"demn myself for an hypocrite, if such I shall be found "on trial, as to approve myself for sincere and upright: "Yea, I would have it so far from being grievous to me

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so to do, that if I have been all this while mistaken and "deceived, I shall rejoice and bless the Lord with my "soul, that now at last it may be discovered to me, and "I may be set right, though I lay the foundation new "again. This I have laboured to bring my heart to, "knowing that thousands have dashed and split to pieces 66 upon this rock. And indeed he that will own the person of a judge, must put off the person of a "friend.

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"3. It hath been my endeavour to keep upon my heart a deep sense of that great judgment-day throughout this "work, as knowing by experience what a potent in"fluence this hath on the conscience, to make it delibe"rate, serious, and faithful in its work; and therefore I "have demanded of my own conscience, before the re"solution of each question: O my conscience, deal "faithfully with me in this particular, and say no more "to me than thou wilt own and stand to in the great "day, when the counsels of all hearts shall be made "manifest.

"4. Having seriously weighed each mark, and con"sidered wherein the weight and substance of it lieth, I "have gone to the Lord in prayer for his assistance, ere I have drawn up the answer of my conscience; "and as my heart hath been persuaded therein, so have "I determined and resolved; what hath been clear to my "experience, I have so set down, and what hath been "dubious, I have here left it so.

5. I have made choice of the fittest seasons I had "for this work, and set to it when I have found my "heart in the most quiet and serious frame. For as he "that will see his face in a glass, must be fixed, not in "motion, or in the water, must make no commotion "in it, so it is in this case.

"Lastly, To the end I may be successful in this "work, I have laboured all along carefully to distin"guish betwixt such sins as are grounds of doubt"ing, and such as are only grounds of humiliation; "knowing that not every evil is a ground of doubt"ing, though all, even the smallest infirmities, ad"minister matter of humiliation: And thus I have "desired to enterprize this great business. O Lord, "assist thy servant, that he may not mistake here.

"in; but if his conscience do now condemn him, he "may lay a better foundation whilst he hath time, and "if it shall now acquit him, he may also have boldness "in the day of judgment."

These things being previously dispatched, he tried himself by the Scripture marks of sincerity and regeneration; by this means he attained to a well-grounded assurance, the ravishing comforts of which were many times shed abroad in his soul: This made him a powerful and successful preacher, as one who spoke from his own heart to those of others. He preached what he felt, what he had handled, what he had seen and tasted of the word of life, and they felt it also.

We may guess what a sweet and blessed intercourse he had with heaven, from that history we meet with in his "Пuploλoya," p. 323, which I refer to, and likewise from that revelation he had of his father and mother's death, p. 339. He was a mighty wrestler with GOD in secret prayer, and particularly begged of him to crown his sermons, printed books, and private discourses, with the conversion of poor sinners, a work which his heart was much set upon. It pleased GOD to answer him by many instances, of which the two that follow deserve peculiar notice:

In 1673, there came to Dartmouth port a ship of Pool, in her return from Virginia; the surgeon of this ship, a lusty young man of twenty-three years of age, fell into a deep melancholy, which the devil improved to make him murder himself. This he attempted on the Lord's day early in the morning, when he was in bed with his brother; he first cut his own throat with a knife he had prepared on purpose, and leaping out of the bed, thrust it into his stomach, and so lay wallowing in his own blood, till his brother awaked and cried for help. A physician and surgeon were brought, who concluded the wound in his throat mortal: They stitched it up however, and applied a plaster, but without hopes of cure, because he already breathed through the wound, and his voice was become inarticulate. Mr. Flavel came to visit him in this condition, and, apprehending him to be within a few minutes of eternity, laboured to prepare him for it; he asked him his own apprehensions of his condition, and the young man answered, That he hoped in God for eternal life. Mr. Flavel replied, "That he "feared his hopes were ill-grounded; the Scripture tells us, that No murderer hath eternal life abiding in him;

"selt

"self-murder was the grossest of all murder, &c." Mr. Flavel insisted so much upon the aggravations of the crime, that the young man's conscience began to fail, his heart began to melt, and then he broke out into tears, bewailing his sin and misery, and asked Mr. Flavel, If there might yet be any hope for him?" he told him, "There "might:" And finding him altogether unacquainted with the nature of faith and repentance, he opened them to him. The poor man sucked in this doctrine greedily, prayed with great vehemence to Gop that he would work them on his soul, and intreated Mr. Flavel to pray with him, and for him, that he might be, though late, a sincere gospel penitent, and sound believer. Mr. Favel prayed with him accordingly, and it pleased GoD exceedingly to melt the young man's heart during the performance of that duty. He was very lothe to part with Mr. Flavel, but the duty of the day obliged him to be gone; in a few words he summed up those counsels that he thought most necessary, and so took his farewell of him, never expecting to see him any more in this world. But it pleased GOD to order it otherwise; the young man continued alive, contrary to all expectation, panted earnestly after the Lord Jesus, and no discourse was pleasing to him, but that of Christ and faith. In this frame Mr. Flavel found him in the evening; he rejoiced greatly when he saw him come again, intreated him to continue his discourse upon this subject, and told him, Sir, the Lord hath given me repentance for this, and for all my other sins; I see the evil of them now, 'so as I never saw them before! O, I lothe myself! I do also believe: Lord, help my unbelief! I am heartily 'willing to take Christ upon his own terms; but one thing troubles me, I doubt this bloody sin will not be pardoned. Will Jesus Christ, said he, apply his blood to me, that have shed my own blood?" Mr. Flavel told him, "That the Lord Jesus had shed his blood "for them that with wicked hands had shed his own "blood, which was a greater sin than the shedding of "his" to which the wounded man replied, I will 'cast myself upon Christ, let him do what he will.' In this condition Mr. Flavel left him that night.

