due to sin is taken out of the way. I speak now to sinners that are awake, and see themselves sinners. There are two things in special when men begin to be awakened, that kill their thoughts of being saved. 1. A sense of sin. 2. The wages due thereto. These kill the heart; for who can bear up under the guilt of sin? If our sins be upon us, and we pine away in them, how should we then live?' Eze. xxxiii. 10. How indeed! it is impossible. So neither can man grapple with the justice of God. 'Can thine heart endure, or can thine hands be strong? They cannot. Eze. xxii. 14. 'A wounded spirit who can bear?' Pr. xviii. 14. Men cannot, angels cannot. Wherefore, if now Christ be hid, and the blessing of faith in his blood denied, woe be to them; such go after Saul and Judas, one to the sword, and the other to the halter, and so miserably end their days; for come to God they dare not; the thoughts of that eternal Majesty strike them through. But now, present such poor dejected sinners with a crucified Christ, and persuade them that the sins under which they shake and tremble were long ago laid upon the back of Christ, and the noise and sense and fear of damning begins to cease, depart, and fly away; dolors and terrors fade and vanish, and that soul conceiveth hopes of life; for thus the soul argueth, Is this indeed the truth of God, that Christ was made to be sin for me? was made the curse of God for me? Hath he indeed borne all my sins, and spilt his blood for my redemption! O blessed tidings! O welcome grace! 'Bless the Lord, O my soul, and all that is within me, bless his holy name.' Now is peace come; now the face of heaven is altered; Behold, all things are become new.' Now the sinner can abide God's presence, yea, sees unutterable glory and beauty in him; for here he sees justice smite. While Jacob was afraid of Esau, how heavily did he drive even towards the promised land? but when killing thoughts were turned into kissing, and the fears of the sword's point turned into brother embraces, what says he?-'I have seen thy face as though it had been the face of God, and thou wast pleased with me.' Ge. xxxiii. 10. So and far better is it with a poor distressed sinner at the revelation of the grace of God through Jesus Christ. God was in Christ, reconciling the world unto himself, not imputing their trespasses unto them.' O what work will such a word make upon a wounded conscience, especially when the next words follow-‘For he hath made him to be sin for us, who knew no sin, that we might be made the righteousness of God in him!' Now, the soul sees qualifications able to set him quit in the sight of God; qualifications prepared already. Prepared, I say, already; and that by God through Christ; even such as can perfectly answer the law. What doth the law require? If obedience, here it is; if bloody sacrifice, here it is; if infinite righteousness, here it is! Now, then, the law condemns him that believes before God no more; for all its demands are answered, all its curses are swallowed up in the death and curse Christ underwent. Object. But reason saith, since personal sin brought the death, surely personal obedience must bring us life and glory. Answ. True reason saith so, and so doth the law itself, Ro. x. 5; but God, we know, is above them both, and he in the covenant of grace saith otherwise; to wit, that if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved.' Ro. x. 9. Let reason, then, hold its tongue, yea, let the law with all its wisdom subject itself to him that made it; let it look for sin where God hath laid it; let it approve the righteousness which God approveth; yea, though it be not that of the law, but that by faith of Jesus Christ. God hath made him our righteousness, God hath made him our sin, God hath made him our curse, God hath made him our blessing; methinks this word, God hath made it so, should silence all the world. THE FOURTH USE. FOURTH. By this doctrine, sufficiency of argument is ministered to the tempted to withstand hereby the assaults of the devil. When souls begin to seek after the Lord Jesus, then Satan begins to afflict and distress, as the Canaanites did the Gibeonites, for making peace with Joshua. Josh. x. 1, 6. There are three things that do usually afflict the soul that is earnestly looking after Jesus Christ. First. Dreadful accusations from Satan. Second. Grievous defiling and infectious thoughts. Third. A strange readiness in our nature to fall in with both. [First.] By the first of these, the heart is made continually to tremble. Hence his temptations are compared to the roaring of a lion, for as the lion by roaring killeth the heart of his prey, so doth Satan kill the spirit of these that hearken to him, 1 Pe. v. 8; for when he tempteth, especially by way of accusation, he doth to us as Rabshakeh did to the Jews; he speaks to