you   
students who would fain get  to the goal
 of science1 make the ,church of ,christ
 your starting-post4  ,come first and   
come continually to the ,christian      
school to learn  humility1 and then1 as 
long as your talents1 your years1 and   
your  opportunities hold out1 both truth
 and goodness will open up to you at    
every step4  ,every step will be a goal1
 and at every goal a new step will  open
 up4  ,and ,god's smile and ,god's      
blessing1 and all good men's love and   
honour and applause will support and    
reward you in your race4  ,and1         
humble-minded to the truth herself1 be1 
at the same time1 humble-minded  toward 
all who like yourself are seeking to    
know and to do the truth4  ,a  lately   
deceased student of nature was a pattern
 to all students as long  as he waited  
on truth in his laboratory2 and even as 

long as he remained  at his desk to tell
 the world what he and other students   
had discovered  in their search4  ,but  
when any other student in his search    
after truth  was compelled to cross that
 hitherto so exemplary student1 he      
immediately  became as insolent as if he
 had been the greatest boor in the      
country4  ,till1 as he spat out scorn at
 all who differed from him we always    
remembered this in ,a ,kempis--',surely1
 an humble husbandman that serveth  ,god
 is better than a proud philosopher     
that1 neglecting himself1  laboureth to 
understand the course of the heavens4   
,it is great wisdom  and perfection to  
esteem nothing of ourselves1 and to     
think always well  and highly of        
others4'  ,students of arts1 students of
 philosophy1  students of law1 students 
of medicine1 and especially1 students of
  divinity1 be humble men4  ,labour in  
humility even more than in your  special
 science4  ,humility will advance you in
 your special science2  while1 all the  

time1 and at the end of time1 she will  
be more to you than  all the other      
sciences taken together4  ,and since ,i 
have spoken of ,a  ,kempis1 take this   
motto for all your life out of ,a       
,kempis1 as the great  and good ,fenelon
 did1 and it will guide you to the goal3
 ,ama nescia et  pro nihilo reputari4   
#d4  ,but of all the men in the whole   
world it is ministers who should        
simply1 as ,peter says1 be clothed with 
humility1 and that from head to  foot4  
,and1 first as divinity students1 and   
then as pastors and  preachers1 we who  
are ministers have advantages and       
opportunities in this  respect quite    
peculiar and private to ourselves4      
,for1 while other  students are spending
 their days and their nights on the     
ancient classics  of ,greece and ,rome1 
the student who is to be a minister is  
buried in the  ,psalms1 in the ,gospels1
 and in the ,epistles4  ,while the      
student of law is  deep in his          
commentaries and his cases1 the student 

of divinity is deep  in the study of    
experimental religion4  ,and while the  
medical student is  full of the diseases
 of animals and of men1 the theological 
student is  absorbed in the holiness of 
the divine nature1 and in the plague of 
the  human heart1 and1 especially1 he is
 drowned deeper every day in his own4   
,and he who has begun a curriculum like 
that and is not already putting on  a   
humility beyond all other men had better
 lose no more time1 but turn  himself at
 once to some other way of making his   
bread4  ,the word of ,god  and his own  
heart1--yes2 what a sure school of      
evangelical humility to  every          
evangelically-minded student is that6   
,and1 then1 after that1 and  all his    
days1 his congregational communion-roll 
and his visiting-book4  ,let no minister
 who would be found of ,god clothed and 
canopied over with  humility ever lose  
sight of his communion-roll and pastoral
 visitation-  book4  ,i defy any        
minister to keep those records always   

open before him  and yet remain a proud 
man1 a self-respecting1 self-satisfied1 
self-righteous man4  ,for1 what secret  
histories of his own folly1  neglect1   
rashness1 offensiveness1 hot-headedness1
 self-seeking1  self-pleasing vanity1   
now puffed up over one man1 now cast    
down and full  of gloom over another1   
what self-flattery here1 and what       
resentment and  retaliation there2 and  
so on1 as only his own eyes and his     
,divine  ,master's eye can read between 
every diary line4  ,what shame will     
cover  that minister as with a mantle   
when he thinks what the ,christian      
ministry  might be made1 and then takes 
home to himself what he has made it6    
,let  any minister shut himself in with 
his communion-roll and his visiting-    
book before each returning communion    
season1 and there will be one worthy    
communicant at least in the             
congregation3 one who will have little  
appetite all that week for any other    
food but the broken ,body and the  shed 

,blood of his ,redeemer4  ,but these are
 professional matters that the  outside 
world has nothing to do with and would  
not understand4  ,only1 let  all young  
men who would have evangelical humility 
absolutely secured and  sealed to       
them1--let them come and be ministers4  
,just as all young men  who would have  
any satisfaction in life1 any sense of  
work well done and  worthy of reward1   
any taste of a goal attained and an old 
age earned1 let  them take to anything  
in all this world but the evangelical   
pulpit and  its accompanying pastorate4 
#e4  ,but humility is not a grace of the
 pulpit and the pastorate only4  ,it  is
 not those who are separated by the     
,holy ,ghost to study the word of ,god  
and their own hearts all their life long
 only1 who are called to put on         
humility4  ,all men are called to that  
grace4  ,there is no acceptance with    
,god for any man without that grace4    
,there is no approach to ,god for any   
man without it4  ,all salvation begins  

and ends in it4  ,would you1 then1  fain
 possess it8  ,would you1 then1 fain    
attain to it8  ,then let there be  no   
mystery and no mistake made about it4   
,would any man here fain get  down to   
that deep valley where ,god's saints    
walk in the sweet shade and  lie down in
 green pastures8  ,well1 ,i warrant him 
that just before him1  and already under
 his eye1 there is a flight of steps cut
 in the hill1  which steps1 if he will  
take them1 will1 step after step1 take  
him also  down to that bottom4  ,the    
whole face of this steep and slippery   
world is  sculptured deep with such     
submissive steps4  ,indeed1 when a man's
 eyes  are once turned down to that     
valley1 there is nothing to be seen     
anywhere  in all this world but downward
 steps4  ,look whichever way you will1  
there  gleams out upon you yet another  
descending stair4  ,look back at the way
  you came up4  ,but take care lest the 
sight turns you dizzy4  ,look at any    
spot you once crossed on your way up1   

and1 lo6 every foot-print of yours  has 
become a descending step4  ,you sink    
down as you look1 broken down  with     
shame and with horror and with remorse4 
,there are people1 some  still left in  
this world1 and some gone to the other  
world1 people whom  you dare not think  
of lest you should turn sick and lose   
hold and hope4  ,there are places you   
dare not visit3 there are scenes you    
dare not  recall4  ,lucifer himself     
would be a humble angel with his wings  
over his  face if he had a past like    
yours1 and would often enough return to 
look  at it4  ,and1 then1 not the past  
only1 but at this present moment there  
are people and things placed close      
beside you1 and kept close beside you1  
and you close beside them1 on divine    
purpose just to give you continual      
occasion and offered opportunity to     
practise humility4  ,they are kept      
close beside you just on purpose to     
humiliate you1 to cut out your          
descending steps1 to lend you their     

hand1 and to say to you3 ,keep near  us4
  ,only keep your eye on us1 and we will
 see you down6  ,and then1 if  you are  
resolute enough to look within1 if you  
are able to keep your eye  on what goes 
on in your own heart like heart--beats1 
then1 already1 ,i  know where you are4  
,you are under all men's feet4  ,you are
 ashamed to  lift up your eyes to meet  
other men's eyes4  ,you dare not take   
their  honest hands4  ,you could tell   
,edwards himself things about           
humiliation  now that would make his    
terribly searching and humbling book    
quite tame  and tasteless4    ,come1    
then1 ,o high-minded man1 be sane1 be   
wise4  ,if you were up on a  giddy      
height1 and began to see that certain   
death was straight and soon  before you1
 what would you do8  ,you know what you 
would do4  ,you would  look with all    
your eyes for such steps as would take  
you safest down to  the solid ground4   
,you would welcome any hand stretched   
out to help you4  ,you would be most    

attentive and most obedient and most    
thankful to any  one who would assure   
you that this is the right way down4    
,and you would  keep on saying to       
yourself--,once ,i were well down1 no   
man shall see me up  here again4  ,well1
 my brethren1 humiliation1 humility1 is 
to be learned  just in the same way1 and
 it is to be learned in no other way4   
,he who  would be down must just come   
down4  ,that is all4  ,a step down1 and 
another step down1 and another1 and     
another1 and already you are well  down4
  ,a humble act done to-day1 a humble   
word spoken to-morrow2  humiliation     
after humiliation accepted every day    
that you would at one  time have spurned
 from you with passion2 and then your   
own vile1 hateful1  unbearable heart-all
 that is ordained of ,god to bring you  
down1 down to  the dust2 and this last1 
your own heart1 will bring you down to  
the very  depths of hell4  ,and thus1   
after all your other opportunities and  
ordinances of humility are embraced and 

exhausted1 then the plunges1 the        
depths1 the abysses of humility that    
,god will open up in your own heart     
will all work in you a meetness for     
heaven and a ripeness for its glory1    
that shall for ever reward you for all  
that degradation and shame and          
self-despair which have been to you the 
sure way and the only way to            
everlasting life4          ,,chapter    
,,xxi--,,master ,,think-,,well1 ,,the   
,,late ,,and ,,only ,,son ,,of ,,old    
,,mr4  ,,meditation         ',as he     
thinketh in his heart1 so is he4'--,a   
,proverb4    ,it was a truly delightful 
sight to see old ,mr4 ,meditation and   
his only  son1 our little ,think-well1  
out among the woods and hedgerows of a  
summer  afternoon4  ,little ,think-well 
was the son of his father's old age4    
,that  dry tree used to say to himself  
that if ever he was intrusted with a son
  of his own1 he would make his son his 
most constant and his most  confidential
 companion all his days4  ,and so he    

did4  ,the eleventh of  ,deuteronomy had
 become a greater and greater text to   
that childless man  as he passed the    
mid-time of his days4  ',therefore1' he 
used to say to  himself1 as he walked   
abroad alone1 and as other men passed   
him with  their children at their       
side--',therefore ye shall teach them to
 your  children1 speaking of them when  
thou sittest in thine house1 and when   
thou walkest by the way1 when thou liest
 down and when thou risest up4  ,and    
thou shalt write them upon the doorposts
 of thine house and upon thy  gates4'   
,and thus it was that1 as the little lad
 grew up1 there was no  day of all the  
seven that he so much numbered and      
waited for as was that  sacred day on   
which his father was free to take little
 ,think-well by the  hand and lead him  
out to talk to him4  ',no1' said an     
,edinburgh boy to his  mother the other 
day--',no1 mother1' he said1 ',i have no
 liking for these  ,sunday papers with  
their poor stories and their pictures4  

,i am to read  the ,bible stories and   
the ,bible biographies first4'  ,he is  
not my boy4  ,i  wish my boys were all  
like him4  ',and ,plutarch on week-days 
for such a  boy1' ,i said to his mother4
  ,how to keep a decent shred of the old
  sanctification on the modern          
,sabbath-day is the anxious inquiry of  
many  fathers and mothers among us4  ,my
 friend with her manly-minded boy1 and  
,mr4 ,meditation with little ,think-well
 had no trouble in that matter4         
',and once ,i said1     ,as ,i remember1
 looking round upon those rocks     ,and
 hills on which we all of us were born1 
,that ,god who made the ,great ,book of 
the world     ,would bless such piety2--
     ,never did worthier lads break     
,english bread3     ,the finest ,sunday 
that the autumn saw1     ,with all its  
mealy clusters of ripe nuts1     ,could 
never keep those boys away from church1 
,or tempt them to an hour of ,sabbath   
breach1     ,leonard and ,james6'       
,think-well and that mother's son4      

,old ,mr4 ,meditation1 the father1 was  
sprung of a poor but honest and         
industrious stock in the city4  ,he had 
not had many talents or  opportunities  
to begin with1 but he had made the very 
best of the two he  had4  ,and then1    
when the two estates of ,mr4            
,fritter-day and ,mr4 ,let-good-  slip  
were sequestered to the crown1 the      
advisers of the crown handed over  those
 two neglected estates to ,mr4          
,meditation to improve them for the     
common good1 and after him to his son1  
whose name we know4  ,the steps of  a   
good man are ordered of the ,lord1 and  
,he delighteth in his way4  ,i have     
been young and now am old2 yet have ,i  
not seen the righteous forsaken1  nor   
his seed begging bread4    ,now1 this   
,think-well old ,mr4 ,meditation had by 
,mrs4 ,piety1 and she was  the daughter 
of the old ,recorder4   ',i am ,thy     
servant1' said ,mrs4 ,piety's  son on   
occasion all his days--',i am ,thy      
servant and the son of ,thine           

handmaid4'  ,and at that so dutiful     
acknowledgment of his a long  procession
 of the servants of ,god pass up before 
our eyes with their  sainted mothers    
leaning on the arms of their great sons4
  ,the ,psalmist  and his mother1 the   
,baptist and his mother1 our ,lord and  
,his mother1 the  author of the ,fourth 
,gospel and his mother1 ,paul's son and 
successor in  the gospel and his mother 
and grandmother1 the author of ,the     
,confessions and his mother2 and1 in    
this noble connection1 ,i always  think 
of ,halyburton and his good mother4     
,and in this ennobling  connection you  
will all think of your own mother also1 
and before we go  any further you will  
all say1 ,i also1 ,o ,lord1 am ,thy     
servant and the son  of ,thine handmaid4
  ',fathers and mothers handle children 
differently1'  says ,jeremy ,taylor4    
,and then that princely teacher of the  
,church of  ,christ ,catholic goes on to
 tell us how ,mrs4 ,piety handled her   
little  ,think-well which she had borne 

to ,mr4 ,meditation4  ,after other      
things1  she said this every night      
before she took sleep to her tired      
eyelids1  this3 ',oh give me grace to   
bring him up4  ,oh may ,i always        
instruct him  with diligence and        
meekness2 govern him with prudence and  
holiness2 lead  him in the paths of     
religion and justice2 never provoking   
him to wrath1  never indulging him in   
folly1 and never conniving at an        
unworthy action4  ,oh sanctify him in   
his body1 soul1 and spirit4  ,let all   
his thoughts be  pure and holy to the   
,searcher of hearts2 let his words be   
true and  prudent before men2 and may he
 have the portion of the meek and the   
humble in the world to come1 and all    
through ,jesus ,christ our ,lord6'  ,how
  could a son get past a father and a   
mother like that8  ,even if1 for a      
season1 he had got past them1 he would  
be sure to come back4  ,only1 their     
young ,think-well never did get past his
 father and his mother4    ,there was   

not so much word of heredity in his day2
 but without so much of  the word young 
,think-well had the whole of the thing4 
,and as time went  on1 and the child    
became more and more the father of the  
man1 it was seen  and spoken of by all  
the neighbours who knew the house1 how  
that their  only child had inherited all
 his father's head1 and all his mother's
  heart1 and then that he had reverted  
to his maternal grandfather in his  so  
keen and quick sense of right and wrong4
  ,all which1 under whatever  name it   
was held1 was a most excellent outfit   
for our young gentleman4  ,his old      
father1 good natural head and all1 had  
next to no book-learning4  ,he had only 
two or three books that he read a       
hundred times over till he  had them by 
heart4  ,and as he sighed over his      
unlettered lot he always  consoled      
himself with a saying he had once got   
out of one of his old  books4  ,the     
saying of some great authority was to   
this effect1 that 'an  old and simple   

woman1 if she loves ,jesus1 may be      
greater than our great  brother         
,bonaventure4'  ,he did not know who    
,bonaventure was1 but he always  got a  
reproof again out of his name4          
,think-well1 to his father's immense    
delight1 was a very methodical little   
fellow1 and his father and he had       
orderly little secrets that they told to
 none4  ,little secret plans as to  what
 they were to read about1 and think     
about1 and pray about on certain  days  
of the week and at certain hours of the 
day and the night4  ,you must  not call 
the father an old pedant1 for the fact  
is1 it was the son who  was the pedant  
if there was one in that happy house4   
,the two intimate  friends had a word   
between them they called agenda4  ,and  
nobody but  themselves knew where they  
had borrowed that uncouth word1 what    
language  it was1 or what it meant4     
,only in the old man's tattered         
pocket-book  there were things like this
 found by his minister after his death4 

,indeed1 in a museum of such relics this
 is still to be read under a glass      
case1 and in old ,mr4 ,meditation's     
ramshackle hand3 ',monday1 death2       
,tuesday1 judgment2 ,wednesday1 heaven2 
,thursday1 hell2 ,friday1 my past  life 
back to my youth2 ,saturday1 the passion
 of my ,saviour2 ,lord's day1  creation1
 salvation1 and my own4--,m4'  ,and     
then1 on an utterly illegible  page1    
this3 ',jesus1 ,thy life and ,thy words 
are a perpetual sermon to me4  ,i       
meditate on ,thee all the day4  ,make my
 memory a vessel of election4  ,let  all
 my thoughts be plain1 honest1 pious1   
simple1 prudent1 and charitable1  till  
,thou art pleased to draw the curtain   
and let me see ,thyself1 ,o  ,eternal   
,jesu6'  ,if ,i had time ,i could tell  
you more about ,think-well's  quaint old
 father4  ,but the above may be better  
than nothing about the  rare old        
gentleman4    ,a great authority has    
said--two great authorities have said in
 their  enigmatic way1 that a 'dry light

 is ever the best4'  ,that may be so in 
some cases and to some uses1 but nothing
 can be more sure than this1 that  the  
light that little ,think-well got from  
his father's head was  excellently      
drenched in his mother's heart4  ,the   
sweet moisture of his  mother's heart   
mixed up beautifully with his father's  
drier head and made  a fine combination 
in their one boy as it turned out4  ,her
 minister1  preaching on one occasion on
 my text for to-night1 had said--and she
 had  such a memory for a sermon that   
she had never forgotten it1 but had laid
  it up in her heart on the spot--',as  
the philosopher's stone1' the old-      
fashioned preacher had said1 'turns all 
metals into gold1 as the bee  sucks     
honey out of every flower1 and as the   
good stomach sucks out some  sweet and  
wholesome nourishment out of whatever it
 takes into itself1 so  doth a holy     
heart1 so far as sanctified1 convert and
 digest all things  into spiritual and  
useful thoughts4  ,this you may see in  

