The unbelievers preparing for Christ. By T.HThe vnbeleevers preparing for Christ. By T.H

Secondly the means how, and whereby God cometh to draw a poor sinner, from sin to himself. Thirdly, the arguments why God must thus draw with a holy kind of violence, and that God may do this without any prejudice at all to the will. First, what the nature of this drawing is; and we must understand, that there is a double kind of drawing in Scripture, this word implieth a double sense in the phrase of Scripture a there is first a moral kind of drawing, it is a word used by Divines, but that I may speak to the capacity of all, I will term it an outward or an external kind of drawing, which is this, when a man by reasons propounded, and good ⟨p. 21⟩things offered to the understanding and the will, comes thereby to have his mind enlightened, and his will moved and persuaded, to embrace and give entertainment to the things offered: and observe in this two things; first, that it is only outward in regard of the subject; secondly, that it putteth nothing into the heart, but stirreth up that which is in the heart already: there is nothing but objects offered, and arguments propounded to persuade the soul to the love and liking of the thing offered; and this is usual in Scripture, and it is said to be a compelling of a man; it propounds arguments to the soul, and so brings on the soul to the affecting of any thing; in the 16 of the Acts 15. it is said of Lydia after she was converted, her soul clave to the holy man Paul, and she besought them saying; If you have judged me to be faithful to the Lord, abide in my house: and then saith the text, she constrained us, she laid such hooks upon them that she constrained them, how is this? she laid no violent hands upon them, no, but she used arguments that were so forcible, and reasons that were so pithy, that she persuaded the Apostle Paul and those that were with him to yield unto her request: if you have judged me faithful come into my house; as if she had said, if you believe that I have received the grace of God by you, if ever you means to receive any comfort from the blessing of God upon the work wrought in me by your means, if you think that my soul hath been made partaker of any good from you, come then in unto ⟨p. 22⟩my house and abide with me;

Secondly the meanes how, and whereby God commeth to draw a poore sinner, from sinne to himselfe. Thirdly, the arguments why God must thus draw with a holy kind of violence, and that God may do this without any prejudice at all to the will. First, what the nature of this drawing is; and we must understand, that there is a double kind of drawing in Scripture, this word implyeth a double sense in the phrase of Scripture a there is first a morall kind of drawing, it is a word used by Divines, but that I may speak to the capacity of all, I will terme it an outward or an externall kind of drawing, which is this, when a man by reasons propounded, and good