Next morning his wounds were to be opened, and the surgeon's opinion was, that he would immediately expire: Mr. Flavel was again requested to give him a visit, which he did, found him in a very serious frame, and prayed with him. The wound in his stomach was afterwards opened, when the ventricle was so swollen, that

it came out at the orifice of the wound, and lay like a livid discoloured tripe upon his body, and was also cut through; every one thought it impossible for him to live; however the surgeon enlarged the orifice of the wound, fomented it, and wrought the ventricle again into his body, and, stitching up the wound, left his patient to the disposal of Providence.

It pleased God that he was cured of these dangerous wounds in his body; and, upon solid grounds of a rational charity, there was reason to believe that he was also cured of that more dangerous wound which sin had made on his soul. Mr. Flavel spent many hours with him during the time of his illness; and when the surgeon returned to Pool, after his recovery, Mr. Samuel Hardy, that worthy minister there, thanked Mr. Flavel in a letter, for the great pains he had taken with that young inan, and congratulated his success, assuring him, that if ever a great and thorough work was wrought, it was upon that man.

"

The second instance is this: Mr. Flavel being in London in 1673, his old bookseller, Mr. Boulter, gave him the following relation, viz. That some tine before, there came into his shop a sparkish gentleman to inquire for some play books; Mr. Boulter told him he had none, but shewed him Mr. Flavel's little treatise of Keeping the Heart," intreated him to read it, and assured him it would do him more good than play books.' The gentleman read the title, and glancing upon several pages here and there, broke out into these and such other expressions: What a damnable fanatic was he who made this book ?' Mr. Boulter begged of him to buy and read it, and told him he had no cause to censure it so bitterly;' at last he bought it, but told him he would not read it.' What will you do with it then, said Mr. Boulter? I will tear and burn it, said he, and send it to the devil.' Mr. Boulter told him, then he should not have it.' Upon this the gentleman promised to read it; and Mr. Boulter told him, If he disliked it upon reading, he would return him his money. About a month after, the gentleman came to the shop again in a very modest habit, and, with a serious countenance, bespeaks Mr. Boulter thus: Sir, I most heartily thank you for putting this book into my hands; I bless GoD that moved you to 'do it: it hath saved my soul; blessed be God that ever I came into your shop.' And then he bought a hun

dred

dred more of those books of him, told him he would give them to the poor, who could not buy them,' and so left him, praising and admiring the goodness of God. Thus it pleased Gop to bless the sermons, discourses, and writings of Mr. Flavel.

He never delighted in controversies, but was obliged, contrary to his inclinations, to write against Mr. Cary, the principal baptist in Dartmouth, with whom however he maintained a friendly and Christian correspondence. When he wrote his " Planelogia, or, Blow at the Root," he declared to his friends, that though those studies were very necessary, he took no pleasure in them, but had rather be employed in practical divinity. When he composed his "Reasonableness of personal Reformation," he told an intimate acquaintance of his, "That he sel"dom had a vain thought to interrupt him, which made "him hope it would do the more good in the world." He purposed to have enlarged his book of "Sacra"mental Meditations," and had most judiciously stated and handled several cases of conscience on that occasion, which he designed to have inserted in the next edition, but lived not to finish them for the press.

Many times, when he preached abroad, he has had letters sent him from unknown persons, informing him. how God had blessed his ministry to their souls, and converted them from being bitter enemies to religion. This encouraged him when he rode abroad, not only to accept of invitations to preach, but many times to offer his labours unto those that would be pleased to hear him; though for this he had no occasion where he was known, the people being generally importunate with him. One day after a long and hard journey, an intimate friend of his, out of a tender regard to him, pressed him with cogent arguments to forbear preaching at that season, but could not prevail with him; his bowels of compassion to needy and perishing souls made him overlook all considerations of himself: He preached an excellent sermon, by which there was one converted, as he deelared himself afterwards upon his admission to the Lord's table.

The last sermon that he preached to his people at Dartmouth, was on a public day of fasting and humiliation; in the close of which he was enlarged in such an extraordinary a manner, when offering up praises to GOD for mercies received, that he seemed to be in an extacy. This happened about a week before his death, and may be justly accounted a foretaste of those heavenly raptures