,psalm cvii4 #dc4'  ,and in her plain1  
silent1 hidden1 motherly way ,mistress  
,piety adorned her  old minister's      
doctrine of the holy heart that he was  
always preaching  about1 till she shared
 her soft and holy heart with her son1  
as his  father had shared his clear and 
deep1 if too unlearned1 head4    ,we    
have one grandmother at least signalised
 in the ,bible2 but no  grandfather1 so 
far as ,i remember4  ,but amends are    
made for that in the  ,holy ,war4  ,for 
,think-well would never have been the   
man he became had  it not been for the  
old ,recorder1 his grandfather on his   
mother's side4  ,some superficial people
 said that there was too much severity  
in the old  ,recorder2 but his grandson 
who knew him best1 never said that4  ,he
 was  the best of men1 his grandson used
 to stand up for him1 and say1 ,i shall 
never forget the debt ,i owe him4  ,it  
was he who taught me first to make      
conscience of my thoughts4  ,indeed1 as 
for my secret thoughts1 ,i had  taken no

 notice of them till that summer        
afternoon walk home from church1  when  
we sat down among the bushes and he     
showed me on the spot the way4  ,and ,i 
can say to his memory that scarce for   
one waking hour have ,i any  day        
forgotten the lesson4  ,the lesson how  
to make a conscience1 as he  said1 of   
all my thoughts about myself and about  
all my neighbours4  ,such1  then1 were  
,think-well's more immediate ancestors1 
and such was the  inheritance that they 
all taken together had left him4        
,think-well6  ,think-well6  ,my         
brethren1 what do you think1 what do you
  say1 as you hear that fine name8  ,i  
will tell you what ,i think and say4    
,if ,i overcome1 and have that white    
stone given to me1 and in that stone a  
new name written which no man shall know
 saving he that receiveth it2 and  if it
 were asked me here to-night what ,i    
would like my new name to be1 ,i  would 
say on the spot1 ,let it be             
,,think-,,well6  ,let my new name among 

the  saved and the sanctified before the
 throne be ,,think-,,well6  ,as1 ,o     
,god1 it  will be the bottomless pit to 
me1 if ,i am forsaken of ,thee for ever 
to my  evil thoughts4  ,send down and   
prevent it4  ,stir up all ,thy strength 
and  give commandment to prevent it4    
,do ,thou prevent it4  ,for1 after ,i   
have  done all1--after ,i have made all 
my overt acts blameless1 after ,i have  
tamed my tongue which no man can        
tame--all that only the more throws my  
thoughts into a very devil's garden1 a  
thicket of hell1 a secret swamp of  sin 
to the uttermost4  ,how1 then1 am ,i    
ever to attain to that white stone  and 
that shining name8  ,and that in a world
 of such truth that every  man's name   
and title there shall be a strict and   
true and entirely  accurate and adequate
 description and exposition of the very 
thoughts and  intents and imaginations  
of his heart8  ,how shall ,i1 how shall 
you1 my  brethren1 ever have            
',think-well' written on our            

forehead8--,well1 with ,god  all things 
are possible4  ,with ,god1 with a much  
meditating mind1 and a  true and humble 
and tender heart1 and a pure conscience1
 a conscience  void of offence1 working 
together with ,him--,he1 with all these 
inheritances and all these environments 
working together with ,him1 will  at    
last enable us1 you and me1 to lift up  
such a clear and transparent  forehead4 
,but not without our constant working   
together4  ,we must  ourselves make     
head1 and heart1 and1 especially1       
conscience of all our  thoughts--for a  
long lifetime we must do that4  ,the    
,ductor ,dubitantium  has a deep chapter
 on ',the ,thinking ,conscience4'  ,and 
what a reproof to  many of us lies in   
the mere name6  ,for how much           
evil-thinking and evil-  speaking we    
have all been guilty of through our     
unthinking conscience and  through a    
zeal for ,god1 but a zeal without       
knowledge4  ,look back at the  history  
of the ,church and see2 look back at    

your own history in the  ,church and    
see4  ,yes1 make conscience of your     
thoughts3 but let it first  be an       
instructed conscience1 a thinking       
conscience1 a conscience full of  the   
best and the clearest light4  ,and then 
let us also make ourselves a  new heart 
and a new spirit1 as ,ezekiel has it4   
,for our hearts are  continually        
perverting and polluting and poisoning  
our thoughts4  ,that is  a fearful thing
 that is said about the men on whom the 
flood soon came4  ,you remember what is 
said about them1 and in explanation and 
justification of the flood4  ,god saw1  
it is said1 that every imagination  of  
the thoughts of their hearts was evil1  
and only evil continually4  ,fearful6   
,far more fearful than ten floods6  ,o  
,god1 ,thou seest us4  ,and  ,thou seest
 all the imaginations of the thoughts of
 our hearts4  ,oh give  us all a mind   
and a heart and a conscience to think of
 nothing1 to fear  nothing1 to watch and
 to pray about nothing compared with our

 thoughts4  ',as for my secret          
thoughts1' says the author of the ,holy 
,war and the  creator of ,master        
,think-well--',as for my secret         
thoughts1 ,i paid no  attention to them4
  ,i never knew ,i had them4  ,i had no 
pain1 or shame1 or  guilt1 or horror1 or
 despair on account of them till ,john  
,gifford took me  and showed me the     
way4'  ,and then when ,john ,bunyan1    
being the man of  genius he was1--as    
soon as he began to attend to his own   
secret thoughts1  then the first faint  
outline of this fine portrait of        
,think-well began to  shine out on the  
screen of this great artist's           
imagination1 and from that  sanctified  
screen this fine portrait of ,think-well
 and his family has  shined into our    
hearts to-night4          ,,chapter     
,,xxii--,,mr4 ,,god',s-,,peace1 ,a      
,,goodly ,,person1 ,,and ,a             
,,sweet-,,natured  ,,gentleman          
',let the peace of ,god rule in your    
hearts1--the peace of ,god that         

passeth all understanding4'--,paul4     
,john ,bunyan is always at his very best
 in allegory4  ,in some other           
departments of work ,john ,bunyan has   
had many superiors2 but when he lays    
down his head on his hand and begins to 
dream1 as we see him in some of  the old
 woodcuts1 then he is alone2 there is no
 one near him4  ,we have  not a few     
greater divines in pure divinity than   
,john ,bunyan4  ,we have  some far      
better expositors of ,scripture than    
,john ,bunyan1 and we have  some far    
better preachers4  ,john ,bunyan at his 
best cannot open up a deep  ,scripture  
like that prince of expositors1 ,thomas 
,goodwin4  ,john ,bunyan in  all his    
books has nothing to compare for        
intellectual strength and for           
theological grasp with ,goodwin's       
chapter on the peace of ,god1 in his    
sixth book in ,the ,work of the ,holy   
,ghost4  ,john ,bunyan cannot set forth 
divine truth in an orderly method and in
 a built-up body like ,john ,owen4  ,he 

cannot ,platonize divine truth like his 
,puritan contemporary1 ,john  ,howe4    
,he cannot soar high as heaven in the   
beauty and the sweetness of  gospel     
holiness like ,jonathan ,edwards4  ,he  
has nothing of the  philosophical depth 
of ,richard ,hooker1 and he has nothing 
of the vast  learning of ,jeremy        
,taylor4  ,but when ,john ,bunyan's mind
 and heart begin  to work through his   
imagination1 then--          ',his      
language is not ours4     ',tis my      
belief ,god speaks2 no tinker hath such 
powers4'    #a4  ,in the beginning of   
his chapter on ',speaking peace1'       
,thomas ,goodwin  tells his reader that 
he is going to fully couch all his      
intendments  under a metaphor and an    
allegory4  ,but ,goodwin's reader has   
read and re-  read the great chapter1   
and has not yet discovered where the    
metaphor and  the allegory came in and  
where they went out4  ,but ,bunyan does 
not need  to advertise his reader that  
he is going to couch his teaching in his

  imagination4       ',but having now my
 method by the end1     ,still1 as ,i   
pulled it came3 and so ,i penned     ,it
 down2 until at last it came to be      
,for length and breadth the bigness that
 you see4'    ,the ,blessed ,prince1 he 
begins1 did also ordain a new officer in
 the town1  and a goodly person he was4 
,his name was ,mr4 ,god's-peace4  ,this 
man was  set over my ,lord              
,will-be-will1 my ,lord ,mayor1 ,mr4    
,recorder1 the  subordinate preacher1   
,mr4 ,mind1 and over all the natives of 
the town of  ,mansoul4  ,himself was not
 a native of the town1 but came with the
 ,prince  from the court above4  ,he was
 a great acquaintance of ,captain       
,credence  and ,captain ,good-hope2 some
 say they were kin1 and ,i am of that   
opinion  too4  ,this man1 as ,i said1   
was made governor of the town in        
general1  especially over the castle1   
and ,captain ,credence was to help him  
there4  ,and ,i made great observation  
of it1 that so long as all things went  

in  the town as this sweet-natured      
gentleman would have them go1 the town  
was  in a most happy condition4  ,now   
there were no jars1 no chiding1 no      
interferings1 no unfaithful doings in   
all the town2 every man in ,mansoul     
kept close to his own employment4  ,the 
gentry1 the officers1 the  soldiers1 and
 all in place1 observed their order4    
,and as for the women  and the children 
of the town1 they followed their        
business joyfully4  ,they  would work   
and sing1 work and sing1 from morning   
till night2 so that  quite through the  
town of ,mansoul now nothing was to be  
found but  harmony1 quietness1 joy1 and 
health4  ,and this lasted all the       
summer4  ,i  shall step aside at this   
point and shall let ,jonathan ,edwards  
comment on  this sweet-natured gentleman
 and his heavenly name4  ',god's peace  
has an  exquisite sweetness1' says      
,edwards4  ',it is exquisitely sweet    
because it  has so firm a foundation on 
the everlasting rock4  ,it is sweet also

  because it is so perfectly agreeable  
to reason4  ,it is sweet also because   
it riseth from holy and divine          
principles1 which1 as they are the      
virtue1  so are they the proper         
happiness of man4  ,this peace is       
exquisitely sweet  also because of the  
greatness of the good that the saints   
enjoy1 being no  other than the infinite
 bounty and fulness of that ,god who is 
the  ,fountain of all good4  ,it is     
sweet also because it shall be enjoyed  
to  perfection hereafter4'  ,an         
enthusiastic student has counted up the 
number  of times that this divine word  
'sweetness' occurs in ,edwards1 and has 
proved that no other word of the kind   
occurs so often in the author of  ,true 
,virtue and ,the ,religious ,affections4
  ,and ,i can well believe it2  unless  
the 'beauty of holiness' runs it close4 
,still1 this sweet-natured  gentleman   
will continue to live for us in his     
government and jurisdiction  in ,mansoul
 and in ,john ,bunyan even more than in 

,jonathan ,edwards4    #b4  ',now ,mr4  
,god's-peace1 the new ,governor of      
,mansoul1 was not a native  of the town2
 he came down with his ,prince from the 
court above4'  ',he was  not a          
native'--let that attribute of his be   
written in letters of gold on  every    
gate and door and wall within his       
jurisdiction4  ,when you need the       
governor and would seek him at any time 
or in any place in all the town  and    
cannot find him1 recollect yourself     
where he came from3 he may have         
returned thither again4  ,john ,bunyan  
has couched his deepest instruction  to 
you in that single sentence in which he 
says1 ',mr4 ,god's-peace was not  a     
native of the town4'  ,john ,bunyan has 
gathered up many gospel  ,scriptures    
into that single allegorical sentence4  
,he has made many old  and familiar     
passages fresh and full of life again in
 that one  metaphorical sentence4  ,it  
is the work of genius to set forth the  
wont  and the well known in a clear1    

simple1 and at the same time surprising1
  light like that4  ,there is a peace   
that is native and natural to the town  
of ,mansoul1 and to understand that     
peace1 its nature1 its grounds1 its     
extent1 and its range1 is most important
 to the theologian and to the  saint4   
,but to understand the peace of ,god1   
that supreme peace1 the peace  that     
passeth all understanding1--that is the 
highest triumph of the  theologian and  
the highest wisdom of the saint4  ,the  
prophets and the  psalmists of the ,old 
,testament are all full of the peace    
that ,god gave to  ,his people ,israel4 
,my peace ,i give unto you1 says our    
,lord also4  ,paul  also has taken up   
that peace that comes to us through the 
blood of  ,christ1 and has made it his  
grand message to us and to all sinful   
and sin-  disquieted men4  ,and ,john   
,bunyan has shown how sure and true a   
successor  of the apostles of ,christ he
 is1 just in his portrait of this       
sweet-natured gentleman who was not a   

native of ,mansoul1 but who came  from  
that same court from which ,emmanuel    
,himself came4  ,and it is just  this   
outlandishness of this sweet-natured    
gentleman2 it is just this  heavenly    
origin and divine extraction of his that
 makes him sometimes and  in some things
 to surpass all earthly understanding4  
',i am coming some  day soon1' said a   
divinity student to me the other        
,sabbath night1 'to  have you explain   
and clear up the atonement to me4'  ',i 
shall be glad to  see you1' ,i said1    
'but not on that errand4'  ,no4  ,paul  
himself could not  do it4  ,paul said   
that the atonement and the peace of it  
passed all his  understanding4  ,and    
,john ,bunyan says here that not the    
,prince only1 but  his officer ,mr4     
,god's-peace also1 was not native to the
 town of ,mansoul1  but came straight   
down from heaven into that town--and    
what can the man  do who cometh after   
two kings like ,paul and ,bunyan8  ,i   
have not forgotten  my ,edwards where he

 says that the exquisite sweetness of   
this peace is  perfectly agreeable to   
reason4  ,as1 indeed1 so it is4  ,and   
yet1 if reason  will have a clear and   
finished and all-round answer to all her
  difficulties and objections and       
fault-findings1 ,i fear she cannot have 
it  here4  ,the time may come when our  
reason also shall be so enlarged1 and   
so sanctified1 and so exalted1 that she 
shall be able with all saints to  see   
the full mystery of that which in this  
present dispensation passeth  all       
understanding4  ,but till then1 only let
 ,god's peace enter our hearts  with    
,god's ,son1 and then let our hearts say
 if that peace must not in  some high   
and deep way be according to the highest
 and the deepest  reason1 since its     
coming into our hearts has produced in  
our hearts and  in our lives such       
reasonable1 and right1 and harmonious1  
and peaceful1  and every way joyful     
results4    #c4  ,governor ,god's-peace 
had not many in the town of ,mansoul to 

whom he  could confide all his thoughts 
and with whom he could consult4  ,but   
there  were two officer friends of his  
stationed in the town with whom he was  
every day in close correspondence1 viz41
 the ,captain ,credence and the         
,captain ,good-hope4  ,their so close   
intimacy will not be wondered at when   
it is known that those three officers   
had all come in together with  ,emmanuel
 the ,conqueror4  ,those three young    
captains had done splendid  service1    
each at the head of his own battalion1  
in the days of the  invasion and the    
conquest of ,mansoul1 and they had all  
had their present  titles1 and          
privileges1 and lands1 and offices1     
patented to them on the  strength of    
their past services4  ,the ,captain     
,credence had all along been  the       
confidential aide-de-camp and secretary 
of the ,prince4  ,indeed1 the  ,prince  
never called ,captain ,credence a       
servant at all1 but always a  friend4   
,the ,prince had always conveyed his    

mind about all ,mansoul's  matters first
 to ,captain ,credence1 and then that   
confidential captain  conveyed whatever 
specially concerned ,god's-peace and    
,good-hope to those  excellent and      
trusty soldiers4  ,credence first told  
all matters to ,god's-  peace and then  
the two soon talked over ,good-hope to  
their mind and  heart4  ,some say that  
the three officers1 ,credence1          
,god's-peace1 and ,good-  hope1 were    
kin1 adds our historian1 and ,i1 he     
adds1 am of that opinion  too4  ,and to 
back up his opinion he takes an extract 
out of the ,herald's  ,college books    
which runs thus3 ',romans1 fifteenth and
 thirteenth3 ,now1  the ,god of hope    
fill you with all joy and peace in      
believing1 that ye may  abound in hope1 
through the power of the ,holy ,ghost4' 
,some say the three  officers were of   
kin1 and ,i am of that opinion too4     
#d4  ,on account both of his eminent    
services and his great abilities1 the   
,prince saw it good to set ,mr4         

