whom he had formerly persecuted, joining and continuing with them in the profession of Christ on all hazards. Those with whom the Lord hath so dealt have much to say for a gracious work of God's spirit in them; and it is like, many of them can date their work from such a particular time and word, or dispensation, and can give some account of what passed between God and them, and of a sensible change following in them from that time forward; as Paul giveth a good account of the work and way of God with him afterwards, Acts xxii.

Again, the Lord sometimes carrieth on this work more calmly, softly, and gently, protracting it so, as the several steps of men's exercise under it are very discernible. It would draw a great length to enlarge every step of it; we shall touch the most observable things in it.

1st. The Lord layeth siege to men, who, it may be, have often refused to yield to him, offering himself in the ordinances; and by some word preached, read, or borne in on the mind, or by some providence leading in unto the word, he doth assault the house kept peaceably by the strong man, the devil; and thus Christ, who is the stronger man, cometh upon him, Luke xi. 22. and, by the spirit of truth, doth fasten the word on the man, in which God's curse is denounced against such and such sins, whereof the man knoweth himself guilty. The spirit convinceth the man, and bindeth it upon him, that he is the same person against whom the word of God doth speak, because he is guilty of such sins; and from some sins the man is led on to see more, until ordinarily he come to see the sins

of his youth, sins of omission, &c. ; yea, he is lead on until he see himself guilty almost of the breach of the whole law; he seeth " innumerable evils compassing him," as David speaketh in a fit of exercise, Psal. xl. 12. A man sometimes will see ugly sights of sin in this case, and is sharp-sighted to reckon a greatness to every sin almost. Thus "the spirit cometh and convinceth of sin," John xvi. 8.

2dly. The Lord shaketh a special strong hold in the garrison, a refuge of lies, to which the man betaketh himself when his sins are thus discovered to him. The poor man pretendeth to faith in Christ, whereby he thinks his burden is taken off him, as the Pharisees said, John viii. 41. "We have one father, even God;" they pretend to a special relation to God as a common Lord. The Spirit of God beats the man from this by the truth of the scriptures, proving that he hath no true faith, and so no interest in Christ, nor any true saving grace; shewing clear differences between true grace and the counterfeit fancies which the man hath in him; and between him and the truly godly, as Christ laboureth to do to those in John viii. 42. 44. "If God were your father, ye would love me. ye are of the devil, for ye do the lusts of such a father." So "fear surpriseth the hypocrite in heart, Isaiah xxxiii. 14.; especially when the Lord discovereth to him conditions, in many of these promises wherein he trusted most, not easily attainable he now seeth grace and faith another thing than once he judged them to be. We may in some respect apply that word here, "The spirit convinceth him of sin, because he

hath not believed on the Son:" he is particularly convinced of unbelief, John xvi. 9. he seeth now a huge distance between himself and the godly, who he thought before outstripped him only in some unnecessary, proud, hateful preciseness: he now seeth himself deluded, and in the broad way with the perishing multitude; and so, in this sight of his misery, coucheth down under his own burden, which, before this time, he thought Christ did bear for him he now beginneth to be frightened at the promises, because of that and such other words, "What hast thou to do to take my covenant in thy mouth," &c. Psal. 1. 16.

3dly. The man becometh careful about his salvation, and beginneth to take it to heart, as the one thing necessary; he is brought to this with the jailer, Acts xvi. 30. "What shall I do to be saved? His salvation becometh the leading thing with him. It was least in his thoughts before, but now it prevaileth, and other things are much disregarded by him. Since his soul is ready to perish, "what shall it profit him to gain the world, if he lose his soul?” Matth. xvi. 26. Some here are much puzzled with the thoughts of an irrevocable decree to their prejudice, and with the fears of uncertain death, which may attack them before they get matters brought to a point; and some are vexed with apprehensions that they are guilty of the sin against the Holy Ghost, which is unpardonable, and so are driven a dangerous length, Satan still casting up to them many sad examples of people who have dolefully put an end to their own exercise but they are in, the hand of one who "knoweth how to succour them that are tempted," Heb. ii. 18.

4thly. When a man is thus in hazard of miscarrying, the Lord useth a work of preventing mercy towards him, quietly and under-hand supporting him; and this is by bearing in upon his mind the possibility of his salvation, leading the man to the remembrance of pregnant proofs of God's free and rich grace pardoning gross transgressors, such as Manasseh, who was a bloody idolatrous man, and had correspondence with the devil, and yet obtained mercy, 2 Chron. xxxiii. 12, 13. and other scriptures bearing offers of grace and favour indifferently to all who will yield to Christ, whatsoever they have been formerly; so as the man is brought again to this, "What shall I do to be saved?" which doth suppose that he apprehendeth a possibility of being saved, else he would not propound the question. He applieth that or the like word to himself, "It may be ye shall be hid in the day of the Lord's anger, Zeph. ii. 3. He findeth nothing excluding him from mercy now, if he have a heart for the thing.-Although here, it may be, the man doth not perceive that it is the Lord who upholdeth, yet afterwards he can tell, that "When his foot was slipping, God's mercy held him up;" Psal. xciv. 17, 18. As the Psalmist speaketh in another case. And he will afterwards say, when he "was as a beast, and a fool, in many respects, God held him by the hand," Psal. Ixxiii. 22, 23.

5thly. After this discovery of a possibility to be saved, there is a work of desire quickened in the soul; which is clear in that same expression, "What shall I do to be saved?" But sometimes

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this desire is airthed amiss, whilst it goeth out thus, "What shall I do that I may work the works of God ?" John vi. 28. In which case the man, formerly perplexed with fear and care about his salvation, would be at some work of his own to extricate himself; and here he suddenly resolveth to do all that is commanded, and to forego every evil way (yet much neglecting Christ Jesus,) and so beginneth to take some courage to himself again, "establishing his own righteousness, but not submitting unto the righteousness of God," Rom. x. 3. Whereupon the Lord maketh a new assault on him, intending the discovery of his absolutely broken state in himself, that so room may be made for the cautioner; as Joshua did to the people, when he found them so bold in their undertakings, Joshua xxiv. 18, 19. "Ye cannot serve the Lord," saith he, "for he is a holy God, a jealous God," &c. In this new assault the Lord, 1. bends up against the man the spirituality of the law; the commandment cometh with a new charge in the spiritual meaning of it, Rom. vii. 9. "The law came," saith Paul, viz. in the spiritual meaning of it: Paul had never seen such a sight of the law before. 2. God most holily doth loose the restraining bonds which he had laid upon the man's corruption, and suffereth it not only to boil and swell within, but to threaten to break out in all the outward members. Thus sin groweth bold, and kicketh at the law, becoming exceeding sinful, Romans vii. 8, 9. "But sin, taking occasion by the commandment, wrought in me all manner of concupiscence. For without the law sin was dead. For I was

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