us in our own language; he speaks our sin at every word, our guilty conscience knows it; he speaks our death at every word, our doubting conscience feels it. Second. Besides this, there doth now arise, even in the heart, such defiling and foul infectious thoughts that putteth the tempted to their wits' end; for now it seems to the soul that the very flood-gates of the flesh are opened, and that to sin | then shall he see his sins answered for, then shall there is no stop at all; now the air seems to be covered with darkness, and the man is as if he was changed into the nature of a devil; now if ignorance and unbelief prevail, he concludeth that he is a reprobate, made to be taken and destroyed. he see death a-dying, then shall he see guilt borne by another, and there shall he see the devil overcome. This sight destroys the power of the first temptation, purifies the heart, and inclines the mind to all good things. And to encourage thee, tempted creature, to this most gospel duty, consider that when Jesus Christ read his commission upon the entering into his ministry, he proclaimed, 'The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he hath anointed me to preach the gospel to the poor; he hath sent me to heal the broken-hearted, to preach deliverance to the captives, and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty them that are bruised, to preach the acceptable year of the Lord.' Lu. iv. 18, 19. These things therefore should the tempted believe; but believing is now sweating work; for Satan will hold as long as possible, and only steadtast faith can make him fly. But O, the toil of a truly gracious heart in this combat! If faith be Third. Now also he feeleth in him a readiness to fall in with every temptation; a readiness, I say, continually present. Ro. vii. 21. This throws all down. Now despair begins to swallow him up; now he can neither pray, nor read, nor hear, nor meditate on God, but fire and smoke continually bursteth forth of the heart against him. Now sin and great confusion puts forth itself in all; yea, the more the sinner desireth to do a duty sincerely, the further off it always finds itself; for by how much the soul struggleth under these distresses, by so much the more doth Satan put forth himself to resist, still infusing more poison, that if possible it might never struggle more, for strugglings are also as poison to Satan. The fly in the spider's web is an emblem of the soul in such a condition-weak, he can scarce get higher than his knees; the fly is entangled in the web; at this the spider shows himself; if the fly stir again, down comes the spider to her, and claps a foot upon her; if yet the fly makes a noise, then with poisoned mouth the spider lays hold upon her; if the fly struggle still, then he poisons her more and more. What shall the fly do now? Why, she dies, if somebody does not quickly release her. This is the case of the tempted; they are entangled in the web, their feet and wings are entangled; now Satan shows himself; if the soul now struggleth, Satan labour-in his mercy, and look upon death and hell with eth to hold it down; if it now shall make a noise, then he bites with blasphemous mouth, more poisonous than the gall of a serpent; if it struggle again, then he poisoneth more and more, insomuch that it needs, at last, must die in the net, if the man, the Lord Jesus, help not out.* The afflicted conscience understands my words. Further, though the fly in the web is altogether incapable of looking for relief, yet this awakened, tempted Christian is not. What must he do therefore? How should he contain hopes of life? If he look to his heart, there is blasphemy; if he look to his duties, there is sin; if he strive to mourn and lament, perhaps he cannot; unbelief and hardness hinder. Shall this man lie down and despair? No. Shall he trust to his duties? No. Shall he stay from Christ till his heart is better? No. What then? Let him Now look to Jesus Christ crucified, This way and that her wings and legs I tie, That sure as she is caught, so she must die.' Lord, help! Lord, save! and then down again, till an arm from heaven takes him up, until Jesus Christ be evidently set forth crucified for him, and cursed for his sin; for then, and not till then, the temptation rightly ceaseth, at leastwise for a season. Now the soul can tend to look about it, and thus consider with itself: if Christ hath borne my sin and curse, then it is taken away from me; and seeing thus to take away sin was the contrivance of the God of heaven, I will bless his name, hope comfort. "Thine heart shall meditate terror,' thou shalt see the land that is very far off. Is. xxxiii, 16–18. THE FIFTH USE. FIFTH. This doctrine makes Christ precious to the believers- Unto you therefore which believe, he is precious.' 