,god's-peace over the whole town4  ,and 
thus  it was that the governor's        
jurisdiction extended and held not only 
over  the people of the town1 but also  
over all the magistrates and all the    
other officers of the town1 such as my  
,lord ,will-be-will1 my ,lord ,mayor1   
,mr4 ,recorder1 ,mr4 ,mind1 and all4    
,it needed all the governor's authority 
and ability to keep his feet in his     
office over all the other rulers of  the
 town1 but by far his greatest trouble  
always was with the ,recorder4  ,old    
,mr4 ,conscience1 the ,town ,recorder1  
had a very difficult post to hold  and a
 very difficult part to play in that    
still so divided and still so  unsettled
 town4  ,what with all those murderers  
and man-slayers1 thieves  and           
prostitutes1 skulkers and secret rebels1
 on the one hand1 and with  ,governor   
,god's-peace and his so unaccountable   
and so autocratic ways1 on  the other   
hand1 the ,recorder's office was no     
sinecure4  ,all the  misdemeanours and  

malpractices of the town1--and they were
 happening  every day and every         
night1--were all reported to the        
,recorder2 they were  all1 so to say1   
charged home upon the ,recorder1 and he 
was held  responsible for them all2 till
 his office was a perfect laystall and  
cesspool of all the scum and corruption 
of the town4  ,and yet1 in would  come  
,governor ,god's-peace1 without either  
warning or explanation1 and  would      
demand all the ,recorder's papers1 and  
proofs1 and affidavits1 and  what not1  
it had cost him so much trouble to get  
collected and indorsed1  and would burn 
them all before the ,recorder's face1   
and to his utter  confusion1            
humiliation1 and silence4  ,so          
autocratic1 so despotic1 so  absolute1  
and not-to-be-questioned was ,governor  
,god's-peace4  ,the  ,recorder could not
 understand it1 and could barely submit 
to it2 my ,lord  ,mayor could not       
understand it1 and his clerk1 ,mr4      
,mind1 would often  oppose it2 but there

 it was3 ,mr4 ,governor ,god's-peace was
 set over them  all4    #e4  ,but the   
thing that always in the long-run       
justified the governorship  of ,mr4     
,god's-peace1 and reconciled all the    
other officers to his  supremacy1 was   
the way that the city settled down and  
prospered under his  benignant rule4    
,all the other officers admitted that1  
somehow1 his  promotion and power had   
been the salvation of ,mansoul4  ,they  
all extolled  their ,prince's far-seeing
 wisdom in the selection1 advancement1  
and  absolute seat of ,mr4 ,god's-peace4
  ,and it would ill have become them to 
have said anything else2 for they had   
little else to do but bask in the  sun  
and enjoy the honours and the emoluments
 of their respective offices  as long as
 ,governor ,god's-peace held sway1 and  
had all things in the city  to his own  
mind4  ,now1 it was on all hands        
admitted1 as we read again  with renewed
 delight1 that there were no jars1 no   
chiding1 no  interferings1 no unfaithful

 doings in the town of ,mansoul2 but    
every man  kept close to his own        
employment4  ,the gentry1 the officers1 
the  soldiers1 and all in place1        
observed their orders4  ,and as for the 
women  and children1 they all followed  
their business joyfully4  ,they would   
work  and sing1 work and sing1 from     
morning till night1 so that quite       
through  the town of ,mansoul now       
nothing was to be found but harmony1    
quietness1  joy1 and health4  ,what more
 could be said of any governorship of   
any town  than that8  ,the ,heavenly    
,court itself1 out of which ,governor   
,god's-peace  had come down1 was not    
better governed than that4  ,harmony1   
quietness1  joy1 and health4  ,no2 the  
,new ,jerusalem itself will not surpass 
that4  ',and this lasted all that       
summer4'          ,,chapter             
,,xxiii--,,the ,,established ,,church   
,,of ,,mansoul1 ,,and ,,mr4 ,,conscience
 ,,one  ,,of ,,her ,,parish ,,ministers 
',the ,highest ,himself shall establish 

her4'--,david4    ,the princes of this  
world establish churches sometimes out  
of piety and  sometimes out of policy4  
,sometimes their motive is the good of  
their  people and the glory of ,god1 and
 sometimes their sole motive is to      
buttress up their own ,royal ,house1 and
 to have a clergy around them on  whom  
they can count4  ,prince ,emmanuel had  
,his motive1 too1 in setting up  an     
establishment in ,mansoul4  ,as thus3   
,when this was over1 the ,prince  sent  
again for the elders of the town and    
communed with them about the  ministry  
that ,he intended to establish in       
,mansoul4  ,such a ministry as  might   
open to them and might instruct them in 
the things that did concern  their      
present and their future state4  ,for1  
said ,he to them1 of  yourselves1 unless
 you have teachers and guides1 you will 
not be able to  know1 and if you do not 
know1 then you cannot do the will of ,my
 ,father4  ,at this news1 when the      
elders of ,mansoul brought it to the    

people1 the  whole town came running    
together1 and all with one consent      
implored ,his  ,majesty that ,he would  
forthwith establish such a ministry     
among them as  might teach them both law
 and judgment1 statute and commandment1 
so that  they might be documented in all
 good and wholesome things4  ,so ,he    
told  them that ,he would graciously    
grant their requests and would          
straightway  establish such a ministry  
among them4    ,now1 ,i will not enter  
to-night on the abstract benefits of    
such an  ,establishment4  ,i will rather
 take one of the ministers who was      
presented  to one of the parishes of    
,mansoul1 and shall thus let you see how
 that  ,state ,church worked out        
practically in one of its ministers at  
any rate4  ,and the preacher and pastor 
,i shall so take up was neither the best
  minister in the town nor the worst2   
but1 while a long way subordinate to    
the best1 he was also by no means the   
least4  ,the ,reverend ,mr4 ,conscience 

was our parish minister's name2 his     
people sometimes called him ,the        
,recorder4    #a4  ,well1 then1 to begin
 with1 the ,rev4 ,mr4 ,conscience was a 
native of  the same town in which his   
parish church now stood4  ,i am not     
going to  challenge the wisdom of the   
patron who appointed his protege to this
  particular living2 only1 ,i have known
 very good ministers who never got  over
 the misfortune of having been settled  
in the same town in which they  had been
 born and brought up4  ,or1 rather1     
their people never got over  it4  ,one  
excellent minister1 especially1 ,i once 
knew1 whose father had  been a working  
man in the town1 and his son had        
sometimes assisted his  father before he
 went to college1 and even between his  
college sessions1  and the people he    
afterwards came to teach could never get
 over that4  ,it  was not wise in my    
friend to accept that presentation in   
the  circumstances1 as the event        
abundantly proved4  ,for1 whenever he   

had to  take his stand in his pulpit or 
in his pastorate against any of their   
evil ways1 his people defended          
themselves and retaliated on him by     
reminding him that they knew his father 
and his mother1 and had not  forgotten  
his own early days4  ,no doubt1 in the  
case of ,emmanuel and  ,mansoul and its 
minister1 there were counterbalancing   
considerations and  advantages both to  
minister and people2 but it is not      
always so2 and it  was not so in the    
case of my unfortunate friend4          
,forasmuch1 so ran the ,prince's        
presentation paper1 as he is a native of
  the town of ,mansoul1 and thus has    
personal knowledge of all the laws and  
customs of the corporation1 therefore   
he1 the ,prince1 presented ,mr4         
,conscience4  ,that is to say1 every man
 who is to be the minister of a  parish 
should make his own heart and his own   
life his first parish4  ,his  own       
vineyard should be his first knowledge  
and his first care4  ,and then  out of  

that and after that he will be able to  
speak to his people1 and to  correct1   
and counsel1 and take care of them4  ,in
 ,thomas ,boston's  ,memoirs we         
continually come on entries like this3  
',preached on ,ps4  xlii4 #e1 and mostly
 on my own account4'  ,and1 again1 we   
read in the same  invaluable book for   
parish ministers1 that its author did   
not wonder to  hear that good had been  
done by last ,sabbath's sermon1 because 
he had  preached it to himself and had  
got good to himself out of it before he 
took it to the pulpit4  ,boston kept his
 eye on himself in a way that the       
minister of ,mansoul himself could not  
have excelled4  ,till1 not in his       
pulpit work only1 but in such           
conventional1 commonplace1 and          
monotonous  exercises as his family     
worship1 he so read the ,scriptures and 
so sang  the psalms that his family     
worship was continually yielding him    
fruit as  well as his public ministry4  
,as our family worship and our public   

ministry will do1 too1 when we have the 
eye and the heart and the  conscience   
that ,thomas ,boston had4  ',i went to  
hear a preacher1' said  ,pascal1 'and ,i
 found a man in the pulpit4'  ,well1 the
 parish minister of  ,mansoul was a man1
 and so was the parish minister of      
,ettrick4  ,and that  was the reason    
that the people of ,simprin and ,ettrick
 so often thought  that ,boston had them
 in his eye4  ,good pastor as he was1 he
 could not  have everybody in his eye4  
,but he had himself in his eye1 and that
 let  him into the hearts and the homes 
of all his people4  ,he was a true man1 
and thus a true minister4    #b4  ,both 
,boston and the minister of ,mansoul    
were well-read men also2 so1  indeed1 in
 as many words1 their fine biographies  
assure us4  ,but that is  just another  
way of saying what has been said about  
those two ministers  over and over again
 already4  ,william ,law never was a    
parish minister4  ,the ,english ,crown  
of that day would not trust him with a  

parish4  ,but  what was the everlasting 
loss of some parish in ,england has     
become the  everlasting gain of the     
whole ,church of ,christ4  ,law's       
enforced seclusion  from outward        
ministerial activity only set him the   
more free to that  inward activity which
 has been such a blessing to so many1   
and to so many  ministers especially4   
,and as to this of every minister being 
well read1  that master in ,israel says3
 ',above all1 let me tell you that the  
book of  books to you is your own heart1
 in which are written and engraven the  
deepest lessons of divine instruction4  
,learn1 therefore1 to be deeply         
attentive to the presence of ,god in    
your own hearts1 who is always          
speaking1 always instructing1 always    
illuminating the heart that is          
attentive to ,him4'  ,jonathan ,edwards 
called the poor parish minister of      
,ettrick 'a truly great divine4'  ,but  
,law goes on to say1 ',a great divine   
is but a cant expression unless it      

signifies a man greatly advanced in  the
 divine life4  ,a great divine is one   
whose own experience and example  are a 
demonstration of the reality of all the 
graces and virtues of the  gospel4  ,no 
divine has any more of the gospel in him
 than that which  proves itself by the  
spirit1 the actions1 and the form of his
 life3 the  rest is but hypocrisy1 not  
divinity4'  ,let all our parish         
ministers1  then1 give themselves to    
this kind of reading4  ,let them all aim
 at a  doctor's degree in the divinity  
of their own hearts4    #c4  ,we are    
done at last1 and we are done for ever1 
in ,scotland1 with  patrons and with    
presenters2 but ,i daresay our most     
,free ,church people  would be quite    
willing to surrender their dear-bought  
franchise if the  old plan could even   
yet be made to work in all their        
parishes as it  worked in ,mansoul4     
,for not only was the presented minister
 in this case  a well-read man2 he was  
also1 what the best of the ,scottish    

people have  always loved and honoured1 
a man1 as this history testifies1 with a
  tongue as bravely hung as he had a    
head filled with judgment4  ,in         
,scotland we like our minister to have a
 tongue bravely hung1 even when  that is
 proved to our own despite4  ,when any  
minister1 parish minister or  other1 is 
seen to tune his pulpit1 our respect for
 him is gone4  ,the  ,presbyterian      
pulpit has been proverbially hard to    
tune1 and it will be an  ill day when it
 becomes easy4  ',here lies a man who   
had a brow for every  good cause4'  ,so 
it was engraven over one of ,boston's   
elders4  ,and so is  it always3 like    
priest1 like people in the matter of the
 hang of the  minister's tongue and in  
the boldness of the elder's brow4       
',bravely hung' is an ancient and       
excellent expression which has several  
shades of meaning in ,bunyan4  ,but in  
the present instance its meaning is     
modified and fixed by judgment4  ,a     
bravely hung tongue2 at the same time   

the parish minister of ,mansoul's tongue
 was not a loosely-hung tongue4  ,it    
was not a blustering1 headlong1         
scolding1 untamed tongue4  ,the pulpit  
of  ,mansoul was tuned with judgment4   
,he who filled that pulpit had a head   
filled with judgment4  ,the ground of   
judgment is knowledge1 and the  minister
 of ,mansoul was a man of knowledge4    
,it was his early and ever-  increasing 
knowledge of himself1 and thus of other 
men2 and then it was  his excellent     
judgment as to the use he was to make of
 that knowledge2 it  was his sound      
knowledge what to say1 when to say it1  
and how to say  it1--it was all this    
that decided his ,prince to make him the
 minister of  ,mansoul4  ,how excellent 
and how rare a gift is                  
judgment--judgment in  counsel1 judgment
 in speech1 and judgment in action6  ',i
 am very little  serviceable with       
reference to public management1' writes 
the parish  minister of ,ettrick1 'being
 exceedingly defective in ecclesiastical

  prudence2 but the ,lord has given me a
 pulpit gift1 not unacceptable3 and  who
 knows what ,he may do with me in that  
way8'  ,who knows1 indeed6  ,now1  there
 are many parish ministers who have a   
not unacceptable pulpit gift1  and yet  
who are not content with that1 but are  
always burying that gift  in the earth  
and running away from it to attempt a   
public management in  which they are    
exceedingly and conspicuously defective4
  ,now1 why do they  do that8  ,is their
 pulpit and their parish not sphere and 
opportunity  enough for them8  ,mine is 
a small parish1 said ,boston1 but then  
it is  mine4  ,and a small parish may   
both rear and occupy a truly great      
divine4  ,let those ministers1 then1 who
 are defective in ecclesiastical        
prudence  not be too much cast down4    
,ecclesiastical prudence is not in every
 case  the highest kind of prudence4    
,the presbytery1 the synod1 and the     
assembly are not any minister's first or
 best sphere4  ,every minister's  first 

and best sphere is his parish4  ,and the
 presbytery is not the end  of the      
parish4  ,the parish1 the pastorate1 and
 the pulpit are the end of  both        
presbytery and synod and assembly4  ,as 
for the minister of ,mansoul1  he was a 
well-read man1 and also a man of courage
 to speak out the truth  at every       
occasion1 and he had a tongue as bravely
 hung as he had a head  filled with     
judgment4    #d4  ,but there was one    
thing about the parish pulpit of        
,mansoul that  always overpowered the   
people4  ,they could not always explain 
it even to  themselves what it was that 
sometimes so terrified them1 and1       
sometimes1  again1 so enthralled them4  
,they would say sometimes that their    
minister  was more than a mere man2 that
 he was a prophet and a seer1 and that  
his  ,master seemed sometimes to stand  
and speak again in ,his servant4  ,and  
'seer' was not at all an inappropriate  
name for their minister1 so far as  ,i  
can collect out of some remains of his  

that ,i have seen and some  testimonies 
that ,i have heard4  ,there was         
something awful and overawing1          
something seer-like and supernatural1 in
 the pulpit of ,mansoul4  ,sometimes    
the iron chains in which the preacher   
climbed up into the pulpit1 and in      
which he both prayed and preached1      
struck a chill to every heart2 and      
sometimes the garment of salvation in   
which he shone carried all their  hearts
 captive4  ,some ,sabbath mornings they 
saw it in his face and heard  it in his 
voice that he had been on his bed in    
hell all last night2 and  then1 next    
,sabbath1 those who came back saw him   
descending into his  pulpit from his    
throne in heaven4       ',yea1 this     
man's brow1 like to a title-page        
,foretells the nature of a tragic       
volume4     ,thou tremblest1 and the    
whiteness in thy cheek     ,is apter    
than thy tongue to tell thine errand4'  
,if you think that ,i am exaggerating   
and magnifying the parish pulpit of     

,mansoul1 take this out of the parish   
records for yourselves4  ',and now1'    
you will read in one place1 'it was a   
day gloomy and dark1 a day of  clouds   
and thick darkness with ,mansoul4       
,well1 when the ,sabbath-day was  come  
he took for his text that in the prophet
 ,jonah1 ,they that observe  lying      
vanities forsake their own mercy4  ,and 
then there was such power  and authority
 in that sermon1 and such dejection seen
 in the countenances  of the people that
 day that the like had seldom been heard
 or seen4  ,the  people1 when the sermon
 was done1 were scarce able to go to    
their homes1  or to betake themselves to
 their employments the whole week after4
  ,they  were so sermon-smitten that    
they knew not what to do4  ,for not only
 did  their preacher show to ,mansoul   
its sin1 but he did tremble before them 
under the sense of his own1 still crying
 out as he preached1 ,unhappy man  that 
,i am6 that ,i1 a preacher1 should have 
lived so senselessly and so  sottishly  

in my parish1 and be one of the foremost
 in its transgressions6  ,with these    
things he also charged all the lords and
 gentry of ,mansoul to  the almost      
distracting of them4'  ,it was ,sabbaths
 like that that made the  people of     
,mansoul call their minister a seer4    
#e4  ,and1 then1 there was another thing
 that ,i do not know how better to      
describe than by calling it the true    
catholicity1 the true humility1 and  the
 true hospitality of the man4  ,it is   
true he had no choice in the  matter1   
for in setting up a standing ministry in
 ,mansoul ,emmanuel had  done so with   
this reservation and addition4  ,we have
 ,his very words4  ',not  that you are  
to have your ministers alone1' ,he said4
  ',for my four  captains1 they can1 if 
need be1 and if they be required1 not   
only  privately inform1 but publicly    
preach both good and wholesome doctrine1
  that1 if heeded1 will do thee good in 
the end4'  ,which1 again1 reminds me  of
 what ,oliver ,cromwell wrote to the    

,honourable ,colonel ,hacker at         
,peebles4  ',these3 ,i was not satisfied
 with your last speech to me about      
,empson1 that he was a better preacher  
than fighter--or words to that  effect4 
,truly1 ,i think that he that prays and 
preaches best will fight  best4  ,i know
 nothing that will give like courage and
 confidence as the  knowledge of ,god in
 ,christ will4  ,i pray you to receive  
,captain ,empson  lovingly4'    #f4     
,the standing ministry in ,mansoul was  
endowed also2 but ,i cannot  imagine    
what the court of teinds would make of  
the instrument of  endowment4  ,as it   
has been handed down to us1 that old    
ecclesiastical  instrument reads more   
like a lesson in the parish minister's  
class for  the study of ,mysticism than 
a writing for a learned lord to         
adjudicate  upon4  ,here is the ,order  
of ,council3 ',therefore ,i1 thy        
,prince1 give thee1  ,my servant1 leave 
and licence to go when thou wilt to ,my 
fountain1 ,my  conduit1 and there to    

drink freely of the blood of ,my grape1 
for ,my  conduit doth always run wine4  
,thus doing1 thou shalt drive from thine
  heart all foul1 gross1 and hurtful    
humours4  ,it will also lighten thine   
eyes1 and it will strengthen thy memory 
for the reception and the keeping  of   
all that ,my ,father's noble secretary  
will teach thee4'  ,thus the  ,prince   
did put ,mr4 ,conscience into the place 
and office of a minister to  ,mansoul1  
and the chosen and presented man did    
thankfully accept thereof4    7#a7      
,now1 there are at least three lessons  
taught us here4  ,there is1 to  begin   
with1 a lesson to all those             
congregations who are about to choose a 
minister4  ,let all those congregations1
 then1 who have had devolved on  them   
the powers of the old patrons1--let them
 make their election on the  same       
principles that the ,prince of ,mansoul 
patronised4  ,let them choose a         
probationer who1 young though he must   
be1 has the making of a seer in  him4   

