The works of the reverend and faithful servant of Jesus Christ M. Richard Greenham,…The workes of the reuerend and faithfull seruant af Iesus Christ M. Richard Greenham,…

12 Certain it is, that to the cleansing of our selves, as it was in the Law, that the go•• ¹and silver being cleansed for the service of God, had such a defiling by the service of Idols, that no water could wash them clean enough, but being never so well purged, yet they must of necessity pass through the fire: so we say of our corrupt nature, though we cleanse it, and cleanse it very oft and very much, being so much corrupted both of it self and with the touch of outward things; yet it must needs go through fire, and pass by death, which must throughly purge it, without which it cannot wholly be purified. For before an universal cleansing, there must be a dissolution of nature. There may be other services² to use in us, as there was of those beasts that were for meat: but when we must come to that one and immediate service of God, there cannot be any, until our nature he dissolved, and are passed through the furnace of death, and so we shall be freed from all filthiness. In the mean season the cracks and breaches of our nature, and the corruption crept³ into the bones, sinews, and veins hidden in the secret parts, between the marrow and the joints, (whither, the Apostle saith, the word of God doth pierce, Heb. 4. 12▪) I mean the sins of natural corruption shall not be laid to our charge, and for other pollutions in our souls we are to strive against them, and to grow up in the fear of God, which⁴ (2 Cor. 7. 1.) is to fulfil, as the Virgin Mary fulfilled the days of her purification, the days of our sanctification. The word is taken from the text of the book of Numbers, where the days of consecrating a Nazarite must be fulfilled. He should be many days in cleansing himself, which if they were not fulfilled, his sanctification should not be perfect. So that if the Nazarite continued thus until the end, then he should be free: but if even the very