1 Pe. ii. 7. This head might be greatly enlarged upon, and branched out into a thousand particulars, and each one full of weight and glory. 1. By considering what sin is. 2. By considering what hell is. 3. By considering what wrath is. 4. By considering what eternity is. 5. By considering what the loss of a soul is. 6. What the loss of God is. 7. What the loss of heaven is. 8. And what it is to be in utter darkness with devils and damned souls for ever and ever. And after all to conclude, from all these miseries the Lord Jesus delivered me. Further, this makes Christ precious, if I consider, in the next place, 1. How he did deliver me; it was with his life, -Bunyan's Divine Emblems, No. XVIII. Dialogue between his blood; it cost him tears, groans, agony, sepa a spider and a sinner.' ration from God; to do it he endured his Father's wrath, bore his Father's curse, and died thousands | throne, and before the four beasts, and the elders: of deaths at once. 2. He did this while I was his enemy, without my desires, without my knowledge, without my deserts; he did it unawares to me. and no man could learn that song but the hundred and forty and four thousand, which were redeemed from the earth.' Re. xiv. 1–3. But why could they not learn that song? Because they were not redeemed: none can sing of this song but the redeemed; they can give glory to the Lamb, the Lamb that was slain, and that redeemed them to God by his blood. It is faith in his blood on earth that will make us sing this song in heaven. These shoutings and heavenly songs must needs come from love put into a flame by the sufferings of Christ. THE LAST USE. 3. He did it freely, cheerfully, yea, he longed to die for me; yea, heaven would not hold him for the love he had to my salvation, which also he hath effectually accomplished for me at Jerusalem. Honourable Jesus! precious Jesus! loving Jesus! Jonathan's kindness captivated David, and made him precious in his eyes for ever. I am distressed for thee, my brother Jonathan,' said he; 'very pleasant hast thou been unto me; thy love to me was wonderful, passing the love of women.' 2 Sa. i. 26. Why, what had Jonathan done? O, he had delivered David from the wrath of Saul. But how much more should he be precious to me who hath saved me from death and hell! who hath delivered me from the wrath of God! The love of Christ constraineth us.' Nothing will so edge the spirit of a Christian as, 'Thou wast slain, and hast redeemed us to God by thy blood.' This makes the heavens themselves ring with joy and shouting. Mark the words, Thou wast slain, and hast redeemed us to God by thy blood, out of every kindred, and tongue, and people, and nation; and hast made us unto our God kings and priests: and we shall reign on the earth.' What follows now? And I beheld, and I heard the voice of many angels round about the throne, and the beasts and the elders: and the number of them was ten thousand times ten thousand, and thousands of thousands; saying with a loud voice, Worthy is the Lamb that was slain, to receive power, and riches, and wisdom, and strength, and honour, and glory, and blessing. And every creature which is in heaven, and on the earth, and under the earth, and such as are in the sea, and all that are in them, heard I saying, Blessing, and honour, and glory, and power, being day, will be fearfully and swiftly swept away, leaving them, unto him that sitteth upon the throne, and unto the Lamb, for ever and ever.' Re. v. 9-14. If all these things be true, what follows but a demonstration of the accursed condition of those among the religious in these nations whose notions put them far off from Jesus, and from venturing their souls upon his bloody death? I have observed such a spirit as this in the world that careth not for knowing of Jesus; the possessed there with do think that it is not material to salvation to venture upon a crucified Christ, neither do they trouble their heads or hearts with inquiring whether Christ Jesus be risen and ascended into heaven, or whether they see him again or no, but rather are for concluding that there will be no such thing: these men speak not by the Holy Ghost, for in the sum they call Jesus accursed; but I doubt not to say that many of them are anathematized of God, and shall stand so, till the coming of the Lord Jesus, to whom be glory for ever and ever. Amen.* *Here is faithful dealing! This is a most solemn and awful appeal to the consciences of those who, forsaking the fountain of salvation, venture to build their hopes of pardon upon some other foundation than Jesus Christ, the Rock of Ages. They seek refuge in lies, which, at the great and try Reader, do not indulge in vain imaginations as to whether any with all their guilt upon their heads, to suffer under the curse. sect is here alluded to; Bunyan's appeal is to persons—to you and me. If wE, either by secret or open sins, or by carelessentire reliance by faith in the work and merits of Christ-we trample under foot the blood of the covenant, there is nothing left us but a fearful looking for of judgment, and fiery indigI? Lord, thou knowest that I love thee. O lead me in the nation to devour us. May we appeal to our God, Lord, is it way everlasting.