,let them listen for the future seer in 
his most stammering prayers4            
,somewhere1 even in one service1 his    
conscience will make itself heard1 if   
he has a conscience4  ,rather remain ten
 years vacant than call a minister  who 
has no conscience4  ,the parish minister
 of ,mansoul sometimes seemed  to be all
 conscience1 and it was this that made  
his head so full of  judgment1 his      
tongue so full of a brave boldness1 and 
his heart so full  of holy love4  ,your 
minister may be an anointed bishop1 he  
may be a  gowned and hooded doctor1 he  
may be a king's chaplain1 he may be the 
minister of the largest and the richest 
and the most learned parish in  the     
city1 but1 unless he strikes terror and 
pain into your conscience  every        
,sabbath1 unless he makes you tremble   
every ,sabbath under the eye  and the   
hand of ,god1 he is no true minister to 
you4  ,as ,goodwin says1 he  is a wooden
 cannon4  ,as ,leighton says1 he is a   
mountebank for a minister4    7#b7  ,the

 second lesson is to all those who are  
politically enfranchised1  and who hold 
a vote for a member of ,parliament4     
,now1 crowds of  candidates and their   
canvassers will before long be at your  
door  besieging it and begging you for  
your vote for or against an ,established
  church4  ,well1 before ,parliament is 
dissolved1 and the canvass commences1   
look you well into your own heart and   
ask yourself whether or no the  ,church 
of ,christ has yet been established     
there4  ,ask if ,jesus ,christ1  the    
,head of the ,church1 has yet set up    
,his throne there1 in your heart4  ,ask 
your conscience if ,his laws are        
recognised and obeyed there4  ,ask  also
 if ,his blood has been sprinkled there1
 and since when4  ,and1 if not1  then it
 needs no seer to tell you what         
sacrilege1 what profanity it is  for you
 to touch the ark of ,god3 to speak1 or 
to vote1 or to lift a  finger either for
 or against any church whatsoever4      
,intrude your wilful  ignorance and your

 wicked passions anywhere else4  ,march 
up boldly and  vote defiantly on        
questions of ,state that you never read 
a sober line  about1 and are as ignorant
 about as you are of ,hebrew2 but beware
 of  touching by a thousand miles the   
things for which the ,son of ,god laid  
down ,his life4  ,thrust yourself in1 if
 you must1 anywhere else1 but do  not   
thrust yourself and your brutish        
stupidity and your fiendish tempers     
into the things of the house of ,god4   
,let all parish ministers take for      
their text that day #b ,samuel vi4 #f1  
#g3--;,and when they came to ,nachon's  
threshing-floor1 ,uzzah put forth his   
hand to the ark of ,god1 and took  hold 
of it2 for the oxen shook it4  ,and the 
anger of the ,lord was kindled  against 
,uzzah2 and ,god smote him there for his
 error2 and there he died  by the ark of
 ,god4    7#c7  ,there is a third lesson
 here1 but it is a lesson for ministers1
 and  ,i shall take it home to myself4  
,,chapter ,,xxiv--,a ,,fast-,,day ,,in  

,,mansoul         ',sanctify a fast1    
call a solemn assembly1 gather the      
elders and all     the inhabitants of   
the land into the house of the ,lord    
your     ,god4'--,joel4    ,in our soft 
and self-indulgent day the very word 'to
 fast' has become an  out-of-date and an
 obsolete word4  ,we never have occasion
 to employ that  word in the living     
language of the present day4  ,the men  
of the next  generation will need to    
have it explained to them what the      
,fast-days of  their fathers were3 when 
they were instituted1 how they were     
observed1  and why they were abrogated  
and given up4  ,if your son should ever 
ask  you just what the ,fast-days of    
your youth were like1 you will do him a 
great service1 and he may live to       
recover them1 if you will answer him in 
this way4  ,show him how to take his    
,cruden and how to make a picture to    
his opening mind of the ,fast-days of   
,scripture4  ,and tell him plainly for  
what things in fathers and in sons those

 fasts were ordained of ,god4  ,and     
then for the ,fast-days of the ,puritan 
period let him read aloud to you  this  
powerful passage in the ,holy ,war4     
,public preaching and public  prayer    
entered largely into the fasting of the 
,prophetical and the  ,puritan periods2 
and ,john ,bunyan1 after ,joel1 has told
 us some things  about the ,fast-day    
preaching of his day that it will be    
well for us1 both  preachers and people1
 to begin with1 and to lay well to      
heart4    #a4  ,in the first place1 the 
preaching of that ,fast-day was         
'pertinent'  and to the point4  ,william
 ,law1 that divine writer for ministers1
 warns  ministers against going off upon
 ,euroclydon and the shipwrecks of ,paul
  when ,christ's sheep are looking up to
 them for their proper food4  ,what1  he
 asks1 is the nature1 the direction1 and
 the strength of that  ,mediterranean   
wind to him who has come up to church   
under the plague of  his own heart and  
under the heavy hand of ,god8  ,you may 

be sure that  ,boanerges did not lecture
 that ,fast-day forenoon in ,mansoul on 
,acts  xxvii4 #ad4  ,we would know that1
 even if we were not told what his text 
that forenoon was4  ,his text that      
never-to-be-forgotten ,fast-day forenoon
  was in ,luke xiii4 #g--';,cut it down2
 why cumbereth it the ground8'  ,and a  
very smart sermon he made upon the      
place4  ,first1 he showed what was the  
occasion of the words1 namely1 because  
the fig-tree was barren4  ,then he      
showed what was contained in the        
sentence1 to wit1 repentance or utter   
desolation4  ,he then showed also by    
whose authority this sentence was       
pronounced4  ,and1 lastly1 he showed the
 reasons of the point1 and then         
concluded his sermon4  ,but he was very 
pertinent in the application1  insomuch 
that he made all the elders and all     
their people in ,mansoul to  tremble4   
,sidney ,smith says that whatever else a
 sermon may be or may not  be1 it must  
be interesting if it is to do any good4 

,now1 pertinent  preaching is always    
interesting preaching4  ,nothing        
interests men like  themselves4  ,and   
pertinent preaching is just preaching to
 men about  themselves1--about their    
interests1 their losses and their gains1
 their  hopes and their fears1 their    
trials and their tribulations4          
,boanerges  took both his text and his  
treatment of his text from his ,master1 
and we  know how pertinently ,the       
,master preached4  ,his preaching was   
with such  pertinence that the one half 
of ,his hearers went home saying1 ,never
 man  spake like this man1 while the    
other half gnashed at ,him with their   
teeth4  ,our ,lord never lectured on    
,euroclydon4  ,he knew what was in man  
and ,he lectured and preached           
accordingly4  ,and if we wish to have   
praise  of our best people1 and of ,him 
whose people they are1 let us look into 
our own hearts and preach4  ,that will  
be pertinent to our people which is     
first pertinent to ourselves4  ,weep    

yourself1 said an old poet to a new     
beginner2 weep yourself if you would    
make me weep4  ',for my own part1'  said
 ,thomas ,shepard to some ministers from
 his death-bed1 ',i never  preached a   
sermon which1 in the composing1 did not 
cost me prayers1 with  strong cries and 
tears4  ,i never preached a sermon from 
which ,i had not  first got some good to
 my own soul4'       ',his office and   
his name agree2     ,a shepherd that and
 ,shepard he4'    ,and many such entries
 as these occur in ,thomas ,boston's    
golden journal3  ',i preached in ,ps4   
xlii4 #e1 and mostly on my own account4'
  ,again3  ',meditating my sermon next  
day1 ,i found advantage to my own soul1 
as also  in delivering it on the        
,sabbath4'  ,and again3 ',what good this
 preaching  has done to others ,i know  
not1 yet ,i think myself will not the   
worse of  it4'    #b4  ,the preaching of
 that ,fast-day was with great authority
 also4  ',there  was such power and     
authority in that sermon1' reports one  

who was  present1 'that the like had    
seldom been seen or heard4'  ,authority 
also  was one of the well-remembered    
marks of our ,lord's preaching4  ,and no
  wonder1 considering who ,he was4  ,but
 ,his ministers1 if they are indeed     
,his ministers1 will be clothed by ,him 
with something even of ,his supreme     
authority4  ',conscience is an          
authority1' says one of the most        
authoritative preachers that ever lived4
  ',the ,bible is an authority2  such is
 the ,church2 such is antiquity2 such   
are the words of the wise2  such are    
hereditary lessons2 such are ethical    
truths2 such are historical  memories2  
such are legal saws and state maxims2   
such are proverbs2 such  are sentiments1
 presages1 and prepossessions4'  ,now1  
the well-equipped  preacher will from   
time to time plant his pulpit on all    
those kinds of  authority1 as this kind 
is now pertinent and then that1 and     
will1 with  such a variety and          
accumulation of authority1 preach to his

 people4  ,thomas ,boston preached at a 
certain place with such pertinence and  
with  such authority that it was        
complained of him by one of themselves  
that he  'terrified even the godly4'    
,let all our young preachers who would  
to old  age continue to preach with     
interest1 with pertinence1 and with     
terrifying authority1 among other things
 have by heart ,the ,memoirs of  ,thomas
 ,boston1 'that truly great divine4'    
#c4  ,a third thing1 and1 as some of the
 people who heard it said of it1  the   
best thing about that sermon was        
that--',he did not only show us our     
sin1 but he did visibly tremble before  
us under the sense of his own4'  ,now ,i
 know this to be a great difficulty with
 some young ministers who  have got no  
help in it at the ,divinity ,hall4  ,are
 they1 they ask1 to be  themselves in   
the pulpit8  ,how far may they be       
themselves1 and how far  may they be not
 themselves8  ,how far are they to be   
seen to tremble  before their people    

because of their own sins1 and how far  
are they to  bear themselves as if they 
had no sin8  ,must they keep back the   
passions  that are tearing their own    
hearts1 and fill the forenoon with      
,euroclydon  and other suchlike         
sea-winds8  ,how far are they to be all 
gown and bands  in the pulpit1 and how  
far sackcloth and ashes8  ,one half of  
their people  are like ,pascal in this1 
that they like to see and hear a man in 
his  pulpit2 but1 then1 the other half  
like only to see and hear a proper      
preacher4  ',he did not only show the   
men of ,mansoul their sin1 but he did   
tremble before them under the sense of  
his own4  ,still crying out as he       
preached to them1 ,unhappy man that ,i  
am6 that ,i should have done so  wicked 
a thing6  ,that ,i1 a preacher1 should  
be one of the first in the              
transgression6'    ,this you will       
remember was the ,fast-day4  ,and so    
truly had this preacher  kept the       
,fast-day that the ,communion-day was   

down upon him before he was  ready for  
it4  ,he was still deep among his sins  
when all his people were  fast putting  
on their beautiful garments4  ,he was   
ready with the letter  of his           
action-sermon1 but he was not equal to  
the delivery of it4  ,his  colleague1   
accordingly1 whose sense of sin was less
 acute that day1 took  the public       
worship1 while the ,fast-day preacher   
still lay sick in his  closet at home   
and wrote thus on the ground3 ',i am no 
more worthy to be  called ,thy son1' he 
wrote4  ',behold me here1 ,lord1 a poor1
 miserable  sinner1 weary of myself1 and
 afraid to look up to ,thee4  ,wilt     
,thou heal  my sores8  ,wilt ,thou take 
out the stains8  ,wilt ,thou deliver me 
from the  shame8  ,wilt ,thou rescue me 
from this chain of sin8  ,cut me not off
 in  the midst of my sins4  ,let me have
 liberty once again to be among ,thy    
redeemed ones1 eating and drinking at   
,thy table4  ,but1 ,o my ,god1 to-day ,i
  am an unclean worm1 a dead dog1 a dead

 carcass1 deservedly cast out from  the 
society of ,thy saints4  ,but oh1 suffer
 me so much as to look to the  place    
where ,thy people meet and where ,thine 
honour dwelleth4  ,reject not  the      
sacrifice of a broken heart1 but come   
and speak to me in my secret  place4  ,o
 ,god1 let me never see such another day
 as this is4  ,let me  never be again so
 full of guilt as to have to run away   
from ,thy presence  and to flee from    
before ,thy people4'  ,he printed more  
than that1 in blood  and in tears1      
before ,god that ,communion-morning1 but
 that is enough for  my purpose4  ,now1 
would you choose a dead dog like that to
 be your  minister8  ,to baptize and    
admit your children and to marry them   
when they  grow up8  ,to mount your     
pulpits every ,sabbath-day1 and to come 
to your  houses every week-day8  ,not1  
,i feel sure1 if you could help it6     
,not if  you knew it6  ,not if there was
 a minister of proper pulpit manners and
 a  well-ordered mind within a          

,sabbath-day's journey6  ',like priest  
like  people1' says ,hosea4  ',the      
congregation and the minister are one1' 
says  ,dr4 ,parker4  ',there are men we 
could not sit still and hear2 they are  
not  the proper ministers for us4       
,there are other men we could hear      
always1  because they are our kith and  
our kin from before the foundation of   
the  world4'  ,happy the hearer who has 
hit on a minister like the minister of  
,mansoul1 and who has discovered in him 
his everlasting kith and kin4  ,and     
happy the minister who1 owning kith and 
kin with ,boanerges1 has two or  three  
or even one member in his congregation  
who likes his minister best  when he    
likes himself worst4    ,but what about 
the fasting all this time8  ,was it all 
preaching1 and was  there no fasting8   
,well1 we do not know much about the    
fasting of the  prophets and the        
apostles1 but the ,puritans sometimes   
made their people  almost forget about  
fasting1 and about eating and drinking  

too1 they so  took possession of their  
people with their incomparable          
preaching4  ,i  read1 for instance1 in  
,calamy's ,life of ,john ,howe that on  
the public  ,fast-days1 it was ,howe's  
common way to begin about nine in the   
morning  and to continue reading1       
preaching1 and praying till about four  
in the  afternoon4  ,henry ,rogers      
almost worships ,john ,howe1 but ,john  
,howe's ,fast-  days pass his modern    
biographers patience2 till1 if you would
 see a  nineteenth-century case made out
 against a seventeenth-century          
,fast-day1  you have only to turn to the
 author of ,the ,eclipse of ,faith on   
the  author of ,delighting in ,god4     
,and1 no doubt1 when we get back our    
,fast-  days1 we shall leave more of the
 time to reading pertinent books at home
  and to secret fasting and to secret   
prayer1 and shall enjoin our  preachers1
 while they are pertinent and           
authoritative in their sermons1  not to 
take up the whole day with their sermons

 even at their best4  ,and  then1 as to 
fasting1 discredited and discarded as it
 is in our day1 there  are yet some very
 good reasons for desiring its return   
and reinstatement  among us4  ,very good
 reasons1 both for health and for       
holiness4  ,but it  is only of the      
latter class of reasons that ,i would   
fain for a few words  at present speak4 
,well1 then1 let it be frankly said that
 there is  nothing holy1 nothing        
saintly1 nothing at all meritorious in  
fasting from  our proper food4  ,it is  
the motive alone that sanctifies the    
means4  ,it  is the end alone that      
sanctifies the exercise4  ,if ,i fast to
 chastise  myself for my sin2 if ,i fast
 to reduce the fuel of my sin2 if ,i    
fast to  keep my flesh low2 if ,i fast  
to make me more free for my best books1 
for  my most inward1 spiritual1 mystical
 books--for my ,kempis1 and my ,behmen1 
and my ,law1 and my ,leighton1 and my   
,goodwin1 and my ,bunyan1 and my        
,rutherford1 and my ,jeremy ,taylor1 and

 my ,shepard1 and my ,edwards1 and      
suchlike2 if ,i fast for the ends of    
meditation and prayer2 if ,i fast out   
of sympathy with my ,bible1 and my      
,saviour1 and my latter end1 and my     
,father's house in heaven--then1 no     
doubt1 my fasting will be acceptable    
with ,god1 as it will certainly be an   
immediate means of grace to my  sinful  
soul4  ,these altars will sanctify many 
such gifts4  ,for1 who that  knows      
anything at all about himself1 about his
 own soul1 and about the  hindrances and
 helps to its salvation from sin2 who   
that ever read a page  of ,scripture    
properly1 or spent half an hour in that 
life which is hidden  in ,god--who of   
such will deny or doubt that fasting is 
superseded or  neglected to the sure    
loss of the spiritual life1 to the      
sensible  lowering of the religious tone
 and temper1 and to the increase both of
  the lusts of the flesh and of the     
mind8  ,it may perhaps be that the      
institution of fasting as a church      

ordinance has been permitted to be set  
aside in order to make it more than ever
 a part of each earnest man's own       
private life4  ,perhaps it was in some  
ways full time that it should be  again 
said to us1 ',thou1 when thou fastest1  
appear not unto men to fast4'  ,as also1
 ',is not this the fast that ,i have    
chosen3 to undo the heavy  burdens1 and 
to let the oppressed go free1 and that  
ye break every yoke8  ,is it not to deal
 thy bread to the hungry1 and that thou 
bring the  outcast to thy house8'  ,let 
us believe that the form of the         
,fast-day has  been removed out of the  
way that the spirit may return and      
fashion a new  form for itself4  ,and in
 the belief that that is so1 let us1    
while  parting with our fathers'        
,fast-days with real regret--as with    
their  pertinent and pungent            
preaching--let us meantime lay in a     
stock of their  pertinent and pungent   
books1 and set apart particular and     
peculiar  seasons for their sin-subduing

 and grace-strengthening study4    ,the 
short is this4  ,the one real substance 
and true essence of all  fasting is     
self-denial4  ,and we can never get past
 either the supreme and  absolute duty  
of that1 or the daily and hourly call to
 that1 as long as  we continue to read  
the ,new ,testament1 to live in this    
life1 and to  listen to the voice of    
conscience1 and to the voice of ,god    
speaking to us  in the voice of         
conscience4  ,without strict and        
constant self-denial1 no  man1 whatever 
his experiences or his pretensions1 is a
 disciple of ,jesus  ,christ1 and secret
 fasting is one of the first1 the       
easiest1 and the most  elementary       
exercises of ,new ,testament            
self-denial4  ,and1 besides1 the  lusts 
of our flesh and the lusts of our minds 
are so linked and locked  and riveted   
together that if one link is loosened1  
or broken1 or even  struck at1 the whole
 thrall is not yet thrown off indeed1   
but it is all  shaken2 it has all       

received a staggering blow4  ,so much is
 this the case  that one single act of  
self-denial in the region of the body   
will be felt  for freedom throughout the
 whole prison-house of the soul4  ,and a
 victory  really won over a sensual sin 
is already a challenge sounded to our   
most  spiritual sin4  ,and it is this   
discovery that has given to fasting the 
place it has held in all the original1  
resolute1 and aggressive ages of  the   
,church4  ,with little or nothing in    
their ,lord's literal teaching to  make 
,his people fast1 they have been so bent
 on their own spiritual  deliverance1   
and they have heard and read so much    
about the deliverances  both of body and
 of soul that have been attained by     
fasting and its  accompaniments1 that   
they have taken to it in their despair1 
and with  results that have filled them 
in some instances with rapture1 and in  
all  instances with a good conscience   
and with a good hope4  ,you would       
wonder1  even in these degenerate       

days1--you would be amazed could you be 
told how  many of your own best friends 
in their stealthy1 smiling1             
head-anointing1  hypocritical way deny  
themselves this and that sweetness1 this
 and that  fatness1 this and that       
softness1 and are thus attaining to a   
strength1 a  courage1 and a             
self-conquest that you are getting the  
benefit of in many  ways without your   
ever guessing the price at which it has 
all been  purchased4  ,now1 would you   
yourself fain be found among those who  
are in  this way being made strong and  
victorious inwardly and spiritually8    
,would  you8  ,then wash your face and  
anoint your head2 and1 then1 not denying
 it  before others1 deny it in secret to
 yourself--this and that sweet morsel1  
this and that sweet meat1 this and that 
glass of such divine wine4              
,unostentatiously1 ungrudgingly1        
generous-heartedly1 and not ascetically 
or morosely1 day after day deny yourself
 even in little unthought-of  things1   

and one of the very noblest laws of your
 noblest life shall  immediately claim  
you as its own4  ,that stealthy and     
shamefaced act of  self-denial for      
,christ's sake and for ,his cross's sake
 will lay the  foundation of a habit of 
self-denial2 ere ever you are aware of  
what you  are doing the habit will      
consolidate into a character2 and what  
you begin  little by little in the body 
will be made perfect in the soul2 till  
what  you did1 almost against ,his      
command and altogether without ,his     
example1  yet because you did it for    
,his sake and in ,his service1 will have
 placed  you far up among those who have
 forsaken all1 and themselves also1 to  
follow ,jesus ,christ1 ,son of ,man and 
,son of ,god4  ,only1 let this always be
  admitted1 and never for a moment      
forgotten1 that all this is said by     
permission and not of commandment4  ,our
 ,lord never fasted as we fast4  ,he    
had no need4  ,and ,he never commanded  
,his disciples to fast4  ,he left it  to

 themselves to find out each man his own
 case and his own cure4  ,let no  man1  
therefore1 take fasting in any of its   
degrees1 or times1 or  occasions1 on his
 conscience who does not first find it  
in his heart4  ,at  the same time this  
may be said with perfect safety1 that he
 who finds it  in his heart and then    
lays it on his conscience to deny       
himself anything1  great or small1 for  
,christ's sake1 and for the sake of his 
own  salvation1--he will never repent   
it4  ,no1 he will never repent it4      
,,chapter ,,xxv--,a ,,feast-,,day ,,in  
,,mansoul         ',he brought me into  
his banqueting house4'--,the ,song4     
,emmanuel's feast-day in the ,holy ,war 
excels in beauty and in eloquence       
everything ,i know in any other author  
on the ,lord's ,supper4  ,the ,song of  
,solomon stands alone when we sing that 
song mystically--that is to say1  when  
we pour into it all the love of ,god to 
,his ,church in ,israel and all         
,israel's love to ,god1 and then all our

