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The Pilgrims meet with Ignorance.

Here therefore they met with a very brisk lad, that came out of that country; and his name was IgnoSo Christian asked him, from what parts he came, and whither he was going.

rance.

IGNOR. Sir, I was born in the country that lieth off there, a little on the left hand, and am going to the Celestial City.

CHR. But how do you think to get in at the gate? for you may find some difficulty there.

IGNOR. As other good people do, said he.

CHR. But what have you to show at that gate, that the gate should be opened to you?

IGNOR. I know my Lord's will, and have been a good liver: I pay every man his own; I pray, fast, pay tithes, and give alms, and have left my country for whither I am going.

CHR. But thou camest not in at the Wicket-gate that is at the head of this way; thou camest in hither through that same crooked lane, and therefore I fear, however thou mayst think of thyself, that when the reckoning day shall come, thou shalt have laid to thy charge that thou art a thief and a robber, instead of getting admittance into the city.

IGNOR. Gentlemen, ye are utter strangers to me; I know you not; be content to follow the religion of your country, and I will follow the religion of mine. I hope all will be well. And as for the gate that you talk of, all the world knows that that is a great way off our country. I cannot think that any men in all our parts do so much as know the way to it; nor need they matter whether they do or not, since they have, as you see, a fine pleasant green lane, that comes down from our country, the next way into it.

When Christian saw that the man was wise in his own conceit, he said to Hopeful whispering, "There is more hope of a fool than of him." (Prov. xxvi. 12.)

•He tells every one he is but a fool.

The Pilgrims converse concerning Ignorance.

And he said moreover, "When he that is a fool walketh by the way, his wisdom faileth him, and he saith to every one that he is a fool. (Eccles. x. 3.) What, shall we talk farther with him, or outgo him at present, and so leave him to think of what he hath here already, and then stop again for him afterwards, and see if by degrees we can do any good to him?" Then said Hopeful:

"Let Ignorance a little while now muse
On what is said, and let him not refuse
Good counsel to embrace, lest he remain
Still ignorant of what's the chiefest gain.
God saith, those that no understanding have,

(Although he made them,) them he will not save."

Hopeful farther added, "It is not good I think, to say to him all at once; let us pass him by, if you will, and talk to him anon, even as he is able to bear it."

So they both went on, and Ignorance he came after. Now when they had passed him a little way, they entered into a very dark lane, where they met a man whom seven devils had bound with seven

t "Ignorance" is the representative of those who consider themselves religious, and safe for glory, though they know nothing of the Lord Jesus Christ as the only means by which men can be saved, or of repentance for sin, or of faith in the atonement; and though they have no experience of the regenerating and sanctifying influence of the Holy Spirit upon their hearts and lives. There are many persons in those connections where evangelical truth is not introduced in the public ministry, and some even where it is faithfully preached, who are so ignorant of the only way of salvation, that they talk with confidence of having been good livers, and of having paid every one his own, &c. and on these accounts expect to merit heaven. Where ignorant persons are thus "wise in their own conceit," they treat advice and cautions, which indicate a suspicion of their safety, with supercilious contempt. They are totally ignorant of every subject which relates to the power of godliness. Instead, therefore, of continuing a conversation with them, it is much better to leave them to meditate on a few pointed questions, hoping that an alteration may be produced in their views and feelings.

Christian relates the History of Littic-Faith.

strong cords, and were carrying back to the door, which they had seen on the side of the hill. (Matt. xii. 45. Prov. v. 22.) Now good Christian began to tremble, and so did Hopeful his companion: yet, as the devils led away the man, Christian looked to see if he knew him; and he thought it might be one Turn-away, that dwelt in the town of Apostasy. But he did not perfectly see his face; for he banged his head like a thief that is found; but being gone past, Hopeful looked after him, and espied on his back a paper, with this inscription, "Wanton professor, and damnable apostate."