-ED. Thus also is the song, that new song that is said to be sung by the hundred forty and four thousandness of eternal realities, or by departing from a simple and which stand with the Lamb upon Mount Sion, with his Father's name written in their foreheads. These are also called harpers, harping with their harps: And they sung as it were a new song before the A TREATISE OF THE FEAR OF GOD; SHOWING WHAT IT IS, AND HOW DISTINGUISHED FROM THAT WHICH IS NOT SO. ALSO, WHENCE IT COMES; WHO HAS IT; WHAT ARE THE EFFECTS; AND WHAT THE PRIVILEGES London: Printed for N. Ponder, at the Peacock in the Poultry, over against the Stocks market: 1679. ADVERTISEMENT BY THE EDITOR. into his family; by the influences of which the soul fears to offend him. This fear is purely evangelical; for if the slightest dependence is placed upon any supposed good works of our own, the filial fear of God is swallowed up in dread and terror— for salvation depends upon the perfection of holi THE fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom,' | infinitely Holy One, before whom all sin must incur and a fountain of life '—the foundation on which the intensity of punishment; and the love of God, all wisdom rests, as well as the source from whence as the Father of mercies, and fountain of blessedit emanates. Upon a principle so vastly import-ness, in the gift of his Son, and a sense of adoption ant, all the subtle malignity of Satan has been directed, if possible to mislead the very elect; while the ungodly and impenitent fall under his devices. To the mind enlightened by Divine truth, the difference between a filial fear of offending God and the dread of punishment is very plain. Still, by the devil's sophistry, some of the most pious Chris-ness, without which none can enter heaven, and tians have been puzzled and bewildered. Bunyan was not ignorant of Satan's devices, and he has roused the energies of his powerful mind, guided by Divine truth, to render this important doctrine so clear and easy to be understood, that the believer may not err. This rare volume, first published in 1679, soon became so scarce that Chandler, Wilson, Whitefield, and others, omitted it from their editions of Bunyan's works. At length it appeared in the more complete collection by Ryland and Mason, about 1780. Since then, it has been reprinted, somewhat modernized, by the Tract Society, from an original copy, discovered by that ardent lover of Bunyan, the Rev. Joseph Belcher. Of this edition, four thousand copies have been printed. The great line of distinction that Bunyan draws is between that terror and dread of God, as the which can only be found in Christ. Mr. Mason, on reading this treatise, thus expressed his feelings:- When the fear of the Lord is a permanent principle, inwrought in the soul by the Divine Spirit, it is an undoubted token of election to life eternal; for the most precious promises are made to God's fearers, even the blessings of the everlasting covenant. Such are sure to be protected from every enemy; to be guided by unerring counsel; and what will crown all, to be beloved of God the Father, Son, and Holy Ghost; till, by almighty and effectual grace, he will be translated to those mansions of glory and blessedness prepared for him, where he will sing the praises of his covenant-God while eternity endures.' May this be the blessed experience of all those who prayerfully read this important treatise. GEO. OFFor. GO A TREATISE ON THE FEAR OF GOD. BLESSED IS EVERY ONE THAT FEARETH THE LORD.' 'FEAR GOD.'-REV. XIV. 7. THIS exhortation is not only found here in the text, but is in several other places of the Scripture pressed, and that with much vehemency, upon the children of men, as in Ec. xii. 18; 1 Pe. i. 17, &c. I shall not trouble you with a long preamble, or fore speech to the matter, nor shall I here so much as meddle with the context, but shall immediately fall upon the words themselves, and briefly treat of the fear of God. The text, you see, presenteth us with matter of greatest moment, to wit, with God, and with the fear of him. First they present us with God, the true and living God, maker of the worlds, and upholder of all things by the word of his power: that incom prehensible majesty, in comparison of whom all nations are less than the drop of a bucket, and than the small dust of the balance. This is he that fills heaven and earth, and is everywhere present with the children of men, beholding the evil and the good; for he hath set his eyes upon all