 ,lord's love to us and all our love    
back again to ,him in return4  ,but     
outside of ,holy ,scripture ,i know     
nothing to compare for beauty1 and for  
sweetness1 and for quaintness1 and  for 
tenderness1 and for rapture1 with ,john 
,bunyan's account of the feast  that    
,prince ,emmanuel made for the town of  
,mansoul4  ,with his very best  pen     
,john ,bunyan tells us how upon a time  
,emmanuel made a feast in  ,mansoul1 and
 how the townsfolk came to the castle to
 partake of ,his  banquet1 and how ,he  
feasted them on all manner of outlandish
 food--food  that grew not in the fields
 of ,mansoul2 it was food that came down
 from  heaven and from ,his ,father's   
house4  ,they drank also of the water   
that  was made wine1 and1 altogether1   
they were very merry and at home with   
their ,prince4  ,there was music also   
all the time at the table1 and man  did 
eat angels' food1 and had honey given   
him out of the rock4  ,and then  the    
table was entertained with some curious 

and delightful riddles that  were made  
upon the ,king ,himself1 upon ,emmanuel 
,his ,son1 and upon ,his wars  and      
doings with ,mansoul2 till1 altogether1 
the state of transportation  the people 
were in with their entertainment cannot 
be told by the very  best of pens4  ,nor
 did ,he1 when they returned to their   
places1 send them  empty away2 for      
either they must have a ring1 or a gold 
chain1 or a  bracelet1 or a white stone 
or something2 so dear was ,mansoul to   
,him now1  so lovely was ,mansoul in    
,his eyes4  ,and1 going and coming to   
the feast1 ,o  how graciously1 how      
lovingly1 how courteously1 and how      
tenderly did this  blessed ,prince now  
carry it to the town of ,mansoul6  ,in  
all the streets1  gardens1 orchards1 and
 other places where ,he came1 to be sure
 the poor  should have ,his blessing and
 benediction2 yea1 ,he would kiss them2 
and if  they were ill1 ,he would lay    
,his hands on them and make them well4  
,and  was it not now something amazing  

to behold that in that very place where 
,diabolus had had his abode1 the ,prince
 of princes should now sit eating  and  
drinking with all ,his mighty captains1 
and men of war1 and  trumpeters1 and    
with the singing men and the singing    
women of ,his  ,father's court6  ,now   
did ,mansoul's cup run over2 now did her
 conduits run  sweet wine2 now did she  
eat the finest of the wheat1 and now    
drink milk  and honey out of the rock6  
,now she said1 ,how great is ,his       
goodness1 for  ever since ,i found      
favour in ,his eyes1 how honourable have
 ,i ever been6    #a4  ,now1 the        
beginning of it all was1 and the best of
 it all was1 that  ,emmanuel ,himself   
made the feast4  ,mansoul did not feast 
her ,deliverer2 it  was her ,deliverer  
who feasted her4  ,mansoul1 in good     
sooth1 had nothing  that she had not    
first and last received1 and it was far 
more true and  seemly and fit in every  
way that her ,prince ,himself should in 
,his own way  and at ,his own expense   

seal and celebrate the deliverance1 the 
freedom1  the life1 the peace1 and the  
joy of ,mansoul4  ,and1 besides1 what   
had  ,mansoul to set before her ,prince2
 or1 for the matter of that1 before     
herself8  ,mansoul had nothing of       
herself4  ,mansoul was not sufficient of
  herself for a single day4  ,and how1  
then1 should she propose to feast a     
,prince8  ,no1 no6 the thing was        
impossible4  ,it was ,emmanuel's feast  
from  first to last4  ,just as it was at
 the ,lord's table in this house this   
morning4  ,you did not spread the table 
this morning for your ,lord4  ,you  did 
not make ready for your ,saviour and    
then invite ,him in4  ,he invited  you4 
,he said1 ,this is ,my ,body broken for 
you1 and ,this is ,my ,blood shed  for  
you2 drink ye all of it4  ,and had any  
one challenged you at the fence  door   
and asked you how one who could not pay 
his own debts or provide  himself a     
proper meal even for a single day1 could
 dare to sit down with  such a company  

at such a feast as that1 you would have 
told him that he  had not seen half your
 hunger and your nakedness2 but that it 
was just  your very hunger and nakedness
 and homelessness that had brought you  
here2 or1 rather1 it was all that that  
had moved the ,master of the feast  to  
send for you and to compel you to come  
here4  ,there was nothing in  your mind 
and in your mouth more all this day than
 just that this is the  ,lord's ,supper1
 and that ,he had sent for you and had  
invited you1 and had  constrained and   
compelled you to come and partake of it4
  ,it was the  ,lord's ,table to-day1   
and it will be still and still more ,his
 table on  that great ,communion-,day   
when all our earthly communions shall be
  accomplished and consummated in       
heaven4    #b4  ,all that ,mansoul did  
in connection with that great feast was 
to  prepare the place where ,diabolus at
 one time had held his orgies and       
carried on his excesses4  ,her ,prince1 
,emmanuel1 did all the rest2 but ,he    

left it to ,mansoul to make the         
banqueting-room ready4  ,when our ,lord 
would keep ,his last passover with ,his 
disciples1 ,he said to ,peter and       
,john1 ,go into the city1 and there     
shall meet you a man bearing a pitcher  
of water1 and he will show you a large  
upper room furnished and prepared4      
,there is some reason to believe that   
that happy man had been expecting  that 
message and had done his best to be     
ready for it4  ,and now he was  putting 
the last touch to his preparations by   
filling the water-pots of  his house    
with fresh water2 little thinking1 happy
 man1 that as long as  the world lasts  
that water will be holy water in all    
men's eyes1 and  shall teach humility to
 all men's hearts4  ,and1 my brethren1  
you know  that all you did all last week
 against to-day was just to prepare the 
room4  ,for the room all last week and  
all this day was your own heart1  and   
not and never this house of stone and   
lime made with men's hands4  ,you  swept

 the inner and upper room of your own   
heart4  ,you swept it and  garnished its
 walls and its floors as much as in you 
lay4  ,he1 whose the  supper really was1
 told you that ,he would bring with ,him
 what was to be  eaten and drunken      
to-day1 while you were to prepare the   
place4  ,and1 next  to the very actual  
feast itself1 and1 sometimes1 not next  
to it but equal  to it1 and even before 
it and better than it1 were those busy  
household  hours you spent1 like the man
 with the pitcher1 making the room      
ready4  ,in  plain ,english1 you had a  
communion before the ,communion as you  
prepared  your hearts for the           
,communion4  ,i shall not intrude into  
your secret  places and secret seasons  
with ,christ before ,his open reception 
of you to-  day4  ,but it is sure and   
certain that1 just as you in secret     
entertained  ,him in your mother's house
 and in the chambers of her that bare   
you1 just  in that measure did ,he say  
to you openly before all the watchmen   

that go  about the city and before all  
the daughters of ,jerusalem1 ,eat1 ,o   
friends2  drink1 yea1 drink abundantly1 
,o beloved4  ,yes2 do you not think that
 the  man with the pitcher had his      
reward8  ,he had his own thoughts as he 
furnished1 till it was quite ready1 his 
best upper room and carried in  those   
pitchers of water1 and handed down to   
his children in after days  the         
perquisite-skin of the paschal lamb that
 had been supped on by our  ,lord and   
,his disciples in his honoured house    
that night4  ,yes2 was it not  amazing  
to behold that in that very place where 
sometimes ,diabolus had  his abode1 and 
had entertained his ,diabolonians1 the  
,prince of princes  should sit eating   
and drinking with ,his friends8  ,was it
 not truly  amazing8    #c4  ,now1 upon 
the feasting-day ,he feasted them with  
all manner of  outlandish food--food    
that grew not in all the fields of      
,mansoul2 it was  food that came down   
with ,his ,father's court4  ,the fields 

of ,mansoul  yielded their own proper   
fruits1 and fruits that were not to be  
despised4  ,but they were not the proper
 fruits for that day1 neither could they
 be  placed upon that table4  ,they are 
good enough fruits for their purpose1   
and as far as they go1 and for so long  
as they last and are in their  season4  
,but our souls are such that they       
outlive their own best fruits2  their   
hunger and their thirst outlast all that
 can be harvested in from  their own    
fields4  ,and thus it is that ,he who   
made ,mansoul at first1 and  who has    
since redeemed her1 has out of ,his own 
great goodness provided  food convenient
 for her4  ,he knows with what an       
outlandish life ,he has  quickened      
,mansoul1 and it is only the part of a  
faithful ,creator to  provide for ,his  
creature her proper nourishment4  ,what 
is it8 asked the  children of ,israel at
 one another when they saw a small round
 thing1 as  small as hoarfrost1 upon the
 ground4  ,for they wist not what it    

was4  ,and  ,moses said1 ,gather of it  
every man according to his eating1 an   
omer for  every man1 according to the   
number of your persons4  ,and the house 
of  ,israel called the name thereof     
,manna1 and the taste of it was like    
wafers  made with honey4  ,he gave them 
of the corn of heaven to eat1 and man   
did  eat in the wilderness angels' food4
  ,your fathers did eat manna in the    
wilderness1 and are dead2 but this is   
the bread of which if any man eat  he   
shall not die4  ,and the bread that ,i  
will give is ,my ,flesh1 which ,i  will 
give for the life of the world4  ,and so
 outlandish1 so supernatural1  and so   
full of heavenly wonder and heavenly    
mystery was that bread1 that  the ,jews 
strove among themselves over it1 and    
could not understand it4  ,but1 by ,his 
goodness and ,his truth to us this day1 
we have again1 to our  spiritual        
nourishment and growth in grace1 eaten  
the ,flesh and drunk the  ,blood of the 
,son of ,god2 a meat that1 as ,he who   

,himself is that meat has  said of it1  
is meat indeed and drink indeed--as1    
indeed1 we have the  witness in         
ourselves this day that it is4  ,they   
drank also of the water  that was made  
wine1 and were very merry with ,him all 
that day at ,his  table4  ,and all their
 mirth was the high mirth of heaven2 it 
was a mirth  and a gladness without sin1
 without satiety1 and without remorse4  
#d4  ,there was music also all the while
 at the table1 and the musicians  were  
not those of the country of ,mansoul1   
but they were the masters of  song come 
down from the court of the ,king4  ',i  
love the ,lord1' they sang  in the      
supper room over the paschal lamb--',i  
love the ,lord because ,he  hath heard  
my voice and my supplication4  ,because 
,he hath inclined ,his  ear unto me1    
therefore will ,i call upon ,him as long
 as ,i live4  ,what  shall ,i render to 
the ,lord1' they challenged one another1
 'for all ,his  benefits towards me8  ,i
 will take the cup of salvation1 and    

will call  upon the name of the ,lord4' 
',sometimes imagine1' says a great      
devotional  writer with a great         
imagination--',sometimes imagine that   
you had been one  of those that joined  
with our blessed ,saviour as ,he sang an
 hymn4  ,strive  to imagine to yourself 
with what majesty ,he looked4  ,fancy   
that you had  stood by ,him surrounded  
with ,his glory4  ,think how your heart 
would have  been inflamed1 and what     
ecstasies of joy you would have then    
felt when  singing with the ,son of     
,god6  ,think again and again with what 
joy and  devotion you would have then   
sung had this really been your happy    
state2  and what a punishment you would 
have thought it to have then been       
silent4  ,and let that teach you how to 
be affected with psalms and hymns of    
thanksgiving4'  ,yes2 and it is no      
imagination2 it was our own experience  
only this morning and afternoon to join 
in a music that was never made in  this 
world1 but which was as outlandish as   

was the meat which we ate  while the    
music was being made4       ',bless1 ,o 
my soul1 the ,lord thy ,god1        ,and
 not forgetful be     ,of all ,his      
gracious benefits        ,he hath       
bestow'd on thee4       ,who with       
abundance of good things        ,doth   
satisfy thy mouth2     ,so that1 ev'n as
 the eagle's age1        ,renewed is thy
 youth4'    ,the #ajcrd ,psalm was never
 made in this world4  ,musicians far    
other than  those native to ,mansoul    
made for us our ,lord's-,table ,psalm4  
#e4  ,and then1 the riddles that were   
made upon the ,king ,himself1 and upon  
,emmanuel ,his ,son1 and upon           
,emmanuel's wars and all ,his other     
doings with  ,mansoul4  ,and when       
,emmanuel would expound some of those   
riddles ,himself1  oh6 how they were    
lightened6  ,they saw what they never   
saw6  ,they could  not have thought that
 such rarities could have been couched  
in so few and  such ordinary words4     
,yea1 they did gather that the things   

themselves  were a kind of portraiture1 
and that1 too1 of ,emmanuel ,himself4   
,this1  they would say1 this is the     
,lamb6 this is the ,sacrifice6 this is  
the  ,rock6 this is the ,door6 and this 
is the ,way6 with a great many other    
things4  ,at ,gaius's supper-table they 
sat up over their riddles and nuts  and 
sweetmeats till the sun was in the sky4 
,and it would be midnight and  morning  
if ,i were to show you the answers to   
the half of the riddles4  ,take one1 for
 an example1 and let it be one of the   
best for the communion-  day4  ',in one 
rare quality of the orator1' says ,hugh 
,miller1 writing  about his adored      
minister1 ,alexander ,stewart of        
,cromarty1 ',mr4 ,stewart  stood alone4 
,pope refers in his satires to a strange
 power of creating  love and admiration 
by just touching the brink of all we    
hate4  ,now1  into this perilous1 but   
singularly elective department1 ,mr4    
,stewart could  enter with safety and at
 will4  ,we heard him1 scarce a         

twelvemonth since1  deliver a discourse 
of singular power on the sin-offering as
 minutely  described by the divine      
penman in ,leviticus4  ,he described the
  slaughtered animal--foul with dust and
 blood1 its throat gashed across1  its  
entrails laid open and steaming in its  
impurity to the sun--a vile  and horrid 
thing1 which no one could look on       
without disgust1 nor touch  without     
defilement4  ,the picture appeared too  
vivid2 its introduction too  little in  
accordance with a just taste4  ,but this
 pulpit-master knew what  he was all the
 time doing4  ,and that1 he said1 as he 
pointed to the  terrible picture1 that  
is ,,sin6  ,by one stroke the intended  
effect was  produced1 and the rising    
disgust and horror transferred from the 
revolting1 material image to the great  
moral evil4'  ,and1 in like manner1     
,this is the ,,lamb6 we all said over   
the mystical riddle of the bread and    
the wine this morning4  ,this is the    
,,sacrifice6  ,this is the ,,door6      