Then said Christian to his fellow, "Now I call to remembrance that which was told me of a thing that happened to a good man hereabout. The name of the man was Little-Faith; but he was a good man, and he dwelt in the town of Sincere. The thing was this. At the entering in at this passage, there comes down from Broadway Gate a lane, called Dead-man's Lane; so called, because of the murders that are commonly done there; and this Little-Faith going on pilgrimage, as we do now, chanced to sit down there and slept. Now there happened at that time to come down the lane from Broadway Gate,

"This is a subject of which unrenewed men are ignorant, and which real christians are deeply affected with beholding. A loose professor of evangelical truth is one, who, having "escaped the pollutions of the world through the knowledge of the Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ," has been again entangled therein, and overcome, and is now more vile than he was in what he calls his unconverted state. The "very dark lane" in which "Turn-away' was met by the pilgrims, represents the total darkness of the minds of such wicked professors; for "if the light that is in them be darkness, how great is that darkness!" When their characters are made manifest by their turning away from religion, they are ashamed to look their former pious friends in the face. There is is great cause to fear, that such apostates are hurried away by their lusts towards the awful doom of hypocrites and unbelievers. "His own iniquities," says Solomon, "shall take the wicked himself, and he shall be holden with the cords cf his sins," Prov. v. 22.

Zittie-Faith attacked by Thieves.

three sturdy rogues, whose names were Faint-heart, Mistrust, and Guilt, three brothers; and they espying Little-Faith, where he was, came galloping up with speed. Now the good man was just awakened from his sleep, and was getting up to go on his journey. So they all came up to him, and with threatening language bid him stand. At this, Little-Faith looked as white as a sheet, and had neither power to fight nor fly. Then said Faint-Heart, "Deliver thy purse;" but he making no haste to do it, (for he was loath to lose his money,) Mistrust ran up to him, and thrusting his hand into his pocket, pulled out thence a bag of silver. Then he cried out, "Thieves, thieves." With that Guilt, with a great club that was in his band, struck Little-Faith on the head, and with that blow felled him flat to the ground, where he lay bleeding as one that would bleed to death. All this while the thieves stood by. But at last, hear ing that some were upon the road, and fearing lest it should be one Great Grace, that dwells in the city of Good-Confidence, they betook themselves to their heels, and left this good man to shift for himself. Now after a while Little-Faith came to himself, and getting up, made a shift to scramble on his way. This was the story.*

The fearful end of apostate professors leads genuine christians, especially if they are weak believers, persons of "little faith," to doubt whether they shall not at length act in a similar way. Ir the character now presented to our view, the author designed to show, that real christians, however weak their faith may be, are distinguished by a principle of "sincerity." They often "faint at heart," and though they would not, yet they frequently, "mistrust" the divine promises: and if, by sinning against God, they bring guilt upon their consciences, they are then deprived of all comfort, and fear that they are hypocrites in religion. But encouraged to expect "great grace" from Christ, to help them in time of need, they resolve, by divine help through faith, to pursue their journey. Though very feeble, they "are not of them who draw back unto perdition, but of them that believe to the saving of the soul," Heb. x. 39. Their "incerity" their unwillingness t

Conversation of Christian and Hopeful

HOPE. But did they take from him all that ever he had?

CHR. No: The place where his jewels were they never ransacked; so those he kept still. But, as I was told, the good man was much afflicted for his loss; for the thieves got most of his spending-money. That which they got not (as I said) were jewels; also he had a little odd money left, but scarce enough to bring him to his journey's end. Nay, (if I was not misinformed,) he was forced to beg as he went, to keep himself alive; for his jewels he might not sell. But beg and do what he could, he went (as we say) with many a hungry belly, the most part of the rest of the way. (1 Pet. iv. 18.)

HOPE. But is it not a wonder they got not from nim his certificate, by which he was to receive his admittance at the Celestial Gate?

'CHR. It is a wonder. But they got not that; though they missed it not through any good cunning of his; for he being dismayed with their coming upon him, had neither power nor skill to hide any thing so it was more by good providence than by his endeavour that they missed of that good thing. (2 Tim. i. 12, 14. 1 Pet. i. 5, 9.)

HOPE. But it must needs be a comfort to him that they got not his jewels from him.

CHR. It might have been a great comfort to him, had he used them as he should;, but they that told me the story said, that he made but little use of them all the rest of the way, and that because of the dismay that he had in the taking away of his money. Indeed he forgot them a great part of the rest of his journey; and besides, when at any time they came into his mind, and he began to be comforted there

yield, and their "scrambling on their way," are things which accompany salvation, and which no hypocrites ever knew or experienced.

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