you presently make inquiry into your hearts, and give them no rest, till you find out your condition; that ifit be good, you may rejoice in it, and go on; and if it be bad, you may presently look about you for recovery, as men that believe they must turn or die. What say you Sirs? Will you resolve and promise, and be at thus much labour for your own souls? Will you fall upon this self-examination when you come home? Is my request unreasonable? Your consciences know it is not. Resolve on it then before you stir, knowing how much it concerneth your souls. I beseech you, for the sake of that GOD that doth command you, at whose bar you will shortly all appear, that you will not deny me this reasonable request; for the sake of those souls that must turn or die, I beseech you deny me not; even but to make it your business to understand your own conditions, and build upon sure ground, and know off or on whether you are converted or no, and venture not your souls on negligent security.

SERMON II.

EZEK. Xxxiii. 11.

Say unto them, as I live saith the Lord GOD, I have no · pleasure in the death of the wicked, but that the wicked turn from his way and live. Turn ye, turn ye from your evil ways; for why will ye die, O house of Israel?

A TRUE description of those who are in a converted state has already been given you: The change, which conversion makes in the soul has also been described; and the request is most earnestly repeated to you, impartially and thoroughly to consider your condition: Rest not satisfied, till you know whether you are indeed converted.

But perhaps you will say, what if we should find ourselves yet unconverted, what shall we do then? This question leadeth me to my second doctrine, which will do much to the answering of it, to which I shall now proceed.

Doct. 2. It is the promise of GOD, that the wicked shall live, if they will but turn; unfeignedly and thoroughly turn.

The Lord here professeth that this it is that he takes pleasure in that the wicked turn and live. Heaven is made as sure to the converted, as hell is to the unconverted. Turn and live, is as certain a truth as turn or die. GOD was not bound to provide us a Saviour, nor open to us a door of hope, nor call us to repent and turn when once we had cast ourselves away by sin.

But he hath freely done it to magnify his mercy. Sinners, there are none of you shall have cause to go home and say I preach [despair] to you. Do we use to shut up the door of mercy against you? O that you would not shut it up against yourselves! Do we use to tell you, that GOD will have no mercy on you, though you turn and be sanctified? When did you ever hear a preacher say such a word? You that bark at the preachers of the gospel, for desiring to keep you out of hell, and say that they preach [despair ;] tell me, if you can when did you ever hear any sober man say, that there is no hope for you, though you repent and be converted. No, it is the contrary that we proclaim from the Lord, and whoever is born again, and by faith and repentance doth become a new creature, shall certainly be saved : And so far are we from persuading you to despair of this, that we persuade you not to make any doubt of it. It is life, and not death, that is the first part of our message to you, our commission is to offer salvation, certain salvation, a speedy, glorious, everlasting salvation, to every one of you; to the poorest beggar, as well as the greatest lord; to the worst of you, even to drunkards,

swearers, worldlings, thieves, yea, to the despisers and reproachers of the holy way of salvation. We are com manded by the Lord our master to offer you a pardon for all that's past, if you will but now at last return and live: We are commanded to beseech and intreat you to accept the offer and return; to tell you what preparation is made by Christ, what mercy stays for you, what patience waiteth on you, what thoughts of kindness GOD hath towards you, and how happy, how certain and unspeakably happy you may be if you will. We havé indeed also, a message of wrath and death, yea of a two-fold wrath and death: but neither of them is our principal message; we must tell you of the wrath that is on you already, and the death that you were born une der, for the breach of the law of works; but this is but to shew you the need of mercy, and provoke you to esteem the grace of the Redeemer. And we tell you nothing but the truth, which you must know; for who will seek out for physic, that knows not that he is sick? Our telling you of your misery is not that it makes you miserable, but driveth you out to seek for mercy. It is you that have brought this death upon yourselves. We tell you also of another death, even remediless, and much greater torment, that will fall on those that will not be converted. But as this is true, and must be told you, so it is but the last and saddest part of our message. We are first to offer you mercy, if you will turn; and it is only thou that will not turn, nor hear the voice of mercy that we must foretell damnation te. Will you but cast