,this  is ,,emmanuel1 ,,god ,,with ,,us1
 and made sin for us6    #f4  ,in one of
 his finest chapters1 ,thomas ,a ,kempis
 tells us in what way  we are to        
communicate mystically3 that is to say1 
how we are to keep on  communicating at 
all times1 and in all places1 without   
the intervention  of the consecrated    
sacramental elements4  ,and ,john       
,bunyan1 the sweetest  and most         
spiritual of mystics1 has all that1 too1
 in this same supreme  passage4  ,every 
day was a feast-day now1 he tells us4   
,so much so that  when the elders and   
the townsmen did not come to ,emmanuel1 
,he would send  in much plenty of       
provisions to them4  ,yea1 such         
delicates would ,he send  them1 and     
therewith would so cover their tables1  
that whosoever saw it  confessed that   
the like could not be seen in any other 
kingdom4  ,that is  to say1 my          
fellow-communicants1 there is nothing   
that we experienced and  enjoyed in this
 house this day that we may not         

experience and enjoy again  to-morrow   
and every day in our own house at home4 
,all the mystics worth  the noble name  
will tell you that all true             
communicating is always  performed and  
experienced in the prepared heart1 and  
never in any upper  room1 or church1 or 
chapel1 or new heaven1 or new earth4    
,the prepared  heart of every worthy    
communicant is the true upper room2 it  
is the true  banqueting chamber2 it is  
the true and the only house of wine4    
,our  ,father's ,house itself1 with its 
supper-table covered with the new wine  
of  the ,kingdom--the best of it all    
will still be within you4  ,prepare     
yourselves within yourselves1 then1 ,o  
departing and dispersing  communicants4 
,prepare1 and keep yourselves always    
prepared4  ,and as  often as you so     
prepare yourselves your ,prince will    
come to you every  day1 and will cat and
 drink with you1 till ,he makes every   
day on earth a  day of heaven already to
 you4  ,see if ,he will not2 for1 again 

and again1  ,he who keeps all ,his      
promises says that ,he will4            
,,chapter ,,xxvi--,,emmanuel',s ,,livery
         ',and to her was granted that  
she should be arrayed in fine linen1    
clean and white2 for the fine linen is  
the righteousness of                    
saints4'--,john4    ,the ,plantagenet   
kings of ancient ,england had white and 
scarlet for their  livery2 white and    
green was the livery of the ,tudors2 the
 ,stuarts wore  red and yellow2 while   
blue and scarlet colours adorn to-day   
the ,house of  ,hanover4  ,and the      
,prince of the kings of the earth1 ,he  
has his royal  colours also1 and ,his   
servants have their badge of honour and 
their  blazon also4  ,then ,he commanded
 that those who waited upon ,him should 
go  and bring forth out of ,his treasury
 those white and glittering robes1  that
 ,i1 ,he said1 have provided and laid up
 in store for my ,mansoul4  ,so  the    
white garments were fetched out of the  
treasury and laid forth to the  eyes of 

the people4  ,moreover1 it was granted  
to them that they should  take them and 
put them on1 according1 said ,he1 to    
your size and your  stature4  ,so the   
people were all put into white--into    
fine linen1 clean  and white4  ,then    
said the ,prince1 ,this1 ,o ,mansoul1 is
 ,my livery1 and this  is the badge by  
which ,mine are known from the servants 
of others4  ,yea1  this livery is that  
which ,i grant to all them that are     
,mine1 and without  which no man is     
permitted to see ,my face4  ,wear this  
livery1 therefore1  for ,my sake1 and1  
also1 if you would be known by the world
 to be ,mine4  ,but now can you think   
how ,mansoul shone6  ,for ,mansoul was  
fair as the  sun1 clear as the moon1 and
 terrible as an army with banners4      
,white1 then1 and whiter than snow1 is  
the very livery of heaven4  ,a  hundred 
shining ,scriptures could be quoted to  
establish that4  ,in the  first year of 
,belshazzar1 ,king of ,babylon1 ,daniel 
had a dream1 and  visions of his head   

came to ,daniel upon his bed4  ,and1    
behold1 the  ,ancient of ,days did sit1 
whose garment was white as snow1 and the
 hair of  his head like the pure wool4  
,my beloved1 sings the spouse in the    
,song1  is white and ruddy1 the chiefest
 among ten thousand1 and altogether     
lovely4  ,then1 again1 ,david in his    
penitence sings1 ,purge me with hyssop1 
and ,i shall be clean2 wash me1 and ,i  
shall be whiter than snow4  ,and what   
is it that sets ,isaiah at the head of  
all the prophets8  ,what but this1  that
 he is the mouth-piece of such decrees  
in heaven as this3 ,though your  sins be
 as scarlet1 they shall be white as     
snow2 though they be red like  crimson1 
they shall be as wool4  ,the angel1     
also1 who rolled away the  stone from   
the door of the sepulchre was clothed in
 a long white garment4  ,another        
evangelist says that his countenance was
 like lightning and his  raiment white  
as snow1 and for fear of him the keepers
 did quake1 and  became as dead men4    

,but before that we read that ,jesus was
 transfigured  before ,peter and ,james 
and ,john on the ,mount1 and that ,his  
face did shine  as the sun1 and ,his    
raiment was white as the light4  ,and1  
then1 the whole  ,book of ,revelation is
 written with a pen dipped in heavenly  
light4  ,the  whole book is glistening  
with the whitest light till we cannot   
read it  for the brightness thereof4    
,and the multitude that no man can      
number all  display themselves before   
our eyes1 clothed with white robes and  
with  palms in their hands1 so much so  
that we sink down under the greatness of
  the glory1 till ,one with ,his head   
and ,his hairs white like wool1 as white
  as snow1 lays ,his hand upon us1 and  
says to us1 ,fear not1 for1 behold1 ,i  
have caused thine iniquity to pass from 
thee1 and ,i will clothe thee with      
change of raiment4       ',i also saw   
,mansoul clad all in white1     ,and    
heard her ,prince call her ,his heart's 
delight1     ,i saw ,him put upon her   

chains of gold1     ,and rings and      
bracelets goodly to behold4     ,what   
shall ,i say8  ,i heard the people's    
cries1     ,and saw the ,prince wipe    
tears from ,mansoul's eyes1     ,i heard
 the groans and saw the joy of many2    
,tell you of all1 ,i neither will nor   
can ,i4     ,but by what here ,i say you
 well may see     ,that ,mansoul's      
matchless wars no fable be4'    ',and to
 her it was granted that she should be  
arrayed in fine linen1  clean and white2
 for the fine linen is the righteousness
 of saints4'  ,we  need no exegesis of  
that beautiful ,scripture beyond that   
exegesis which  our own hearts supply4  
,and if we did need that shining text to
 be  explained to us1 to whom could we  
better go for its explanation than just 
to ,john ,bunyan8  ,well1 then1 in our  
author's ,no ,way to ,heaven but by     
,jesus ,christ1 he says3 ',this fine    
linen1 in my judgment1 is the works of  
godly men2 their works that spring from 
faith4  ,but how came they clean8  ,how 

came they white8  ,not simply because   
they were the works of faith4  ,but1    
mark1 they washed their robes and made  
them white in the blood of  the ,lamb4  
,and therefore they are before the      
throne of ,god4  ,yea1  therefore it is 
that their good works stand in such a   
place4'  ',nor must  we think it        
strange1' says ,john ,howe1 in his      
,blessedness of the  ,righteous1 'that  
all the requisites to our salvation are 
not found  together in one text of      
,scripture4  ,i conceive that imputed   
righteousness  is not here meant1 but   
that righteousness which is truly       
subjected in a  child of ,god and       
descriptive of him4  ,the righteousness 
of ,him whom we  adore as made sin for  
us that we might be made the            
righteousness of ,god  in ,him1 that    
righteousness has a much higher sphere  
peculiar and  appropriate to itself4    
,though this of which we now speak is   
necessary  also to be both had and      
understood4'  ,emmanuel's livery1 then1 

is the  righteousness of the saints4    
,emmanuel puts that righteousness upon  
all  ,his saints2 while1 at the same    
time1 they put it on themselves2 they   
work  it out for themselves1 and for    
themselves they keep it clean4  ,they   
work  it out1 put it on1 and keep it    
clean1 and yet1 all the time1 it is not 
they that do it1 but it is ,emmanuel    
that doeth it all in them4  ,the truth  
is1 you must all become mystics before  
you will admit all the strange  truth   
that is told about ,emmanuel's livery4  
,for both heaven and earth  unite in    
this wonderful livery4  ,nature and     
grace unite in it4  ,it is  woven by the
 gospel on the loom of the law--till1 to
 tell you all that is  true about it1 ,i
 neither can nor will ,i4  ,albert      
,bengel tells us that the  court of     
heaven has its own jealous and          
scrupulous etiquette2 and our  court    
journalist and historian1 ,john ,bunyan1
 has supplied his favoured  readers with
 the very card of etiquette that was    

issued along with  ,mansoul's coat of   
livery1 and it is more than time that we
 had attended  to that card4    #a4     
,the first item then in that            
etiquette-card ran in these set terms3  
',first1 wear these white robes daily1  
day by day1 lest you should at some     
time appear to others as if you were    
none of ,mine4--,signed1 ,,emmanuel4'   
,now1 we put on anew every morning the  
garments that we are to wear every  new 
day4  ,we have certain pieces of        
clothing that we wear in the morning2   
we have certain pieces that we wear when
 we are at our work2 and1 again1  we    
have certain other pieces that we put on
 when we go abroad in the  afternoon2   
and1 yet again1 certain other pieces    
that we array ourselves  in when we go  
out into society in the evening4  ,after
 a night in which  ,mercy could not     
sleep for blessing and praising ,god1   
they all rose in the  morning with the  
sun2 but the ,interpreter would have    
them tarry a while1  for1 said he1 you  

must orderly go from hence4  ,then said 
he to the  damsel1 ,take them1 and have 
them into the garden to the bath4  ,then
  ,innocent the damsel took them1 and   
had them into the garden1 and brought   
them to the bath4  ,then they went in   
and washed1 yea1 they and the boys  and 
all1 and they came out of that bath1 not
 only clean and sweet1 but  also much   
enlivened and much strengthened in their
 joints4  ,so when they  came in they   
looked fairer a deal than when they went
 out4  ,then said the  ,interpreter to  
the damsel that waited upon those women1
 ,go into the  vestry1 and fetch out    
garments for these people4  ,so she went
 and fetched  out white raiment and laid
 it down before him4  ,and then he      
commanded  them to put it on4  ,it was  
fine linen1 white and clean4  ,now1     
therefore1  they began to esteem each   
other better than themselves4  ,for1    
,you are  fairer than ,i am1 said one2  
and1 ,you are more comely than ,i am1   
said  another4  ,the children also stood

 amazed to see into what fashion they   
had been brought4  ,william ,law--,i    
thank ,god1 ,i think1 every day ,i live 
for that good day to me on which ,he    
introduced me to ,his gifted and        
saintly servant--well1 ,william ,law    
used every morning after his bath in    
the morning to put on his livery1 piece 
by piece1 in order1 and with  special   
prayer4  ,the first piece that he put   
on1 and he put it on every  new morning 
next his heart to wear it all the day   
next his heart1 was  gratitude to ,god4 
,and it was a real1 feeling1 active1 and
 operative  gratitude that he so put on4
  ,on each new morning as it came1 that 
good  man was full of new gratitude to  
,god4  ,for the sun new from his        
,almighty  ,maker's hands he had        
gratitude4  ,for his house over his head
 he had  gratitude4  ,for his ,bible and
 his spiritual books he had gratitude4  
,for  his opportunities of reading and  
study1 as also for ten o'clock in the   
morning when the widows and orphans of  

,king's ,cliffe came to his window1  and
 so on4  ,a grateful heart feeds itself 
to a still greater gratitude on         
everything that comes to it4  ,so it was
 with ,william ,law1 till he wakened    
the maids in the rooms below with his   
psalms and his hymns as he went  into   
his vestry and put on his singing robes 
so early every morning4  ,and  then1    
after his morning hours of study and    
devotion1 ,law had a piece of  livery   
that he always put on and never came    
downstairs to breakfast  without it4    
,other men might put on other pieces2 he
 always clothed  himself next to        
gratitude with humility4  ,men differ1  
good men differ1  and ,emmanuel's       
livery-men differ in what they put on1  
at what time1 and  in what order4  ,but 
that was ,william ,law's way4  ,you will
 learn more of  his way1 and you will be
 helped to find out a like way for      
yourselves1 if  you will become students
 of his incomparable books4  ,you will  
find how he  put on charity1 #a ,cor4   

thirteenth chapter2 and then how1 over  
all1 he put  on the will of ,god2 till1 
thus equipped and thus accoutred1 he was
 able  to say1 as it has seldom been    
said since it was first said1 ',i put on
  righteousness1 and it clothed me2 my  
judgment was to me as a robe and as  a  
diadem4  ,the ,almighty was then with   
me1 and my children were about me4      
,when ,i washed my steps with butter1   
and when the rock poured me out  rivers 
of oil6'  ,so much for that livery-man  
of ,emmanuel1 the author of  the        
,christian ,perfection and the ,spirit  
of ,love4  ,as for the women's  vestry  
in the ,interpreter's ,house1 ,matthew  
,henry saw the thirty-first  chapter of 
the ,proverbs hung up on that vestry    
wall1 and ,christiana  making her       
morning toilet before it with ,mercy    
beside her4  ,who would  find a virtuous
 woman1 let him look before that        
looking-glass for her1  and he will be  
sure to find her and her daughters and  
her daughters-in-  law putting on their 

white raiment there4    #b4  ',secondly1
 keep your garments always white2 for if
 they be soiled1 it  is a dishonour to  
,me4  ,i have a few names even in       
,sardis which have not  defiled their   
garments1 and they shall walk with ,me  
in white1 for they  are worthy4'  ,even 
in ,sardis1 with every street and every 
house full of  soil and dishonour to the
 name of ,christ1 even in ,sardis       
,emmanuel had  some of whom ,he could   
boast ,himself4  ,would you not         
immensely like at the  last day to be   
one of those some in ,sardis8  ,shall it
 not be splendid  when ,sardis comes up 
for judgment to be among those few names
 that  ,emmanuel shall then read out of 
,his book1 and when1 at their few names1
  two or three men shall step out into  
the light in ,his livery8  ,some of  you
 are in ,sardis at this moment4  ,some  
of you are in a city1 or in a  house in 
a city1 where it is impossible to keep  
your garments clean4  ,and  yet1 no2    
nothing is impossible to ,emmanuel and  

,his true livery-men4  ,even  in that   
house where you are1 ,emmanuel will say 
over you1 ,i have one there  who is     
thankful to ,my ,father and to ,me2     
thankful to singing every morning  where
 there is little1 as men see1 to sing   
for4  ,there is one in that  house      
humble1 where humility itself would     
almost become high-minded4  ,and  meek1 
where ,moses himself would have lost his
 temper4  ,and submissive1  where       
rebelliousness would not have been      
without excuse4  ,mark these few  men   
for ,mine1 says ,emmanuel4  ,mark them  
with the inkhorn for ,mine4  ,for  they 
shall surely be ,mine in that day1 and  
they shall walk with ,me in  white1 for 
they are worthy4    #c4  ',wherefore    
gird your garments well up from the     
ground4'  ,a  well-dressed man1 a       
well-dressed woman1 is a beautiful      
sight4  ,not over-  dressed2 not dressed
 so as to call everybody's attention to 
their dress2  but dressed decorously1   
becomingly1 tastefully4  ,each several  

piece well  fitted on1 and all of a     
piece1 till it all looks as if it had   
grown by  nature itself upon the        
well-dressed wearer4  ,be like him--be  
like her--so  runs the third head of the
 etiquette-card4  ,be not slovenly and  
disorderly and unseemly in your livery4 
,let not your livery be always  falling 
off1 and catching on every bush and     
briar1 and dropping into  every pool and
 ditch4  ,hold yourselves in hand1 the  
instruction goes on4  ,brace yourselves 
up4  ,have your temper1 your tongue1    
your eyes1 your  ears1 and all your     
members in control4  ,and then you will 
escape many a  rent and many a rag2 many
 a seam and many a patch2 many a soil   
and many a  stain4  ,and then also you  
will be found walking abroad in         
comeliness and  at liberty1 while       
others1 less careful1 are at home       
mending and washing  and ironing because
 they went without a girdle when you    
girt up your  garments well off the     
ground4  ,wherefore always gird well up 

the loins of  your mind4    #d4  ',and1 
fourthly1 lose not your robes1 lest you 
walk naked and men see  your shame'2    
that is to say1 the supreme shame of    
your soul4  ,for there  is no other     
shame4  ,there is nothing else in body  
or soul to be ashamed  about4  ,there is
 a nakedness1 indeed1 that our children 
are taught to  cover2 but the ,bible is 
a book for men4  ,and the only nakedness
 that the  ,bible knows about or cares  
about is the nakedness of the soul4  ,it
 was  their sudden soul-nakedness that  
chased ,adam and ,eve in among the trees
  of the garden4  ,and it is ,god's pity
 for soul-naked sinners that has made   
,him send ,his ,son to cry to us3 ',i   
counsel thee1' ,he cries1 'to buy of ,me
  gold tried in the fire1 that thou     
mayest be rich2 white raiment1 that     
thou mayest be clothed1 and that the    
shame of thy nakedness do not  appear4  
,behold6' ,he cries in absolute terror1 
',behold6  ,i come as a  thief6         
,blessed is he that walketh and keepeth 

his garments1 lest he walk  naked1 and  
they see his shame4'  ,were your soul to
 be stripped naked to  all its shame    
to-morrow2 were all your past to be laid
 out absolutely  naked and bare1 with   
all the utter nakedness of your inward  
life this  day2 were all your secret    
thoughts1 and all your stealthy schemes1
 and  all your mad imaginations1 and all
 your detestable motives1 and all your  
hatreds like hell1 and all your follies 
like ,bedlam to be laid naked--,i       
suppose the horror of it would make you 
cry to the rocks and the  mountains to  
cover you this ,sabbath night1 or the   
weeds of the nearest  sea to wrap you   
down into its depths4  ,it would be hell
 before the time  to you if your soul   
were suddenly to be stripped absolutely 
bare of its  ragged body1 and naked of  
all the thin integuments of time1 and   
were for  a single day to stand naked to
 its everlasting shame4  ,and it is just
  because ,jesus ,christ sees all that  
as sure as the judgment-day coming to   

you1 that ,he stands here to-night and  
calls to you3 ,i counsel thee6  ,i      
counsel thee6  ,before it be too late1  
,i again counsel thee6    #e4  ,but the 
,prince ,emmanuel is persuaded better   
things of all ,his livery-  men1 though 
,he thus speaks to them to put them on  
their guard4  ,yes1  sternly and        
severely and threateningly as ,he       
sometimes speaks1 yet1 in  spite of     
,himself1 ,his real grace always breaks 
through at the last4  ,and1             
accordingly1 his fifth command runs     
thus3 ,but1 it runs1 if you should      
sully them1 if you should defile them1  
the which ,i am greatly unwilling  that 
you should1 then speed you to that which
 is written in ,my law1 that  yet you   
may stand1 and not fall before ,me and  
before ,my throne4  ,always  know this1 
that ,i have provided for thee an open  
fountain to wash thy  garments in4      
,look1 therefore1 that you wash often in
 that fountain1 and  go not for an hour 
in defiled garments4  ,let not1         

therefore1 ,my garments1  your garments1
 the garments that ,i gave thee be ever 
spotted by the  flesh4  ,keep thy       
garments always white1 and let thy head 
lack no  ointment4--,signed in heaven1  
,,emmanuel4          ,,chapter          
,,xxvii--,,mansoul',s ,,magna ,,charta  
',a better covenant4'--,paul4    ,magna 
,charta is a name very dear to the      
hearts of the ,english people4  ,for1   
ever since that memorable day on which  
that noble instrument was  extorted from
 ,king ,john at the point of the sword1 
,england has been the  pioneer to all   
the other nations of the earth in       
personal freedom1 in  public            
righteousness1 in domestic stability1   
and in foreign influence and            
enterprise4  ,runnymede is a red-letter 
spot1 and #abae is a red-letter  year1  
not only in the history of ,england1 but
 in the history of the whole  modern    
world4  ,the keystone of all sound      
constitutional government was  laid at  
that place on that date1 and by that    