their ways. So that, considering that by the text we have presented to our souls the Lord God and Maker of us all, who also will be either our Saviour or Judge, we are in reason and duty bound to give the more carnest heed to the things that shall be spoken, and be the more careful to receive them, and put them in practice; for, as I said, as they present us with the mighty God, so they exhort us to the highest duty towards him; to wit, to fear him. I call it the highest duty, because it is, as I may call it, not only a duty in itself, but, as it were, the salt that seasoneth every duty. For there is no duty performed by us that can by any means be accepted of God, if it be not seasoned with godly fear. Wherefore the apostle saith, Let us have grace, whereby we may serve God acceptably, with reverence and godly fear.' Of this fear, I say, I would discourse at this time; but because this word fear is variously taken in the Scripture, and because it may be profitable to us to see it in its variety, I shall therefore choose this method for the managing of my discourse, even to show you the nature of the word in its several, especially of the chiefest, acceptations. FIRST. Then by this word fear we are to understand even God himself, who is the object of our fear. SECOND. By this word fear we are to understand the Word of God, the rule and director of our fear. Now to speak to this word fear, as it is thus taken. [THIS WORD FEAR As taken for God HIMSELF.] FIRST. Of this word 'fear,' AS IT RESPECTETH GOD HIMSELF, who is the object of our fear. By this word fear, as I said, we are to understand God himself, who is the object of our fear: For the Divine majesty goeth often under this very name himself. This name Jacob called him by, when he and Laban chid together on Mount Gilead, after that Jacob had made his escape to his father's house; Except,' said he, 'the God of my father, the God of Abraham, and the fear of Isaac had been with me, surely thou hadst sent me away now empty.' So again, a little after, when Jacob and Laban agree to make a covenant of peace each with other, though Laban, after the jumbling way of the heathen by his oath, puts the true God and the false together, yet Jacob sware by the fear of his father Isaac.'* Ge. xxxi. 42, 53. By the fear, *This is a very remarkable illustration of godly fear. Jacob does not swear by the omnipresence or omniscience of that is, by the God of his father Isaac. And, indeed, God may well be called the fear of his people, not only because they have by his grace made him the object of their fear, but because of the dread and terrible majesty that is in him. He is a mighty God, a great and terrible, and with God is terrible majesty.' Da. vii. 28; x. 17. Ne. i. 5; iv. 14; ix. 32. Job xxxvii. 22. Who knows the power of his anger? The mountains quake at him, the hills melt, and the earth is burned at his presence, yea, the world, and all that dwell therein. Who can stand before his indignation? who can abide in the fierceness of his anger? his fury is poured out like fire, and the rocks are thrown down by him.' Na. i. 5, 6. His people know him, and have his dread upon them, by virtue whereof there is begot and maintained in them that godly awe and reverence of his majesty which is agreeable to their profession of him. 'Let him be your fear, and let him be your dread.' Set his majesty before the eyes of your souls, and let his excellency make you afraid with godly fear. Is. viii. 13. There are these things that make God to be the fear of his people. First. His presence is dreadful, and that not only his presence in common, but his special, yea, his most comfortable and joyous presence. When God comes to bring a soul news of mercy and salvation, even that visit, that presence of God, is fearful. When Jacob went from Beersheba towards Haran, he met with God in the way by a dream, in the which he apprehended a ladder set upon the earth, whose top reached to heaven; now in this dream, from the top of this ladder, he saw the Lord, and heard him speak unto him, not threateningly; not as having his fury come up into his face; but in the most sweet and gracious manner, saluting him with promise of goodness after promise of goodness, to the number of eight or nine; as will appear if you read the place. Yet I say, when he awoke, all the grace that discovered itself in this heavenly vision to him could not keep him from dread and fear of God's majesty. 'And Jacob awaked out of his sleep, and he said, Surely the Lord is in this place, and I knew it not; and he was afraid and said, How dreadful is this place! this is none other but the house of God, and this is the gate of heaven.' Ge. xxviii. 10–17. At another time, to wit, when Jacob had that memorable visit from God, in which he gave him power as a prince to prevail with him; yea, and |