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Then Christian addressed himself thus to his fellow : CHR. Well, come, my good Hopeful, I perceive that thou and I must walk by ourselves again.

So I saw in my dream, that they went on apace before, and Ignorance he came hobbling after. Then said Christian to his companion, It pities me much for this poor man: it will certainly go ill with him at last.

HOPE. Alas! there are abundance in our town in this condition, whole families, yea, whole streets, and that of pilgrims too; and if there be so many in our parts, how many, think you, must there be in the place where he was born ?*

CHR. Indeed, the word saith, "He hath blinded their eyes, lest they should see," &c.

But, now we are by ourselves, what do you think of such men? Have they at no time, think you, convictions of sin; and so, consequently, fears that their state is dangerous?

HOPE. Nay, do you answer that question yourself, for you are the elder man.

CHR. Then I say, sometimes (as I think) they may; but they, being naturally ignorant, understand not that such convictions tend to their good; and therefore they do desperately seek to stifle them, and presumptuously continue to flatter themselves in the way of their own hearts.

he is able to do for himself. Free grace and free will, Christ's imputed righteousness and the notion of man's personal righteousness, cannot accord.

Ignorance had just the same natural notions of salvation which he was born with; only he had been taught to dress them up by the art of sophistry. Hence it is they so much abound among professors in every age. Oh, what a mercy to be delivered from them, to be spiritually enlightened, and taught the truth as it is in Jesus!

HOPE. I do believe, as you say, that fear tends much to men's good, and to make them right at their beginning to go on pilgrimage.

THE GOOD USE
OF FEAR.

CHR. Without all doubt it doth, if it be right: for so says the word, "The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom."a

HOPE. How will you describe right fear? CHR. True or right fear is discovered by three things:

RIGHT FEAR.

1. By its rise: it is caused by saving convictions for sin.

2. It driveth the soul to lay fast hold of Christ for salvation.

3. It begetteth and continueth in the soul a great reverence of God, his word, and ways; keeping it tender, and making it afraid to turn from them, to the right hand or to the left, to any thing that may dishonour God, break its peace, grieve the Spirit, or cause the enemy to speak reproachfully.

HOPE. Well said; I believe you have said the truth. Are we now almost got past the Enchanted Ground? CHR. Why? are you weary of this discourse?

HOPE. No, verily, but that I would know where

we are.

CHR. We have not now above two miles farther to go thereon. But let us return to our matter-Now, the ignorant know not that such convictions

as tend to put them in fear, are for their good, and therefore they seek to stifle them.

HOPE. How do they seek to stifle them?

WHY IGNORANT PERSONS STIFLE CONVICTION.

CHR. 1. They think that those fears are wrought by the devil, (though indeed they are wrought of God ;) and thinking so, they resist them, as things that directly

u Job xxviii. 28. Psalm exi. 10. Prov. i. 7. ix. 10.

tend to their overthrow. 2. They also think that these fears tend to the spoiling of their faith; when, alas for them, poor men that they are, they have none at all! and therefore they harden their hearts against them. 3. They presume they ought not to fear, and therefore in despite of them wax presumptuously confident. 4. They see that those fears tend to take away from them their pitiful old self-holiness, and therefore they resist them with all their might.

HOPE. I know something of this myself; for before I knew myself, it was so with me.†

CHR. Well, we will leave, at this time, our neighbour Ignorance by himself, and fall upon another profitable question.

HOPE. With all my heart: but you shall still begin. CHR. Well then, did you know, about ten years ago, one Temporary in your parts, who was a forward man in religion then?

TALK ABOUT ONE
TEMPORARY.

HOPE. Know him! yes; he dwelt in Graceless, a town about two miles off of Honesty, and he dwelt next door to one Turnback.

WHERE HE
DWELT.

CHR. Right; he dwelt under the same roof with him. Well, that man was much awakened once I believe that then he had some

HE WAS TOWARDLY

ONCE

Pitiful old self-holiness. Mind this phrase. Far was it from the heart of good Mr. Bunyan to decry real personal holiness. I suppose he was never charged with it. If he was, it must be by such who strive to exalt their own holiness, more than Christ's righteousness; if so, it is pitiful indeed. It is nothing but self-holiness, or the holiness of the old man of sin; for true holiness springs from the belief of the truth, and love to the truth. All beside this only tends to self-confidence and self-applause.

It is good to call to mind one's own ignorance, when in our natural estate, to excite humility of heart, and thankfulness to God, who made us to differ; and to incite pity towards those who are walking in nature's pride, self-righteousness, and self-confidence.

sight of his sins, and of the wages that were due thereto.

HOPE. I am of your mind, for, my house not being above three miles from him, he would ofttimes come to me, and that with many tears. Truly I pitied the man, and was not altogether without hope of him but one may see, it is not every one that cries, " Lord,

Lord."

CHR. He told me once that he was resolved to go on pilgrimage, as we go now; but all of a sudden he grew acquainted with one Save-self,* and then he became a stranger to me.

HOPE. Now, since we are talking about him, let us a little inquire into the reason of the sudden backsliding of him and such others.

CHR. It may be very profitable; but do you begin. HOPE. Well, then, there are in my judgment four reasons for it: :

REASONS WHY TO. WARDLY ONES GO BACK.

1. Though the consciences of such men are awakened, yet their minds are not changed: therefore, when the power of guilt weareth away, that which provoked them to be religious ceaseth; wherefore they naturally turn to their old course again : even as we see the dog that is sick of what he hath eaten, so long as his sickness prevails, he vomits and casts up all; not that he doth this of a free mind, (if we may say a dog has a mind,) but because it troubleth

Those

Saveself. This generation greatly abounds among us. who are under this spirit, are strangers to themselves, to the truths of God's law, and the promises of his gospel, and so consequently are strangers to those who know themselves to be totally lost, are dead to every hope of saving themselves, and look only to, and glory only in, the finished salvation of Jesus. Two cannot walk together except they be agreed," Amos iii. 3.

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his stomach. But now, when his sickness is over, and so his stomach eased, his desires being not at all alienated from his vomit, he turns him about, and licks up all; and so it is true which is written, "The dog is turned to his own vomit again." Thus, I say, being hot for heaven, by virtue only of the sense and fear of the torments of hell; as their sense of hell, and fear of damnation, chills and cools, so their desires for heaven and salvation cool also. So then it comes to pass, that when their guilt and fear is gone, their desires for heaven and happiness die, and they return to their course again.*

2. Another reason is, they have slavish fears that do overmaster them: I speak now of the fears that they have of men;" for the fear of man bringeth a snare." So then, though they seem to be hot for heaven so long as the flames of hell are about their ears, yet, when that terror is a little over, they betake themselves to second thoughts, namely, that it is good to be wise, and not to run (for they know not what) the hazard of losing all, or at least of bringing themselves into unavoidable and unnecessary troubles; and so they fall in with the world again.

3. The shame that attends religion lies also as a block in their way: they are proud and haughty, and religion in their eye is low and contemptible; therefore

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* A true description of the state of some professors. reason why so many saints, as they are called, fall away. From hence, some take occasion to deny the scriptural, soul-comforting doctrine of the certain perseverance of God's saints unto eternal glory. So they display the pride of their own hearts, their ignorance of God's word, while they make God's promises of no effect, and the gospel of his grace, only-much ado about nothing.

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