great bridge not ,england  only1 but    
after ,england the whole civilised world
 has passed over from  ages of bondage  
and oppression and injustice into a new 
world of personal  liberty and security1
 public equity and good faith1 loyalty  
and peace4  ,all that has since been    
obtained1 whether on the battle-field or
 on the  floor of ,parliament1 has been 
little more than a confirmation of      
,magna  ,charta or an authoritative     
comment upon ,magna ,charta4  ,and if   
every  subsequent law were to be blotted
 out1 yet in ,magna ,charta the         
foundations would still remain of a     
great state and a free people4  ',here  
commences1' says ,macaulay1 'the history
 of the ,english nation4'    ,now1 after
 the ,prince of ,peace had subjugated   
the rebellious city of  ,mansoul1 ,he   
promulgated a proclamation and appointed
 a day wherein ,he  would renew their   
,charter4  ,yea1 a day wherein he would 
renew and enlarge  their ,charter1      
mending several faults in it1 so that   

the yoke of ,mansoul  might be made yet 
more easy to bear4  ,and this ,he did   
without any desire  of theirs1 even of  
,his own frankness and nobleness of     
mind4  ,so when ,he  had sent for and   
seen their old ,charter1 ,he laid it by 
and said1 ,now that  which decayeth and 
waxeth old is ready to vanish away4  ,an
 epitome1  therefore1 of that new1 and  
better1 and more firm and steady        
,charter take  as follows3 ,i do grant  
of ,mine own clemency1 free1 full1 and  
everlasting  forgiveness of all their   
wrongs1 injuries1 and offences done     
against ,my  ,father1 against ,me1      
against their neighbours and themselves4
  ,i do give  them also ,my ,testament1 
with all that is therein contained1 for 
their  everlasting comfort and          
consolation4  ,thirdly1 ,i do also give 
them a  portion of the self-same grace  
and goodness that dwells in ,my         
,father's  heart and ,mine4  ,fourthly1 
,i do give1 grant1 and bestow upon them 
freely1  the world and all that is      

therein for their true good2 yea1 all   
the  benefits of life and death1 of     
things present and things to come4      
,free  leave and full access also at all
 seasons to ,me in ,my palace1 there to 
make known all their wants to ,me2 and  
,i give them1 moreover1 a promise  that 
,i shall hear and redress all their     
grievances4  ,to them and to their      
right seed after them1 ,i hereby bestow 
all these grants1 privileges1 and  royal
 immunities4  ,all this is but a lean   
epitome of what was that day  laid down 
in letters of gold and engraven on their
 doors and their castle  gates4  ,and   
what joy1 what comfort1 what            
consolation1 think you1 did now  possess
 every heart in ,mansoul6  ,the bells   
rang out1 the minstrels  played1 the    
people danced1 the captains shouted1 the
 colours waved in the  wind1 and the    
silver trumpets sounded1 till every     
enemy inside and  outside of ,mansoul   
was now glad to hide his head4    ,our  
constitutional authors and commentators 

are wont to take ,magna ,charta  clause 
by clause1 and word by word1 and letter 
by letter4  ,they linger  lovingly and  
proudly over every jot and tittle of    
that splendid  instrument4  ,and you    
will indulge me this ,communion night of
 all nights  of the year if ,i expatiate
 still more lovingly and proudly on that
 great  ,covenant which our ,lord has   
sealed to us again to-day1 and has      
written  again to-day on the walls of   
our hearts4  ,moses made haste as soon  
as the  old ,charter was read over to   
him1 and nothing shall delay us till we 
have  feasted our eyes1 and our ears1   
and our hearts to-night on the contents 
of this our new and better covenant4    
#a4  ,the first article of our ,magna   
,charta is free1 full1 and everlasting  
forgiveness of all the wrongs1 injuries1
 and offences we have ever done  against
 ,god1 against our ,saviour1 against our
 neighbour1 and against  ourselves4     
,the ,english nobles extorted their     
,charter from their  tyrannical king    

with their sword at his throat1 and     
after he had signed  it1 he cast himself
 on the ground and gnawed sticks and    
stones in his  fury1 so mad was he at   
the men who had so humiliated him4      
',they have set  four-and-twenty kings  
over my head1' he gnashed out4  ,how    
different was  it with our ,charter6    
,for when we were yet enemies it was    
already drawn  out in our name4  ,and   
after we had been subdued it would never
 have  entered our fearful hearts to ask
 for such an instrument4  ,and1 even    
now1  after we have entered into its    
liberty1 how slow we are to believe all 
that is written in our great ,charter1  
and read to us every day out of it4     
,and who shall cast a stone at us for   
not easily believing all that is so     
written and read8  ,it is not so easy as
 you would think to believe in  free    
forgiveness for all the wrongs1         
injuries1 and offences we have ever     
done4  ,when you try to believe it about
 yourselves1 you will find how  hard it 

is to accept that covenant and always to
 keep your feet firm upon  it4  ,that   
the forgiveness is absolutely free is   
its first great  difficulty4  ,if it had
 cost us all we could ever do or suffer1
 both in  this world and in the world to
 come1 then we could have come to terms 
with our ,prince far more easily2 but   
that our forgiveness should be          
absolutely free1 it is that that so     
staggers us4  ,when ,i was a little boy 
,i was once wandering through the       
streets of a large city seeing the      
strange sights4  ,i had even less ,latin
 in my head that day than ,i had  money 
in my pocket4  ,but ,i was hungry for   
knowledge and eager to see rare  and    
wonderful things4  ,over the door of a  
public institution1 containing  a museum
 and other interesting things1 ,i tried 
to read a ,latin scroll4  ,i  could not 
make out the whole of the writing2 ,i   
could only make out one  word1 and not  
even that1 as the event soon showed4    
,the word was  gratia1 or some          

modification of gratia1 with some still 
deeper words  engraven round about it4  
,but on the strength of that one word ,i
 mounted  the steps and rang the bell1  
and asked the porter if ,i could see the
  museum4  ,he told me that the cost of 
admission was such and such4  ,little   
as it was1 it was too much for me1 and  
,i came down the steps feeling that  the
 ,latin writing above the door had      
entirely deceived me4  ,it has not  been
 the last time that my bad ,latin has   
brought me to shame and  confusion of   
face4  ,but ,latin1 or ,greek1 or only  
,english1 or not even  ,english1 there  
is no deception and no confusion here4  
,forgiveness is  really of free grace4  
,it costs absolutely nothing1 the door  
is open2 or1  if it is not open1 then   
knock1 and it shall be opened1 without  
money and  without price4    ',free and 
full4'  ,i could imagine a free         
forgiveness which was not also  full4   
,i could imagine a charter that would   
have run somehow thus3 ,free            

forgiveness and full1 up to a firmly    
fixed limit4  ,free and full            
forgiveness for sins of ignorance and   
even of infirmity and frailty2 for      
small sins and for great sins1 too1 up  
to a certain age of life and stage  of  
guilt4  ,free and full forgiveness up to
 a certain line1 and then1 that  black  
line of reprobation1 as ,samuel         
,rutherford says4  ,indeed1 it is no    
imagination4  ,i have felt oftener than 
once that ,i was at last across  that   
black line1 and gone and lost for ever4 
,but no--       ',while the lamp holds  
on to burn1     ,the greatest sinner may
 return4'    ',free1 full1 and          
everlasting4'  ,pope ,innocent the      
,third came to the  rescue of ,king     
,john and issued a ,papal bull revoking 
and annulling ,magna  ,charta4  ,but    
neither king1 nor pope1 nor devil can   
revoke or annul our  new ,covenant4  ,it
 is free1 full1 and everlasting4  ,if   
,god be for us1 who  can be against us8 
,who shall separate us from the love of 

,christ8  ,neither death nor life1 nor  
angels nor principalities nor powers1   
shall  be able to separate us from the  
love of ,god which is in ,christ ,jesus 
our  ,lord4    #b4  ',free1 full1 and   
everlasting forgiveness of all the      
wrongs1 the  injuries1 and the offences 
you have done against ,my ,father1 ,me1 
your  neighbours1 and yourselves4'      
,now1 out of all that let us fix upon   
this--the wrongs and the injuries we    
have done to our neighbours4  ,for1  as 
,calvin says somewhere1 though our sins 
against the first table of the  law are 
our worst sins1 yet our sins against the
 second table1 that is1  against our    
neighbours1 are far better for beginning
 a scrutiny with4  ,so  they are4  ,for 
our wrongs against our neighbours1 when 
they awaken within  us at all1 awaken   
with a terrible fury4  ,our wrongs      
against our  neighbours wound1 and      
burden1 and exasperate an awakened      
conscience in a  fearful way4  ,we come 
afterwards to say1 ,against ,thee1 ,thee

 only have ,i  sinned6  ,but at the     
first beginning of our repentances it is
 the wrongs  we have done to our        
neighbours that drive us beside         
ourselves4  ,what  neighbour of yours1  
then1 have you so wronged8  ,name him2  
name her4  ,you  avoid that name like   
poison1 but it is not poison--it is life
 and peace4  ,more depends on your often
 recollecting and often pronouncing that
  hateful name than you would believe4  
,more depends upon it than your         
minister has ever told you4  ,and1 then1
 in what did you so wrong him8  ,name   
the wrong also4  ,give it its ,bible    
name1 its newspaper name1 its  brutal1  
vulgar1 ill-mannered name4  ,do not be  
too soft1 do not be too  courtly with   
yourself4  ,keep your own evil name ever
 before you4  ,when  you hear any other 
man outlawed and ostracised by that same
 name1 say to  yourself3 ,thou1 sir1 art
 the man6  ,put out a secret and a      
painful skill  upon yourself4  ,have    
times and places and ways that nobody   

knows anything  about--not even those   
you have wronged2 have times and places 
and ways  they would laugh to be told   
of1 and would not believe it2 times1 ,i 
say1  and places and ways for bringing  
all those old wrongs you once did ever  
and ever back to mind2 as often back and
 as keen to your mind as they  come back
 to that other mind1 which is still so  
full of the wrong4  ,even  if your      
victim has forgiven and forgotten you1  
never you forget him1 and  never you    
forgive yourself when you again think of
 him4  ,welcome back  every sudden and  
sharp recollection of your wrong-doing4 
,and make haste  at every such sudden   
recollection and fall down on the spot  
in a deeper  compunction than ever      
before4  ,do that as you would be a     
forgiven and  full-chartered soul4      
,for1 free and full and everlasting as  
,god's  forgiveness is1 you have no     
assurance that it is yours if you ever  
forget  your sin1 or ever forgive       
yourself for having done it4  ',forgive 

yourself1' says ,augustine1 'and ,god   
will condemn you4  ,but continually     
arraign and condemn yourself1 and ,god  
will forgive and acquit and justify     
you4'    #c4  ',i give also ,my holy law
 and testament1 and all that therein is 
contained1 for their everlasting comfort
 and consolation4'  ,this is not  the   
manner of men1 ,o my ,god4              
,kind-hearted men comfort and console   
those  who have suffered injuries and   
wrongs at our hands1 but the            
kindest-hearted of men harden their     
hearts and set their faces like a  flint
 against us who have done the wrong4    
,all ,syria sympathised with  ,esau for 
the loss of his birthright1 but ,i do   
not read that any one came  to whisper  
one kind word to ,jacob on his hard     
pillow4  ,all the army  mourned over    
,uriah1 but all the time ,david's       
moisture was dried up like  the drought 
of summer1 and not even ,nathan came to 
the ,king till he could  not help       
coming4  ,all ,jericho cried1 ,avenge us

 of our adversary6  ,but it  was ,jesus 
who looked up and saw ,zaccheus and     
said3 ,zaccheus1 come down2  make haste 
and come down1 for to-day ,i must abide 
at thy house4  ',the  injuries they have
 done themselves also1' so runs the very
 first head of  our forgiveness         
covenant4  ,ah6 yes2 ,o my ,lord1 ,thou 
knowest all things2  ,thou knowest my   
heart4  ,thou knowest that irremediably 
as ,i have injured  other men1 yet in   
injuring them ,i have injured myself    
much more4  ,and  much as other men need
 restitution1 reparation1 and           
consolation on my  account1 my ,god1    
,thou knowest that ,i need all that much
 more--ten  thousand times more4  ,oh1  
how my broken heart within me leaps up  
and  thanks ,thee for that ,covenant4   
,let me repeat it again to ,thy praise3 
',full1 free1 and everlasting           
forgiveness of all wrongs1 injuries1 and
  offences done by him against his      
neighbours and against himself4'  ,who1 
who is a ,god1 ,o my ,god1 who is a ,god

 like unto ,thee6    #d4  ',i do also   
give them a portion of the self-same    
grace and goodness  that dwells in ,my  
,father's heart and ,mine4'  ,the       
self-same grace and  goodness1 that is1 
that ,my ,father and ,i have shown to   
them4  ,that is to  say1 we shall be    
made both willing and able to grant to  
all those men who  have wronged us the  
very same charter of forgiveness that we
 have had  granted to us of ,god4  ,so  
that at all those times when we stand   
praying  for forgiveness we shall       
suspend that prayer till we have first  
forgiven  all our enemies1 and all who  
have at any time and in any way wronged 
or  injured us4  ,even when we had the  
,communion cup at our lips to-day1 you  
would have seen us setting it down till 
we had first gone and been  reconciled  
to our brother4  ,yes1 my brethren1 you 
are ,his witnesses that  ,he has done   
it4  ,he has taken you into ,his        
covenant till ,he has made you  both    
able and willing1 both willing and able1

 to grant and to bequeath to  others1   
all that free1 full1 and everlasting    
forgiveness and love that ,he  has      
bequeathed to you4  ,till under the very
 last and supreme wrong that  your worst
 enemy can do to you and to yours1 you  
are able and forward to  say3 ,father1  
forgive him1 for he knows not what he   
has done4  ,forgive me  my debts1 you   
will say1 as ,i forgive my debtors4     
,and always1 as you  again say and do   
that1 you will on the spot be made a    
partaker of the  ,divine ,nature1       
according to the heavenly ,charter1 ',i 
do also give them a  portion of the     
self-same grace and goodness that dwells
 in ,my ,father's  heart and in ,mine4' 
#e4  ',i do also1' so ,mansoul's ,magna 
,charta travels on1 ',i do also give1   
grant1 and bestow upon them freely the  
world and all that is therein for  their
 good2 yea1 ,i grant them all the       
benefits of life and of death1 and  of  
things present and things to come4'     
,what a magnificent ,charter is  that6  

',all things are yours3 whether ,paul1  
or ,apollos1 or ,cephas1 or the  world1 
or life1 or death1 or things present1 or
 things to come2 all are  yours4'  ,what
 a superb ,charter6  ,only1 it is too   
high for us2 we cannot  attain to it4   
,has any human being ever risen to      
anything like the full  faith1 full     
assurance1 and full victory of all that 
in this life8  ,no2  the thing is       
impossible6  ,reason would fall off her 
throne4  ,the heart of  a man would     
break with too much joy if he tried to  
enter into the full  belief of all that4
  ,no2 it hath not entered into the     
heart of a still  sinful man what ,god  
hath chartered to them whom ,he loves4  
,this world1  and all that therein is1  
and then all the coming benefits of life
 and of  death4  ,what benefits do      
believers receive from ,christ at their 
death8  ,we  all drank in the answer to 
that with our mother's milk1 but what is
  behind the words of that answer no    
mortal tongue can yet tell4  ,all are   

yours1 and ye are ,christ's1 and ,christ
 is ,god's4  ,till1 what joy1 what      
comfort1 what consolation1 think you1   
did now possess the hearts of the  men  
of ,mansoul6  ,the bells rang1 the      
minstrels played1 the people danced1    
the captains shouted1 the colours waved 
in the wind1 and the silver  trumpets   
sounded4    #f4  ',and till the glory   
breaks suddenly upon you1 and as long as
 you yet  live in this life of free     
grace ,i shall give and grant you leave 
and free  access to ,me in ,my palace at
 all seasons1 there to make known all   
your  wants to ,me2 and ,i give you1    
moreover1 a promise that ,i will hear   
and  redress all your grievances4'  ,at 
all seasons2 in season and out of       
season4  ,there to make known all your  
wants to ,me4  ,and all your            
grievances4  ,all that still grieves and
 vexes you4  ,all your wrongs4  ,all    
your injuries4  ,all that men can do to 
you4  ,let them do their worst to  you4 
,my grace is sufficient for all your    

grievances4  ,my goodness in you  shall 
make you more than a conqueror4  ,i     
undertake to give you before you  have  
asked for it a heart full of free1 full1
 and everlasting forgiveness  and       
forgetfulness of all that has begun to  
grieve you4  ,no word or deed1  written 
or spoken1 of any man shall be able to  
vex or grieve the spirit  that ,i shall 
put within you4  ,you will immediately  
avenge yourselves of  your adversaries4 
,you will instantly repay them all an   
hundredfold4  ,for1  when thine enemy   
hungers1 thou shalt feed him2 when he is
 athirst1 thou  shalt give him drink4   
,for thou shalt not be overcome of evil1
 but thou  shalt overcome evil with     
good4    #g4  ',all these grants1       
privileges1 and immunities ,i bestow    
upon thee2  upon thee1 ,i say1 and upon 
thy right seed after thee4'  ,o         
,almighty ,god1  our ,heavenly ,father1 
give us such a seed6  ,give us a seed   
right with  ,thee6  ,smite us and our   
house with everlasting barrenness rather

 than  that our seed should not be right
 with ,thee4  ,o ,god1 give us our      
children4  ,give us our children4  ,a   
second time1 and by a far better  birth1
 give us our children to be beside us in
 ,thy holy ,covenant4  ,for it  had been
 better we had never been born2 it had  
been better we had never  been          
betrothed2 it had been better we had sat
 all our days solitary  unless all our  
children are to be right with ,thee4    
,let the day perish1  and the night     
wherein it was said1 ,there is a        
man-child conceived4  ,let  that day be 
darkness2 let not ,god regard it from   
above2 neither let the  light shine upon
 it1 unless all our house is yet to be  
right with ,god4  ,o  my son ,absalom6  
,my son1 my son ,absalom6  ,would ,god  
,i had died for thee1  ,o ,absalom1 my  
son1 my son6  ,but thou1 ,o ,god1 art   
,thyself a ,father1 and  thus hast in   
,thyself a ,father's heart4  ,hear us1  
then1 for our children1  ,o our ,father1
 for such of our children as are not yet

 right with ,thee6  ,in  season and out 
of season2 we shall not go up into our  
bed2 we shall not  give sleep to our    
eyes nor slumber to our eyelids till we 
and all our  seed are right with ,thee4 
,and then how we and all our saved seed 
beside  us shall praise ,thee and bless 
,thee above all the families on earth or
 in  heaven1 and shall say3 ,unto ,him  
who loved us and washed us from our sins
  in ,his own blood1 and hath bestowed  
upon us a free1 full1 and everlasting   
forgiveness1 and hath made us partakers 
of ,his ,divine ,nature1 to ,him be  our
 love and praise and service to all     
eternity4  ,amen and ,amen6             
,,chapter ,,xxviii--,,emmanuel',s ,,last
 ,,charge ,,to ,,mansoul3 ,,concerning  
,,the  ,,remainders ,,of ,,sin ,,in     
,,the ,,regenerate         ',hold fast  
till ,i come4'--,our ,lord4    ,there   
are many fine things in ,emmanuel's last
 charge to ,mansoul1 but by  far the    
best thing is the answer that ,he       
,himself there supplies to this  deep   

and difficult question1--to this        
question1 namely1 ,why original sin  is 
still left to rage in the truly         
regenerate8  ,why does our ,lord not    
wholly extirpate sin in our             
regeneration8  ,what can ,his reason be 
for  leaving their original sin to dwell
 in ,his best saints till the day of    
their death8  ,for1 to use ,his own sad 
words about sin in ,his last charge1    
nothing hurts us but sin4  ,nothing     
defiles and debases us but sin4  ,why1  
then1 does ,he not take our sin clean   
out of us at once8  ,he could speak  the
 word of complete deliverance if ,he    
only would4  ,why1 then1 does ,he  not  
speak that word8  ,that has been a      
mystery and a grief to all ,god's       
saints ever since sanctification began  
to be4  ,and the great interest and  the
 great value of ,emmanuel's last charge 
to ,mansoul stands in this1 that  ,he   
here tells us1 if not all1 then at least
 some of ,his reasons for the  policy   
,he pursues with us in our              

sanctification4  ,dost thou know1 ,he   
asks1 as ,he stands on ,his chariot     
steps1 surrounded with ,his captains on 
the right hand and the left--,dost thou 
know why ,i at first did1 and do  still1
 suffer sin to live and dwell and       
harbour in thy heart8  ,and then1  after
 an ,o yes6 for silence1 the ,prince    
began and thus proceeded3    #a4  ,dost 
thou ask at ,me why ,i and ,my ,father  
have seen it good to allow  the dregs of
 thy sinfulness still to corrupt and to 
rot in thine heart8  ,dost thou ask why1
 amid so much in thee that is           
regenerate1 there is  still so much more
 that is unregenerate8  ,why1 while thou
 art1 without  controversy1 under grace1
 indwelling sin still so festers and so 
breaks  out in thee8  ,dost thou ask    
that8  ,then1 attend1 and before ,i go  
away to  come again ,i will try to tell 
thee1 if1 indeed1 thou art able and     
willing  to bear it4  ,well1 then1 be   
silent while ,i tell thee that ,i have  
left all  that of thy original sin in   

thee to tempt thee1 to try thee1 to     
humble  thee1 and to thrust1 day and    
night1 upon thee1 what is still in thine
  heart4  ,to humble thee1 take         
knowledge1 take warning1 and take       
forethought4  ,to make thee humble1 and 
to keep thee humble4  ,to hide  pride   
from thee1 and to lay thee all thy days 
on earth in the dust of  death4  ,i tell
 thee this day that in all thy past life
 ,i have ordered and  administered all  
,my providences toward thee to humble   
thee and to prove  thee1 and to make    
thee dust and ashes in thine own eyes4  
,and ,i go away  to carry on from heaven
 this same intention of ,my ,father's   
and ,mine  toward thee4  ,we shall try  
thee as silver is tried4  ,we shall sift
 thee  as wheat is sifted4  ,we shall   
search thee as ,jerusalem is searched   
with  lighted candles4  ,i tell thee the
 truth1 ,i shall bend from heaven all   
,my  power which ,my ,father has given  
,me1 and all ,my wisdom1 and all ,my    
love1  and all ,my grace4  ,what to do1 

dost thou think8  ,what to do but to    
make  thee to know and to acknowledge   
the plague of thine own heart4  ,the    
deceitfulness1 that is1 the depth of    
wickedness1 and the abominableness1     
past all words1 of thine own heart4  ,i 
do not ascend to ,my ,father1 with  all 
things in ,my hand1 to make thy seat    
soft1 and thy cup sweet1 and thy  name  
great1 and thy seed multiplied4  ,i have
 far other predestinations  before ,me  
for thee4  ,i have loved thee with an   
everlasting love1 and it  is to         
everlasting life that ,i am leading     
thee4  ,and thou must let ,me lead  thee
 through fire and through water if ,i am
 to lead thee to heaven at  last4  ,i   
shall have to utterly kill all self-love
 out of thy heart1 and  to plant all    
humility in its place4  ,many and       
dreadful discoveries shall  ,i have to  
make to thee of thy profane and inhuman 
self-love and  selfishness4  ,words will
 fail thee to confess all thy           
selfishness in thy  most penitent       

prayer4  ,thy towering pride of heart   
also1 and thy so  contemptible vanity4  
,as for thy vanity1 ,i shall so overrule
 it that  double-minded men about thee  
shall make thee and thy vanity their    
sport1  their jest1 and their prey4     
,and ,i shall not leave thee1 nor       
discharge  ,myself of ,my work within   
thee1 till ,i see thee loathing thyself 
and  hating thyself and gnashing thy    
teeth at thyself for thy envy of thy    
brother1 thy envy concerning his house1 
his wife and his man-servant1 and  his  
maid-servant1 and his ox1 and his ass1  
and everything that is his4  ,thou shalt
 find something in thee that shall allow
 thee to see thine  enemy prosper1 but  
not thy friend4  ,something that shall  
keep thee from  thy sleep because of his
 talents1 his name1 his income1 and his 
place  which ,i have given him above    
thee1 beside thee1 and always in thy    
sight4  ,it will be something also that 
shall make his sickness1 his decay1 his 
defamation1 and his death sweet to thee1

 and his prosperity and return to  life 
bitter to thee4  ,thou shalt have to    
confess something in  thyself--whatever 
its nature and whatever its             
name--something that shall  make thee   
miserable at good news1 and glad and    
enlarged and full of life  at evil      
tidings4  ,it will be something also    
that shall give a long life  in thy evil
 heart to anger1 and to resentment1 and 
to retaliation1 and to  revenge4  ,for  
after years and years thou shalt still  
have it in thine  heart to hate and to  
hurt that man and his house1 because    
long ago he  left thy side1 thy booth in
 the market1 thy party in the state1 and
 thy  church in religion4  ,as ,i live1 
swore ,emmanuel1 standing up on the step
  of ,his ascending chariot1 ,i shall   
show thee thyself4  ,i shall show thee  
what an unclean heart is and a wicked4  
,i shall teach to thee what all  true   
saints shudder at when they are let see 
the plague of their own  hearts4  ,i    
shall show thee1 as ,i live1 how full of

 pride1 and hate1 and  envy1 and        
ill-will a regenerate heart can be2 and 
how a true-born man of  ,god may still  
love evil and hate good2 may still      
rejoice in iniquity and  pine under the 
truth4  ,i shall show thee1 also1 what  
thou wilt not as yet  believe1 how thy  
best friend cannot trust his good name  
with thee2 such a  sweet morsel to thee 
shall be the mote in his eye and the    
spot on his  praise4  ,yes1 ,i shall    
show thee that ,i did not die on the    
cross for  nothing when ,i died for     
thee2 when ,i went out to ,calvary a    
shame and a  spitting1 an outcast and a 
curse for thee6  ,thou shalt yet arise  
up and  fall down in thy sin and shalt  
justify all my thorns1 and nails1 and   
spears1 and the last drop of ,my blood  
for thee6  ,yea1 thou shalt remember    
all the way which the ,lord thy ,god led
 thee these forty years in the          
wilderness1 to humble thee1 and to prove
 thee1 and to know what was in  thine   
heart1 and whether thou wouldest keep   

,his commandments or no4    #b4  ,it is 
also1 the still tarrying ,prince        
proceeded--it is also to keep  thee     
wakeful and to make thee watchful4      
,now1 what conceivable estate  could any
 man be put into even by his ,maker and 
,redeemer more calculated  to call forth
 wakefulness and watchfulness than to   
have one half of his  heart new and the 
other half old8  ,to have one half of   
his heart  garrisoned by the captains of
 ,emmanuel1 and the other half still    
full of  the spies and the scouts and   
the emissaries of hell8  ,nay1 to have  
the  great bulk of his heart still full 
of sin and but a small part of his      
heart here and there under grace and    
truth8  ,here is material for  fightings
 without and fears within with a        
vengeance6  ,if it somehow suits  and   
answers ,god's deep purposes with ,his  
people to teach them  watchfulness in   
this life1 then here is a field for     
watchfulness1 a field  of divine depth  
and scope and opportunity4  ,there used 

to be a divinity  question set in the   
schools in these terms3 ,where1 in the  
regenerate1  hath sin its lodging-place8
  ,for that sin does still lodge in the 
regenerate is too abundantly evident    
both from ,scripture and from           
experience4  ,but where it so lodges is 
the question4  ,the ,dominican  monks1  
and some others1 were of opinion that   
original sin is to be found  only in the
 inferior part of the soul1 but not in  
the mind or the will4  ,which1 ,i       
suppose1 we shall soon find contrary    
both to ,scripture and  reason and      
experience4  ,old ,andrew ,gray speaks  
feelingly and no less  truly concerning 
the heart1 when he says1 ',i think1' he 
says1 'that if  all the saints since    
,adam's day1 and who shall be to the end
 of the  world1 had but one deceitful   
heart to guide they would misguide it4' 
,what  a plot of ,god1 then1 it is to   
seat grace1 a little saving grace1 in   
the  midst of such a sea of corruption  
as a human heart is1 and then to set a  

sinful man to watch over that spark and 
to keep the boiling pollutions of  his  
own heart from extinguishing that spark6
  ,well may ,paul exclaim3 ,yea1  what  
carefulness it calls forth in us2 yea1  
what indignation2 yea1 what  fear2 yea1 
what vehement desire2 yea1 what zeal2   
yea1 what revenge6  ,and1  knowing to   
what ,he has left our hearts1 well may  
,emmanuel say to us from  ,his ascending
 steps1 ',watch ye1 therefore2 and what 
,i say unto you1 ,i say  unto all1      
,watch6'    #c4  ,it is to keep thee    
watchful and to teach thee war also1 the
 ,prince  went on4  ,bishop ,butler is  
about the last author that we would     
think of  going to for light on any deep
 and intricate question in the          
evangelical  and experimental life4     
,but ,butler is so deeply seen into much
 of the  heart of man1 as also into many
 of the ways of ,god1 that even here he 
has  something to say to the point4     
',it is vain to object1' he says in his 
sober and sobering way1 'that all this  

trouble and danger might have been      
saved us by our being made at once the  
creatures and the characters which  we  
were to be4  ,for we experience that    
what we are to be is to be the  effect  
of what we shall do4  ,and that the     
conduct of nature is not to  save us    
trouble and danger1 but to make us      
capable of going through  trouble and   
danger1 and to put it upon us to do it4'
  ,the ,apostle ,peter  has the same    
teaching in a passage too little        
attended to1 in which he  tells us that 
we are set here to work out our own     
salvation1 and that our  salvation will 
just be what1 with fear and trembling1  
or1 as ,butler says1  with trouble and  
danger1 we work out4  ,no man1 let all  
men understand1 is  to have his         
salvation thrust upon him4  ,no man need
 expect to waken up at  the end of an   
idle1 indifferent1 inattentive life and 
find his salvation  superinduced upon   
all that4  ,no man shall wear the crown 
of everlasting  life who has not for    

himself won it4  ,as every man soweth to
 the ,spirit  so also shall he reap4    
,as a soldier warreth1 so shall he hear 
it said to  him1 ,well done4  ,and as a 
sinner keeps his heart with all         
diligence1 and  holds it fast till his  
,king comes1 so shall he hear it said to
 him1 ,thou  hast been faithful over a  
few things1 ,i will make thee ruler over
 many  things4  ,if thy sins1 then1 are 
left in thee to teach thee war1 ,o poor 
saint of ,god1 then take to thee the    
whole armour of ,god2 thou knowest the  
pieces of it1 and where the armoury is1 
and1 having done all1 stand6    #d4     
,and dost thou know1 ,o ,mansoul1 that  
it is all to try thy love also8  ,now1  
how1 just how1 do the remainders of sin 
in the regenerate try their  love8      
,why1 surely1 in this way4  ,if we      
really loved sin at the deepest  bottom 
of our hearts1 and only loved holiness  
on the surface1 would we  not in our    
deepest hearts close with sin1 give     
ourselves up to it1 and  make no stand  

at all against it8  ,would we not in our
 deepest and most  secret hearts welcome
 it1 and embrace it1 look out for it    
with desire and  delight1 and part with 
it with regret8  ,but if1 as a matter of
 fact1 we  at our deepest and most      
hidden heart turn from sin1 flee from   
it1 fight  against it1 rejoice when we  
are rid of it1 and have horror at the   
return  of it1--what better proof than  
that could ,christ and ,his angels have 
that  at bottom we are ,his and not the 
devil's8  ,and that grace1 at bottom1   
has  our hearts1 and not sin2 heaven1   
and not hell8  ,the apostle's protesting
  cry is our cry also2 we also delight  
in the law of ,god after our most       
inward man4  ,for1 after our saddest    
surprises into sin1 after its worst     
outbreaks and overthrows1 such all the  
time were our reluctances1              
recalcitrations1 and resistances1 that1 
swept away as we were1 yet all  the     
time1 and after it was again over1 it   
was with some good conscience  that we  

said to ,christ that ,he knew all       
things1 and that ,he knew that we  loved
 ,him4       ',o benefit of ill6 now ,i 
find true        ,that better is by evil
 still made better2     ,and ruined     
love1 when it is built anew1            
,grows fairer than at first1 more       
strong1 far greater1     ,so ,i return  
rebuked to my content1        ,and gain 
by ill thrice more than ,i have spent4' 
,yes2 it is a sure and certain proof how
 truly we love our dearest friend1      
that1 after all our envy and ill-will1  
yet it is as true as that ,god is  in   
heaven that1 all the time1 maugre the   
devil of self that remains in  our      
heart1--after he has done his worst--we 
would still pluck out our  eyes for our 
friend and shed our blood4  ,i have no  
better proof to myself  of the depth and
 the divineness of my love to my friend 
than just this1  that ,i still love him 
and love him more tenderly and loyally1 
after  having so treacherously hurt him4
  ,and my heavenly friends and my       

earthly  friends1 if they will still    
have me1 must both be content to go into
 the  same bundle both of my remaining  
enmity and my increasing love2 my       
remainders of sin1 and my slow growth in
 regeneration4  ,so when they had       
dined1 ,jesus saith to ,simon ,peter1   
,simon1 son of ,jonas1 lovest thou ,me  
more than these8  ,he saith unto ,him1  
,yea1 ,lord2 ,thou knowest that ,i love 
,thee4  ,he saith unto him again the    
second time1 ,simon1 son of ,jonas1     
lovest thou ,me8  ,he saith unto ,him1  
,yea1 ,lord2 thou knowest that ,i love  
,thee4  ,he saith unto him the third    
time1 ,simon1 son of ,jonas1 lovest thou
  ,me8  ,peter was grieved because ,he  
said unto him the third time1 ,lovest   
thou ,me8  ,and he said unto ,him1      
,lord1 ,thou knowest all things2 ,thou  
knowest that ,i love ,thee6    #e4      
,and1 to sum up all--more than your     
humility1 more than your  watchfulness1 
more than your prayerfulness1 more than 
to teach you war1  and more than to try 

your love1 the dregs and remainders of  
sin have been  left in your regenerate  
heart to exalt and to extol the grace of
 ,god4  ,in  ,emmanuel's very words1 it 
has all been to make you a monument of  
,god's  mercy4  ,i put it to yourselves1
 then1 ye people of ,god3 does that not 
satisfy you for a reason1 and for an    
explanation1 and for a justification  of
 all your shame and pain1 and of all    
your bondage and misery and             
wretchedness since you knew the ,lord8  
,is there not a heart in you that  says1
 ,yes6 it was worth all my corruption   
and pollution and misery to  help to    
manifest forth and to magnify the glory 
of the grace of ,god8  ,you  seize on   
,emmanuel's word that you are a monument
 of mercy4  ,somehow that  word pleases 
and reposes you4  ,yes1 that is what out
 of all these post-  regeneration years 
you are4  ,you would have been a        
monument to ,god's  mercy had you1 like 
the thief on the cross1 been glorified  
on the same  day on which you were first

 justified4  ,but it will neither be the
 day of  your justification nor the day 
of your glorification that will make you
  the greatest of all the monuments that
 shall ever be raised to the praise  of 
,god's grace2 it will be the days of    
your sanctification that will do  that4 
,paul was a blasphemer and a persecutor 
and injurious at his  conversion1 but he
 had to be a lifetime in grace and an   
apostle above all  the twelve before he 
became the chiefest of sinners and the  
most wretched  of saints4  ,and though  
your first forgiveness was1 no doubt1 a 
great  proof of the grace of ,god1 yet  
it was nothing1 nothing at all1 to your 
forgiveness to-day4  ,you had no words  
for the wonder and the praise of  your  
forgiveness to-day4  ,you just took to  
your lips the cup of salvation  and let 
that silent action speak aloud your     
monumental praise4  ,you were  a sinner 
at your regeneration1 else you would not
 have been regenerated4  ,but you were  
not then the chief of sinners4  ,but    

now4  ,ah1 now6  ,those  words1 the     
chief of sinners1 were but idle words in
 ,paul's mouth4  ,he did  not know what 
he was saying4  ,for1 what has horrified
 and offended other  men when it has    
been spoken with bated breath to them   
about envy1 and  hate1 and malice1 and  
revenge1 and suchlike remainders of     
hell1 all that  has been a breath of    
life and hope to you4  ,it has been to  
you as when  ,christian1 in the ,valley 
of the ,shadow of ,death1 heard a voice 
in the  darkness which proved to him    
that there was another sinner at the    
mouth  of hell besides himself4  ,there 
is no text that comes oftener to your   
mind than this1 that whoso hateth his   
brother is a murderer2 and1  communicant
 as you are1 you feel and you know and  
you are sure that there  are many men   
lying in lime waiting the day of        
judgment to whom it would  be more      
tolerable than for you were it not that 
you are to be at that day  the highest  
monument in heaven or earth to the      

redeeming1 pardoning1 and  saving grace 
of ,god4  ,yes1 this is the name that   
shall be written on you2  this is the   
name that shall be read on you of all   
who shall see you in  heaven2 this name 
that ,emmanuel pronounced over ,mansoul 
that day from ,his  ascending           
chariot-steps1 a very ,spectacle of     
wonder1 and a very ,monument  of the    
mercy and the grace of ,god4